Finding Investors

The person he needed to find today was the key figure who could resolve his pressing predicament, and the perfect partner for his planned Soul Tool research project: Ning Tian of the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect.

Ever since he had devoted himself to studying Soul Tool technology, the problem of insufficient funding had constantly plagued him; in order to gather research materials and craft basic Soul Tools, he had been forced to rely on forging and selling common Soul Tool components to earn meager resources, which had severely hampered his progress.

But Ning Tian was different.

As a direct descendant of the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect, Ning Tian was the undisputed little heiress of the entire Shrek freshman circle, possessing deep family roots and countless resources.

If he could pull this young lady from a top-tier prestigious family into his Soul Engineer research team, the funding dilemma that had troubled him for so long would be solved instantly.

He would no longer need to toil away at the forge to support his research, and his Soul Tool development project could finally be unleashed to advance at full speed.

As for the method to win Ning Tian over, Su Ming was already confident, not feeling the slightest bit of difficulty.

The Seven Treasures Glazed and Nine Treasures Glazed were two auxiliary martial souls of the same lineage, their ultimate auxiliary abilities unrivaled across the Douluo Continent, yet they possessed the most fatal shortcoming: they had almost no combat capability and extremely weak self-preservation.

The various special Soul Tools he possessed, capable of both offense and defense with infinite utility, could perfectly compensate for the weaknesses of an auxiliary-type soul master.

As long as he let Ning Tian witness the powerful utility of high-level special Soul Tools and realize that they could greatly enhance an auxiliary soul master's survival and combat ceiling, her intelligent and ambitious nature would surely be completely captivated, and she would willingly join his research team.

Not only that, but Su Ming also held an excellent trump card in his heart, enough to completely secure Ning Tian.

He had long since seen through the fact that Ning Tian was attending Shrek disguised as a boy, which seemed glorious on the surface, but in reality, her position within the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect was not stable; there must be power struggles within the sect, and her succession to the position of Sect Master was not set in stone.

This was his greatest bargaining chip.

Now that he had mastered the full summoning power of the Snow Mastiff Armor, his combat strength was skyrocketing, his rise was unstoppable, and becoming a top-tier powerhouse was only a matter of time.

As long as he was willing, he could use his future strength and resources to fully support Ning Tian, helping her secure her position as the Sect Master of the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect.

As for how Ning Tian would recognize Su Ming's talent, he didn't even need to worry about that; after all, the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect loved to keep an eye on geniuses, and they surely knew of Su Ming's exploits in the outer courtyard over the years.

Su Ming did not believe Ning Tian would fail to place a bet on him.

With the dual leverage of Soul Tool research that could compensate for her flaws and open a new path, and the promise of assistance in ascending to the highest seat of power in her sect, winning over Ning Tian was a foregone conclusion.

With his plan finalized, a look of certainty flashed in Su Ming's eyes, and he quickened his pace.

The cultivation area for soul power upgrades and the competition grounds for the Freshman Grand Competition were adjacent, very close to each other.

In just a moment, he wove through the crowd of students and successfully arrived at the bustling, lively Freshman Grand Competition arena.

The high platform of the Freshman Grand Competition was filled with noise, the matches below were in full swing, and brilliant pillars of soul power rose one after another.

Su Ming scanned the area and instantly locked onto the two most prominent figures on the high platform.

On a recliner to the side, Xuan Zi wore a simple gray robe, lacking any of the majesty of a Shrek elder. He was leisurely gnawing on a greasy chicken leg, with oil stains at the corners of his mouth, his demeanor lazy and casual.

Wang Yan, beside him, was the exact opposite: his posture was upright, his expression solemn, and his eyes were locked onto every participating student below, meticulously observing their martial soul characteristics, soul power control, and combat talent with extreme focus.

Su Ming did not feel the slightest bit of restraint; he strode directly onto the platform, walked up to the two of them with familiarity, and spoke to Xuan Zi, who was enjoying his meal, with a tone of casual, youthful mockery:

"Old Man Xuan, after observing for so long, how many of this year's freshmen do you think can truly be called geniuses?"

With Xuan Zi's cultivation, he had complete control over any fluctuations in aura within a hundred yards.

He had sensed this familiar aura the moment Su Ming approached and was not the least bit surprised.

He slowly swallowed the chicken in his mouth, glanced at Su Ming, and retorted with a tone full of teasing and banter:

"Can't you see for yourself? You're quite capable now, a four-ring Soul Elder who can shake a six-ring Soul Ancestor without falling behind; you're making quite a name for yourself, do you still need to ask me?"

Hearing this, Su Ming curled his lips in silence, not bothering to argue with the old urchin, and then turned to look at the elegant and steady Teacher Wang Yan, his tone becoming more serious:

"Teacher Wang Yan, how many students in this year's freshman class do you think have outstanding talent?"

Seeing the old man and the young man at each other's throats the moment they met, Wang Yan helplessly raised his hand to rub his forehead, his eyes filled with amusement.

