NOVEL NEXT Chapter 22: Gift
Originally, he thought this kid was a genius soul master, but he didn't expect him to be a genius soul engineer too!
As a soul engineer himself, he appreciated talent in soul engineering more than the examinee's soul master abilities. Even for someone like him, who had seen plenty of geniuses, this combination left the old man unable to remain calm.
"Little guy, how did you manage to do this?"
The sudden shift in the old man's demeanor made Su Luoheng feel a bit uneasy.
He knew his soul skill was unique, but the change in the old man's attitude was too extreme.
Without showing any emotion, Su Luoheng took two steps back and explained, "My mother is a soul engineer, and I learned from her. I just gradually became a level one soul engineer."
"Gradually… just became one?" The old man's expression turned strange. He didn't know how to react to this understated boast.
Having a soul engineer as a parent might help, but becoming a level one soul engineer at nine years old?
"Yes."
Su Luoheng nodded calmly, feeling a small sense of revenge.
But he didn't forget his purpose. He added, "By the way, teacher, I forgot to mention earlier, my first soul skill is Analysis."
"Analysis? You can analyze soul tools?" The old man suddenly thought of something, and his gaze became sharp like a sword.
Su Luoheng remained composed. "Yes."
After a brief pause, the old man waved his hand, creating an invisible barrier that isolated the two of them from the other examinees, preventing anyone from overhearing their conversation.
After doing all this, he asked in a deep voice, "What level of soul tools can you analyze right now?"
"If it's sword-type, level three. Other types, level two." Su Luoheng replied directly.
"Tell me its structure." The old man's palm flashed with blue light as he took out a sword-shaped soul tool.
Su Luoheng did not hesitate and took the soul tool from the old man's hand. He converted his soul power into spiritual power to envelop the tool completely.
At the same time, his martial spirit, "Unlimited Sword Domain," activated, and the soft yellow soul ring emitted a gentle light. The weapon analysis officially began!
Familiar structures of the soul tool appeared in his mind.
"A level three Ice Array, a level three Soul Power Reflux Array, a level three Reinforcement Array, and a level three Consolidation Array…" Su Luoheng recited the names of the core arrays one by one.
With each name he said, the old man's expression changed accordingly because every name was correct, with no mistakes.
"..."
"There are two other arrays I haven't seen before, but I could draw them out for you if needed." Su Luoheng withdrew his spiritual power, casually wiped the sweat from his forehead, and looked at the old man calmly.
Analyzing a level three sword-type soul tool consumed a lot of his soul power, especially since this particular sword was quite unique.
"No need."
The answers earlier had already proven his ability, and there was no need to verify one or two more arrays.
The old man took a deep breath and looked at Su Luoheng with eager eyes. "Little guy, your soul skill is practically tailor-made for a soul engineer!"
"Thank you for the compliment, teacher."
Su Luoheng displayed a humble smile, having achieved his goal.
Showing the unique ability of his soul skill, he had already decided to join the Sun and Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy.
To become stronger, talent was crucial, but so was the support of an organization and access to resources.
To receive the academy's focused training, he naturally needed to demonstrate his potential.
His mother, from the perspective of a soul engineer, had once evaluated his first soul skill and bluntly said that even if his later soul skills were all useless, just the ability to analyze alone would be enough to ensure he received special attention at the Sun and Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy.
Though there was some exaggeration in her words, the power of the Analysis soul skill was undeniable. So, after choosing the Sun and Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy, he had never intended to hide this ability.
Looking at the results now, it seemed his plan was working well.
Though it did leave this poor teacher…
Seeing the old man still in shock, Su Luoheng felt a twinge of guilt.
He tried calling out tentatively.
"Teacher?"
"Kid, congratulations on passing both the soul engineer and soul master tests."
The old man took a deep breath, suppressing the excitement in his heart, and handed Su Luoheng a Sun and Moon emblem. "From now on, you are a new student at our Sun and Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy. This is the academy's badge and also your admission certificate. Take it to the back, where someone will guide you through the enrollment procedures."
"Thank you, Teacher."
Su Luoheng nodded in gratitude and took the badge.
At the same time, the old man waved his hand, causing the shield that had isolated their space to disappear. The examinees behind them only saw Su Luoheng receiving the emblem that symbolized his successful assessment and pinning it to his chest amidst envious glances.
"Alright, little guy, hurry to the back to register and report," the old man said with a kindly smile, which left the examinees behind stunned, questioning their own sanity.
One looked like a spring breeze; the other was stern and unsmiling.
Was this what it meant to be treated differently?
"Oh, by the way, little guy, what's your name?"
"I'm Su Luoheng," he replied, then remembered that he was still holding the soul tool.
"Teacher, here's your soul tool."
He had to admit, it was definitely the most intricate level-three sword-type soul tool he had ever seen!
Generally speaking, an ordinary level-three soul tool could be constructed with around ten core arrays, but this one had a full seventeen core arrays—almost comparable to a level-four soul tool.
Just as he was about to return the soul tool to the old man, the latter waved his hand dismissively.
"Keep it. This Ice Sword is technically a level-three soul tool, but I modified several of its arrays. Its combat strength is not inferior to that of a level-four soul tool. Consider it a reward for your performance just now."
"Su Luoheng, right?"
"Senior, this—"
Su Luoheng was slightly surprised. He knew that level-three soul tools were highly sought after in the market, and a soul tool of this quality would cost at least three thousand gold soul coins. And yet, the old man was simply giving it away?
"Alright, off you go. I have to continue with my work. Next up, who's next?" The old man waved his hand impatiently and resumed his assessment duties.
"Thank you, Senior."
Seeing this, Su Luoheng bowed to express his gratitude.
As he turned to leave, the old man also turned his head, his deep gaze following Su Luoheng's departing figure. A satisfied smile flickered in his eyes as he murmured, "Su Luoheng… Little guy, I never give anything away for free. We'll be seeing each other again soon enough."
Such an outstanding little fellow—how could he not be tempted?
"Teacher, this is… this is my martial soul."
"Take it and report to the back."
Snapping back to reality, the old man gave a casual glance and tossed over another badge. The martial soul barely made the passing grade, but he was in a good mood and decided to let it pass.
"Thank you, Teacher!"
Upon hearing this, the nervous boy was overjoyed, quickly taking the badge and repeatedly thanking the old man.