A Choice and Questions
After hearing Kai's words.
Xiao Wu tried hard for a while, but a few days later she went back to her old training routine.
She was fine with fighting or going shopping, but she couldn't spend all day training.
She trained during class and squeezed in some time during the evenings when she was free.
Even if you added it all up, she trained for five or six hours at most each day.
Tang San trained even less. He practiced the Purple Demon Eye at dawn, attended cultural theory classes in the morning, skipped afternoon combat training to work at the blacksmith shop, and practiced the Mysterious Heaven Skill at night.
Just as everyone was still trying to process it, Kai applied for early graduation.
Blacksmith shop
By the time Tang San heard the news, Kai had already left the academy with the Dean.
As he watched the piece of iron glowing red after being tempered in the flames, Tang San felt inexplicably restless.
In his previous life, he had practiced the Tang Sect Hidden Weapons and had long since mastered smithing. He had also crafted countless intricate hidden weapons.
Yet he still obediently followed his father's instructions and worked the forge. He had sensed that his father wanted to teach him some kind of "cultivation method" or "skill."
It was like the stance training some sects required before their disciples learned martial arts in his previous life. They had to master the stances and build a solid foundation first.
Smithing was probably the foundation of some kind of "cultivation method" too, and Tang San was willing to endure a little hardship to learn it.
Even his teacher, Yu Xiaogang, hadn't objected, so he figured this approach probably wouldn't interfere too much with his cultivation.
So, during this period, Tang San had settled into smithing while studying and practicing cultivation.
But then he learned that Kai had graduated early, and Nuoding Academy announced the Soul Power Level of this outstanding graduate.
Seeing that this peer, who had left Holy Soul Village alongside him, had already reached Soul Power Level 16 while he was still at Level 14, Tang San began to doubt himself.
They had started with the same Soul Power Level!
Tang San felt restless. He understood the principle that one small step behind could lead to falling further and further behind.
At first, Kai had obtained his Soul Ring before him. Now his Soul Power was two levels higher. The feeling that the gap between them was steadily widening made Tang San's usually calm heart grow anxious.
Should he cut back on smithing and spend more time cultivating?
Tang San didn't know what level his father's "cultivation method" was, or whether it was worth wasting cultivation time on it in the early stages.
He wanted to talk it through with someone and get advice from someone experienced and knowledgeable.
And in Tang San's mind, the best person to ask was naturally his teacher, Yu Xiaogang.
Teachers' dormitory
Yu Xiaogang had also heard about Kai's early graduation.
Unlike Tang San, he'd known all along that anyone with Innate Full Soul Power was bound to graduate early.
Tang San should be the same. Following the normal path of a Soul Master, anyone who wanted more resources and better prospects would inevitably graduate early and move on to an intermediate Soul Master Academy.
Tang San should graduate early too.
However, Yu Xiaogang had his own plans.
At a junior Soul Master Academy, the teachers generally came from ordinary backgrounds, and most of them were only Soul Grandmasters. He could take Tang San on as a disciple without anyone daring to challenge him or object.
And at a small academy in a small city, Tang San had nowhere else to go to learn. It was easier for Yu Xiaogang to mislead him, too.
If Tang San went to an intermediate or even an advanced Soul Master Academy, Yu Xiaogang would be nothing but a mere Soul Grandmaster. He couldn't keep acting like a nominal teacher and throwing his weight around the way he did at Nuoding Academy.
The other academies might not even take him on as a teacher. Once Tang San enrolled, Yu Xiaogang would have no choice but to watch from the sidelines.
By then, Tang San would have learned far more at those academies and would ask much harder questions. This "master" who specialized in researching Martial Souls might not know enough to answer them.
Yu Xiaogang certainly didn't want that to happen. The best solution was to keep Tang San at Nuoding Academy with him.
Hearing a knock at the door, Yu Xiaogang knew who it was. He was all alone at the academy, and the only person who came back to seek him out was his disciple, Tang San.
"Come in!" Yu Xiaogang opened the door and looked at Tang San, who had come to visit, puzzled.
It wasn't a day when Yu Xiaogang was scheduled to teach Tang San, and he knew Tang San usually went to the blacksmith shop in the afternoon.
"Is something the matter?" He let Tang San in, closed the door, poured him a glass of water, and asked.
After spending some time with Yu Xiaogang, Tang San had come to trust the master's wisdom. "Teacher, I have something I'm unsure about..."
And so, Tang San explained his questions and indecision from beginning to end.
Of course, he held back some details about the "cultivation method," only saying that a passing Soul Master had taught him.
"So, teacher, what should I do? Should I keep smithing and practicing the techniques that Soul Master taught me, or focus most of my efforts on cultivating Soul Power?" Tang San looked at Yu Xiaogang, hoping he could give him an answer.
Given what had happened with Tang Hao, Yu Xiaogang immediately connected the smithing techniques with the Clear Sky Sect's Clear Sky Hammer-related Self-Created Soul Skills.
