Nuoding Academy, Rejecting Yu Xiaogang!

Nuoding City, Junior Soul Master Academy.

That somewhat weathered iron gate seemed like a dividing line of fate.

It led the Tang Sans of two worlds onto entirely different paths in life.

Above the Sky Curtain, the scene split in two once more.

[Black World]

The sunlight was somewhat blinding.

Old Jack wore a fawning smile as he waved the slightly crumpled certificate in his hand.

"Sir, we're from Sacred Soul Village. This is the Work-Study Student certificate..."

However.

What greeted him was the gatekeeper's disdainful, contemptuous expression.

"Get lost, get lost. You think a Golden Phoenix can fly out of a grass nest?"

"I say this certificate is fake!"

The gatekeeper shoved the old man and even tried to knock the certificate from his hand.

Hei Tang San was enraged.

It was the first time he displayed the viciousness of a Tang Sect disciple.

Just as the two sides were at daggers drawn and about to come to blows.

A hoarse yet faintly magnetic voice rang out.

"Stop."

A middle-aged man slowly approached.

He had an ordinary appearance, a crew cut, and his hands behind his back, exuding an imposing aura without needing to show anger.

It was Yu Xiaogang.

"Let me see the certificate."

He merely cast the gatekeeper an indifferent glance, and the latter immediately shrank back to the side like a mouse seeing a cat.

Taking the certificate, Yu Xiaogang's gaze lingered for a moment over the words "Innate Full Soul Power" and "Blue Silver Grass."

A trace of barely perceptible delight flashed through his eyes.

"Come with me."

He turned around, leaving behind an unfathomable silhouette.

Inside the office.

Sunlight streamed through the window and fell across the desk.

Yu Xiaogang did not speak at once. Instead, he quietly observed the child before him.

That gaze was full of penetration, as though it could see through Tang San's deepest secret.

After a long while.

He finally spoke slowly, saying something startling.

"Are you wondering why a Trash Spirit like Blue Silver Grass possesses Innate Full Soul Power?"

Hei Tang San froze, then nodded instinctively.

The corners of Yu Xiaogang's mouth curved slightly upward. At that moment, he seemed like a god who had grasped the truth.

"According to my Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul theory."

"A Martial Soul of Blue Silver Grass's quality absolutely cannot support Innate Full Soul Power."

"Therefore."

"You have another Martial Soul."

"You are... a Twin Martial Souls wielder."

Those four words exploded in Hei Tang San's mind like a bolt from the blue.

He staggered half a step back in shock, his left wrist twitching involuntarily.

That was where the Clear Sky Hammer lay, the secret his father had repeatedly warned him must never be exposed!

This man had actually seen through him at a glance?

"A divine man!"

"He is absolutely a peerless expert who knows all things, ancient and modern!"

Hei Tang San's mental defenses collapsed in an instant.

The shock of being seen through at a single glance made him blindly worship the man before him.

Without the slightest hesitation.

Thud!

Hei Tang San dropped to his knees and kowtowed three times with utmost respect.

"Teacher, please accept this disciple's bow!"

Yu Xiaogang looked at the child kneeling at his feet, unable to conceal the pride in his eyes any longer.

He hurriedly helped Tang San up, a satisfied smile on his face.

"Good, good child."

"Only I can teach you how to become a true Soul Master."

"And only my theories are worthy of your Twin Martial Souls."

At that moment.

The bond between master and disciple was sealed.

Tang San of the Black World had completely put on the shackles of being the Master's disciple.

[White World]

The scene shifted.

The same gatekeeper making things difficult.

The same Yu Xiaogang stepping in to resolve the matter.

Bai Tang San did not show much anger. He merely watched coldly from the sidelines.

As though he were watching a boring farce.

After entering the office.

Yu Xiaogang still stood with his hands behind his back, striking that signature pose of a lofty expert.

"Are you wondering..."

He intended to use the same trick again.

He would use that theory of "Twin Martial Souls" to utterly convince this genius youth.

"You are a Twin Martial Souls wielder."

After saying that, Yu Xiaogang slightly raised his head.

He waited for the anticipated thud of knees hitting the floor.

However.

One second passed.

Then two seconds passed.

The room was deathly silent.

There was no sound of knees striking the floor.

Instead, there came the grating scrape of a chair against the ground.

Screech—

Yu Xiaogang lowered his head in astonishment.

He saw Bai Tang San calmly pulling out a chair.

Then.

He sat down openly and unreservedly.

He even crossed one leg over the other, folding his hands over his knee.

That look in his eyes.

Held not the slightest trace of worship.

Only... the mockery of someone who had seen through a clumsy magic trick.

"Master, are you finished performing?"

Bai Tang San spoke indifferently.

Yu Xiaogang was stunned, his brow tightly furrowed.

"Performing? What do you mean? I said you have Twin Martial Souls. Am I wrong?"

Bai Tang San chuckled softly, his fingers lightly tapping the armrest.

"The conclusion may be correct."

"But your reasoning is riddled with holes."

"It is simply an insult to the word 'theory.'"

