God Plate Dao Art, Eight Deceitful Gods Soaring Serpent Return to Position (4K)

"Not bad. Your soul power cultivation is already outstanding among your peers, and your Spirit Sea Realm mental strength has reached the minimum standard for a Title Douluo. You're still young, so your future achievements are limitless."

Leng Yaozhu looked at the two with a gratified expression, then turned her gaze to Na'er and spoke:

"Illusion Brain sent a soul guidance communication asking you to go find him. Something about a mecha repair exam paper?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the upward curve of Na'er's lips instantly drooped. She shot a resentful glare at Zhao Xuanzhen and said, "You're not human. You even dragged me into this!"

Illusion Brain Douluo had conducted a mecha repair assessment the night before. Upholding the principle of combining theory with practice, the exam was divided into two parts: a written test and hands-on operation.

The last major question on the written test was somewhat over-the-top, involving knowledge of Three-Word Battle Armor repair. The day before the exam, Han Tianyi had given the two of them a mecha repair casebook, which contained the exact answers written out verbatim.

Zhao Xuanzhen felt Han Tianyi wouldn't act without reason and suggested Na'er skim through it. Na'er clearly didn't take it seriously, and the result was that she ended up being tortured in the Real Illusion, chased all over the field by Snake Emperor Medusa, clutching her head in panic.

"Ah..."

Na'er let out a long sigh, feeling a weariness that seemed too old for her young age.

"Hurry up and go. Medusa is getting impatient." Zhao Xuanzhen patted her on the shoulder, openly twisting the knife. "Next time, remember to memorize the answers."

Na'er said indignantly, "Memorizing the answers in your head—what's the difference between that and cheating? Dare to have a fair and square match!"

With that, she wore a bitter expression on her small face and stepped forward with tragic steps to face Medusa's gaze.

After Na'er left, Leng Yaozhu turned her head to look at Zhao Xuanzhen: "Since Illusion Brain is testing mecha repair, I should also assess your mecha design and mecha manufacturing."

"No problem, teacher." Zhao Xuanzhen readily agreed.

Master and disciple arrived at the Deputy Tower Master's exclusive Battle Armor Room. Leng Yaozhu lightly tapped a metal table, and a time display appeared as a countdown began.

"Xuanzhen, within two hours, craft a soul tool at the limit of your ability."

Zhao Xuanzhen nodded. After four years of study and life, this wasn't his first time undergoing a timed assessment. His eyes swept over the dozens of metals on the table, and he quickly made a decision, picking up a silver-white metal.

Rare metal: Sinking Silver.

Soul tools were different from battle armor or mechas; they didn't require extremely strict forging. Especially for low-to-mid-level soul tools below the seventh rank, simple refinement was enough.

Finishing the preparatory work swiftly, the cubic Sinking Silver transformed into small pieces of metal. Zhao Xuanzhen held a piece of Sinking Silver in his left hand and a blue engraving knife in his right.

The engraving knife was a key tool for a Soul Tool Master to inscribe the Core Formation. This knife was as clear as crystal, with a deep blue handle that gradually lightened as the blade extended, turning transparent at the sharp tip.

After a brief inspection of the Sinking Silver, Zhao Xuanzhen got to work. His carving movements were extremely swift—once the knife went down, he never paused. To the watching Leng Yaozhu, the engraving knife in Zhao Xuanzhen's fingers kept flipping, like a dancing ice flower.

"A style taking shape..." Leng Yaozhu murmured to herself.

A Soul Tool Master inscribes Core Formations on rare metals, while a Mecha Manufacturer inscribes core formations that amplify martial souls on forged metals. The two shared a similar principle.

For a Mecha Manufacturer to break through to the seventh rank or higher, they must comprehend their own style. As an eighth-rank Mecha Manufacturer, Leng Yaozhu could clearly see that Zhao Xuanzhen was currently in the process of exploring his style, but it was gradually forming a prototype, setting him on the necessary path of a high-level Mecha Manufacturer.

Time passed slowly. The surface of the Sinking Silver was covered with dense, intricate patterns. Leng Yaozhu's eyebrows furrowed slightly as she said in confusion, "Energy Accumulation, Energy Accumulation, Energy Accumulation, Energy Accumulation, Blast, Blast..."

While Sinking Silver's soul power conductivity was excellent and its texture harder than ordinary rare metals, it couldn't withstand the load of four soul power energy accumulations no matter what. Are you making a disposable soul tool?"

