Xu Tianzhen raised her hand and lightly patted Xu Tianhao's shoulder, her movements natural and intimate, as she asked:
"Hao Hao, how is it? During this seclusion, did you successfully break through and become a true Fifth-Rank Soul Engineer?"
Facing Xu Tianzhen's inquiry, a calm and confident smile slowly spread across Xu Tianhao's face.
His gaze swept over the companions gathered in front of him: "I've just finished the complete production of the Fifth-Rank defensive spirit tool, the [immovable wisdom king shield]. Now, I am a genuine Fifth-Rank Soul Engineer."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's eyes lit up instantly. Immediately after, looks of admiration and praise appeared on everyone's faces without any concealment.
Xu Tianzhen was the first to laugh out loud, her eyes curving into crescents, full of pride and joy. She patted Xu Tianhao's shoulder and said:
"As expected of you, Hao Hao! I knew that as long as you took action, you would definitely succeed!"
"A ten-year-old Fifth-Rank Soul Engineer! Such an achievement can be considered extremely rare in the entire history of Soul Engineers in the Empire!"
Xiao Hongchen, who was standing to the side, also stepped forward. He similarly raised his hand and lightly patted Xu Tianhao's shoulder, his tone carrying a hint of helplessness, yet full of sincere congratulations:
"I thought that with my talent and hard work, I would definitely be the first among us to become a Fifth-Rank Soul Engineer. I didn't expect that in the end, I'd still be a step slower than you."
Xiao Hongchen's words were by no means modesty or casual politeness.
His own talent for spirit tools was already frighteningly high. In fact, his speed of comprehension and mastery in many core fields...
...far exceeded that of his grandfather, Jing Hongchen, at the same age. He was a recognized spirit tool genius in both the academy and Mingde Hall.
Unfortunately, by his side, there happened to be an existence like Xu Tianhao, who could be described as monstrous.
Xu Tianhao's terror was not only reflected in his absurdly fast spirit power cultivation speed, which far surpassed everyone of his generation.
On the path of a Soul Engineer, his talent was heaven-defying to a desperate degree.
Whether it was theoretical knowledge of spirit tools, core formation engraving, material identification and fusion, or precise control of spirit power...
...or the production and innovation of spirit tools, Xu Tianhao displayed talent beyond imagination.
Knowledge and techniques that others often needed months or even years to master...
...he could master and integrate in just a few short days, and even draw inferences to forge his own path.
Regarding the matter of talent as a Soul Engineer, the always proud Xiao Hongchen was truly convinced and felt inferior.
The tall and sturdy Long Aotian also stepped forward, raising his large, fan-like hand and giving Xu Tianhao's chest a light thump.
His strength was perfectly controlled, appearing both close and not causing any discomfort.
He grinned and spoke in a bright and direct tone: "Congratulations, Your Highness! In the future, the task of updating and customizing exclusive spirit tools for me will be fully entrusted to you!"
Ye Guyi, standing beside Meng Hongchen, also hurriedly nodded. A faint smile appeared on her lively face as she agreed:
"Exactly, exactly. With you, a Fifth-Rank Soul Engineer, here, our combat strength can also increase significantly."
The reason why Long Aotian and Ye Guyi said this was very simple.
Because neither of them were Soul Engineers, nor had they invested much energy into the path of spirit tool production.
But unlike the Long Aotian in the original work, who extremely rejected or even loathed spirit tools...
...the current him, having joined this Seven-Person Squad and spending day and night with talented Soul Engineers like Xu Tianhao and the others...
...having personally witnessed the terrifying boost and infinite possibilities that spirit tools brought to Spirit Masters...
...over these few years, the concepts deep within his heart had already quietly undergone earth-shaking changes.
Today's Long Aotian no longer felt hostility or rejection toward spirit tools.
Although he did not choose to become a Soul Engineer, he was very willing to use spirit tools to assist in his own battles and strengthen his overall combat power.
Whether it was defensive spirit tools, enhancement spirit tools, or stealth and speed-type spirit tools...
...he would use them in combinations according to the characteristics of his Spirit and his needs during battle, and the effects far exceeded those of ordinary people.
And such a change was not just a special case for Long Aotian alone.
Now, the entire Body Sect had undergone an unprecedented change in concepts over the past few years.
The fundamental reason was that the Body Sect had now essentially officially joined the Sun Moon Empire's camp.
In terms of overall strategic layout, development direction, and combat philosophy, it naturally made corresponding changes and adjustments.
Over the years, the Sun Moon Empire had never been stingy, secretly equipping the core disciples and high-level experts of the Body Sect with a large number of high-quality, highly compatible spirit tools.
From basic defensive armor and spirit power supply spirit tools to targeted power-attack and enhancement-type spirit tools, they had everything.
And facts also proved that this group of Spirit Masters from the Body Sect, who specialized in Body Martial Souls, could unleash combat power that was simply beyond imagination when paired with spirit tools.
Body Martial Souls were already known for their extreme physical bodies, powerful strength, outstanding defense, and extremely high compatibility.
The core role of a spirit tool was to amplify a Spirit Master's advantages and make up for their shortcomings. The combination of the two could be called a match made in heaven.
Through countless practical battles and tests, in comparison with Spirit Masters of the same rank, except for a very few special Spirits that had a special innate compatibility with spirit tools...
...Spirit Masters with Body Martial Souls, after being equipped with spirit tools, had an overall combat power increase of at least thirty percent more than Spirit Masters with other types of Spirits!
This was an extremely terrifying figure.
In the Spirit Master's world, the gap between the same ranks could often be decided by the slightest margin.
A thirty percent increase in combat power was enough to allow Spirit Masters of the Body Sect to remain invincible among those of the same rank, and even challenging those of a higher level was not difficult.
Not to mention that Spirit Masters with Body Martial Souls also possessed the ability of second awakening.
It was no exaggeration to say that Body Martial Souls seemed to be born for spirit tools; the compatibility between the two had reached an astonishing level.
It was precisely because they had truly tasted the sweetness brought by spirit tools that the Body Sect, from top to bottom, had their originally traditional and external-item-rejecting concepts loosening and changing bit by bit.
By now, almost everyone in the Sect no longer rejected the use of spirit tools.
Instead, they actively sought spirit tools that were more compatible with themselves, perfectly integrating the use of spirit tools with the cultivation of their Body Martial Souls.
Even within the Body Sect, several disciples and Elders with outstanding talent could no longer suppress the longing in their hearts and had secretly left the Sect's residence to come to the Sun Moon Empire to study spirit tool technology.
And among these Body Sect experts who had transitioned into Soul Engineers, the one with the strongest strength and most terrifying talent was the Body Sect's Fourth Elder, Gu Nian.
Gu Nian, as the Fourth Elder of the Body Sect, possessed the mental-type Spirit, the Abyssal Forest Pupil, and his spirit power cultivation was at Level 94.
Now, only two years had passed since Gu Nian officially stepped into the field of Soul Engineers.
In just two short years, Gu Nian, relying on his own powerful mental force, had progressed by leaps and bounds and had already become a genuine Seventh-Rank Soul Engineer.
If he continued to improve at this speed, it would only be a matter of time before Gu Nian broke through to become an Eighth-Rank or even a Ninth-Rank Soul Engineer.