The Public Execution of the Trash Theory

At the height of his speech.

Yu Xiaogang paused, his gentle gaze falling on Tang San.

"Remember, children."

"In this world, there are no trash Martial Souls, only trash Soul Masters."

The words rang out with force.

Hei Tang San shuddered, his eyes reddening as he nodded vigorously.

In that moment, he seemed to see a bright future for himself as a Blue Silver Grass Soul Master.

"Teacher is right!"

"As long as I work hard, Blue Silver Grass can be invincible too!"

How inspiring.

How moving.

Yet this bowl of rich, soul-stirring chicken soup was utterly smashed to pieces on the other side of the Sky Curtain.

[White World]

The same classroom.

Because he had paid the expensive Tuition Fee—and received no Work-Study Student exemption—Bai Tang San sat in the seat with the best view.

He had no pen and no notebook in his hands.

He simply sat with his arms folded, coldly watching Yu Xiaogang on the platform.

When the words "there are no trash Martial Souls" rang out.

The entire class nodded in ignorant agreement.

Only Bai Tang San.

Slowly raised his right hand.

"Teacher, I object."

His voice was not loud, yet it was like ice water splashing into boiling oil, instantly silencing the noisy classroom.

Yu Xiaogang frowned slightly as he looked at this troublesome student.

"This student, is there something you don't understand?"

Bai Tang San rose to his feet, straightened his collar, and wore an expression so calm it was frightening.

"It's not that I don't understand."

"It's that I find it absurd."

"Absurd?" Yu Xiaogang's expression darkened. "Are you questioning my theory?"

"No. I'm questioning your logic."

Bai Tang San left his seat and, under the stunned gazes of the entire class, walked straight up to the platform.

He picked up a piece of chalk.

Then he forcefully wrote an equation on the blackboard.

"This is the truth of the world."

Bai Tang San turned around, pointed at the formula, and stared directly at Yu Xiaogang with blazing eyes.

"If there is no difference between strong and weak Martial Souls, then I would like to ask Master."

"Why did you painstakingly research Martial Soul Evolution?"

"Why is the Clear Sky Sect's Clear Sky Hammer recognized as the number one Tool Martial Soul in the world?"

"Why is the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon called the strongest Beast Martial Soul?"

"If Blue Silver Grass is as strong as the Clear Sky Hammer, then why are Blue Silver Grass Soul Masters all over the streets farming, while the Clear Sky Sect stands at the peak of the continent?"

The questions came like a barrage.

Every single one was like a heavy hammer viciously slamming into Yu Xiaogang's chest.

Yu Xiaogang opened his mouth, trying to defend himself. "That's because... because they haven't found the correct cultivation method..."

"Excuses."

Bai Tang San coldly cut him off.

"There is nothing shameful about admitting that Martial Souls have different strengths."

"The base quality of Blue Silver Grass is low. That is an objective fact."

"If we want to become strong, then in terms of 'development depth,' we must put in a hundred times more effort than those with the Clear Sky Hammer."

"We may even have to be like me—taking the extreme path of mutation and plunder, gambling with our lives!"

Bai Tang San's voice abruptly rose, carrying an oppressive force that made hearts tremble.

"And what about you?"

"With one sentence—'there are no trash Martial Souls'—you deny the innate disparity."

"You tell children holding sickle and hoe Martial Souls that they can become gods as long as they work hard."

"What is that?"

"That is poisonous chicken soup meant to numb the weak!"

"It is unfair to geniuses, and an even crueler deception for the mediocre!"

Bai Tang San pointed at the confused children below the platform.

"When they devote their entire lives to hard work, only to discover that they still cannot defeat those born with powerful Martial Souls."

"They will despair."

"And that despair is the bitter fruit planted by your lie!"

Silence.

Deathly silence.

The whole classroom was so quiet that a needle dropping could be heard.

The children who had once blindly worshipped Master now looked different.

They looked at the formula on the blackboard.

Then at Yu Xiaogang, whose face had gone pale as his body trembled.

A seed called "doubt" began to grow wildly in their hearts.

Clack.

The teaching whip in Yu Xiaogang's hand fell limply to the floor.

Its crisp, piercing sound echoed through the silent classroom.

He had lost.

Lost completely.

It was not merely that his theory had been refuted.

The flimsy cover he depended on for survival had been torn away in public, exposing the pale, powerless inferiority beneath it.

[Real World]

Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, Council Hall.

Ning Fengzhi, usually refined and gentle, watched the Sky Curtain and let out a soft sigh.

"Sigh..."

"The words may be harsh, but they are the truth."

As the Sect Master of the world's number one support sect, he understood better than anyone the importance of Martial Soul quality.

Why could the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda only cultivate to rank seventy-nine?

That was the limitation of its Martial Soul quality!

If one refused to acknowledge that and sought no way to break through it—such as evolving it into the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda—what use was hard work alone?

"That Hei Tang San has been protected too well."

Sword Douluo Chen Xin snorted, sword intent flickering in his eyes.

"Or rather, he has been brainwashed into stupidity."

"That Bai Tang San sees things clearly."

"He saw the cruelty of the world, which is why he chose the most correct path."

"That Yu Xiaogang..."

"Hmph. He is leading children astray!"

Meanwhile, at Shrek Academy.

Hei Tang San watched Bai Tang San on the Sky Curtain speak with confidence, leaving his Teacher utterly speechless.

The pen in his hand stopped in midair.

On that page of notes, the words "there are no trash Martial Souls" now looked glaringly harsh.

So... ironic.

"Was it really... a scam?"

Hei Tang San turned and glanced at Yu Xiaogang beside him.

This Master had already slumped limply in his chair, his eyes vacant as he continued to mutter:

"No... I'm right... I'm right..."

At that moment.

A corner of the fortress of faith in Hei Tang San's heart.

Came crashing down.

The image on the Sky Curtain slowly faded.

This public execution over theory had ended.

But life went on.

As the plot advanced, the perspective returned to everyday life.

Nuoding Academy, cafeteria.

It was lunchtime. Noisy chatter mingled with the aroma of food, creating the most down-to-earth scene in the academy.

For children still growing, this should have been the happiest time of the day.

Yet as the Sky Curtain shifted, the meals in the two worlds presented entirely different atmospheres.

[Black World]

By the second-floor windows, Hei Tang San carried two trays as he cautiously squeezed through the crowd.

He found a relatively quiet corner and set the trays down.

Across from him, Xiao Wu lay sprawled over the table. Her lively eyes, usually so bright, were now completely dull.

She poked at the few slightly wilted carrot strips on her plate with her chopsticks, her pink lips pouting enough to hang an oil bottle from them.

"What's wrong, Xiao Wu?"

Hei Tang San asked gently, casually placing a piece of Braised Pork Belly from his own tray into Xiao Wu's bowl.

"Is the food not to your liking?"

Xiao Wu sighed and pushed the carrots aside.

"The carrots here taste awful."

"They're dry, with no moisture at all, and they even have an earthy smell."

"I want the sweet carrots from Sacred Soul Village, freshly pulled from the ground..."

She was a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast who had taken human form. Though she had become human, her tastes still retained a rabbit's instincts.

She was almost excessively picky about the freshness and texture of ingredients.