Yu Xiaogang's expression darkened, and his voice rose several notches.

"You say my reasoning has flaws? Absurd! My theories have been verified through countless cases!"

"Verified?"

Bai Tang San rose to his feet. In that instant, his presence actually overwhelmed Yu Xiaogang's.

"You say Blue Silver Grass cannot bear Innate Full Soul Power, so you inferred that I possess a second Martial Soul."

"That is a classic case of survivorship bias."

"The Vastness of the World holds all manner of wonders."

"What if my Blue Silver Grass underwent a Benign Mutation?"

"What if I accidentally consumed some Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures before awakening, forcibly increasing my Soul Power?"

"What if my Meridians were naturally different from ordinary people's?"

Bai Tang San pressed forward step by step, every word cutting to the heart of the matter.

"Did you rule out those possibilities?"

"No."

"You merely relied on that pitiful bit of experience to jump to conclusions."

"That is not theory."

"That is gambling."

"Your scholarship is sloppy, and you simply take things for granted."

Yu Xiaogang was left speechless by the rebuke. He opened his mouth, only to find himself completely unable to refute it.

Because every possibility Bai Tang San had mentioned, though rare, had existed in the history of the Soul Master World!

Before he could catch his breath.

Bai Tang San spoke again, this time striking even deeper into his soul.

"And another thing."

"That saying you are most proud of."

"There are no useless Martial Souls, only useless Soul Masters."

Bai Tang San looked Yu Xiaogang up and down, his gaze carrying undisguised ridicule.

"If those words came from a Titled Douluo, they would be inspirational."

"But coming from you..."

"Master, may I ask how old you are this year? What level is your Soul Power?"

Yu Xiaogang's face instantly flushed Liver Color.

It was the pain that would forever haunt his heart.

"I... I underwent an Innate Martial Soul Mutation, which limited my cultivation..."

"Excuses."

Bai Tang San cut him off coldly.

"Since there are no useless Martial Souls, why have you remained at level twenty-nine for decades without advancing a single step?"

"You cannot even solve your own problems."

"You cannot even turn your own Trash Spirit from decay into something miraculous."

"What right do you have to boast that you can teach me?"

"Are you planning to use me as a White Rat to test those theories of yours that simply do not work?"

Boom!

Those words were like a sharp blade viciously plunging into Yu Xiaogang's heart.

Bloody and brutal.

They tore apart the flimsy cover concealing his identity as a theoretical Master.

Bai Tang San adjusted his collar and turned toward the door.

"What I seek is Ultimate Power, an eternal life that breaks the rules."

"Your theories are too weak."

"They reek of the sour, rotten stench of weaklings making excuses for themselves."

His hand rested on the doorknob.

Without looking back, Bai Tang San left behind one final sentence.

"Those who walk different paths cannot make common plans."

"Master, take care of yourself."

Bang.

The door shut.

Yu Xiaogang was left standing there alone, stiff as a board.

His face

went from red to white.

Then from white to green.

Finally, it froze in an expression of utter humiliation and embarrassment.

The hands behind his back trembled violently.

The dignity he had always been so proud of was trampled beneath the feet of a six-year-old child and ground into the dirt.

[Real World]

Dead silence.

It was truly a deathly silence.

Whether at Shrek Academy or among the major sects,

everyone had their mouths hanging open as they watched Yu Xiaogang's utterly awkward state on the Sky Curtain.

That was ruthless.

That was savage.

How was this a formal apprenticeship?

It was practically a public execution!

"Pfft—"

A crisp laugh shattered the silence.

Ning Rongrong covered her little mouth, laughing so hard that she trembled.

"Although that Bai Tang San is really arrogant..."

"what he said... actually makes so much sense!"

"There are no useless Martial Souls, only useless Soul Masters."

"Master himself is only level twenty-nine... that alone is one huge joke."

Oscar and Ma Hongjun desperately held back their laughter until their faces turned red.

They did not dare say it aloud, but deep down, they felt... satisfied!

So satisfied!

This kind of logical domination was even more exciting than two Soul Skills clashing head-on.

Hei Tang San, on the other hand,

looked as if he had been struck by lightning.

He stood there blankly, his face pale as paper.

He looked at the Teacher on the screen, rendered speechless by the rebuttal.

Then he recalled how he had bowed his head and accepted him as his master without hesitation.

An unprecedented sense of absurdity rose within him.

"Could it be... could it be that I... was really too hasty back then?"

"Could it be that Teacher's theories were really just... gambling?"

His faith began to crumble.

Beside him, Yu Xiaogang wished he could crawl into a crack in the ground.

He could feel it.

The gazes cast his way by the students were no longer filled with reverence.

"No... that's wrong!"

"That's fallacious nonsense! That's sophistry!"

Yu Xiaogang roared wildly in his heart, trying to protect his fragile self-esteem.

But the Sky Curtain was merciless.

The scene continued to shift.

What came next would push this farce of master and disciple

to an even crueler climax.

It was the ultimate contrast between—kowtowing and a transaction!