He silently pondered to himself:
"Could it be... that I misjudged him just now? Though his Soul Power is low, he was able to form a combination renowned across the continent with others. Perhaps he really does possess some extraordinary talent beyond the reach of ordinary people? Or perhaps he has some terrifying trump card?"
After all, Tang San had heard some tales of the martial world back in his previous life in the Tang Sect. Some senior masters liked to hide their true strength, while others had their cultivation stagnate because of some special technique, yet still possessed astonishing combat ability.
However, this thought had only just arisen in Tang San's mind when it was ruthlessly shattered by Xue Bingchen's amused, mocking chuckle.
"Heh... the Golden Iron Triangle?"
Xue Bingchen crossed his arms and looked down at the furious Yu Xiaogang, his eyes filled with the pity and mockery one might reserve for a clown.
"If I remember correctly, that was old news from many years ago, wasn't it? And I heard that the so-called Golden Iron Triangle had long since fallen apart and existed in name only because one person was cowardly, incompetent, and fled at the critical moment?"
A mocking curve formed at Xue Bingchen's lips as he deliberately dragged out his words.
"Besides, the other two are at least Soul Emperors or Soul Saints by now."
"And you?"
Xue Bingchen looked Yu Xiaogang up and down, then gave a disdainful laugh.
"You're a Soul Grandmaster who hasn't even broken through level thirty and has been stuck at level twenty-nine for decades. Yet you have the nerve to keep the words 'renowned across the continent' on your lips every day? Your skin is truly thicker than the Ten Thousand Year Profound Ice of the Far North. You're not putting gold on your own face—you're smearing the names of those other two powerhouses, aren't you?"
The meaning behind Xue Bingchen's words could not have been more obvious.
He was only one step away from pointing at Yu Xiaogang's nose and calling him a useless fool who only knew how to brag and ride on other people's fame!
Hearing this, Tang San finally came to his senses as well, and immediately found the whole thing absurd and ridiculous.
"That's right!"
Tang San suddenly understood.
A Soul Grandmaster in his twenties would have trouble even protecting himself in this survival-of-the-fittest world. How could he possibly be renowned across the continent? This boast is completely unreasonable!
With that thought, the way Tang San looked at Yu Xiaogang became the look one gave a swindler. The last trace of reverence in his heart vanished instantly.
Sensing the change in Tang San's gaze, Yu Xiaogang was practically driven mad!
The past he was most proud of had been utterly belittled by this young man before him!
"What do you know, you ignorant brat!"
Yu Xiaogang's eyes turned bloodshot as he nearly screamed hysterically.
"The reason our Golden Iron Triangle became renowned across the continent had nothing to do with individual levels! It was because of the flawless Martial Soul Fusion Skill centered around me! Without my theoretical guidance and coordination, they could never have unleashed such power!"
"Since you are so stubborn and unrepentant, today I'll let you, an arrogant fool who doesn't know the immensity of heaven and earth, witness what a true Martial Soul is!"
Consumed by rage, Yu Xiaogang completely lost his reason.
He decided to teach this hateful white-haired youth a lesson he would never forget for the rest of his life!
At the same time, he secretly calculated in his heart:
This brat may be devilishly handsome, with a refined and extraordinary bearing unlike ordinary people, but this is Notting City—a remote little border town! What peerless expert could possibly appear in a place like this?
Judging by his age, he is at most a young man in his early twenties. Maybe he's just an upperclassman who came to study at Notting Academy! I'm a dignified level twenty-nine Soul Grandmaster. Could I really not teach a student a lesson?
With this self-comforting conclusion, Yu Xiaogang's confidence immediately surged.
He suddenly stepped forward, rapidly formed hand seals before his chest, struck an extremely exaggerated pose that he believed looked overwhelmingly imposing, and roared toward the sky.
"Come forth! Heaven-Shattering Earth-Splitting—Luo! San! Pao!"
His roar was majestic enough to make the leaves in the surrounding trees rustle.
That resolute posture of immediately summoning his Martial Soul, along with its overwhelmingly domineering name, truly frightened the inexperienced Tang San once again.
"Heaven-Shattering Earth-Splitting?!"
Tang San sharply inhaled, staring fixedly in front of Yu Xiaogang as every muscle in his body tensed.
What a domineering name! Could it be an ancient ferocious beast Martial Soul with the power to destroy heaven and earth? Or some top-tier Weapon Martial Soul with terrifying destructive force?
Tang San was secretly shocked and had even prepared to use Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track to flee at any moment.
He intended to get a good look at just what kind of terrifying existence this "Heaven-Shattering Earth-Splitting" Martial Soul, which allowed a Soul Grandmaster to act so arrogantly, truly was!
However...
The next moment.
Tang San was dumbfounded.
Not only Tang San—even Old Jack, who had originally been prepared to watch the fun from the side, was so shocked that his jaw nearly dropped.
As Yu Xiaogang roared, a flash of pale purple Soul Power light appeared.
Then came a muffled "puff."
At Yu Xiaogang's feet, there appeared neither an ancient ferocious beast capable of destroying heaven and earth nor a divine weapon gleaming with lethal sharpness.
Instead, there appeared out of thin air...
A strange creature with a round, pudgy body, an odd pale purple color, a pair of large flapping ears, and an appearance that looked exactly like a pig—yet, upon closer inspection, somewhat resembled a mutt as well.
The moment this creature, which was neither pig nor dog, landed, it wagged its short, thick tail and affectionately moved to Yu Xiaogang's feet, repeatedly rubbing its round head against his pant leg.
As it rubbed against him, it also let out an exceedingly comical cry.
"Luo luo... luo luo..."
Then, two yellow Spirit Rings representing the hundred-year level slowly rose from beneath the feet of this creature named Luo Sanpao, rhythmically moving up and down.
"..."
The entrance to Notting Academy instantly fell into dead silence.
A breeze swept past, carrying a few fallen leaves with it.
"Pfft—!"
After that brief dead silence, Xue Bingchen finally could not hold it in any longer and burst out laughing without giving Yu Xiaogang the slightest face.
He truly did not want to laugh, but this scene, this contrast, was just too damn hilarious!
One second he had been shouting "Heaven-Shattering Earth-Splitting," and the next he had summoned a fat purple pig?
This was simply the greatest comedy scene in the history of the Douluo Continent!
What made Xue Bingchen lose control even more was that, just as he laughed, a clear and pleasant chuckle filled with profound astonishment also came from the Ice and Snow Space within his body.
"Pfft..."
It was the Snow Empress's voice.
This Lord of the Far North, who had lived for seven hundred thousand years and stood lofty and peerless in her cold beauty, saw the scene outside through Xue Bingchen's perspective and was utterly stunned as well.
"Chen'er..."
Before you continue