First-Level Soul Engineer Assessment

"More importantly, only Soul Masters can activate this kind of Soul Tool. If one day, I can develop a Rank 9 Soul Tool that ordinary people can use, then I'll die without regrets."

Xuan Ziwen spoke with some emotion.

Hearing this, Huo Yuhao immediately perked up and encouraged him. "Keep it up, Teacher Xuan. I believe you can do it."

A bitter smile appeared on Xuan Ziwen's face. "Huo Yuhao, I'm not even a Rank 9 Soul Engineer yet. I'm still very far from achieving that goal. In my lifetime, I definitely won't see the day when ordinary people can use Rank 9 Soul Tools.

"Although I've always made it my life's goal to create powerful or unique Soul Tools, I'm an eight-ring Soul Douluo. No matter what I do, I can't create a Rank 9 Soul Tool.

"If I had the cultivation of a Titled Douluo, I would definitely be able to become a Rank 9 Soul Engineer."

Huo Yuhao's expression shifted slightly. To be honest, Xuan Ziwen really wasn't bragging.

After all, in the original story, Xuan Ziwen's talent for Soul Tools had actually been exceptional. His cultivation had simply been lacking. Later, he had only broken through to become a Titled Douluo with Huo Gua's help, then became the first Rank 9 Soul Engineer of the original Douluo Continent and earned the respect of countless people.

Of course, Xuan Ziwen's reputation with the future Sun Moon Emperor Xu Tianran was far less favorable. After all, from Xu Tianran's perspective, Xuan Ziwen—a second-generation Sun Moon Person who got a green card, learned all the technology, then ran off to the Tang Sect—had basically defected.

"Enough of that. Put the Soul Guidance Gun on the experiment table. Let's begin class. If your performance satisfies me today, this Soft Bone Rabbit will be your dinner."

Xuan Ziwen patted Huo Yuhao on the shoulder, then led him over to another experiment table.

Damn, telling me to have a Soft Bone Rabbit for dinner—Xuan Ziwen, you really have guts.

But when he considered that God King Tang San had no time to watch every single Soft Bone Rabbit, as well as this body's innate max-level Grilled Fish talent, Huo Yuhao immediately started craving it. He wondered whether grilling fish and grilling rabbit had a lot in common. His gaze unconsciously drifted toward the nearby Soft Bone Rabbit, and he could already imagine how delicious it would be.

To be honest, this rabbit was pretty plump. It should have quite a bit of meat and would probably taste great grilled.

"Creating Core Arrays is certainly important, but if we want to become Soul Engineers, we must learn to use Soul Tools to forge metal. Human strength will eventually reach its limit.

"Using Soul Tools to forge metal can greatly improve both forging efficiency and forging quality. Therefore, this kind of Soul Guidance Forging Device is an auxiliary tool for us." As he spoke, he guided Huo Yuhao in forging metal with a specially made Soul Guidance Forging Device.

This was far more advanced than the Soul Tool Department at Shrek Academy.

After all, when Huo Gua had gone to Shrek Academy to study Soul Tools in the original story, he had started out by learning forging from Fan Yu and had even used the "Tang Sect Secret Technique, Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer."

Honestly, Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer was an inherited technique of the Clear Sky Sect, yet by Peerless Tang Sect, it had become a supreme technique in the Hidden Weapon section of the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record.

Therefore, the naming rights to Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer now belonged to God King Tang San.

What was the Clear Sky Sect? Never heard of it.

Still, it had to be said that manual forging wasted a great deal of time and was hopelessly outdated. How could manual forging possibly compare to forging with Soul Tools?

Besides, Peerless Tang Sect didn't have the huge pile of forging settings from Douluo 3, and Fan Yu wasn't some badass divine blacksmith from Douluo 3 either, so why forge metal by hand?

Fan Yu might have been a bit mediocre, but he was still a Rank 8 Soul Engineer. In theory, Soul Engineers should have more advanced ideas, since this was a profession that required brains.

So Fan Yu shouldn't have been unable to think of something this simple.

Could it be that Fan Yu, a dignified Rank 8 Soul Engineer, had been implanted with some ideological brand by Sea God Tang San? Was he unable to think of a method to improve efficiency?

After some time, under Xuan Ziwen's guidance, Huo Yuhao had mastered the method of forging metal with a Soul Guidance Forging Device. Xuan Ziwen then began teaching him about inscribing Core Arrays and how to identify metals. It could be said that he taught Huo Yuhao everything he knew without holding anything back.

After all, Huo Yuhao was no longer a Shrek exchange student. He was now a genuine student of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, so Xuan Ziwen had no reason to keep anything from him.

Huo Yuhao also studied very seriously. Soul Engineers made money quickly, after all. In this world, as long as he had enough Gold Soul Coins, it would not be a problem to buy some Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures that had few side effects as long as they were not overused, and which could improve his physique.

He had no choice. The original Huo Gua's foundation had simply been too weak; he couldn't compare to people like Bei Bei at all. Although Huo Gua had cheats, he still needed a good body in order to make full use of them.

Time flew by.

Twenty days later.

Huo Yuhao stood in the laboratory, holding an azure carving knife. Looking at the forged metal on the table, he asked, "Teacher Xuan, can I begin now?"

"Yes, begin. As long as you can create a qualified First Level Soul Tool, I can recognize you as a First-Level Soul Engineer.

"Of course, my standards for qualification may be somewhat higher. Remember, low rank is not a problem here. The problem is lacking ideas and creativity. For a Soul Engineer, losing one's ideas and creativity is undoubtedly an extremely frightening thing." Xuan Ziwen spoke with a solemn expression.

"Understood, Teacher Xuan." Huo Yuhao took a deep breath, then picked up a piece of silvery-white metal and began inscribing a Core Array with his carving knife. As he moved, large amounts of silvery-white powder fell from his hands.

Naturally, the carving knife in his hand was not a Ranked Carving Knife. Such items were scarce and far too expensive for him to afford.

Once the Star Luo Auction begins, I'll be able to obtain the carving knife forged from Life Spirit Gold. He muttered to himself inwardly, then threw himself into inscribing the Core Array. Passing the First-Level Soul Engineer assessment was critically important to him, because it meant an increase in both status and income.

Soon, intricate patterns emerged across the silver metal in his hand. After some time, a silvery-white spherical object appeared on the experiment table, with a pull ring at the top of the small sphere.

"Teacher Xuan, my First Level Soul Tool is complete," Huo Yuhao said.

Xuan Ziwen had already watched Huo Yuhao's entire process of creating the Soul Tool. Looking at the small sphere, he slowly frowned. "You inscribed four Core Arrays into its core: a soundwave attack array, an amplification array, a Charging Array, and an illumination array.

"Although all of these Core Arrays are first-level, being able to inscribe four arrays onto such a small piece of metal does indeed show that your talent is quite good."