The two powerful horses neighed loudly, their thick hind legs straightening as they reared up, front hooves lifting their entire upper bodies high, before charging forward wildly.
They moved so fast that even the carriage, equipped with a shock-absorbing system, shook violently. Inside, Jiang Ming felt like he was on a roller coaster—there was no way to stop the ride!
"Master Jiang! Hold on tight! The horses are spooked! I need to stabilize them—I might not be able to pay attention to you!"
The driver shouted, worried that Jiang Ming wouldn't hear him.
This young master was the son of Qingshui City's deputy lord; he absolutely could not be harmed!
Inside the carriage, the floor was empty. The books and metal blocks that had filled it were quickly stored in Jiang Ming's Soul Devices as soon as trouble began.
Jiang Ming steadied himself against the carriage walls. His strong physique allowed him to remain stable despite the jolts, avoiding being thrown around.
Yet, his eyes were full of deep thought and puzzlement.
"This shouldn't happen… How could there be a mistake? Was the book wrong?"
He murmured under his breath, brows furrowed, thinking about the metal block he had just carved. His handsome face was clouded with confusion.
He was certain he had followed the book's instructions exactly. His hands were steady; the chance of a carving error was almost nonexistent!Then why did it explode? It shouldn't have!
It wasn't until the driver finally calmed the horses and the carriage stabilized that Jiang Ming realized what had caused the failure.
It was probably the metal's purity!
The metal block he had carved might not have matched the purity described in the book.
Even a tiny difference could have caused a deviation when carving the pattern.
"Let's try again!"
A spark of determination flashed in Jiang Ming's eyes. He took out another metal block, ready for a second attempt.
Outside, the driver exhaled in relief, careful to check through the curtain.
"Master Jiang, are you alright?"
After a long pause with no answer, the driver grew anxious. Forgetting manners, he lifted the curtain.
"Master Jiang, you—"
But the sight before him was not what he feared. Jiang Ming hadn't been knocked unconscious by the carriage's bumps. Instead, he was seated cross-legged, calmly carving a pale-golden slender knife into a metal block.
"Master Jiang, what are you doing?"
Curiosity got the better of the driver.
Jiang Ming didn't answer immediately. He completed the final stroke of the pattern before looking up, a satisfied smile on his face.
"I was studying a Soul Device. I couldn't stop, so I didn't reply. Sorry about that."
"Studying a Soul Device? Master Jiang, you're a Soul Master?!"
The driver was genuinely shocked.
Ever since Soul Devices rose to prominence, Soul Masters had gained immense respect. Even a basic level-one Soul Master was highly esteemed in the eyes of ordinary people.
"Oh, I guess… I'm just tinkering for fun."
Jiang Ming smiled and gestured toward the driver.
"Compared to that, I think you should focus on bringing the carriage back on track. We've veered off the main road."
The driver spun around in alarm.
Sure enough, while he had been speaking to Jiang Ming, the carriage had strayed from the main path, heading wildly in another direction.
He quickly returned to the front, cracked his whip, and guided the horses back on course.
"Master Jiang, I didn't expect you to be a Soul Master… amazing! Truly a genius!"
Perhaps Jiang Ming's calm demeanor put the driver at ease. After correcting the carriage, the driver began chatting more freely.
Meanwhile, after spending so long carving, Jiang Ming was a little tired. He lifted the curtain, sat beside the driver, and prepared to rest.
"Genius? There are plenty of geniuses. The Shrek Academy we're heading to is full of them."
Jiang Ming didn't take the word "genius" too seriously—there were far too many in the world for the term to mean much.
"By the way, how much longer until we reach Shrek Academy?"
He asked, eager with anticipation. His knowledge of Shrek Academy was limited to the version ten thousand years ago, and he hadn't expected it to become the top academy in the continent after so long.
"Master Jiang, we've only been traveling half a day. Qingshui City is over a thousand miles away; it will take at least four more days."
The driver smiled.
"Four days…"
Jiang Ming's eyes narrowed slightly. Leaning back against the carriage, he contemplated. Four days should be enough to finish what he wanted to.
He reached for the finished metal block in his storage Soul Device and infused it with his soul power.
A pale-golden light spread across the block, about half a meter long.
But the glow was unstable, flickering, and uneven in length.
Jiang Ming frowned again.
An unstable glow meant there were still problems in the core array of the metal block.
But where exactly was the issue? He examined it from all angles, growing increasingly frustrated.
Suddenly, he accidentally poured in too much soul power. The metal block emitted a blinding flash!
"No!"
Jiang Ming cursed internally and threw the block out of the carriage.
"Master Jiang! You—you threw—"
Before the driver could react, a massive explosion echoed nearby.
His heart skipped a beat as he looked back.
Beside the road they had just traveled, a huge crater had formed, with smoke curling above it.
"This… this is—"
The driver struggled to calm the startled horses while staring at Jiang Ming in disbelief.
Jiang Ming looked frustrated, muttering:
"Another explosion… Is this thing really that difficult?"
Another…?
The driver recalled the previous blast, glancing back at the smoking crater, his heart pounding.
That force could have destroyed the carriage—and him—into pieces!
And yet, the young Master Jiang seemed completely unfazed!