Modular Design

These words were truly not something Ye Luochen had improvised on the spot to fool Xuan Ziwen.

They were his genuine thoughts.

Although Ye Luochen had spent the past half-month in the most basic areas of Mingde Hall, his clearance had remained low, and he had been unable to access the core regions.

But he had high-level instructors by his side.

Four Level 7 Soul Engineers and two Level 8 Soul Engineers.

All of them were products of Mingde Hall, with technical skills that were absolutely top-tier.

With such individuals providing meticulous, constant guidance every afternoon for the past half-month.

Ye Luochen's vision and knowledge had long since been elevated to a level far beyond his peers.

He had even seen Level 9 soul devices, which previously only existed in rumors, several times.

Yet, even so, upon entering Xuan Ziwen's laboratory, Ye Luochen was still greatly shocked.

The sense of oppression brought to him by the soul devices behind the main hall was not much weaker than that of the Level 9 soul devices he had seen before.

And what was the most critical point?

It was that the name Xuan Ziwen was not among the three Level 9 Soul Engineers other than Jing Hongchen.

In other words, Xuan Ziwen was at most a Level 8 Soul Engineer.

To be able to research soul devices with such a deterrent presence under these circumstances, his level could be imagined.

At the very least, he had to be higher than the two Level 8 Soul Engineers Ye Luochen had been in contact with over the past half-month.

A Level 9 Soul Engineer would certainly not take him, a weak soul engineer who had just broken through to Level 2, as an apprentice.

Other highly skilled research-oriented soul engineers were likely all busy with their own affairs.

Otherwise, he figured Jing Hongchen would have already arranged it for him.

In that case, what was wrong with apprenticing under Xuan Ziwen?

To the side, upon hearing Ye Luochen's words, Xuan Ziwen was clearly stunned.

After a moment of silence, he finally spoke:

"Since things have come to this, then as previously stated, you have one quarter of an hour to make the best soul device core array you can for me."

"If the result can satisfy me, then taking in a genius who even the Hall Master gives special care to is not out of the question."

"Before you begin, let me remind you once more: rank is not the key."

"The key is, as a soul engineer, whether you have your own ideas and creativity."

The two parties reached an agreement.

Xuan Ziwen took out a soul device timer again and placed it to the side.

Ye Luochen stood before the experimental bench and began to examine the various materials on it.

After observing for a moment, Ye Luochen extended his palm and picked up a piece of gray metal.

Then, his soul power surged, and a small Dark Iron Blade condensed into existence.

He began to carve continuously into the metal.

Watching this scene, Xuan Ziwen was instantly stunned.

With his cultivation, he could naturally tell that this small blade was not a soul carving knife.

"For a Martial Soul to be similar to a soul carving knife to this extent—what a heaven-sent advantage..."

As a Level 8 Soul Engineer who had immersed himself in the path of soul devices for many years, Xuan Ziwen knew the importance of a soul carving knife better than anyone.

A soul carving knife that was compatible with oneself could greatly improve a soul engineer's level.

And what could be more compatible with oneself than one's own Martial Soul?

Just as Xuan Ziwen was sighing with emotion, Ye Luochen had already begun to busy himself.

The Dark Iron Blade flew up and down within the metal block, and shavings fell continuously.

In a short while, lines began to appear on the surface of the metal.

However, as he observed, Xuan Ziwen gradually frowned and couldn't help but say:

"Where is your array? The soul device core is defined by the arrays attached to it."

"Be it for charging, acceleration, explosion, or defense, I do not see any traces of these arrays in your actions."

Ye Luochen did not pay heed to Xuan Ziwen's question.

Instead, he focused intently on carving the metal block in his hands.

Seeing this, although Xuan Ziwen was extremely puzzled, he said nothing more.

In any case, there wasn't much time left; he would just look at the result later.

Soon, another five minutes passed, and the metal sphere in Ye Luochen's hand was finally taking shape.

As the final cut was made and a small amount of soul power was injected, the metal sphere began to glow slowly.

The symbol indicated that the core array had been successfully carved.

"If this is what you intended to show me, then I must regretfully inform you that you have failed my assessment. This is nothing more than an empty shell without any auxiliary arrays; it cannot even be considered a soul tool core."

Looking at the glowing metal sphere in Ye Luochen's palm, Xuan Ziwen shook his head in disappointment.

However, to his surprise, Ye Luochen still ignored him.

Instead, he set down the metal sphere, picked up two more pieces of metal, and began to carve.

Seeing Ye Luochen's actions, Xuan Ziwen frowned slightly.

With his keen eye, he could naturally tell what Ye Luochen was doing.

Two pieces of metal: one was the prototype of a charging array, and the other was the prototype of a defensive array.

Is he trying to remedy the situation after my reminder?

To think he actually needed me to point it out...

Xuan Ziwen shook his head in disappointment.

However, considering that the quarter-hour time limit had not yet expired, he watched on patiently.

But soon, Ye Luochen's actions made him frown once again.

After carving the two arrays to near completion, Ye Luochen proceeded to press the two small metal blocks directly onto the previously crafted metal sphere.

"Are you insane?!"

Xuan Ziwen spoke up in a hurry.

"The reason a soul tool core is called a core is that no matter how many arrays it contains, it must be an inseparable, singular entity."

"By colliding them so recklessly, you will only cause the energy within to destabilize, ultimately resulting in an explosion!"

But his words were a step too late.

Ye Luochen had already finished his movements.

Watching this ignorant display, Xuan Ziwen cursed inwardly while quickly pulling out an Invincible Barrier and tossing it toward Ye Luochen.

He absolutely could not accept a student who lacked even the most basic common sense.

But at the very least, he could not allow the boy to get injured here.

However, even after the Invincible Barrier had firmly attached itself to Ye Luochen, the expected explosion never occurred.

On the contrary, the two metal blocks embedded with arrays had perfectly fused into the original metal sphere without a single flaw.

Following this, the previously faint light began to intensify.

The charging array activated, the defensive array activated, and both merged into the metal sphere.

The next moment, a barrier emitting a pale gray light condensed into existence.

Staring at this scene, Xuan Ziwen was momentarily stunned.

Judging by the performance of the barrier before him, its strength was around the third level, and its operation was incredibly smooth.

But this defied all logic!

Shouldn't it have exploded instantly?

It was only then that Ye Luochen finally spoke:

"Teacher, the modular, plug-and-play soul tool core array is complete."