2 Troubles of an Apathetic Son

"Not particularly." Wulin replied simply, his focus on his now empty plate. He was going to need to increase the funds allocated to his outings, he wasn't anywhere near full.

"Haa." His parents let out a sigh at the same time causing him to tilt his head in confusion. Was his reaction wrong? He believed that he wouldn't have to act around them based on their personalities but it seems that may have been wrong.

He wasn't particularly 'excited' about the event though he wouldn't know even if he was, but rather he was intending to use it. He had his martial soul awakened from the moment the Golden Dragon King was put inside of him now but he had only managed to reach level 16 from his starting point of 10.

That was because the meditation techniques from his past life were not good enough compared to those in this world that had thousands of years to grow in efficiency. Ah yes, he had been reincarnated. It didn't matter all that much though.

Regardless, he was intending to use this chance to learn a better technique to further improve himself. Perhaps, by that logic, he was 'excited' or 'looking forward to' the ceremony?

"Well, let's get a move on. Mang Tian still wants to see you afterward." Tang Ziran said sadly. He loved his son, but he was worried for him. Tang Wulin always seemed so robotic, like a machine growing for the sake of growing rather than his own desires and self satisfaction.

When they had praised Wulin for reading all the books in the house he was confused why they were doing so. He truly thought it was something to be expected from him. Wulin always held himself to ridiculous standards yet never expected anything of others.

If they told him that they wouldn't feed him anymore he would accept it without an issue and begin planning, or maybe he already had, how to feed himself without their help. Not that they'd ever do that.

"Have fun you two!" Lang Yue said happily, tears in the corner of her eyes as she sent them off. Nodding his head at her, Tang Wulin didn't understand why she was crying. Crying was supposed to be an action done by the body in moments of extreme emotions, generally negative, so why would she be crying?

'Emotions are strange.' Wulin thought to himself, his crimson eyes somehow struggling to look away from her for some reason he couldn't understand. He knew the definitions of emotions but he couldn't comprehend them, they were just so foreign to him. It was similar to a person who has never done drugs trying to imagine it, vague at best.

"So what martial soul do you think you'll get?" Tang Ziran asked as they walked, breaking the strange silence since it made him uncomfortable. Wulin on the other hand had no thoughts about it. He was simply following his predetermined path without a single thought at all.

"A dragon." Tang Wulin said simply, no emotion in his voice as per usual. Specifically, it was the dragon king of strength, chaos, and madness but there was no point in going into needless details.

"Is that so?" Tang Ziran said, a wide smile on his face. It was the first time his son had ever had a hopeful assumption rather than an educated guess and needless to say, he was excited!

'Why is he smiling?' Wulin asked himself, looking at his father from the corner of his crimson eye. He hadn't made a hopeful assumption, he had told his father the actual and undoubtable truth yet his father was smiling at him. Perhaps it's pride? That would be strange as well but not impossible.

Eventually, they arrived at the location of the ceremony, the local Spirit Pagoda branch. It was a large building and easily the most famous in the city but it wasn't all that impressive all things considered. That was because it was a small branch though.

"I'll go stand with their other parents so you have fun alright?" Tang Ziran spoke happily, his smile hardly dimmed by the long walk. Once he left Tang Wulin stood still, looking forward without any emotions in his crimson eyes or handsome face. He barely even blinked creating a strange and uncanny appearance.

According to his schedule, he'd be here for two hours and twenty seven minutes so he had quite the wait ahead of him. Luckily he had patience in spades, he had no problem standing still and doing nothing for over two hours.

However the same couldn't be said for those around him. They all looked at him strangely, both parents and children, as he stood still for over two hours. It was strange and if it weren't for his occasional blinks they'd think he was a handsome statue.

In that timeframe many children left the venue, some with smiles and most bawling their eyes out. Very few of them would manage to be a soul master and even those that had soul power may not be able to because of their martial souls being of low quality.

"Tang Wulin!" The announcer shouted just like he had done dozens of times in the last two hours and for the first time the crimson haired statue moved forward, walking into the Spirit Pagoda accompanied by the gasps of those who thought he was a lifelike statue.

Walking through the halls under the guidance of one of the staff neither spoke to the other, instead Tang Wulin examined every inch of the building that he could see. Finding ways to cultivate didn't always have to be obvious, rather it could be surprisingly hidden.

Simply comparing the atmosphere inside compared to the outside revealed that something was happening to make the natural energies more soothing and he needed to figure that out.

Not only that, but he planned to compare the soul power of his parents to that of the soul master working here as there should be distinct differences between the two due to a difference in intended effect.

His parents created machinery so their energies were soft and easily malleable however those traces wouldn't be ideal for a fighter so it should be different. A fight can't be soft, it would need power and a certain degree of rigidity would be necessary for that power.

That's why he intended to not only attempt to discover the secret behind the strange atmosphere but also compare and contrast the energies of a fighter and a creator to reverse engineer and replicate it.

"Tang Wulin, right? Come, stand in the middle there." The purple haired man who would be 'awakening' him said seriously, his tone purely professional, unlike his whimsical and strange coworker.

"Mhm." Humming in response Tang Wulin stood in the middle of the circle, his eyes memorizing its shape instantly for further testing. It most likely wasn't the source of the atmosphere but it would most likely assist in discovering it,

"Then I shall begin." The serious man seriously, pressing his hand on a small metal pad.