Tang Wulin worked tirelessly to earn money. Every day, he went to the forging room to forge, took the refined metal to the Forging Association to submit assignments, and returned to his dormitory so exhausted he collapsed onto his bed, dead to the world.
Was it out of love?
Was it out of duty?
Perhaps a bit of both, but Tang Wulin believed the core reason was simply this—he was poor!
"Poverty drives progress. What the teacher said in class today truly makes a lot of sense."
Murmuring to himself on the road to the Forging Association, Tang Wulin noticed a call coming through on his soul communicator. Seeing it was from his parents, he answered happily.
"Hello, Dad, Mom, are you coming to East Sea City?"
On the other end, Tang Ziran and his wife exchanged a look and chuckled softly. Tang Ziran smiled and said, "Wulin, we have a home in East Sea City now. It's only rented for now, but our family has a place to settle down here."
"Really?" Tang Wulin was thrilled. "Where is it? I'll come find you right away."
Tang Ziran said, "It's right near..."
Hearing the location Tang Ziran gave, Tang Wulin realized it was actually a place he had been to before.
It was near that food street he had visited with Xie Xie!
Mom and Dad probably felt safe knowing a four-ring Soul Ancestor guarded that area, which was why they chose to settle there, right?
With that in mind, Tang Wulin said he would be right over, put away the soul communicator, and dashed toward the food street in high spirits.
He had a home in East Sea City now, too!
...
"That boy, always in such a rush."
Watching the soul communicator disconnect, Tang Ziran looked at his wife and smiled helplessly.
"He must miss us a lot, too," Lang Yue said with a smile.
*Ding-dong!*
The doorbell suddenly chimed without warning, catching the two of them off guard. They looked toward the door in confusion.
Who could it be? Could Wulin have arrived this quickly?
Frowning, Tang Ziran stood up, walked to the door, and looked through the peephole.
Outside stood a tall, burly man clad in a black cloak. The hood concealed his face, revealing only a pair of deep, sinister eyes.
The moment Tang Ziran saw him, a chill seized his entire body, as though he had plunged into an icy abyss. The entire room seemed to turn dark and grim along with it.
Tang Ziran's pupils constricted. He rushed back to Lang Yue's side. "Quick, let's go. They're here."
A flash of panic surfaced in Lang Yue's eyes, but thinking of Tang Wulin, she forced herself to stay calm. "If we leave, what about Wulin? What if they go after him...?"
Tang Ziran froze, his expression turning conflicted as well.
Indeed—if they just ran, what would happen to Wulin?
The doorbell rang incessantly like a death knell, throwing Tang Ziran's mind into chaos.
In the end, he took a deep breath, gave up the thought of fleeing, turned around, and opened the door.
"We'll come with you."
A faint smirk touched the black-cloaked man's lips. Just as he turned to lead them away, his gaze suddenly sharpened, locking onto the shadows in the corner. A scepter appeared in his hand, and four Spirit Rings gradually emerged around him.
Two yellow, two purple, with a faint green haze drifting along the rings' outer edges.
"Come out!"
Seeing that he could no longer stay hidden, Guang Long stepped straight out from the corner. Grey scales covered his body, and four Spirit Rings in the optimal ratio circled him as well. At the same time, a lizard and a giant serpent Soul Spirit emerged, floating beside him as balls of yellow and purple light.
"Are you gutter rats stupid? Wandering around in broad daylight wearing a black cloak—the nearby residents have already reported you."
Guang Long mocked him, but his eyes were grave.
This chilling aura left no doubt: the man was no ordinary Soul Master, but an Evil Soul Master!
Evil Soul Masters possessed bizarre and sinister methods. Even though both of them were four-ring masters, he could not guarantee victory, so he had no choice but to release his Soul Spirits to assist.
This approach was generally discouraged. Under a Soul Spirit Contract, if a Soul Spirit perished in battle, it required a long period of nurturing within the Soul Master's body to recover, impairing Soul Skill power and reflecting backlash onto the Soul Master. The more powerful a Soul Master was, the less likely they were to adopt this tactic—especially Mecha Masters and Battle Armor Masters.
