Spirit Pagoda, Deep Schemes

Seeing that Tang Wulin was interested, the Spirit Transmitter became talkative and rambled on about the legends of the First Generation Tower Master and the Spirit Pagoda, thereby completing his routine task of boosting its reputation.

As for how he had put down the Sea God and the Shrek Seven Devils... their First Generation Tower Master was not from Shrek Academy, so what was wrong with putting them down?

Shrek could boast about its own Ancestor and put down the Spirit Pagoda, so why could they not do the same? There was no such rule, was there?

Besides, there was no one from Shrek Academy in a place like Aolai City. The Spirit Pagoda called the shots here!

As for the Sea God...

He probably could not hear it, right? And even if He did, He would not hand down divine punishment over something so trivial, would He? After all, everything he had said was true.

Tang San's Divine Sense, which had heard every word:

"..."

He... endured it!

Of two evils, choose the lesser. Even if this man had already earned a death sentence, in order to complete the Ten Thousand Year Plan, it was not wise to lose his temper now and waste the power of a God King.

But the apple did not fall far from the tree. From this Spirit Transmitter alone, it was clear that the Spirit Pagoda held not the slightest respect for deities. They even spread Evil's doctrines and poisoned Wulin's mind. Every last one of them had earned a death sentence!

Once the future war against the Abyss was over, none of these guilty people would be resurrected!

As he thought this, the Tang God King's Divine Sense could not help but frown.

He usually did not pay attention to Wulin's life and had remained asleep all this time. But recently, he had sensed a change in Douluo's destiny. Wulin, who should have become the protagonist of this era under his arrangements, was actually losing his fortune!

"Who stole his fortune? Who is interfering with my Ten Thousand Year Plan? What a short-sighted fool! Do you want Douluo Star to be devoured by the Abyss?!"

The Tang God King's gaze darkened.

Elsewhere, Tang Wulin listened with relish to the stories he had never heard before. By the time the Spirit Transmitter finished, they had arrived at the place where Soul Spirits were kept.

The surrounding walls were made of special soul-conducting materials, giving off a faint blue glow that cast the entire space in a mysterious, tranquil atmosphere.

The Internal Space resembled a miniature ecosystem, with small lakes, forests, and mountains. Soul Spirits were scattered throughout, waiting for those fated to find them.

Quite a few struggling families had already brought their children here to search for Soul Spirits. Every so often, someone received a Soul Spirit's recognition, followed by a burst of jubilant cheers.

"Go on. You have half an hour. It would be best to look for a Ten-Year Soul Spirit. Century Soul Spirits possess greater intelligence and pride; without sufficient strength and talent, you will not earn their recognition."

Though he said that, the Spirit Transmitter knew Tang Wulin would definitely try his luck with a Century Soul Spirit first.

Since he had come all this way and had only this one chance, he would surely be unwilling to settle without trying for the best.

But in the Spirit Transmitter's experience, very few people could earn a Century Soul Spirit's recognition. Most ended up with Ten-Year Soul Spirits. In that case, he only needed to follow the rules.

As for someone like the boy before him, if he truly gained a Century Soul Spirit's recognition, that would be another matter entirely.

When Tang Wulin earned the recognition of a Century Soul Spirit, Tang Ziran's expression was complicated yet filled with wild joy. The Spirit Transmitter, after a moment of private surprise, regained his composure.

"This Soul Spirit is a Gray Sea Snake, a relatively rare Sea Soul Beast in the Spirit Pagoda. Are you sure you want it?"

Over the ten thousand years, some Sea Soul Beast clans had also wised up. They had taken the initiative to contact the Star Dou Great Forest, the Extreme North, or the Mermaid Clan, which likewise had a contract with the Spirit Pagoda, and joined the great Soul Spirit family. Naturally, the Spirit Pagoda welcomed all comers.

"Yes!" Tang Wulin nodded earnestly.

This Soul Spirit had chosen him first. Even if he could obtain a better one, he would not let it down!

A faint smile appeared on the Spirit Transmitter's lips. "Good. I'll take you to review the relevant terms. If you're willing to sign them, I'll bring you to form the Soul Spirit Contract."

With that, he led the way out. At the same time, while the two were not paying attention, he took out his Communicator and reported to his superior.

"Tang Wulin, nine years old. Martial Soul: Blue Silver Grass. Suspected to possess a special bloodline. Has received the recognition of a Century Soul Spirit. Currently holds a favorable attitude toward the Spirit Pagoda... Recommend investigating his background and providing certain conveniences. Continue observation."

