Tang Qinghe suddenly stopped absorbing the black Spirit Essence. As it flowed around the ring of Spirit Essence that enveloped his body, his pale face revealed a natural smile: "The first Spirit Essence is a hundred years old, and the Spirit Power is thirteen ranks. Heaven's Net has reached the second layer. It seems all the hard work of this past year wasn't wasted."
Half a year ago, his Heaven's Net had already linked to the first layer. However, because of the limitation of his Spirit Essence, he had been stuck at the first-layer bottleneck and unable to break through. Now that his Spirit Power had broken through thirteen ranks and he had absorbed Spirit Essence, Heaven's Net had finally linked to the second layer.
"How powerful is the first Spirit Skill?"
Just as Tang Qinghe was about to leave the room and head to the village training grounds to test out his newly awakened first Spirit Skill, a familiar girl's voice suddenly came from outside: "Tang Qinghe, you muddlehead, get out here and help me. Today, I want to get back everything you owe me."
Tang Qinghe frowned, withdrew his Spirit Essence, and walked out. He saw a man and a woman standing at his gate, apparently children who had grown up alongside him.
The man's appearance was ordinary, the sort who vanished into a crowd. The girl, however, had fair, delicate skin, with a jade rabbit perched on her head. Wasn't she Tang San and Xiao Wu?
... A short while later, they returned to the training grounds.
Tang San hurried back to the blacksmith shop and immediately told his father about his discovery.
Old Jack then handed him the letter Tang Hao had left behind.
The father and son, with Tang San's heart full of regret and longing for his absent mother, fell into the greatest crisis they had ever faced.
The whole person was nearly crushed.
Fortunately, Xiao Wu was beside her. Seeing Tang San's bitter expression, she spoke the classic line: "Xiao Wu, do you mind calling me sister? If you do, I'll protect you with my life. If anyone wants to bully you, they'll have to step over my corpse first."
Xiao Wu had also lost her mother, so naturally she did not refuse.
And so, she agreed.
However, instead of agreeing immediately, she raised her own condition. "I can become your sister, but you have to do one thing for me."
"What is it?"
At that moment, Tang San was at his most vulnerable.
At this critical juncture, even if Xiao Wu had demanded a thousand things, he would have agreed to every one of them.
"I want you to help me beat up Tang Qinghe, that muddlehead. Every time, he relies on having more Spirit Power than me to bully me. He thinks I'm only a Spirit Body close to the level of a Spirit Essence, and he looks down on me. I want you to help me teach him a lesson. Add your strength to mine, and I'm sure we can beat that arrogant bastard."
Every time she mentioned Tang Qinghe, Xiao Wu gnashed her teeth.
To be honest, when Tang San thought back to his experiences with Xiao Wu, he always felt that Tang Qinghe had somehow gotten involved between them. His feelings were all tangled up because of Tang Qinghe.
"Tang Qinghe, you old bastard, you tricked me into eating that 'rice that rises a meter'! You even deceived my sister Xiao Wu. Now you've brought disaster upon yourself."
Thinking about it, Tang San finally agreed to Xiao Wu's condition.
Thus, the scene of Tang San and Xiao Wu joining forces to seek revenge against Tang Qinghe was set in motion.
"Tang San? Xiao Wu?"
The person who came face-to-face with them was Tang Qinghe. His eyes narrowed, and he immediately stepped back.
It just so happened that during this period, Tang Ri Tian had gone to find Xiao Wu's mother. He definitely was not at Tang San's side to watch over him.
Tang Qinghe had also already decided to run. He had only come to test Tang San's strength.
Since the other side had not called for reinforcements, Tang Qinghe decided to stall them for a while. Otherwise, wouldn't he have been exposed?
With that thought, he greeted them in a languid tone: "You two are here to visit my house? Welcome."
"Hmph, Tang Qinghe. Last time, you tricked me into eating that stuff. Today, I'm going to make you pay the price."
Xiao Wu puffed out her cheeks. Judging by her eager appearance, she seemed unable to wait any longer to teach Tang Qinghe a lesson.
