Evolution!

"This... this is..."

Xuan Ziwen stared at the scene before him, his mouth hanging open in shock.

What he was seeing had completely surpassed his understanding.

Ye Luochen's martial soul had started devouring the Stamping Machine Tool?

Fortunately, although the situation was utterly absurd, Ye Luochen gradually stabilized.

The struggle on his face slowly faded.

And as time passed, the Stamping Machine Tool was gradually devoured, while the various abnormalities emitted by the Dark Iron Blade slowly weakened as well.

Only when the entire Stamping Machine Tool had been completely consumed did the Dark Iron Blade finally return to calm.

Its light dimmed, its trembling stopped, and its pull vanished.

"Hm? How is it?"

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

But Ye Luochen did not answer immediately. He slowly withdrew his arm and closed his eyes once more.

His brows gradually furrowed as Soul Power began to surge within him.

Just as Xuan Ziwen grew so anxious that he could not help wanting to wake him, Ye Luochen finally opened his eyes again.

The next instant, two sharp gleams shot forth!

Ye Luochen's entire aura suddenly trembled!

Seeing this, Xuan Ziwen finally relaxed slightly.

Though he still had no idea why this had happened, judging from Ye Luochen's aura and condition, there should not have been any problem.

"How is it? What happened to your martial soul?"

Hearing that, Ye Luochen let out a long breath.

Then, with a shake of his arm, the Dark Iron Blade returned to his grasp.

The Dark Iron Blade was now thick and heavy, its edge flowing with chilling light, like a divine weapon that had just entered the world.

Compared to its former plain appearance, it had become countless times more eye-catching!

"My Dark Iron Blade seems to have..."

"Evolved?"

Only after carefully sensing the state of his martial soul did Ye Luochen speak.

"Evolved? What kind of evolution?"

Ye Luochen shook his head.

"I'm not sure either, but according to my senses, the strength of my martial soul has definitely increased."

"But it'll be easy to find out. We only need to test it."

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

Then he swung down with force.

Crack!

With a soft sound, the metal split into two. The cut was smooth and even, like a mirror.

"Hm?!"

Ye Luochen and Xuan Ziwen both widened their eyes at the sight.

This was no ordinary material, but a rare metal renowned for its hardness.

More importantly, when Ye Luochen had previously been making the machine tool, he had tried several times and only barely managed to leave a few scratches on its surface.

Even Xuan Ziwen had needed to find a Rank 6 Soul Tool carving knife before he could barely cut and process it.

Yet now, Ye Luochen's Dark Iron Blade cut through it like mud?

"Are there any other changes?" Xuan Ziwen continued asking.

After pondering for a moment, Ye Luochen took out a crystal ball from his storage Soul Tool.

"Isn't that used to test Innate Soul Power?"

Xuan Ziwen immediately recognized it.

"Could it be that you think the increase in your martial soul's strength is related to your Innate Soul Power?"

"But Innate Soul Power is called Innate Soul Power precisely because it comes from birth. Whatever one is born with is what one has. How could it possibly chan—"

Before he could finish, Xuan Ziwen stopped on his own.

There was no other reason. As Ye Luochen placed his palm on it, a number lit up brightly on the crystal ball before them.

Five.

Innate Soul Power at Rank 5 could only be considered average, nowhere near exceptional.

But Xuan Ziwen clearly remembered that Ye Luochen's records listed him as having Rank 4 Innate Soul Power.

"How is that possible? How could your Innate Soul Power have risen by one rank?"

Faced with Xuan Ziwen's question and the result displayed by the crystal ball, Ye Luochen was stunned as well.

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

"It's related to that Stamping Machine Tool devoured by the Dark Iron Blade?"

Xuan Ziwen frowned at that.

"The Stamping Machine Tool? Its complexity was indeed considerable, but its rank was not particularly high.

Could it be because of the metal within it? Did it devour the energy in those metals?"

"But that doesn't make sense either. My laboratory is full of rare metals, and some are far more precious than the materials used in that machine tool.

Why did your martial soul choose that machine tool alone instead of those metals with far greater energy?"

"And none of that is even the key point. The key point is, why did your martial soul suddenly start devouring things? And how could it swallow such a huge machine tool whole?

Has anything like this ever happened before?"

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

He did not understand it either.

This was the first time such a strange occurrence had appeared.

He could only vaguely sense from the feedback given by his martial soul that it should be inseparably related to that Stamping Machine Tool.

Since none of their many questions could be answered and Ye Luochen's condition had stabilized,

the two immediately hurried toward Jing Hongchen's office.

