Learning Soul Tools

The next morning, sunlight had barely touched the courtyard windows when the little yard where Huo Yuhao and his mother lived grew lively.

Huo Yun'er had spent the night cultivating. Early that morning, she began clearing a patch of ground in the courtyard for vegetables.

"Mom! You should be resting. Why do you suddenly want a vegetable plot?"

Huo Yun'er planted her hoe in the soil.

"I haven't had much to do since we came here. Your mother has to find something to keep herself busy, doesn't she?"

"I can grow vegetables here, and you'll get to taste something I grew myself."

Her words left Huo Yuhao silent. For the past six months, he had been focused on making up for what he lacked and finding his first Spirit Ring. He really had neglected his mother.

While he stood there in silence, a knock sounded at the front gate. Bang, bang, bang.

"Yuhao, see if Her Highness has arrived."

Huo Yuhao opened the gate and found Xu Jiujiu standing right in front of him.

For the first time in a while, Xu Jiujiu had tied her hair in a high ponytail. She wore a beautiful purple dress, and an air of nobility surrounded her.

Huo Yuhao stood in the doorway, staring.

"What are you looking at?"

"Ah! Sorry, Sister Jiujiu. Please, come in."

"Sister Jiujiu, who are these two?"

Huo Yuhao was about to invite her inside when he noticed that, besides Xu Jiujiu and Man Yi, who visited often, two tall, broad-shouldered elderly men stood behind her.

The two men looked remarkably alike. One, however, had a long scar running from the corner of his eye to his mouth, lending him a fierce appearance.

"Yuhao, these two seniors are—"

Before Xu Jiujiu could finish, the scarred elder interrupted her.

"My name is Cheng Shitao. I'll be teaching you about Soul Tools for the next year."

Cheng Shitao narrowed his eyes and sized Huo Yuhao up. "I'll be blunt. I don't enjoy playing teacher to children. If your talent doesn't meet my standards, I'll teach you for one year at most."

Looking at him, Huo Yuhao thought, This senior seems to have quite a temper.

The other elder spoke up. "Then don't teach him. You'll only hold back the Empire's talent. I've told you before: those Soul Tools of yours are nothing but flashy tricks. If you didn't spend every day tinkering with them, you'd be close to becoming a Titled Douluo by now. Instead, you've barely made it to Soul Douluo."

"Cheng Gang, spare me your snide remarks."

Huo Yuhao could only watch as the two elders started arguing in his courtyard.

Xu Jiujiu quietly moved beside him and whispered, "These two seniors are brothers. Senior Cheng Gang is one of the Empire's Douluo protectors, while Senior Cheng Shitao is the highest-ranked Soul Engineer in the Empire. They often argue about Soul Tools."

"Why?"

"Senior Cheng Gang believes Soul Tools are a misguided pursuit. He also thinks his younger brother fell behind in Soul Power Level because he spent so much time tinkering with them."

She added, "Yuhao, to be honest, I'm not sure you should study Soul Tools right now either. You have Twin Martial Souls and are a talent the Empire rarely sees. It seems a waste of your gifts."

"Sister, I have an assault-type Martial Soul now, but I still want to try."

"You... All right. Study with Senior Cheng Shitao for a year, as he suggested. If it doesn't work out, will you give up the Soul Engineer path?"

"All right."

Xu Jiujiu was pleased with his answer. As for whether Huo Yuhao could meet Cheng Shitao's standards within a year, she doubted it. Cheng Shitao was notoriously strict throughout the Empire, and at Huo Yuhao's age, his chances were slim.

"Why are you standing so close?"

Xu Jiujiu suddenly realized that Huo Yuhao had moved right beside her. With his face so near, she found herself remembering what her imperial brother had told her yesterday. Blushing faintly, she pushed Huo Yuhao aside.

"Sister Jiujiu, what's wrong?"

Huo Yuhao, pushed away without warning, was baffled.

"Nothing. You just startled me, coming so close."

As Xu Jiujiu steadied her nerves, she took a bracelet-like Soul Tool from her clothing.

"Here. This is for you."

"Sister Jiujiu, what is it?"

"It's a level-six Rechargeable Defensive Soul Tool. You're still too weak, so it's for your protection. Don't get the wrong idea."

She turned her head away to hide her flushed smile. That moment between them had been rather intimate.

Behind them, Huo Yun'er watched with a knowing smile. She had been young once; of course she could tell Xu Jiujiu was shy.

Tian Meng and Jiang Ziya witnessed it too from within Huo Yuhao's Sea of Consciousness. Both were single, but even they could recognize the budding affection between the young pair.

"Well, well! Looks like little Yuhao might become a prince consort someday."

"Mm. That Jiujiu girl seems like a good match for Yuhao."

Huo Yuhao had no idea the two in his Sea of Consciousness had already picked out a partner for him.

By then, the Cheng brothers had finished arguing. As always, neither had convinced the other.

"You're Huo Yuhao, correct? What's your level?"

"Thirteen."

"Mm, not bad. Her Highness told me about your first spirit skill. Its effect is excellent. For a Soul Engineer, it's a godsend. But..."

Cheng Shitao's tone sharpened. "What I need to see is your aptitude. For the next year, I'll come teach you for two hours every afternoon. If you haven't become a level-one Soul Engineer by the end of that year, I'll ask His Majesty to relieve me of my teaching duties. I have no desire to play school with a child."

Without waiting to see whether Huo Yuhao had taken it all in, Cheng Shitao grabbed him by the back of the neck. Carrying him just as Man Yi had, he strode to the table in the pavilion and sat down.

The others exchanged looks at Cheng Shitao's brisk manner. Cheng Gang, who had only just argued with him, looked especially resigned.

Even after all these years, Cheng Gang still could not understand his younger brother. Cheng Shitao was every bit as talented as he was. So what if he lacked offensive power? Couldn't he have become a defense-type soul master? Instead, he insisted on spending his time researching Soul Tools, leaving his Soul Power Level nearly ten levels behind Cheng Gang's.

In the pavilion, Huo Yuhao rubbed the back of his neck. This senior really doesn't waste any time.

Before he could complain any further, Cheng Shitao swept a hand across the belt at his waist. A notebook with yellowed pages landed in front of Huo Yuhao with a thud.

Huo Yuhao eyed the notebook. It looked three fingers thick.

"Here. This is the notebook I used when I studied Soul Tools. It contains the fundamentals and some material on level-one Soul Tools. You have two weeks to memorize everything in it. After that, I'll test you myself."

Two weeks?