Douluo Continent, Huo Yuhao, the villain from a parallel world

It wasn't tall, and its gray-white exterior wasn't even as impressive as the surrounding school buildings, but when Huo Yuhao looked at this building, a barely perceptible glint flashed in his eyes.

He knew very well that this seemingly ordinary building was the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy, and could even be said to be the foundation of the entire Sun Moon Empire.

Mingde Hall is the most prestigious research center for soul tools in the entire Douluo Continent.

Most of the advanced soul tools on the Douluo Continent that were capable of changing the course of history were born in this unassuming gray building.

In his world, Huo Yuhao, as a top-tier Soul Master, naturally joined the Mingde Hall and even presided over the research and development of many important Soul Tools.

Returning to this familiar place, he couldn't help but feel a slight ripple in his heart.

Xuan Ziwen stopped in front of the building, turned to look at Huo Yuhao, and asked, "Do you know what this place is?"

Even if Huo Yuhao knew, he could only say he didn't know, and he shook his head.

Chapter 53 Kong Deming (Please continue reading!)

"This is Mingde Hall." Xuan Ziwen's voice unconsciously lowered a few decibels, his tone carrying a heartfelt solemnity.

"The person I'm taking you to see is a level nine Soul Master, who is also my teacher, named Kong Deming."

Huo Yuhao showed a perfectly timed expression of surprise.

Seeing his expression, Xuan Ziwen sighed, his tone a mixture of relief and self-deprecation: "To be honest, when I took you on as my apprentice, I was confident that I could teach you well."

"But the talent you've shown during this time has made even an eighth-level Soul Master feel inadequate."

"To be honest, given your level, what I'm about to teach you doesn't seem to be of much help to you."

He paused, looking at Huo Yuhao earnestly, "From now on, you will study under my teacher."

"Although the teacher no longer personally teaches students and is focused on breaking through the threshold of the tenth level Soul Master, I believe that after seeing your talent, he will definitely be willing to teach you."

"Teacher, you don't have to do this," Huo Yuhao said, but Xuan Ziwen interrupted him by waving his hand.

"No need to say more, my mind is made up." Xuan Ziwen's tone left no room for negotiation.

Huo Yuhao didn't say anything more, but sighed softly in his heart.

For him, it doesn't really matter who he learns from. If he really reveals all his cards, then it's uncertain who will be teaching whom.

Xuan Ziwen said no more and led Huo Yuhao toward the main entrance of the gray building.

From the moment they stepped through the gate, the two passed through several checkpoints.

Some checkpoints are guarded by fully armed Soul Masters who verify identity badges before allowing passage; others are entirely composed of Soul Guidance Devices, with layers of metal gates, light scans, and Soul Power fluctuation detection.

There's even a checkpoint that automatically records each person's soul power characteristics upon passing through.

The importance of Mingde Hall is self-evident, and the protective measures here are naturally taken to the extreme.

After passing through the last gate, the space suddenly opened up, revealing a huge circular hall.

Twenty elevators, each made of cold metal and shimmering with a faint soul-guided light, were arranged in an arc around the hall. Each elevator could accommodate more than ten people at the same time.

The cold light of the metal and the soul-guided lights on the dome complement each other, enveloping the entire space in a cold and solemn atmosphere.

Xuan Ziwen led Huo Yuhao into one of the elevators, took out his identity badge from his pocket, and gently swiped it across a soul guide identification device next to him.

Then he raised his hand and grasped the thick metal pillar in the center of the elevator, slowly channeling his soul power into it. The elevator trembled slightly and began to descend slowly.

The elevator was completely sealed off, with no view of the outside world except for a small white soul-guided lamp overhead that provided some light.

Time ticked by, and Huo Yuhao secretly calculated the descent depth. After nearly two minutes, the elevator slowly came to a stop.

Based on their descent speed, they must have already descended at least 100 meters underground.

The metal door slid open silently, and Xuan Ziwen stepped out first.

What appeared before my eyes was a world of pure metal.

After walking out of the short passageway, the view suddenly opened up dramatically, and the scene that unfolded before Huo Yuhao was enough to leave any first-time visitor speechless with awe.

This is an extremely large underground hall, which seems to have no end in sight.

The dome, twenty meters high, extends into the distance in an arc shape and is entirely covered in metal, gleaming with a cold, silvery-gray luster under the illumination of countless soul-guiding lights.

Countless lab tables were neatly arranged, stretching endlessly into the distance; there were at least fifty in just one horizontal row.

Each experimental table was enormous, measuring five meters long and three meters wide. The tabletops were made of matte silver-white metal and were covered with various soul tool parts and precision engraving knives.

Behind most of the lab tables, people were busy at work; some were engrossed in their work alone, while others were discussing in hushed tones in small groups.

The air was filled with a strong metallic smell, mixed with the low hum unique to the operation of the soul tool and the soft sound of the carving knife cutting through the metal surface.

These sounds intertwine to form the unique background noise of this underground base.

Xuan Ziwen led Huo Yuhao to a small area near the entrance that was not under surveillance, and lowered his voice to explain, "Starting from this line under our feet, the entire area is under strict surveillance, including sound monitoring."

"This is Mingde Hall's main soul tool production base. I don't know the exact area, but it is at least half the size of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy on the ground."

"There are a total of 5,000 experimental tables here. You can see those parts that are hidden in the darkness in the distance. No one has moved in yet. There are about one-third of the spaces available at the moment."

“Those sitting here are not only the elites of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy and Mingde Hall, but it can be said that the strongest soul masters in the entire Sun Moon Empire have gathered here.”

As he spoke, he took a badge from his pocket and pinned it to his chest.

The design of that badge was completely different from the Soul Master badges commonly seen in the outside world.