These Self-Created Soul Skills were no secret among the great powers of Douluo Continent.
Yu Xiaogang took a sip of water. His expression remained calm, but inwardly, he didn't know how to answer.
Intermediate Soul Master Academy
If he considered only his own interests and position, he didn't want Tang San spending too much time learning the Clear Sky Hammer's Self-Created Soul Skills.
The Clear Sky Hammer was powerful, but its reputation was ruined. Tang San couldn't use it openly.
Before Tang San grew strong enough, he could only use his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul. Yu Xiaogang wanted to use Tang San to prove his theories, so Tang San would have to show his talent and make a name for himself.
But thinking one thing and doing another were two different matters.
Tang Hao might be listening to their conversation from somewhere. Yu Xiaogang considered his own life and decided to play it safe.
Tang Hao must have had his reasons for arranging things this way.
"Cough, cough. Xiao San, you can't judge things only by what you stand to gain or lose right now. Kai may seem to have the lead, but in truth, you're the one who will surpass him."
Yu Xiaogang continued, "Even if his Soul Power surpasses yours, his upper limit is already set. But you, Xiao San, have Twin Martial Souls. You can give both of your Martial Souls Soul Rings."
"And the techniques you just mentioned sound like training for Self-Created Soul Skills. They might be related to your Clear Sky Hammer Martial Soul, and could greatly increase your combat strength in the future."
"Teacher, what are Self-Created Soul Skills?" Tang San asked, puzzled.
"Self-Created Soul Skills are unique techniques that Soul Masters create independently through a deep understanding of their Martial Souls and their own talent. Unlike fixed Soul Skills granted by Soul Rings, they're highly personalized, and their power often surpasses that of ordinary Soul Skills." Yu Xiaogang gave a brief explanation.
Tang San's eyes lit up with excitement. "Really? In that case, I'll keep training the way I have been, teacher."
"Exactly," Yu Xiaogang replied. "It may seem like he's surpassed you for now, but once you've finished training your Self-Created Soul Skills and begin cultivating your Second Martial Soul, that's when your true strength will show."
Seeing the excitement and admiration in Tang San's eyes, Yu Xiaogang's heart skipped a beat. "Of course, as I told you before, you absolutely mustn't reveal your Second Martial Soul. Understand, Xiao San?"
"Teacher, I understand." Having found an answer to his question, Tang San's anxiety eased. He listened to his teacher's warning and agreed.
Outside the room
Tang Hao had also finished eavesdropping on the conversation between master and disciple.
At first, he hadn't known what Tang San should choose, because he'd never faced this problem back in the Clear Sky Sect.
Before awakening their Martial Souls at age six, children in the Clear Sky Sect received basic instruction and learned academic subjects. Some parents even gave their children extra lessons on the techniques behind Self-Created Soul Skills.
After awakening their Martial Souls and Soul Power at age six, they focused primarily on cultivating Soul Power, practiced Self-Created Soul Skills second, and studied academics last.
Tang San's situation was clearly different.
He'd grown up in Holy Soul Village, where Tang Hao had taught him nothing and made him take care of him. Now that he'd awakened his Martial Soul, he knew nothing and had to start learning from scratch.
The others learned one thing at a time, gradually building on what came before. Tang San was trying to learn everything all at once.
Naturally, there just wasn't enough time.
Still, Tang Hao chose to trust Master Yu Xiaogang's judgment and his own monstrous child.
That's right. In Tang Hao's eyes, his child was like a monster.
Tang San filled every day with tasks and worked himself hard at the blacksmith shop, yet he didn't need a large amount of medicinal herbs or meat to replenish himself.
He woke up every day feeling refreshed, his body healthy and showing no sign of strain.
It was downright bizarre.
Kai had already left the academy, so naturally he didn't know about their conversation.
Otherwise, he would have laughed.
Why bother with so many skills? All that flash and no substance!
Kai's fighting style was simple: draw his blade, strike, and kill in one blow—pure damage.
He and Li Bai were polar opposites.
Li Bai's kit was nearly perfect, but his stats were terrible.
Kai's kit was full of holes, but his stats were maxed out.
Li Bai wanted to improve his stats and shore up his weaknesses. Kai, meanwhile, had chosen to stick to his path and keep increasing his damage, no matter how flawed his kit was.
As for whether someone might kite him in the future, he trusted his armor's blocking ability. They'd only be scratching him; it was nothing to worry about.
"I thought you'd take the Hundred Thousand Year Soul Ring and Soul Bone from that rabbit," Qian Xunji communicated with Kai through the system.
"I can't beat that guy, Tang Hao."
"I can help you!" Qian Xunji suggested.
"If you help me, then it's yours, right? Everyone knows the rules."
Qian Xunji and these heroes kept their dealings strictly business. He had no problem helping the heroes who remained in Spirit Hall.
But if someone chose to go out on their own and then asked for help, they had to return to Spirit Hall, and Qian Xunji would keep all the spoils from providing that help.
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