Mu Xi: Utterly Embarrassed!

Mu Xi returned to her family's Soul Tool Car. Seeing that Mu Chen had already come over and was talking with an elderly man, she did not interrupt, obediently standing off to the side to listen to their conversation. Seeing this, Mu Chen did not send her away either; after all, it was not an important conversation. "President Mu did well enough, buying quite a few Precious Heavenly Treasures for your daughter." The old man glanced at Mu Xi as well, shaking his head with a chuckle. "As for an old man like me, I made the trip for nothing." Mu Chen smiled wryly. "The Spirit Pagoda maintains close ties with the two major Soul Beast gathering grounds and is hardly short on ten-thousand-year Soul Spirits. Who would have thought Hua Yichen would also be interested in that Soul Spirit?" "Hm?" The old man looked somewhat surprised. "President Mu didn't know? That ten-thousand-year Soul Spirit was provided by the Shen family. From the very beginning, they were aiming it at the child beside Hua Yichen." "No one in their clan is capable of accommodating an Evil Eye Tyrant Soul Spirit anymore, so they wanted to strike a deal with the Spirit Pagoda to obtain a Soul Spirit suitable for clan inheritance. As luck would have it, a prodigy with innate full soul power and a spiritual-attribute Body Martial Soul appeared, giving them their chance." Both Mu Chen and Mu Xi, who was listening in, were startled, secretly shaken. Innate full soul power? A top-tier Body Martial Soul? Either one alone was an exceptionally rare presence in East Sea City. Mu Chen was the first to recover his wits. "I have been so busy with association affairs recently that I haven't paid much attention to the Spirit Pagoda's movements. Is that child very special? A core descendant of one of the Spirit Pagoda's prominent families?" "Neither. According to the investigation, he's merely a child born into a civilian family here in East Sea City." The old man let out a soft sigh. "And that is precisely why he is all the more extraordinary. Hua Yichen even arranged for a Soul Douluo to protect him from the shadows. I'm afraid it's not simply a matter of innate full soul power and a Body Martial Soul—he must possess other remarkable qualities." "A Soul Douluo..." Mu Chen was secretly shocked. East Sea City was situated in a remote corner of the Douluo Continent. Though its economy was highly developed, the strength of its Soul Masters was comparatively weak; there were few powerhouses with ten-thousand-year Soul Spirits, and openly, there was only a single nine-ring Titled Douluo—the Spirit Pagoda's Unrestrained Douluo, Hua Yichen! Beneath Hua Yichen, the strongest figures in the East Sea Spirit Pagoda were two Soul Douluos, and one of them had actually been dispatched to guard Huo Yuhao. It was obvious just how much importance the Spirit Pagoda placed on him. The old man continued, "Nowadays, the Spirit Pagoda has taken the place of the Spirit Hall from twenty thousand years ago, awakening Martial Souls for commoners free of charge. Civilian Soul Masters are naturally inclined toward them, and through that vast screening process, they can always reap top-tier talents. Combined with their close relations with Soul Beasts, they are growing more powerful by the day." Mu Chen cleared his throat and cautioned, "Elder Li, be careful with your words. The Spirit Pagoda is still different from Spirit Hall." Elder Li blinked, then broke into a smile. "Look at you, where is your mind wandering? Of course I know they are different. My family came from commoner roots too, so we owe the Spirit Pagoda a debt of gratitude; I have no objection to them awakening Martial Souls for commoners for free. "I was merely lamenting how wealthy they are. Whether it's your Forging Association, our Mecha Master Association, or any other faction, none of us have the capacity to do such a thing. Only the Spirit Pagoda, wealthy beyond nations, is willing to spend a fortune every year to sustain it. It is only natural that civilian geniuses choose to join them." Mu Chen fell silent for a moment. That was true enough. Yet the Spirit Pagoda was simply too powerful; any other faction facing it alone could not help but feel inferior. Wait—alone? "Seeing that you're in no mood to chat, I'll take my leave. When you have time, bring Mu Xi over to the Mecha Association to visit." With that, Elder Li patted Mu Chen on the shoulder, turned, and walked away. Mu Chen stood where he was, watching Elder Li's retreating figure with mixed feelings. He understood what Elder Li meant now, but uniting two associations—even if just their East Sea branches—was not something he could decide on his own. It would require convening a high-level meeting for discussion. "Let's go home." Mu Chen turned to Mu Xi and said, "You heard what was just said. If you run into Huo Yuhao in the future, don't throw your little tantrums again." He had seen her run off to find Huo Yuhao earlier; given his daughter's proud and competitive nature, odds were their interaction had not been very pleasant. "Oh..." Mu Xi nodded dumbly. Right afterward, recalling what she had said to Huo Yuhao, her cheeks instantly flushed bright red. What in the world had she said? Telling a core disciple of the Spirit Pagoda—someone with innate full soul power and a Soul Douluo protecting him—that she hoped he would be worthy of a ten-thousand-year Soul Spirit? And that Soul Spirit had ended up on the auction block solely because of him to begin with... This... just thinking about it was utterly mortifying. *But he really did look completely ordinary, so it's not like I was wrong!