In that situation, trying to fight Huo Yuhao with guerrilla tactics would only put him at a disadvantage, so Bai Chen could only choose to confront him head-on in close combat.
One more skill meant one more option. Just as no one ever complained about having too much money, no Soul Master would complain about having too many Soul Skills.
Of course, Bai Chen could also try developing a Self-Created Soul Skill to solve this problem, but developing one generally required a great deal of time. How could that compare to simply taking one directly?
At this point, Bai Chen's trip to the Spirit Ascension Platform could be said to have been a full harvest. The two problems troubling him most—Soul Power and Soul Skills—had both been resolved here one after another.
Boom—
A flash of green light swept past, and the massive tree before Bai Chen slowly toppled over, crashing to the ground.
Bai Chen shook his hand and nodded in satisfaction.
"Mm, this will do for now."
He had already raised the power of Wind Blade to the point where it could chop down a large tree. At the very least, it could serve as a ranged attack for keeping opponents at bay.
At the same time, an idea arose in his heart.
Should he apply to Zang Xin for a teammate?
His current strength was not weak, but he definitely could not be considered invincible in this Junior Spirit Ascension Platform.
Take that wolf pack just now, for example. If those three people he had encountered by chance had not helped restrain them, he really would not have been able to handle that situation alone.
If he had a powerful teammate, many things would become far more convenient.
"I'll ask when I get back."
Bai Chen shrugged and continued sweeping through the Spirit Ascension Platform.
His strength truly was formidable. After that, he encountered Soul Beasts several more times, but he escaped danger every time.
It was not until he faced three Millennium Soul Beasts at once that he finally lost under their combined assault and exited the Spirit Ascension Platform.
During that process, he obtained another new Soul Skill.
This Soul Skill possessed the Dark Attribute. Its effect was to blacken an area of space centered on him, and only he, as the Soul Skill's caster, could completely ignore its effects.
It was a wide-range blinding technique, though it was not particularly useful. When that Soul Beast had used it, it had not even been able to fool Bai Chen's Purple Demon Eyes, which showed just how mediocre its effect was.
What truly mattered about obtaining this Soul Skill was the meaning behind it. Once might have been a coincidence, but twice was different. It proved that Bai Chen could indeed use this method to enrich his skill set, and the chance of successfully taking a skill was quite high.
Given enough time, he could obtain two Soul Skills in a single trip to the Spirit Ascension Platform. As the number of times he entered increased, one day he would surely find a powerful Soul Skill.
"Mm, you performed very well. I'm quite satisfied."
Seeing Bai Chen crawl out of the cabinet, Zang Xin smiled and asked,
"So, how was it? Can you cultivate normally through this method?"
"Don't ask something you already know, Senior."
Bai Chen stretched his body and smiled.
"If it hadn't benefited my cultivation, I would have come out on my own long ago, wouldn't I?"
"Indeed. It seems you're very satisfied with what you gained this time."
Zang Xin waved his hand and said calmly,
"Then let's go. I'll take you somewhere else good."
Bai Chen blinked curiously.
"What good place? Better than the Spirit Ascension Platform?"
Zang Xin revealed a mysterious smile and raised a finger to his lips.
"Secret."
"Oh."
Bai Chen raised an eyebrow. He did not pursue the matter further and followed Zang Xin out of the Spirit Pagoda.
Based on his experience with Zang Xin over the past two days, Zang Xin was not someone who liked to be mysterious.
That meant the most likely reason he had not answered Bai Chen was that it was inconvenient to do so inside the Spirit Pagoda.
Sure enough, once they got into the car, Zang Xin immediately handed Bai Chen a card and said,
"I had the relevant departments handle some procedures over the past two days. Starting today, you are a member of the Soul Battle Hall."
Bai Chen took the card and examined it.
"Soul Battle Hall... I remember it's one of the Tang Sect's Inner Three Halls, right?"
"That's right." Zang Xin nodded affirmatively as he started the car. "And the place I'm taking you next is one of the benefit facilities prepared for Soul Battle Hall disciples."
Soul Battle Hall
Zang Xin then began introducing the origins and primary duties of the Soul Battle Hall to Bai Chen.
