After briefly offering comfort to Xiao Hongchen—whose dreams were shattered and who was currently lying on the ground like a corpse—Huo Yuhao didn't delay. He continued dismantling the soul-powered armor from Meng Hongchen's body.
As the armor pieces were removed one by one, the young girl's figure was naturally revealed.
For the sake of comfort and to ensure a proper fit with the armor, Meng Hongchen had to wear a bodysuit for the testing. Naturally, her curvaceous and graceful figure fell right into Huo Yuhao's line of sight.
Huo Yuhao kept his eyes fixed forward, though he couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
He realized that they all seemed to enjoy using the same tactic to tempt him; it was truly hard to describe.
Taking out a white lab coat he had brought from the laboratory, Huo Yuhao draped it over Miss Meng. She didn't stand on ceremony, stepping forward slightly to lean into Huo Yuhao's embrace.
"Oh dear, Yuhao has seen everything now. You'll take responsibility for me, won't you?"
Miss Meng spoke softly while expertly finding a comfortable position in Huo Yuhao's arms.
"Sister Meng... I'm still small..."
"In a little while, it'll be about right! And besides—" Meng Hongchen paused for a moment, took a quick glance, and then said seriously: "It's not small at all, okay!"
Huo Yuhao: ???
Is age calculated that way?! Did something strange get mixed in there? Also, that last part was about age, right?! It has to be age, right?!
"I..." Huo Yuhao felt powerless to complain. After thinking it over, he said, "Sister Meng, why are you in such a rush? I'm not going to run away..."
"Who knows! Doesn't that Ju Zi have feelings for you? If you're abducted by that woman, where am I supposed to go to complain?"
Meng Hongchen spoke without any hesitation.
Enduring in silence and acting like a "good girl" companion? She wouldn't do that. Meng Hongchen knew well that "being sensible" wasn't necessarily a good label to have!
Only by being appropriately willful and expressing one's dissatisfaction can one gain more!
Besides, a faint sixth sense told her that Ju Zi wouldn't be the only rival fighting her for Yuhao in the future. She had to strike first!
"I..." Huo Yuhao suddenly felt guilty.
Indeed, Meng Hongchen only knew about Ju Zi. As the target of everyone's "siege," how could he not know how many people were eyeing him?
Sister Nana, Sister Skydream, the Ice Emperor, Ling Luochen, Ju Zi, and the Meng Hongchen in front of him...
Plus, there was a high probability that Qiu'er and Dong'er would join the fray later...
The debts were piling up, leading Huo Yuhao—who originally wanted to handle things properly—to simply "let it be."
He was human, not a god... actually, even a god couldn't handle such complex relationships! His choice was to take things one step at a time, hoping that when he was finally torn into four or five pieces, he'd at least be missing one fewer chunk...
"Heh, scumbag."
Leaning in his arms, Miss Meng gave a soft huff, voicing his true nature.
Huo Yuhao's body stiffened slightly. He wanted to speak, but Meng Hongchen slowly sat up, tightened the lab coat around her, and stood.
"As punishment, I want to eat grilled fish for dinner tonight!"
"...Eh?" Huo Yuhao blinked, then reacted quickly. "Alright."
The corners of Meng Hongchen's mouth curled up, a smile of "mission accomplished" appearing in her ice-blue eyes.
How do you handle someone? It's simple: trigger their guilt, then make a request. At that moment, as long as it isn't excessive, the other party will likely not refuse most of your demands.
But be careful: you must let them make up for that guilt in a timely manner, then fill that void with yourself, thereby occupying their heart bit by bit...
Of course, to use this move, the other party must at least have a favorable impression of you, and they can't have "shamelessness" as a character trait, or it won't work.
Being a "simp" is never the way!
...
On a high platform, two figures were silently watching the three youths below.
"Mecha... interesting. Hall Master Jing, your grandson has quite the talent for imagination as well."
Kong Deming's gaze was calm, and his voice lacked inflection, making it impossible to tell if he was truly offering congratulations or thinking of something else.
"He has imagination, but unfortunately it's a bit too far-fetched. The feasibility is low."
Jing Hongchen dismissed his grandson without mercy, appearing to have no faith in Xiao Hongchen whatsoever.
Kong Deming paused briefly before speaking calmly:
"This envisioned mecha is similar to the humanoid soul tool beneath the Illustrious Virtue Hall—the one that pooled the lifeblood of nearly all our Sun Moon Empire's Class 9 soul tool engineers over the last few decades. Both are stuck on materials.
"Acquired Spiritual Metals nourished by soul power have too much personal character; they simply aren't suitable for it. Natural Spiritual Metals, on the other hand, are too rare—there simply isn't enough.
"Although the humanoid soul tool is usable, it lacks universality. Even if its development is considered a success, it's also a failure!
"But now, I suddenly feel we could change our approach."
"Change our approach?" Jing Hongchen was slightly puzzled.
"Yes. Look at what our student has researched now. Isn't that an excellent individual combat soul tool?
"Miniaturized, lightweight, and... mass-producible. It meets almost every requirement for war."
Kong Deming gave his evaluation. Things similar to mechas or humanoid soul tools hadn't gone unresearched, but Huo Yuhao was the only one to truly produce a result.
After a silence, Kong Deming spoke:
"You should have received the blueprints that child sent over, right?"
Jing Hongchen's expression shifted slightly as he nodded.
"This child is smart and has no intention of hiding things from us. Grant him access to all metals in the Illustrious Virtue Hall up to Class 8. Beyond that, give the child the data on that humanoid soul tool as well."
"Elder Kong! Isn't... isn't this a bit too early?" Jing Hongchen's expression was a mix of shock and joy.
"Too early? No, it's too slow! If I weren't afraid of damaging the boy's foundation, I would honestly want to pump him full of medicine until he reached Soul Saint!
"A child in his teens with a cultivation of only Level 27 has made achievements no less than any Class 9 soul tool engineer! Compared to him, we are all mere mediocrities!
"The tree that stands out from the forest will be destroyed by the wind. War is not far off; within ten years, there will certainly be a battle between our Sun Moon and the Three Douluo Empires. But in ten years, this child likely won't have reached Titled Douluo.
"At that time, he will certainly be targeted. If his cultivation isn't enough, he will only have soul tools to protect himself.
"Besides, in the future... all of this will be inherited by him. I am merely handing everything over to him ahead of schedule."
Kong Deming's gaze was indifferent, as if all of this were perfectly natural.