Chapter 40: Am I a Cheat? Am I the Protagonist of This Book?
To be honest, the individual soul engineer duels didn't excite Huo Yuhao in the slightest. None of the higher-year Soul Engineers' tactics or weapons had managed to impress him yet.
Most of their so-called "battle strategies" were improvised on the spot—laughably crude.
One particularly bold sixth-year, Level 4 Soul Engineer, unaware of Yuhao's true abilities, even went so far as to set up a stationary soul cannon in the middle of the stage—calmly charging it as though he had all the time in the world.
Are you serious?
The boy's eyes blazed with excitement. After all, Yuhao's reputation was sky-high. If he could beat him, wouldn't that mean he was the real genius here? The logic was questionable at best, but his smugness was plain as day.
"Hahaha, Huo Yuhao! Prepare to face the might of my Soul Cannon!"
Yuhao didn't even bother replying. What was there to say? This kind of hot-bloodedness was… honestly, a little embarrassing.
"Three punches are enough to shatter your hot-blooded dream."
"W-wait, my cannon hasn't finished charging yet! You can't just—"
"Tell that to Makka Pakka."
The boy clearly thought he was in some kind of "invincible transformation mode." Yuhao wasn't having it. Without even summoning his Martial Soul, without using a single soul guidance device, he simply stepped forward and pummeled him. One slap, three punches that left him unrecognizable to his own mother.
The spectators roared with laughter.
"Hahaha! Did you see that, Ma Rulong? That guy actually tried to set up a Soul Cannon like it was some friendly exhibition match! I'm dying of laughter!"
"Look at Yuhao's expression—It's like he was saying: How did someone like this even make it to the finals?"
"His punches were raining down like a storm… Oh right, who the hell is 'Makka Pakka' anyway?"
Several senior teachers could only rub their foreheads in frustration.
This was exactly the problem: most of their students hadn't experienced true life-and-death combat. They were like greenhouse flowers—fragile, untested. No wonder they crumbled so easily.
But then, someone raised a question: had Huo Yuhao ever actually fought in a real life-or-death battle himself? And yet here he was—calm, ruthless, precise—stronger than anyone else on the field.
To that, Yuhao had only one answer in his heart:
'What do you think? Am I the Child of Destiny? Am I a walking cheat code? Am I not the protagonist of this very book? Look into my eyes!'
"First round of Match Seven, victory goes to Huo Yuhao!"
The referee's voice rang out as Yuhao once again claimed an effortless win.
"Yuhao really doesn't hold back at all, does he?" one spectator muttered.
"True, but still a little worse than me," Xiao Hongchen added with a smug smile.
His eyes shone with admiration, though. That scene just now was cool. Even Xiao Hongchen, who always thought he was the master of showing off, had to admit: Yuhao's casual lines had set the entire arena ablaze with excitement.
Meng Hongchen, meanwhile, looked at Yuhao with open admiration. But when she heard her brother bragging again, she couldn't help rolling her eyes.
"Die, Mr. Pretentious~"
Xiao Hongchen's icy, high-cool façade almost cracked on the spot.
"Meng! You're not allowed to imitate Yuhao's way of talking!"
"Big brother, are you angry?"
"I—I am not!"
---
Soon, the individual soul engineer duels came to an end.
After the comprehensive scoring was tallied, Huo Yuhao and the Hongchen siblings tied for first place, leading directly into the next stage: the 3v3 team battles.
By this point, the final rankings were already more or less decided. Since the three of them had chosen to fight as a team, their results would be the same no matter what.
But still—a battle was a battle. It had to be fought.
---
Inside the Soul Fighting Arena, Xiao Hongchen's face was lit with anticipation. After a whole day of duels, his fighting spirit had only grown stronger.
"Hahaha! Yuhao, quick, open your Spiritual Detection Sharing! I can't wait any longer!"
Standing at Yuhao's side, Meng Hongchen quietly distanced herself from her overly loud brother. Honestly, he was so dumb it was embarrassing. She made a mental note to draw a clear line: Not related. Not acquainted.
"Alright," Yuhao said. His Spiritual Detection Sharing instantly linked the three of them together.
"Good! Little brats, prepare to face the bombardment of your lord Xiao Hongchen!"
Even after experiencing it many times, Xiao Hongchen still felt an overwhelming surge of confidence whenever he was boosted by Yuhao's soul skill. It was as though nothing was beyond his reach.
For Soul Engineers, what mattered most? Power? Rank? No.
The most important thing was accuracy. If your cannon couldn't hit the enemy, then nothing else mattered. And Yuhao's ability gave Soul Engineers exactly that—an omniscient, godlike perspective, turning every strike into a guaranteed hit.
As for fixed-installed soul guidance devices? Of course, the Sun Moon Empire had them. In fact, they were far ahead on that front compared to the outside world. But the problem was always accuracy: targeting moving enemies was extremely difficult.
Sounds familiar, doesn't it? Yes—the exact same "brilliant invention" that a certain Shrek Academy Level 8 Soul Engineer had loudly proclaimed to be the crystallization of wisdom, claiming it could multiply a Soul Master's attack power tenfold. Plagiarism much? It was obvious who had copied whom.
Unlike Shrek, however, the Sun Moon Empire treated fixed-installed soul guidance devices with cautious pragmatism. Materials were scarce, and the tools required immense precision to use properly—demanding expert-level assistance and coordination.
(Yuhao, Yuhao—no more theory. It's time to fight!)
---
A golden light barrier surged outward, and Xiao Hongchen's Martial Soul—the Three-Legged Golden Toad—manifested. Its unique properties allowed him to control metal freely. Combined with his soul guidance device mastery, this meant he could bypass the traditional reliance on pre-fabricated weapons and instead forge cannons out of thin air.
Liquid metal shimmered, cores shifted, and within moments, dozens upon dozens of cannon barrels materialized in midair, locking onto their targets.
Ever since advancing to the Level 5 Soul Engineer, Xiao Hongchen had crafted over a hundred Level 5 High-Explosive Soul Cannons. Now, with a wave of his hand, the entire battlefield was blanketed in their terrifying presence.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Explosions erupted one after another, fireballs filling the arena. The opposing team had no chance to react. Before they could even mount a defense, the referee was forced to intervene, dragging them out of the danger zone and declaring their immediate defeat.
"Perfect mechanical aesthetics."
Even Yuhao had to sigh in admiration. Watching Xiao Hongchen bombard his enemies as though using cannons to swat mosquitoes, Yuhao couldn't help but wonder:
'Should I give up fusing with an Evil-Eyed Soul Beast for my third ring, and instead choose a spirit-type beast that grants metal manipulation for my Spirit Eye martial soul?'
It was a tempting idea—something he would definitely discuss with his teacher later.
"How about that, Yuhao? Not bad, huh? That was my full power just now. Handsome, wasn't it?" Xiao Hongchen asked eagerly, eyes shining.
This feeling of point-and-shoot, every hit landing was intoxicating. He was starting to think he might be addicted to Yuhao's support.
Yuhao chuckled. "Handsome indeed. But I still think unleashing all one hundred and twenty-eight cannons at once for a full-field bombardment is… a little wasteful of soul power."
Xiao Hongchen wasn't offended in the slightest. He was the type who could be led with praise but never with scolding.
Yuhao's gentle reminder, though, was important—otherwise, this idiot might just blow all his energy in a single fight.
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(End of Chapter)