ALL NOVEL Chapter 85: Level 30
"These people are truly audacious…" A cold glint flashed in Ran Yuming's eyes.
"Teacher, every shop on Soul Engineer Street has a powerful backer," Su Luoheng said with a helpless smile, spreading his hands.
He knew that every store on Soul Engineer Street had some aristocratic backing; otherwise, they wouldn't dare to act so high-handedly towards students of the Sun Moon Royal Academy. Avoiding trouble was often better, and he really didn't want to drag his teacher into this.
"They have people behind them, but so do I," Ran Yuming remarked, his gaze shifting briefly. "Don't worry. I'll help you get justice on this matter."
"Teacher, I really…"
Su Luoheng hesitated, unsure of what to say.
"No matter how much they've scammed my disciple, I'll make sure they return every last bit!" Ran Yuming huffed coldly, a frosty light flashing in his eyes. "You don't need to do anything. Just tell me the name of the store that tricked you."
"It's the Mingyuan Soul Engineer Trading House on East Street."
"Mingyuan Soul Engineer Trading House…" Ran Yuming repeated, nodding. "Understood. I'll handle it."
"Thank you, Teacher." Warmth filled Su Luoheng's heart.
"You little brat…" Ran Yuming gave him a glance, snorting softly. "If I hadn't asked about the soul tool, were you planning on keeping this hidden?"
"Teacher, I didn't want to trouble you…"
"Trouble? Not a problem at all!" Ran Yuming shot him a glare.
Su Luoheng scratched his head awkwardly, giving a sheepish smile.
Ran Yuming sighed softly, ruffling his hair. "Luoheng, remember, I am your teacher. Helping you with your problems is part of my duty. There's no such thing as trouble, understand?"
"Yes." Su Luoheng nodded earnestly.
"Alright. From now on, if you want to sell soul tools, go to this store." Ran Yuming pulled a business card from his pocket as he spoke. "Just show them this card, and they'll buy all your soul tools at fair market prices."
Su Luoheng took the card. On the front was a golden embossed character, 'Xu', and on the back, it read 'Mingdu Trading House'
"Mingdu Trading House?"
"Yes. It's the official trading market of the Sun Moon Empire, fully funded by my teacher, your grandmaster, Kong Deming. You won't have to worry about low offers there."
"Thank you, Teacher."
Holding the card, Su Luoheng couldn't help but marvel at his teacher's connections. Clearly, he had underestimated his teacher's influence in the empire.
"Luoheng, whether it's selling soul tools or other things, I won't interfere in your personal affairs." Ran Yuming paused, tapping the table for emphasis. "But whatever you do, you mustn't neglect your studies in soul engineering and soul mastery. Understood?"
"Yes, Teacher," Su Luoheng nodded solemnly.
He understood that his teacher's words were for his benefit, knowing his primary focus. The soul tools he sold were made in his spare time and hadn't disrupted his studies or training. For now, selling soul tools was just a temporary solution.
He wasn't foolish—he had no intention of continually being taken advantage of.
Who wouldn't want to earn a little extra money? For now, he was building up his capital, aiming to save up tens of thousands of gold soul coins and eventually open his own shop on Soul Engineer Street. When he could handle everything from production to sales himself, all the profits would be his. Wouldn't that be fantastic?
It wasn't about greed, really.
It was just that becoming a Soul Engineer was an expensive endeavor.
The higher the level, the more costly the metal materials for constructing core arrays became. If he didn't save up now, what would he do in the future? He couldn't keep relying on his teacher to cover him or ask his parents for money, right?
He would feel too embarrassed, so building up his own funds was necessary.
Initially, he'd intended to get by for a while, but now, with his teacher involved, he could speed up his savings.
"Alright, alright, enough of you standing around here in my way!" Ran Yuming waved him off, feigning annoyance and urging him to leave.
Su Luoheng laughed sheepishly and quickly trotted off.
…
Watching his student's departing figure, Ran Yuming stroked his beard with a smile of satisfaction.
This disciple of his truly made him proud.
Suddenly, remembering the issue with the soul tool shop, Ran Yuming's smile slowly faded, replaced by an icy expression as cold as frost.
"Mingyuan Trading House…"
Ran Yuming chuckled coldly. "Getting unruly again, I see. It seems they don't learn their lesson—barely thirty years have passed, and they're already eyeing the students of Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy once more."
"Perhaps if I make it hurt, they'll remember this time," he murmured, a shadow of cold intent passing through his gaze. "Maybe they've forgotten that reaching too far can cost you a hand…"
Ran Yuming spoke quietly, his voice carrying a dangerous edge. What he needed was to bring this matter into the light; he wouldn't even need to act himself—others would handle these overreaching troublemakers.
The students Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy nurtured were the future pillars of the Sun Moon Empire. It wasn't an exaggeration to say that within the empire, this academy symbolized the foundation and future of the entire nation. No one—regardless of their status—could extend their hand here. If they did… someone would make sure they regretted it.
…
Time flew by, and two months passed in the blink of an eye.
Now eleven, Su Luoheng's spirit power had smoothly advanced into the Soul Elder realm, a significant milestone. Obtaining his third spirit ring was no trivial task, and Ran Yuming had invested great effort in crafting a thorough plan for him.
After considering the realities of the Spirit Beast Forest, they finally selected a Thunderstrike Tiger. This spirit beast had both mental attributes and formidable combat abilities. According to the records, it typically granted offensive spirit skills.
Su Luoheng's first spirit skill, Weapon Analysis, and his second, Weapon Projection, were primarily support-oriented, offering minimal utility in combat.
Therefore, as his teacher, Ran Yuming prioritized strengthening Su Luoheng's offensive power to ensure balanced development.
He didn't want his disciple confined to the traditional role of a soul engineer.
Although the choice of spirit beast was fitting, given the incident with the second spirit ring, no one could be certain that things would go smoothly this time.
Just before Su Luoheng began absorbing the ring, Ran Yuming thought to himself with cautious optimism: 'This time, hopefully—possibly—maybe, nothing unexpected will happen… right?'