Wu Ling followed Rose to her room. Unlike the last time he came here, nearly half the room was now filled with metal products. The remaining half held plants, animals, and two humans, one male and one female.
Looking at the two people tied there naked, Wu Ling frowned and asked, "Two Spirit Leaders. What are they for?"
Rose was calmly rummaging for something. After hearing Wu Ling's question, she glanced at the two test subjects.
"Those two? They are samples for Martial Soul separation experiments... All right, all right, I know. The man is an unaffiliated cultivator. He coveted the resources of a Spirit Hall branch, assassinated that branch hall's master and more than a dozen deacons, and stole resources worth over ten thousand gold spirit coins. In the end, a Spirit King led two Spirit Daoists to capture him."
"As for the woman, she is a spy the Star Stripe Empire planted inside Spirit Hall. She sent Spirit Hall intelligence back to Star Stripe several times, including some of your information. She did it discreetly enough, but the higher-ups have always known about these spies. The information was not important, so they let her continue sending it back. But she should never have reached for an earth-grade cultivation method. The moment she did, the higher-ups captured her with thunderous speed."
After hearing Rose's explanation, Wu Ling finally looked away. Since they were not innocent people, he would let Rose research as she pleased.
But just as he turned his gaze aside, a familiar object on a shelf beside the two people caught his eye.
"A Kuuga Belt? Why is this thing here?" Wu Ling raised an eyebrow and walked toward the shelf.
As the first Kamen Rider series Wu Ling had watched, and the one that had left the deepest impression on him, he recognized the belt at a glance even after so many years.
He reached the shelf, picked up the belt, and examined it carefully. Even the small details had been carved with great precision. But two things puzzled Wu Ling.
First, above the belt, there was a rectangular opening that looked like a card slot. He did not remember Kuuga having any of that flashy card-inserting business.
Second, on the wearing surface of the belt, the part that would press against the waist, there were four small symmetrical holes. Wu Ling could not possibly remember details that small, but the four needles inside those holes made him question their purpose.
"This belt is one of the products separated from a Martial Soul, but it is still unfinished," Rose said as she walked over with a scroll in hand.
"Found it, main body. This is a simulated circuit, one of the things I suddenly thought to research after seeing Shade."
"Just like you said, Berserker-class Shade and Berserker both have natural disadvantages when it comes to meditation cultivation. So I simulated an external circuit similar to your own Spirit Power Circuit, main body. Its effect is to absorb and compress Spirit Power through impacts. The closer the blow is to the user's limit, the better the efficiency."
As he listened to Rose's introduction, Wu Ling's expression gradually turned strange.
"You mean?"
"Exactly. Just let the two of them beat each other up!"
Wu Ling thought about Rose's idea from every angle and found no major problem. True, when he recalled them afterward, he would probably feel intense pain. But combat experience and compressed Spirit Power would also feed back to him. It was pain and joy together, and that result fell within Wu Ling's bottom line. So he told Rose to engrave the circuits on Shade and Berserker later.
"Right. Here is the Barrett. See if you can repair it. If not, just melt it down and rebuild it." As he spoke, Wu Ling handed the Barrett to Rose, then continued studying the belt.
For every man, transformation was a childhood dream. Now that a transformation device was in his hands, who cared about mere firearms?
"How long until this belt can be finished?"
Rose tilted her head and thought. She even stretched out her fingers and counted.
"It should be done before you participate in the tournament, main body. But mass production is impossible."
Wu Ling nodded in understanding, then turned to look at the other weapons on the shelves.
From the pistols and grenades on the top level, to the submachine guns and rifles in the middle, and finally to the sniper rifles, Gatling guns, and rocket launchers on the bottom.
Of course, just like the Barrett, these were only soul tools with the external shapes of firearms from his previous life. The essence of the guns was modified Magecraft bullets, and the essence of the explosives was modified Magecraft cannons.
"Since the research is this complete, tell Teacher that the Soulcraft Shop can start selling a limited number of pistols. Keep the threat level below Spirit Elite. Right, do not forget to prepare a batch for Spirit Hall's own Spirit Masters first."
"All right. I will reduce the power a little more."
Wu Ling looked around the room. The plants and animals on the other side were basically the same as last time. Only machinery could really draw his interest. After that, Rose picked up her tools and went outside to engrave circuits on Shade and Berserker, while Wu Ling personally disassembled and reassembled every firearm in the room.
The sun set in the west. When Wu Ling left the room, orange sunlight fell across his face.
On the courtyard grass, Berserker was lying prone according to Rose's instructions, letting her carve circuits onto his body.
Shade and Ember were sparring nearby. Wu Ling could clearly sense that as Shade's internal Spirit Power was consumed, external Spirit Power rushed into his body in a swarm. As he fought Ember, the Spirit Power inside him was gradually stamped with his own aura. Then, under continuous hammering, his internal Spirit Power became more and more condensed, like iron being forged.
Wu Ling was extremely satisfied with the simulated circuit's effects. This way, Shade and Berserker's cultivation speed would not be any slower than his.
Slowly, everything moved onto the right track.
At the same time, Bibi Dong held a meeting with the elders, Lucius Cross, and the other worships. The result of the discussion was that they decided to let a limited number of pistols flow into the outside world.
As for Wu Ling's reward, the discussion concluded that the position of Holy Son would be given directly to him.
Originally, the requirement was that Wu Ling had to win the tournament championship without using Spirit Skills before they granted him the Holy Son position. But Bibi Dong had directly called him over. At level Spirit Leader, Wu Ling forcefully endured the Titled Sage-level pressure released by Lucius Cross. Although it was only ordinary Titled Sage pressure, all the elders and worships present still agreed to grant Wu Ling the position of Holy Son.
In their eyes, as long as Wu Ling participated, the championship was already in his pocket. Whether they gave the title early or late was the same. The only requirement was that it would be announced after he won the championship, allowing them to build even greater momentum around him.
Once he confirmed that there was nothing important to handle in the near future, Wu Ling decided to return and meet Uncle Kiritsugu. Bibi Dong also supported his decision and explained that this time, she would not have Ghost follow him. He would need to act alone for the entire journey.
As for Bibi Dong's words, Wu Ling almost believed her. Almost.
If his Mind's Eye had not sensed that a powerful expert was still following him, he really might have.