Is This Flourishing Age as You Wished?

"Oh? Making a move against Yuhao and Gu Yuena?" Inside the Spirit Pagoda, Hua Yichen turned toward the Evil Soul Master brought in by Luo Ziyang. With a cold snort, a flute carved entirely of jasper appeared in his hand, its surface etched with nine acoustic crests. Behind him, rings of light rose one after another. Purple, purple, purple, black, black, black, red, red, red—nine Spirit Rings flared with dazzling brilliance. The Evil Soul Master had regained consciousness by now. Staring at the aloof Unrestrained Douluo and the incandescent rings encircling him, he was consumed by regret and inwardly cursed. Why couldn't you geniuses of the Spirit Pagoda carry an obvious insignia? Why was it that the commoner prodigies you valued wore identifiers everywhere, yet the core disciples of the Spirit Pagoda refused to carry a thing? Seeing them walking in and out of the Mecha Master Association and receiving VIP treatment from its executives, he had assumed they were the association's own young talents! This was fraud! Sheer fraud! 'Next time, I'll investigate thoroughly before making a move... if there even is a next time.' Despair washed over the man's face. The branch Pagoda Masters of the Spirit Pagoda's Eighteen Heavenly Pillars were at least rank-95 Super Douluo and Three-Word Battle Armor Masters, and certain vital branches were guarded in person by Ultimate Douluo and Four-Word Battle Armor Masters. Having fallen into this man's hands, he was utterly finished. At that moment, Hua Yichen brought the jade flute to his lips. His fourth Spirit Ring lit up as he began to play. Fourth Soul Skill—Soul Quieting Song! The flute melody flowed like a mountain brook, pristine and serene. The Evil Soul Master's vision began to blur. A short while later, Hua Yichen had Luo Ziyang lead the dazed captive away. Lost in thought, he retrieved his soul guidance communicator and first relayed the news to Guang Biao. The Mecha Battalion was the true guardian force of East Sea City. 'The Evil Soul Masters' objective is a member of the Mecha Master Association—Tang Ziran and his wife.' Having handled that, Hua Yichen dialed another number. "This is the East Sea branch. Connect me to the Enforcement Department, Dark Phoenix Douluo." "Yes, sir!" A staff member's voice came through, and soon, a cool, detached woman's voice answered: "What is it? I'm currently in the Extreme North." "..." Wait, just how many years had she stayed in the Extreme North now? After being thrown into the Extreme North for ten years by the head of the Leng clan back then, she still hadn't had enough? Had she swung from one extreme straight into another? Clicking his tongue in silence, Hua Yichen decided it was best not to pry, and cut straight to the chase. "Evil Soul Masters have appeared in East Sea City. I captured one here and uncovered a possible hideout over in Skysea City. Just letting you know. Though it's very likely a decoy base to throw people off..." "I'll arrange for people to investigate." Hearing mention of Evil Soul Masters, Leng Yulai's tone turned even colder. "Anything else?" "No." "Goodbye!" Before the words finished echoing, she hung up, leaving Hua Yichen staring wryly at his soul guidance communicator. Ever since that incident years ago, the Dark Phoenix Douluo had harbored a visceral hatred for Evil Soul Masters; bringing them up always fouled her mood. Could that be considered venting her anger on others? After all, don't forget—you were the one who wanted to become an Evil Soul Master in the first place... Shaking his head, Hua Yichen put the matter out of his mind, preparing to wait quietly for news from the Enforcement Department in Skysea City. Fighting Evil Soul Masters was everyone's duty, so there had never been a strict need for a dedicated department. Nor was the Enforcement Department's primary duty to wipe out Evil Soul Masters—it was simply that they were far better at dealing with them. The Enforcement Department's true primary mission was to monitor individuals with the potential to become Evil Soul Masters. Its members all possessed the potential to become Evil Soul Masters themselves, making them the ones most familiar with an Evil Soul Master's methods. Take the Dark Phoenix Douluo, who had been tossed into the Enforcement Department by the head of the Leng clan following that past ordeal. Every member of this department was both a part of the Spirit Pagoda and a subject under surveillance. The reason this department had been established in the first place had much to do with Soul Spirits. Different Soul Spirits had their own individual criteria when selecting partners for a contract, but as long as a Soul Spirit possessed high intelligence, there was one common standard: they intensely despised Evil Soul Masters. They absolutely refused to sign contracts with Evil Soul Masters, and would steer clear even of Soul Masters who merely held the potential to become one. In their own words: Evil Soul Masters cared only about themselves, and most didn't give a damn about their progeny. Living on borrowed time and hunted day and night, who in their right mind would sign a contract with scum like that? Why should other Soul Spirits enjoy long, honored lives as venerable elders while they suffered such misery? Under these circumstances, even a Man-Faced Demon Spider Soul Spirit—condemned as inherently evil by the Sea God himself—would immediately recoil from any bearer of a suspected Evil Martial Soul, terrified of boarding the wrong ship. Yet Martial Souls were born of nature; some people were simply born with souls prone to evil mutation. To extinguish their hopes of becoming Soul Masters solely because of their Martial Souls would only drive them toward extremes. Furthermore, Soul Spirits compatible with such Martial Souls needed a place to go as well. Thus, after internal discussions and coordination with the Federation, the Spirit Pagoda established the Enforcement Department specifically for supervision. Soul Masters with the potential to become Evil Soul Masters could sign Soul Spirit Contracts at the Spirit Pagoda. But as the price for the Spirit Pagoda persuading Soul Spirits to form contracts with them, these individuals—whether they joined the Enforcement Department or not—were subject to a special probationary period. At set intervals, they had to report to the Spirit Pagoda or relevant Federation agencies to complete one simple task: To undergo a confrontation with their own Soul Spirits before witnesses from both the Enforcement Department and the Federation government! Could a Soul Spirit bound by a Soul Spirit Contract fail to know what methods its Soul Master used to cultivate? If a Soul Master cultivated by absorbing the life force of others, the Soul Spirit could perceive it immediately! They didn't interrogate the human; they only questioned the Soul Spirit. If your Soul Spirit said you were clean, that was enough. Moreover, because of the nature of their own Martial Souls, Enforcement Department members knew an Evil Soul Master's tricks inside and out, making cheating virtually impossible. Only after consecutive years of observation, once it was confirmed that the Soul Master remained untainted by their Martial Soul, would the interval between reviews gradually be lengthened—from once a year, to once every few years... until the restrictions were finally lifted. The Enforcement Department applied the exact same method internally. This supervisory method did not make people feel oppressed. After all, as overseers, Soul Spirits had no means of constantly keeping watch; it was merely the feedback of the contract that let them know whether one had used Evil Soul Master methods to elevate oneself. Those with a clear conscience had nothing to fear or feel guilty about. In the eyes of some Soul Masters, the Soul Spirits even gave them the chance to prove their own innocence. Whenever suspicion fell upon them because of their Martial Souls and people questioned whether they were Evil Soul Masters, they could summon their Soul Spirits and declare with a clear conscience: "I am no Evil Soul Master. My Soul Spirit can testify for me!" As he waited for news and reflected on the history of the Enforcement Department's founding, Hua Yichen sighed with emotion. Now, the bond between Soul Spirits and humans had grown ever deeper, as had the bond between the Spirit Pagoda and Soul Beasts. In this era, even those once prone to being misjudged as Evil Soul Masters had gradually gained people's trust through the Soul Spirit Contract. To open a new path for Soul Beasts and humanity. The Spirit Pagoda had steadily fulfilled the founding purpose for which it had been created. Is this flourishing era as you wished, first Pagoda Master?