Leng Yaozhu didn't deliberately lower her voice, but Zhao Xuanzhen showed no intention of enlightening his teacher. He ignored everything outside his ears, focusing solely on making the soul tool as fine Sinking Silver powder drifted and scattered.

"Now you're carving an Acceleration Formation. Looks like it's a disposable blast type." Leng Yaozhu suddenly understood.

"Teacher, you're not deliberately trying to distract me, are you?" Zhao Xuanzhen couldn't help but say.

The soul of a soul tool was its Core Formation. The crafting process allowed no room for error—a slight deviation could lead to a vast difference. Leng Yaozhu's voice kept ringing out, and he seriously suspected she was doing it on purpose!

"An ability assessment should always contain challenges."

Leng Yaozhu smiled somewhat slyly, admitting without hesitation: "I am one of the challenges you face.

A friendly reminder: passing the assessment comes with a reward."

"Care to give me a hint?"

Leng Yaozhu said with a smile, "Over these four years, you and Na'er have been cultivating at the Spirit Pagoda, rarely going out and only taking half a day off each week. Tomorrow, I'll take you both on a trip to enjoy the beautiful natural scenery, have some fun, and relax."

"That's quite tempting."

Zhao Xuanzhen's hands remained steady as he asked curiously, "Which city is teacher planning to take us to?

Heaven Dou City, Star Luo City, Lingdou City, Dragon City?"

Leng Yaozhu chuckled: "None of those.

One of the cities where the Spirit Pagoda's Eighteen Heavenly Pillars are located: Eastsea City.

Eastsea City is a coastal city with abundant tourism resources and is the origin of many of the Federation's seafood. You two can sunbathe and eat seafood while I go assess a genius, and then we'll all take a short vacation together."

"Assess a genius?"

A flicker of strangeness passed through Zhao Xuanzhen's eyes, and he said calmly, "What kind of genius is worth teacher going in person?"

Leng Yaozhu smiled: "A first-grade student at Eastsea Academy, about the same age as you. A very talented little girl named Gu Yue."

As Zhao Xuanzhen had expected, the genius that drew Leng Yaozhu to Eastsea City was Gu Yue!

Gu Yue appearing in Eastsea City meant she had found Tang Wulin and was targeting the Golden Dragon King God Core inside him!

Unaware of Zhao Xuanzhen's thoughts, Leng Yaozhu continued, "Gu Yue's martial soul is called Elementalist. Like your True Self and Na'er's Silver Dragon Spear, it's unique.

Elements are a powerful ability. A single-element martial soul is enough to make the Great Powers compete to extend olive branches, but Elementalist not only controls multiple elements but can also combine them!"

"The master of the Eastsea City Spirit Transferring Tower is an old subordinate of mine. According to him, Gu Yue displayed the six elements of earth, water, wind, fire, light, and space within the basic Spirit Ascension Platform. He strongly urged me to take her in, and she also expressed willingness to join the Spirit Transferring Tower."

"Am I about to get a junior sister?"

"No, never. Not ever."

Leng Yaozhu's tone was very serious: "If it weren't for you, I might have accepted Gu Yue as a disciple. But now, you are the teacher's only disciple.

This trip to Eastsea City was indeed to recruit Gu Yue into the Spirit Transferring Tower, granting her the status of a Core Disciple. More importantly, it was to bring her into the Phoenix Family faction, to have her stand on our side. After all, the Spirit Transferring Tower is filled with competing clans, not a single united front.

Now that the main Leng Family bloodline is dwindling, Xiao Ling comes from the collateral Spirit Phoenix line. You are her son, my Direct Disciple, and you must inevitably take my place.

Na'er, Gu Yue, even Big White and Little White—all of them are indispensable helpers for you.

By the way, Gu Yue has a reclusive force behind her. Her mother once discussed joining the Spirit Transferring Tower face-to-face with the East Sea Tower Master, hoping Gu Yue could skip the branch's training period and go directly to headquarters.

That person called herself Purple Dragon Douluo. The East Sea Tower Master believes she is at least a Super Douluo. This shows Gu Yue's background is extraordinary."

Gu Yue has a mother? Purple Dragon Douluo?

Zhao Xuanzhen didn't believe a word of it. A name suddenly surfaced in his mind.