This pair of bickering friends always had to trade barbs whenever they met, neither willing to yield. Helpless as he was, he thought for a moment and spoke slowly to answer.

"This year is definitely the most top-tier freshman class in the Shrek outer courtyard in recent years, and their overall talent far exceeds previous years. There are quite a few students who have broken through to the three-ring Soul Elder realm early."

Wang Yan pointed to the arena below, counting them one by one, his eyes full of approval:

"Dai Huabin of the White Tiger Duke Mansion, with his top-grade White Tiger martial soul, has a solid foundation and fierce combat power; he is a top genius among beast martial souls.

Ning Tian of the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect possesses a top-tier auxiliary martial soul, and both her resources and talent are first-class.

Besides them, Xie Huanyue has a special constitution and impenetrable defense, Chu Qingtian's speed is unrivaled among his peers, and there is also Wang Dong, whose Butterfly martial soul is extremely rare with infinite potential; they are all one-in-a-ten-thousand talents."

Just as Wang Yan finished speaking, Xuan Zi wiped the oil from the corner of his mouth, tossed the chicken bone into the trash can beside him, and spoke with a half-smile, his eyes fixed on Su Ming:

"What? Su, you're a rare sight today. You usually hole up in the forge tinkering with those iron lumps and Soul Tool parts, not even paying attention to your cultivation, yet today you actually have the leisure to watch these little guys compete?"

His old eyes narrowed, a knowing smile on his face as he pierced through Su Ming's thoughts: "You've always been one to never act without a profit.

I've heard that you specifically recruited that kid named Huo Yuhao from the freshman class into your Soul Tool research team not long ago.

Coming to the arena today, could it be that you're eyeing these geniuses again, planning to snatch a few back to do chores and help with your research?"

Having his intentions seen through at a glance, Su Ming was not embarrassed; instead, he smiled openly, raised an eyebrow, and asked: "Not bad, Old Man Xuan, your information is quite up to date, you even know that."

"Then let me ask you, what do you think of my judgment? In your eyes, how is the talent of that little fellow, Huo Yuhao?"

Xuan Zi rolled his eyes dramatically upon hearing this, his face full of disdain as he spoke with complete disapproval:

"Your judgment is trash, not good at all. This Huo Yuhao you picked has nothing but the most ordinary white ten-year Spirit Eye soul ring. While it is true that a rare spiritual attribute martial soul is unique, its drawbacks are far too great.

On the Douluo Continent, spiritual-type soul beasts are already extremely scarce, and high-level ones are as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns. Obtaining subsequent soul rings will be as difficult as ascending to heaven.

In this old man's view, the path of growth for this kid is destined to be bumpy and difficult, with a very limited ceiling."

As soon as these words were spoken, Su Ming became displeased and immediately retorted with full confidence:

"Tch! I knew you old fogey had short-sighted vision and couldn't judge people! You've lived for a hundred years in vain, unable to even recognize a true genius!"

His tone was resonant and every word carried weight: "Others only see the insignificance of his white ten-year soul ring, but no one knows the truth.

This little fellow's talent in the way of the Soul Tool is the most top-tier I have ever seen in anyone! He is naturally suited for soul tool research; his comprehension, creativity, and focus are all top-notch. His future achievements will be far beyond what you imagine!"

Speaking of this, Su Ming took the opportunity to complain, his tone carrying a sense of frustration at their lack of progress:

"And you old stubborn fools! You guard traditional martial souls every day and refuse to change; can't you pay more attention to the development of Soul Tools?

This is no longer an era where one can conquer the world solely by martial souls; the future is destined to belong to Soul Tools!"

"The Sun Moon Empire is rising rapidly today thanks to their soul tool technology, having already left the other three empires of the continent far behind, and the gap is only growing.

You hold the top resources of Shrek in your hands, yet instead of focusing on soul tool innovation, you spend your days huddled with that stingy Yan Shaozhe.

Blindly suppressing the development of Soul Tools and sticking to the old ways is nothing but short-sighted and stagnant!"

This blunt accusation instantly caused Xuan Zi's expression to darken. He bristled on the spot and immediately retorted:

"Insolent! What would a young brat like you know!"

Xuan Zi frowned, his tone carrying the stubbornness and pride of the older generation of powerhouses:

"The origin of the martial soul is the foundation upon which a soul master stands! If one's own cultivation and martial soul power are strong enough, one is invincible in the world!

Those cold, broken pieces of scrap metal are vulnerable before absolute strength. This old man could smash them all to pieces with a single slap. How can they even be mentioned in the same breath as orthodox martial souls? It is utter nonsense!"

Seeing the two of them—one young and one old—at each other's throats with tempers rising, and on the verge of a public argument, Wang Yan, caught in the middle, felt a massive headache.

He hurriedly stepped forward, reaching out to block the two agitated individuals, and quickly tried to mediate, offering helpless words of persuasion.

He was terrified that these two big shots would start a chaotic quarrel on the viewing platform of the Freshman Grand Competition and lose all sense of propriety.