Chapter 161: Giving False Hope

Chapter 161: Giving False Hope

"First Soul Skill, Shockwave."

As Wang Si let out a low shout, the yellow soul ring that encircled his body lit up with a radiant glow.

Simultaneously, Wang Si's powerful punch landed squarely on Mu Ye's slightly protruding stomach.

Feeling the force behind Wang Si's punch, Mu Ye clicked his tongue in appreciation.

"That's a pretty powerful amplifying skill. Someone with the same bodily strength as you would be in a world of pain after taking that punch.

If their body strength is inferior to yours, there's a good chance your punch would severely injure them.

Also... Shockwave is a type of armor-piercing true damage attribute, so it won't lose its effect just because your opponent has thick armor."

Mu Ye patted his stomach and offered his assessment.

Regarding this soul skill, Wang Si remained silent. 'Shockwave' used to be one of his soul bone skills, and he never expected it to become his soul skill now. That seemingly impressive soul spirit turned out to be rather underwhelming.

"What's wrong? You're not happy with this soul skill of yours?"

Seeing Wang Si's glum expression, Mu Ye couldn't help but chuckle softly before reaching out and patting Wang Si's right arm.

"That soul spirit of yours, which couldn't be summoned due to insufficient nutrition, should be able to come out now, right?

I can sense an incredibly fierce power within you. Let it out and show me what it can do."

Hearing Mu Ye's words, Wang Si nodded and raised his right hand. Golden scales quickly covered his arm.

Once the golden scales enveloped his arm, his right hand transformed into sharp, golden dragon claws.

Mu Ye straightened his chest, signaling to Wang Si that he could launch his attack.

Without hesitation, Wang Si lifted his golden right claw and swiped upwards.

Then... just as he was about to exert force, his right hand froze in place.

Mu Ye stared at Wang Si's descending right hand, taken aback. The golden dragon claw had sunk into his skin.

Had his defense been breached? Although it had stopped moving and couldn't inflict further damage, the golden dragon claw had indeed caused him a slight injury.

Picking up Wang Si's right hand, Mu Ye found three small indentations on his stomach, undoubtedly left by Wang Si's claw.

However, the golden right claw consumed a significant amount of soul power, and soon, Wang Si's meager soul power reserves were depleted.

"That claw of yours is impressive. It almost broke through my defense. With your current physical attributes, I reckon you could successfully injure even a Soul Master in their twenties."

Although the duration was brief, it was still remarkable. Wang Si lightly nodded in agreement with Mu Ye's assessment.

The golden dragon claw was indeed powerful, although it consumed a lot of soul power, but that was relative to his soul power being at the tenth level.

As long as he increased his soul power level a bit more, the golden dragon claw would become a regular skill.

Looking at Wang Si's dull expression, Mu Ye's initially pleasant mood soured a little.

Just as he wondered if Wang Si was facing some kind of trouble, Zhen Hua walked up and patted Wang Si's shoulder.

"Wang Si, do you feel that the atmosphere at the Forging Master Association is too oppressive? All day long, it's either forging or physical training, with no fun at all?"

Hearing Zhen Hua's words, Mu Ye turned his head in surprise and looked at him, then at Wang Si with a sudden realization.

Seeing Wang Si's eyes flicker, he instantly understood the reason for his reaction: Wang Si found the environment at the Forging Master Association headquarters too stifling!

Mu Ye sighed helplessly, realizing that their expectations of Wang Si might indeed be a bit too high.

It seemed... they were demanding too much from a six-year-old child.

At this age, he should be happily playing with other children his age, making friends, and perhaps even having a little crush on some girls.

Zhen Hua asked expectantly.

Wang Si hesitated, but ultimately shook his head.

"I understand that I am different from my peers, so I don't want to have the same childhood as them. The current arrangement suits me just fine."

Wang Si's response caused Zhen Hua to nod, but he soon broke into a smile.

"Your talent is indeed extraordinary, but we certainly won't keep you cooped up in the Forging Master Association forever.

How about this, I'll give you a small goal. If you can successfully complete the thousand... spirit-forging by the time you're twelve years old, I'll allow you to go out and gain experience in the outside world.

Even though you're a genius, you shouldn't deviate too much from your peers."

Initially, Zhen Hua had wanted to say a thousand forgings, but considering Wang Si's current ability to casually perform a hundred forgings, a thousand seemed more a matter of time for him.

After stating his demand, Zhen Hua turned to Makino, hoping he would also make some requests.

Meeting Zhen Hua's gaze and sensing Wang Si's expectant look, Makino understood.

They were dangling a carrot in front of Wang Si, as the oppressive environment at the Forging Master Association headquarters had dampened his desire to improve.

They needed to give Wang Si some motivation to fuel his drive for advancement.

Since Zhen Hua had set the bar high with his "spirit-forging by twelve" condition, Makino saw no issue with making a slightly excessive demand as well.

"Ahem, my request is not high either. As long as you can reach the thirtieth level of soul power by the time you're twelve years old, you can leave the Forging Master Association and venture out."

Makino said seriously.

Contrary to his expectations, the imagined look of delight on Wang Si's face did not materialize, and the room fell into a momentary silence.

Unwilling to let Makino indulge in his wild fantasies, Zhen Hua offered a friendly reminder.

"He has to spend half a day forging every day. Asking him to reach level thirty by the time he's twelve... what are you thinking? That's too much! Lower your expectations a bit!"

Was his request too much? Makino was perplexed. With an innate soul power of level eight and all sorts of heavenly resources at his disposal, shouldn't he be able to reach level thirty by the time he's twelve?

However, meeting Zhen Hua's gaze, Makino realized that his demand might indeed be a tad excessive.

"Alright, fine. Forget about reaching level thirty by twelve. As long as you can get to level twenty-five by the time you're twelve, you can go out and gain experience."

This revised request still didn't sit well with Zhen Hua, but Makino glared back without hesitation.

"The kid isn't going to be a mere forger in the future; he's destined to become a powerful Soul Master!

Zhen Hua, you can't expect him to be like you, panting and wheezing after casually performing a few sky forgings."

Hearing Makino's words, Zhen Hua's eyes widened in anger.

"What did you say? What are you saying? Do you think sky forging is easy? Do you think enduring heavenly tribulation is a walk in the park?

Don't you forget, who's been maintaining your red mecha all this time!

And who's been providing you with the metals you need for your sky forgings..."

For some reason, the two men started arguing.

Although they bickered, they seemed to tacitly agree on the conditions they had set for Wang Si, not giving him any opportunity to refute.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end