Battle Armor

Xie Xie shrugged. "Who knows? I didn't live here before either. Why don't you go ask?" He didn't dare gossip about Huo Yuhao. Spiritual-attribute Martial Souls were far too bizarre, and he worried that if Huo Yuhao got angry, he would deliberately make fools of them. "..." Thinking back to the awkward scene yesterday when she had been affected by the Spiritual Interference Domain, Xu Xiaoyan temporarily dropped the idea of asking. She would wait until she was closer with Gu Yuena before bringing it up. Meanwhile, Luo Yanglu gave Gu Yuena and Huo Yuhao a thoughtful look, then turned to the other students with a smile. "Quite a few Precious Heavenly Treasures went into this food. Huo Yuhao and I processed them to nourish your bodies, so it's even more nutritious than the academy's Class A meals. Hurry up and eat." Tang Wulin, whose attention had long been captured by the food, lit up. Striding over to the dining table in a few quick steps, he politely thanked Huo Yuhao before digging in heartily. "Slow down. There's plenty more," Huo Yuhao said with a chuckle. "Mm!" Tang Wulin nodded, continuing to feast with pure bliss written across his face. Last night, he had dreamed of that strange voice again. That person was so wicked, constantly trying to lead him astray; he was going to eat his fill and banish that insidious voice from his mind. Xu Xiaoyan walked over as well. Watching the scene, she felt an inexplicable sense of deja vu, as if watching baby birds begging their mother for food. *Right, the rest of us are baby birds, and Huo Yuhao and Teacher Luo Yanglu are the mother birds... That feels a bit subtle.* Luo Yanglu walked over to Wu Zhangkong, who had just arrived. "Want to give it a try? The dishes I make are quite delicious." Wu Zhangkong looked at the food, identified several of the ingredients, and his lips twitched. Sea Spirit Mushrooms, Dragon Blood Grass, Thousand-Year Ice Dragon Fruit... With so many Precious Heavenly Treasures used simply to enhance physical constitution, it seemed the Spirit Pagoda had truly spared no expense. Would that make his own plans somewhat difficult to carry out? ... After finishing their energy-rich breakfast, the group headed into the classroom. The first period was a cultural theory class, followed by combat practice. Luo Yanglu stepped onto the podium and faced the students. "Now that you've joined East Sea Academy, you must know what the academy specializes in most, right?" Seeing Xie Xie's eager expression, Luo Yanglu smiled. "Xie Xie, you answer." Xie Xie stood up. "Mechas. East Sea Academy's mecha piloting ranks among the very best in the Skysea Alliance. That was why I chose to study here in the first place. My dream is to become a Mecha Master." "Correct. Mechas." Luo Yanglu signaled for him to sit, then looked at the others. "Normally, this is knowledge you wouldn't learn until reaching the advanced division or an advanced academy, but I believe you can begin studying it right now. "The mechas you typically see generally range between five and eight meters in height, with specific dimensions depending on the model. Mechas of this scale achieve the optimal balance among agility, offensive power, and defense, making them best suited for military deployment. The East Sea Mecha Battalion is universally equipped with mechas of this type. "However, mechas also have another developmental path—Battle Armor!" Even though Xie Xie was already familiar with this information, he still listened with rapt attention. After all, this was what interested him most. Tang Wulin listened just as intently, because during his work at the Spirit Pagoda, he had learned the origin of Battle Armor—it was tied to his idol, the Ice Spirit Douluo! Luo Yanglu continued, "Ten thousand years ago, the Ice Spirit Douluo and a rank-9 Soul Engineer—Elder Xuan Ziwen—developed the prototype of Battle Armor together. Later, the Ice Spirit Douluo forged a partnership with the Silver Moon Douluo and exchanged several technologies, among which was Battle Armor. Both Mingde Hall and the Spirit Pagoda placed immense value on this technology and collaborated on its research, gradually bringing Battle Armor into the public eye..." From her seat, Gu Yuena gave Huo Yuhao an elusive glance, her eyes curving into a soft smile. *Hearing your own legend and seeing others gaze at you with admiration must feel quite fascinating, wouldn't it, Yuhao?