When Xu Tianxi finished speaking, the classroom fell into dead silence. A storm churned in Lin Jiayi's heart, and his face drained of color. After a few stunned seconds, he finally asked:
"Student Xu Tianxi, could you elaborate?"
Good kid, Lin thought. No wonder the Headmaster insisted he lecture in person. He opens his mouth and throws out a bomb like that. Any other teacher might've slapped him with a charge of heresy.
Xu Tianxi thought for a moment, then said:
"Let me use myself as an example. I'm a Spirit Master specializing in the spiritual attribute. My innate abilities aren't enough to deal with all combat scenarios—but with the help of soul tools, my chances improve dramatically."
"For example, I can't fly, but aerial-type soul tools let me engage in aerial combat and prevent fleeing enemies from escaping."
"Or suppose I face a powerful enemy I can't defeat up close. As long as I keep my distance and fire off a few fixed-mounted soul cannon shells, the battle becomes much easier."
"Of course, that's only the most basic integration between Spirit Master abilities and soul tools. Much deeper fusion is possible."
Lin Jiayi nodded slightly and asked:
"But from what you've said, it seems that your enemies can be handled entirely with fixed-mounted soul cannons and other tools. Doesn't that diminish the value of spirit abilities?"
"There's a general consensus that before reaching the Spirit Sage rank, soul tools tend to output stronger attacks than soul skills, even when consuming the same amount of spirit power."
Xu Tianxi shook his head and raised two fingers.
"I have two responses to that."
"First, from a Spirit Master's perspective, my spirit abilities are more compatible with my body. They're instinctive and easier to use. And there are spirit abilities soul tools still can't replicate—such as buff-type and domain-type skills."
"Second, using powerful soul tools doesn't conflict with cultivating my martial soul or spirit power. In fact, soul tools run on spirit power. The stronger your body and the more powerful your soul power, the stronger the soul tools you can wield. That's universally accepted."
"Actually, Director Lin, I think you'd agree—if the average Sun Moon Empire soul engineer had physical stats comparable to Spirit Masters from the three nations of the original Douluo Continent, our overall combat power would skyrocket. We could even begin using high-level soul tools across ranks."
He raised a fist with a grin. "Nobody wants to be the guy who's exhausted after using a soul tool twice, right? Being stronger always helps."
The students nodded emphatically. Lin Jiayi furrowed his brows, unable to argue. On the rooftop, Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen watched with shining eyes.
"Hahaha! That's the kind of guy I approve of!" Xiao Hongchen whispered with a grin. "He really shut that old-timer Lin up! Beautiful stuff!"
He was a sucker for prodigies who crushed the old guard. Watching it unfold was just too satisfying.
Meng Hongchen leaned closer to the window, watching Xu Tianxi speak confidently. Her bright eyes crinkled slightly. Little Xu's pretty handsome. Definitely easier on the eyes than Xiao.
Having backed Lin Jiayi into silence, Xu Tianxi went on:
"I mentioned earlier that my current use of soul tools is still on a basic level. There are deeper forms of integration—but talking about them in the abstract might be hard to follow. Conveniently, I recently had a knowledge exchange with fifth-year senior Meng Hongchen, and I'd like to use her as an example."
"Oooh~?"
The class erupted in teasing and hoots. Some students gave Xu Tianxi thumbs-up behind his back.
He just shut down Director Lin, and now he's chatting up Meng Hongchen—the top beauty on campus? Bro's a legend.
And with that face? Maybe Meng actually likes him!
Outside the window, Xiao Hongchen's grin froze. He whipped his head around to look at his sister, eyes narrowing.
"Meng, when did you talk to him about this? I don't remember."
Meng Hongchen blinked innocently. "I think when you were teaching him about soul tools, he asked what kinds we were interested in. I just casually mentioned something about melee-type soul tools. Maybe that's what he means?"
"…Good." Xiao Hongchen let out a relieved sigh.
Back in the classroom, Xu Tianxi ignored the noise and calmly continued:
"She mentioned that among melee-type soul tools, the most valuable are armor-type soul tools, which can be crafted to cover vital areas of the body. These are tailored to suit each soul engineer's martial soul and combat style, and they greatly enhance personal combat strength."
"In my opinion, these are extremely useful for every Spirit Master."
"Allow me to offer another example. Let's go back 10,000 years, when a powerful faction named Spirit Hall overshadowed the Heaven Dou and Star Luo Empires. Some of you may have heard of them through the legends of Tang San, the Sea God."
"I won't bore you with a history lecture—just the important bits. It's said that in that era, the Sea God, Angel God, and Rakshasa God all achieved godhood after reaching rank 100. Each of their six body parts contained high-quality spirit bones, which were fused together with divine power into true god-tier equipment, massively enhancing their combat strength."
"But that process wasn't unique to gods. Historical records suggest that if a Spirit Master absorbed enough spirit bones, they could fuse them into a spirit bone armor—a set that granted overwhelming power. Though extremely rare, this was possible."
"Unfortunately, that knowledge didn't spread—because Shrek Academy and Tang Sect, the victors of the war, hoarded all the intelligence after they dismantled Spirit Hall. Even if they didn't destroy it, they locked it away, denying others the opportunity to learn."
Everyone—students and the Hongchen siblings alike—immediately understood.
So it's Shrek's fault!
And Spirit Hall—losing two gods to one—how disappointing!
"Of course, collecting six spirit bones is near-impossible. But what if we used soul tools to simulate the same result? We already have advanced soul tools based on spirit bones. Why not go further and develop close-fitting soul armor that mimics—or even surpasses—spirit bone armor?"
"From the perspective of individual power, this is a research direction with massive potential. A breakthrough here would be revolutionary."
Xu Tianxi's voice rang out clearly, deep and confident, full of passion and conviction. His energy compelled listeners to think—and to believe.
Lin Jiayi sat frozen, unable to respond. This kid is terrifying. He's referencing ancient divine equipment and merging it with modern soul armor theory like it's nothing.
If he hadn't brought it up, I wouldn't even know spirit bone armor or true divine gear were real.
No more history debates with him. He probably knows more than I do. No wonder the rumors say he's from one of the top hidden sects of the old Three Nations.
Seeing Lin Jiayi completely stunned, Xu Tianxi smiled and raised one finger, preparing to drop another bombshell.
"What I just mentioned is what I consider an advanced form of fusion—between soul tools and the body. But the ultimate fusion, in my view, is between soul tools and the martial soul itself."
"These past two days, I discussed this with Xiao Hongchen, and I came to a conclusion. It seems simple, but somehow, everyone overlooks it."
Lin Jiayi leaned forward instinctively. "What conclusion?"
Xu Tianxi smiled, pointing to his eyes:
"Every soul engineer is born with one soul tool—their martial soul."
"This is the greatest gift Heaven gives us. It's the key to our potential."
"We often complain that some soul tools feel awkward or hard to use. But we never say that about our martial soul."
"So why not create a soul tool designed to fuse perfectly with our martial soul? A life-bound soul tool, one that grows with us and evolves with our very being. Wouldn't that be the most powerful research direction of all?"
BOOM!
Xu Tianxi's words hit Lin Jiayi like a thunderclap. His vision went dark for a moment, and he nearly staggered.
"Life-bound soul tool… That was a theory Grandmaster Kong once proposed… Where did this kid come from? He's a born genius…"