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

Yet after hearing Ye Luochen's account, personally examining his martial soul, and carrying out various tests,

even Jing Hongchen, a Titled Douluo, could not provide an answer.

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

"Although martial souls originate from birth, there have been cases of acquired mutation."

"This change in your Dark Iron Blade should be an acquired mutation, a second evolution."

Hearing Jing Hongchen's words, Ye Luochen nodded.

He had heard of such things at Shrek as well.

But acquired mutations usually required certain conditions to be met. Either one had consumed a heavenly treasure compatible with one's martial soul, or some secret method had been activated.

Yet he had merely spent an afternoon in Xuan Ziwen's laboratory studying the Fully Automatic Stamping Machine Tool.

He had not come into contact with any heavenly treasures, much less used any secret method.

"No matter what, the strength of your martial soul has improved, and your Innate Soul Power has risen by one rank. That is certainly a good thing."

Jing Hongchen spoke slowly again.

"For now, observe it closely. If your martial soul undergoes any further change, report to me immediately."

"I'll look through the records again. If all else fails, this old man will personally take you to Shrek.

After all, Shrek is far ahead of our Sun Moon Empire in matters concerning martial souls. I believe Shrek will grant me that favor."

Ye Luochen was immediately stunned.

As someone from the original Douluo Three Kingdoms who had spent several years at Shrek, he understood all too well their attitude toward people from the Sun Moon Empire.

Especially toward the Hall Master of Mingde Hall.

Such a strategic figure would likely never be allowed to return without paying a price if he went there.

Jing Hongchen could not possibly fail to understand that.

Yet even so, Jing Hongchen had said he would take him to Shrek because of the abnormality in his martial soul?

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

He did not know whether Jing Hongchen had said those words merely to reassure him or for some other reason.

Nor did he know whether it would truly be carried out in the end.

But to Ye Luochen, the fact that Jing Hongchen was willing to say it was already enough.

Because, tragically enough, in all his past years, no one had ever been willing to stand behind him as Jing Hongchen did now when he encountered trouble.

To tell him, don't be afraid, I'll be your support.

Not only that, when Shrek had repeatedly excluded him from its core circle under the pretext that he was "not 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 did not deserve it.

Even the teachers he had always respected said that the academy had its considerations and told him not to act impulsively.

Almost no one had stood on his side and told him:

I support you. I'm here too.

But now, there were.

Ye Luochen had seen Xuan Ziwen's earlier reaction clearly.

Although Xuan Ziwen had not provided any substantial help, the concern and anxiety in his eyes had absolutely been genuine.

And now, Jing Hongchen, the Hall Master of Mingde Hall, had not only personally examined him but also said he was willing to make a trip to Shrek for him.

Whether they were doing it because of his talent with Soul Tools or for some other reason;

whether they had ulterior motives or not.

This support alone was enough to move Ye Luochen.

With that thought, Ye Luochen took several steps back and gave the two of them a deep bow.

Xuan Ziwen and Jing Hongchen were both stunned by Ye Luochen's sudden action.

Jing Hongchen raised a hand and lifted Ye Luochen upright from afar.

"What are you doing?"

"Luochen thanks both teachers for your concern."

Ye Luochen stubbornly bowed again before answering with utmost seriousness.

"What is there to thank us for? 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 stand by and do nothing when something happened to your martial soul?"

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

"Besides, this old man has placed a heavy bet on you and is waiting for you to prove your worth. Before that happens, you cannot run into any trouble."

Hearing Jing Hongchen's words, Xuan Ziwen's brows furrowed slightly.

The Hall Master's words were perhaps a little too direct, too utilitarian.

But unlike Xuan Ziwen, Ye Luochen felt no displeasure whatsoever.

Because of his years of struggling through life, he could more or less guess it even if Jing Hongchen had not said it.

And since Jing Hongchen had spoken so directly and frankly, Ye Luochen found that preferable instead.

After settling Ye Luochen's matters, Jing Hongchen turned his gaze toward Xuan Ziwen beside him.

Naturally, he recognized this chief researcher who received special allowances from Mingde Hall.

But he did not understand how Xuan Ziwen had ended up appearing with Ye Luochen.

After the two explained, Jing Hongchen finally understood and smiled.

"So it was a misunderstanding? Still, having you guide Ye Luochen is quite suitable. Others would indeed fall a little short.

One is a research-oriented instructor, while the other is a diligent student with exceptional Soul Tool talent. You two are a perfect match."

"Fine, we'll arrange it this way for now."

"You will continue guiding Ye Luochen and teach him Soul Tool techniques. At the same time, observe the state of Ye Luochen's martial soul. Report any abnormality to me immediately."