Su Ze's figure materialized amid the lightning, golden-white thunder flashing around him.
Like the Thunder God, he looked down at Tang San and Xiao Wu.
"Tang San, it's been a few years. Your memory's gotten worse."
"Have you forgotten the gap between our strength?"
Su Ze could tell at a glance how much Soul Power Tang San and Xiao Wu had.
They were both Soul Elders in their thirties.
He was now nearly twenty levels ahead of them.
In other words, Su Ze could easily take on both of them at once.
Looking up at Su Ze in midair,
Tang San and Xiao Wu both shuddered.
The memory of him defeating them with lightning at Nuoding Academy resurfaced in their minds.
Tang San, especially, even felt a faint tingling sensation from lightning across his body.
The moment Su Ze appeared, Tang San used Purple Demon Eye to probe his current strength.
To his great surprise,
the probing skill that had never failed him before was completely useless against Su Ze.
He couldn't sense Su Ze's Soul Power at all.
Worse, as he tried to sense it, Tang San felt a trace of fear rising inside him.
He couldn't tell how much Soul Power Su Ze had, but he was afraid.
Even so, with his teacher being insulted to his face, Tang San couldn't just take it as his disciple.
"Su Ze, your friends are just as rude as you are."
"We're here representing Shrek Academy, and my teacher is a theoretical master certified by the Soul Martial Hall."
"Is this how students at Heaven Dou Royal Academy behave?"
Tang San's reasoning was simple: since he didn't know Su Ze's strength, he would invoke the Academy's reputation and pressure the two girls into apologizing, using the shame they would bring upon Heaven Dou Royal Academy as leverage.
Dugu Yan looked thoroughly unimpressed by Tang San's words.
As Poison Douluo's granddaughter, she wasn't about to fall for such a cheap guilt trip.
"A master, is he? A theoretical master at level twenty-nine?"
"An old man who hasn't even reached Soul Elder—is he qualified to teach anyone?"
Dugu Yan's blunt mockery nearly made Yu Xiaogang explode.
Lies didn't hurt people. The truth was the sharpest blade.
It wasn't that Yu Xiaogang didn't want to break through level thirty. He dreamed of it.
But his Martial Soul made it impossible.
Hearing Dugu Yan's words, Qin Ming, a former teacher at Heaven Dou Royal Academy, couldn't hold back.
"Dugu Yan, you're being incredibly rude."
"Don't think being Poison Douluo's granddaughter gives you the right to insult people like this."
"For the sake of Heaven Dou Royal Academy and your grandfather's reputation, you should apologize."
Dugu Yan was about to respond when Su Ze, hovering overhead, let out a dismissive laugh.
Since the people from Shrek Academy wanted to talk about reputation,
he'd be happy to expose Yu Xiaogang's past.
"Yu Xiaogang, right? I said something to you back at Nuoding Academy."
"I'll say it again now."
"Someone like you—I feel dirty just being in the same room with you."
"A teacher who had an affair with his own cousin—does he deserve anyone's respect?"
Su Ze hadn't raised his voice, but everyone present heard him clearly.
The Heaven Dou Royal Academy students gathering around immediately began to whisper.
"Who's Yu Xiaogang? That flat-top guy?"
"He had an affair with his own cousin? That's shameless."
"If Senior Su Ze is willing to say it, he must have proof."
"Can someone really be so shameless as to go after his own cousin?"
The students' discussion continued to spread.
Flender, Shrek's dean, had known about it for a long time. His face darkened, but he wasn't particularly surprised.
Dai Mubai, a nobleman, stared at Yu Xiaogang in shock.
Though Dai Mubai was a libertine, he still had certain principles.
He could never bring himself to pursue someone from his own family, let alone his cousin.
Now he stared at Yu Xiaogang as if seeing the teacher he'd respected in a whole new light.
Oscar, too, looked at Yu Xiaogang in disbelief.
He'd always thought of Yu Xiaogang as a teacher worthy of respect.
The scandal hit him like a thunderbolt.
Ma Hongjun, fat and brimming with Evil Fire, looked at Yu Xiaogang with a hint of admiration.
To be so starved that he'd go after his own cousin—now that was one ruthless guy!
Xiao Wu shot Yu Xiaogang a look of contempt.
Even rabbits knew not to eat the grass by their own burrow.
Ning Rongrong reacted even more strongly. She moved away from Yu Xiaogang, her face full of disgust.
