Chapter 69

(Brothers, I'm really just flooding, there's no need to continue; at month's end I'll just drop it, and I hope those who have stuck around here join group 681263581— the new book will start soon, rest assured, this time I guarantee no flooding, ensuring quality and quantity)

The Body Sect didn't stay silent; on the contrary, it immediately issued a strong condemnation in the Tianhun Empire, condemning the Mingde Hall for issuing a death order against them without distinguishing right from wrong, and firmly stated that this matter had nothing to do with the Body Sect, and that anyone who dared to retaliate would bear the consequences.

Regardless of whether the Body Sect acknowledges it, after this incident its status on the continent surged, already faintly surpassing Shrek Academy and the Mingde Hall, giving it the air of the continent's foremost power.

And since this outbreak, Chen Qiye has disappeared, and the news of his disappearance, blocked by the Mingde Hall, has not been transmitted back to Shrek Academy…

And Huo Yuhao and the others just spent these few years like that.

Meanwhile, the news of Chen Qiye's disappearance could no longer be suppressed; Xuan Lao personally intervened to question, even causing the Mingde Hall to be stirred up again, but the only reply was that they would speed up the search, yet Chen Qiye seemed to have vanished, as if he had never set foot on the entire Douluo Continent.

(End)

ヽ(o). "What? You want to see the hall master?" Lin Jiayi looked at the youth standing before them, surprise flashing in their eyes.

More than two years of exchange study are about to end. Besides Chen Qiye, who suddenly disappeared, the other students of Shrek Academy performed adequately, and there was no lack of talent. However, my deeper memory of this youth is still that exchange match back then. Afterwards, he actually sat in meditation for half a year, yet his cultivation made no progress.

Huo Yuhao nodded and said, "May I? We are about to leave. Before we go, I want to express my thanks to the hall master, and I also have something I'd like to discuss with him."

For an ordinary student, wanting to see Hall Master Jing Hongchen of the Mingde Hall even once would be extremely difficult; indeed, it's basically impossible. What kind of person is the Hall Master of Mingde? In the Sun Moon Empire, he is second only to the emperor, above ten thousand.

But this student before him is different; his status is special, to the extent that Lin Jiayi doesn't dare to easily refuse him.

"Alright. Wait a moment, I'll ask the hall master if he has time to see you."

"Okay." Huo Yuhao sat down by himself at the side, eyes watching nose, nose watching mouth, mouth watching heart, sitting upright and composed.

Lin Jiayi picked up the internal communication soul tool and transmitted outward via special soul power fluctuations.

After a moment, the voice of Hall Master Jing Hongchen of the Mingde Hall came through the earpiece.

"Hmm, Huo Yuhao wants to see me? Fine, bring him here." Jing Hongchen readily agreed to Huo Yuhao's request; in fact, he was curious why this genius from Shrek Academy wanted to see him. Could it be that he wants to defect to my Mingde Hall? Not impossible! Thinking of this, the gloom caused by Chen Qiye's disappearance vanished, and Jing Hongchen's mood brightened considerably.

Under Lin Jiayi's guidance, Huo Yuhao arrived at the office of Hall Master Jing Hongchen of the Mingde Hall.

"Greetings, Hall Master." Huo Yuhao courteously stepped forward and bowed.

Jing Hongchen smiled slightly and said, "Please have a seat."

Huo Yuhao, however, remained standing and said, "I have something I'd like to discuss with you privately. May I?"

Jing Hongchen stared for a moment, then waved at Lin Jiayi.

Lin Jiayi's mouth twitched slightly as he thought, "The hall master really indulges this kid." Yet he didn't dawdle; he quickly stepped out of the room and closed the door behind him.

"Now you may speak." Jing Hongchen sized up the youth before him. Over the past two-plus years, Huo Yuhao had grown much taller; he was now a well-built young man. His physique was sturdy, shoulders broad, back wide, arms long and waist slim. Jing Hongchen was even surprised to detect a distinctive aura about Huo Yuhao; his formerly ordinary visage now appeared steady and resolute, bearing a charm typical of a mature man. Especially his unusually bright eyes left an unforgettable impression.

Huo Yuhao said, "I've been at the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy for over two years. During this time, I've received your care and support, Hall Master, which has greatly improved my ability to craft and use soul tools. Our exchange program is about to end. Although a major trouble arose during these two years, I still wish to express my gratitude by personally giving you a gift."

"A gift for me?" Jing Hongchen's interest spiked; no student had ever done this before, and in fact, nobody would dare. He never imagined that Huo Yuhao had come to see him just to present a gift.

Jing Hongchen looked at Huo Yuhao with a half‑smile and said, "I'm afraid this gift might be hard to accept."

Huo Yuhao quickly shook his head and said, "Of course not; it's purely a token of my thanks. It's a soul tool I made myself, and I hope you like it."

