The First Generation Tower Master's Admonition

"As members of the Spirit Pagoda, we must remember never to become love-obsessed. We must bear in mind why Spirit Hall perished. Spirit Hall was destroyed not because it lacked strength, but because it produced far too many bizarre love-obsessed fools."

"If any younger descendant becomes love-obsessed, loving someone from another faction to the point of utter devotion, and the elders cannot cure them, it is recommended that they be handed over to the Soul Beasts for physical treatment! At the same time, such people must be prohibited from becoming Spirit Pagoda higher-ups!"

Standing at the podium, Hua Yichen read the contents of the book in a rigid, textbook manner. He then set down the copy of The First Generation Tower Master's Admonition in his hand and looked at Huo Yuhao, who was seated below.

"Yuhao, did you understand? In a few days, you will enter the Academy. If you come to like a girl, you must remain rational. You cannot lay bare your heart and soul for her. Or, you can simply bring her into the Spirit Pagoda. Otherwise, no matter how talented you are, you will never have the chance to soar straight to the clouds."

"You may not understand, but to the Spirit Pagoda, the Soul Beast side matters more than many people realize. They are terrified that we will follow in Spirit Hall's footsteps. They truly would use physical treatment to keep the younger generation of the Spirit Pagoda clear-headed and rational. Some may resent them because of it, but so long as no lasting harm is done, there are even more people who support it."

At this point, Hua Yichen switched to voice transmission.

"One of the current Vice Tower Masters, Sky Phoenix Douluo, and her younger sister both liked Sky Pillar Douluo when they were young. Her sister nearly fell into darkness and became an Evil Soul Master because of it."

"Fortunately, due to The First Generation Tower Master's Admonition, the Spirit Pagoda has always placed great importance on this matter. The Leng Family Patriarch noticed the warning signs in time and directly detained Sky Phoenix Douluo's younger sister. In a fit of rage, he handed her over to the Snow Empress and had her remain in the Extreme North for ten years. No one knew what happened during that time."

"After she came out, she and Sky Phoenix Douluo embraced and wept bitterly together. She seemed to have returned to normal and never again said that she liked Sky Pillar Douluo. Even so, she was no longer qualified to become a Spirit Pagoda higher-up. Sky Phoenix Douluo, on the other hand, was not quite so outrageous and became a Vice Tower Master."

Huo Yuhao: "..."

If this were still the original plot, they had probably only wept because the misunderstanding had been resolved.

And was Sky Phoenix Douluo really normal? She had been a love-obsessed fool who had said she wanted to be Sky Pillar Douluo's secret lover. Maybe she had merely reined herself in under the pressure of strict policies...

Huo Yuhao's thoughts wandered for a moment before shifting to the most important matter.

That said, he understood all these principles. But could someone tell him what was going on with that book's title? These were his admonitions?

He had never left behind a book like this, much less said to hand people over to Soul Beasts for punishment...

"Tian Meng, Ice Empress, I never made any kind of admonitions, did I?"

Ice Empress said, "Yuhao, have you forgotten? This is an improved—or rather, upgraded—version of the things you said when teaching Su Tong. The part about Spirit Hall's destruction was your exact wording."

Huo Yuhao: "..."

Sorry, he remembered now.

Worried that the Spirit Pagoda would die out in its second generation, he had held Su Tong to rather high standards. He had educated her properly and corrected some of her ideas. After all, looking at the major factions in the original work, how many higher-ups were not love-obsessed fools? This was Love Continent, after all...

He just had not expected Su Tong to turn the things he had said into admonitions, pass them down, and make them into something he now had to study.

Was this... the wheel of reincarnation turning? Who could escape Azure Heaven's judgment?

This was utterly absurd.

Tian Meng said somewhat uncertainly, "As for handing them over to the Soul Beasts... that was probably something the later Spirit Pagoda elders came up with to scare people, right? How would Snow Empress and Di Tian have the time to manage a group of juniors? It was just that Sky Phoenix Douluo's sister was too outrageous and happened to run into the barrel of the gun?"

With Ancestral Teachings in place, she had still loved someone so intensely that she nearly became an Evil Soul Master. If it were him, he would toss her to the Soul Beasts too and have them train her properly!

Huo Yuhao found it strange inwardly, but his expression did not reveal it. He merely looked at Hua Yichen. "Teacher Hua, can I take a look at that book?"

"It was meant for you. Only Spirit Pagoda Core Disciples are allowed to read it, after all. Some of its ideas may seem rather unorthodox to ordinary people."

Hua Yichen handed it to Huo Yuhao. The latter flipped through it and found that it was indeed adapted from things he had once said. Amid his speechlessness, he also felt a little nostalgic.

That Su Tong... if he ever had the chance, he would have a proper talk with her.

After impressing upon Huo Yuhao the horrors of becoming love-obsessed, Hua Yichen planned to take him to the Training Ground and teach him practical combat.

Over the past three years, he had also realized that he did not need to worry about Huo Yuhao's cultivation or his absorption of knowledge and experience. The boy learned very quickly.

Strictly speaking, practical combat did not need instruction either. But if he did not demonstrate anything, Hua Yichen felt that, as a teacher, he would lose face.

Watching Huo Yuhao calmly shift and evade beneath his suppressed attacks, Hua Yichen sighed inwardly.

