Heading to the Star Dou Great Forest

He sighed helplessly.

"Child, this isn't the time for jokes."

It was no wonder Ning Jingchen didn't believe Bai Chen. From his perspective, Bai Chen had only awakened his Martial Soul yesterday. How could he have become a Level-One Soul Engineer immediately after awakening it?

Faced with the doubt, Bai Chen's response was simple and direct.

"If Sect Master doesn't believe me, I can make a Soul Tool for you right now."

"...Are you serious?"

Hearing this, Ning Jingchen's expression changed.

Bai Chen said without the slightest hesitation:

"You won't know unless you try."

"Very well."

Ning Jingchen rose to his feet and said:

"Then let me see where your confidence comes from."

Just as Bai Chen had said, they would not know unless they tried.

Bai Chen was already so confident. Giving him a chance would not hurt Ning Jingchen, so naturally, he wanted to see what made Bai Chen so confident.

The source of Bai Chen's confidence was, in fact, himself from the Douluo III Era.

The future Bai Chen had incomparably abundant resources and could study knowledge related to Soul Tools.

Before he turned six, he had already spent a long time teaching himself about Soul Tools.

After all, physical tasks like forging had strict requirements for both physical strength and Soul Power. Before awakening his Martial Soul, he could only study things that required nothing but thought.

It was also a way of leaving himself a way out. After all, Soul Engineers of the Douluo III Era did not have high requirements for Soul Power—one could even say they had none. Tang Ziran and Ling Zichen were both ordinary people without Soul Power, yet they had attained extremely high accomplishments in the field of Soul Tools.

If he had failed to awaken Soul Power, he would have relied on this craft to make a living.

Fortunately, not only had he awakened Soul Power, but every Martial Soul he had awakened was ridiculously powerful. Naturally, he had to make good use of the knowledge he had learned.

At his current level, let alone a Level-One Soul Tool, he could even make a Level-Three Soul Tool.

Led by Ning Jingchen and Hua Tianyu, Bai Chen arrived at the Soul Tool workshop within the Nine-Treasure Glazed Sect.

Dozens of Soul Engineers were making Soul Tools there. Judging from the badges on their shoulders or chests, most were Level-Two Soul Engineers, while the highest-ranked ones were only Level-Four Soul Engineers.

As far as Bai Chen knew, the strongest Soul Engineer in the Nine-Treasure Glazed Sect was only Level Seven. Even so, they were already considered one of the sects with the highest Soul Tool standards among the Douluo Original Three Kingdoms.

Ning Jingchen brought Bai Chen to an empty Soul Tool workbench and said:

"Come. The metal on this workbench is yours to use as you please. Make a Level-One Soul Tool and let me see your skill."

As the Sect Master of the Nine-Treasure Glazed Sect, Ning Jingchen was actually a Soul Engineer himself.

After all, once his cultivation had reached Rank 79, he could no longer continue cultivating. Aside from handling sect affairs, the only thing he could do was study Soul Tools.

He was now a Level-Five Soul Engineer. He was not particularly powerful, but evaluating Bai Chen's Soul Tool proficiency would be more than easy enough.

Bai Chen sat down before the workbench and picked up a carving knife.

"...!"

The moment Ning Jingchen saw the way he held the carving knife, his eyes narrowed.

He had originally thought Bai Chen was merely a child bragging, but after seeing such a standard grip, that thought immediately wavered.

Someone who merely had a superficial understanding of Soul Tools could not possibly make such a precise movement.

Could what this child said be true?

Ning Jingchen's heart churned, but Bai Chen's world no longer contained him.

More precisely, aside from the workbench before him, everything else temporarily vanished from Bai Chen's mind.

On Douluo Continent, no matter what skill one practiced, the most important thing was the ability to focus.

The more focused one was, the better the result.

The same naturally applied to making Soul Tools. In order to display his abilities better, Bai Chen entered the zone in an instant.

He picked up a piece of metal and swiftly began carving.

The creation of a Soul Tool was mainly divided into three steps.

The first step was carving the Soul Tool's outer shell. This step did not demand much precision in one's movements; what mattered was the Soul Master's strength.

And coincidentally, Bai Chen of this era possessed the greatest strength among the three eras.

Thus, under Ning Jingchen's somewhat stunned gaze, Bai Chen's hands did not pause in the slightest. Those incomparably hard metals that gave many Soul Engineers headaches were carved into shape beneath his flowing movements.

In just two minutes, a Soul Tool shell had been completed.

"..."

Ning Jingchen was speechless by then.

Even if he were the one carving it, he would need at least five minutes to make that shell.

It required more than strength; it also required proficiency.

Bai Chen had never had the opportunity to make a Soul Tool himself before. At most, he could only use the books commonly available within the Nine-Treasure Glazed Sect to gain a rudimentary understanding of Soul Tool knowledge. Logically, he should not have been so adept.

Yet the facts lay right before Ning Jingchen's eyes, and he had no choice but to believe them.

Was this what they called a genius...?

While Ning Jingchen marveled inwardly, Bai Chen began the second step of making the Soul Tool.

This second step was actually the most important part of the entire process: carving the Core Magic Arrays.

If a Soul Tool's outer shell was the external structure that prevented it from being damaged, then the Core Magic Arrays were the source of power that allowed it to unleash its might.

Creating Core Magic Arrays was also the stage that demanded the greatest control from a Soul Engineer. Therefore, once he entered this stage, Bai Chen's focus visibly deepened.

Yet what was astonishing was that Bai Chen still did not slow down his carving. He continued carving the Core Magic Arrays at that unbelievably fast speed.

After all, he was only making a Level-One Soul Tool, so it did not require many Core Magic Arrays. Very soon, all three Core Magic Arrays had been completed.

