The Spirit Pagoda was the tallest building in Aolai City, and the heart of this small coastal town on the frontier.
As the soaring building came into view, the atmosphere in the car grew heavier.
After getting out, Tang Heng looked up.
It was his first time seeing the Spirit Pagoda from so close. Even though it was only a branch tower, its grandeur was still enough to leave him awestruck.
The enormous tower rose in a spiral, its entire body built from an unknown silver metal that reflected a cold, sacred light beneath the sun.
Looking closely, he could see countless intricate soul-guidance arrays engraved on its surface. He caught the faint energy fluctuations they gave off.
The construction costs for a tower like this were probably enough to drain Aolai City's tax revenue for ten years—and still not be enough to finish it.
This was the organization founded ten thousand years ago by Spirit Ice Douluo Huo Yuhao. In an age when Soul Beasts had vanished, this organization, which controlled Soul Spirit technology, had seized the lifelines of all Soul Masters and grown into a colossus.
Unfortunately, the Spirit Pagoda had completely strayed from its founding ideals.
The Child of Destiny had ultimately become a puppet on the Demon from Beyond the Heavens' strings, and before long, even the plane's consciousness itself would be completely possessed.
Damn, Tang San was one nasty piece of work!
"We're here."
Wu Qingfeng told the driver to park, then looked at the Spirit Pagoda and took a moment to straighten his collar.
As a Soul Master without powerful connections, Wu Qingfeng regarded the Spirit Pagoda as a sacred, untouchable place. It deserved his utmost reverence.
Tang Heng wasn't nearly as nervous.
With the resources of an entire world at his back, he didn't need to worry about pleasing the Spirit Pagoda.
They wouldn't sell him a Soul Spirit?
Then he'd go kill a living one himself. He wasn't interested in artificial ones anyway. They were neither nutritious nor healthy.
Following Wu Qingfeng, Tang Heng entered the Spirit Pagoda.
The hall inside was spacious, with a ring of doors around it that seemed to lead who knew where. Straight ahead was a counter, behind which sat a Soul Transmitter wearing a gray robe.
When the Soul Transmitter saw them, he stood up and turned to Wu Qingfeng. "Good day, Principal Wu. What can I do for you?"
He was warm and welcoming, with a pleasant attitude.
There weren't many Soul Masters in Aolai City, and even fewer with real ability. Wu Qingfeng, as the principal of the Primary Soul Master Academy and a Four-Ring Soul Ancestor, was a well-known figure in town.
"I'm here to help this child buy a Soul Spirit. We made an appointment yesterday."
Once the appointment was confirmed, the staff member cheerfully led them to a room full of precision instruments and pointed to a metal chair inside.
"Don't be scared, little guy. We're just going to test your spiritual power. Its strength determines what level of Soul Spirit you can fuse with, so this is very important."
Following the staff member's instructions, Tang Heng sat in the futuristic-looking device.
A metal helmet slowly descended over his head. After a soft whir, the machine started up.
A gentle white light shone from the helmet. The Soul Transmitter glanced at a nearby soul-guidance screen, where numbers began to scroll.
At first, they rose much faster than usual. Instead of climbing at a steady pace, they bolted like a wild horse, surging upward!
20...40...60...80...
A buzzer blared. It wasn't a malfunction—the reading had exceeded the preset range for a "first-time test."
Finally, amid a grating electrical crackle, the rapidly changing numbers slowed and stopped at a figure that no one present could believe:
251
The smile on the Soul Transmitter's face froze, then turned into a gasp.
"Th-this machine is broken?"
"Test him again!"
The result remained unchanged. The staff checked the machine and confirmed that it was working properly. The alarm had gone off because his spiritual power exceeded the preset range.
"Hahaha! The Spirit Connection Realm! More than a hundred spiritual power at just six years old. Those people on the Continental Youth Genius Ranking are no better at that age, are they?"
Wu Qingfeng was overjoyed. He hurried over himself to help Tang Heng out of the machine.
By the standards of the Soul Master World, spiritual power from 0 to 100 was the Spirit Origin Realm, while 101 to 499 was the Spirit Connection Realm.
The Spirit Connection Realm meant that one's mind and thoughts flowed freely.
Many Soul Grandmasters and Soul Elders had to train for years to reach it.
Wu Qingfeng was so excited he could barely speak. He thought the million Federation Coins he'd spent had been worth every penny. He was practically an investment genius reborn.
Tang Heng hopped down from the machine and rubbed his temples.
He'd expected his initial spiritual power to be this high.
A transmigrator's soul was powerful to begin with. On top of that, he had Twin Martial Souls, one of which was the Silver Dragon King, renowned for her spiritual power.
And his third Martial Soul was connected to an entire plane. It would've been strange if his spiritual power weren't strong.
"When can I pick out a Soul Spirit?" Tang Heng asked casually.
"Huh? R-right now. This way, little genius." The staff member finally snapped back to his senses and led them to the Spirit Transmitter's chamber.
As he showed them the way, he also sent Tang Heng's information to the branch tower's master, who was away on a business trip.
"Our Aolai City Spirit Pagoda has seventy-three types of ten-year white Soul Spirits and eleven types of hundred-year yellow Soul Spirits. Based on your Martial Soul and spiritual power, we recommend choosing a Soul Spirit with dragon blood."
The staff member brought out a screen and enthusiastically introduced the Soul Spirits on offer.
Suddenly, he seemed to remember something. He hesitated, then said, "Actually, we also have a thousand-year Soul Spirit here. It was brought over from the Star Luo Continent, originally meant to be delivered to the Spirit Ascension Platform in Eastsea City."
"If you're interested, we can sell you this thousand-year Soul Spirit for the price of a hundred-year one."
Wu Qingfeng perked up at that. "Could you tell us more about it? What exactly is this Soul Spirit like?"
The Soul Transmitter tapped a few commands into the screen. Soon, detailed information about the Soul Spirit appeared before Tang Heng and the others.
Golden Lion, a twelve-hundred-year Soul Spirit, with a trace of auspicious energy.
According to legend, ten thousand years ago, a mutant Three-Eyed Golden Lion appeared. She bore the fortune of the entire Star Dou Great Forest, but later died for some reason and sacrificed herself to the Spirit Pagoda's first master, Spirit Ice Douluo.
Proud by nature, she had been replicated at the Spirit Pagoda in Star Dou City, but no one had managed to absorb her in the three years since. She had therefore been sent back to the Douluo Federation.
"I'll take her!"
Tang Heng was pleased. He'd figured a backwater like Aolai City wouldn't have any decent Soul Spirits, so he'd already planned to raise a Soul Spirit's quality later in the Minecraft Plane.
He hadn't expected this pleasant surprise. Could the plane's consciousness, not yet possessed, be lending a hand?
"Are you sure, Xiao Heng? With your spiritual power, you can absorb a thousand-year Soul Spirit, but this one's clearly unusual. It could be risky," Wu Qingfeng advised after reading the description. He also wanted Tang Heng to get a higher starting point.
But forcing a seedling to grow by pulling it up wasn't always a good idea. The fact that no one in Star Dou City had managed to absorb this Soul Spirit in three years proved there was a problem.
Tang Heng answered with a confident smile.
"It's fine. Trust me!"
A long while later, Wu Qingfeng stared at the little Golden Lion, nestled affectionately in Tang Heng's palm, and the deep purple Soul Ring that had appeared beneath his feet. He was utterly at a loss.
Was this the afterglow of a genius? No wonder you couldn't judge him by ordinary standards.
Before you continue