The ninth-ranked ferocious beast of the continent, Hell Demon Dragon King Ziji!

Dragon Clan bloodline, a True Dragon Soul Beast. She would be the perfect fit to play Gu Yue's mother.

It seemed Gu Yue had chosen that path after all—seize the Golden Dragon King God Core, join the Spirit Transferring Tower, display her talent and background to gain the attention of the Tower's high-level, then establish the Ten Thousand Beast Platform to control human Soul Masters, completing the Soul Beasts' revenge against humanity!

"Why are you just chatting with me? Focus on carving the Core Formation—your speed has dropped!" Leng Yaozhu tapped the table.

"Teacher, you started the topic..."

"I am the difficulty; you must overcome it, not climb the pole." Leng Yaozhu watched Zhao Xuanzhen leisurely, vividly demonstrating what it meant to be right no matter what.

The Soul Tool crafting had reached a critical stage. If Leng Yaozhu kept distracting him, it would probably fail. Zhao Xuanzhen thought for a moment, and a design drawing floated out from his Storage Soul Tool, landing in front of Leng Yaozhu.

"Teacher, how about taking a look at this drawing?"

"Fine."

Leng Yaozhu accepted the challenge, shifting her gaze to the drawing. Her delicate body trembled involuntarily, and her phoenix eyes sparkled with brilliance.

The drawing depicted a One-Word Battle Armor design, nearly complete. Even with her discerning eye as a Ninth Rank Mecha Designer, she could find no major flaws.

Normally, breaking through to the third rank in a Second Profession allowed one to attempt researching One-Word Battle Armor. Perfecting it required a fourth-rank level. Based on this design drawing alone, Zhao Xuanzhen was already a Fourth Rank Mecha Designer!

"Genius..."

Leng Yaozhu was deeply shaken, analyzing and deconstructing Zhao Xuanzhen's design philosophy bit by bit.

With his distracting teacher handled, Zhao Xuanzhen picked up speed again. The Engraving Knife was like a wisp of gentle breeze—touching and leaving without lingering, his fluid movements as if the knife was lightly caressing the surface of the Sinking Silver.

Master and disciple—one studied in silence, the other focused on carving. Outside the window, the sky gradually darkened. The soft lights in the Battle Armor Room turned on automatically, keeping the space bright. Neither Zhao Xuanzhen nor Leng Yaozhu paid attention to this change, both completely immersed in their own worlds.

The countdown ended. The Sinking Silver had become a hollow-carved, conical Soul Tool. The shell's lines were winding and intricate, full of three-dimensionality.

An alloy wall rose from the floor. Zhao Xuanzhen infused it with soul power and hurled it. A series of harsh explosive sounds followed, and metal powder flew into the air.

Leng Yaozhu affirmed: "A modified Charged High-Explosive Bullet, mixed with Fixed Soul Tool technology. Its power is slightly inferior to an ordinary fourth-rank Fixed Soul Tool Cannonball, but the production cost is much lower—economical and practical.

Congratulations. A ten-year-old Fourth Rank Mecha Manufacturer and Fourth Rank Mecha Designer."

"Not just that," Zhao Xuanzhen said. "Old Han certified that Na'er and I are both Fourth Rank Mecha Repairers."

Leng Yaozhu recalled that nearly impossible agreement—all three Second Professions breaking through to the fourth rank within five years. Zhao Xuanzhen had done it in only four.

"One wave pushes the next..." she sighed. "From now on, I will no longer stop you from cultivating all three professions simultaneously."

"Thank you, Teacher."

"Between teacher and disciple, there's no need for thanks..."

Her jade hand gently rested on Zhao Xuanzhen's cheek. Leng Yaozhu's Crimson Eyes seemed to gather a storm of dark currents as she murmured softly:

"Xuanzhen, don't blame your teacher for being strict with you these past few years. You are all my spiritual sustenance. Your teacher wants to see you rise above everyone else, to become that undefeated existence among your peers..."

The scorching warmth transmitted through her palm. Zhao Xuanzhen's pitch-black eyes, as still as a placid lake, rippled slightly as he said:

"Undefeated among peers? Is that all?"

Hearing this, Leng Yaozhu smiled as if relieved: "If you can go even further, that would be best. Your teacher has a selfish wish—to nurture you as you grow, step by step, to support the heavens above and explore the underworld below!

For that, your teacher is willing to pay... everything!"

