Academy life was always dull and tedious, but for Tang Yin, all the knowledge about the Soul Master World was exactly what he needed right now.
Although he knew the story by heart, and knew where the opportunities on Douluo Continent could be found, he was also well versed in the secrets of the Soul Master World. But all of that was knowledge on a broad scale.
To use an analogy, he knew Blue Silver Grass should follow the path of life, but he had no idea how to do that or which Soul Beasts he needed to hunt for Soul Rings.
So he had to learn all he could about the Soul Beasts of the Soul Master World and prepare for the academy's organized Soul Ring hunt in the near future.
Of course, he had made preparations for either outcome. If the academy teachers proved too incompetent, he and Third Sister would have no choice but to pay a Soul Hunting group.
But Tang Yin wouldn't dare entrust his safety to a group of strangers so easily. It would be safer to pick out a Soul Beast first, then put out a bounty for a Soul Hunting group to capture it.
It would cost more, but it would be safer. Although the original story said Tang Hao was protecting Tang San in secret, who knew whether he was there twenty-four hours a day? What if he wasn't?
"Brother, are you going to the library again for the rest of the day?" As soon as class ended, Tang Sanmei hurried over.
"Yeah." Tang Yin nodded. Although they could still absorb Soul Power through meditation despite having reached a bottleneck, their efficiency was low, so they might as well learn more about Soul Beasts.
The teachers in class only covered basic knowledge. If he wanted to learn more, he'd have to study at the library.
"But did that Idiot Wu ask you to back her up again?"
At that, Tang Yin couldn't help but sigh. Even though she was Tang Sanmei, Xiao Wu and Tang Sanmei's relationship had still inevitably grown close. Sometimes, Tang Sanmei even abandoned her own brother to sleep with Xiao Wu.
Tang Yin couldn't help feeling that once a girl grew up, she'd forget all about her family.
"Yeah. It's that guy the younger students call Boss Xiao. He's awful. He even said he wanted Sister Xiao Wu as his pet." Tang Sanmei's face twisted with disgust, but then she seemed to recall something and tilted her head in puzzlement.
"Brother, why do you keep calling Sister Xiao Wu 'Idiot Wu'? What does 'idiot' mean?"
"Sister Xiao Wu told you to ask me, didn't she?" Tang Yin smiled disdainfully, but still explained, "It means 'really amazing.' I'm praising her as an amazing Xiao Wu."
"Then I'll come keep you company after I take care of things with Sister Xiao Wu." Tang Sanmei stared at Tang Yin's face suspiciously.
Seeing his gentle expression and the sincerity in his eyes, she believed him nine-tenths of the way. She didn't bother to investigate further, and after saying goodbye, headed toward the academy square.
Although the academy encouraged students to spar with one another, they were only allowed to do so in the square, under a teacher's watchful eye, just in case anything happened.
After Third Sister left, Tang Yin went into the academy library as usual, took a book on common Soul Beasts of the continent from the shelf, and started flipping through it.
"This is only a Soul Master academy in a remote little city. Its resources are pretty limited." After reading for a while, Tang Yin sighed inwardly.
But it made sense. Douluo Continent was still in the age of feudal empires, and monopolizing knowledge was second nature to the nobility.
That brought him to Spirit Hall. Although Spirit Hall provided free Martial Soul Awakenings to commoners in order to win them over and find Soul Masters among them to strengthen its ranks, the deeds mattered more than the motives. Spirit Hall really had given ordinary people a path to becoming Soul Masters.
And the subsidies for lower-ranked Soul Masters were the result of Spirit Hall and the Empire pulling against each other.
Why, if the Empire provided the funding, was Spirit Hall responsible for distributing it?
The reason was simple. Imagine a region suffering a disaster, and a nongovernmental organization stepping in to take over the government's duties. What were they trying to do, usurp the government?
The situation between Spirit Hall and the Empire was much the same, except neither side wanted to fall out with the other just yet.
That was why the Empire provided the funds while Spirit Hall handled distribution—a compromise that both sides could reluctantly accept.
His thoughts had wandered a little too far. By the time Tang Yin came back to himself, dinner was already over.
Well, no dinner for him tonight!
