[Speaking of which...]

Master Zero glanced at the Soul Carved Gloves of the middle-aged man with black eyes and a white complexion, sighed with some emotion.

[According to the rules of this trade, Soul Sculptors don't need to prepare "materials," as clients usually provide the Souls themselves. Also, Soul Sculptors are not required to guarantee the success rate of the carving. Even if the forging fails and the materials are destroyed, wasting money, the client simply accepts their misfortune and doesn't trouble the Soul Sculptor.]

[You might think that commanding others is a troublesome thing, but those Apprentice Death Gods don't see it that way. Even under such harsh conditions, knowing that their materials and money might go to waste, they still scramble to honor the Soul Sculptors, willing to fight for them.]

[In this scenario, do you think the status of Soul Sculptors is not high? Can they not be popular?]

Listening to Master Zero's rant, Yun You's gaze gradually turned fervent.

If things really were as Master Zero said, the social status of Soul Sculptors is indeed astounding.

Because they are the ones who truly hold the "monopoly."

Anything associated with the word monopoly is profitable.

From essentials like rice, oil, and salt, to military Prosthetic Bodies, as long as one can monopolize any part of the production process or technology, even if only for a few days or months, or if the monopoly is limited to just one city, one can make substantial money.

Take the current overlord of Nest City No. 3—Biotechnology, for example. It prospered just because it temporarily monopolized several cold medicines in the 90s.

However, the monopoly of the Soul Sculptor is more exaggerated than that of these giant corporations.

They not only achieve complete monopoly in "Soul Carving technology," but also entirely eliminate the possibility of outsiders cracking it.

As the saying goes, customers are the Gods of all consumer products and companies. Customers can do without products, but products need customers to purchase them.

But when it comes to Soul Sculptors, this saying turns entirely upside down.

Creating Soul Carvings is often just a hobby or a tool to expand social connections and earn favors for this special group, not something they must do.

Yet every Warrior hopes to have a Soul Carving of their own.

The normal supply and demand relationship in the market is reversed here.

This is the fundamental reason why Soul Sculptors have such a high status.

"Speaking of which..."

The middle-aged man with black eyes and a white complexion, who had been pressed down until half dead, finally couldn't hold back any longer. Trembling, he asked, "Lord Death God, I've said everything I needed to. I don't know if you can be merciful... and spare me..."

"Although this matter is my fault, from the outcome, I haven't actually harmed your interests... I believe Lord Death God is willing to be reasonable. Whatever compensation you want, feel free to ask."

"As long as it's within my means, I promise not to say a word, pay what's due, and disappear. I definitely won't disturb you again!"

Perhaps used to bargaining, even at this moment, the middle-aged man with black eyes and a white complexion still naively believed that he could cleanse himself of his sins as long as he paid enough money.

Yun You ignored him and continued talking to Master Zero in her mind.

"Does this guy have any value left? Like maybe we could learn more about Soul Sculptors' training techniques, see how to get into this line of work."

[Probably not, to my knowledge, there aren't any special techniques for Soul Sculptors. When you have the Talent to become one and first come into contact with a complete Soul, the desire and method to forge it will directly appear in your mind. Just follow the steps then.]

[As for this guy... if you really want to use him, you could take all his money, then capture him, keep him in the basement as a forging slave, and have him constantly produce Soul Carvings for you.]

[But I wouldn't recommend doing that. The social circle of Soul Sculptors is quite complex and might include a few influential friends. If you kill him outright, it's better, as everyone is a respectable Apprentice Death God, and they wouldn't hold a grudge over a dead man...]

[However, if you rob his assets and enslave him, it might invite unnecessary trouble.]

"Makes sense."

Yun You nodded thoughtfully, then with a small hand gesture—

"Crack..."

The middle-aged man's neck was snapped.

He looked at Yun You in disbelief, unable to comprehend why the little girl wanted to kill him, or why she did it so decisively...

After all, he was a noble Soul Sculptor! Even Apprentice Death Gods needed to show a certain amount of reverence towards him!

If he could continue to grow, one day, he would create Soul Carvings that would shock even giant enterprises! He would become a figure who stood at the pinnacle of Nest City, commanding the winds and rains, even though he wasn't an Apprentice Death God himself...

In his final moments, he regretted refusing the help of another Apprentice Death God, insisting on collecting Souls alone in the lower levels just to save on a hefty "guard fee."

He wondered if, had that Death God friend been here, he might have survived and captured Yun You, turning the girl into a beautiful Soul Carving...

But he clearly forgot one thing.

An ordinary person with the Talent for Soul Carving holds significant value, enough for an Apprentice Death God to attack another risking repercussions.

But if the attacked Death God also possessed the Talent for Soul Carving, the situation would be entirely different.

The value of a Death God Soul Sculptor is always higher than that of an ordinary Soul Sculptor.

The two are not on the same level in terms of potential or influence...

The moment he decided to attack Yun You, his fate was sealed.

"Gurgle..."

The middle-aged man's head tilted, and he passed away.

[Nicely done, Yunny.]

Master Zero nodded approvingly with a smile.

[It seems you've finally grasped the meaning of "monopoly."]

[From a macro-social perspective, having more Soul Sculptors is naturally better; it benefits all Warriors.]

[But we are not that magnanimous nor selfless. From our perspective, the fewer Soul Sculptors, the better, as that would increase your value exponentially.]

[If you could eliminate all other Soul Sculptors, leaving only yourself, then each of your Soul Carvings would become priceless treasures! Your influence might even surpass that of the entire Supreme Council!]

"Oh dear, eliminate everyone else...? Do I really look that violent? That's a bit much..."

The little girl shook her head and murmured, "I'm just reasonably taking revenge on my enemy, nothing like a perverted butcher."

[...]

Master Zero bared his teeth before, after a while, spitting out two words.

[Hard to say]

Yun You shrugged, not rebutting further.

"Speaking of which..."

The girl shook the lifeless middle-aged man in her hand, casually complaining, "This guy didn't even drop a complete Soul, or even a Soul Stone. How weak."

"And his Soul Carved Gloves too, shattering as soon as he died, can't even be recycled."

"Great, now there's no suitable Soul to work with... Looks like I'll have to slowly find more Souls in the future."

[Not necessarily.]

Master Zero smiled and gestured with Red Scale Claws, pointing to Yun You's left palm.

[Yunny, did you know?]

[In fact... there's always been a powerful Soul residing in your palm.]

[It's the noble Soul of a "King."]

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.