After Flender entered the room, he shot Gangzi, who had been peeking through the door, a look to reassure him that everything was under control!
He just needed to wait a little longer before making his grand entrance.
Yu Xiaogang nodded and returned Flender's look with a confident, satisfied smile. At last, he was about to welcome the first disciple of his life!
Then he began tidying his clothes. Only after combing his little crew cut until not a hair was out of place did he contentedly run a hand over it.
During this time, he had carefully reflected on why he'd failed to take Tang San as his disciple. First, he ruled out the possibility that the other party's knowledge surpassed his own. Next, he ruled out Jiang Li having higher Soul Power than him.
Once those "irrelevant" external factors were out of the picture, the only explanation for his failure was the difference in their appearances.
Back then, trapped in a dead end in life and frustrated by his lack of success, he had naturally looked like a complete slob.
Meanwhile, that damn pretty boy had dressed himself up to look bright and polished. Compared side by side, it was no wonder Tang San had made such a terrible choice.
This time, he wouldn't repeat his past mistake. He would have no trouble handling a mere prince of the Star Luo Empire!
Outside the door, Dai Mubai had been waiting anxiously, unable to detect a sound. Even his palms were starting to sweat.
He needed this chance to defy fate more than anything. He had even considered that if the senior refused to take him as a disciple, he would get down on his knees and beg for the chance.
Time ticked by, second by second...
At last, after Dai Mubai had waited until his eyes nearly popped out of his head, the door slowly opened.
Dai Mubai quickly straightened his appearance, hoping to make a good impression on the legendary senior.
But the next second, he froze on the spot.
The first thing he saw was that bizarre little crew cut, followed by a face like a zombie's.
He recognized this man. Wasn't he that twenty-ninth-level, top-grade loser whom Dai Mubai had beaten up outside Shrek?
In an instant, Dai Mubai's expression turned cold. He stared unfriendly at Flender, who had stepped out after the man, and asked in a completely emotionless voice, "Dean Flender, I need an explanation. This twenty-ninth-level loser is the peerless expert you told me about?"
As he said this, Dai Mubai was so enraged by his own words that he laughed.
Just as he thought. He never should've put any hope in a shabby academy like Shrek.
Only now did Dai Mubai realize who this little crew-cut man was: the bizarre former young sect master of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
That ridiculous thing he'd published in his youth, The Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul, wasn't just famous throughout the Heaven Dou Empire. It was a laughingstock in the Star Luo Empire, too.
Dai Mubai was the third prince of the Star Luo Empire, after all. If he really took this useless loudmouth as his master, he felt he'd be stripped of his right to compete for the throne long before he ever faced Dai Weisi. It would be utterly humiliating.
Hearing someone call him a loser again, Yu Xiaogang's face visibly flushed red with anger.
"Flender, your student doesn't even know the most basic etiquette. I, Grandmaster, think I'll have to reconsider whether to take him as my disciple!"
With that, Gangzi turned around furiously and slammed the door shut, leaving Flender and Dai Mubai staring at each other outside.
"Mubai, you..."
Dai Mubai angrily cut off Flender before he could continue. "Dean Flender, what are you thinking, sending a loser like that to be my teacher? Do you know that if I really became his disciple, my whole life would be ruined?"
He practically roared that last sentence.
The feeling of going from hope to despair made him want to die.
After Dai Mubai had vented his emotions, Flender calmly pushed up the glasses on the bridge of his nose.
Yu Xiaogang was the key to whether Flender would ever see his Er Long again. Though in the end, he could only be someone who wished her well, seeing the woman he loved find happiness was itself a way of showing his love, wasn't it?
Today, he would do whatever it took to bring about this master-disciple bond!
Flender said unhurriedly, "Mubai, do you know what you just missed?"
Dai Mubai gave a disdainful laugh. "Dean Flender, I know the other party was expelled from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan."
"Even if I really took that twenty-ninth-level loser as my master, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan still wouldn't fully stand behind me!"
This time, instead of getting angry, Flender gave a sly smile. "Mubai, it's true that Xiao Gang isn't a member of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan anymore. But even if we set aside his father, Yu Yuanzhen, and don't concern ourselves with his mere twenty-ninth-level Soul Power, do you know he has another identity that nobody knows about?"
Dai Mubai furrowed his brow deeply. He didn't believe that loser could have some terrifying backer.
Seeing that he'd piqued the other party's interest, Flender slowly stepped closer. After making sure no one was nearby, he whispered into Dai Mubai's ear, "There's a long-buried story you may not know, but people of your father's generation must."
"Back then, Bibi Dong was still the Saintess of Spirit Hall, and she was utterly infatuated with the young Xiao Gang."
"If the previous Pope, Qian Xunji, hadn't forcibly interfered with their relationship, I reckon Xiao Gang and Bibi Dong's child would be about your age by now."
Rumble—
Dai Mubai's pupils contracted. What had he just heard?
That twenty-ninth-level loser... ahem, that theoretical master had once shared a deep, unforgettable love with the current Pope, Bibi Dong?
Oh no. I was too hasty!
This time, I've really lost out big-time!
Damn it, someone should've told me that the damn crew-cut was Bibi Dong's old flame!
Never mind that he was only twenty-ninth level—even if the other party were an ordinary person, Dai Mubai would have to have something wrong with his head not to immediately beg to become his disciple!
If he became Yu Xiaogang's disciple and, one day, Yu Xiaogang and Bibi Dong rekindled their old love, wouldn't he soar straight to the top?
The likes of Dai Weisi would be nothing but dry bones in a grave. If they dared bare their teeth at him, they'd be begging for death!
Wait, why did I think of that phrase?
Before you continue