After Nan Fusheng's explanation, the group fell into a momentary silence.
Xie Xie was the first to speak, breaking the quiet.
"With your level of spiritual power, Fusheng, I believe it's only a matter of time before your soul spirit reaches the thousand-year level.
Besides, high-ranking soul masters usually have multiple soul spirits anyway."
The others quickly followed with words of encouragement.
Nan Fusheng gave a light smile.
"Relax. I'm not the kind to give up so easily.
Anyway, weren't we just discussing what we're all doing for the next few days?"
He hadn't expected his casually fabricated excuse to draw such sincere support from the group.
Tang Wulin spoke up first.
"I'm planning to spend the time practicing my forging at the Blacksmith Association."
Gu Yue added simply, "I'll be meditating."
Wang Jinxi looked at Tang Wulin with a hint of yearning.
Tang Wulin smiled, "Don't worry, Jinxi, I'll be back in the evenings."
Zhang Yangzi smacked Wang Jinxi's shoulder and teased,
"Jinxi, when did you turn into such a clingy wife?"
Wang Jinxi shot him a look.
"If you could help me increase my soul power by half a level in three months like Wulin did, I'd cling to you too.
Wulin, I'm sticking with you no matter what.
Actually… should I choose forging as my second profession too? Think I've got talent for it?"
Tang Wulin responded seriously,
"When it comes to our second professions, I think we should all choose different ones.
That way, when it comes time to create our battle armor, we can complement each other."
Xie Xie nodded.
"Good point. I've pretty much decided already—my second profession will be mecha manufacturing.
It doesn't require complex theory, just a lot of hands-on skill. I think it suits me well.
What about you guys?"
Zhang Yangzi shrugged, "Haven't decided yet."
Nan Fusheng also replied, "Still undecided."
Gu Yue said, "I'm considering learning mecha repair."
Xie Xie blinked.
"Repair? You're a girl—I thought you'd go for mecha design."
Gu Yue responded coolly,
"Only people with no brains would think that way."
"You…"
"Alright, that's enough," Nan Fusheng cut in, smiling helplessly at the two.
They'd known each other for months now, but Xie Xie and Gu Yue still argued constantly.
Over the past few months, Nan Fusheng had come to understand the dynamics of the group:
Zhang Yangzi and Wang Jinxi had the closest bond.
Xie Xie and Gu Yue got along well, despite their frequent bickering.
Gu Yue, while calm on the surface, carried a subtle arrogance and maintained emotional distance—except toward Tang Wulin.
Everyone had a good relationship with Tang Wulin, making him the natural mediator of the team.
As for Nan Fusheng himself, he was perfectly aware—he wasn't truly one of them.
But unlike Gu Yue, he didn't keep his distance. Quite the opposite.
After all, the closer the relationship, the easier it would be... when it came time to betray them.
And when it came to a second profession, Nan Fusheng had already decided.
He just didn't feel like telling the others yet, or they'd start asking a million questions.
Nan Fusheng's second profession: Soul Engineer.
The profession of Soul Engineer originated from the Sun Moon Empire, the predecessor of the Federation.
After the collision between the Douluo Continent and the Sun Moon Empire, this profession emerged—those who could craft and wield soul devices were known as Soul Engineers.
Whether it was mechas or battle armor, all their crafting technologies originated from soul engineer techniques.
For example, when crafting God-rank red mechas, it was mandatory for the pilot to personally participate in the construction.
Otherwise, no matter how well built, it would never perfectly synchronize with the user.
The same principle applied to battle armor, but it was even more demanding.
Starting from the One-Word Battle Armor stage, the user was required to participate in the forging process.
Otherwise, the power of the armor would be greatly diminished.
Top-tier powerhouses could tolerate the mecha system, but battle armor was irreplaceable.
However, asking them to spend years studying soul devices? Unrealistic.
Soul tool crafting required not just time and money, but also a significant degree of talent.
For those with natural soul power, it made more sense to pour their effort into cultivation rather than splitting time learning a complex trade.
And yet, the amplification provided by battle armor was too tempting to ignore.
That's why the Four Great Professions were created—splitting off from the soul engineer field so more people could access specialized roles.
Instead of learning full-fledged soul device theory, they could focus on just one: design, forging, repair, or manufacturing.
As these specialized disciplines grew, more people gravitated toward them.
And over time, the once-prestigious title of Soul Engineer was buried under the shining reputation of battle armor and mechas.
Nan Fusheng was deeply interested in all aspects—mecha design, manufacturing, repair, and forging.
But time was limited, especially for someone like him who knew the future plot. He couldn't afford to waste even a second.
But that was fine—after all, he had a cheat.
He'd learn the basics of soul tools now and in the future, simply using parasitism to steal the knowledge of others.
And of course, his strength would always come first.
Being a soul engineer was just a side quest.
Want to learn the Four Great Professions? Easy—just find the right people and possess them.
If they became his pawns, he'd never lack access to mechas or armor.
Nan Fusheng mentally gave himself a thumbs-up.
"Truly, I'm a genius. I've solved what normal people would consider an impossible dilemma."
Well, three professions would be easy enough to find.
But forging was different. It was said that only one Divine Blacksmith could exist per generation—a setting meant to emphasize how precious the protagonist was.
No matter. If things went well, he could possess Divine Blacksmith Zhen Hua one day.
If not, he'd settle for a Holy Blacksmith.
Why not just possess Tang Wulin now?
Simple. Tang Wulin was too full of cheats—he had Tang San's divine sense and the Golden Dragon King's seal inside him.
If Nan Fusheng tried anything, he'd get blasted out of existence in seconds.
The Golden Dragon King seal might be manageable, but Tang San?
That guy was a reincarnated god who could split his daughter's soul in half like it was nothing.
Nan Fusheng had no interest in letting someone like that notice him.
After dinner, Nan Fusheng did some light exercise, then sat down to meditate.
He had already mapped out his entire plan for the next three days—he even planned it during the meal.
The following morning, Nan Fusheng quietly left the academy and headed straight to the Eastsea Spirit Pagoda.
He had seen this massive, majestic building many times in the last few months.
Now, seeing it again, his heart barely stirred—after all, he'd been here more than a dozen times.
Once inside, he went straight to the first-floor reception counter and spoke clearly to the Spirit Master behind the glass:
Hello. I've reached Rank 20. I'm here to obtain my second soul spirit.