"I will. Teacher, I'm going back to cultivate."

Zhao Xuanzhen's expression was unexpectedly cold and indifferent. He bid farewell to Leng Yaozhu and took the high-level elevator to the Ninety-ninth Floor.

No one saw that his eyes were no longer their natural pitch black, nor the deep blue of the Earthly Dao Technique, but a dazzling, brilliant gold, filled with awe-inspiring majesty!

Na'er hadn't finished her training. On the Ninety-ninth Floor, Zhao Xuanzhen was alone.

"Four Plates and Harmony."

The Bagua Qimen instantly sealed the entire floor, ensuring no aura leaked out.

"Wanwan Looks Like Qing, Good Beginning, Bad End..."

Zhao Xuanzhen saw his own reflection in Leng Yaozhu's eyes. Though her gaze fell on him, it felt as if she wasn't looking at him at all.

"I Alone, Best in the World. I want to be the highest Zhao... wait, I really am named Zhao!"

Forget it, that's not something to mess around with!

"Supporting the heavens above, probing the underworld below... Teacher, I won't be the Second Qingtian Douluo—I'll surpass him to stand atop the continent, and... in your heart!

Bagua Qimen, God Plate!"

The Bagua Qimen's four plates—Heaven, Earth, Human, and God—correspond to Heaven's Timing, Geographical Advantage, Human Harmony, and Divine Assistance.

Zhao Xuanzhen often used the Earthly Dao Technique representing Geographical Advantage, but among the four plates, the most powerful was undoubtedly the God Plate Dao Art, which housed eight kinds of worldly might!

Brilliant Gold Eyes burned in silent stillness. Zhao Xuanzhen observed the night sky; two nights later, a once-in-a-millennium Heavenly Opportunity would arrive, with stars blazing brilliantly.

To fulfill his long-cherished wish, he needed a world free from divine interference—the only chance for a human to overcome a god.

However, Zhao Xuanzhen was merely a two-ring Soul Grand Master, incapable of bearing that Heavenly Opportunity. He needed a medium.

God Plate, Eight Deceit Gods!

The Bagua Qimen cast a golden shadow, and the Qimen Array rotated slowly in accordance with the laws of heaven and earth.

The God Plate Eight Deceit Gods were incarnations of Heaven and Earth Power, eight mysterious forces corresponding to all things in the world. Their birth marked the limit of a realm, a process that would consume vast time absorbing the world's qi. But the Master of Qimen could accelerate the Eight Deceit Gods using Heaven's Timing, Geographical Advantage, and Human Harmony!

Possessing Heaven's Timing, Geographical Advantage, and Human Harmony would secure an extremely important position on the Douluo Continent—such as the superpowers standing at its peak: the Spirit Pagoda, Shrek Academy, the Tang Sect, the War God Hall...

The stronger the light, the deeper the shadow.

The Holy Spirit Cult, the Abyss, the Demon Hell... evil forces also possessed heavy Heaven's Timing, Geographical Advantage, and Human Harmony.

In those territories, the Eight Deceit Gods could grow at the fastest speed, becoming the pinnacle of life in this era of the Douluo Continent—quasi-gods.

Spirits of heaven and earth were inherently bound by them. For the Eight Deceit Gods to become true gods, only two paths existed: the world's plane ascending, or the Master of Qimen transcending the world!

"Southern Fire, take your place."

Absolute, all-devouring silence descended. A pitch-black abyss split open at the center of the Bagua Qimen, a shadow that seemed capable of swallowing even light. Absorbing the Spirit Pagoda's world qi for years, the first of the Eight Deceit Gods stirred faintly awake.

The sound of scales scraping was like two iron mountains colliding. A single Scarlet Vertical Pupil emerged from the abyss, followed by a massive head rising, then a body like an iron tower. Crimson patterns between the gaps of pitch-black scales glowed like lava not yet cooled.

A Giant Serpent of absurdly immense size—the Ninety-ninth Floor's ceiling was far too small for it, allowing only its head and a section of its body to emerge. Its breath was scorching hot, each exhalation tearing spiderweb-like red cracks in the air.

The Giant Serpent looked down at Zhao Xuanzhen, black clouds like a volcanic eruption swirling deep within its scarlet pupils. The next moment, it slowly lowered its head and spoke in human tongue:

"Eight Deceit God, Soaring Serpent, greets the Master of Qimen."