"Loyal to the Martial Soul Hall?"
Lin Xia silently mouthed those words, a faint trace of detachment and disdain flickering in his eyes.
He admitted that the Martial Soul Hall's existence played a positive role in maintaining order across the continent and was indeed grateful to the Nuoding City branch for awakening his Martial Soul back then.
But to completely tie himself to the Martial Soul Hall's chariot and become one of its loyal hounds?
That was absolutely impossible.
His true goal had always been to grow stronger through that unique ability to consume ores, and to explore the limits of power alongside his Larvitar, until the day he possessed absolute strength that could overlook all beings.
Joining the Martial Soul Hall, or even making use of its influence and resources in the future, was merely a matter of cooperation and convenience, a temporary shelter for himself and the Blacksmiths' Association before he matured.
Loyalty?
That was a commitment to his own path, not a sacrifice to any organization.
"Xia?"
A low, complicated voice pulled Lin Xia out of his thoughts.
He turned around and saw his teacher, Lou Gao, still standing where he was. His brows were tightly furrowed, and the usually ruddy, boisterous face now appeared somewhat pale and lost.
Lou Gao was unconsciously rubbing the hem of his craftsman's robe, still stained with oil, his gaze wandering toward the direction where the ghostly figure had vanished. His lips moved slightly, as if wanting to speak, yet no words came out. An indescribable, uneasy air surrounded him.
"Teacher, what's wrong?"
Lin Xia asked with concern, stepping closer.
He could clearly sense the turmoil in Lou Gao's heart, something far from the calm he showed on the surface.
Lou Gao let out a deep sigh, a sigh that carried six years of frustration, the confusion of sudden change, and a faint trace of unspeakable loss.
Raising his head, he looked at Lin Xia with a complicated expression.
"Sigh… it just feels… strange! Very strange!"
Lou Gao scratched his thick beard hard.
"I… I've been in this Gengxin City, fighting against that Meyers and his lackeys from the Martial Soul Hall for six whole years! Six years!"
"Openly and secretly — suppression, anger, vigilance… every single day, I was on edge, afraid they'd find an excuse to swallow the Association whole or smash it to pieces!"
"This suffocating rage… this bitterness, it's been choking me for so long I could barely breathe!"
He paused, his tone turning absurdly self-mocking.
"And now what? A single letter gets sent, the Pope gets furious, and suddenly a Titled Douluo is dispatched to 'deal with the matter severely'? Those arrogant bastards who've been trampling us all this time are about to be punished by their own people?"
"The Blacksmiths' Association is even to be placed under the Martial Soul Hall's protection now? This… this turnaround is way too fast! So fast that I… I can't even wrap my head around it!"
"It's like… like throwing a punch before it even lands, and the other guy suddenly falls down on his own, then says he wants to be your sworn brother? That just feels… damn weird!"
He slapped his forehead hard, as if trying to drive away the unreality of it all.
"I've lived this long, and I've never seen anything so… so ridiculous! To hate and guard against someone for six years, and suddenly they're on your side? It just doesn't sit right!"
Lin Xia listened quietly, nodding in understanding.
Lou Gao's reaction was genuine the inertia of long-standing hostility and oppression was not something that could be undone overnight.
"Teacher," Lin Xia said softly, "I understand how you feel. But if you think about it from another angle, this only proves our judgment was correct. What Meyers and his subordinates did was utterly disgraceful — completely against the will of the upper echelons of the Martial Soul Hall, at least that of the Pope herself. Our petition was not only for justice but also to prevent an even greater conflict from breaking out prematurely."
His tone grew more serious.
"Think about it — if Meyers had continued unchecked, his greed and cruelty would've only grown. And if he eventually tore his mask off, or the Association reached its limit and fought back, what do you think would've happened?"
"The Martial Soul Hall, in order to preserve its authority and the prestige of its bishops, might have chosen to suppress the Association, even knowing they were in the wrong."
"In that case, blood would've been spilled, the Association destroyed, and countless craftsmen would've suffered. That's the outcome we least wanted. Now, although it feels strange, this resolution came at the smallest cost and it's the best result we could hope for. At least the Association is safe, and the craftsmen can live in peace again."
Lou Gao listened silently, his calloused hand unconsciously brushing the cold surface of the stone table.
Lin Xia's words were like a bucket of cold water, washing away the restlessness in his heart.
He recalled the craftsmen who had been oppressed, the seized materials in the Association's warehouse, and Meyers' hateful face… Indeed, compared to those humiliations and the disaster that could have erupted, this feeling of awkwardness was nothing.
Lou Gao sighed once more, as if releasing the resentment of six years. The confusion and contradiction on his face slowly gave way to relief and weariness.
He shook his head and muttered, his voice deep and low:
"Forget it, forget it… You're right, kid. If it's a blessing, we'll take it. If it's a curse, we'll face it. As long as the Association's people can keep their jobs and stay safe, this old man's discomfort doesn't mean a damn thing!"
Lou Gao waved his hand, clearly unwilling to dwell on the matter any longer. He only wanted his chaotic thoughts to settle as soon as possible.
At that moment, Lin Xia keenly noticed the dark silver spatial soul tool ring on the ring finger of his left hand. A sharp glint flashed in his eyes as he suddenly thought of something and spoke up directly.
"Teacher, take a look at my storage ring."
Lou Gao subconsciously followed Lin Xia's gesture and looked over.
Lin Xia continued, "Teacher, think about it these past ten-plus days in the forging room, we've been racking our brains over those materials. Why is it that we just can't figure out the core driving mechanism of the soul-guided mecha?"
"Our forging techniques aren't the problem. The Thousand-Layer Vibrating Metal Hands are more than capable of handling the most precise metal components. Our understanding of soul power is also far beyond that of ordinary blacksmiths. So where exactly is the bottleneck?"
Lin Xia's question instantly pulled Lou Gao back into that field which both thrilled and tormented him.
Lou Gao frowned again and shook his head in frustration.
"Exactly! Metal fusion, structural design, power transmission… I dare say I've already touched the threshold of all of them, yet it's still… still missing that final breath!"
"When soul power is infused, it either dissipates, clashes, or becomes lifeless and stagnant. There's no feeling of it 'coming alive' at all! It's like… like it's missing a bridge that allows soul power and machinery to 'communicate' with each other…"
Lin Xia lightly tapped the surface of the ring, where faint, intricate, and profound silver patterns flickered in and out of view. His voice was clear and firm.
"Teacher, look at this, these special soul power patterns!"
"Patterns?"
Lou Gao froze, his gaze instantly locking onto Lin Xia's ring.
Those dense, spiderweb-like lines that shimmered faintly, he had seen them countless times before. Yet he had never once connected them to the grand concept of the mecha.
Now that Lin Xia had pointed it out, it was as if a bolt of lightning split through the fog!
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