Chapter 607: Second Piece of Battle Armor

Starlight twinkled in Ye Xinglan’s hands. She harnessed its power to work her craft upon the battle armor. 

Although Ye Xinglan’s battle armor missed the crucial circuit core to tie it all together, it was still on the verge of completion. Clad in her shining armor, she looked like a goddess incarnate, her vessel as vast as the sea of stars. 

Specks of starlight shone upon her battle armor and her Stargod Sword pulsed vibrantly, illuminating the entire room. Starlight flowed from her body onto the incomplete piece of battle armor, filling its engraved soul circuits, then traveled deeply into the soul circuits, expanding and connecting the network.

For mecha makers, researching the secrets of soul circuits proved a crucial. The more complex the circuit, the greater the difficulty to engrave it. 

Gu Yue had designed all of the battle armor with special care for its user, and especially so for Tang Wulin. 

Upon seeing the circuits grow clear on the armor’s surface, Tang Wulin he felt as if his blood were calling out in yearning for the armor. 

Compared to the time Ye Xinglan had crafted Tang Wulin’s first piece of battle armor, currently she proceeded in far more regular manner. Her soul power came out in a steady and solid stream, illustrating her perfect control over it despite the constant drain on her. Not one bit of it was wasted. Thanks to her own battle armor, her soul power was replenishing fairly quickly and the net loss was a mere trickle.

She’s made so much progress. I can’t be slacking now! With that, Tang Wulin resolved himself.

Time ticked on. The golden radiance of the battle armor upon the table grew in splendor until it spread through the whole piece. Unlike Tang Wulin’s forearm armor with its three blades, the upper armor that was connected to the pauldron was far sleeker and smoother. A complex web of engravings spanned its entire length, up to the attached pauldron. The pauldron itself protruded with three layers stacked atop each other, the outermost layer resembling scales. 

Tang Wulin’s battle style revolved around brute force and rampaging, so the pauldron’s design was meant to aid him with intense collisions. With this three-layered pauldron and his terrifying strength, a shoulder bash would demolish what it struck! 

The draconic look of the armor resonated with Tang Wulin. The scale-like rhombus sheets on the surface of the armor were all layered together neatly. It perfectly mimicked the look of his scales when he used Golden Dragon Body. 

“Get ready,” Ye Xinglan said, jolting Tang Wulin from his thoughts. His mind trembled and he watched, enraptured. 

Specks of starlight converged to form the core of the soul circuit. The next instant, a wave of energy lashed out following an explosion of light. 

Tang Wulin stepped forward to the table. With his left hand, he dug his nails into the skin around his right shoulder and upper arm until he drew red. Two streams of blood trickled down onto the armor. Not a moment later, the armor’s shine transformed into a shade of pure gold. 

He grabbed the armor. Poured in soul power and blood essence. Starlight blossomed around the back of his right hand, manifesting as his gauntlet. The soul circuits of the two pieces of armor connected and merged. The pauldron let out a cry as it flew into the air, then dived toward his shoulder. 

Tang Wulin’s bloody shoulder grew heavy as the pauldron landed on it in a perfect fit. It wrapped itself around his upper arm and shoulder in a swirl of movement, linking together with his gauntlet. Immediately, the two worked together in harmony. 

Blood essence and soul power roared within Tang Wulin. The piece of battle armor was complete now. Now linked with his blood, soul power flooded into it, connecting every node within the armor. 

As Tang Wulin’s body harmonized with the new piece of battle armor, his scales shone with increased intensity. 

Ye Xinglan stood to the side, watching as Tang Wulin equipped his right arm fully with battle armor. She nodded in satisfaction. The process proved successful and now Tang Wulin’s aura was even stronger. 

When Ye Xinglan had first met Tang Wulin, she regarded him as beneath her, not even worth sparing a glance. Having come from Shrek Academy, she had held the mind set that only the greatest of geniuses were worthy of her attention. However, when they met again later, his tenacity and tireless efforts left a deep impression on her. The scene of him recklessly sacrificing himself to protect his comrades was seared into her memory most of all. A comrade, no, a friend like this was absolutely worthy of trust. 

He was someone she could trust her back to. 

The golden light around Tang Wulin gradually dimmed. He flexed his arm and moved it around a bit, a huge grin on his face. He could feel explosive power bursting within his arms. He opened his hand and transformed it into a claw. The claw perfectly fit into the armor and transformed into a weapon of slaughter. Without Tang Wulin even urging his soul power, a faint golden edge stretched out three inches from his claw. 

It was due to the keen edge of his golden dragon claw that Tang Wulin had been able to defeat Ling Wuxie. Without it, he wouldn’t have been able to create such deep gashes in Ling Wuxie’s battle armor. The dragon claw’s crushing effect was growing stronger along with him. 

He shifted his gaze to his left hand. Pondered. With the current number of Golden Dragon King seals he had broken, his right arm, shoulders, and chest would be covered in golden scales. If he broke more seals, then the transformation would likely extend to his left arm as well. When that happened, his left hand would probably be able to transform into a claw like his right. Once he gained a second claw, his strength would increase by leaps and bounds. 

If he desired, he could break the fifth seal right now. But he wanted to delay doing that and buy himself more time for the later seals. 

However, now that he had gained another piece of battle armor, Tang Wulin’s thirst for power reappeared. He couldn’t help but feel tempted to break the fifth seal immediately.

“How do you feel?” Ye Xinglan asked.

Tang Wulin smiled. “Amazing! It’s perfect!” 

The starlight faded from the room as the battle armor melted into Tang Wulin’s body, settling into his right shoulder. The greatest benefit of using spirit alloys to craft one-word battle armor was that, as long as its foundation was strong, it could be upgraded into two-word battle armor in the future. Furthermore, he wouldn’t have to store it in a storage soul device. With it fused into his body, he could equip it and unequip it in an instant. 

“Xinglan, thank you. I’m going to go then,” Tang Wulin said.

“Wulin, is Gu Yue alright?”

Tang Wulin was taken aback by her words, staring blankly at Ye Xinglan for a moment. “Huh? Do you know something I don’t?”

Ye Xinglan furrowed her brow. “It looks to me that she’s been in a bad mood lately. I often see her staring blankly into the air. I have no idea what’s going on in her mind. Maybe she’s having regrets about joining the Spirit Pagoda since she can’t become one of the Shrek Seven Monsters now? When you’re not busy, spend some time with her. We can all tell she treats you specially.” 

“Okay.” Tang Wulin nodded. A soft sigh escaped his lips. “I don’t know what she’s thinking either. But she promised me that she’ll at least enter the inner court with us. Really though, so what if she’s part of the Spirit Pagoda? We still need to graduate together. Afterward, no matter where we end up, as long as we remember our bonds of friendship, the years we spent growing up together, then nothing else matters! Soul technology is so advanced nowadays anyway. We’ll easily be able to call and visit each other. Don’t worry. I’ll talk with her and straighten her out.”

“That’s good then.” Ye Xinglan nodded. “What about you then? What are your plans for the future? Are you going to stay at Shrek forever?”