Hearing the unreserved praise from those around him, Ma Hongjun's smug expression grew even more pronounced.
He lifted his chin high, nostrils turned skyward, swaggering to the extreme.
Seeing that the mood had been stirred up enough, Yu Xiaogang cleared his throat at just the right moment.
He took half a step forward and began promoting himself to the crowd.
"Everyone, take a good look. This is the disciple I personally trained."
Yu Xiaogang's voice rang out, brimming with confidence.
"He is the culmination of years of my research, and the best proof that my Martial Soul Theory is absolutely correct."
The crowd fell silent at once.
Everyone pricked up their ears, afraid of missing a single word from the Grandmaster.
Seeing this, Yu Xiaogang grew even more animated and continued holding forth.
"You may not know this, but my disciple's Martial Soul once underwent an extremely severe mutation."
"For years, he suffered from the torment of Evil Fire. The slightest misstep could have set him ablaze, leaving him worse than dead."
"By the standards of the Soul Master World, he was a complete good-for-nothing, with no future to speak of."
At this, Yu Xiaogang deliberately paused.
He watched the crowd from the corner of his eye.
Seeing the astonishment on the faces of the common folk, he was satisfied.
Then Yu Xiaogang changed tack, his face brimming with pride.
"But under my careful guidance, things took a turn for the better."
"Drawing on my vast theoretical knowledge, I helped him overcome the fatal flaw in his Martial Soul."
"Not only did I save his life, I also helped him break through his limits and reach the heights you now find so difficult to attain."
The crowd listened, utterly captivated.
Yu Xiaogang slowly swept his gaze around them, then raised his voice several notches.
His proudest saying came straight from his lips.
"In this world, there are no useless Martial Souls, only useless Soul Masters!"
The words crashed down like a boulder into a still lake.
Those in the crowd who came from common backgrounds and were held back by the poor quality of their Martial Souls began breathing rapidly.
Unprecedented longing blazed in their eyes.
Faced with such a chance to change their fates, someone finally couldn't hold back.
"Grandmaster, are you still taking disciples?"
A plainly dressed young man cried out excitedly.
He tried desperately to push his way forward, his eyes fixed on Yu Xiaogang.
That shout instantly set the whole crowd alight.
Everyone began calling out questions, trying to secure a chance to become his disciple for themselves or their children.
Yu Xiaogang, however, shook his head with studied reserve.
He composed himself, adopting the air of a master who would rather have no disciples than accept the unworthy.
"When I, Yu Xiaogang, take on disciples, I have always valued affinity and aptitude. Not just any ordinary person can join my tutelage."
At those words, the hope that had just sparked in the crowd was doused halfway.
But Yu Xiaogang continued at once.
"Still, I understand your enthusiasm for the path of the Soul Master."
"I can make an exception and give you a chance to receive my guidance."
"But this takes considerable effort, so it won't be free."
With that, Yu Xiaogang named an exorbitant price for his assessment.
Hearing that astonishing figure, the noisy crowd fell silent once more.
For an ordinary family, it was an enormous sum—enough to ruin them completely.
After a brief silence, some still gave in, clinging to the hope of a future that might never come.
A weather-beaten, middle-aged man gritted his teeth and pulled out a cloth pouch.
It was filled with the coins he had painstakingly saved.
The man respectfully handed over the pouch.
After paying, he eagerly released his Martial Soul.
It was a common, rusted iron hoe.
Yu Xiaogang merely glanced at it. The corner of his mouth twitched, revealing a disdainful sneer.
"A pile of scrap metal, with no value for cultivation. It's too dull even to use as a farm tool. Get going."
The man froze on the spot.
He had never imagined that after spending all his savings, he would receive such a scathing verdict.
Once he came to his senses, the man hurried forward to demand back the hard-earned money he had just paid.
Yu Xiaogang, however, refused him without a hint of shame.
He claimed that the money was an assessment fee for his guidance and would absolutely not be refunded.
The man burned with rage, his eyes reddening as he was about to step forward and argue.
Ma Hongjun, standing to one side, immediately sprang into action.
He strode forward, and the light of the three Soul Rings around him blazed brightly.
A scorching wave of fire swept over them, sending the man flying.
The man hit the ground hard and groaned in pain.
Under the threat of force from Ma Hongjun, a Soul Elder, the man could only accept his bad luck, scramble to his feet, and slink back into the crowd.
Next, several more people who refused to give up stepped forward to try.
The result was the same every time.
Yu Xiaogang brushed them off with a few empty words.
Whenever anyone asked for a refund, Ma Hongjun would step in without hesitation and crush them by force.
This brazen shakedown had already aroused the crowd's fury.
But cowed by Ma Hongjun's power, they dared not speak up.
They could only clutch their purses and swallow their bitterness.
At the back of the crowd.
Qian Renxue saw every bit of it, clear as day.
A trace of indignation crossed her peerlessly beautiful face.
Today, Qian Renxue had set aside the elaborate robes of a Crown Prince. Her finely tailored, moon-white outfit made her look even more graceful and refined.
Sunlight fell on her fair, delicate skin, lending it a lustrous sheen.
A flicker of anger danced in her golden eyes.
She was so beautiful that it was impossible to look away.
Gu Sheng keenly sensed the change in the mood of the beauty beside him.
He reached out with his broad palm and naturally slipped an arm around Qian Renxue's slender waist.
His fingertips met the astonishing softness beneath the fabric.
Gu Sheng applied a little pressure, drawing her closer to him.
The simple touch carried an intimate warmth that put the heart at ease.
Qian Renxue felt the warmth at her waist.
Her tense body relaxed a little, and she leaned against him, clearly enjoying it.
"Don't be angry. It's not worth making yourself sick over."
Gu Sheng tilted his head slightly and murmured soothingly beside her ear.
His warm breath brushed Qian Renxue's earlobe, bringing the faintest blush to her cheeks.
"Those two over there are, at most, frauds making a spectacle of themselves."
Gu Sheng's assessment was spot-on.
Qian Renxue gave a soft snort, voicing her displeasure.
"I just can't stand their shameless faces."
"They're simply snatching away the hard-earned money those common folk have saved over the years."
Gu Sheng's fingers gently rubbed her waist.
His gaze passed over the crowd and fixed coldly on Yu Xiaogang in the distance.
"Don't worry. People like that will get what's coming to them. It's already on the way."
While the two spoke in hushed voices,
another turn of events unfolded in the open space ahead.
A thin, slight girl gathered her courage and stepped forward to ask for guidance.
She wore a somewhat old-fashioned cloth dress, though it had been washed very clean.
Her looks couldn't compare to Qian Renxue's peerless beauty, but she was still quite pretty.
Before you continue