What remained was the final step of making the Soul Tool: assembly.

This step placed the greatest emphasis on Soul Power. In the original story, when Huo Yuhao had reached Eight Rings, he used the Ghost Carving Divine Blade to complete most of the steps for a Level-Nine alchemy furnace. Yet for the final assembly, he had still needed the Nine-Ring Xuan Ziwen.

The three steps of Soul Tool creation—outer shell, Core Magic Arrays, and assembly—tested strength, spiritual power, and Soul Power respectively.

Only when all three stages met the requirements could one make a Soul Tool of that level.

Although Bai Chen had not yet become a true One-Ring Soul Master, he had relied on his immense strength to expend very little Soul Power in the earlier stages. Thus, even this final step was completed with remarkable speed.

As he injected Soul Power into the Soul Tool, a faint red glow lit up, proclaiming that he had become a Level-One Soul Engineer.

At the same time, he was likely the youngest Level-One Soul Engineer of the Douluo II Era.

Journey to the Star Dou Great Forest

Ning Jingchen hurriedly picked up the Level-One Soul Tool Bai Chen had made and examined it repeatedly in his hand before setting it down and letting out a long breath.

Hua Tianyu asked somewhat nervously:

"Sect Master, how is it?"

Though he was a Title Douluo, he belonged to the traditional school and knew absolutely nothing about Soul Tools.

At most, he could tell that Bai Chen's technique was highly skilled and seemed impressive. Beyond that, he knew nothing.

Ning Jingchen glanced at him and said in a slightly trembling voice:

"Elder Hua, our sect may have produced a peerless genius no less remarkable than Sea God Tang San from ten thousand years ago!"

"You mean...!"

Hua Tianyu immediately grew excited as well.

Ning Jingchen did not answer directly. Instead, he said solemnly:

"Elder Hua, please notify the other senior members. We need to carefully discuss our future direction!"

"Yes!"

Both of them understood what it meant for a six-year-old to be a Level-One Soul Engineer.

Even in the Sun-Moon Empire, talent of this caliber was likely unprecedented. Bai Chen's monstrous gifts as both a Soul Master and Soul Engineer were already enough for Ning Jingchen to alter the Nine-Treasure Glazed Sect's development path specifically for him.

Bai Chen did not know what happened afterward. After all, no matter what, he was still only a six-year-old child and was not qualified to attend the Nine-Treasure Glazed Sect's high-level meetings.

But what he did know was that Ning Jingchen came to find him the very next day and told him that the sect was willing to meet his request. He and Ning Tian would be allowed to study in the Sun-Moon Empire for five years, and their future destination would be decided based on his achievements after those five years.

The Nine-Treasure Glazed Sect's requirement was that he had to become a Level-Three Soul Engineer within five years. If he failed to meet that requirement, he would have to return to the Three Kingdoms with Ning Tian.

But if he truly became a Level-Three Soul Engineer at eleven years old, the Nine-Treasure Glazed Sect would let him do as he pleased.

Becoming a Level-Three Soul Engineer at eleven would be an absolute fantasy for anyone else, but not for Bai Chen.

As a transmigrator, he had possessed a higher starting point than others from the very beginning. Awakening powerful Martial Souls had further given him a learning speed beyond that of ordinary people. If he still could not meet that condition, he might as well kill himself on the spot.

Half a day later, a carriage left Heaven Dou City and headed toward the Star Dou Great Forest.

Aside from the driver, only four people sat inside the carriage: Bai Chen, Hua Tianyu, Ning Jingchen, and Ning Tian.

They had decided that after helping Bai Chen acquire his first Soul Ring, they would immediately send Bai Chen and Ning Tian to study at the Sun-Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy.

The Sun-Moon Imperial Soul Engineering Academy did not reject people from other nations who came to study. In fact, so long as the price was right, they would be delighted to recruit more top talents from the Three Kingdoms.

They had specifically established a junior academy for children over six and under twelve. Bai Chen and Ning Tian planned to enter that type of academy.

Perhaps because it was her first time traveling so far from home, Ning Tian looked somewhat nervous. Still, she forced herself to appear calm and sat on her seat with a serious expression.

However, her slightly stiff body had already revealed the unease in her heart.

Seeing this, Bai Chen felt somewhat helpless.

Sure enough, no matter how strong her personality was, she was still only a six-year-old girl.

Rather, the fact that she could behave this way at her age was already enough to show just how mature she was.

He took the initiative and asked:

"Young Mistress, are you afraid?"

"I'm not afraid!"

Ning Tian denied it at once.

Yet judging from her fierce reaction and raised voice, she was clearly afraid.

Bai Chen said with a grin:

"Then shall I perform some Orlando Magic for you?"

"Orlando Magic?"

Upon hearing this, not only Ning Tian, but Ning Jingchen and Hua Tianyu also looked over curiously.

"That's right, Orlando Magic."

In his previous life, Bai Chen had often interacted with children for certain special reasons.

To make those children happy, he had taught himself a few simple magic tricks.

So-called magic mainly relied on sleight of hand and an understanding of human psychology. He might not be able to fool someone powerful like Hua Tianyu, but handling a child like Ning Tian would be effortless.

He took a Copper Soul Coin from his pocket and asked Ning Tian:

"Look, how many Copper Soul Coins are there?"

"One. What about it?"

Ning Tian frowned in confusion, not knowing what Bai Chen intended by asking such an obvious question.

Bai Chen chuckled, suddenly tossed the Copper Soul Coin into the air, then swiftly caught it.

"What about now? How many are there?"

"...Isn't there still just one?"

"Wrong." Bai Chen opened his palm with a smile. Three Copper Soul Coins lay quietly in it. "The answer is three."

"Th-then... how did you do that?"