However, Guang Long was neither a mighty Soul Master nor a Mecha Master or Battle Armor Master. The combat power provided by Soul Spirits was considerable and could significantly increase his odds of winning; there was no reason not to use them.
"Captain Guang Long?!" Tang Ziran was pleasantly surprised to see Guang Long, but after glancing at the unfazed Evil Soul Master, he parted his lips and swallowed his words. Instead, he pulled Lang Yue back as far as possible, distancing them from the battlefield.
The Evil Soul Master paid no heed to their movements, merely sneering at Guang Long. "An Armored Dragon Martial Soul? I'd show some deference to your brother, but who the hell are you?"
Guang Long retorted, "Heh. Looking at how you don't even have a Soul Spirit, you must have failed to hold back your Martial Soul's power before your screening and ended up an Evil Soul Master, didn't you? Not an ounce of self-control—what a piece of trash!"
The Evil Soul Master's eyes widened abruptly, glaring at Guang Long with utter malice.
Just as Guang Long said, he hadn't held back.
Before acquiring his first Soul Spirit, he had tapped into his Evil Soul Master abilities. From then on, there was no turning back; he became intoxicated by the thrill of rapid progression. By the time he came to his senses, the damage was irreversible. He didn't dare set foot in the Spirit Pagoda, which naturally cost him any chance of sponsorship.
From that point on, he lived an aimless, wandering existence until he joined the Holy Spirit Cult...
Realizing he had touched a nerve, Guang Long kept his mouth running, relentlessly picking at his opponent's psyche. "Nowadays, the ocean is the only Soul Beast Settlement left where you vermin can roam free. Hunting Soul Beasts for Spirit Rings in the far sea must not feel great, huh? It took you quite a long time to reach four rings at your age, didn't it?"
"Heh, what do you know? The Holy Cult has its own ways."
Taking a deep breath, the Evil Soul Master said sinisterly, "You're trying to stall for time until the Mecha Battalion arrives, aren't you? Too bad your calculations are off."
The moment the words left his mouth, an intense green light erupted from his body.
Like dense smoke, the green light expanded instantly, engulfing the surroundings.
"My Martial Soul can control plague. How long have you been in the room with me?"
Guang Long and the Tang couple's faces drained of color at once.
...
When Tang Wulin arrived home full of joy, what greeted him were his parents collapsed on the floor in agony, and Guang Long held aloft in the Evil Soul Master's grip. The excitement vanished from his face, replaced by bewilderment.
What was going on?
"What a pity. The only one you managed to wait for was a little brat." The Evil Soul Master glanced at Tang Wulin with a cold sneer, dumped the green-faced Guang Long onto the ground, and turned toward Tang Ziran and his wife.
Had he not controlled the potency, these two ordinary people would have died long ago.
"Let go of my mom and dad!" Glaring furiously at the Evil Soul Master, a yellow Spirit Ring appeared around Tang Wulin as he charged forward. But the instant he stepped into the man's presence, he collapsed to the floor, his strength completely sapped.
"Heh." The Evil Soul Master glanced at the couple. "You two actually have a child? How unexpected."
"Please... spare Wulin... We'll... go with you," Lang Yue pleaded haltingly, her heart aching as she watched Tang Wulin struggle to crawl toward them.
"That won't do. With him around, you'll be much more dedicated to your work in the Holy Cult." With an evil smirk, the Evil Soul Master reached his hand out toward Tang Wulin.
Sensing Tang Wulin was in danger, Tang San's divine sense snapped awake. Scanning the situation outside, it was overcome with pleasant surprise.
*Splendid! Well done, Evil Soul Master! But you have already chosen the path to your own doom—now, let your life win me Wulin's trust!*
*Boom!*
A tremendous roar blasted out of nowhere. A black mecha plunged straight from the sky, kicking up a cloud of dust. The smiles froze simultaneously on the faces of both the Evil Soul Master and Tang San's divine sense.
*Fuck—a type of plant!*
Chapter 49