Douluo Dragon King: I, Huo Linfei, the Mecha Illusionary Lin God

"Alright." Mang Tian glanced at the sky outside the window. "That's enough for today. You two, come on time after school tomorrow. I'll start teaching you from the very basics."

"Yes, teacher!" the two children replied in unison.

It was completely dark when I left the studio. The stars twinkled in the night sky, and the sea breeze carried a salty, damp scent.

Tang Wulin held the fifteen-pound forging hammer that Mang Tian had given him. It was a gift from his teacher, who told him to take it home every day to practice swinging it in the air.

Huo Linfei carried the piece of thousand-refined red copper in his pocket; the metal radiated a warm, gentle heat, as if it were breathing.

"Big brother," Tang Wulin suddenly spoke, "Do you really think mechs are more powerful than battle armor?"

Huo Linfei stopped and turned to look at Tang Wulin. In the night, his emerald green eyes shone like stars.

"Second brother, do you believe me?"

"letter!"

"Then remember what I said today." Huo Linfei said each word clearly, "One day, I will build a mecha. A mecha that can fly and burrow underground, that can destroy the heavens and the earth, a mecha that all Battle Armor Masters will look up to. I've already thought of its name—"

He looked up at the starry sky, as if he could see through the night and reach his comrades in another world.

"Huanlin God."

Tang Wulin looked at his elder brother's profile, at the unprecedented seriousness and longing on his face. He nodded vigorously, "Yes! I believe in you, brother!"

"And what about you?" Huo Linfei asked, "What kind of battle armor do you want to make?"

Tang Wulin thought for a moment and shook his head: "I don't know... but I want to become stronger, strong enough to protect my parents, my older brother, and my third sister."

Huo Linfei smiled and ruffled Tang Wulin's blue hair: "Then let's get stronger together."

The two children disappeared into the night.

In the studio, Mang Tian stood by the window, watching the direction they had gone.

He held the piece of red copper that Huo Linfei had forged in his hand. After Huo Linfei left during the day, he studied it carefully again. The more he studied it, the more alarmed he became.

The texture is perfect, full of spirit, and of the highest quality ever achieved.

And this was only the first forging, using only the most common red copper. If better materials were used, if there were more systematic training…

Mang Tian shook his head and put the red copper back on the worktable.

He picked up the iron ingot that Tang Wulin used for practice. A thousand strikes, all concentrated within a square centimeter—this precision, this perseverance, was equally terrifying.

"Two monsters..." Mang Tian muttered to himself, "One crushes with talent, the other grinds with sheer willpower. If only they could complement each other..."

He remembered the mecha that Huo Linfei had mentioned, and the light in the child's eyes.

Battle armor is the mainstream choice; this has been a consensus on the continent for thousands of years. But... is there really no other possibility?

Mang Tian didn't know.

But he knew that from this day forward, his peaceful forging career would be completely disrupted by these two boys.

"Very well." Mang Tian suddenly laughed. "I've taught disciples my whole life, but I've never taught such a prodigy. Let's see how far you can go."

Outside the window, waves crashed against the rocks.

A new era may be quietly unfolding amidst the sound of these waves.

……

Three years can change a lot of things.

For example, the height of Huo Linfei and Tang Wulin. Nine-year-old Huo Linfei had already grown to 1.5 meters tall, his red spiky hair was still as flamboyant as ever, and his emerald green eyes looked like two pieces of jade in the sunlight.

Tang Wulin had also grown quite a bit taller. Although he was half a head shorter than Huo Linfei, he was much more sturdy.

For example, the family's financial situation. Ever since the two boys started learning forging from Mang Tian, ​​the family has never had to worry about money again.

The most obvious change is that there will no longer be questions about "whether there is enough food" at the dinner table.

"Third Sister, another bowl!" Huo Linfei handed the empty bowl to Na'er.

Na'er took the bowl, smiled, and said, "Big brother, this is your fifth bowl already."

