Soul Engineer Prodigy Huo Yuhao

A soul engineer prodigy, Huo Yuhao

"Today, our Class One has three transfer students joining us. Let's give them a welcome."

Amid the brief applause from the class, Huo Yuhao immediately noticed the Level 7 Soul Engineer badge on the teacher's collar.

This was his first time seeing a Level 7 Soul Engineer. At Shrek Academy, Fan Yu, the most famous figure in the Soul Tool Department, was a Level 8 Soul Master, but Huo Yuhao hadn't seen him during his visit.

"All right." The teacher spoke in a calm, even tone, seeming like a steady sort. "Since we're short on time, you can introduce yourselves during the break. Let's begin class. The three of you—do you know anything about Soul Tools?"

Huo Yuhao hesitated before answering. "A little."

He wasn't sure whether the basic books he'd read and the elective classes he'd attended at Shrek Academy counted as a proper foundation.

Chi Qiu and Wang Dong both shook their heads.

"Oh, that's all right." The teacher smiled. "I teach at a fairly fast pace, so do your best to keep up. You can ask your classmates for notes on the previous lessons after class. My surname is Yu. Just call me Teacher Yu. Let's get started."

Huo Yuhao took his seat. Wang Dong and Chi Qiu sat in front of him, while an unfamiliar male classmate sat beside him. As soon as Huo Yuhao sat down, the boy nudged his arm.

"Your timing couldn't be worse."

"What's wrong?" Huo Yuhao asked quietly.

"Teacher Yu gives a quiz every three classes. It's time for one today."

Huo Yuhao gave a wry smile. "He probably won't make the three of us who just arrived take it, will he?"

Even so, he immediately focused on the lesson. The basics were dry, but Teacher Yu's rapid pace left him no room to let his mind wander.

Today's lesson covered the formula for calculating the limit of Soul Power impact a Soul Tool's metal casing could withstand. If you looked down to pick up a pen, you'd lose the thread completely.

Fortunately, Huo Yuhao had often attended classes at Shrek Academy while copying several sets of notes at once. That made it easier for him to keep up with the fast-paced teaching.

The first class passed quickly. At Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy, each lesson lasted an hour and a half, followed by a ten-minute break. When the break bell rang, Teacher Yu swiftly wrote several sets of data on the board, including the Core Array specifications for Level 1 Soul Tools and the material parameters for their casings.

"This is what you'll be tested on today. Once the three new students have introduced themselves, calculate these and hand them in before the next class starts. All right, go ahead and introduce yourselves."

Huo Yuhao glanced at the problems on the board, quickly worked through a few calculations, and stood up.

"Hello, everyone. I'm Huo Yuhao, a Level 25 Control System Battle Soul Master. This is my first time studying Soul Tools. I hope we can get along."

Then he walked up to the podium and placed the sheet of scratch paper in his hand on it. "Teacher Yu, I've finished the test."

Teacher Yu looked surprised as he picked up the paper. Every answer was correct.

"Very good, very good. You have a solid foundation, Huo."

"I've read a few related books." Huo Yuhao bowed modestly to the teacher, then returned to his seat.

The looks his classmates gave him had changed considerably. The problems weren't difficult for them, either, but they were new material, and none of them had solved them so quickly.

And he'd said he was Level 25, right? A few students who knew each other exchanged astonished glances.

The academy's admission requirements didn't demand much Soul Power, so many students in this class were only at the first ring. In the Sun Moon Empire, where Soul Masters had a relatively weak foundation, reaching the first ring at eleven or twelve was already considered quite talented.

As for the legendary Hongchen siblings, who were nearly at the fifth ring at just over thirteen and had already secured places at Mingde Hall, they were utterly out of reach.

Level 25 was already an impressive number to them.

Then the golden-haired girl who stood up next said a number that left them even more dumbfounded. Her voice was cool and detached.

"Chi Qiu, Level 38 Power Attack System Battle Soul Elder."

At the same time, Huo Yuhao opened Spiritual Detection Sharing and glanced at the answers on Chi Qiu and Wang Dong's scratch papers.

Chi Qiu was a little slow, but most of her steps were right. Given that she was a Soul Beast who was encountering human machinery for the first time, Huo Yuhao thought she'd done very well.

And Wang Dong...

Huo Yuhao hurriedly scribbled a note, crumpled it into a ball, and tossed it onto Wang Dong's desk. She opened it and immediately furrowed her brow.

"You got everything wrong from the third line onward!"

By then, Chi Qiu had already sat down. It was Wang Dong's turn to introduce herself. She sprang to her feet in a hurry, banging her leg against the corner of the desk with a painful thud.

She sucked in a breath and said, "Wang Dong, Level 32 Agility Attack System Battle Soul Elder. This is my first time working with Soul Tools. Please bear with me, Teacher Yu."

