Evolution!

"Th-this is..."

Watching the scene unfold, Xuan Ziwen gaped in astonishment.

The sight before him had completely transcended his understanding.

Was Ye Luochen's martial soul actually devouring the Stamping Machine Tool?

Fortunately, although the situation was utterly absurd, Ye Luochen's condition was gradually stabilizing.

The look of struggle on his face slowly faded away.

As time passed and the Stamping Machine Tool was consumed, the various anomalies radiating from the Dark Iron Blade began to subside.

Until the entire Stamping Machine Tool was devoured, and the Dark Iron Blade finally returned to tranquility.

The light dimmed, the tremors ceased, and the gravitational pull dissipated.

"Hm? How is it?"

Seeing that the situation seemed to have stabilized, Xuan Ziwen hurriedly asked.

However, Ye Luochen did not answer immediately; instead, he slowly withdrew his arm and closed his eyes once more.

His brows furrowed, and his soul power began to surge.

Just as Xuan Ziwen grew so anxious he could barely resist reaching out to wake him, Ye Luochen finally reopened his eyes.

The next moment, two sharp beams of light shot out!

Ye Luochen's entire aura surged violently!

Seeing this, the heart that had been hanging in Xuan Ziwen's throat finally settled a little.

Although he was still deeply confused as to why such a situation had occurred, judging by the aura and demeanor Ye Luochen displayed, it seemed nothing had gone wrong.

"How is it? How is your martial soul now?"

Hearing this, Ye Luochen let out a long breath.

Then, with a flick of his arm, he gripped the Dark Iron Blade in his palm once more.

The Dark Iron Blade now appeared thick and heavy, its edge shimmering with cold light, as if it were a divine weapon that had just been forged.

Compared to its previous, unremarkable appearance, it was countless times more dazzling!

"My Dark Iron Blade, it seems..."

"Evolved?"

After carefully sensing the state of his martial soul, Ye Luochen spoke.

"Evolved? What kind of evolution?"

Ye Luochen shook his head.

"I'm not sure, but in my perception, the strength of my martial soul has definitely increased compared to before."

"But it's simple enough to find out."

As he spoke, Ye Luochen reached out with his other hand and picked up a piece of pitch-black metal from the table.

Then, he slashed down with force.

Crack!

With a soft sound, the metal was cleaved in two, the cut as smooth and flat as a mirror.

"Hm?!"

Seeing this, both Ye Luochen and Xuan Ziwen widened their eyes.

This was no nameless material; it was a rare metal known for its extreme hardness.

More importantly, when they were building the machine tool earlier, Ye Luochen had tried several times and had barely managed to leave a few scratches on its surface.

Even Xuan Ziwen had only been able to cut and process it with great difficulty after finding a level-six soul tool carving knife.

And yet, now, Ye Luochen's Dark Iron Blade was slicing through it like mud?

"Are there any other changes?" Xuan Ziwen continued to ask.

Hearing this, Ye Luochen pondered for a moment before taking a crystal ball out of his storage soul tool.

"Isn't that for testing innate soul power?"

Xuan Ziwen immediately recognized what it was.

"Do you think your martial soul's strength increased because of your innate soul power?"

"But the reason innate soul power is called 'innate' is because it originates from birth; it is what it is, how could it possibly change—"

Before he could finish his sentence, Xuan Ziwen stopped himself.

There was no need for words; as Ye Luochen placed his palm upon it, a number illuminated brightly on the crystal ball before them.

Five.

An innate soul power of level five could only be considered average; it was by no means high.

However, Xuan Ziwen remembered very clearly that Ye Luochen's file stated his innate soul power was level four.

"How is this possible? How could your innate soul power have increased by a level?"

Faced with Xuan Ziwen's question and the result displayed on the crystal ball, Ye Luochen was also stunned.

"I'm not sure either, but it seems..."

"It has something to do with that Fully Automatic Stamping Machine Tool consumed by your Dark Iron Blade?"

Hearing this, Xuan Ziwen frowned.

"A stamping machine tool? Its complexity is indeed significant, but its grade is not actually that high. Could it be because of the metal within it? Did it consume the energy from those metals?"

"But that doesn't make sense. There are plenty of rare metals in my laboratory, many of which are far more precious than the materials used in that machine. Why would your martial soul specifically choose this machine instead of those metals with much stronger energy?"

"Furthermore, these aren't even the key points. The key is how your martial soul suddenly began to consume, and how it could swallow such a large machine whole? Has this kind of situation ever occurred before?"

Faced with Xuan Ziwen's series of questions, Ye Luochen could only shake his head.

He was also very confused.

This strange situation had occurred for the first time.

He could only sense, through the feedback provided by his martial soul, that it was inextricably linked to that stamping machine tool.

Seeing that the various puzzles could not be solved and that Ye Luochen's condition had stabilized, the two immediately began to head toward Jing Hongchen's office.

In this situation, they could only seek help from the Hall Master.

