"All right, that's enough for today."
Seeing that they truly had been drained of their last drop of Soul Power, Lin Yuan stopped pushing them.
"Get back and make time to meditate and cultivate. The real combat just now will help you strengthen your foundation."
"Thank you for your guidance, Big Brother!" the three replied in unison.
After giving them his instructions, Lin Yuan turned and walked out of the Martial Arts Arena, heading straight back to his room.
As soon as he sat down at his desk, his eyes fell on the thick stack of letters at the corner.
A golden silhouette rose unbidden in his mind.
Over the past few years, Qian Renxue had been entrusted by Spirit Hall with its most important covert mission. She had gone undercover in the Heaven Dou Empire, taking the place of the empire's crown prince.
Though the two had parted with deep reluctance back then, they had never lost touch.
Every month, a confidential letter from Heaven Dou City made its way into Lin Yuan's hands.
He reached for the letter on top, which had just arrived and was still unopened.
A faint, delicate fragrance lingered on the envelope—the distinctive scent of Qian Renxue.
Lin Yuan's lips curled into a smile as he eagerly opened the letter.
The handwriting was neat and graceful, with a spirited flair. There was no mention of weighty affairs of state.
The whole letter was filled with amusing stories about recent happenings in Heaven Dou City and descriptions of the pastries at a newly opened shop.
Between the lines shone a playful affection and longing that she revealed only when writing to Lin Yuan.
Lin Yuan read every word, his eyes full of warmth.
Then he picked up his brush, dipped it generously in ink, and eagerly began writing his reply.
He recorded his recent cultivation progress, along with amusing stories about giving the Golden Generation a hard time over the past few days.
At the same time.
A thousand miles from Spirit City, in Nuoding City.
Yu Xiaogang stood in the square of the junior Soul Master Academy, his hands clasped behind his back.
His short hair had begun to gray, and his face looked stiff and severe.
But at that moment, a rare expression of smug, brazen pride showed on his usually lifeless face.
Over the past few years, fortune had finally turned in his favor. In Nuoding City, he had found an almost perfect disciple.
Tang San!
A peerless genius with Innate Full Soul Power and Twin Martial Souls!
Taking advantage of the boy's naivety when he had first ventured out into the world, Yu Xiaogang had used his so-called theories to win him over and successfully taken him as his direct disciple.
And Tang San had indeed lived up to his expectations.
His cultivation speed was astonishing.
Though he was only twelve, he had already broken through to level thirty and become a genuine Soul Elder!
This achievement had let Yu Xiaogang hold his head high again.
For the past few days, he had been boasting all over Nuoding City.
He told everyone he met that his disciple, Tang San, would surely become the youngest Soul Ancestor or Soul King on the Douluo Continent.
"What Golden Generation of Spirit Hall?"
"Next to my disciple Tang San, they're nothing but a pack of mangy dogs and chickens, unworthy of a single blow!"
Yu Xiaogang held forth before the academy's teachers, his words dripping with arrogant disdain.
Whenever Spirit Hall came up, one of his arms would ache faintly.
Yu Xiaogang unconsciously touched the arm that had been broken years ago, and his gaze turned venomous.
He had never forgotten the humiliation he suffered on the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest.
That little bastard Lin Yuan had broken his hand in front of so many people, then mercilessly torn apart the Ten Core Competitivenesses he had prided himself on, dismissing them as worthless.
He, Yu Xiaogang, would settle that score sooner or later!
But for now, there was something more important to do.
If Tang San was to cultivate his Second Martial Soul successfully in the future—and prove his supreme Ten Core Martial Soul Theories to the whole world—Yu Xiaogang needed to obtain a method for cultivating Twin Martial Souls.
Across the entire continent, the only person who had successfully overcome the backlash of Twin Martial Souls was the Pope of Spirit Hall, Bibi Dong!
"Xiao San, pack your things."
Yu Xiaogang turned to the ordinary-looking boy in blue behind him.
"Your teacher is taking you to Spirit City."
Tang San nodded respectfully.
"Teacher, I heard that His Holiness the Pope adopted a son with exceptional talent?"
Tang San couldn't help asking.
Lately, there had been plenty of rumors across the continent about that mysterious adopted son.
At this, Yu Xiaogang let out a cold laugh, his face full of contempt.
"What kind of genius is that?"
"Bibi Dong is a woman. What could she possibly know about true theoretical instruction? She couldn't teach a real genius if she tried!"
"No matter how gifted that boy is, without proper theories to guide him, he'll end up mediocre."
Yu Xiaogang patted Tang San on the shoulder, his tone firm and certain.
"Even if that boy is older than you, with your talent and the cultivation path I've tailored for you, his level might not even match yours!"
"The title of the greatest genius under heaven belongs to you alone."
A flash of pride crossed Tang San's eyes. He nodded firmly.
The two of them packed their belongings, then hired a carriage and raced straight toward Spirit City, kicking up clouds of dust along the way.
The carriage wheels rolled over the rutted dirt road with a dull, creaking rumble.
The carriage was rather cramped inside, and it rocked now and then as it traveled.
Tang San sat upright on a wooden bench covered with a cushion, both hands placed properly on his knees.
He glanced through the curtain, which fluttered in the breeze, at the withered landscape rushing past. Then he turned his gaze to Yu Xiaogang, seated opposite him.
After hesitating for a long while, Tang San could no longer suppress his worry.
"Teacher."
Tang San spoke cautiously, his tone tentative.
"The cultivation method for Twin Martial Souls must be one of Spirit Hall's most closely guarded secrets."
"Even if Senior Bibi Dong really knows how to resolve the backlash, would she... would she really be willing to casually tell us something so crucial to the foundations of her organization?"
In Tang San's ingrained understanding, shaped by living two lifetimes, both the Tang Sect in his previous life and the great clans of this world guarded their core manuals to an almost fanatical degree.
Getting a secret of this caliber from Spirit Hall for free would be harder than climbing to the heavens.
Yu Xiaogang had been resting with his eyes closed. Hearing his disciple's question, he opened them with ease.
He reached out to straighten his old but freshly washed collar. His stiff, severe face took on an air of absolute confidence.
He even straightened his back without realizing it.
"Xiao San, you underestimate your teacher."
"You have no idea what kind of standing and influence I once had in Spirit City."
Yu Xiaogang's lips curved high, his eyes brimming with an overwhelming confidence steeped in past glory.
"Spirit Hall's rules are indeed strict. That's because the current Pope is Qian Xunji."
"But Bibi Dong is Spirit Hall's Holy Maiden, second only to one and above everyone else. She has tremendous influence within Spirit Hall."
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