Had Ray possessed a stronger martial soul, Wilheim might never have chosen such a risky path. But Silverfalls Vine truly had little room for growth. The fact that his son had even cultivated it to the tenth rank was already a miracle in itself.
Before Ray could reply, the Spirit Master spoke again, his voice drawing their attention. "I should warn you both. While it is possible to obtain a hundred-year spirit soul through random selection, it is equally possible to obtain a defective spirit soul."
Wilheim froze. "Defective?" he asked in disbelief. "How can a spirit soul be defective?"
The Spirit Master replied indifferently, as if explaining a common inconvenience. "The manufacturing of spirit souls is not guaranteed to succeed every time. Occasionally, defects appear. These defective spirit souls are still costly to produce and can still be fused with, so they are included in the random pool. Otherwise, if we discarded all defective products, the losses would outweigh the profits. Thirty thousand Federation Coins is clearly a significant sum for you. You should think carefully before deciding."
Wilheim looked down at Ray once more.
The lifelessness in his son's eyes stabbed into his heart. For three years, that child had endured endless hardship, hammering metal day after day, all for this single goal. And yet, even now, the road ahead remained cruelly blocked.
"Son," Wilheim said hoarsely, unable to bear it any longer, "how about we go home first? Dad will think of a way. If there's really no other option, we'll borrow some money and try to gather seventy thousand…"
Ray shook his head immediately. "Dad, you and Mom already exhaust yourselves every day for me." His voice was steady, far steadier than a nine-year-old's should have been. "And my martial soul is only Silverfalls Vine anyway. I'll just try my luck. If the heavens care about me, then maybe I'll get something decent."
Ever since his martial soul awakened, his appetite had increased dramatically. Vivienne, despite her small frame, also ate far more than an ordinary child. Living on a single salary was already a heavy burden for the family.
Ray knew this better than anyone. His parents gave all the good food to him and Vivienne, while they themselves rarely touched meat.
Children from poor families learned responsibility early.
In Ray's heart, becoming a powerful Soul Master was important, but it could never outweigh his parents' exhaustion or Vivienne's quiet dependence on him. If becoming strong required his family to suffer even more, then he would rather endure the risk himself.
When the Spirit Master heard his words, the impatience on his face softened slightly. "You're a thoughtful child," he said quietly, almost to himself.
Wilheim let out a long sigh, filled with bitterness. "It's all because Dad is useless."
Ray tightened his grip on his father's hand before turning back to the Spirit Master. "Lord Spirit Master, may I trouble you to take me to select a random spirit soul?" As he spoke, he carefully took out the thirty thousand Federation Coins he had saved over countless days of labor.
The Spirit Master nodded. "You're sensible. Much better than my own troublesome kid." He paused briefly, then added, "Normally, there's a fee for the spiritual power examination, but I'll exempt you from it."
Ray stared at him for a moment before bowing deeply. "Thank you. I'm truly grateful."
The Spirit Master chuckled lightly and patted Ray's head. "Follow me. Your father will wait here. Ordinary people aren't permitted to observe the world of Soul Masters."
The room they entered looked nothing like the simple exterior of the Spirit Tower. Inside, it was filled with advanced technological equipment, arranged with precise order and cold efficiency.
The Spirit Master gestured for Ray to sit on a metal chair before asking, "Do you know why we test spiritual power?"
Ray shook his head, honestly confused.
"This is your first time choosing a spirit soul," the Spirit Master explained. "Once you fuse with one, you'll become a true Soul Master. The Spirit Tower will record your spiritual power level, the type and rank of spirit soul you obtain, and other relevant data. These records will follow you when you attend an intermediate academy."
Ray's eyes widened. "Lord Spirit Master, spiritual power has ranks, too? Like soul power? Is it important?"
"For most ordinary Soul Masters, spiritual power isn't especially important," the Spirit Master replied. "It has its own ranking system, separate from soul power. However, for high-level Soul Masters, spiritual power becomes extremely significant. Powerful spirit souls require equally powerful spiritual power to fuse with."
He continued calmly, "Before spirit souls existed, spiritual power had no formal classification. It was only after spirit souls appeared that people realized fusing with them demanded far more spiritual strength than fusing with traditional soul rings. After long periods of research, a ranking system was established and finalized roughly two thousand years ago."
Curiosity filled Ray's eyes. "Then how many levels are there?"
"From lowest to highest," the Spirit Master said, "they are Spirit Origin, Spirit Connection, Spirit Sea, Spirit Abyss, Spirit Domain, and the legendary Divine Origin. Everyone begins at Spirit Origin when they are born. It represents the starting point of all spiritual development. You should currently be at this level. As for the others, you'll learn about them later in school."
With that, he moved to begin the test. "Alright. Let's see how strong your Spirit Origin is."
A metal helmet descended onto Ray's head. Several mechanical arms extended and gently locked it in place.
"Relax," the Spirit Master instructed. "You might feel dizzy for a moment. That's normal."
"Yes," Ray replied, steadying his breathing.
A faint hum filled the air as the helmet emitted a soft white glow. The Spirit Master turned to the screen beside him, watching as streams of data rapidly appeared.
The numbers climbed sharply at first, then gradually slowed, finally stabilizing.
When the Spirit Master saw the final value displayed on the screen, his eyes widened in genuine astonishment.
The fluctuating numbers on the screen slowed, wavered briefly, and then finally settled into a stable range. With a practiced motion, the Spirit Master shut down the apparatus and lifted the metal helmet from Ray's head.
"It's done."
Ray swayed slightly in the chair, a wave of dizziness washing over him. During the test, his consciousness had once again brushed against that indistinct, golden world he had glimpsed before, the same strange realm where spirit souls seemed to overlap and fuse.
This time, the vision had felt closer, clearer. He had strained to see more, to understand what lay beyond that veil, but just as the image sharpened, the machine powered down and the sensation vanished like mist at sunrise.