Theory and Brute Strength: Speculation About a Second Martial Soul

Fine! Seeing Tang San fly into a rage from embarrassment, Lin Xuan could not help rolling his eyes.

He had thought Tang San had changed his ways. Who knew that just a few words would reveal his true nature?

He was not stupid. Once those Hundred Refinements Hidden Weapons were forged, there was a ninety percent chance Tang San would use them on him first. How could he possibly do something that armed his enemy?

And Tang San had even said Yu Xiaogang would help him choose Soul Rings and Hunt Soul Beasts?

Who would be hunting whom was still uncertain! Yu Xiaogang's meager strength was enough to bully Ten-Year Soul Beasts, but if he encountered a Hundred-Year Soul Beast, he would probably turn tail and run.

Besides, he had always been the one freeloading off others. Tang San wanted to freeload off him? What a joke!

"Are you trying to make me laugh to death?" Lin Xuan sneered. "With your teacher's strength, if he could take me to hunt Soul Beasts, he would not be so unpopular at the academy.

Tang San, I seriously doubt whether he was the one who helped you obtain your Soul Ring. Do you really think he has that ability?"

Lin Xuan was no longer the person he had once been.

He might once have feared Yu Xiaogang's Level 29 Soul Power, but now, every movement he made carried four hundred jin of force. Having mastered the Soft Skill and the "Rabbit Fighting Style," his strength had long since undergone a complete transformation.

A mere Yu Xiaogang was not worth his notice.

"You..." Hearing Lin Xuan mock his teacher, Tang San immediately wanted to retort, but the words reached his lips and were swallowed back down.

He could not deny that aside from his solid theoretical knowledge, Yu Xiaogang's actual combat strength was even inferior to his own.

The last time they went to the Soul Hunting Forest, if he had not acted quickly, Yu Xiaogang might truly have become a Soul Beast's meal.

"My teacher may lack cultivation talent, but he possesses the finest Martial Soul Theory knowledge. That is enough for us."

Tang San still held firmly to his beliefs. "After all, knowledge is the ladder of progress, isn't it?"

"Yes, yes, everything you say is right." Lin Xuan shook his head.

"But I simply do not like your teacher. Is that not allowed? You make it sound as though I cannot obtain Soul Rings without him.

Even if I can obtain Soul Rings, can your teacher turn someone with Innate Level 3 Soul Power like me into a Titled Douluo?

He cannot even solve his own problems, yet he wants to teach me. Only you treat him like some great figure."

Tang San clenched his fists but never dared to attack. His Rebellious Psychology had been temporarily suppressed this month, so he could still restrain the urge to strike.

But he wanted to argue, yet could find no reason—Yu Xiaogang's theories were indeed impressive, but they could not solve the cultivation limitations faced by those with Slow-Witted Talent.

Yu Xiaogang himself knew this as well. He could only help geniuses avoid detours; he was of no use at all to Ordinary Persons. But to Tang San, Yu Xiaogang was the only person who genuinely treated him well. He would never allow anyone to slander him.

"Lin Xuan, do not go too far, or else..."

"Or else what?" Lin Xuan cut him off.

"You have no money, yet you want me to work for you. You do not like hearing the truth, either. I will say it again: if you want something, you have to pay for it.

I do not like owing others, and I do not like others owing me.

If you think I hurt your teacher, go ahead and tell him. I just wonder whether he can take one of my punches."

Lin Xuan waved his fist before Tang San's eyes, his tone brimming with confidence. With four hundred jin of force behind it, after one punch, he might end up begging Yu Xiaogang not to die.

Tang San's face turned ashen, yet he could not say a single word. He could not win in a fight, could not win an argument, and did not dare use Hidden Weapons.

Lin Xuan's reaction speed was absurd. He had no confidence that the Silent Sleeve Arrow could injure him. If it failed to kill him, what awaited him would be countless little steel pellets and the Hundred Refinements Tungsten Steel Hammer at Lin Xuan's waist. With his small frame, one hit would be enough to finish him.