* In truth, Huo Yuhao did find it rather novel, but hearing Xuan Ziwen's name turned his amusement into wistful nostalgia. He still vividly remembered the complicated look in Kong Deming's eyes upon learning that Xuan Ziwen was with the Spirit Pagoda. His own disciple had ended up joining the Spirit Pagoda and rising into its upper echelons; he must have been utterly astonished. Unfortunately... back then, he had forgotten to ask the man what he thought, and now his old friend was long gone. "...Battle Armor and mechas each have their merits, but without question, Battle Armor grants far greater amplification to combat power. Even with the advent of Soul Spirit control, the strongest mecha still cannot match the boost provided by Four-Word Battle Armor, and in most circumstances, it can only serve an auxiliary role." At this point, Luo Yanglu let his gaze linger meaningfully on Huo Yuhao and Gu Yuena before looking back toward the other students. "Your future direction is yours to decide, but human energy is limited, so weigh the pros and cons carefully beforehand." On this matter, Mr. Mu Ye of the Body Sect had immense authority to speak. Having missed his chance to advance to Super Douluo because of his obsession with mechas, even though he was a figure who had reached the pinnacle as both a Mecha Master and a Battle Armor Master, it was difficult to say whether the trade-off had been worth it. Luo Yanglu explained a few more differences between Battle Armor and mechas before concluding the lesson. The moment class dismissed, Tang Wulin turned to Xie Xie beside him and asked, "Xie Xie, I want to be a Mecha Master. What about you?" Indeed, Tang Wulin wanted to be a Mecha Master. Ever since the moment he saw Guang Biao descend from the sky inside a mecha, he had yearned for it! Xie Xie raised an eyebrow with a grin. "Everyone in my family is a Mecha Master. What do you think?" "Wait, doesn't the combat power of a Battle Armor Master sound much stronger?" Xu Xiaoyan leaned in. "Besides, Teacher Luo seemed to want us to develop toward becoming Battle Armor Masters." Xie Xie replied, "Teacher Luo didn't force us..." "He might not force you, but I will." Wu Zhangkong walked in, the chill radiating from his body instantly freezing several of them into terrified silence. "Your talents are exceptional, so do not squander them. Battle Armor Masters are the pinnacle combat force of the continent!" Xie Xie and Tang Wulin wanted to argue, but the frigid expression on Wu Zhangkong's face left them entirely speechless. *This teacher is so cold, so terrifying,* Xu Xiaoyan thought to herself. Paying no mind to their reactions, Wu Zhangkong continued, "A truly top-tier Battle Armor Master must forge a profound bond with their Battle Armor. Either you design it yourself, craft it yourself, and repair it yourself, or you forge the metals used to make it with your own hands. Only through this process can a Battle Armor Master gradually become one with their Battle Armor. "If you intend to walk this path, you had best choose your secondary profession wisely. Do any of you currently have a secondary profession? If not, you had better make your choice soon." Tang Wulin pursed his lips, then raised his hand. "I'm a rank-3 Forging Master." Gu Yuena said, "Rank-3 Designer." Huo Yuhao glanced at Gu Yuena. "Rank-4 Maker." The room fell dead silent. Everyone stared at the three of them with complicated expressions. Luo Yanglu had just briefly outlined the production process of Battle Armor: a Repairer was not strictly necessary. In other words, these three were already capable of attempting to craft Battle Armor? Furthermore, to attain such secondary profession ranks at their age... weren't these three ridiculously overpowered? Or was it that the rest of them were just falling terribly behind? Wu Zhangkong's brow furrowed slightly as well. Even if he wasn't familiar with every single association's record, he knew what it meant for them to possess such qualifications right now. Tang Wulin was a forging prodigy. Huo Yuhao and Gu Yuena were all-round geniuses. The likelihood of them becoming top-tier Battle Armor Masters was exceedingly high; barring unforeseen accidents, progressing all the way to Four-Word Battle Armor Master was practically guaranteed! Taking a deep breath, Wu Zhangkong suppressed the surge of excitement in his chest. His voice softened by a fraction, losing some of its earlier frostiness. "Apart from the three of them, the rest of you think it over carefully later. I am giving you this advice as someone who has walked this road before." With that, Wu Zhangkong turned and walked toward the training grounds. "Follow me now for combat training." The idea he had formulated last night—he hadn't forgotten it in the slightest.