It only strengthened her resolve to leave the Academy.
Even Tang San was conflicted, at a loss for what to do.
Yu Xiaogang's past had been exposed in front of everyone. His face flushed red as he pointed at Su Ze in midair, trying to say something.
But in the end, he gave up.
Under the shocked gazes of everyone present, Yu Xiaogang clenched his fists and hurried away.
Watching Yu Xiaogang leave without even trying to deny it,
Su Ze gave a scornful laugh. Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling below looked just as contemptuous.
How could a shameless man like that be fit to teach anyone?
When the crowd saw Yu Xiaogang leave, they immediately realized that what Su Ze had said was true.
The students of Heaven Dou Royal Academy grew louder in their scorn.
Hearing the contemptuous voices around him, Tang San knew that staying would only make things more humiliating.
Under the disdainful stares, he fixed a cold gaze on Su Ze.
Whatever his teacher had done, he was still his teacher.
This Su Ze had insulted him again and again at Nuoding Academy, shamelessly stolen his Soul Tool, and now publicly humiliated his teacher.
Each of those offenses alone was enough to earn Su Ze a death sentence in Tang San's eyes.
But sensing the unfathomable depth of Su Ze's cultivation,
Tang San still felt the urge to back down.
He hadn't fully grown strong yet. He'd settle the score at the National Elite Competition next year.
"Su Ze, right? I heard you formed the Heaven Dou Team!"
"I'll be competing too. I'll wipe away my shame at the National Elite Competition!"
After making his threat, Tang San immediately led the Shrek Group away.
Watching the Shrek Group hurry off, Su Ze shook his head.
By next year, he'd have broken through to Soul Emperor.
Even with the opportunity to obtain Immortal Herbs, Tang San might not reach Soul Ancestor.
So Su Ze didn't take him seriously.
Tang San had fallen far behind him. The protagonist of Douluo Continent no longer even qualified to be called his rival.
At the thought, Su Ze turned his gaze toward a distant spot.
With a powerful Martial Soul like Storm Dragon King, and having spent so much time with Poison Douluo and Di Tian, Su Ze had developed a keen sense for powerful Soul Masters.
He could clearly feel a powerful Titled Douluo concealed in that area.
And this person was far stronger than Dugu Bo.
"Tang Hao. Looks like he's worried about his son."
Though Su Ze knew Tang Hao was there, he felt no fear.
After absorbing the Ice Fire Dragon King's Soul Bone, he'd mostly concealed the aura of the Blue Silver Emperor Soul Bone.
There was no chance Tang Hao would detect it.
Besides, this was Heaven Dou Imperial City.
If Tang Hao dared show himself, the Soul Martial Hall wouldn't let him get away with it.
After glancing in that direction, Su Ze looked away.
He dispelled the lightning and descended beside Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling.
In the shadows,
Tang Hao, dressed in a black robe, watched Su Ze descend, his eyes filled with confusion.
Had that kid just glanced at him?
Could he have noticed him?
Even if that kid had reached Soul King, there was no way he could see a Titled Douluo like Tang Hao.
It must have been a coincidence.
Tang Hao shook his head and looked once more in the direction his son had gone.
He'd never imagined that the whetstone he'd chosen earlier would grow so quickly.
If he remembered correctly, that kid wasn't even fifteen.
And now he was already a Soul King.
He'd left Tang Hao's son far behind.
Though surprised, Tang Hao wasn't too worried.
That kid must have stumbled upon some opportunity.
A person could only have such an opportunity once, at most.
His cultivation would surely slow down in the future.
Besides, Su Ze was a commoner with only one Martial Soul.
His son, Tang San, had the noble Twin Martial Souls.
He'd inherited the Clear Sky Hammer from Tang Hao, as well as his mother's Blue Silver Grass.
After absorbing a Soul Bone, it would surely evolve into the Blue Silver Emperor.
With the Blue Silver Emperor in one hand and the Clear Sky Hammer in the other,
Tang San would certainly crush Su Ze.
Tang Hao was delighted that he'd found such a sharp whetstone for his son.
"Su Ze, you do have an impressive talent."
"Too bad you ran into my son."
Tang Hao shook his head, and his black-robed figure vanished from the spot.
At the entrance to Heaven Dou Royal Academy,
as soon as Su Ze landed, Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling looked at him curiously.
