Chapter 520: I Am Not Tang San, and You Are Not from Canghui Academy
Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy.
The sky was pale white, cloudless.
At the academy's entrance, a young man in his twenties followed a female soul master from the Spirit Transmission Tower into the campus.
The young man wore a simple gray robe. His flat nose, small eyes, and messy yellow tinted hair gave him a plain appearance, making him seem unremarkable among soul engineers.
The slender youth lifted his head, his gaze sweeping across the towering soul tool buildings around him. Amazement flashed across his face.
"No wonder this is the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy," he murmured.
"The soul tool buildings inside are even more impressive than I imagined.
They even incorporate rare metals into their structures.
If only I could study here..."
The female soul master beside him chuckled.
"Gao Dalou, don't worry," she reassured him.
"With your talent, as long as you pass today's test, you'll be able to enroll in the Mingde Hall.
Once you become a soul engineer of Mingde Hall, your concerns about rare metals will be over.
I'm sure the academy will allocate a batch of rare metals just for you."
Gao Dalou hesitated, concern evident in his expression.
"If the test is too difficult, I might fail," he admitted.
"I don't want to disappoint you."
The female soul master comforted him,
"Don't worry. The test has its challenges, but I believe in you."
Internally, she was thrilled
After all, Gao Dalou was someone Tower Master Huo personally named a few days ago.
Now that she had found him and convinced him to enter the academy,
As long as he passed the test, he would join Mingde Hall and likely become part of the Spirit Transmission Tower in the future.
No matter what, both the academy and the tower would reward her for this achievement.
After all, both institutions generously rewarded contributions.
But Gao Dalou still looked troubled.
Truthfully, he had no resistance to joining Mingde Hall.
If he could study there and access an abundance of rare metals, he would gladly serve them.
Mingde Hall was the holy land for soul engineers, after all.
His only concern was that he was self taught.
He was what some would call a "wild practitioner"
Someone who had never attended a formal soul engineering academy.
His only teacher was his father, the sole inheritor of the Gao family's soul engineering techniques.
But before his father could pass down all their skills, he was murdered
His organs ripped out.
Gao Dalou had been forced to learn on his own, relying on the books his father left behind.
Through sheer effort, he barely reached the level of a Rank 5 Soul Engineer.
Recently, in search of rare metals, he participated in Mingdu's underground soul engineering tournament
But his performance was mediocre, which shook his confidence.
So he was uncertain if he could pass the Sun Moon Royal Academy's formal exam.
After all, this was the top soul engineering academy
The exam had to be far harder than the underground tournaments, right?
Soon, under the female soul master's guidance, he arrived at a laboratory.
Inside, he saw a young man in black robes, sitting on a chair, reading a book.
The moment Gao Dalou saw his face, his eyes widened in shock.
Even his voice trembled.
"Huo Yuhao?! Why are you here?!"
As a citizen of the Sun Moon Empire, he immediately recognized Huo Yuhao.
After all, he had watched the replays of Huo Yuhao's championship victories and interviews.
Huo Yuhao had won two consecutive championships, bringing glory to the Sun Moon Empire
Becoming a hero in the eyes of its people.
Sun Moon citizens idolized him, praising him endlessly.
It was common to hear parents scolding their children with:
"Look at Huo Yuhao! Why can't you be more like him?!"
The Empire had even decided to revise textbooks to promote Huo Yuhao's achievements,
Depicting him as a model immigrant who had embraced the Sun Moon Empire.
Huo Yuhao looked up, feigning confusion.
"Hmm?" he asked with a puzzled expression.
"Am I not supposed to be here?"
Gao Dalou panicked, frantically waving his hands.
"No, no, that's not what I meant!"
"I… I just got nervous and misspoke!
I I apologize! It's my mistake!"
Huo Yuhao smiled, unfazed.
He didn't mind Gao Dalou's slip of the tongue
After all, he wasn't as petty as a certain Tang someone.
He said,
"Gao Dalou, welcome to the exam.
I am your examiner.
The test is simple
Craft a Rank 5 Soul Tool."
As he spoke, he stood up, then pulled a large pile of rare metals from his storage soul tool, placing them onto the workbench with a loud thud.
"Once you successfully craft the soul tool,
All the extra rare metals on the table will be yours."
Gao Dalou's eyes lit up, excitement flashing across his face.
Even his breathing became ragged.
"Really?!"
"As long as I successfully craft a Rank 5 Soul Tool,
All the leftover rare metals are mine?"
"Of course."
Huo Yuhao grinned generously.
"I keep my word."
He understood Gao Dalou's personality
In the original timeline, Gao Dalou had been greedy, stingy, and fond of alcohol.
That was how the original Huo Yuhao recruited him into Tang Sect.
But now?
He had no intention of letting him join Tang Sect.
Instead, he would recruit him into the Sun Moon Royal Academy and the Spirit Transmission Tower.
After all, Gao Dalou had great potential as a soul engineer.
He also possessed the family heirloom, the Blood Condensation Carving Knife
One of the top ranked engraving knives among soul engineers.
Its only flaw was that it could only be wielded by someone of Gao family blood.
In the original story, Gao Dalou seemed to be the last surviving member of his bloodline.
That meant he alone could use it.
Of course, if Huo Yuhao asked Yi Lao, he could remove that restriction
Allowing anyone to use it.
But he wouldn't do that.
Because despite Gao Dalou's flaws, he wasn't a bad person.
And more importantly
They had no conflict of interest.
If he took Gao Dalou's family heirloom,
Wouldn't that mean
He had become another Tang San?
And that would make Gao Dalou…
A Canghui Academy student?
Ridiculous.
Huo Yuhao was many things
But he was not Tang San.
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