"I'm growing!" Huo Linfei said matter-of-factly. "My godmother's braised pork is a dish I wouldn't be worthy of if I didn't eat at least five bowls!"

Tang Wulin, head down, shoveled rice into his mouth and mumbled, "Third Sister... I want some too..."

Lang Yue couldn't stop smiling as she watched the three children wolf down their food. Tang Ziran shook her head, but her eyes were full of satisfaction.

Na'er served her two older brothers rice and then filled her own bowl again.

She has now fully integrated into the family. Her long silver hair is tied in a ponytail, and her purple eyes have lost their initial confusion, replaced by a warm light.

Sometimes she wondered, she was clearly an incarnation of the Silver Dragon King, sent to observe the Golden Dragon King's vessel. How did she end up... the third sister of this family?

But she didn't hate the feeling.

"By the way, big brother."

Tang Wulin suddenly remembered something, "Teacher Mang said there's a metal trade fair in Donghai City next month, and asked if we'd be interested in going to check it out."

Huo Linfei's eyes lit up: "Go! Of course I'll go! I've heard that Donghai City has a lot of rare metals, and I've been wanting to see them for a long time."

"But..." Tang Wulin hesitated, "Are our forging skills good enough to qualify?"

"We'll know if it's enough or not until we get there," Huo Linfei grinned.

"Enemies facing me either flee in terror or suffer a crushing defeat! The trade fair is the same; how will you know it won't work if you don't try?"

Na'er chuckled, "Big brother, your catchphrase doesn't seem out of place anywhere."

"That's right!" Huo Linfei proudly raised his chin.

After finishing his meal, Huo Linfei said he was going for a walk to digest his food and went out alone.

Instead of taking his usual route, he turned into the abandoned park in the east of the city.

This place is rarely visited; it's overgrown with weeds, and the few streetlights are broken, making it pitch black at night.

Huo Linfei walked to the open space in the center of the park, looked around, and made sure no one was there.

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

The superpower lock on his wrist was slightly warm; in three years, it had become completely integrated with him. He could feel the dormant power within it—not just soul power, but also a more fundamental energy from the Super Beast Universe.

"The Illusionary Qilin God..." Huo Linfei murmured.

Having been in this world for six years, he has already figured out how to use the power lock.

He has mastered his first soul skill, "Armed," increasing its duration from ten minutes to half an hour. He has also developed his second soul skill, "Qilin Impact," a short-range burst attack.

But the most core, the most crucial.

"Super Beast Armament." Huo Linfei opened his eyes, his gaze sharp. "Summon the Illusionary Lin God!"

He knelt on one knee, pressed his left hand to the ground, and his superpower lock burst forth with a blinding red light.

His soul power surged forth, condensing into a blurry phantom behind him. It was the outline of a mechanical Qilin, its entire body crimson, with sharp lines, exuding a terrifying pressure.

But the phantom only lasted for three seconds.

With a "pop," like a soap bubble bursting, the illusory image vanished.

Huo Linfei stood up, panting, and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

It failed again.

Over the past three years, he has tried countless times. Sometimes the phantom could last for five seconds, sometimes three seconds, and the longest was ten seconds, but he just couldn't solidify it completely and truly summon the Phantom God.

"Not enough soul power..." Huo Linfei clenched his fist.

He could sense that summoning the Phantom Qilin God required an astronomical amount of soul power. With his current level 26 soul power, he couldn't even reach one percent of that.

"Three rings," Huo Linfei murmured. "At least three rings are needed to become a Soul Master for any chance of success."

Moreover, it has to be a high-quality spirit ring. His first spirit ring is a hundred-year ring, and if the second spirit ring is also a hundred-year ring, it probably won't be enough. Ideally, it should be a thousand-year ring... or even ten thousand-year ring.

The road ahead is still long.

But Huo Linfei was not discouraged. He looked up at the night sky, his emerald green eyes burning with flames.

"Just wait," he said. "One day, I will bring you back to life, Phantom God."