Weak and Powerless

"Next group, Tang San versus Xiao Wu."

Hearing the teacher call their names, the two quickly entered the ring.

"Once you're ready, begin on your own." With that, the teacher stepped aside.

Tang San and Xiao Wu were the academy's only two Soul Masters with Innate Full Soul Power. Yet neither showed any desire to improve; instead, they skipped classes, bullied their classmates, and talked back to teachers. If they had behaved even a little more normally, the academy would surely have recorded their names in its history.

"Third Brother, I'm starting." Xiao Wu gave a sly smile.

"Come on." Tang San took his stance, and his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul instantly appeared in his palm.

"Third Brother, watch out."

As soon as she spoke, Xiao Wu leaped into the air, her right leg smashing heavily toward Tang San.

"Xiao Wu, you're the one who should be careful."

Tang San smiled faintly as his First Soul Ring lit up.

"First Soul Skill, Entanglement."

Blue Silver Grass burst from the ground and swiftly wrapped around Xiao Wu's body.

Normally, Xiao Wu would have had to put in some effort to break free from the Blue Silver Grass's restraints.

Yet for some reason today, she merely exerted a little strength, and the Blue Silver Grass snapped apart like a taut bowstring, shattering into several pieces.

Tang San was shocked. "How is that possible? How did Xiao Wu become so strong?!"

Watching Xiao Wu draw closer and closer, Tang San hurriedly retreated. The Second Soul Ring beneath his feet lit up as well.

"Second Soul Skill, Parasitism."

Though the original Blue Silver Grass had been snapped, it had left spores on Xiao Wu's body.

As the Soul Ring activated, those spores grew at breakneck speed. In the blink of an eye, Xiao Wu was completely wrapped within them.

After finishing all that, Tang San could not help wiping the sweat from his forehead.

Perhaps it had been a while since he had experienced real combat. He actually felt far more pressure when facing Xiao Wu than before.

In the past, if she had been restrained like this, Xiao Wu might have simply given up.

But today, she felt Tang San was deliberately holding back. The Blue Silver Grass was nowhere near as tough as before.

"First Soul Skill, Waist Bow." As her Soul Ring lit up, Xiao Wu's strength increased considerably.

In an instant, she snapped Tang San's restraints.

"Xiao Wu, how is this possible?"

Before he could recover, Xiao Wu had already arrived at his side.

"Third Brother, look at me. Second Soul Skill, Charm."

Caught by Xiao Wu's Charm skill without any preparation, Tang San naturally lost all ability to resist.

"Xiao Wu wins," the referee teacher immediately announced.

Standing beside Han Yu, Ye Lingling could not help smiling at the sight. "Blue Silver Grass is indeed somewhat forced into the control path. It would be better suited to the healing path or an elemental path. At least then, its methods wouldn't be so limited."

Han Yu smiled slightly. "It seems you agree quite strongly with my theory?"

Ye Lingling nodded. "Healing-Type Soul Masters are the rarest on the continent, while Soul Masters with Blue Silver Grass Martial Souls are quite common. If there were more Healing-Type Soul Masters, then when plagues broke out, commoners would not suffer such devastating casualties."

Han Yu smiled and nodded.

That was precisely the original purpose behind his theory.

However, Tang San's Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul was effectively ruined now. More accurately, the Soul Rings he had attached were useless. If he switched to the healing path starting with his Third Soul Ring, he would definitely be more useful than he was now.

But Yu Xiaogang would probably never agree to that.

Not long after the match ended, Tang San regained consciousness.

"Third Brother, why were you holding back?"

"Xiao Wu, when did you become so strong?"

They both questioned each other at the same time.

"What?"

"Third Brother, you tell me first. What exactly happened? How did your Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul become so brittle?"

Tang San asked in confusion, "I wasn't holding back. I simply released my Soul Skills normally. Xiao Wu, wasn't your strength the thing that increased?"

Xiao Wu was not entirely sure either, so she tried lifting the stone in front of the Seventh Dorm.

"Third Brother, my strength hasn't changed. I still struggle to lift this stone."

Then the problem lay with Tang San's Martial Soul.

Tang San said nothing more. He hurriedly wrapped the stone with Blue Silver Grass.

With a slight pull, the Blue Silver Grass instantly snapped into several sections.

"How is this possible? Half a year ago, I could still pull this stone up."

Xiao Wu asked in confusion, "Little San, could there be something wrong with your Martial Soul? Why don't we ask Grandmaster? He might know."

Tang San had no better idea. Before long, they arrived at Yu Xiaogang's residence.

"Little San, what's wrong?" Yu Xiaogang's heart tightened, afraid that Tang San would ask questions he did not know how to answer.

"Teacher, my Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul..."

As he spoke, Tang San wrapped Xiao Wu in Blue Silver Grass.

Just as expected, Xiao Wu snapped the Blue Silver Grass apart once again.

"How is that possible? Little San, are you not in good condition?"

When one's soul power was insufficient or one was physically unwell, a Martial Soul's power would indeed decrease considerably.

Tang San denied it. "Teacher, my body is perfectly fine."

Suddenly, something occurred to him. He recalled that he had not suffered a mishap while training back then; he had been injured by Han Yu. If Han Yu had secretly done something, then everything made sense.

"Teacher, can someone else alter my Martial Soul?"

Yu Xiaogang shook his head. "That's impossible. A Martial Soul is innate. No one else can alter your Martial Soul."

Tang San froze. Then he had no idea why his Martial Soul had changed.

Ever since fighting Han Yu, he had not used his Martial Soul against anyone. Could it have happened then?

"Teacher, if it was fire, could it alter my Martial Soul?" Tang San asked again.

Remembering the flames Han Yu had released, Tang San still felt his heart palpitate even now.

Yu Xiaogang shook his head again. "Plant-type Martial Souls fear fire, but a powerful flame will not cause a Martial Soul to weaken on its own. Besides, your Martial Soul shows no signs of mutation. In that case, the cause is very likely within yourself. Last time, your cultivation went wrong. Could you still have hidden injuries inside your body?"

Tang San's Mysterious Heaven Skill was circulating smoothly within him. How could there be a problem with his meridians?

Yu Xiaogang stroked his chin. Even after racking his brains, he could not think of a similar case.

For any Soul Master, once their Martial Soul awakened, it was almost completely fixed. Unless it underwent a beneficial mutation for the better, malignant mutations were simply unheard of.

Even Yu Xiaogang's own Martial Soul had only mutated at the moment of awakening.

"Little San, I'll need to study this matter. After all, your situation should be the first case of its kind on the continent. Still, I think that once you obtain your Third Soul Ring, all these problems may resolve themselves."

"Once the assessment results are out, you and Xiao Wu should apply for early graduation. Go to Shrek Academy as soon as possible. The teachers there will help you obtain your Third Soul Ring."

"Teacher, I understand." Tang San nodded.

To him, his Martial Soul was merely an auxiliary means at most. His true combat power still relied on Tang Sect techniques and Hidden Weapons.

"Third Brother, don't worry too much. Grandmaster will find a solution," Xiao Wu comforted him.