Taking a Master?

Jiang Chen raised an eyebrow as he looked at the Soul Tool on the table, gleaming with a blue sheen.

He had been worrying over how to get the Soul Tool from Short Hair, yet this guy had unexpectedly flown into a rage and used it as a wager.

"Really, don't regret it later," Jiang Chen continued to fan the flames.

After a brief silence, Yu Xiaogang calmed down as well and felt some regret over what he had just done.

But things had already come this far. If he went back on his word now, the two children would only look down on him even more.

His grand plan to take disciples would only become more difficult.

Having no choice, Yu Xiaogang could only say stubbornly, "A word once spoken cannot be taken back."

Yet the moment the words left his mouth, he immediately regretted them.

Jiang Chen gave a light chuckle. A purple Soul Ring rose beneath his feet and spun soundlessly, its dazzling violet light instantly filling the entire room.

"A, a Thousand-Year Soul Ring?!"

Yu Xiaogang looked as though he had been struck by lightning. He staggered half a step back, his hand pointing at the purple ring trembling uncontrollably. "Th-this is impossible! How could a first Soul Ring possibly absorb a thousand-year one?!"

Tang San was stunned as well. Though he had long known that Brother Chen was hiding his true abilities, seeing this Soul Ring that defied common sense with his own eyes still made him suck in a sharp breath.

"Master, your theory... doesn't seem very convincing."

Jiang Chen withdrew his Soul Ring, casually picked up the Soul Tool Belt from the table, and weighed it in his hand. "Thanks. I happened to be short on a storage tool."

Yu Xiaogang's face shifted between green and white. Ignoring the Soul Tool on the table, he hurried over to Jiang Chen, his eyes shining with a frightening intensity.

"Y-you, how did you do it...?"

A first Soul Ring that was already thousand-year—the human body simply could not withstand such a thing.

"Maybe I was just lucky."

Jiang Chen slung the belt over his shoulder, turned around, and patted Tang San on the shoulder. "Let's go, Tang San. We need to hurry and register. If we're late, there won't be any beds left."

Just as the two were about to leave, Yu Xiaogang suddenly snapped back to his senses. He took a large stride forward to block the door, forcing a stiff smile onto his face.

"Wait! I was wrong just now. Your talents are... more than enough to become my disciples. As long as you're willing, I'll devote everything I have to nurturing you!"

"Oh, right. I'm also an honorary elder of Spirit Hall. Do you know Spirit Hall? It's the strongest force on the continent!"

As he spoke, he took out a token bearing the Spirit Hall insignia from his robes to prove his identity.

To take them as disciples, Yu Xiaogang was truly going all out.

With their talent, combined with his theoretical knowledge, there was at least a fifty percent chance—no, an eighty percent chance, at least an eighty percent chance—that he could realize his dream.

"This..."

Seeing Yu Xiaogang's sincere attitude, Tang San found himself unable to decide for a moment.

After all, Brother Chen's and his own talents could not be judged by common sense. It was normal for mistakes to happen.

"Oh? Master is also an elder of Spirit Hall?" A smile rose on Jiang Chen's face.

He did not intend to offend Short Hair too deeply. Setting aside the facts, some of Short Hair's theories were still somewhat useful.

"Since Master is being so sincere, it's not like we can't consider it. But..."

Jiang Chen deliberately drew out his words and weighed the belt in his hand. "Taking a master is a major matter. We can't settle it based on just a few words, can we?"

"If you want two geniuses like us to take you as our master, you have to show us something, right?"

Yu Xiaogang's mouth twitched. He knew this brat was taking advantage of the situation, but for the sake of a genius with Twin Martial Souls, he still forced out a smile. "What... do you want?"

Jiang Chen smiled faintly. "That depends on what Master has."

"This..."

Yu Xiaogang looked at their worn, ill-fitting clothes. "You came from far away, so you probably didn't bring many clothes. Notting City gets quite cold at night. I have two quilts here. You can split them."

Yu Xiaogang turned and dragged two thick quilts out of a cabinet. The dust he shook up made him cough several times.

Jiang Chen took the quilts and weighed them, raising an eyebrow. "Master, two quilts for a gift of apprenticeship? Is that all our talent is worth?"

Tang San stood nearby holding the quilts. Though he said nothing, he nodded in agreement.

He was a genius with Twin Martial Souls. These things were indeed rather shabby to him.

Yu Xiaogang's old face reddened. He felt around in his pockets, then gritted his teeth and pulled out a small cloth bag from a drawer. "Th-there are also twenty Silver Soul Coins here. The food the academy provides for Work-Study Students isn't very good, and you're both still growing. Use this money to get yourselves something more nutritious."

"If it isn't enough, I can borrow more."

To take disciples, he had even emptied his savings.

Jiang Chen looked at the shriveled cloth bag and silently mocked him.

He was at least a level twenty-nine Soul Grandmaster. After working at the academy for so many years, he had only saved twenty Silver Soul Coins.

He could only fool Tang San because Tang San had not yet realized how absurdly gifted he was in the early days, and because Yu Xiaogang had happened to guess correctly about Twin Martial Souls, which had shocked him.

Otherwise, how could someone like Yu Xiaogang, who had been stuck at level twenty-nine until the age of fifty, ever dream of taking Tang San as a disciple?

"If you want us to take you as our master, you should at least show us some real ability, right?" Jiang Chen was not Tang San. Naturally, he would not be bought off by such scraps.

Yu Xiaogang coughed lightly and once again put on an unfathomable expression. "As the foremost authority in Martial Soul research, I naturally possess things others do not."

As he spoke, he strode to the bookshelf, pulled a yellowed notebook from the bottom shelf, and patted the dust from its cover. "This records cases of Twin Martial Soul masters throughout history, as well as the cultivation taboos and precautions I have summarized. For example, how to balance the Soul Ring configurations of two Martial Souls, how to prevent Soul Power conflicts from causing one's body to explode..."

He lowered his voice, his expression solemn. "This is an exclusive secret manual that money can't buy!"

Jiang Chen took the notebook and casually flipped through two pages, raising an eyebrow. "Master, you didn't 'draw inspiration' from some senior for this too, did you?"

Yu Xiaogang's old face reddened, but he forced himself to remain composed. "Drawing inspiration... that is also the result of my deep analysis and refinement! Besides, information on Twin Martial Souls is scarce to begin with. Apart from me, who else on the continent could organize it so systematically?"

Tang San leaned over and glanced through it. The notebook was indeed densely packed with annotations, along with several hand-drawn Soul Power circulation diagrams. It did look fairly convincing.

"Fine, we'll take this notebook."

Jiang Chen stuffed the notebook into Tang San's hands, then turned and headed outside. "As for taking you as our master... we can talk slowly once Master breaks through level thirty."

"L-level thirty?!" Yu Xiaogang nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.

If he could break through level thirty, why the hell would he still be researching theory?

"Um, Master, I'll be leaving too."

Looking at Yu Xiaogang's iron-blue face, Tang San offered a brief farewell, then hugged the quilts and notebook as he hurried out, struggling to hold back his laughter.

He could tell that Brother Chen had never intended to take this Master as his master from the start.

Everything he had done just now had been to gain more benefits.

Tang San did not find anything wrong with that. After all, this so-called Master had been the one plotting against them first.