However, after listening to Ye Luochen's description, personally examining his martial soul, and testing it using various methods, even Jing Hongchen, who was at the Titled Douluo level, could not provide an answer.

In the end, he could only attribute the cause to a mutation.

"Although martial souls are innate, there have been cases of postnatal mutations."

"The change in your Dark Iron Blade should be a postnatal mutation, a secondary evolution."

Listening to Jing Hongchen's words, Ye Luochen nodded.

He had heard of this theory back at Shrek.

However, postnatal mutations often required specific conditions to be met, such as consuming rare treasures compatible with the martial soul or utilizing some secret technique.

Yet, he had merely spent an afternoon in the laboratory with Xuan Ziwen researching the Fully Automatic Stamping Machine Tool.

He hadn't come into contact with any rare treasures, let alone used any secret techniques.

"Regardless, your martial soul's strength has increased, and your innate soul power has risen by a level, which is definitely a good thing."

Jing Hongchen spoke slowly once more.

"For this period, focus on observation. If your martial soul undergoes any further changes, report to me immediately."

"I will go check the archives again. If that doesn't work, I will personally take you to Shrek. After all, Shrek is far ahead of our Sun Moon Empire in terms of martial soul research. I imagine they will still give me this much face."

Hearing this, Ye Luochen was stunned.

As someone who originated from the Douluo Three Kingdoms and had spent several years at Shrek, he knew all too well what their attitude was toward people from the Sun Moon Empire.

Especially toward the Hall Master of Mingde Hall.

As a strategic-level existence, it was impossible that he would be allowed to return without paying a heavy price if he were to go there.

Jing Hongchen could not possibly be unaware of this.

Yet, even so, Jing Hongchen was actually willing to take him to Shrek because of the anomaly in his martial soul?

For a moment, an indescribable feeling surged within Ye Luochen's heart.

He did not know if Jing Hongchen's words were meant to comfort him or otherwise, nor did he know if they would ever truly be carried out.

But in Ye Luochen's eyes, the fact that the other party could say such a thing was already enough.

Because it was quite pathetic to say, in all his past years, there had never been anyone willing to stand by him when he encountered trouble, just as Jing Hongchen was doing now.

Standing behind him, telling him not to be afraid, that he would be his backing.

Not only that, but back when he was excluded from the core layer time and time again by Shrek under the name of "not being talented enough," many people had even kicked him while he was down.

Former classmates and old friends said his martial soul was ordinary and that he truly didn't deserve it;

The teacher he had always respected also said the academy had its own considerations and told him not to be impulsive.

Almost no one stood on his side to say to him:

I support you, and I am here for you.

But now, he had that support.

Ye Luochen had seen everything Xuan Ziwen did earlier.

Although he hadn't provided any substantial help, the concern and anxiety in the man's eyes were absolutely genuine.

And now, Jing Hongchen, the Hall Master of Mingde Hall, had not only personally examined him but also offered to make a trip to Shrek on his behalf.

Regardless of whether they were after his talent in soul tools or something else;

Regardless of whether they had ulterior motives or not.

This support was enough to move Ye Luochen.

Thinking of this, Ye Luochen took a few steps back and bowed deeply to the two of them.

Seeing Ye Luochen suddenly do this, both Xuan Ziwen and Jing Hongchen were stunned.

Jing Hongchen raised a large hand, lifting Ye Luochen up from a distance.

"What are you doing?"

"Luochen thanks both of you teachers for your concern."

Ye Luochen stubbornly bowed again, then replied with an incredibly earnest expression.

"What is there to thank? You are now a student of the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy and a member of Mingde Hall.

Since that is the case, how could Mingde Hall sit idly by when your martial soul has suffered a mishap?"

As he spoke, a smile appeared on Jing Hongchen's face.

"Besides, I have placed a heavy bet on you and am waiting for you to prove your worth. You cannot afford to have any problems before then."

Hearing Jing Hongchen's words, Xuan Ziwen frowned slightly.

The Hall Master's words were a bit too direct and utilitarian.

However, unlike Xuan Ziwen, Ye Luochen felt no resentment toward this at all.

Because of his years of struggling to survive, he could have guessed as much even if Jing Hongchen hadn't said it.

In his view, the fact that the other party could be so frank and straightforward was actually better.

After settling matters regarding Ye Luochen, Jing Hongchen turned his gaze to Xuan Ziwen, who stood to the side.

He naturally recognized this chief researcher who enjoyed special subsidies from Mingde Hall.

But he was somewhat puzzled: why had Xuan Ziwen appeared together with Ye Luochen?

After the two explained, Jing Hongchen finally understood and laughed:

"So it was all a misunderstanding? Still, it is quite fitting for you to mentor Ye Luochen; others would truly fall short.

One is a research-oriented mentor, and the other is a student with extraordinary soul tool talent and great diligence—a perfect match."

"Very well, let's arrange it this way for now."

"You will continue to mentor Ye Luochen, teach him soul tool technology, and at the same time, monitor the condition of his martial soul. If there are any abnormalities, report to me immediately."