Soul Ring Falls to the Mundane, Zhuqing Glances Sideways

Inside the Soul Hunting Forest, Tang San stared at the empty pile of rubble, the hope in his heart completely dissolving into nothingness.

Yu Xiaogang searched the surroundings several times over, but he could not find even a trace of the Datura Snake. He could only sigh helplessly, turn his head toward the gloomy-faced Tang San, and say in a low voice, "It has come to this; we can only settle for the next best thing and find any ordinary hundred-year soul beast to make do. By missing the optimal soul ring, the foundation of your Blue Silver Grass is destined to be a cut below."

Tang San gritted his teeth, his heart overflowing with unwillingness, but faced with the reality before him, he had no choice but to accept it. In the time that followed, he wandered aimlessly through the outer perimeter of the forest, eventually managing to subdue a mediocre hundred-year Green Grass Snake with no special attributes.

Having hastily completed the soul ring absorption, Tang San's first soul skill was not only weak in power but also lacked any added toxins, a world of difference from the heaven-sent Datura Snake soul ring in the original story. His innate advantage was now more than half-depleted, and his starting point had been left far behind by me.

[Memory suddenly interrupted]

This is the consequence of failing to seize opportunities; half of one's potential is wasted right at the start. Without the enhancement of the Datura Snake, Tang San's Blue Silver Grass has been reduced to a truly useless martial soul in its early stages. So what if he has the Mysterious Heaven Skill? Once the foundation is rotten, no amount of later patching can fix it. This wave was a massive profit!

[Thoughts retracted, returning to reality]

I took all of this in, remaining calm on the surface while already understanding everything in my heart. One step behind, every step behind; this is merely the beginning of Tang San's descent into the valley.

After returning to Nuoding Academy, life returned to tranquility.

Yet, starting from this day, I could always faintly feel a cold gaze frequently resting upon me.

It was Zhu Zhuqing.

Ever since I stepped in to save her in the Soul Hunting Forest that day, this cold-natured girl, who had always been a loner, had quietly kept me in her heart. She would not be lively or proactive like Xiao Wu; she would only follow silently from a distance, using the pretext of cultivation or traveling to create accidental encounters time and time again.

Sometimes it was at the morning training grounds, where she would happen to appear not far from me to practice in silence; other times it was in the academy cafeteria, where she would deliberately choose a seat not far from mine.

In those cold eyes, the initial wariness had long since faded, replaced by a faint sense of curiosity and affection.

I noticed her deliberate actions, but I never pointed them out, maintaining a calm and steady attitude. When our eyes occasionally met, I would only give a slight nod, keeping the boundaries perfectly measured—neither deliberately distant nor overly intimate—slowly accumulating the harem bonds that belonged to me.

As the days passed, it was soon time for Yu Xiaogang's martial soul theory class.

On the podium, this "theory master" was once again playing his old tune, loudly preaching his own riddled theories, endlessly boasting that there were no weak martial souls, and wildly beautifying the growth limits of useless martial souls. He even used Tang San's Blue Silver Grass as an example, attempting to validate his twisted logic.

The new students below listened with great interest, treating his words as truth. Only I sat in the last row, watching with cold eyes, refuting these fallacies point by point in my mind.

Yu Xiaogang scanned the class, feeling self-satisfied as he saw everyone immersed in his theories. However, when his gaze fell upon me, his brows furrowed slightly. For some time now, I had remained reticent, never echoing his words nor questioning them, like an inscrutable stone that left him feeling perpetually uneasy.

When he reached the theory of cultivating Blue Silver Grass, Yu Xiaogang paused deliberately and looked at the whole class: "As a recognized useless martial soul, the Blue Silver Grass can still rise through acquired cultivation. This is the best proof of my theory. Does anyone have any objections?"

The room was deathly silent; no one dared to contradict this guest lecturer of the academy.

Just then, I slowly raised my head, my tone flat and unhurried, carrying a faint Sichuan-Chongqing accent as I spoke softly: "Master, you can't say it like that. The innate foundation of a martial soul is already set; acquired cultivation can only add flowers to the brocade, it cannot defy the heavens and change one's fate. Ordinary Blue Silver Grass lacks exclusive attributes, and its innate soul power is limited. Even if you spend countless resources, it is very difficult to catch up to the pace of top-tier martial souls. Does this not count as a flaw in your theory?"

My voice was not loud, but it clearly reached every corner of the classroom.

In an instant, the entire room fell silent.

Everyone looked at me in disbelief, never expecting that this usually silent and introverted boy would dare to publicly question Yu Xiaogang's theory.

Yu Xiaogang's face sank abruptly. He never imagined I would suddenly speak up to point out a mistake. He hurriedly tried to argue, but after careful thought, he found no suitable reason to refute me—what I said was, after all, an indisputable fact.

Tang San, sitting in the front row, turned his head sharply to glare at me, his eyes full of anger, wishing he could rush up to stop me immediately.

My expression remained calm. After speaking, I lowered my head again and said nothing more. Throughout the process, there was no arrogance; I simply pointed out the flaw in the theory, neither tearing off the mask in public nor failing to quietly plant a seed of doubt in the hearts of all the students.

Imperceptibly, the golden signboard of Yu Xiaogang's so-called "invincible theory" had already begun to crack.

I knew in my heart that boiling a frog in warm water is the way to go. Slowly dismantling his prestige and crushing Tang San's path step by step is the most secure strategy.

Enduring and hiding my strength, waiting for the right moment—the era that belongs to me is slowly arriving.