Price Hike Xuan

Tang San himself could not explain why, whenever he faced Lin Xuan, he always had a strong premonition that Lin Xuan would become his greatest rival, as though something important would be taken from him.

This inexplicable hostility had lingered ever since the day Lin Xuan awakened his martial soul, making Tang San desperate to suppress him.

He trusted his sixth sense. So, after bringing his Physical Fitness back to its peak, he once again blocked Lin Xuan's path.

"Are you sick, Tang San?! All you ever think about is fighting! Are you here to study or to fight? You want to fight, huh? Want Sister Xiao Wu to play with you?"

The sight of Tang San made Xiao Wu furious. This guy kept picking fights with Lin Xuan every few days. He had only behaved himself for a month before coming out to provoke him again. It was simply too much.

By now, she had subconsciously begun treating Lin Xuan as family. Whenever she went shopping, she always remembered to bring him something, so naturally, she would not allow anyone to bully him.

Wang Sheng and the others quickly surrounded them as well, each cracking their knuckles. If Tang San dared say another word, they would immediately swarm him.

Tang San warily took a Step Back. He was confident he could defeat any one of them, but being surrounded by more than a dozen people would inevitably put him at a disadvantage. He had come to challenge Lin Xuan one-on-one, not because he was stupid enough to start a brawl.

"Lin Xuan, what do you mean by this? Do you dare fight me?"

Unable to break through the crowd, Tang San could only shout at Lin Xuan.

"Are you that free?" Lin Xuan shook his head and refused.

"I don't have time to play house with you. My time is precious."

He truly could not understand why Tang San was so obsessed with surpassing him. They clearly had no deep grudge against each other.

"What? You don't dare?"

Tang San frowned. He had not expected Lin Xuan to be so cautious. If it had been any other child, they would probably have been provoked into charging at him already.

"It's not that I don't dare. You just have to pay more!"

Lin Xuan stroked his chin and spoke with complete seriousness.

He

had handed the academy-assigned cleaning area over to Wang Sheng and the others together with Xiao Wu, and they had split the Silver Soul Coins among them.

Xiao Wu had a Gold Soul Coin from Spirit Hall every month to make a living, while he could earn three Silver Soul Coins from blacksmithing. It was enough for food, but if he wanted to eat well, money became rather tight.

He had been relying on Xiao Wu to bring him treats these days, and he was starting to feel embarrassed about it. He had been looking for an opportunity to make some quick money.

"What do you mean?"

Tang San's brow furrowed tightly. He instantly felt that his wallet was under threat—last time, it had only been five Silver Soul Coins.

"I need to cultivate. Wasting time sparring with you isn't worth it, and now that your condition has improved, fighting you is more troublesome too. Of course I need to charge more."

Lin Xuan's tone was matter-of-fact.

"Time is life, life is money, so time equals money.

"If you want to spar now, that's fine. One Gold Soul Coin per match. Win or lose, the Gold Soul Coin is mine."

It was not that he looked down on Tang San. Over the past month, Tang San's Physical Fitness had improved, but Lin Xuan's own strength had also been steadily growing. He made small gains almost every day, and with his coordination improving more and more, he was much stronger than he had been a month ago. He was still confident he could defeat Tang San.

"You've gone crazy from wanting money!"

Tang San sucked in a breath, his eyes full of disbelief. One Gold Soul Coin was equivalent to three months' worth of food for an ordinary family of three—and that was with meat at every meal. Yet Lin Xuan actually dared demand one outright.

"Pay or don't."

Lin Xuan crossed his arms and looked down at him disdainfully.

"If you don't pay and keep pestering me, don't blame me for calling everyone over to beat you up." As his strength increased, his appetite had also been quietly growing. If he did not find a way to increase his income soon, even blacksmithing might not be enough to keep him full.

Looking at the Work-Study Students behind Lin Xuan, all eager to fight, Tang San understood perfectly well that one man could not stand against many.

He could handle four or five people at once, but facing ten or twenty people was beyond him.

Unlike Lin Xuan, he had a solitary personality with even a trace of coldness. The occasional viciousness he showed, coupled with his status as Master's Disciple, had made him the least popular person at Nuoding Academy.

Lin Xuan could rally the Work-Study Students with a single call, but among the Self-Funded Students, Tang San did not even have a friend he could talk to.

The Self-Funded Students around them only watched from afar. Not one was willing to help him—after all, Tang San had been the one to start trouble.

Seeing how excited the Work-Study Students were, Tang San subconsciously took another Step Back, clenching his teeth so hard they nearly shattered.

They had both come from Sacred Soul Village. Lin Xuan's talent was clearly inferior to his, yet Lin Xuan surpassed him in every way. Coupled with the sense of crisis brought by his sixth sense, Lin Xuan was already close to topping Tang San's list of people who had to be eliminated.

"I'll pay!"

Thinking of how much his strength had improved over the past month, Tang San reluctantly took out a Gold Soul Coin and tossed it to Lin Xuan.

Over the past month, he had eaten white flour and meat at every meal, finally making up for the physical deficiencies accumulated over six years. He believed his strength had undergone a tremendous leap.

Even if Lin Xuan was nimble enough to evade Blue Silver Bind, Tang San might not lose in close combat.

Lin Xuan was merely strong. Though Tang San was not proficient in techniques that used overwhelming force to defeat skill, his methods were certainly more orthodox than Lin Xuan's crooked tricks.

Lin Xuan had not expected Tang San to be so straightforward. Happily pocketing the Gold Soul Coin, he dismissed the people around him and crooked a finger at Tang San. "Let's make this quick. I have things to do."

"Don't get cocky!" Enraged by Lin Xuan's arrogance, Tang San hesitated no longer and opened with Blue Silver Bind.

After a month of adapting, his control over Blue Silver Grass had improved drastically. Dense Blue Silver Grass surged toward Lin Xuan from all directions like Octopus tentacles.

Yet Lin Xuan merely summoned his martial soul and made no further move. Only when the Blue Silver Grass closed to within three meters All over the body did he suddenly move.

His body bent slightly, like a great bow drawn to its limit. The next second, with a whoosh, cracks spread across the ground beneath his feet as he shot forward like a swift rabbit.

The dense Blue Silver Grass seemed like air around him. Lin Xuan moved with agility, easily weaving through the gaps as he continuously closed the distance to Tang San.

At the sight of this, Tang San's heart jolted, and it sank halfway. A month had passed, yet Lin Xuan had somehow become much faster. His Blue Silver Bind still couldn't trap him!

Xiao Wu, standing among the crowd, was so excited she nearly jumped up. She wished she could wave a flag and cheer Lin Xuan on right there.

The surrounding students cried out in surprise as well. Lin Xuan's evasive maneuvers were simply astounding. Within the seemingly inescapable Blue Silver Bind, he had actually found such a precise route through.

Tang San forcefully suppressed the panic in his heart and swiftly adjusted his Soul Power, controlling the Blue Silver Grass to change direction as he attempted to intercept Lin Xuan from the side.

But Lin Xuan was simply too fast. Every change in direction was perfectly timed, and he always seemed able to predict the Blue Silver Grass's trajectory in advance, easily dodging it.

The distance between them grew smaller and smaller, and Tang San could even see the calm composure in Lin Xuan's eyes.

He knew that once Lin Xuan got close, defeat would be inevitable. In his urgency, he fiercely activated his Soul Power, causing the Blue Silver Grass to instantly thicken and harden in an attempt to form a barrier and block Lin Xuan's charge.