"Got it, got it. Hearing you repeat that, my ears are practically growing calluses." Tang Qinghe waved his hands in annoyance, his gaze shifting toward Tang San. "What about you?"
Tang San stepped forward and said coldly: "Tang Qinghe, you deceived my father and now you've bullied my sister Xiao Wu again. The grudges between us have become impossible to resolve."
"Tut, you're already calling her your sister. No wonder you've deliberately come here to find trouble. One of you wants revenge, and the other wants to protect his sister. You two really have become a perfect pair." Tang Qinghe gave a cold laugh.
"You remember the grudge?" Tang San's eyes flashed with killing intent. He took a step forward and swung out with a fist. The hatred and anger in his heart erupted at once, and the black Spirit Essence around him surged violently.
[Tang San's killing intent +88888]
Tang Qinghe sneered. "So it was you. You were the one who started all this. You set aside the white jade rabbit meat I gave you and refused to admit it. You even joined up with Old Jack's son to plot against me. I suppose I should consider it even after saving your family's life. Without him, you would have died long ago. Yet you never once thought about repaying his kindness. You've been a Spirit Essence user for almost a year now, haven't you? You didn't even return home during that time. Instead, you came here to steal treasures. You're afraid that even looking at them will make you want to kill him."
People often only treasured what they could not have. The more Tang San saw, the more he coveted it, so he clenched his fists and kept cursing himself.
What Tang Qinghe wanted was to break through his bottleneck and let him break through his great defense.
[Tang San's killing intent +128888]
[Tang San's killing intent +188888]
"Tang Qinghe, I want you dead!" Tang San roared furiously. With a single step, his body shot into the air. He rose high before diving down, landing above Tang Qinghe's head. His right hand clenched into a fist, and a jade-like glow spread across its surface. He smashed it down toward Tang Qinghe's waist without the slightest hesitation.
Tang Qinghe gave a cold laugh. His right hand burst with a pale golden radiance, and he met the blow head-on.
A tremendous impact erupted. Tang San's punch was caught by Tang Qinghe's palm. After holding it for a moment, Tang Qinghe suddenly exerted his strength.
Tang San's body was thrown backward by the force. He flew more than ten meters through the air, landed, and staggered backward several more steps. He barely managed to control his body, but his organs churned and his blood roiled.
"Your Spirit Power..."
After landing, Tang San's fury had completely vanished. In its place was solemnity. Through that direct clash, he sensed Tang Qinghe's Spirit Power. It was astonishingly powerful, far beyond what a Spirit Essence user at the thirteenth rank should possess. His Spirit Power had already surpassed the thirteenth rank and continued to increase at an alarming rate. Tang Qinghe had already begun absorbing his first Spirit Essence.
Earlier, Xiao Wu had only been at the tenth rank of Spirit Power for three months after awakening her martial soul. Tang San's Spirit Power had reached the fourth rank, and Xiao Wu's Spirit Power had also increased.
How could his Spirit Power have risen so quickly in such a short period?
Seeing the solemn look Tang San revealed as he used his Spirit Skill, Tang Qinghe smiled coldly. His Heaven's Net had already linked to the second layer, and the density of his Spirit Power was equal to that of a Spirit Body at the tenth rank.
Tang San's Spirit Power had also reached the sixteenth rank.
Even if a great Spirit Body came, Tang Qinghe could still force it back with a single palm.
After all, Tang San himself possessed a mutated martial soul. Every time he absorbed Spirit Essence, his strength would increase tremendously. How could Tang Qinghe, who possessed the Spirit Body of a mutated martial soul, possibly compare with Tang San's strange weapon Spirit?
Postscript: This was the second update. Please recommend it and vote monthly.
Thanks to [The User Does Not Exist—A] for the 788-point reward.
Thanks to [The Moonlit Pond Sleeps Beside the Flower] for the 588-point reward.
Thanks to [Phase Difference 20240707888_Bb] for the 100-point reward.
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