Putting down the book on common Soul Beasts, which he'd finished while thinking about other things, Tang Yin felt a little annoyed.
He'd been too quick to judge before. He'd thought Tang Hao allowing Tang San to apprentice himself to that useless Yu Xiaogang in the original story was incredibly stupid. But now, it seemed that might have been a compromise Tang Hao had been forced to make.
There was no need to mention Tang Hao himself. He was a reckless brute, and in his youth, he'd most likely relied on guidance from the elders of his clan to cultivate. His own theoretical knowledge was a complete mess, let alone his ability to teach anyone. That was the state of most Soul Masters nowadays.
And since Spirit Hall had put out a warrant for Tang Hao, he couldn't send Tang San to an academy run by one of the major powers. Taking Tang San back to his clan was even less of an option. After weighing every possibility, Yu Xiaogang, the theoretical grandmaster, really was the only choice left.
If you ignored his bullshit Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul and his shoddy character, Yu Xiaogang truly could be called a walking encyclopedia.
He'd not only read extensively from the archives of Spirit Hall, one of the continent's top powers, but he was also the son of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's leader and had naturally absorbed the wealth of knowledge available to him there.
In a way, he really was suited to be an introductory teacher who spoon-fed knowledge to lower-ranked Soul Masters.
Of course, that was only if he stuck to being a diligent carrier of knowledge instead of preaching his Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul.
You could see that from how Tang San knew the various Soul Beasts like the back of his hand in the original story. To give credit where it was due, that really was Yu Xiaogang's contribution.
"Maybe I should get in touch with Yu Xiaogang and see if I can trick some notes or books out of him."
With that thought, Tang Yin put the book back on the shelf and suddenly felt like he'd forgotten something.
"Right. Why hasn't Third Sister come over yet?"
Tang Yin suddenly remembered that almost an entire afternoon had passed since Tang Sanmei said she'd come find him after dealing with Xiao Wu's business.
"Surely nothing happened to her?"
Tang Yin murmured to himself. They were only a few students. Even if Tang Sanmei hadn't gained a Soul Ring and broken through level ten like she had in the original story, her cultivation techniques and Hidden Weapons alone were more than enough to ensure nothing went wrong.
With that in mind, Tang Yin first went around the academy square, but found nothing. Then he headed to the dormitory, where he happened to see Wang Sheng and the others returning from the cafeteria.
"Where are my sister and Xiao Wu?" Seeing the group with slight bruises but still chatting and laughing, he felt somewhat reassured, then turned to ask Wang Sheng.
Wang Sheng had been bragging about his heroic performance that day, but his face stiffened at the sound of Tang Yin's voice.
"Boss Tang." He straightened up, suddenly looking like a student who'd just been called on by a teacher. The others also stopped smiling, their expressions turning solemn.
The person the boys in the dorm feared most wasn't Sister Xiao Wu, who was always shouting about beating people up and doing whatever she pleased.
Nor was it Tang Sanmei, who was gentle and delicate in front of Tang Yin but turned cold and taciturn, with ruthless strikes, as soon as she left his side.
It was the person in front of them, Tang Yin, who always wore a smile and treated people so warmly that they felt as if they were basking in a spring breeze.
They couldn't explain why they felt that way. They only knew that Tang Yin was strong, but still a little weaker than Xiao Wu and Tang Sanmei.
So it wasn't because of his strength. It was his presence.
Tang Yin didn't feel like a child at all. He was composed and dignified, like an adult.
"We're not sure either. We only know that after we defeated Boss Xiao and the others from the upper grades, the dean suddenly showed up in the square with the Grandmaster and went to see Tang Sanmei. Sister Xiao Wu followed them afterward."
"The Grandmaster?" Tang Yin's heart gave a start. He knew exactly who they meant. Anyone who'd spent a few days at Nuoding Academy would have heard of the Grandmaster.
What surprised him was that even though he'd changed the original story's chance meeting at the entrance, the Grandmaster had still found Third Sister through the dean.
"I looked away for a moment and someone stole my home." Tang Yin's gaze darkened, but soon his expression softened.
"Forget it. Tang Sanmei isn't like the naive girl in the original story, who could be easily cowed by a few words from Yu Xiaogang."
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