As he spoke, he reached to his waist, touched the Twenty‑Four Bridges Bright Moon Night, and produced a black metal box, which he placed before Jing Hongchen.

"Hall Master, this is merely a soul‑tool model I'm giving you as a keepsake; I've already installed the mechanisms on it. If you need to use it, just…" He said while demonstrating a few operations for Jing Hongchen.

If Xuanzhiwen were here, he would surely notice that the metal box Huo Yuhao gave Jing Hongchen is exactly the same as the one that first astonished him…

Jing Hongchen took the metal box, held it in his hand, and examined it. This soul tool was indeed rather crude, lacking any sense of quality. He lightly infused it with soul power to sense it and found that inside was merely a simple energy‑gathering core array.

"Fine, thank you." Although he felt a hint of disdain inside, he did not show it.

Huo Yuhao respectfully bowed and said, "Then I'll take my leave, Hall Master." After saying that, he turned and walked away without lingering.

After Huo Yuhao left, a playful smile curled at the corner of Jing Hongchen's mouth. "Is this kid trying to tell me he's learned nothing, sending me this trifle to mock me for not teaching him real skills? How bold! And he expects me to use this thing that can't even qualify as a first‑level soul tool?" As he thought, he instinctively followed Huo Yuhao's earlier method, simply manipulating it a bit, then pressed the button on it toward the wall ahead.

In Jing Hongchen's view, this was at most a soul‑tool ray, and its power wouldn't be great. Earlier, when he infused it with soul power, he noticed that the energy‑gathering core array inside stored soul power—presumably what Huo Yuhao had just poured in, which hadn't yet dissipated.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…" a series of tearing‑through‑air sounds rang out, startling Jing Hongchen.

Immediately after, a series of "duk, duk" sounds came from the opposite wall. Jing Hongchen instinctively glanced at the black box in his hand, then swiftly stepped out from behind his desk. At that moment, a knocking sounded.

"Come in." Jing Hongchen halted his steps.

Lin Jiayi walked in from outside. "Hall Master, do you have any further orders?"

Seeing it was him, Jing Hongchen continued toward the opposite wall and soon found several small iron arrows already fully embedded in it.

He then turned, picked up the black box, infused a bit of soul power, pressed the button again, and another series of "whoosh, whoosh" sounds rang out. A flash of shadow passed, and the opposite wall emitted a sound.

"This…"

Jing Hongchen's eyes flickered with uncertainty; he suddenly understood, and at once told Lin Jiayi, "Go, call Huo Yuhao back." "Yes." Lin Jiayi dared not ask further, turned and ran to fetch Huo Yuhao.

How did this soul tool's core array trigger the ejection of arrows? It wasn't a soul‑tool ray; it resembled a stationary soul‑tool model. More terrifying, this stationary soul‑tool requires no soul power to activate—once soul power is infused, a simple press of the button suffices. How is this triggering device constructed?

Almost impatiently, Jing Hongchen wanted to pry open the black box. But as soon as he moved, a clattering sound came from inside.

"Self‑destruct device. Nice kid!" Jing Hongchen didn't need to look; he knew the internal device was ruined and unusable.

Huo Yuhao had just left; recalling him was easy, especially since he had walked slowly and hadn't gone far.

After a moment, he was back standing before Hall Master Jing Hongchen of the Mingde Hall.

"Speak, what is your purpose?" Jing Hongchen asked in a deep voice.

This time Huo Yuhao did not ask Lin Jiayi to leave; he simply looked bewildered at him and said, "What purpose?"

Jing Hongchen felt a twitch in his heart. "This kid, he really can act!" He waved the black box in his hand.

Huo Yuhao stared for a moment, then said, "This has no purpose at all! I just wanted to give you a keepsake—hey, why is it broken?" As Jing Hongchen shook the box, a "clatter, clatter" sound came from inside, clearly indicating the internal structure had been damaged.

Huo Yuhao's eyes showed a hint of confusion and hurt. "Hall Master, I only gave this to you as a keepsake. Even if you look down on my little trinket, you didn't have to break it."

Jing Hongchen almost believed Huo Yuhao's sincerity; this kid's acting was too convincing. "Enough, stop pretending. Get straight to the point—name your price. I want the exact structure of that triggering device." With his eyesight, he could clearly see the ingenuity of the triggering device inside the black box.

But Huo Yuhao looked utterly puzzled and said, "What triggering device? This is just a little trinket I threw together. And I've already given it to you!"

Still playing dumb? Jing Hongchen felt his patience wearing thin. "I mean, I want the internal structure of this black box. Draw me a diagram. If it's satisfactory, I'll pay you."

"Oh, I see." Huo Yuhao looked suddenly enlightened. "But, Hall Master, researching this was quite a hassle for me. If I were to sell it, it wouldn't be cheap."

Jing Hongchen snapped, "Name your price. Do you think I'm stingy?"

