"Sir!"
Everyone in the Wang Clan was shocked and hurried forward.
Wang Lang also came to his senses and quickly stepped forward to help Wang Zhong up.
"Father! Are you all right?"
Though worried, Wang Lang now looked at Li Han with a trace of fear.
It had been nothing more than a simple straight punch, yet it had injured Wang Zhong, who had used his fourth Soul Skill. His strength was truly astonishing.
Meanwhile, Li Han thought, They're both Soul Ancestors, but this pampered noble is leagues behind Chen Niu.
"I've already blocked your fourth Soul Skill. Is anyone else still interested in trying?
I can keep playing with you."
Li Han's gaze swept over the crowd. They all nervously looked away, not daring to meet his eyes.
As if! Their strongest man, the clan head, had been defeated in one move. How could they dare step forward?
"Your Excellency, your strength is formidable. I concede.
Let's put this matter to rest. I'll keep Yue'er in line and make sure he doesn't provoke your student again."
Wang Zhong covered his chest with his right hand, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and lowered his head, looking thoroughly cowed.
"Good. Farewell."
Satisfied with the reply, Li Han couldn't be bothered to say more. He turned and left at once.
"Father, are we really just going to let this go? Wang Yue was bullied, and now even you..."
Wang Lang seethed with anger.
When had their Wang Clan ever suffered such a huge loss in Exotic Beast City?
"What else can we do? This man is far stronger than I am. He may even be close to Soul King strength.
If our whole family attacked him together, we'd still be dead.
What's more, he was able to produce a Third-Class Token. The forces behind him are not to be underestimated."
"Damn it! This is just too much!"
Wang Lang cursed angrily.
He didn't realize that his family had always treated others this way.
In fact, they had gone much further than Li Han.
"Lang'er, we can only swallow this loss for now.
It'll be up to you to win back our honor.
You're not even twenty, yet you're already close to Soul Elder cultivation. If you work hard, you'll break through to Soul Ancestor in the future. You might even have a shot at becoming a Soul King.
Only then can our clan rise to the next level and keep people from bullying us like this."
"Father, I understand! I'll work hard at my cultivation!"
"Good! Hearing you say that makes me happy, even though I lost today."
Wang Zhong managed to force a faint smile.
"As for Wang Sheng, he's nothing but a commoner. Since someone is protecting him, leave him alone for now.
Once that man has left and the fuss has died down, we'll have plenty of chances to deal with him.
A commoner Soul Master like him still has to rely on the academy to hunt Soul Rings for him. If he dies in the Soul Beast Forest, nobody can blame us, can they?"
Wang Zhong sneered.
Though he had appeared to yield, the anger in his heart had not subsided.
He couldn't touch Li Han, but Wang Sheng might be another matter.
It wasn't hard for nobles to kill a commoner without getting themselves involved.
Wang Lang's eyes lit up.
"Father, you really know what you're doing!"
"Of course. That man only stood up for his student. How much could he care about an ordinary commoner with mediocre talent?
Give it some time, and he'll naturally forget about him.
The only thing we need to watch out for is his student.
Look into the background of Wang Sheng's classmate. How did he end up with a teacher like that?"
"All right."
The crisis did not seem to be entirely over, but Li Han knew nothing about it.
By then, he had already found Wang Sheng.
"I had my teacher go to the Wang Clan. The matter is more or less settled."
"Huh? Really?"
Wang Sheng was both surprised and delighted. He had been worrying about how he would get by at Exotic Beast Academy, so this good news had come completely out of the blue.
"My teacher defeated the Wang Clan's head, Wang Zhong, in one move.
They've backed down and shouldn't come after you again. But in the end, you'll have to rely on your own strength to withstand every crisis the future brings.
So my teacher asked me to find out: are you willing to endure inhuman pain for the sake of cultivation?
If you are, he can teach you a body-tempering technique.
With this technique, your cultivation will progress faster, and your body will become increasingly powerful."
"I'm willing!"
Wang Sheng agreed without the slightest hesitation.
He knew that opportunities like this didn't come along every day.
If he let this one pass, he might never get another chance in his life.
As for pain, what could be more painful than being treated as less than human?
As a commoner, he had to seize every opportunity!
"Good. Then you must promise not to tell anyone about my teacher, or about the technique he teaches you."
"I promise!"
As soon as Wang Sheng finished speaking, an ancient, aged voice rang directly in his mind.
"Wang Sheng, since you're my student's friend, I won't treat you unfairly.
Today, I pass on to you the body-tempering martial art, Elephant Armor Skill. I hope you practice diligently and never slack off."
As the voice fell, the methods for cultivating all nine layers of Elephant Armor Skill were imprinted in Wang Sheng's mind.
"This..."
Wang Sheng stared in disbelief and looked all around, but aside from Li Han, he couldn't see anyone else.
If the mysterious Elephant Armor Skill hadn't remained in his mind, he would have thought he'd just imagined the whole thing.
"Don't be surprised. It's one of my teacher's methods. He's a Soul Master who specializes in spiritual power."
Seeing Wang Sheng's astonishment, Li Han explained.
Naturally, he had done it using the Divine Sense technique for imparting knowledge.
Elephant Armor Skill was a worldly martial art that anyone could cultivate, so Li Han had passed it on to Wang Sheng.
As for the other methods of immortal cultivation, Wang Sheng couldn't learn them, so Li Han naturally wouldn't teach them to him.
Come to think of it, the system had mistaken Wang Sheng for Zhang Tie, and now Li Han had passed Elephant Armor Skill on to him.
Perhaps it was all fate.
"I see! What an incredible technique! It can imprint the contents of a cultivation manual directly into my mind, where I can never forget them."
Wang Sheng exclaimed again and again, feeling as though his entire worldview had been shaken.
"This technique is amazing. I can't believe there's a way to temper the body like this!"
Wang Sheng gave it a quick read and was left astounded.
Li Han had imprinted all the instructions and precautions for Elephant Armor Skill in Wang Sheng's mind using Divine Sense. This would make his cultivation twice as effective with half the effort.
"Practice hard. I look forward to seeing you make a name for yourself at Exotic Beast Academy."
"I will! Li Han, thank you. I know your teacher was willing to teach me such an incredible technique because of you.
I'll remember this kindness for the rest of my life!"
Wang Sheng spoke with solemn sincerity, his eyes full of gratitude.
Li Han only smiled.
"No need to thank me. When I first entered Nuoding Academy and didn't even have enough to eat, you helped me many times.
I've always remembered that.
So you've already repaid that kindness."
"It's not the same. A little food can't compare to this technique.
I know you'll be stronger than me one day, but I still want to say this: if you ever need me, I'll be by your side.
I'd even die for you without so much as furrowing my brow!
That's a promise from me, Wang Sheng, and it will never change."
Seeing the earnest look on Wang Sheng's face, Li Han felt a faint warmth stir in his heart.
He knew the man he had helped was loyal and true, and would be his friend for life.
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