Chapter 444.3 - The Dangers of Profit
However, this had a very high demand for spiritual power, and not even Class 9 soul engineers were certain to be able to meet this demand – unless they were Class 9 spiritual-type Titled Douluo; only then could they accomplish this.
However, spiritual-type Titled Douluo were very rarely seen across the continent, while most of the Sun Moon Empire’s soul masters were soul engineers. This meant spiritual-type ones were even fewer and further between. That was the reason why this research dropped into a bottleneck when it reached that point.
On the other hand, Xuan Ziwen didn’t have that problem with his research. First, he was researching small-scale versions, and soul masters could use their limbs to activate the mechanical parts in order to control them. At the same time, he didn’t give up on the idea of soul masters controlling human-shaped soul tools with their consciousness and their spiritual power. Huo Yuhao was a live spiritual-type soul master! Furthermore, he would undoubtedly be able to become a Titled Douluo in the future. At the same time, smaller human-shaped soul tools required much less spiritual power for movement. Therefore, Xuan Ziwen began to gradually craft this particular item according to his own theories and principles.
After Huo Yuhao put on this human-shaped soul tool, the space in between his eyebrows swiftly pressed against a transparent jewel as his consciousness and thoughts swiftly translocated throughout the entire human-shaped soul tool.
In this moment, he felt as if the entire human-shaped soul tool itself had become a part of his body, and controlling it was no different from controlling his body with his mind. Furthermore, all the attachments and mechanisms within the human-shaped soul tool were all within his thoughts’ control.
Huo Yuhao hadn’t even activated his Eye of Destiny, and controlling such a Class 7 soul tool with the strength of his spiritual power was very easy.
It wasn’t because Xuan Ziwen didn’t want to create a Class 8 human-shaped soul tool – his problem was that he didn’t have sufficient good materials. Another limiting factor for a small human-shaped soul tool was the user’s bodily strength and endurance. If the soul tool itself wasn’t as strong as the soul master’s body, or if its defenses couldn’t compare to that of the user, then what use did it have?
Xuan Ziwen gave himself a marker for a Class 8 human-shaped soul tool’s defensive capability. Such an item had to at least be able to take a hit from a Titled Douluo, but the material required became a crucial problem in achieving that goal, and it was a large one at that. He couldn’t resolve this problem in his current circumstances.
Huo Yuhao’s speed was greatly boosted by with the human-shaped soul tool. He wasn’t willing to use this human-shaped soul tool in front of the White Tiger Duke.
In the end, this was something so valuable that even the Sun Moon Empire’s soul engineers would be moved by it! This item also represented the product of the Tang Sect’s research into soul tools. Just like how the Sun Moon Empire would never want their high altitude aerial surveillance soul tools to end up in their enemies’ hands, Huo Yuhao would never want this soul tool’s secret to be known by others – friend and foe alike.
Three pairs of wings spurted with light, and Huo Yuhao’s body swung in midair as he instantly picked up speed. He immediately charged towards the soul engineer who had just fired a shot at him.
The position that Xuan Ziwen had given him wasn’t long-range combat – instead, it was close combat. The reason for that was because close combat was Huo Yuhao’s forte, and his strength would be boosted once more through the human-shaped soul tool, so that his fighting strength and survival capability could be raised even further. This was the motivation for Xuan Ziwen in creating this soul tool.
Huo Yuhao’s speed was raised by almost one hundred percent in that moment with the help of his Class 7 human-shaped soul tool, and he reached the standards of a Soul Douluo. He managed to come close to the soul engineer who had used the Lightning Cannon within two blinks of an eye.
That soul engineer had his Lightning Cannon on his shoulder, and his oscillation detector had been focusing on Huo Yuhao’s location this entire time. He suddenly realized that there a small bright dot on his oscillation detector that was swiftly coming towards him, and he was absolutely shocked.
However, he was a veteran soul engineer, and his reactions were also incredibly quick. He had no time to withdraw the oscillation detector in his hands – he opened his hands and immediately threw it away. At the same time, a white barrier immediately emerged outward with his body as the center.
Class 7 protective soul barrier – this was a Class 7 soul engineer.
That wasn’t all. A layer of golden light glowed on his body immediately afterwards. He was the leader of this five-man team, and he even carried an Invincible Barrier that could only be used once.
This item wasn’t standard issue in the Sun Moon Empire because it was simply too expensive. He had crafted it himself after saving up enough for the materials.
Huo Yuhao’s speed had astonished him, because that speed could only mean that his enemy was a Soul Douluo. He didn’t want to be obliterated in one hit, so he acted decisively, and used his Invincible Barrier.
However, what he didn’t expect was that the heavy hit in his imagination never came. The light suddenly plunged down when it was about a hundred meters away from him, and the oscillation detector that had fallen from his hands from before suddenly vanished in midair. Afterwards, the light began dashing towards his flank at an incredible speed.
“Watch out, Little Four!” He began to shout hysterically.
Yes, Huo Yuhao didn’t attack him, because attacking a Class 7 soul engineer who was using a Class 7 Invincible Barrier took too much energy and effort. Invincible Barriers could only be sustained for a very limited duration, so why would he waste his time?
Huo Yuhao managed to grab the oscillation detector. What a fantastic toy. This is a Class 6 soul tool! No, it’s not a Class 6 soul tool, because it wouldn’t be able to have a range like it did just now.