Huo Yuhao extended one hand, spread all five fingers, thought for a moment, then retracted two fingers, leaving only the index, middle, and ring fingers extended.

How about three items? I'll trade you three ninth‑level soul tools.

He spoke so naturally and casually, as if he were just asking Jing Hongchen for three bags of rice.

Lin Jiayi almost spat out a mouthful of blood. What? Three ninth‑level soul tools! What does this kid think a ninth‑level soul tool is? A ninth‑level soul engineer would have to pour countless effort and materials into completing a perfect ninth‑level soul tool. And you want to sell three of them for just this broken iron box? When Chen Qiye disappeared, Jing Hongchen was almost forced to give up nine ninth‑level soul tools as compensation for inadequate care. So what gives Huo Yuhao the nerve to demand ninth‑level soul tools from me because of these few soul tools? Jing Hongchen's facial muscles tensed instantly, and the smile he'd been wearing vanished in an instant. "Kid, are you trying to extort me?"

Huo Yuhao shook his head. "No! I just think my research is very valuable and worth this price. Besides, we can still negotiate the price, can't we?"

He earnestly raised his other hand, pressing back the ring finger of the three he had extended, and said, "Two pieces—does that sound okay?"

Jing Hongchen's forehead furrowed in frustration. "What nonsense! Your trigger device may have some value, but how could it possibly compare to a ninth‑level soul tool?"

Huo Yuhao replied, "A ninth‑level fixed‑install soul tool cannon shell would do; I'm not particular."

Jing Hongchen had the word "get lost" on the tip of his tongue, almost blurting it out. He then remembered how, during the earlier exchange competition, this kid had tried to extort him. It was clear that today he deliberately brought this soul tool to show him, hoping to drive up the price.

Actually, Jing Hongchen wasn't really angry; he even felt a bit relieved, at least Huo Yuhao had brought this soul tool to show him instead of heading straight back to Shrek Academy, leaving him completely unaware. If this trigger device were applied to a fixed‑install soul tool, the effect would be quite good. Moreover, its principle, when combined with other soul tools, makes its function obvious. This kind of trigger means that even ordinary people could use a fully charged soul tool! Besides, he had already heard Xuan Ziwen say that the recent difficulty in researching sealed milk bottles might be overcome.

If this trigger device were combined with an excellent soul tool and a sealed milk bottle, then organizing an army of non‑soul engineers who could still use soul tools would no longer be a dream! Even if the cost were high, it would be worth it. If the Crown Prince could have such a force, would the imperial throne still need to be contested? It would be as easy as taking something from one's pocket, and my standing in the empire would surely rise even higher, leaving a bold, vivid mark in history.

Thinking of this, Jing Hongchen's emotions unintentionally flared; he forcibly suppressed his anger, furrowed his brows, and said, "Huo Yuhao, your invention is indeed impressive. It does help the development of fixed‑install soul tools. But you should understand that this is merely a rather crude structure; it still needs continual refinement, and that work must be done by us. So although I am willing to pay something for it, I cannot be excessive. Propose a condition we can all accept. Otherwise, there's nothing to discuss."

Huo Yuhao fell silent, and after a full minute he spoke with some difficulty: "All right. Since you, the Hall Master, are so sincere, I'll just tell you my bottom line."

While speaking, he raised his left hand again and pressed down the index finger of the two remaining fingers on his right hand, leaving only a long, straight middle finger…

Jing Hongchen stared at that conspicuously offensive middle finger, remained silent for several seconds, then reacted with a surge of anger: "Get lost!"

Lin Jiayi's face was just as grim; if Jing Hongchen weren't present, he would likely have stepped forward to attack.

"Even if the deal falls through, we should still be righteous—don't get angry. I'll leave this with you as a keepsake; see how magnanimous I am. Then goodbye. You just destroyed my heartfelt creation and insulted me. I've decided to raise the price back to three ninth‑level soul tools. No negotiation. Think about it carefully."

Having said that, he turned and walked away in a casual manner.

Jing Hongchen wanted to call him back, but he couldn't bring himself to speak due to pride. Looking at the black box in his hand, his earlier thought resurfaced.

Connecting a milk bottle to an energy‑gathering soul tool and activating it with this special trigger device, a fourth‑level milk bottle storing soul power could unleash dozens of soul tool rays on the battlefield…

"Call him back," Jing Hongchen finally said to Lin Jiayi, though with difficulty.

Lin Jiayi still hadn't figured out the situation, but seeing Jing Hongchen's indignant expression, he couldn't help but say, "Hall Master, you can't be too lenient with this kid. Otherwise, I'll go give him a beating."

"I said call him back—don't you understand human speech?" Jing Hongchen shouted. Startled, Lin Jiayi turned and ran away.

After one minute, Huo Yuhao stood before Jing Hongchen once again.

(End of Chapter)