"Damn it!" Watching Lin Xuan leave, Tang San viciously punched the wall, then returned to Yu Xiaogang's residence in low spirits.

Yu Xiaogang naturally noticed the change in him. He had long known about the rivalry between Tang San and Lin Xuan.

At first, he had felt somewhat uneasy about it, but later he came to accept it—Tang San's talent was truly wasted in Nuoding City. Aside from cultivation and studying theory, he normally had no exposure to actual combat.

And Lin Xuan was the only capable peer Tang San could come into contact with at the academy.

Although Tang San had constantly been defeated because of Lin Xuan's formidable Physical Fitness, there was no denying that his actual combat ability had steadily improved through each clash.

As for their forging competition, Yu Xiaogang had some objections, but he did not dwell on it too much—after all, Tang San's Second Martial Soul was the Clear Sky Hammer. Using forging to practice hammer techniques now might make things smoother for him in the future.

It had to be said that aside from his low Soul Power and his tendency to believe in crooked theories, Yu Xiaogang did possess some real ability.

It was only because most transmigrators had higher standards that they looked down on him so much.

And in Yu Xiaogang's eyes, Tang San raising his Soul Power by only two levels a year was perfectly normal.

After all, Tang San primarily cultivated Blue Silver Grass, a universally acknowledged Waste Spirit. A slower cultivation speed was only natural.

As long as Tang San reached the Soul King or Soul Saint realm, he could switch to cultivating the Clear Sky Hammer.

If Blue Silver Grass could be cultivated this quickly, would the Clear Sky Hammer not become incredibly powerful?

A Soul Master's cultivation speed mostly depended on the strength of their Martial Soul. Before Blue Silver Grass evolved, two levels a year was already considered decent.

Tang Hao shared the same view. Even though he knew Tang San's Blue Silver Grass was not ordinary, it had not evolved yet, so its slow cultivation speed was understandable.

And with Yu Xiaogang repeatedly assuring him, Tang San truly believed his rate of improvement was normal, unaware that nearly one-third of his time had been wasted for nothing.

"What is wrong? Did you argue with Lin Xuan again?

"Yu Xiaogang had long grown used to it. If he had not been certain the two had such a terrible relationship, he might have suspected they were sworn enemies.

"Teacher, do you think Lin Xuan might also have a power-type Second Martial Soul?

Otherwise, how could his strength have improved so quickly?

I even suspect that he is a Humanoid Soul Beast!"

Tang San said dejectedly. Lin Xuan's strength had nearly crushed all his confidence.

"A Second Martial Soul? A Humanoid Soul Beast?" Upon hearing those two key terms, a flash of Essence Light immediately passed through Yu Xiaogang's eyes, and his formerly calm expression turned grave.

He had studied Martial Soul Theory his entire life. Second Martial Souls were exceedingly rare, while Humanoid Soul Beasts existed only in legends.

If Lin Xuan truly possessed a Second Martial Soul, or was a legendary Humanoid Soul Beast in transformed form, it would absolutely be a shocking discovery for the Soul Master World!

Yu Xiaogang immediately pulled Tang San down to sit and began questioning him in detail. "Tell me carefully. Just how exaggerated is Lin Xuan's strength? Has he displayed any other abnormalities? For example, special changes during Martial Soul Release, or anything unusual about his body?"

Tang San recalled their repeated fights and slowly said:

"His strength has grown especially quickly. A year ago, one arm probably had only around two hundred jin of force, but now it is likely close to, or even above, four hundred jin!

And his body is incredibly agile. Despite having so much strength, he can perform many flexible movements, just... just like Xiao Wu's Soft Skill.

His Martial Soul is Blue Silver Grass, the same as mine, but he never uses his Blue Silver Grass to attack. When he fights, he relies entirely on brute strength and movement techniques."

"Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, yet he possesses terrifying strength and a Flexible Body..." Yu Xiaogang tapped his fingers against the table and fell into deep thought.