First Lesson—A Detailed Breakdown of Soul Master Positioning

The next day, in the basement.

"Hee hee hee hee hee hee." A black shadow was cast on the wall, swaying with the flickering flames. An eerie laugh echoed through the basement.

"What kind of fit are you throwing now?" Xiao Wu covered her face. Gu You had deliberately placed a candle on the table and was striking all sorts of strange poses in front of it.

Although Xiao Wu had asked Tang San in advance what kind of person Gu You was, since she would be spending some time with him, even though Tang San had said that Gu You was sometimes—well, frequently—prone to strange behavior, Xiao Wu still felt her scalp tingle at this level of weirdness.

"Ahem." Gu You came back to his senses and cleared his throat awkwardly. Having a living Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast who had taken human form right in front of him was a little too much for Gu You to handle. It was like placing a cute little girl and a dog in front of a mad scientist. His urge to conduct research had long since begun blazing fiercely.

However, after remembering the tragic fates of various mad scientists, Gu You, as a self-proclaimed outstanding successor to the red cause, decided that he should still make voluntary participation his principle and avoid doing anything coercive(?).

Although it was awkward, Gu You still pretended to be calm and said, "Judging from yesterday, Xiao Wu, you don't really like Agility Attack System Soul Masters. I think you may not understand the divisions and functions of the Soul Master Types. As it happens, I also feel that the current Soul Master classifications are somewhat lacking, so I'll use this opportunity to complete my first paper." More than anything, he was afraid of ending up with eight bullets in his back and being declared a suicide.

Xiao Wu nodded. It was true that she did not want to become an Agility Attack System Soul Master. Agility Attack System Soul Masters could only go after Control System and Support System Soul Masters, and they could not even break through a Control System Soul Master's defenses if the opponent was even slightly stronger.

Gu You pulled the Blackboard over in front of Xiao Wu and wrote two large characters on it with chalk.

"Soul Master?" Xiao Wu asked in confusion, completely unable to understand what Gu You meant.

Gu You turned around and asked, "Xiao Wu, what do you think a Soul Master is?"

Xiao Wu instinctively wanted to say, "A bad person who kills Soul Beasts," but she forced down those words, which did not fit her identity. After thinking about what the teachers had said in class, she answered, "The noblest profession on the entire continent."

"Looks like you weren't sleeping through all your classes." Gu You ignored the look on Xiao Wu's face that clearly said she wanted to curse him and continued asking, "Then why are Soul Masters the noblest profession?"

"Because they can make money. The stronger the Soul Master, the more money they can make." Xiao Wu answered without hesitation.

"Exactly. The reason Soul Masters are noble is that they can make money. Now for the final question: why can Soul Masters make money?"

"Because Spirit Hall gives Soul Master subsidies. You get one Gold Soul Coin every month." Xiao Wu spoke excitedly. Over the past few days, she had used the Gold Soul Coins issued by Spirit Hall to buy a brand-new set of bedding and eat many things she had never tasted in the forest.

"Spirit Hall's Soul Master subsidies only go as far as Soul Elders. They stop paying once you reach a higher rank." Gu You felt that he had asked a stupid question. How could a love-struck rabbit think about things like this?

Gu You gave the answer directly. "Because Soul Masters can kill people. The stronger the Soul Master, the more people they can kill. That's why Soul Masters make the most money: if you don't pay up, I'll kill you and take the money."

"The essence of a Soul Master is something that seizes lives. To become stronger, a Soul Master has to seize the lives of Soul Beasts to obtain Soul Rings and Soul Skills. Why become stronger? So you can seize the lives of other Soul Masters more effectively and obtain more things—power, money, and beautiful women."

"Wherever there are people, there will be desire. Where there is desire, conflict will appear. Conflict requires power. That is why Soul Masters, who possess immense power, became the upper class."

"Every Soul Master is connected to battle. Power Attack System and Agility Attack System Soul Masters unquestionably seize lives directly. Support System Soul Masters strengthen their allies, Food System Soul Masters serve as logistics, Defense System Soul Masters protect their companions, and Control System Soul Masters either weaken the enemy's ability to resist or strengthen their allies' ability to kill."

"No Soul Master is completely unrelated to battle. None. So Soul Masters are no different from weapons."

The Hundred-Thousand-Year old rabbit stared at Gu You in astonishment. This was the first time she had ever seen a human describe his own profession as a weapon. From his tone, Xiao Wu could clearly sense Gu You's dissatisfaction with the profession of Soul Master.

"Sorry, I got a little too worked up." Gu You picked up the cup on the table and took a huge gulp. "Now, after defining Soul Masters as weapons, it's easy to see how crude the current classification is."

"First," Gu You said as he began writing and drawing on the Blackboard, "the mainstream view currently divides Soul Masters into Power Attack System, Agility Attack System, Control System, and Support System. The less common types include Healing System, Food System, and Defense System."

"In the simplest terms, those with powerful attack abilities are Power Attack System Soul Masters; those who are fast and can attack are Agility Attack System Soul Masters; those who can control the battlefield are Control System Soul Masters; those who can help their allies are Support System Soul Masters; those who can restore injuries are Healing System Soul Masters; those whose Martial Souls can be eaten are Food System Soul Masters; and those who cannot attack but are extremely tough and can protect their allies are Defense System Soul Masters."

"That creates a problem. Take my Martial Soul, the Ultimate Conductor Tyranno. I'm a Power Attack System Soul Master, but I'm completely different from other Power Attack System Soul Masters with Tool Martial Souls. Yet we're all called Power Attack System Soul Masters."

"There's also the Support System and Food System. These two are actually both types of Soul Masters who provide buffs to their allies, but they are separated simply because their Martial Souls may or may not be edible. The same applies to the Healing System."

"So now, I want to reclassify the Soul Master Types and retain only the following categories."

Gu You took an eraser and wiped away several terms, leaving only "Power Attack System," "Agility Attack System," "Control System," and "Support System."

Looking at the Blackboard, Gu You explained, "Food System and Healing System will be classified under Support System, while Defense System will be incorporated into Power Attack System."

"After that, each type will need to be divided very carefully."

"First is the Power Attack System. Its requirements are extremely complex: it needs the powerful attack power to stand at the very front of the team and endure the most damage, as well as the ability to break through the enemy's defenses alone. Possessing either one of these abilities, or both, is enough to qualify someone as a Power Attack System Soul Master. Therefore, dividing the type further gives us Stall-Type Power Attack System and Armor-Piercing Power Attack System. The former Defense System Soul Masters will be incorporated into the Stall Type. Then, based on attack method, they can be divided into ranged and close-combat types."

"To sum up, according to my classification method, I, as the owner of the Martial Soul Ultimate Conductor Tyranno, am a close-combat Stall-Type Power Attack System Soul Master."

P.S. According to the original work, the division of Soul Masters is far too crude. Tang San, who uses the Clear Sky Hammer, Dai Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and even Xiao Wu are all classified as Power Attack System Soul Masters, but their roles in a team are completely different. Tang San cannot do what Dai Mubai does, and Xiao Wu cannot do what Ma Hongjun does.

I wonder if anyone has played Princess Connect or Fate/Grand Order. Even when two characters both serve as supports, different areas of support lead to different team-building requirements.

People have criticized my ideas and settings. Although I explained them, I still feel a little upset—grief-stricken, sobbing uncontrollably, heartbroken... Only recommendation votes, collections, and monthly votes can comfort me a little. (Sneaks a glance, sneaks another glance.) There might be another update around midnight, but I'm not sure. Everyone should still get some rest early.