The Soul Battle Hall was one of the Tang Sect's Inner Three Halls. Being able to enter it meant that Bai Chen had become a core member of the Tang Sect.
Among the Inner Three Halls, members of the Law Enforcement Hall were responsible for managing the Tang Sect's internal members. If a member behaved improperly, the Law Enforcement Hall would punish and correct them.
The Hall of Consecration was a prerequisite for entering the Battle Soul Palace. Whether they came from the Outer Three Halls or the other two Inner Halls, members whose cultivation reached a certain level could transfer into the Hall of Consecration.
The Soul Battle Hall's primary duty, meanwhile, was dealing with those who threatened public safety, such as Evil Soul Masters and terrorists.
In the Douluo III Era, the Federation was really only a government in name. In reality, the true core of power still rested in the hands of several major Soul Master factions. Even the major military legions did not listen much to the Federation, instead being controlled separately by major Soul Master families and factions.
That was only natural. After all, in any era, strength was always the most important thing. As the saying went, truth lay within the range of the cannons, and top-tier Soul Masters were clearly those so-called "cannons." The families and factions that possessed these "cannons" were the true players moving the pieces.
Thus, in the Douluo III Era, it was obvious that the core functions of Soul Master society were actually handled separately by the major Soul Master factions.
The Spirit Pagoda was responsible for the awakening and advancement of Soul Masters, the Tang Sect handled public security and scientific research, Shrek Academy cultivated core Soul Masters, and the Temple of War supported the Federation's public image—though even the Temple of War did not truly obey the Federation all that much.
Within the Tang Sect, the organization specifically responsible for dealing with those who disrupted public security was the Soul Battle Hall.
Zang Xin had chosen to let Bai Chen enter this Inner Hall mainly because he wanted him to interact more with people who fought Evil Soul Masters year-round. Over time, this would completely eliminate the possibility of him becoming an Evil Soul Master.
"The Soul Battle Hall's ranking system differs somewhat from that of the Tang Sect's other departments. Like Soul Rings, it uses colors to distinguish ranks. From lowest to highest, they are white, yellow, purple, and black. The higher your rank, the better the benefits you can enjoy. Of course, the missions you face will also become more dangerous."
At this point, Zang Xin paused slightly before smiling at Bai Chen.
"However, you don't need to worry about that for now. You're still far from being promoted."
As a new member of the Soul Battle Hall, Bai Chen automatically received the status of a White-Rank Fighter.
To advance to Yellow-rank Fighter, he needed to complete at least ten missions and become a One-Word Battle Armor Master.
The first requirement for promotion was manageable, but the latter was extremely demanding.
At Shrek Academy, a One-Word Battle Armor Master could even graduate from the outer court. Even across the entire world, Battle Armor Masters were considered an extremely prestigious profession, truly one in ten thousand.
With Bai Chen's talent, becoming a One-Word Battle Armor Master naturally would not be a problem. But even for him, achieving that would require a long time.
After all, the first requirement for reaching that stage was possessing the cultivation of a Soul King.
When Zang Xin became a One-Word Battle Armor Master back then, he had already been nearly fifteen. No matter how talented Bai Chen was, it would take him at least another six years to reach that point.
At that moment, Zang Xin suddenly stopped the car and said to Bai Chen,
"All right, get out."
It turned out that while he had been introducing the Soul Battle Hall to Bai Chen, they had already arrived at their destination.
It was a small courtyard. Unlike the Hall of Heroes they had visited last time, the place Zang Xin brought Bai Chen to this time did not exude any high-tech atmosphere. It even carried a faintly antique charm.
They entered the building and went down the stairs. When they reached roughly the third underground level, they took an elevator. After waiting five minutes, they finally arrived at their destination.
As the elevator doors opened to either side, Zang Xin and Bai Chen stepped out together.
Before them was a long corridor, with a wooden door at its end.
Zang Xin stopped and said to Bai Chen,
"I can't accompany you from here on. After entering, you can freely choose what to do inside, but you can only stay for twelve hours. Once the twelve hours are up, you must come out. Do you understand?"
"I understand."
Bai Chen suddenly understood. He already knew where Zang Xin had brought him.
