"How should I address this old gentleman?"
On the way back, Chen Fu was rather curious about the old man who had appeared beside Mu En at some unknown point.
"My surname is Long. You may call me Old Dragon." Though the black-clad elder always wore a cold expression, he was undoubtedly much gentler when facing Chen Fu.
"Hmm... so Old Dragon is also a level ninety-nine Peerless Douluo?"
This was clearly the backup Mu En had invited, meant to contend with the dragon Soul Beast named Di Tian.
With Di Tian's terrifying Spiritual Perception black hole, if Mu En had invited someone below level ninety-nine, Chen Fu would have suspected the old man had been replaced.
"Mhm." Long Xiaoyao nodded, then could not help asking, "Did you really make Ma Xiaotao's Soul Tool?"
"Yes. Does Old Dragon have any questions?" Chen Fu glanced at Mu En, who was flying ahead alone with Ma Xiaotao. He finally understood that this old man had been "invited" by him.
"You... what do you think of Evil Soul Masters?" After pondering for a moment, Long Xiaoyao asked tentatively.
"Evil Soul Masters? The kind of Soul Masters who are influenced and controlled by their spirits?"
"Yes, yes, yes. What do you think?"
Chen Fu tilted his head up at the black-clad old man who was carrying him by the collar and gave him a thorough look from top to bottom, leaving the latter somewhat at a loss.
"What? Is there a problem?"
"How did Old Dragon determine that it came from the spirit rather than from one's own heart?"
"...Some spirits amplify evil thoughts. Like that girl's Evil Fire Phoenix—once cultivated to a certain level, it can no longer be suppressed."
"The Evil Fire Phoenix belongs to the second category. The root of the problem lies with the spirit itself."
"Aren't other Evil Soul Masters the same? Wait, the second category? You mean...?"
Long Xiaoyao had been about to refute this little brat who showed him no respect at all, but he immediately realized that their classifications of Evil Soul Masters seemed to differ.
"I originally thought you had come for Melting Ring. I truly did not expect this to be what concerned you most."
The impression Old Dragon gave Chen Fu leaned toward darkness, but not evil. He presumably possessed some kind of dark-attributed spirit.
"Spirits are composed of both the mind and bloodline. Changes in bloodlines can be anticipated; only the mind is unpredictable. Most Spirit Mutations occur in the mind, and the mind also involves certain matters related to the soul."
Shrek City had already appeared before them in the distance. Mu En carried Ma Xiaotao back to the academy, while Long Xiaoyao followed Chen Fu into Lin Pavilion.
He isn't worried at all that I'll be kidnapped?
Seeing that Mu En simply ignored him, Chen Fu silently complained to himself.
"As for inducing Spirit Mutations, I conducted some research when I analyzed the Evil Fire Phoenix. Later, I planned to experiment on that girl, but she refused."
Long Xiaoyao looked at the noisy girl Chen Fu had shooed aside. His gaze paused on her wrist, where he unexpectedly sensed a trace of danger.
"But I still succeeded without her knowing." Chen Fu had never addressed the source of the toxins in Mo Ling's body, and he had even installed a purification device on her wrist.
"Did not expect she had actually swallowed the inner core of a Jade Phosphor Serpent Emperor." Even Chen Fu had to marvel at how tough her life was.
"The phenomenon of acquired Spirit Mutation is right before you now. What do you think?"
He dodged the girl's Hamster Charge. "Don't move around. This is a good thing."
The two options Chen Fu had initially given Mo Ling were actually two directions for spirit mutation. One was an active mutation that granted offensive abilities. The other was a passive mutation, with toxicity focused mainly on defense.
"What good thing? I noticed a while ago that my poison was getting stronger and stronger. Even my little hamster has turned green!" Mo Ling summoned the projection of her spirit. The round yellow-and-white hamster was now somewhat greenish.
"As long as you live well, you'll be fine. Collect the poison regularly, and all the toxins will form a perfect cycle within your body. The longer you live, the safer you'll be." According to the plan, Chen Fu should have recorded Mo Ling's changes throughout the process, but he had been delayed in the Star Dou Great Forest for several days.
"But what am I supposed to do when I get a boyfriend in the future?" The little hamster was somewhat despairing.
"Figure it out yourself."
Chen Fu turned and smiled at Long Xiaoyao.
"Sorry you had to see that."
The latter gave Chen Fu a deep look before replying.
"You mean that sometimes, Spirit Mutation does not even need to consider the will of the spirit itself."
"Yes. So do you still think good and evil are problems with the spirit?"
Chen Fu used honorific language.
"What should be done with Soul Masters who possess evil spirits?"
"Give them a chance. Killing is forbidden."
"What about Soul Masters with acquired evil spirits?"
"Leave none alive."
Chen Fu's tone was calm. Those who stood above humanity could no longer be called human.
"...Do you know who I am?"
Long Xiaoyao was somewhat puzzled.
"I just figured it out."
"Aren't you afraid I'll kill you directly?"
Chen Fu said nothing. He simply lay down and drank tea brewed from leaves taken from his clothes, then pulled out a scale and covered the cup with it to keep the steam from dissipating.
"..."
"Mu En trusts you to protect me, so stop beating around the bush. Tell me, what do you want?"
Chen the Wish Machine Fu was online.
Long Xiaoyao's expression darkened somewhat. It was not that he felt offended; rather, the feeling of not being flattered was unfamiliar to him.
This young man did not actually know the relationship between him and Mu En, yet he seemed completely unguarded against him.
If not for the fact that his request would certainly require the support of a faction to succeed, he would definitely have captured this young man and made him work himself to the bone.
But Long Xiaoyao only had ties to two factions. Compared to the one he had always deeply loved, his former good brothers were more worthy of trust.
"Can you solve the problem with Evil Soul Masters' spirits?"
Pulling back his wandering thoughts, Long Xiaoyao looked squarely at the young man before him.
"With one example already present, how far away can precedent be?"
Chen Fu did not answer directly, instead responding with a rhetorical question.
"I mean solve it completely. Your current methods are all shortcuts!"
"The development of things must follow a gradual process, mustn't it?"
Chen Fu shook his head and ignored Long Xiaoyao. He summoned Little Blue and began checking the data from this time's Soul Ring Engraving. Certain details in the Soul Summoning Composite Matrix Technology still needed refinement, and they were being discovered and improved through repeated data simulations.
"Ten years."
Chen Fu did not keep Long Xiaoyao waiting long before giving his final answer.
"What does that mean?"
"Within ten years, I will give you an answer that satisfies you. How about it?"
With a casual wave, he scattered the Soul Power data model before him. Chen Fu had some ideas for the Second Generation Soul Ring Engraver, though they still needed time to verify.
"...Fine, I agree!"
Though Long Xiaoyao felt Chen Fu should be able to do it faster, he understood that compared to problems no one else had solved for tens of thousands of years, Chen Fu was already exceptional.
Chen Fu's Elderly Support Group +1.
Chen Fu silently complained to himself.
"Alright, find somewhere comfortable to stay. Don't disturb my experiments."
After settling the matter, Chen Fu entered the laboratory again to test his new hypothesis.
Inside the laboratory, Chen Fu was still the only busy figure. Within Lin Pavilion, there was still one... no, now there were two old men drinking tea.
"Did not expect you would take the initiative to seek me out."
"I hadn't planned to. I just happened to be passing by."
"Heh!"
Thank you, good brothers, for the recommendation votes.
Before you continue