Soul Land 3: Legend Of The Dragon King

Chapter 521 - Divine Mecha (II)

“Roger that, Boss.” The mecha disappeared in a flash, only to reappear a second later, ten meters away. 

Tang Wulin stared at the mecha, eyes wide. Teleportation?  

“Teleportation,” the chef grunted. “That’s one of its core functions. It can freely teleport anywhere in a one kilometer radius.”

In another flash of crimson, the mecha landed on the ground and transformed into a sleek two-seater sports car. Then it transformed again, shooting into the sky to become a deadly fighter jet. It soared through the air for a moment, then vanished in another flash to reappear before the group in its humanoid form. However, it wasn’t finished. Its arms began to spin, revealing countless soul cannons built into them. It sat down and transformed into a veritable fortress bristling with a main meter-long cannon and hundreds of smaller ones. 

Tang Wulin was blown away. Can this even be considered a mecha still? Teleporting? Transforming? What in the world? Just how much can it do? And it belongs to the chef? 

As the mecha returned to its original form, the crackle of its feminine voice split the air. “Is that enough, Boss?”

“Yeah, Ruby,” the chef said. “That’s enough. You can go back to resting.”

In one final flash, Ruby, returned to its original position on the docking platform. The golden lines pulsing across its body grew dim, and it fell dormant. 

“Once mechas reach a certain level, they essentially become the same kind of entities as spirit souls,”the chef said, turning to Tang Wulin. “In fact, you can even fuse them with your spirit souls, which is what I did with my mecha. Now it’s like an extension of my body. Even when I’m not piloting it, it’s just as effective in combat as when I do. With it, an infinite number of tactical possibilities present themselves. How could a mecha pilot resist that?” 

The chef gazed up at Ruby, eyes feverish with passion. He looked back to Tang Wulin again and said, “You must choose carefully. If you decide to continue as a mecha pilot, you’ll have to give up on other paths. I don’t regret my decision. I love mechas.” 

The chef loved mechas so much that he gave up on becoming a battle armor master. He was a rank 94 soul master, which was great for someone his age, but was also far too low considering his identity and lineage. Yet he had no regrets. His love for mechas knew no bounds. 

For a few moments, everyone just stood there, basking in the mecha’s magnificence. 

Tang Wulin gulped. Now that’s a mecha! The peak of all mechas! 

Then the chef’s voice snapped him out of his reverie.

“You can’t take the same path as me.”

“What?” Tang Wulin blurted. “Why?”

“You have true talent,” the chef said. “The heavens have blessed you, and the path of mechas does not suit you. Red mechas may be powerful, but still they cannot beat four-word battle armors. They just can’t. Even red-grade mechas have their limits. Well, that isn’t exactly right. Some believe that a level beyond red-grade mechas exists. I’ve strived toward that for many years but have barely made any headway. No one in our time will ever be able to reach it. You, on the other hand, will have no problem becoming a four-word battle armor master. It will be far easier for you to do that than pioneer the next level of mechas.”

Then the chef’s words took on a harsher tone. “You don’t know how to make mechas. You’re already a fifth-rank blacksmith, so it’s already too late for you to switch to being a mecha maker. The best mechas need to be personally made by their pilot. I’m a mecha maker myself, as are all of the other red-grade mecha pilots. Tell me, do you think you should become a mecha maker?” 

Tang Wulin was speechless. He’s right! I can’t just quit being a blacksmith! I’ve already been smithing for years, and the Golden Dragon King’s power makes me great at it. I can’t waste nine years of progress just for mechas. Who knows how long it’ll take me to become a fifth-rank mecha maker? 

He looked over at Zhen Hua, finally realizing why he had brought him to see the red mecha. 

Zhen Hua looked Tang Wulin straight in the eye. “Wulin, you must remember to never stray from the path you choose. Deviating from it will only lead to disaster. Countless geniuses have risen throughout history, but many of them strayed from their path because they were simply too talented. They chose to pursue too many things at once and lost sight of their path. In the end, such foolishness made them lose everything. When they tried to focus on a single path once more, it was already too late. Do not grow complacent. Be strict with yourself, and throw all of your being into the path you choose. Do you understand?”

