Soul Power Control

"All right, then." Oscar silently put away his sausage.

Just then, Qin Muchu, who had remained quiet until now, stepped forward, took the sausage from Oscar's hand, and bit into it. "Not bad. Food made by a Food-System Soul Master really is delicious."

He wasn't wrong. After all, no one understood a Martial Soul better than its owner, and food made with one was indeed a rare delicacy.

His move left the three beside him staring in disbelief. Dai Mubai was at a loss for words. "Muchu, you..."

Oscar came back to his senses, his displeasure vanishing at once. "Well, brother? I wasn't lying, was I? My sausages are definitely worth every coin."

Qin Muchu nodded slightly. "Yes. The incantation sounds a little unpleasant, but food made by a Food-System Soul Master is precious. It's worth a great deal."

Oscar's eyes seemed to light up. "Brother, th-thank you."

Qin Muchu waved it off. Xiao Wu looked at him, then at Oscar, and hesitantly reached for another sausage. Qin Muchu's expression changed, and he quickly caught her hand. "Uh, I just tried it. It's good, but it isn't a flavor you'd like."

He might not mind eating one himself, but letting Xiao Wu eat one was another matter. Ahem.

Hearing that, Xiao Wu immediately withdrew her hand. "Is that so? Then I won't have one."

Oscar hurriedly said, "That's fine. I can develop other flavors later."

The corner of Qin Muchu's mouth twitched. He changed the subject. "So, brother, how old are you? What's your Soul Power Level?"

"Thirteen. Level twenty-seven." Oscar sounded rather proud.

"A thirteen-year-old level twenty-seven Food-System Soul Master. That's impressive," Qin Muchu said. "Have you ever thought about making sausages without an incantation?"

Oscar's face immediately fell. "When we Food-System Soul Masters make food, we have to use the corresponding incantation to make it suitable for Soul Masters. Otherwise, it's just ordinary food."

Qin Muchu shook his head. "No. You need to recite an incantation because your control over Soul Power isn't good enough yet. Once your control reaches a certain level, you'll be able to make the same food without one."

"Control over Soul Power?" Oscar blinked. "What's that? I've only heard of controlling a Martial Soul. Can't you just use Soul Power once you've cultivated it?"

"Not quite. Everyone differs in how they control and use Soul Power. The clearest example is that the stronger someone's Mental Power, the finer their control over Soul Power. Like this." Qin Muchu extended his right hand and flicked his fingers several times. Streams of Soul Power shot from his fingertips into the air, but instead of dispersing, they formed lifelike animals. The animals performed all sorts of movements, then, under his precise control, devoured one another. At last, they became a single animal several times larger than before. It opened its mouth in a silent roar at the others before finally dissipating.

Dai Mubai and Oscar were dumbstruck. Dai Mubai once again marveled at the gulf between himself and Qin Muchu, while Oscar let out an excited yelp, ran out from behind his cart, and grabbed Qin Muchu's arm. "Brother—no, big brother! That was incredible! How did you do it? Can you teach me?"

Qin Muchu pulled his arm free before answering. "It's not that hard. Practice makes perfect. You just need strong Mental Power, a little technique, and plenty of practice. Then you can do it too."

Oscar scratched his head. "But isn't Mental Power something you're born with? And what kind of technique do you mean?"

Qin Muchu patted his shoulder. "For now, you should focus on making lots of sausages. As for the rest, I'll teach you when I get the chance." It wasn't that Qin Muchu was stingy. The time simply wasn't right: they hardly knew each other, and no one laid all their cards on the table at their first meeting.

In other worlds, these were merely the basics. But on this continent, the existence of Martial Souls meant that people fought mainly by relying on the strength of their Martial Souls, their Soul Power Levels, and the might of their Soul Skills. Their grasp of controlling power barely scratched the surface. Just think: even at the Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament, where every contestant was a genius, both sides needed a full minute before a match to summon their Martial Souls. How was that any different from a proctor telling everyone to spend the first minute before a Mathematics Competition reviewing the multiplication table?

This even held true for Titled Douluo. Many needed to slowly build up power before they could use their ninth Soul Skill. If an opponent skipped Soul Skills and pressed the attack relentlessly, they wouldn't even get a chance to use theirs. The clearest example was the fight between Snake Lance Douluo, She Long, and Yang Wudi: a Titled Douluo had been beaten back by a Soul Douluo.

Things only began to improve with Super Douluo above level ninety-five. They generally needed no time to build up power before releasing a Soul Skill, nor did they need to deliberately recite an incantation. A certain old man who liked to show off by reciting poetry while wielding his sword was the exception, of course.

Eager to get closer to Qin Muchu, Oscar gave up selling sausages and pushed his cart along with the other three toward the dormitory area.

"Brother Qin, our academy dorms are all double rooms. Boss Dai shares with another student, Ma Hongjun. I'm the only one in my room right now, so you can stay with me. As for Xiao Wu, the academy doesn't have any female students at the moment, so you'll have a room to yourself," Oscar explained as they walked.

Qin Muchu made no commitment. "Let's take a look first."

Soon, the four arrived at the dormitory area. Oscar pointed to one of the thatched huts. "That's my dorm. Brother Qin, where's your luggage? I'll help you unpack."

Looking at the thatched hut before him, which could fairly be called a crumbling ruin, Qin Muchu took a deep breath and began searching the System Shop.

Xiao Wu tugged at Qin Muchu's sleeve and whispered, "Muchu, this dorm is so run-down. I don't want to live here."

Over the past few years, Qin Muchu's ample funds had kept them both in fine clothes and good food. They had moved out of the dormitory at Nuoding Academy long ago. As the saying went, it was easy to go from frugality to luxury, but hard to go from luxury back to frugality. Xiao Wu, whom Qin Muchu had taken such good care of, naturally found these poor accommodations hard to accept. Enduring hardship was a fine virtue, but choosing to suffer when you didn't have to was just asking for trouble.

"Yeah, I don't think I could get used to it either. We'll live in this." As Qin Muchu spoke, an exquisite model house appeared in his hand.

"Huh? What a beautiful little house." Oscar's eyes lit up as he looked at the model in Qin Muchu's hand. "But how could anyone live in a house that small?"

Qin Muchu looked around for an open space. "It's a House-Type Soul Tool. It can grow or shrink. I just need a suitable place to set it down." He soon found a spot, placed the house on the ground, and poured Soul Power into it. The palm-sized model immediately glowed white and expanded visibly before their eyes. In moments, a two-story house with a small courtyard stood firmly on the open ground, carved from a single piece of Azure Stone. The outer walls had a warm luster, while the slightly upturned eaves were carved with flowing-cloud patterns. Every restrained detail showed meticulous craftsmanship.

Smooth white jade paved the courtyard, with a path of broken stone slabs leading straight to the front door and flowers and greenery planted on either side. Inside, the furnishings were far more lavish. Three crystal Soul Tool chandeliers hung at different points on the ceiling, ensuring every corner of the room was equally bright. A thick Snow Velvet Carpet covered the floor. In the middle of the living room sat a black leather sofa, with a coffee table carved from a single piece of translucent Warm Jade before it. Several paintings and pieces of calligraphy hung on the walls, plainly no ordinary works, while a Temperature-Control Soul Tool stood in the corner to keep the room comfortable year-round.

Everyone was stunned. Xiao Wu skipped into the bedroom, and a moment later her delighted voice rang out. "This bed is even more comfortable than the one at the Rose Hotel."