At nine years old, after taking the Soul Ascension Pill, his Soul Power had already reached the peak of Level Thirty-Two, while his Spiritual Power had reached the Spirit Sea Realm. Hua Yichen did not even know how he was supposed to report this.

And there was the Youth Genius List he had mentioned before. What rank should he give Huo Yuhao?

The boy was still young, and some soul masters had progressed by leaps and bounds in the early stages of cultivation, only to find every step difficult later on. Although Hua Yichen was confident that Huo Yuhao would not encounter such a situation, he could not place him too high right away.

He would choose a spot within the top ten.

"Tower Master, President Li has come to visit!"

At that moment, the sound of knocking and a report from a Staff Member came one after another.

"What is he here for?" Hua Yichen was initially stunned, then he reacted and looked at Huo Yuhao.

Right. With two Level Three sub-professions, it was not strange for Li Yucheng to be unable to sit still.

The reception room at the top of the Spirit Pagoda was simple yet comfortable. A dark brown wooden conference table stood in the center, with cream-colored two-seater sofas arranged on either side. Li Yucheng sat on one of them.

"Tower Master Hua, where is Huo Yuhao's sub-profession teacher?"

When Hua Yichen entered the reception room, Li Yucheng rose to his feet and said anxiously, "I want to meet him. How did he teach Huo Yuhao? How could he possibly—"

Huo Yuhao stepped out from behind Hua Yichen, causing Li Yucheng's words to stop abruptly. His expression became somewhat awkward, and his gaze began to drift.

Speaking ill of someone's teacher in front of the student himself would probably leave a bad first impression.

Hua Yichen smiled, dispelling the awkward atmosphere. He and Huo Yuhao sat down opposite Li Yucheng.

"Yuhao taught himself. He has no sub-profession teacher... If you insist, then the Mecha Manufacturers and Mecha Designers in this Spirit Pagoda are all his teachers."

Li Yucheng raised an eyebrow, feeling that it was just as he had expected.

He had said it before—who would not treasure a peerless genius in the palm of their hand? Who would let them waste their talent?

But if that was the case, then it was Huo Yuhao's own decision...

Li Yucheng looked at Huo Yuhao with a complicated expression and said solemnly, "I am Li Yucheng, president of the Eastsea City Mecha Master Association and an Eighth-Level Mecha Manufacturer. Huo Yuhao, I have seen your works many times. I must remind you: excess is as bad as deficiency. Only by focusing on one thing can you reach the pinnacle!"

"Thank you for your concern, but I am merely digging deeper into the fields I excel at. I am not wasting my talent." Huo Yuhao shook his head.

He had always known exactly what he was good at.

"You want to follow the path of the Soul Engineers from ten thousand years ago, don't you? But you must understand that the present is no longer the same as the past."

Li Yucheng sighed at that. "In the past, Soul Engineers could handle forging, design, manufacturing, repairs, and even combat. But now, the knowledge within every field is far too vast. If you want to take that path... it will be far too difficult."

To people of the present day, the Soul Engineers of ten thousand years ago were practically monsters—terrifying existences who pushed themselves to an outrageous extreme.

Didn't they get tired, doing so many things by themselves?

A bunch of Roll Kings. No wonder they had been able to suppress the Douluo Three Kingdoms and Shrek...

"I only want to complete a Soul Tool that belongs to me."

Huo Yuhao then named someone who surprised Hua Yichen and the other man.

"Have you heard of the Silver Moon Douluo, President?"

"I never expected Spirit Ice Your Excellency to be the one to visit me in the end. As the Tower Master of the Spirit Pagoda, even if you are not burdened with endless daily affairs, you cannot have that much free time, can you? Why come witness one man's final road?"

An aged voice, carrying a trace of self-mockery, came from the broad sickbed. The once high-spirited Silver Moon Douluo had now reached his twilight years.

Standing in the shadows at the corner of the room, Huo Yuhao's gaze was somewhat complicated.

"Elder Kong, will the Natal Soul Tool not be passed down?"

"My descendants do not possess Spirit Ice Your Excellency's talent. They cannot do it."

Kong Deming shook his head, his already-clouded eyes fixed on Huo Yuhao.

If the other man had devoted the time he spent cultivating his Martial Soul to Soul Tools instead, perhaps he might have gone even farther than Kong Deming.

Yet even though he had wasted his energy on other pursuits, after years of accumulation, he was still the only Soul Engineer in this world capable of discussing the Dao with him. If he had joined the Sun Moon Empire in the past... truly, what a pity.

Kong Deming sighed. "Besides, the war is over. The Empire has won. The Soul Engineers who come after us will have no enemies. They will only delve into the fields they like and immerse themselves in research."

"In the end, the profession of Soul Engineer may completely become synonymous with researcher. Everyone will have their own specialty, but no one will be as well-rounded as we are now."

"And if a Natal Soul Tool is to suit its user, it cannot possibly be entrusted to another's hands. At the very least, its design and manufacturing must be done personally. I have already foreseen the day when this kind of Soul Tool declines. On the other hand, the Battle Armor Prototype you developed is more likely to flourish."

Huo Yuhao looked at Kong Deming and said in a low voice, "Then... what if I inherit it?"

Kong Deming froze.

Huo Yuhao continued with a smile, "In the name of... the Spirit Pagoda!"

Kong Deming fell silent for a long while, then burst into laughter. "Good! I'll leave it to you!"