Chi Qiu curiously leaned over to look at the note on Wang Dong's desk, wanting to know what it said that had made her so flustered, while Huo Yuhao buried his face in his arms and stifled a laugh.

When Wang Dong sat down, she angrily tapped Huo Yuhao's arm. "Stop laughing. Hurry up and give me the right answers."

"Okay, okay." Huo Yuhao covered his face, trying to hold back his laughter. "Don't just copy them. Think it through before you write. Look at Qiu'er's—she got most of the steps right."

Before long, the classroom fell quiet. Everyone bent over their calculations, while those who had finished read on their own.

Teacher Yu walked over to the three of them. Wang Dong had finally finished the problems, and Chi Qiu, who was closer to the teacher, took her scratch paper over and handed it to him as well.

"Not bad." Teacher Yu glanced over it. "For someone without any foundation, this is already quite good."

"Let me introduce myself, too. My name is Yu Rufeng. I'm a Level 7 Soul Engineer working at Mingde Hall."

Only then did Huo Yuhao take a proper look at his teacher. Yu Rufeng seemed to be in his thirties, with neatly cropped gray hair. His face had the weathered look of an old man, probably from spending too much time doing research. He wore a dark checked shirt under a leather jacket and seemed quite approachable.

To Huo Yuhao, the most eye-catching thing about him was, of course, the gleaming Level 7 Soul Engineer badge on his collar.

"Huo Yuhao," Yu Rufeng called.

"Yes, Teacher?"

"Try these, too." Without another word, he circled several sample figures in the book he was holding and handed them to Huo Yuhao.

Huo Yuhao took them and saw at a glance that they were different from the earlier problems. Those had tested theoretical knowledge, while these figures were actual measurement data.

He said nothing and started calculating. A while later, he handed over his answer. "Teacher Yu, there's a slight margin of error. Could you check if it's within the acceptable range?"

Yu Rufeng glanced at it, understanding in his eyes. This kid really did have a knack for figuring things out!

Normally, even the students in Class One needed half a lesson of guidance to bridge the gap between theoretical values and actual conditions. Yet this boy had spotted the problem while doing the calculations and found an appropriate way to handle it. He was quick to apply what he'd learned to new situations.

Today's surprises had been remarkable. The testing department had only told him, "These transfer students are worth cultivating." They hadn't mentioned that all three were Soul Master prodigies—or that one of them was so gifted with Soul Tools.

"Good lad." Yu Rufeng patted Huo Yuhao on the shoulder. "Once you earn your Level 1 Soul Engineer badge, I'll recommend a teacher for you. It'd be a shame if he didn't take you on."

"When can I take the Level 1 Soul Engineer exam?" Huo Yuhao asked eagerly.

"The school holds Soul Engineer rank examinations every two months. Of course, if you do exceptionally well, you might be allowed to take it early, but that kind of exam is much stricter."

"I understand. I'll work hard." Huo Yuhao nodded.

Today's experience had greatly boosted his confidence. Sky Dream Ice Silkworm was excited in his mind, delighted to see Huo Yuhao being recognized. Ice Empress didn't quite understand Sky Dream Ice Silkworm's excitement; she hadn't been there for the period when Huo Yuhao had faced contempt everywhere at Shrek Academy. If she had been there, she would have been furious long ago.

Still, if Ice Empress had been there then, Huo Yuhao wouldn't have suffered that kind of treatment. Shrek Academy was stubborn about these things. Rather than judging by actual combat performance, they preferred to trust their experience with Martial Soul potential and bloodlines

and other factors.

Soul Master categories like Agility Attack and defense also didn't receive the same educational resources at Shrek as Power Attack and Control. Wang Dong had realized that after switching to Agility Attack, and she'd told Huo Yuhao a little about it on the way here.

Wang Dong had even said something then about restoring the glory of Agility Attack, and how it was her duty to do so.

Huo Yuhao shook his head. He'd left Shrek Academy behind, so what did it matter? He had a feeling that here, he might finally get the attention he deserved. It was an unprecedented feeling, as if it made the heart that had suffered since his earliest memories beat more strongly.

He was grateful to Chi Qiu for supporting his decision to come to a place so far from the Star Dou Great Forest and pursue his own worth. He was grateful to Wang Dong, too, for helping him throughout the journey.

Now it was time to prove himself.

The bell rang, and Yu Rufeng returned to the podium to begin the lesson.

He drew back his approving gaze from Huo Yuhao and looked over the other students. Chi Qiu hadn't been as dazzling as Huo Yuhao, but she'd done well enough to continue studying in Class One, and he was satisfied. The other students had done well, too.

But when his gaze passed over Wang Dong, it carried a trace of concern he could barely conceal.