Blue Silver Emperor: Ah Yin

Nuoding City, Junior Soul Master Academy.

The night was deep. Yu Xiaogang sat cross-legged on his bed, Soul Power circulating around him as he repeatedly charged at the bottleneck of Rank 30.

Soul Power flowed through his meridians, yet it always collapsed at the most critical moment. After several such attempts, he could only give up helplessly and slowly open his eyes.

"Still no..." He shook his head with a bitter smile and wiped away the fine beads of sweat on his brow. "After all these years, I still can't cross this hurdle. It seems... I truly have no talent for cultivation."

"Since my cultivation can scarcely advance any further, I'll devote my entire life to theory instead."

"I'll raise Xiao San into a capable man. Then I'll be able to return to the clan with dignity."

Thinking of how Tang San would one day become renowned across the continent, and how he himself would return to the clan in glory, forcing those who had once mocked and looked down on him to lower their heads and curry favor with him—

A surge of satisfaction rose in his heart, and the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.

Knock, knock, knock—

The sudden knocking interrupted his thoughts.

Yu Xiaogang quickly straightened his robes and got out of bed. "The door isn't locked. Please come in."

Creak— The wooden door was pushed open.

Moonlight streamed in, illuminating the tall yet bedraggled figure outside. His worn robe was covered in dust, and his messy hair concealed most of his face.

Only his eyes remained visible, deep enough to seem capable of swallowing all light.

An extremely dangerous aura washed over him. Yu Xiaogang's back went cold, and the hairs on his body stood on end.

"Hello, Master. It has probably been over twenty years since we last met, hasn't it?" the visitor said in a low, hoarse voice.

"You are?" Yu Xiaogang searched his memories desperately, yet he could not recall ever knowing such a downcast powerhouse.

The man sighed softly and raised a hand to pull back his hood, revealing a weathered face. "It's only natural that you wouldn't recognize me in my current state."

"I am Tang Hao."

"Y-You... You're Haotian Mianxia!" Yu Xiaogang's pupils contracted sharply as he staggered back half a step in disbelief.

This was the youngest Title Douluo of the present age, the idol he admired. How had he become so destitute?

"Mianxia, what exactly has happened to you all these years?" Yu Xiaogang could not help asking.

"Nothing." Tang Hao shook his head. "I've merely been depressed for many years. The title of Mianxia belongs to the past. Now, I'm just an ordinary blacksmith from a village."

As he spoke, Tang Hao could not help but laugh at himself.

The room fell silent for a moment, the atmosphere heavy.

Yu Xiaogang's expression was complicated. After hesitating for a while, he asked uncertainly, "You came to see me because of... Xiao San?"

Tang Hao nodded, walked into the room, and closed the door behind him.

Yu Xiaogang's expression eased slightly. He took a deep breath. "So I was right. You really are Xiao San's father. Xiao San has already gone home. Why are you here?"

Tang Hao looked out the window, his gaze profound. "It is precisely because he has gone home that I am here. There are things I must do next. I know you have accepted him as your disciple, so I came specifically to ask you to take care of him."

"You're leaving? Where are you going?" Yu Xiaogang frowned and asked in confusion.

"Leaving?" Tang Hao's gaze turned cold. "Who said I was leaving? I've merely decided to return. These are matters I must handle personally."

"Xiao San is your son. He is only six years old. Aren't you being too cruel by heartlessly abandoning him like this?" Yu Xiaogang glared at Tang Hao, his eyes sharp.

"That is why I came to ask you." Tang Hao said expressionlessly, "Xiao San calls me Father because of our blood relation. Now that he has become your disciple, as the saying goes, a teacher for a day is a father for life."

"You are his father as well. You also bear responsibility for taking care of Xiao San."

"You..." Yu Xiaogang wanted to argue further, but it ultimately became a long sigh. "Very well. Don't worry, I will take good care of Xiao San."

Seeing Yu Xiaogang agree, Tang Hao turned to leave, but suddenly stopped. "That Yao Yan's Martial Soul—is it truly mutated?"

"Yes." Yu Xiaogang nodded. "It should be a recessive mutation. One of his parents should possess a Beast Martial Soul."

Tang Hao narrowed his eyes thoughtfully. He had indeed heard that Yao Yan's father's Martial Soul was a cow, though he possessed no Soul Power.

It seemed he posed no threat to Xiao San.

"I'll leave Xiao San in your care." As he spoke, Tang Hao had already put his hood back on. With a wave of his hand, he tossed a token onto the table, opened the door, and walked out.

Yu Xiaogang's gaze fell upon the token. Six Martial Soul emblems were carved into its black surface.

"The Pope's Token!" Yu Xiaogang cried out. When he looked up again, there was no one at the door.

The night wind swept through the open doorway, carrying several fallen leaves with it, as though no one had ever come.

Holy Soul Village.

Yao Yan carried his bags, large and small, down from the carriage.

After the three had hunted Spirit Beasts in the Star Dou Great Forest, they had not lingered and had returned directly to Nuoding City.

Along the way back, Zhou Lie and the other man tacitly refrained from asking what Soul Skill Yao Yan had obtained. After all, a Soul Skill was a secret that every Soul Master could not casually reveal.

Their silence also secretly relieved Yao Yan.

After reporting his safety to Li Caiyi in Nuoding City, he returned to Holy Soul Village.

He remembered clearly that Tang Hao had left during this holiday.

While Tang Hao was away, it was the perfect time to search for that cave.

After returning home, he tidied up the house and unfolded a map of the surrounding area.

It was a military map, with the contours of mountains, distribution of rivers, villages, and towns all marked in meticulous detail.

He first marked out the mountains and waterfalls on the map, then began investigating them according to their locations.

After determining his targets, Yao Yan carried a basket on his back every day, leaving early and returning late while pretending to gather herbs in the mountains. Fortunately, with Xiao Ying's help, he easily found medicinal herbs and did not arouse suspicion.

During that time, to test whether Tang San had noticed anything, he occasionally passed by Tang San's house. Yet he found Tang San and Xiao Wu flirting sweetly as they hammered iron together, utterly devoted to each other.

And so, half a month passed.

He climbed one mountain after another and crossed river after river. Along the way, he suffered countless attacks from Spirit Beasts, but fortunately, none were very old, and he could handle them easily.

He felt as though he were journeying west, needing to endure eighty-one trials before obtaining the true scriptures.

Finally, after a month of searching, as he used Blue Silver Grass to scale a ninety-degree cliff and approached its summit, the thunderous roar of a waterfall reached his ears.

Yao Yan's heart jolted!

He immediately quickened his pace, crossed peak after peak, and ventured deep into the mountain range. There, a waterfall roughly twenty meters wide suddenly came into view.

The waterfall plunged straight down, crashing violently into the deep pool below and sending countless sprays of water into the air. The noon sunlight pierced through the mist, refracting into a brilliant rainbow that seemed dreamlike and surreal.

Standing by the pool, Yao Yan felt the damp spray rushing toward him as he gasped for breath.

He wiped the sweat from his brow and surveyed his surroundings. Waterfall, reefs, pool... every feature matched.

"It's here!" Yao Yan suppressed the excitement in his heart and summoned Xiao Ying.

Xiao Ying nimbly climbed the steep stone wall and silently approached the area behind the waterfall.

Sure enough, within a concealed crevice in the rock, it saw a small blade of grass radiating a blue-gold glow.

After returning, it let out a faint hiss, confirming that the cave existed.

At that moment, uncontrollable ecstasy blossomed across Yao Yan's face.

That summer, Tang San found Sister, while Yao Yan found the origin of his bloodline.