With Soul Spirits helping them screen candidates, they could often uncover overlooked talents among Soul Masters from commoner backgrounds.

After so many years of observation, the Spirit Pagoda had discovered that Soul Spirits—especially those made from Soul Beasts—were more sensitive than humans when it came to bloodlines. Tang Wulin's ability to gain a Century Soul Spirit's recognition indicated that he possessed special bloodline and talent!

Other than the handling fee, the Spirit Transmitter did not charge Tang Wulin for any of the later services. This left Tang Wulin with an overwhelmingly favorable impression of him. Taking the opportunity to draw closer, he also learned quite a bit of interesting information from Tang Wulin.

Different from ordinary people since childhood, strong, ate a lot, had earned thirty thousand through forging in three years, and was still a child who had to cultivate and study...

It seemed that the boy possessed extraordinary talent in forging! He likely had some special bloodline...

At that thought, the Spirit Transmitter hesitated for a moment before reluctantly taking off his Bracelet. It bore a tower-shaped emblem, and he handed it to Tang Wulin.

"This is a Space Storage Soul Tool. It has nearly one cubic meter of storage space and is only given to Soul Masters with potential. With it, you can receive basic subsidies at other Spirit Pagoda branches."

A Space Storage Soul Tool bearing the Spirit Pagoda's emblem was not so easily obtained. Especially in a small place like Aolai City, he had only gotten it through connections.

But the Spirit Transmitter had a feeling that if he gave it to Tang Wulin and marked him as one of the Spirit Pagoda's own, his promotion would not be far off!

This was his personal investment. Just like that Anya who had gotten promoted, if one wanted a promotion, one had to learn to seize opportunities. That was the First Generation Tower Master's teaching!

Tang Wulin was startled. "No! My talent isn't that strong. This is far too valuable."

His parents had always taught him to repay kindness. This Spirit Transmitter had already helped him so much; he could not take his things.

Soul Tools were all extremely valuable, let alone Space Storage Soul Tools. If he sold it, it would probably be enough to cover the cost of the Soul Spirit...

"Take it. You've earned a Century Soul Spirit's recognition, and I think highly of you." The Spirit Transmitter forcibly pressed it into Tang Wulin's hand. "If you feel indebted, then show me your very best. Let me know that I was not wrong about you!"

"Um..." Tang Wulin hesitantly looked toward Tang Ziran.

Seeing this, Tang Ziran roughly understood what the Spirit Transmitter was thinking. But in his view, if Tang Wulin could join a major force like the Spirit Pagoda, it would bring Wulin many benefits, and he would not be implicated by Wulin's secret. Thus, he smiled and nodded.

"Wulin, accept it. I believe that with a Century Soul Spirit, you can go very far and repay this kindness."

Tang Wulin stared blankly at the bracelet upon hearing this, then finally looked at the Spirit Transmitter with determination.

"Sir Spirit Transmitter, one day, I'll give you the very best Space Storage Soul Tool!"

Tang San's Divine Sense: "..."

What kind of routines did you people at the Spirit Pagoda have? Why were there so many tricks?

If Spirit Hall had been like this back then...

A trace of wariness and irritation flashed through Tang San's Divine Sense's eyes.

Huo Yuhao truly had been the Child of Luck from Ten Thousand Years Ago. The power he had left behind had actually developed to such an extent.

Da Ming and Er Ming should have been made to curb their growth back then. Otherwise, things would not have become so passive.

Now there was even a villain who stole luck. With so many variables, what was a mere strand of his Divine Sense supposed to do?

Elsewhere, after Tang Wulin completed the contract and left the Spirit Pagoda, he stood before his Forging Teacher—Mang Tian. The latter fell silent as he looked at the storage soul tool bearing the Spirit Pagoda's emblem.

How had this brat gone to the Spirit Pagoda once and gotten bought off by them?

How was I supposed to give you a storage soul tool with a capacity of one-seventh of a cubic meter as a gift now?

What a misfortune for the master's lineage!

Mang Tian looked at Tang Wulin, wanting to speak but stopping himself, then wanting to speak again.

In the end, he could only sigh.

Forget it. It was a good thing that Wulin had obtained a Century Soul Spirit.

But the more he thought about it, the more cheated he felt. The disciple he had raised had somehow become someone else's.

His circumstances back then had been better than Wulin's. He truly had not known that the Spirit Pagoda had another set of tricks specifically aimed at Commoner Soul Masters...

Whoever invented this scheme, I will never coexist with you!