"Teacher." Ju Zi spoke up, her face full of indignation.
"They're trying to talk you into betraying your country."
"What?" Xuan Ziwen cried out.
"Is that what we said?" Lin Yuan looked at Ju Zi, speechless.
"We simply recognized Teacher Xuan's potential and sincerely wanted to hire him as our chief developer, giving him a chance to work on a different platform."
"You're shameless, you're scum! As expected, people from the Douluo Three Kingdoms are all crude savages! What else could this be but kidnapping?" Ke Ke cursed from the side.
"Hmph! Just kill me. Even if you drag me back, I won't make a single Soul Tool for you!" Xuan Ziwen had caught on. They planned to drag them back and force them to make Soul Tools.
What could the Douluo Three Kingdoms possibly offer him? They would only chain him to an assembly line, making the same Soul Tools he'd made before.
If Xuan Ziwen couldn't keep exploring the boundless wilderness of Soul Tools, he'd rather be killed right now.
"Teacher Xuan, don't be nervous. I'm sure you'll change your mind," Lin Yuan said with a confident smile.
Perhaps nobody else could give Xuan Ziwen what he wanted, but Lin Yuan knew exactly what would.
He immediately untied Xuan Ziwen. Earlier, underground, he'd been worried that Xuan Ziwen might wake up halfway through the trip and make transporting him troublesome.
He couldn't just hit him on the head the moment he woke up. What if he damaged the brain of a top researcher?
Freed, Xuan Ziwen rolled his wrists and looked at Lin Yuan warily and with confusion.
He had no idea what the kid was plotting.
"Master, release his Soul Power seal," Lin Yuan said to Cao Xin.
As the seal was being released, Lin Yuan pulled a Soul Tool pistol from his storage Soul Tool.
He immediately handed it to Xuan Ziwen, who had been looking for a chance to escape. Xuan Ziwen was completely baffled.
"Why are you giving me this?" Xuan Ziwen asked Lin Yuan in confusion.
"Take a good look, Teacher Xuan. What's special about this Soul Ray Gun?"
At Lin Yuan's words, Xuan Ziwen curiously fiddled with the Soul Tool in his hand.
The workmanship was unbelievably crude. It really was on the level of Soul Engineers from the Douluo Three Kingdoms.
Xuan Ziwen's face darkened as he realized the Soul Tool Gun seemed to have no Soul Power input port.
Even apprentices who'd studied Soul Tools for more than three days wouldn't make such a basic mistake. Without a Soul Power input port, what was this thing but scrap metal?
Just as he was about to ask whether Lin Yuan was trying to insult him, Xuan Ziwen suddenly noticed what looked like a movable trigger on the Soul Tool...
Bang!
The Soul Ray Gun suddenly fired, startling Xuan Ziwen. He had no idea what had just happened.
"This..." Xuan Ziwen stared at the crudely made Soul Ray Gun in shock. He seemed to have discovered something incredible.
"Teacher Xuan, don't point the muzzle at people," Lin Yuan said with a smile.
Xuan Ziwen's heart pounded wildly. He felt as if he'd discovered something extraordinary.
He raised the Soul Ray Gun and aimed it into the distance—
Bang, bang, bang, bang! Click, click, click, click.
Four shots in a row, followed by the sound of Xuan Ziwen pulling the trigger.
The expression on Xuan Ziwen's face was indescribable. He looked as shocked as a virgin experiencing his first time.
"Because of its Soul Power storage, this Soul Tool Gun can only hold five rounds at most. Please forgive us, Teacher Xuan."
Before Xuan Ziwen could react, Lin Yuan tossed him a small iron box about the size of a palm.
"Teacher Xuan, fly. Do as I say."
Xuan Ziwen took a deep breath, calming his excitement.
Then he sprang into the air and flew toward the distant sky.
"Is he going to run? I wouldn't be able to catch up even if I chased after him now." Watching the figure shrink in the distance, Cao Xin spoke in confusion.
"He won't. Trust me."
"Of course he will!" Ke Ke shouted angrily at Lin Yuan.
"You're finished! Teacher Xuan will bring a whole bunch of Level 9 Soul Engineers back to slaughter you!"
"Is that so?" Lin Yuan raised an eyebrow at Ke Ke, looking amused.
"I think he'll definitely come back."
"Impossible. Teacher Xuan is a capable member of Mingde Hall! He'll come back to rescue us!"
"Ke Ke, stop talking." Ju Zi's expression had changed. She had a vague feeling that Lin Yuan might be right.
"Then want to make a bet? If Teacher Xuan comes back and joins us, you'll have to work for us wholeheartedly." Lin Yuan crouched down to meet Ke Ke's gaze, watching her with an amused expression.
"And what if you lose?" Ke Ke returned his gaze stubbornly.
"If I lose..." Lin Yuan tapped his chin and fell into thought.
Suddenly, he remembered an animated series from his previous life called SpongeBob SquarePants.
"Then you can cut off my butt and hang it over the fireplace."
"Deal!"
She wasn't sure what good it would do to hang Lin Yuan's butt over the fireplace, but Ke Ke just couldn't stand his smug expression.
Lin Yuan smiled and nodded, then took out an iron block from his storage Soul Tool, identical to the one he'd thrown to Xuan Ziwen.
"I call it the Command Block, babe." Lin Yuan pressed the button on it, and a crackling electrical signal began to sound from inside.
"All right, Teacher Xuan. You can come back now." After ending the call, Lin Yuan switched off the box.
Before long, Xuan Ziwen flew back to them, looking utterly disbelieving.
"This really is... the Soul Tool of my dreams." Xuan Ziwen stared at the box in his hand in shock. His expression was much like Gollum's when he looked at the One Ring.
Ignoring Ke Ke, who stood dumbfounded, Lin Yuan walked up to Xuan Ziwen and said, "Besides these, we have many other Soul Tools that still need improvement."
"All I can say is that every one of them is just as good as the two I showed you. There are also several super Soul Tools that need you to lead their development, Teacher Xuan."
Xuan Ziwen felt his blood surge. He hadn't felt this way in a long time.
"Of course, I, Lin Yuan, have always respected talent. If you're unwilling, Teacher Xuan..."
"I'm willing! Of course I'm willing!" Xuan Ziwen grabbed Lin Yuan's hand, his eyes feverish.
"You said I'd be your chief developer. How many resources would I be able to command?"
"We have the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect backing us." Lin Yuan struggled to free himself from the fanatic's grasp.
"As for the exact resources available, you can discuss that with my father-in-law. I can't be bothered with those details."
Xuan Ziwen swallowed excitedly. He was from the Heaven Dou Empire, so he knew just how influential the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect was there.
Although its research resources couldn't compare with Mingde Hall's, he was only a Level 8 Soul Engineer at Mingde Hall, and his authority to allocate resources was far too limited.
But in the Heaven Dou Empire, he'd have the final say. No matter what, there'd be plenty of resources for him to research Soul Tools.
"When are we leaving?" Xuan Ziwen asked urgently.
"We're just waiting for someone to come pick us up. Judging by the time, they should be here soon."