Tang San Heads to the Blacksmith Shop

Tang San had only just arrived at Nuoding Academy and eaten a full meal when Yu Xiaogang took him away from Nuoding City, leaving his body without even a chance to recover properly.

Lying on a bed in the infirmary now, his eyes burned with desire for strength, while his hatred for Lin Xuan had reached an unprecedented peak.

"He's just a native. With such low Innate Soul Power, he should have kept his head down. What right did he have to possess the talent of Innate Divine Strength?"

Tang San fumed inwardly.

He never believed he had truly lost—Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, Controlling Crane Capturing Dragon, and the hidden weapons he had kept in reserve, his true killing moves; he had not even had the chance to use them.

"Teacher, I'll definitely cultivate diligently! I was careless this time and failed to dodge. I won't let him be so arrogant again next time!"

Tang San clenched his fists, his tone firm.

Yu Xiaogang stroked his head, his voice gentle yet carrying a hint of subtle guidance.

"All right, Xiao San. Rather than dwelling on a temporary victory or defeat, you should spend your time cultivating. The gap between you and him is like a vast chasm. This defeat should not become your burden; it should become your motivation."

He was telling the truth, but the direction of that chasm was completely opposite to what he implied.

Tang San was filled with fervor by this bowl of chicken soup, and light reignited in his eyes.

He had never feared setbacks. Setbacks would only make him stronger. But his pride would not allow him to lose to a "native," especially not so easily.

For himself, and for the Tang Sect in his heart, he had to reclaim his dignity as soon as possible.

After calming down, Tang San began reviewing the battle.

Lin Xuan's Innate Divine Strength, combined with running techniques honed over many years, gave him terrifying instantaneous explosive power, making his short-distance movement speed astonishingly fast.

Even though his Purple Demon Eye could capture the trajectory, his body simply could not react in time.

Conventional skills could hardly be effective against such absolute speed for the moment.

If he wanted to defeat Lin Xuan, he would have to rely on hidden weapons—create distance, use the Purple Demon Eye to predict his attack trajectory, then kill with hidden weapons.

After all, speed that relied on explosive power might be fast, but it had one fatal weakness: it was difficult to flexibly adjust one's direction of movement.

This was his only way of defeating Lin Xuan in the short term.

Though he verbally agreed to Yu Xiaogang's request that he focus on cultivation, Tang San's feet headed in another direction.

He would never wait step by step for his Soul Power to surpass Lin Xuan's. He wanted to forge hidden weapons as soon as possible and take revenge in the most direct way possible.

"Very good. This is a cultivation method I developed. It is vastly different from the continent's conventional Meditation Methods and can greatly increase a Soul Master's cultivation speed. Take it and study it carefully. Strive to break through Level 20 as soon as possible."

Yu Xiaogang took a yellowed book from the bookshelf. When he handed it to Tang San, his face was full of pride, as though this were the pinnacle work into which he had poured his heart and soul.

In reality, however, this book was a hereditary cultivation skill of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.

Although Douluo Continent already had similar skills at this time, they circulated only among a few ancient families. The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's version was already among the finest—relatively speaking, at least.

This skill could at most support cultivation up to the Soul Grandmaster realm. It was not even worthy of comparison with the second level of the Mysterious Heaven Skill.

By martial arts skill standards, the Mysterious Heaven Skill was comparable to an Innate Level Skill, while this one was at best mediocre, even deserving to be called "trash among trash."

Even so, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan regarded it as a priceless treasure.

The cultivation skill Lin Xuan was currently practicing had only barely reached the third-rate level, showing just how impoverished Douluo Continent's cultivation system was at this time.

Tang San accepted the book, and a worshipful expression immediately appeared on his face.

"Thank you, Teacher. I will definitely cultivate diligently and live up to your expectations!" His expression was solemn, as though he had received the most precious secret manual in the world.

Yu Xiaogang nodded in satisfaction. As he escorted Tang San out, he did not forget to add another remark.

"This battle between you and Lin Xuan has shown me your shortcomings clearly. I'll think of a way to help you make up for them as soon as possible. Just cultivate with peace of mind."

"Teacher, please take care of your health too!" The moment Tang San heard the words "make up for your shortcomings," his eyes lit up, and he retreated with a heart full of gratitude.

Yu Xiaogang watched his back view, a self-satisfied smile curling at his lips.

Though his own strength was lacking, he could still make a genius with Innate Full Soul Power admire him so deeply. Was that not a kind of ability in itself?

After leaving the infirmary, Tang San hurried toward the dormitory and impatiently opened the cultivation manual along the way.

Although he had only studied under Yu Xiaogang for a few days, he had already gained a rough understanding of Douluo Continent's cultivation system—most Soul Masters on the continent now passively absorbed Soul Power through Meditation Methods.

Yet the Meditation Method Yu Xiaogang had given him actually involved a small amount of knowledge about circulating energy through the meridians. In Tang San's eyes, this was practically a groundbreaking innovation.

He became even more convinced that his Teacher was a great master who would usher in a new era. Being accepted as his disciple was the fortune of three lifetimes.

But that admiration did not make him lose his reason.

At a glance, he saw through the limitations of this skill—it could at most raise cultivation speed to the level of two grades of Innate Soul Power. Compared with his Mysterious Heaven Skill, the difference was like heaven and earth.

The Mysterious Heaven Skill could support someone's cultivation all the way to Titled Douluo, and could even produce batches of geniuses with Innate Full Soul Power.

As for himself, if not for the Mysterious Heaven Skill, his true talent might not even have reached one grade, much less allowed him to become a Soul Master with Innate Full Soul Power.

Precisely because he knew how precious the Mysterious Heaven Skill was, he had prepared to keep it secret from the very beginning.

This core cultivation skill of the Tang Sect was his greatest trump card. He absolutely could not expose it to anyone.

"Lin Xuan, did you think defeating me today meant it was over?" Tang San closed the book, a cold glint flashing through his eyes.

"You haven't seen my true strength yet. Once I forge my hidden weapons, you'll pay for this!"

He did not return to the dormitory to cultivate Soul Power as Yu Xiaogang had planned.

Instead, he turned and changed direction, running toward the school gates—he was going to the Blacksmith Shop to forge hidden weapons himself.

After becoming a Soul Master, he could receive one Gold Soul Coin from Spirit Hall each month. Together with the one Gold Soul Coin Yu Xiaogang had given him as a fee for becoming his disciple, he had two Gold Soul Coins coming in every month, so he was already financially comfortable.

But the crafting methods for hidden weapons were core secrets of the Tang Sect. He would not trust even a small component to an outsider. He had to make everything himself to ensure nothing could go wrong.

Along the way, many students saw Tang San hurrying off and glanced sideways. He had been defeated only that morning, yet he was already lively and energetic again. Tang San's vitality was rather impressive.

Nuoding City's streets bustled with people, and Tang San wove through the crowd, his gaze growing ever firmer.

He knew that once he entered the Blacksmith Shop, endless days and nights of forging and trial and error awaited him.

But for revenge, and to reclaim the glory that belonged to him, all of it was worth it.

He drew closer and closer to the Blacksmith Shop.

There was only one thought in his heart: forge the strongest hidden weapons as soon as possible and make Lin Xuan pay for today's arrogance.