"Did Yu Xiaogang really get together with his own cousin?"
Su Ze nodded, then recounted what had happened between Yu Xiaogang and Liu Erlong in the original story.
"Oh, my god! Even rabbits know not to eat the grass by their own burrow. That shameless guy even dared to insult you before."
"And he called himself a master? How shameless!"
"You were right to call him out at the Academy. Someone like that makes you feel dirty just from touching him."
Dugu Yan's voice was full of scorn. Someone with such poor character deserved to be cursed out on the spot.
Ye Lingling nodded.
Hearing Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling,
Su Ze found it a little strange. The characters in Douluo Continent seemed to have a peculiar view of love.
This was a world of extraordinary powers, after all.
Yet most of its characters seemed to value love more than growing stronger.
Take Qian Renxue and Bibi Dong later on, for example.
And then there was his own boss, the more powerful Silver Dragon King.
According to what he'd read in his previous life, Douluo Continent was the place where the Love God had fallen.
Perhaps the lingering Divine Power had caused things to turn out this way.
Still, he needed to learn from this.
Training diligently was what mattered.
Thinking of Tang San's challenge before he left, Su Ze sneered, then turned to Dugu Yan.
Tang San had reminded him of something: he should recruit a few people for his own team, too.
"Senior Sister Dugu, you know a lot of people. I'll leave putting together the Heaven Dou Royal Academy team to you!"
Dugu Yan nodded at Su Ze's words.
"Don't worry. Tang San wants to challenge you in a year, so in a year we'll definitely beat him into a pulp."
Dugu Yan had never been one to look kindly on anyone who dared to provoke Su Ze.
"Yu Tianheng, that idiot, just withdrew from Heaven Dou Royal Academy. It seems his teammates haven't left."
"I'll go find them. When the time comes, we'll crush Shrek Academy."
With that, Dugu Yan turned and left.
Hearing her mention Shrek Academy, Su Ze suddenly felt puzzled.
Why wasn't Zhu Qing, whom he'd met before, among the Shrek Seven Devils?
Wasn't there one person missing?
Though puzzled, Su Ze wasn't too worried.
He knew about the butterfly effect.
He'd been in this world for quite some time, so of course the story would change.
Besides, he'd already grown strong.
If Zhu Qing hadn't joined Shrek Academy, then she hadn't joined. It wouldn't make much difference to the story anyway.
"I'm going to train."
Su Ze said his goodbyes to Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling.
"Oh, right, Junior Brother. I'm about to break through. Could you help me choose a Soul Beast in Sunset Forest sometime soon?"
"Then I'll need you to help me hunt for a Soul Ring. Just the two of us!"
Ye Lingling looked at Su Ze expectantly. He'd been researching something lately and she'd barely seen him.
Now that she was about to break through, and Dugu Yan had finally gone away, she had to seize her chance.
At Ye Lingling's words, Su Ze glanced behind her, his expression turning strange.
Before he could speak, Dugu Yan's furious voice rang out.
"Lingling, what are you doing? Were you planning to sneak off and have him all to yourself?"
"If I hadn't come back just now to ask Su Ze something, you would've gotten away with it."
"You shameless little minx!"
Dugu Yan gritted her teeth and launched herself at Ye Lingling.
"Don't, Yan Yan! Let me explain! I didn't—ah, that tickles!"
Watching the two girls fight over him, Su Ze could only shake his head helplessly.
A moment later, the two girls reached an agreement.
Su Ze would have to take them both to Sunset Forest, even if they were only going there to choose a Soul Beast.
When Su Ze brought the two girls to the outskirts of Sunset Forest, he transformed into Lightning Shadow and spotted something unexpected deep in the forest.
A figure in black was being pursued by a Hell Spirit Cat over two thousand years old.
Su Ze raised an eyebrow at the figure's distinctive cat ears.
What a coincidence. He'd run into Zhu Qing here.
But Su Ze found it strange. It seemed that every time he met Zhu Qing, it was in a Spirit Beast Forest.
Seeing her being chased, he thought of the ten thousand gold soul coins lying untouched in his Soul Tool.
After a moment's thought, he decided to step in.
She was a big spender, after all. Helping her out while he was at it wouldn't hurt.
He could also ask Zhu Qing why she'd been with Tang San and the others.
With that thought, Su Ze's entire figure turned into a streak of lightning and vanished.
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