Hundreds of eyes shifted in unison from Tang San to the corner.
Li Hao felt his scalp prickle.
All he wanted was to find a crack in the ground and crawl into it.
He wished he could use the Fishing Rod in his hand to fish himself back to Holy Soul Village.
Xiao Wu was still smacking her lips as she licked her candied hawthorn, completely unaware of the hornet's nest she'd stirred up.
"Ahem."
Ma Xiunuo, the Master in charge of registration, was the first to break the silence.
He looked over at Li Hao. His usually kindly face was now filled with displeasure.
"Parents, children are young. It's understandable if they speak without thinking."
"But a parent shouldn't lack proper manners."
"The Martial Soul is the foundation of a Soul Master. How can you casually belittle it?"
Li Hao felt like his head was about to split in two.
"So everyone really bought the idea that I'm her parent?"
"This system really covers every angle. Thanks a lot."
And as for proper manners?
I can't even support myself. How the hell am I supposed to teach manners?
He was just about to force out a smile uglier than a cry, apologize, and hurry off with Xiao Wu.
But another gaze made him swallow the words on the tip of his tongue.
It was Tang San.
The black-haired boy slowly turned his head.
He didn't look at Xiao Wu, who'd been mouthing off. Instead, he fixed his gaze directly on Li Hao, who was holding her back.
His small face, usually so expressionless, was now icy cold.
There was no anger or reproach in his eyes, only a haughty scrutiny and a trace of barely concealed irritation.
His gaze seemed to say: You're at fault for not keeping your own child in line.
Li Hao was speechless.
"An adult picking a fight with a little kid?"
"Man, you're really dedicated to your transmigration."
"Let's get out of here."
Ignoring everyone, he hugged Xiao Wu tighter and was just about to turn and slip through a gap in the crowd.
But the little one in his arms wouldn't have it.
Xiao Wu wriggled free of Li Hao's arms, slid down, and landed steadily on the ground.
She planted her hands on her hips, puffed out her cheeks, and glared angrily at Tang San.
"You're ugly, anyway!"
"And you're so weak. You're not even as strong as me!"
Boom!
If her earlier remark about him being ugly had merely lit the fuse, then the claim that she was stronger than him had blown up the whole powder keg!
The crowd stared in stunned silence for a brief moment, then burst into laughter.
"Hahahaha! What did I just hear? This little girl says she's stronger than someone with Innate Full Soul Power?"
"Is she crazy? Is there something wrong with that kid's head?"
"How did this father raise her? He's a good-for-nothing himself, and his daughter's a braggart!"
Quite a few people in the crowd had recognized Li Hao by now.
It was hard not to. He was a once-in-a-century genius from Holy Soul Village.
"A father with half a level of innate Soul Power raised a daughter who runs her mouth like that. What a fine family tradition!"
Ridicule and laughter surged toward Li Hao like a tide.
Li Hao's face was hot enough to fry an egg.
He rubbed Xiao Wu's head.
Little tyrant, don't say another word!
Your dad's lazy life can't take you turning things up to eleven like this!
"Silence!"
Master Ma Xiunuo slammed his hand down on the table. The pressure of a Soul Grandmaster spread out, quieting the noisy crowd at once.
He glared at Xiao Wu and barked, "Young lady! You can eat whatever you like, but you can't say whatever you like!"
"Soul Power is the foundation of a Soul Master's cultivation. It isn't something you can just compare however you please!"
"Do you know what Innate Full Soul Power means? It's a talent countless Soul Masters can never hope to attain in their lifetimes!"
Old Jack was frantic, and quickly bowed to Ma Xiunuo in apology.
"Master, please don't be angry. Children say things without thinking!"
"She's young and doesn't know any better. Please be the bigger person and forgive her this once!"
As he spoke, he turned to Li Hao, urgently signaling with his eyes. Lowering his voice, he barked, "Li Hao! What are you waiting for? Tell your kid to apologize to Tang San and the Master!"
Li Hao felt like his head was about to split in two.
Apologize?
How was he supposed to apologize?
Say, "Sorry, my rabbit hasn't seen much of the world and thinks your grass is inferior to the foxtail grass outside our house"?
Wouldn't that just make things twice as bad?
Just as the tension was reaching a breaking point, Tang San spoke at just the right moment.
He bowed slightly to Ma Xiunuo and Old Jack, his face showing a maturity and magnanimity beyond his years.