With the sun and moon as the base and stars suspended in the air, the eight stars represent the identity of an eighth-level Soul Master.

"Some of the students here are interns from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy. They can only stay here for a short period of time. After accumulating enough practical experience, they will need to go out for further studies."

“In Mingde Hall, research on soul guide devices is usually carried out in small groups. The number of people in each group varies, but there are generally no fewer than five experimental tables.”

"In addition to this public research area, Mingde Hall also has some exclusive secret laboratories. To have your own independent laboratory here, you must be at least an eighth-level Soul Master."

“When they reach the level of a ninth-level Soul Master,” Xuan Ziwen’s tone became increasingly solemn, “they are already at the level of national strategy, and will be equipped with special forces to protect them.”

"Currently, Mingde Hall has a total of four level-nine Soul Masters, including the Hall Master, who is the youngest among them."

"And the vast majority of people conducting research here can be said to be the disciples or grand-disciples of these four level-nine soul masters, including me and you."

He paused, his gaze falling on Huo Yuhao, and said, word by word, "My teacher, Kong Deming, is one of these four level-nine soul masters."

Chapter 54 Kong Deming's Surprise (Please continue reading!)

Huo Yuhao listened quietly and nodded slightly. He naturally knew Kong Deming.

In his previous life, as Kong Deming's grand-disciple, he had several in-depth conversations with this senior before breaking through to the tenth level of Soul Master, and benefited greatly from them.

"Alright, come with me." Xuan Ziwen patted his shoulder and strode towards the depths of Mingde Hall. "I'll take you to find your teacher."

Huo Yuhao followed behind him and stepped into the metal corridor illuminated by countless soul-guided lights.

Xuan Ziwen led Huo Yuhao through a series of brightly lit metal corridors illuminated by soul-guided lights.

Passing countless lab tables and busy researchers along the way, we finally stopped in front of a heavy metal door.

This door is quite different from the doors of other laboratories in Mingde Hall; the door frame is inlaid with several complex identification arrays.

The door panel itself is forged from several layers of rare alloy, making it strong enough to withstand the frontal bombardment of high-level soul tools.

Xuan Ziwen pressed a few buttons on the communication device next to the door and whispered something.

A moment later, the metal door emitted a low hum and slowly slid open to both sides.

The laboratory was very spacious, with various rare metals and semi-finished soul tool parts neatly stacked on the shelves on all four walls, and a faint smell of burning metal permeated the air.

In the very center of the laboratory, a tall, elderly man stood before a humanoid metal figure, intently adjusting a sophisticated magic array at the joint of its arm.

The old man looked to be in his sixties, with a full head of silver hair neatly combed back, revealing a face with distinct features.

His eyebrows were thick and long, with the ends slightly upturned, giving him an imposing and dignified air even when he was expressionless.

His deep brown eyes were sharp and bright, without the cloudiness often seen in the elderly.

He wore a dark gray researcher's robe, with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms, revealing his hands with prominent veins but still strong.

Huo Yuhao remained calm and composed upon witnessing this scene.

He knew that during this period, besides seeking to break through the threshold of a level 10 Soul Master day and night, Kong Deming devoted most of his energy to the research of humanoid Soul Guidance Devices.

This is also the direction that all the senior soul masters of Mingde Hall are working together to tackle.

The so-called humanoid soul tool is not simply a layer of armor on a soul master's body, but rather a soul tool that has the ability to act, fight, defend, and attack independently through a complex internal control system.

This requires the precise combination and linkage of a large number of core magic arrays, which places extremely high demands on the overall design and control system of the soul tool.

Essentially, it is a large mecha controlled by a Soul Master inside.

Hearing the door open, Kong Deming stopped what he was doing and turned to look.

His gaze lingered on Xuan Ziwen for a moment, then fell on Huo Yuhao behind him, his brows twitching almost imperceptibly.

"What's wrong? Why are you looking for me at this hour?" Kong Deming's voice was steady and powerful, with a hint of displeasure at being interrupted.

Xuan Ziwen stepped forward, his attitude even more respectful than when he was in the lab.

He offered up the energy-storing ray with both hands, and then recounted Huo Yuhao's various performances since entering the academy.

From the brand-new energy storage array designed during the special assessment, to that miniature tower-shaped soul guide that even he marveled at, and then to the energy storage ray in front of him that achieved the retention of soul power.

He didn't exaggerate at all; he simply laid out the facts one by one before finally revealing his purpose: "Teacher, Yuhao is a true genius. I believe I have nothing more to teach him, so I would like to ask you to take him under your wing and cultivate together."

After listening, Kong Deming did not answer immediately. He turned to look at Huo Yuhao, his deep brown eyes filled with a hint of inquiry.

Xuan Ziwen was his disciple, and he knew his personality all too well.

He was always extremely strict, almost demanding, when it came to soul tools, and would never fabricate any sweet words to fool him on such a matter.

If this boy is truly as talented as Xuan Ziwen claims, then he certainly deserves to be personally taught by him.

"Let me see that energy-storing soul tool." Kong Deming held out his hand to Xuan Ziwen.

Xuan Ziwen quickly handed over the energy-storing ray. Kong Deming took the cylindrical handheld soul tool and examined it carefully, turning it over and over.

His gaze swept from the energy storage array on the outer shell to the internal activation circuit, and then from the layout of the energy storage core to the triggering device on the handle.

As he observed more closely, the displeasure in his eyes gradually faded, replaced by an undisguised astonishment.

"I really didn't expect that." Kong Deming weighed the energy-storing ray in his hand, his voice unusually tinged with emotion.

"The energy storage problem that Mingdetang has been researching for so long but has not been solved has now been solved by a child."