Hearing the other party's words, Ye Luochen was slightly taken aback.
What did this mean?
First came the big stick, questioning whether it was reasonable for Mingde Hall to issue him a Level Six access badge;
Then came the carrot, a preliminary acknowledgment of his abilities?
Why did this teacher in front of him seem somewhat strange?
Before Ye Luochen could continue puzzling over it, the other man's voice rang out again.
"Your theoretical knowledge barely passes, but theory alone is not enough for a Soul Engineer. Otherwise, it is nothing more than empty talk."
"I'll give you a quarter of an hour. Choose whatever materials you want from this experimental table and make me a Soul Tool core formation."
"There are no requirements for rank or type. Just make whatever you believe is your best."
After saying this, the young man flicked his wrist, and a small Soul Tool timer appeared in his palm.
After setting the time, the man placed the timer on the table and stepped aside.
Hearing the man's words and watching his actions,
Ye Luochen became even more confused.
What?
What was this supposed to be?
Why was he suddenly being asked to make a Soul Tool for this man to see?
Was it to test him?
But this access badge had been personally given to him by Jing Hongchen, the master of Mingde Hall.
Did other teachers really have the right to test him and question it?
At the side, seeing that Ye Luochen still had not moved, the man frowned.
His tone returned to its earlier coldness:
"What? You're unwilling to do it? Or can't you do it?"
"If that is the case, then even if you have the access badge given by the hall master, I will not take you in."
"If you think this is unfair, you can go protest to the hall master and have him assign you another teacher."
Hearing the man's words, Ye Luochen only grew more bewildered.
What did any of this have to do with anything?
What did he mean, he would not take him in?
He could understand every word individually, but when they were put together, why did they sound so strange?
With all sorts of questions piling up in his heart, Ye Luochen finally could not help but speak.
"This... teacher..."
"My name is Xuan Ziwen," the man stated.
"Teacher Xuan, I think you may have misunderstood something."
Ye Luochen spoke slowly.
"I came here only because my access level was raised, and I wanted to take a look around the high-level area. That is all."
"I can understand you asking me questions and testing my abilities."
"But as for what you said about taking me in, or changing teachers..."
"I truly do not understand."
Upon hearing Ye Luochen's words, Xuan Ziwen was visibly stunned.
His tightly furrowed brows lifted slightly as he asked,
"Hm?"
"Didn't you come to become my disciple and join my research group?"
???
Hearing Xuan Ziwen's question, Ye Luochen felt as though ten thousand question marks were galloping through his mind.
Good heavens, when had he ever said he had come to become his disciple?
From beginning to end, he had not mentioned a single word related to that matter, had he?
After some explanation, the issue finally became clear.
"You mean you merely wanted to visit the high-level area, then somehow ended up here?" Xuan Ziwen asked.
Ye Luochen nodded and replied,
"Yes, Teacher Xuan. I also never expected this place to be your laboratory."
A few sentences revealed the cause of this misunderstanding.
It turned out that the area Ye Luochen had found was not some high-level experimental zone at all.
It was Xuan Ziwen's private laboratory.
This place was normally not open to outsiders, and no unrelated personnel could enter.
The layers of checkpoints and locked doors outside had long since declared this route impassable.
Yet Ye Luochen happened to be an exception.
Jing Hongchen had directly raised his access level to the highest rank beneath only a few leaders with real authority and several Level Nine Soul Engineers.
And there had been no time to add extra notes or restrictions for him.
As a result, Ye Luochen could now be said to have virtually unrestricted access throughout all of Mingde Hall.
No checkpoint could stop him.
Moreover, Ye Luochen had spent the past half month completely immersed in research.
Thus, although he had already stayed in Mingde Hall for half a month, he actually knew very little about its internal layout.
Put simply, he was not familiar with the way around.
After leaving Jing Hongchen's office,
He had wandered about in a daze and taken the wrong path.
In the end, relying on the badge in his hand with its maxed-out access privileges, he entered Xuan Ziwen's laboratory, where no outsider should have been able to enter.
Naturally, Xuan Ziwen had known nothing about this absurd mix-up.
From his perspective, he had been diligently researching a project in his laboratory.
Then, all of a sudden, an unfamiliar student opened the door to his laboratory and walked in.
When he asked, he learned that it was Ye Luochen, the genius student whose record-breaking speed of advancement in Soul Tool technology had caused quite a sensation in Mingde Hall.
And he was even holding an access badge that he claimed the hall master had just given him.
Naturally, Xuan Ziwen assumed that Ye Luochen was a student specially assigned by the hall master to study under him.
Otherwise, how could he have accurately found his laboratory despite the heavy security of layer upon layer of checkpoints?
After understanding the reason, Xuan Ziwen could not help but slap his forehead.
After all that, it was actually just a misunderstanding.
"Fine. Since it was all a misunderstanding, you can leave. Later, I'll report this to the hall master. Your access privileges really should have some restrictions added."
As he spoke, Xuan Ziwen's tone turned serious.
"Also, you must not tell anyone about what you saw here today."
Hearing Xuan Ziwen's words, Ye Luochen nodded.
He naturally knew what should and should not be said.
Yet he did not immediately leave as Xuan Ziwen had instructed.
Instead, his gaze passed Xuan Ziwen once more and landed on the breathtaking Soul Tools deep within the hall.
At the side, seeing Ye Luochen's reaction,
Xuan Ziwen's expression immediately turned unfriendly.
"Kid, I'm warning you. These are the subjects of my research. If you dare get any ideas, I will not let you off easily."
"Believe me, as one of Mingde Hall's chief research consultants who receives special benefits from Mingde Hall, I can absolutely do it."
Only then did Ye Luochen withdraw his gaze upon hearing Xuan Ziwen's words.
With a thought, he cupped his hands and said,
"Teacher Xuan, what if I said I was willing to accept your test?"
Xuan Ziwen was immediately stunned upon hearing this, then frowned and said,
"What do you mean? Didn't you just say you only took the wrong path?"
Ye Luochen nodded, then continued,
"Yes, that was indeed the case at first."
"But being able to come here because of it can also be considered fate."
"And the Soul Tools here, Teacher Xuan, are things I have never seen anywhere else."
"I must honestly say that these things have greatly shocked me."
"So, I want the chance to gain a deeper understanding of them."
Before you continue