"Master Ma Xiunuo, Grandpa Jack, there's no need."
"She's still young and doesn't understand. Children say things without thinking. Let's just forget about it."
His words were gracious and composed, instantly earning him the praise of the parents around them.
"Look at that boy. No wonder he's a genius—he's so broad-minded!"
"That's right. He's been insulted like that and still isn't angry. He's bound for great things!"
"Now look at that lazy bum's kid. She's so ill-mannered!"
Li Hao rolled his eyes inwardly.
Go on, keep pretending.
You might fool these locals, but can you fool me? I've already seen the script.
Still, since they'd offered him an out, he might as well take it.
He patted Xiao Wu on the back, ready to say something polite and put the matter behind them.
But Xiao Wu in his arms wouldn't have it.
The little girl struggled to poke her head out from his arms. Her face flushed red, cheeks puffed out as she pointed at Tang San and retorted in a childish but utterly resolute voice, "No!"
"We're not apologizing! You're the ones who should apologize!"
"You're obviously weaker than me!"
Boom!
If her earlier insult about him being ugly had been a stone tossed into a lake, then her claim that he was weaker than her was a bomb dropped straight into a vat of oil!
The whole crowd fell silent.
A second later, they burst into laughter.
"Hahahaha! What did I just hear? This little girl says she's stronger than the genius with Innate Full Soul Power?"
"Is she crazy? Is there something wrong with that kid's head?"
"Li Hao, take your daughter to a doctor. Don't let her condition get worse!"
Mockery and jeers swept toward Li Hao and his daughter like a tide.
Old Jack's face turned liver-red. He trembled with anger and pointed at Li Hao, unable to get a word out.
Even Tang San could no longer keep the look of graciousness on his face.
The humiliation of being provoked by an ant made the Mysterious Heaven Skill within him circulate a little faster.
Feeling Xiao Wu's fierce, indignant emotions surging in his arms, Li Hao sighed helplessly.
He finally understood.
This little tyrant was the sort who had to be petted the right way.
Treat her kindly, and she was a thoughtful little darling.
Doubt her—especially doubt her strength—
And, well, she could punch a hole in the sky right there on the spot.
The dignity of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast couldn't be challenged!
Even if she was currently in the form of a two- or three-year-old girl.
"Forget it."
"If you insist on forcing my daughter to show her strength, don't blame us for being rude."
Li Hao stopped holding her back. He simply patted Xiao Wu's back, signaling that she could show them what she could do.
With her father's permission, Xiao Wu immediately found her courage.
She huffed, unhappily puffing out her cheeks, and stopped suppressing her power.
The next moment,
a surge of Soul Power burst forth from her tiny body!
It was far more powerful than Tang San's Innate Full Soul Power—
more majestic!
more pure!
more ancient!
more boundless!
There was no light, no special effect.
Yet in that instant, everyone at the entrance to Nuoding Academy felt a shudder rise from the depths of their souls!
It was as if a primordial beast that had slept for countless ages had just opened its eyes.
The air grew viscous.
The temperature plummeted.
The unrestrained laughter was choked off by an invisible hand and abruptly died away.
Expressions of utter horror froze on everyone's faces.
The Soul Power within them, whether at level one or level three, trembled like mice before a king.
A few children were so frightened by the pressure that they fell onto their bottoms and burst into tears.
Tang San's body shook violently!
The instant his Mysterious Heaven Skill inner power touched that force, it stopped circulating completely!
An unprecedented sense of insignificance and helplessness swallowed him whole.
This wasn't suppression by Soul Power Level.
This was the absolute crushing force of a superior life-form!
He stared in shock at the delicate little girl, his mind a blank.
Th-this... what kind of power was this?!
Ma Xiunuo, standing at the very center of the storm, felt it most keenly.
His Soul Power, over level twenty and that of a Soul Grandmaster, seemed as tiny as a lone boat in the vast ocean before this power, liable to capsize at any moment.
He stiffly lowered his head and looked at the crystal ball on his table—the one that had just shone brilliantly because of Tang San.
The dazzling blue light had already gone out.
In its place was a pink glow of unprecedented, absolute purity!
The light poured frantically out from inside the crystal ball, as if it were about to burst the sphere apart!
Crack—
A crisp fracture rang out.
In the dead silence of the crowd, it was unmistakable.
The crystal ball in Master Ma Xiunuo's hands, the instrument that symbolized a Soul Master's talent, split down the middle with a shocking crack!
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