* Even as she thought this defiantly, her blushing face sank down, burying her head like an ostrich. ... Seeing that Mu Chen did not call him back right away, Li Yucheng gave a slightly regretful sigh and walked away. Among the four major secondary professions, forging was chosen by the fewest Soul Masters across the academies, and forging talents were the scantiest. Yet for many other secondary professions to reach the pinnacle, the assistance of a Forging Master was indispensable, further elevating the status of high-rank Forging Masters. And Mu Chen was an Eight-Star Saint Artisan, second only to a Nine-Star Divine Craftsman. If the East Sea Forging Association and the Mecha Master Association could join hands more closely, it would bring immense benefits to their association. He was old in years, but not in spirit. Whether grooming an outstanding successor or forging a partnership with the Forging Association, he wanted to accomplish something more for his association before retiring. Yet from the looks of it, neither showed much promise for now. In the future, when he visited headquarters, he wouldn't even have the confidence to brag to his old friends. Li Yucheng gave a helpless smile. ... "Here." Hua Yichen walked out of the museum and handed a small sphere to Huo Yuhao. "The Soul Spirit is inside. You've read so many books lately, you should know how to use a Soul Spirit Ball." A Soul Spirit Ball was a spherical Soul Tool used for storing Soul Spirits. Like a spatial Soul Tool, it contained an internal space where a Soul Spirit could reside, and it was rather costly. Its manufacturing principle was likewise similar to spatial Soul Tools. Soul Spirits were beings existing between life and death, so the limitation preventing spatial Soul Tools from storing living things did not apply to them. As for its functions, one was storing Soul Spirits, which the Spirit Pagoda used most frequently; the other was allowing a Soul Spirit to accompany a Soul Master closely as they grew, nurturing a bond between them. After all, a Soul Spirit Contract required the Soul Spirit's consent. The more powerful a Soul Spirit was, the pickier it would be about its contractor. At that point, besides subduing the Soul Spirit with strength, one had to play the emotional card. If a Soul Spirit watched a Soul Master grow up from childhood and got along well with them, then even if the Soul Master was weak, the Soul Spirit's reluctance would not be very strong. Huo Yuhao took the half-red, half-white Soul Spirit Ball, his expression hard to describe. To his eyes, whether in appearance or function, this thing looked just like a Poké Ball. He had no idea who had cooked it up, as the history books recorded nothing of it. That was right—Huo Yuhao felt compelled to clarify one thing: he had not invented this. He absolutely had not invented this Soul Tool! Ten thousand years ago, he had merely offhandedly mentioned the concept of a Poké Ball. Who could have imagined that someone would actually go and build one... Taking a breath, Huo Yuhao looked at the calm Hua Yichen. "What condition did they ask for?" They had even prepared the Soul Spirit Ball, clearly having targeted him from the start. Yet handing the Soul Spirit over through an auction suggested they weren't asking for too much. "They just want to pay for a ticket to enter the Soul Spirit Pagoda, that's all. It's no big deal. You don't need to worry about such matters; just focus on cultivating." Hua Yichen smiled faintly and teased, "I'm still counting on using your connections to find an easy retirement post once you achieve fame and success in the future." Huo Yuhao stowed the Soul Spirit Ball. Their time together recently had taught him that Hua Yichen was not someone who put on airs, so he replied with a smile: "Then what a shame—if I truly make a name for myself, I might end up keeping everyone busy." "You're calling me idle in a roundabout way, aren't you?" Hua Yichen blinked, then chuckled and shook his head. "Alright, we've got the Whale Gel too. Let's head out." Huo Yuhao was about to nod when he suddenly caught sight of an elderly man and paused. "Teacher Hua, is it against the rules for a Spirit Pagoda member to study a secondary profession and join the relevant association?" Hua Yichen followed his gaze and saw that it was Li Yucheng. Raising an eyebrow, he asked, "You want to join the Mecha Master Association and study a secondary profession?" Huo Yuhao nodded. "Yes." Hearing this, Hua Yichen fell into thought. "Your Soul Skills are indeed very well suited for mecha design and manufacturing. Just make sure to keep a proper balance and not delay your cultivation." "Don't worry, I know where to draw the line." Huo Yuhao showed a rare, confident smile. He might not be gifted in other areas, but when it came to Soul Tools, he was brimming with confidence.