Grandmaster's residence.
Yu Xiaogang was standing before a bookshelf, leafing through material about whale rubber.
Although he resented Grandmaster Tian Meng, who had challenged him, and the Ten Great Laws of Martial Souls, he was, at heart, a borrower.
He would absorb any useful knowledge and make it his own.
Now that whale rubber's effects had been confirmed, he naturally had to arrange some for himself and little San.
But he could not, for the life of him, understand why whale rubber could strengthen the body. He began consulting all kinds of books. If he could grasp the principles behind it, he might eventually publish other theories on body conditioning.
Suddenly, Yu Xiaogang faintly heard footsteps.
He turned to look and saw a black-robed man suddenly appear inside the room.
Beneath the hood was an aged face with cloudy eyes and disheveled long hair, like an old man whose life flickered like a candle in the wind.
"You are..."
Seeing the familiar attire, Yu Xiaogang had an inkling of who it was, but the visitor's appearance left him uncertain.
"Grandmaster, long time no see."
The black-robed man's voice was hoarse. "Come to think of it, we haven't seen each other in twenty years. Looking like this, I can hardly blame you for not recognizing me."
Hearing this, Yu Xiaogang thought, Just as I suspected, and hurriedly bowed.
"Greetings, Your Excellency Haotian."
Although he had not recognized him at first glance, he had known this day would come sooner or later, so the man had left a deep impression on him. Looking again, he could just make out traces of his old acquaintance.
Tang Hao waved a hand and said coldly, "Do not mention that old title again."
"I know you've taken little San as your disciple. I hadn't intended to see you so soon, but I've come primarily for two reasons. First, your negligence led to a poor choice for little San's first soul ring. As his father, I need to teach you a lesson."
Yu Xiaogang froze.
He opened his mouth to defend himself, but found nothing to say. In the end, it became a sigh. "I do bear some responsibility for that..."
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Crack! Smack! Crack...
Tang Hao could not be bothered to listen to Yu Xiaogang's explanations. No matter what you say, you're getting a beating today.
Still, he controlled his strength.
It would not kill him, but it would leave him black and blue.
"'A teacher for a day is a father for life,' huh!"
"Your dear son, huh!"
"You picked a lousy first ring and got my son beaten up, so now I'm beating you up too!"
In the fourth-floor dormitory, Su Mo's lips curved slightly as he listened to Tian Meng dubbing Tang Hao's inner thoughts in his mind.
"You know, your dubbing fits pretty well."
"Of course it does. My eyes are a measuring stick. I bet Hao's still holding a grudge over that 'dear son' remark, so he's found a legitimate excuse to beat up the Great Master."
"True enough. What father wants his son getting another dad?"
Su Mo smiled and continued watching the detection feed.
"Your Excellency, I know I was wrong. I'll absolutely do my utmost to teach little San from now on," Yu Xiaogang hurriedly apologized, his face swollen like a pig's head.
Only when he had beaten him enough did Tang Hao stop.
"Second, I want to know what's going on with your Clear Sky Hammer."
Yu Xiaogang: "..."
I'm done for!
He had a feeling he was about to get another beating.
In the end, he told the truth. "The Clear Sky Hammer martial soul I displayed before wasn't mine. It was little San's."
"Hm?" Tang Hao froze.
"For some unknown reason, on the day little San became my disciple, my martial soul resonated with his. At first, I thought it was a Martial Soul Fusion Skill, but in fact, our martial souls had been swapped."
Boom!
A wisp of Tang Hao's aura suddenly escaped, forcing Yu Xiaogang to his knees.
"So... your Clear Sky Hammer martial soul is actually my son's, and little San's second martial soul has now become your Luo Sanpao?"
"Y-yes," Yu Xiaogang answered with difficulty.
Thump!
Tang Hao could no longer contain his fury and kicked Yu Xiaogang. He flew backward and crashed into the bookshelf. Wood splinters scattered in an instant, and books spilled all over the floor.
"Cough, cough..."
Yu Xiaogang lay amid the scattered wreckage, his meridians ruptured throughout his body and multiple bones broken. A coppery taste rose in his throat, and he could not help coughing up a mouthful of blood.
"Speak! Was this your doing?"
Tang Hao was beside himself with rage, his eyes almost spitting fire.
He suspected Grandmaster had tampered with something. After all, this was a master of theory. Perhaps he knew some method of swapping martial souls.
"Cough, cough..." Yu Xiaogang gave a bitter laugh.
"Swapping martial souls is beyond mortal power. Even a Titled Douluo can't do it, much less me. I had a tentative theory before: little San may have encountered some kind of divine trial..."
"What divine trial requires swapping martial souls?"
Tang Hao remained suspicious. As for claims like "Even a Titled Douluo can't do it, much less me," those would only fool children.
The world was vast, and no wonder was beyond possibility.
Perhaps Grandmaster really did possess such an ability.
"I don't know exactly what kind of divine trial it was either."
Yu Xiaogang sounded helpless. "Although I benefited, I truly wasn't responsible. If I had that ability, why would I choose the Clear Sky Hammer? Returning to my clan to find a Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, or asking my clansmen to find a top-tier martial soul for me, would both be better options."
Seeing that Grandmaster sounded sincere, and that his argument did indeed make sense, Tang Hao believed him for now.
"But in the end, little San got the short end of this martial soul swap, while you used the Clear Sky Hammer martial soul to successfully break through level thirty. You have both a responsibility and an obligation to find a way to swap them back."
"Little San is my disciple. I'll do everything I can to help him," Yu Xiaogang hurriedly promised.
"Don't worry. I'll help search for clues too."
As he spoke, Tang Hao tossed Grandmaster a jet-black token.
Crack!
The token landed on Yu Xiaogang's lower leg, dealing a second injury to the already damaged bone.
Yu Xiaogang: "..."
Tang Hao: "..."
"Sorry, this time it was an accident." A trace of embarrassment appeared on Tang Hao's face. He turned to leave, but paused at the doorway to add, "Take good care of my son."
The bitterness on Yu Xiaogang's face deepened.
"Of course I'll take good care of little San, but in my current condition, I may need your son to take care of me for a while."
Crack!
They clenched!
His fists clenched!
The thought that his own son would have to care for Grandmaster because he could not move freely left Tang Hao fuming again. He immediately strode away.
He feared he might lose control and smash Grandmaster to death with his hammer.
Before leaving, he called back, "I'll find you a doctor and a caregiver."
Watching Tang Hao leave, Yu Xiaogang lay in the wreckage with a forlorn expression. "I never thought there'd come a day when my idol would beat me up..."
The fourth-floor dormitory.
Su Mo and Tian Meng had watched the entire affair and could not help feeling a little sympathy for the Great Master.
"Hao really is ruthless!"
"He's Tang San's teacher, at least, yet Hao didn't pull his punches at all. Still, I like it. Heh heh heh..." After two seconds of sympathy, Su Mo went right back to reveling in his misfortune.
"Hehe, if only we could watch Hao beat up the Great Master every day."
Tian Meng still looked hungry for more.
"Keep dreaming."
Su Mo rolled his eyes at Tian Meng and said, "Now it's time for you to get to work. Master Tang San's Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record and combine it with my control over the wood element to develop a similar set of soul skills."
"Huh? What does that have to do with me?" Tian Meng froze.
Hearing this, Su Mo snapped, "You live in my house and mooch off my Wi-Fi. What's wrong with asking you to pay a little rent and internet fees now?"