Chapter 89: Battle Armor Fusion!

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Fourteen soul-guided armor components were neatly arranged on the workbench. Each component equaled the level of a Grade Five soul tool.

The pieces of armor on the workbench began to tremble.

In Su Yu's spiritual sea, the rune for "armor" began to vibrate.

Through his senses, he could perceive fourteen interconnected objects responding to each other.

As Su Yu released his soul power, it flowed into the dedicated mark formations within each piece of the battle armor, resonating with the soul power emanating from his body.

These unique mark formations also housed miniature soul power containers that could store a certain amount of energy, activating the armor upon wear.

The custom mark formations were specially tailored to suit each soul master, designed to match their unique soul power flow.

To ensure that the battle armor wouldn't malfunction from interference by other soul masters, an anti-interference mechanism was added to the proprietary markings. Only the soul power with the same source as the stored energy would resonate, making it possible for only the charging soul master to control the armor.

Su Yu's soul power circulated, establishing a connection with each piece of his battle armor.

Under his control, the armor components rose from the workbench, quickly gathering around him and floating in orbit.

Each part moved into its respective position and affixed itself to Su Yu's body.

The chest plate, heart guard, and waist belt formed the core of Su Yu's armor.

Su Yu's soul power flowed from his body into these three parts, then returned to him, coursing through the rest of the armor before re-entering his body, creating a seamless cycle.

As his soul power circulated through his body, it simultaneously infused the battle armor, allowing him to feel as if the armor was an extension of himself.

His soul power surged, activating the projection array.

Su Yu sensed his Blue Silver Grass martial spirit connecting with the fourteen components of the battle armor.

The armor felt like an extension of his body, responding to his will effortlessly.

Soul power surged.

Boom!

"I feel like I could easily defeat a Soul King right now!"

"Uh, let's put that another way," Jing Hongchen suggested with a cough.

After all, Su Yu could easily defeat a Soul King even without his armor.

"Alright, then I feel confident that I could stand against a Soul Emperor below Level 65."

Su Yu expressed this as only a sense.

While his soul power output was undoubtedly sufficient, he was aware that his endurance fell short of a true Soul Emperor.

Considering both stamina and burst power, Su Yu believed he had a chance of winning against an average Soul Emperor.

The fact that he could reach this conclusion meant his burst potential had already surpassed this level of opponent.

Yet, his lack of endurance made him cautious in his statement.

"Of course, if I use my first and second soul skills, I could easily achieve victory."

Jing Hongchen rolled his eyes.

At first, Su Yu spoke as if his abilities were like those of an average soul master.

Are those not still your own skills? Jing Hongchen thought, nodding in acknowledgment.

If the effect of a basic set of battle armor was as strong as Su Yu claimed, it was an undeniable success.

Even from the perspective of a typical soul master, the enhancement Su Yu experienced bordered on a level increase of nearly one and a half tiers! With Su Yu's capabilities, adding his first and second soul skills and domain, combined with his improved endurance, he could confront a Soul Emperor as a mere Soul Ancestor and emerge victorious.

But talk is cheap.

Su Yu would need to demonstrate his prowess in action.

"Grandfather, may I do the testing?"

Xiao Hongchen seemed particularly eager at the moment.

"Didn't I just fight a Soul Emperor to a draw recently? This would be a great chance to compare myself with Su Yu."

Two months ago, while Su Yu was off with Kong Deming in Lieyang Valley hunting a 100,000-year-old Scarlet Gold Bird, Xiao Hongchen had returned to Sun-Moon Hall ahead of schedule.

At that time, he'd boldly accepted a mission to pursue a Soul Emperor outside Sun-Moon. He indeed managed to hold his own in a solo battle against the Soul Emperor, and then, with the help of teammates, they successfully captured the opponent.

"Alright," Jing Hongchen agreed. Although he felt Xiao Hongchen's performance had a bit of exaggeration, he still acknowledged him as equivalent to a Soul Emperor. Su Yu also had no objections.

The two of them moved to the Sun-Moon Hall's training arena.

Inside Sun-Moon Hall, the soul engineers were all busy, but a few were curious when they noticed the group setting up for a duel.

"Isn't that Xiao Hongchen?"

"And the other guy is Su Yu, right? The one who took down seven opponents in a row during the recent Soul Dueling Tournament."

"Judging by their stance, are they about to fight?"

Originally, a few who planned to walk away paused to watch. Soul engineers at Sun-Moon Hall didn't usually care much for brawls, but when notable figures were involved, their interest was piqued.

Even with Hall Master Jing Hongchen present, some soul engineers were discreetly preparing to slack off and watch the show.

"Su Yu's still a Soul Ancestor, right?"

"I heard Xiao Hongchen led a team to hunt down a Soul Emperor two months ago."

"Not quite. That Soul Emperor was dealing with close-quarters combat and was already surrounded by multiple people. Plus, he was trying to escape and ended up getting locked onto by Xiao Hongchen's soul cannon, which left him no way out. With that distance created, Xiao Hongchen's cannon kept him suppressed the whole time."

Finally, someone who had been on Xiao Hongchen's team shared some details, revealing how things actually went.

"Still, Xiao Hongchen's soul cannon is outrageous—both in power and sheer quantity."

"So, Su Yu is actually going up against him?"

"Don't underestimate Su Yu. He's the fierce one who defeated seven opponents in a row during the Soul Dueling Tournament. And five of those opponents were Soul Kings! He just might give Xiao Hongchen a real challenge."

What these soul engineers didn't mention was a key point: this duel was happening on a stage.

A soul engineer's true power shines best on a battlefield—at least in a free-combat setting, like when Xiao Hongchen was chasing down the Soul Emperor. In the confined space of a stage, a soul engineer's abilities are significantly limited.

Su Yu, although also a skilled soul engineer, seemed more combat-oriented and wasn't the type to rely on heavy soul cannons. Considering this, with Xiao Hongchen's power reduced on the stage and Su Yu's skills better suited to close combat, they figured Su Yu stood a good chance against him.

"Su Yu, let's begin!"

Su Yu nodded, retrieving his battle armor directly from his storage soul tool.

Fourteen shimmering beams of light appeared, swirling around him as each piece quickly found its position and attached itself.

The battle armor fused.

The silver-white armor, with hints of purple patterns, wrapped around Su Yu, giving him an impressive and formidable look.

"Is that a soul tool armor?"

"A complete set of soul tool armor."

"It looks like Grade Five soul tools."

Jing Hongchen didn't dismiss the onlooking soul engineers. Nor did he mind their slacking off to watch the duel.

The battle armor would eventually be made public, so he felt it necessary to give Sun-Moon Hall's soul engineers an early preview.

The existence of battle armor could mean fundamental shifts in the structure of both soul masters and soul engineers.

Sun-Moon Hall needed to start planning ahead.

Such a transformation couldn't be accomplished overnight. Ideally, the change in mindset would begin within the next three to five years, followed by real structural reforms in the next three to five, and then, in another three to five years, a true era of development would dawn, ushering in a time of unprecedented brilliance!

(End of Chapter)