Tang Wulin’s eyes went wide with comprehension. “Yes, Uncle-master. I understand.” 

“Good,” Zhen Hua continued, his stern expression melting into a gentle smile. “I speak for myself and on behalf of your teachers when I say this. All of us are watching you grow and doing our best to lead you down the correct path. You’re progressing just fine as a blacksmith. All you need now is time. Do you remember how you chose not to boost your cultivation with medicines? In doing so, you had already decided on the path of a battle armor master. You will one day become a four-word battle armor master and stand at the top of the world. When that day comes, you’ll have the time to do whatever interests you. Getting a mecha for transportation was a good idea, but do not delve any deeper until you have the time for it.” 

“Yes, Uncle-master!” Tang Wulin exclaimed.

“You’re a clever kid, Wulin,” Zhen Hua said. “I won’t lecture you any longer.” 

It was then that the chef spoke up, breaking the tension. “Well, it’s almost noon, so I’ll cook us lunch!” 

He walked over to the rear of his mecha and pressed a button. In a sudden flash of light, box dropped from the belly of the mecha, landing on the floor with a thud. The box was a meter in length on all sides. The mecha clearly had a built-in spatial storage, otherwise it wouldn’t have had room for the box. 

Tang Wulin rushed over to help, but the chef waved him away. 

“I’m fine!” he said. “I can do it myself.” 

With a swift kick, the lid of the box came flying off, and the chef caught it in one hand. Then he and the box disappeared. He hadn’t vanished in a flash of teleportation, but a blur of sheer speed. 

The chef truly was a strange person. He was powerful enough to have a red-grade mecha, yet he chose to spend his time cooking. 

Zhen Hua tracked the chef’s leaving figure and quietly said, “Jeez, that guy! He gets distracted way too easily.” Then he glanced at Tang Wulin. “He’s just as talented as you are, you know, but he’s never been able to cross the threshold and become a Hyper Douluo. He just has too many things on his mind. He agreed to show you his mecha today because he wanted to serve as an example of what not to do. Considering his background, he should have been able to stand at the very peak of the continent.” 

“Just who is he, Uncle-master?” Tang Wulin asked.

Zhen Hua gave him a wry smile. “You can ask him yourself when we eat. You’ve actually caused him a bit of trouble for a while now. When he found out you were coming today, he rushed over and prepared ingredients that even I wouldn’t normally be able to eat.” 

“Because of me?” Tang Wulin tilted his head in confusion. 

Zhen Hua nodded. “You’ve got a lot to digest, so I won’t be teaching you blacksmithing today. Let’s go wait for the food.”

On the short trip back to Zhen Hua’s office, Tang Wulin was filled with curiosity. Just who is that chef? Uncle-master said he couldn’t become a Hyper Douluo, but that means he’s still a Titled Douluo! And he has a red-grade mecha! He’s gotta be famous. He's probably as strong as grandteacher! Hm. But it seems like Uncle-master feels sorry for him. I wonder why? 

Curiosity quickly became doubt, and they arrived at the office. Zhen Hua led them past his working area and into a dining room, then to a waiting table where they sat down. Tang Wulin sat beside Gu Yue, and Zhen Hua across from them, an empty chair for the chef beside him. After an hour of waiting, the chef brought out a whole spread of delicacies, each intricately assembled in appetizing ways. The aromas that wafted from the foods sang to Tang Wulin’s stomach. 

The first dish to be served was soup. A clear broth with a sweet fragrance was ladled into four separate bowls and placed before everyone at the table.

Zhen Hua’s eyes lit up as soon as he saw the dish, and he chuckled. “Wulin, I’m really lucky to have you here today! This is immortal spirit mushroom soup. It’s amazing stuff!” 

Immortal spirit mushroom? Tang Wulin’s mind stirred as he recognized the name.