He passed through the corridor, came to the wooden door, and pushed it open.
A powerful sensation of distortion immediately struck him. Bai Chen felt dizzy, and when he regained his senses, he had arrived in another new space.
When he looked back, the wooden door he had entered through had already turned into a streak of white light and vanished. Clearly, it would not reappear until the twelve hours were over.
The corners of Bai Chen's lips rose slightly. As expected, he had guessed correctly. Zang Xin had brought him to this special space.
In the original Douluo III story, Tang Wulin had also come to this space. The greatest difference between this Artificial Space created by the Tang Sect and Artificial Spaces such as the Spirit Ascension Platform was that its construction involved the Time Law.
The flow of time here was twelve to one compared to the outside world. In other words, cultivating here for twelve hours meant that only one hour would pass outside.
Bai Chen suspected that the Tang Sect had found inspiration in Dragon Valley, which also possessed a difference in the flow of time. Of course, that was only speculation. No one knew the exact truth.
However, unlike Dragon Valley, he could not remain here for extended periods. This was not because the Tang Sect was stingy, but because staying in this space for too long carried a certain degree of danger.
If someone remained here continuously, their body would be assimilated by the Time Law of this place. Once the assimilation reached a certain level, their body structure would undergo abnormalities.
At that point, even if they returned to the outside world, their personal flow of time would not return to normal.
Simply put, they would age twelve times faster.
Therefore, after leaving this place each time, one had to wait another week before entering again.
However, this rule might not apply quite so well to Bai Chen.
"..."
Bai Chen silently raised his hand, and a mass of invisible energy appeared in his palm.
From the moment he entered this space, he had felt the Time Force within his body become more active than ever before.
Every Soul Master had a sacred place suited to their cultivation. In such locations, their cultivation speed would increase dramatically.
For example, plant-type Soul Masters were better suited to cultivating in forests, while Soul Masters with the Fire Attribute would achieve twice the result with half the effort by cultivating near volcanoes.
This was mainly because different environments contained differing amounts of various elements. As far as Bai Chen knew, the Soul Battle Hall's space had been built with this principle in mind. The Tang Sect had specifically established cultivation areas here suited for Soul Masters of different attributes.
Time Secret Realm
Sure enough, after walking forward a few steps, Bai Chen saw signs reading "Plant-Type Soul Master Cultivation Room," "Fire Attribute Soul Master Cultivation Room," "Light Attribute Soul Master Cultivation Room," and so on.
However, none of these cultivation rooms were where Bai Chen wanted to go.
At most, these rooms had a higher concentration of relevant elements in the air. Since Bai Chen could not cultivate normally through meditation, they held no meaning for him at all.
What concerned him more was what the activity of the Time Force within his body meant.
In truth, when he devoured Soul Beasts in the Spirit Ascension Platform, Bai Chen could feel his understanding of the related attributes improving.
That feeling was difficult to describe in words, but overall, it was definitely a good thing.
In this space, he experienced a similar sensation, except the thing improving was his understanding of the Time Attribute.
As long as he remained in this space, Bai Chen's understanding of the Time Attribute could slowly improve.
Moreover, perhaps it was only an illusion, but the time elements in the air seemed to be entering his body.
If, as Zang Xin had said, the reason one could not remain here for too long was the erosion of the Time Law, then perhaps he could resist it to some extent?
Bai Chen narrowed his eyes and stopped in front of a room.
Whether this guess was correct or not would have to wait until after he left to be confirmed.
For now, he should focus on what mattered.
With that thought, Bai Chen pushed open the door marked "Forging Room."
Since he did not intend to choose a specialized cultivation room, the only suitable places for Bai Chen were rooms used to learn techniques.
As a blacksmith, he naturally would not choose anything other than the Forging Room.
Thus, the sound of clanging metal soon filled the Forging Room.
When the twelve hours had passed, white light gathered before Bai Chen and formed the shape of a door.
Bai Chen wiped away his sweat, put away his forging hammer, and left the space.
"You're out. How does it feel?"
"Senior..." Bai Chen frowned and asked, "Is this space related to the Time Attribute?"
"Oh?" Surprise flashed through Zang Xin's eyes. "Why do you say that?"
Before you continue