Huo Yuhao thought to himself in admiration as he raced one thousand meters horizontally, and arrived in front of another soul engineer.
This soul engineer’s reaction was very quick as well. He swiftly withdrew his oscillation detector and activated his protective soul barrier at the same time. He opened his hands, and two light blades stretched out from his hands. He swung them around very quickly, and they cocooned his entire body like a sphere.
He was actually a close-combat soul engineer, and he seemed like he was quite strong. Six soul rings glowed on his body – two yellow, three purple, and one black.
Real battle wasn’t like a practice fight. Nobody would feel like conserving their soul skills during crucial moments, and this soul engineer behaved in the same manner. The soul ring that lit up on his body was the last and sixth one – his black soul ring.
An enormous white sphere emerged from behind his back. It seemed like a white turtle shell. There were countless patterns on its surface, and this turtle shell swiftly transformed into pieces that began waltzing around this close-combat soul engineer – a shield formation.
A defense-type soul engineer similar to third senior brother? He uses his martial soul for defense and soul tools for offence – not a bad choice. He lives up to his status as one of the Sun Moon Empire’s elites. There aren’t many soul engineers and soldiers that the Sun Moon Empire has left guarding the Ming Dou Mountain Range, but they are all the elites, and quality has been used to resolve the problem of quantity.
But can defenses like that stop me?
This soul engineer was all tensed up as he activated both his defensive and offensive capabilities. The others were swiftly coming closer to him, and they only needed three seconds. He would only have to defend himself for three seconds before reinforcements would arrive!
Three seconds! Just three seconds!
This Class 6 soul engineer was very confident in himself. His enemy didn’t attack his team leader, who was a Class 7 soul engineer, and that meant he wasn’t confident of doing so. Since that was the case, his enemy shouldn’t be stronger than his team leader, or perhaps he was just a little stronger. With my defensive abilities, how can I not be able to hang on for three seconds?
His judgment was actually very accurate. In terms of soul power, Huo Yuhao’s standard was similar to that of his team leader. They were both Soul Sages – but could their strengths be the same as well?
Huo Yuhao had obliterated an eight-ringed evil soul master when he only had five rings. When he had just obtained his seventh ring, he managed to kill a hundred thousand year Evileye Tyrant. How could power such as that be measured purely with soul power?
A crack seemed to suddenly appear in midair. This crack wasn’t very obvious, and the Class 6 soul engineer could only see a sharp claw that seemed to appear out of nowhere, along with a dark golden shadow that carried a stifling sharpness, and flash by in front of him in the next moment.
He was still swinging his blades effortfully. However, he suddenly felt his body going cold, as if everything had become different. All the clouds and mountains seemed to freeze, and everything that he had been able to control could no longer be controlled.
This is…
He was stunned momentarily, and he realized in the next moment that he was falling from the sky, in freefall. It’s so dark! Why can’t I see anything anymore…
Yes, a sharp claw did come out from the sky – there was only one, and it was a dark gold, razor-sharp claw! Huo Yuhao’s Darkgolden Terrorclaw!
Frightening sharpness tore his enemy’s body apart in an instant – naturally, his enemy couldn’t control anything anymore.
Huo Yuhao’s Darkgolden Terrorclaw in his right hand had power comparable to a strike from a ten thousand year Darkgolden Terrorclaw Bear’s all-out attack, along with his increasing prowess. How could explosive power that came so quickly be something that a Soul Emperor, a Class 6 soul engineer, could resist? Even eight-ringed Soul Douluo would feel afraid when Huo Yuhao was near them, let alone soul engineers.
Huo Yuhao succeeded with one hit, and the dark gold light disappeared after a single flash. Terrifying soul rays and cannons condensed into a hurricane immediately erupted towards where Huo Yuhao had attacked from. However, he was already far from that location, and every explosion and attack didn’t affect him at all.
Instant Teleportation! The skill that belonged to his left leg bone. He had already used Instant Teleportation in the moment right after he made his attack, and Huo Yuhao didn’t even bother observing that Class 6 soul engineer that he had just attacked. What soul barrier, light blades, ten thousand year defensive soul skills – in the face of his Darkgolden Terrorclaw that had been infused with soul power and spiritual power, all of those meant nothing.
“He’s over there!” The remaining four soul engineers quickly found Huo Yuhao’s location with their oscillation detectors. However, Huo Yuhao was simply moving too quickly.
He rushed towards another Soul Emperor with a few explosive flashes before the four of them could surround him, and managed to break out in the end with Imitation.
Two Soul Sages and two Soul Emperors – those were his four remaining opponents.
Huo Yuhao turned and stared at a Class 7 soul engineer who had a piercing cannon on his shoulders as he was bolting forward.
In the next moment, all this Class 7 soul engineer could see was blinding purplish-golden light.
“Boom!” A crackling boom appeared in his head, and the three others looked on in utter astonishment as this Class 7 Soul Sage’s head suddenly exploded. Red and white parts splattered and flew in all directions – he didn’t even get to fire his piercing cannon before his body plummeted towards the ground like a falling rock.
This sudden change in circumstance shocked the other three, while at this very moment, Huo Yuhao collided into the Soul Emperor that he was targeting.