The Soul Tool Academy, metallurgy teaching building.
"This is the classroom for metal materials science. The first afternoon class is about to start, so just go in and find an empty seat."
Chen Hao pointed to the classroom at the end of the corridor and added, "The basic Soul Power circuits course is in teaching area B on the same floor. You can go straight there. If there's anything you don't understand after class, you can find me in the senior students' dormitory area."
"Thank you, Senior Chen Hao."
Xiao Yan thanked Chen Hao.
Chen Hao had first taken him to lunch at the cafeteria, then to the library to rest. Now that class was about to start, he had brought him to the classroom.
"No need to be so polite. If there's nothing else, I'll be going. I have classes this afternoon too."
Chen Hao smiled and waved, then turned and left.
Xiao Yan glanced at the course sign by the classroom door. Once he had checked it, he pushed the door open and went inside.
Quite a few people were already seated in the classroom. Xiao Yan found a seat near the front, took out his textbook, and began reading.
Although he had read a little about Soul Tools in the library earlier, that had only been a rough introduction. Now he would be studying the subject systematically.
Xiao Yan was looking forward to it.
At two o'clock sharp, the teacher appeared in the classroom on time.
The teacher was an old man with graying hair. He wore a long, dark blue robe and a badge on his chest that identified him as a Level 5 Soul Engineer.
"All right, everyone, settle down."
The old man placed his textbook on the lectern and swept his gaze over the students below.
"Today, we'll be covering the basic properties of common metal materials and their applications in making Soul Tools."
As he spoke, he wrote several terms on the blackboard.
"Refined iron, Mithril, Heavy Silver, and Mysterious Iron are all commonly used metal materials. Some of you may already have worked with them, but I want you to know that knowing a material's name doesn't mean you truly understand it."
"Different metals have different Soul Power conductivity, hardness, toughness, and heat resistance. When making a Soul Tool, if we choose the wrong material, even the most finely crafted Soul Power circuit won't produce the effect it should."
As he spoke, the old man picked up a sample of silvery-gray metal.
"Take refined iron, for example. It has decent hardness and is relatively inexpensive, making it suitable for structural components that don't require much Soul Power conductivity. But if it's used directly to make a core structure for precise Soul Power conduction, problems often arise, including insufficient efficiency."
After discussing refined iron, he picked up a piece of dark metal.
"However, some metals with good Soul Power conductivity can reduce losses during transmission, but they're expensive and very difficult to work with. When choosing materials, we have to consider multiple factors rather than looking for an advantage in just one area..."
Xiao Yan listened intently, committing everything the teacher said to memory.
Thanks to his powerful spiritual power, a photographic memory was only his most basic ability.
The knowledge covered in the class wasn't complicated. At least, he had no great difficulty understanding it.
In fact, the material covered in the class wasn't complicated. At least, it wasn't very difficult for him to understand. It was essentially a course for building a foundation.
What really interested him was the relationship between material properties and Soul Power conduction. Books would gloss over these details, but an experienced Soul Engineer would describe them carefully.
As the teacher explained things in depth yet simple terms, Xiao Yan learned that the same metal could serve entirely different functions in different positions. Sometimes, a metal's disadvantage could become an advantage.
Much like the five elements, which engendered and restrained one another, similar relationships existed in Soul Tool crafting.
The class lasted an hour and gave Xiao Yan a more concrete understanding of how Soul Tools were made.
Near the end, the teacher assigned a task: the students were to organize the properties of several common metals based on what they had learned and try to analyze which Soul Tool components each was suited for.
The second afternoon class was on the basics of Soul Power circuits, in a classroom in area B on the same floor.
The teacher at the lectern first drew several simple circuit structures on the blackboard, then began explaining how Soul Power traveled through a circuit and what relationships different ways of connecting the lines created between the nodes.
"Soul Power circuits aren't patterns drawn at random. They're symbols for conducting Soul Power."
The teacher pointed to the different diagrams on the blackboard and said:
"Just like the written characters we learn, every pattern has a different meaning. Every line and every turn serves a purpose. If you make a mistake while drawing one, at best it will cause greater Soul Power loss; at worst, it could interrupt the entire flow of Soul Power and damage the whole Soul Tool."
"So before we formally begin learning complex Soul Power circuits, you must first understand the most basic conductive structures. You need to know where the Soul Power enters, which nodes it passes through, and which component it ultimately acts upon."
The teacher then explained the basic composition of Soul Power circuits, how the lines making them up were connected, and common problems to watch for when drawing them.
Xiao Yan listened while consulting the diagrams in his textbook, studying them in depth.
He found that these Soul Power circuits seemed to have something in common with the Soul Skill patterns he had encountered.
These seemingly complex structures actually followed an underlying set of rules. As long as he understood the logic behind them and practiced repeatedly, he could gradually master them.
Perhaps I could treat the craft of Soul Tools as a kind of Soul Skill?
Xiao Yan listened attentively.
The road to becoming a Soul Engineer was still long. Some basic knowledge seemed simple, but when it came to actual crafting, subtle differences between materials, the force used when carving, and the speed at which Soul Power was fed in could all affect the result.
A towering building rose from level ground. Without a solid foundation, becoming an outstanding Soul Engineer was nothing but empty talk.
At the end of the class, the teacher left a simple question on the blackboard for the students to consider, asking them to analyze the advantages and disadvantages of different circuit structures.
Xiao Yan first went over the Soul Power circuits he had learned that day in his mind.
Soon, he had his own answer.
He didn't know whether it was correct, but learning this way was quite interesting.
By the time Xiao Yan left the teaching building, the sky had already darkened.
There were still quite a few students around the academy, however. Some had just finished training, while others were carrying thick textbooks and preparing to head to the library to continue studying.
Xiao Yan first went to the cafeteria for dinner by himself, then returned to his dormitory, room 308.
Once there, he took out all the textbooks he had received that day and arranged them neatly on his desk.
He began by reviewing the two courses he had attended that day: metal materials science and the basics of Soul Power circuits.
Besides familiarizing himself with the basic properties of the materials, he also added the types of components he thought they might be suited for.
After reviewing, he began trying to draw Soul Power circuits on metal. The metal was, of course, the cheapest refined iron.
The carving knife he used was the Spirit-Devouring Carving Knife. While using it, he also had to keep his hand covered in Bone Spirit Cold Flame at all times.
This let him grow familiar with using the flame while also dispelling the evil curse on the carving knife, accomplishing several things at once.
After repeating the process over and over, he finally carved a complete Soul Power circuit.
"The basic knowledge really can't be mastered in just a little while."
Xiao Yan leaned back in his chair, put away the carving knife, and gently flexed his wrist.
Materials, structures, circuits, Soul Power conduction... There was still a great deal to learn about Soul Tools. Each part linked to the next, and he wasn't learning too slowly.
In the original story, Huo Yuhao had also spent two or three months studying before becoming a Level 1 Soul Engineer.
Huo Yuhao's Martial Soul was the Spirit Eyes, and with Tian Meng's help, he had an exceptional talent for learning about Soul Tools.
Now it was Xiao Yan who had Tian Meng's help. Although his Martial Soul wasn't the Spirit Eyes, he had experience controlling flames, so he wouldn't learn slowly either.
For the time ahead, Xiao Yan set himself a small goal: become a Level 1 Soul Engineer within three months!
As for practicing Ring Fusion and finding Ye Guyi to help deal with the Spirit-Devouring Carving Knife's curse, he could do both at the same time.