220 Guide Rather Than Oppose

Wu Zhangkong nodded once more.

Shen Yi continued on. “HIs first soul ring is purple and his physique isexcellent. Did you raise him to be like this? If he has three rings by the timehe’s fifteen, his body will likely transform again. You have an eye fordisciples.”

Wu Zhangkong said, “If you have time you can continue watching their matches.I’m going for now.” He stood up to depart, his white robes fluttering along hisstrides.

Shen Yi watched as he left, blinking a few times. A pensive look settled onher face as she lost herself in contemplation.

☀

Within box three.

Whether it was Mu Chen or Duan Xuan, both wore faces of shock.

For Mu Chen, this was his first time seeing Tang Wulin battle. He had rushedover not too long ago. Gaining experience or securing a spot in futuretournaments was not why he had Tang Wulin compete. However, those reasons didserve as adequate veils masking his true intentions. It was more important toexamine Tang Wulin’s temperament.

The most crucial aspect of a master and disciple relationship was not thedisciple’s ability to receive the teachings. Rather, it was that the disciplehave an upstanding character.

If problems arose and the student surpassed the teacher, then the former’simmoral character would lead to ruin.

Tang Wulin was not shy about his love for money. Consequently, Mu Chenconcocted this trap to entice him. In the end, Tang Wulin’s nobility triumphedover his greed, much to Mu Chen’s satisfaction.

Mu Chen had not been skeptical about whether Tang Wulin would pass this test.After all, Tang Wulin was at an easily influenced age. With Mu Chen guiding himlike a hen would its chicks, there was no reason to be worried.

Despite that, Tang Wulin was maturing too quickly. Against all expectations,he advanced to the fourth rank in less than a year. The Association needed toinvest more resources into him in order to facilitate his growth. They chose touse the Skysea Alliance Tournament as a test to determine how successful theirefforts had been.

The results were satisfactory. Tang Wulin gave up first place to Mu Xiwillingly and declined Duan Xuan’s tempting offer.

Furthermore, he displayed tremendous battle strength. Mu Chen was surprisedpleasantly.  

“I didn’t think this brat’s combat ability would be so great. With a singlering, he beat a three-ringed opponent. And his one ring is of the thousand-yearlevel! Those spirit items I helped him buy were probably used to help refinehis body,” Mu Chen said with a smile.

After a moment of stupor, Duan Xuan’s brows creased. “You think this is a goodthing?”

Mu Chen was taken aback. “Teacher, what’s wrong with it?”

Duan Xuan sighed gently, his concern apparent. “If he has talent as a soulmaster, then would he spend energy on blacksmithing? We want him to become aDivine Blacksmith or a battle armor master, you know?”

A trace of a smile flickered on Mu Chen’s lips. “I’ve already thought of ananswer to this problem. Long ago, I had asked him what his dream was. He toldme he wanted to become battle armor master. I support his plan.”

Astonishment filled Duan Xuan’s eyes. “You’re in favor of this?”

Mu Chen nodded. “His martial soul and body are quite peculiar. As ablacksmith, he has been blessed by heaven. He possesses not just innate divinestrength but also piercing insight. In fact, his cultivation can’t keep up withhis talent for blacksmithing at the moment. It’s a shackle restraining him tothe fourth rank. To him, blacksmithing is a tool to earn money. Unlike othertrades like mecha crafting and designing, blacksmithing is not tied directly tobattle armor masters. However, it will still be highly beneficial in achievinghis goals.

“I dare say, becoming a Saint Blacksmith would be more helpful than becoming amecha craftsmen or designer. I’m convinced that he won’t choose anotherprofession.

“This situation is the epitome of where guiding beats opposing. I won’tdisapprove of his efforts toward becoming a battle armor master; rather, I’llencourage it. As long as I can convince him that the foundation of a battlearmor master stems from being a first-rank blacksmith, it’ll be enough to steerhim in the right direction. Sure, battle armor masters are the greatestoccupations on the continent, but less than one in one hundred soul masters canwalk that path. The requirements are astronomical. Aside from Shrek Academy,who dares say their students will definitely become battle armor masters?Nevertheless, if he advances into a Saint Blacksmith, his chances of successwould be tangible. He’s a clever kid; he’ll know what choice is best for him.”

Bearing profound eyes, Duan Xuan stared at Mu Chen with a deep and penetrativegaze.  “I’m so old now. My mind can’t keep up with the latest trends. Maybeyou’re right.”

Mu Chen’s expression lit up. “You can rest at ease. There’s no one who wantsthis kid to be a blacksmith more than me. I’m looking forward to seeing if Ican raise a Divine Blacksmith.”

Duan Xuan chuckled. “You mean like how I, a seventh-rank blacksmith, raised aneighth-rank blacksmith like you?”

☀

Tang Wulin and his teammates were in high spirits when they descended from thearena. In today’s match, Tang Wulin had been able to display his full might inclose combat, attaining a swift victory with a blitzkrieg strategy.

However, after reviewing the battles from the last few days, he discovered oneproblem that seemed to plague the entire junior division: the participants hadno combat experience! The majority of them weren’t able to showcase their truestrength in battle. It had been the same in both the individual and teamcompetitions.

While the members of Skysea Academy’s secondary team were able to use theirsoul skills during the match, they had performed mechanically without anyfinesse. Not to mention Wu Zhangkong’s level of skill, they couldn’t even matchTang Wulin’s soul skill proficiency. He could pulverize them with a lowercultivation because they were too green.

“They were so weak! It looks like soul power isn’t that important after all.”Xie Xie came to the same conclusion and was now bursting with confidence.

Gu Yue had a pensive expression. “It’s not that they were weak, but that ourcombat experience outweighed theirs.”

Xu Xiaoyan said, “That’s right! Teacher Wu doesn’t teach us the same way asconventional soul master academies do. They focus on imparting knowledge. Evenif the schools host combat practice, they do it in the safest way possible. Thestudents just stand there using their soul skills against each other. It’scompletely different from our real battles!”

After joining class zero, Xu Xiaoyan discovered quickly how far the originaltrio exceeded her in combat prowess. Because she had yet to train in the spiritascension platform, she had been unable to comprehend the source of theirstrength. As such, she strived to catch up with them.  Coupled with the sparsagainst Wu Zhangkong, she began to understand what made class zero so strong.

Wu Zhangkong did not go easy on them during combat training. It was normal tofinish each session covered in bruises and cuts. His training regimen wasincomparable with a normal class’s curriculum. Although the growth rate oftheir soul power settled, their combat strength soared.

Xie Xie immersed himself in thought. “The Skysea Alliance has always beeninferior to the central and western regions in terms of soul master ability.This might be because of different teaching methods and history. Mechas existnow. Normally, anyone with four rings or less is no match for a mecha. Mostpeople choose to take the easy way out. As long as their soul power grows to asufficient level, they can become a mecha pilot. It’s a pretty good occupationtoo. This is also why the majority of students entering an advanced academychoose to join the mecha department to become mecha pilots.”