MTLNOVEL Chapter 16: Li Yuecheng is furious
The purpose of the pagoda is to let the soul feel the warmth of home!
Otherwise, how can more soul beasts willingly become souls?
This is where the Seclusion Zone comes into play.
After all, a soul beast that has transformed into a soul must have a place to reside before being chosen by a soul master.
Otherwise, wouldn't it be a form of disguised captivity for the soul?
Just like humans entering the Ascension Stage, Souls are sent into the Seclusion area through special devices, similar to virtual reality games, where they can relive their original lives.
The Seclusion area is connected to the environment of the Ascension Platform, but a powerful guardian soul beast stands between the two, separating them.
This prevents soul masters from accidentally harming the real souls and also stops powerful souls from escaping and leaving psychological scars on the soul masters.
Hence, it is called the Seclusion area.
The Seclusion area features various simulated environments, including the Star Dou Great Forest, the Far North, and the sea.
The one Huo Yuhao entered was a simulation of the Far North.
"I didn't expect to return to the Far North, and it's within the Ascension Platform," Huo Yuhao thought, a trace of nostalgia flashing in his eyes as he gazed at the icy surroundings.
It was in the Far North that he had experienced unforgettable moments.
Reflecting on it, Huo Yuhao couldn't help but grit his teeth.
Back then, to improve his combat experience, Ice Empress had summoned her own kind without consulting him, and a horde of ice scorpions had rushed at him.
The result was as miserable as one could imagine.
Later, Snow Empress, Xiaobai, the Titan Snow Demon King, and other soul beasts also called upon their own kind to "train" him.
Huo Yuhao dared to claim that no one had more experience dealing with the soul beasts of the Far North, or being beaten by them, than he did.
Fortunately, his efforts bore fruit, and his combat experience far surpassed that of his peers.
When Luoyang Lu entered the Seclusion area as an observer, he saw Huo Yuhao fiercely battling a thousand-year soul beast, even gaining the upper hand.
That soul beast, trapped in Huo Yuhao's Spiritual Interference Domain, was completely disoriented and could only rely on its innate soul skills to attack.
The Spiritual Interference Domain alters the vision and perception of those within its range, plunging them into Huo Yuhao's illusions and making it difficult to distinguish reality from falsehood.
This soul beast's spiritual power was no match for Huo Yuhao, and it had already fallen into hallucinations.
"A thousand-year Vermillion Clear Ice Toad?" Luoyang Lu raised an eyebrow upon recognizing the soul beast.
The Vermillion Clear Ice Toad is an extremely rare ice-attributed soul beast, known as the "King of the Cracks" because it inhabits the edges of the Far North, near the rifts of the human world.
Its population is scarce and elusive, making it incredibly difficult to encounter.
The most lethal aspect of the Vermillion Clear Ice Road is its venom.
It feeds on the cold energy of heaven and earth, cultivating an extremely potent poison.
Not only is this toxin bitterly cold, but it can also rapidly erode the life force of living beings, making it a fearsome presence on the outskirts of the Far North.
However, it couldn't break free from Huo Yuhao's Spiritual Interference Domain.
No matter how potent its venom, it was useless.
"To be able to influence a thousand-year soul beast to this extent... No wonder Yichen dared to let you enter here," Luoyang Lu murmured in admiration.
After all, there is a difference between a real soul and an artificial one.
The former surpasses the latter in combat experience and intelligence.
Moreover, the souls residing in the Seclusion area are all powerful souls.
Having failed to find suitable soul master contracts, they voluntarily remain here.
By placing Huo Yuhao here for training, Hua Yichen demonstrated immense confidence in him, and Huo Yuhao has indeed lived up to that expectation.
After warming up, Huo Yuhao gradually regained his senses.
He decided to stop tormenting the poor Vermillion Clear Icetoad, which had been utterly lost in the labyrinth of life, and let it go.
With his overall strength diminished, it would take some time to adapt and maintain his combat effectiveness.
The souls here cannot be killed, and under this restriction, the training is even more rigorous.
...
Three years later, at the East Sea Mecha Association.
A staff member took the soul guide handed over by Huo Yuhao, examined it carefully for a moment, and then looked at Huo Yuhao with a somewhat numb expression, saying:
"Yuhao, why don't you go for the fourth-level certification? You could set a new record, you know."
Nearly three years ago, this kid had come to take the tests for both mecha builder and mecha designer certifications.
That's right, not just one sub-class, but two, and now, he had reached level three in both, shattering the previous record for dual sub-class certifications.
The fastest record for reaching level three in these two sub-professions, though not as demanding as forging, was still ten years old! And Huo Yuhao was only nine!
Dual sub-class level three certifications at his age, who could believe it?
What's more, judging from the works he had submitted, it was clear that he was more than capable of breaking through to level four in both fields.
The staff had been numb from shock for the past three years and no longer bothered to feign surprise.
"Tall buildings rise from solid foundations. I think it's better to take some time to consolidate my skills," Huo Yuhao replied, shaking his head. "Please settle the bill."
The staff sighed. "This level-three solar soul guide can absorb solar energy and convert it into stored soul power. Its design is exquisite, and its craftsmanship is flawless... A peak level-three soul guide, designed and manufactured entirely by you. The total payment is 300,000 federal coins, which will be transferred to your account." "
After receiving his payment, Huo Yuhao headed to the second floor to pick up some third-level design and manufacturing tasks before leaving the Mecha Master Association.
Although the Spirit Pagoda could reimburse his expenses, and Hua Yichen had also given him a bank card with a decent amount of money,
Huo Yuhao preferred to earn his own income while honing his sub-profession skills. It felt more fulfilling to spend money he had earned himself.
As Huo Yuhao left, the staff member quickly found a substitute, took Huo Yuhao's latest work, and brought it to the president's office, handing it over to Li Yucheng.
"Elder Li, this is Huo Yuhao's new work. And as usual, it's made entirely from ordinary metals."
Li Yucheng took the piece and examined it with a furrowed brow. "Is his teacher really a traditionalist?"
Mecha designers, fabricators, and repairers are all branches of soul engineers.
In the past, many soul engineers even forged their own metals, which could be considered a form of blacksmithing.
However, after 10,000 years of development, it became nearly impossible for one person to handle all these aspects simultaneously, leading to the division into several sub-professions.
Nowadays, the profession of a soul engineer has largely shifted to that of a researcher, a far cry from the past.
The traditionalist refers to those who emulate the soul engineers of 10,000 years ago, balancing soul power cultivation with designing and creating powerful soul guides on their own.
But a person's energy is limited. Spreading oneself too thin often leads to mediocrity in all areas.
This was why Li Yucheng frowned.
"This is pure nonsense! No matter how talented this kid is, trying to balance soul power cultivation with learning multiple sub-professions will only burn him out eventually! What is Joyful Douluo thinking? How could he assign a traditionalist as his teacher? Has he been kicked in the head by a ten-year soul beast?"
Li Yucheng was genuinely furious.
At just nine years old, Huo Yuhao was already designing and manufacturing third-level soul guides entirely on his own.
If he focused on just one profession, he might already be close to reaching the fifth level.
A nine-year-old at the fifth level, what kind of genius would that be?
It had been far too long since the East Sea Mecha Master Association had produced such a prodigy.
And now, when other forces had their own geniuses, they weren't even cherishing this one...
No, he had to find time to talk to Hua Yichen.
While he didn't mind Huo Yuhao's soul power cultivation, the matter of his sub-professions needed serious discussion.
If that traditionalist teacher couldn't guide him properly, then Huo Yuhao should be brought to him instead!