Even as Yu Tianchen practiced the newly acquired Eight Gates Resonance Method.
Meanwhile, at Notting Academy.
Yu Xiaogang stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the sky with a sorrowful expression.
Ever since his Soul Power had inexplicably dropped to Level 24 two years ago,
he had spent the past two years constantly trying to train it back up, but his Soul Power seemed as good as dead.
No matter how hard he trained, he simply couldn't break through the Level 24 bottleneck.
It was as if Level 24 were a heavenly chasm, impossible to cross.
And in the first year after his Soul Power fell, his life had plunged into its darkest hour—second only to the day he awakened his Soul Power.
Whenever he walked, he would randomly trip on flat ground. And whenever he fell, there was always a stray pile of shit lying right where he landed.
When he went out, he was either hit by a passing carriage or cornered by a gang of thugs who just happened to be stronger than him and demanded money.
Even after he paid up, those bastards would beat him up at random.
As for choking on water or getting food stuck in his throat—
that was all just part of daily life.
He had endured such days for a full year. Only now had he finally begun to recover a little.
As for why he had been so unlucky, or why his Soul Power Level had dropped for no reason, Yu Xiaogang just couldn't figure it out.
"Could it be true that Heaven really does envy genius?"
Yu Xiaogang sighed.
"It seems even the heavens are jealous of my unparalleled wisdom. But my Innate Soul Power is already only Level 0.5. Could it be that, even so, this world is still jealous of my charm and talent?"
"Is Heaven truly so unjust that it cannot bear the emergence of a peerless genius?!"
The more Yu Xiaogang spoke, the more worked up he became. His face flushed red, his expression one of grief and indignation.
"I won't give up!"
"I'm a master of Martial Soul Theory!"
"I'll definitely figure out a way to break through Level 24 before I turn fifty!"
"Just you wait, you thieving Heaven!"
"I'll show you that a genius will never surrender to fate!"
As soon as the words left his mouth,
his face suddenly went deathly pale. His body grew weak, and he collapsed to the ground.
"No!!"
"No!!!"
"My Soul Power! No!!!"
"I was wrong, Heaven! I really was wrong! Please, don't! Don't lower my Soul Power any further!!"
"Nooo!!!"
Yu Xiaogang lay sprawled on the ground, his whole body limp. In a panic, he tried to press down on himself, but he still couldn't stop the Soul Power draining from his body.
Then his hand touched a certain private part, and his pupils suddenly shrank.
He didn't care where he was or that his Soul Power was disappearing.
He hurriedly unfastened his pants and looked inside.
Yu Xiaogang's pupils trembled violently.
M-my little brother!
My Little Xiaogang!!!
No!!!!
How are you only the size of a grain of rice now?!
Nooo!!!
One blow after another made Yu Xiaogang's face turn from pale to red, red to green, then green to purple.
At last, he spat out a mouthful of blood and collapsed face-first onto the ground.
Two streams of murky tears ran down Yu Xiaogang's face.
Who knew whether he was mourning the Soul Power that had drifted away with the wind, or his little brother's lost virility.
Or perhaps... both?
The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.
Atop a mountain, inside the Mimicry Training Ground.
Yu Tianchen gradually emerged from his meditative state of comprehending the Eight Gates Resonance Method, his face full of delight.
"Not bad. With my current physique, opening the first four gates and resonating them is no problem at all."
He rose and walked to the edge of the cliff.
He gazed toward the sect in the distance.
His Soul Power Level was now 27.
His body had reached a point where training here could no longer improve it effectively.
The offerings were far too dependent on luck, and he had only just made another offering of Gangzi.
He couldn't make another offering and end up killing his good second uncle.
He had to learn to develop sustainably.
After all, it was hard to find high-quality offering candidates like Gangzi, whose Innate Soul Power was so far behind and whose Soul Power Level couldn't improve any further.
"Looks like it's time to make plans for the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well."
Yu Tianchen quickly settled on a plan.
With the help of the Immortal Herbs, his Great Sun Thunder Body might break through directly to the Jade Thunder Body.
He might even be able to absorb a ten-thousand-year Soul Ring as his third Soul Ring!
As for whether he could get the Immortal Herbs from Dugu Bo, that wasn't something Yu Tianchen needed to worry about.
With Yu Yuanzhen and the Immortal Herb Redemption Code on his side,
the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well was as good as his.
He just had to think up a convincing enough excuse to get Yu Yuanzhen to take him to Sunset Forest.
"Xiao Chen!"
Just as Yu Tianchen was making plans, a call came from behind him.
Yu Tianchen came back to his senses and turned around.
Yu Xiaotian was walking up the mountain path.
"Dad."
Yu Tianchen greeted him with a smile.
But when he saw that Yu Xiaotian hadn't brought Ning Xin along, a hint of confusion crossed his face.
"Where's Mom?"
"Your mom went back to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect yesterday to visit your maternal grandfather and the others. She hasn't returned yet."
Yu Xiaotian came up to Yu Tianchen and said with a smile:
"You don't have to stay here all the time. If you get tired of training, you can go relax at the sect."
"I'm fine. I actually like the feeling of training."
Yu Tianchen chuckled, then said:
"Dad, how about a spar?"
"I want to find out just how strong I am now."
"Oh?"
Yu Xiaotian was a little surprised to hear that.
"You've improved again?"
"I suppose so. I got a small boost by chance."
Before Yu Xiaotian could agree,
Yu Tianchen planted one foot down and immediately put some distance between them.
"Hmph, you little brat. What, afraid your dad's going to catch you off guard?"
Seeing his son back away without a word,
Yu Xiaotian irritably lowered the palm he had been quietly preparing behind his back.
"Come on, Dad."
"Do you really think I'd fall for the same trick twice?"
Yu Tianchen clapped his hands, and the Five Thunder Shock Drums appeared out of thin air behind him.
At the same time, two purple Soul Rings rose beneath him.
"First Soul Skill, Azure Thunder Tyrant Body!"
"Second Soul Skill, Mysterious Underworld Thunder Armor!"
The two Soul Rings hovering around Yu Tianchen lit up at the same time.
In an instant, faint purple lightning patterns appeared across his body.
At the same time, a suit of dark-blue thunder armor formed around him.
His second Soul Skill, Mysterious Underworld Thunder Armor, increased his strength by 100%, his defense by 200%, and the power of his thunder by 100%.
It was a purely enhancing Soul Skill, and it could be stacked with his first Soul Skill, Azure Thunder Tyrant Body.
With both Soul Skills activated,
Yu Tianchen could now wield twice his usual strength, move twice as fast, double his defense, attract lightning twice as efficiently, and double the power of his thunder.
Of course, this was without fully activating the Five Thunder Shock Drums.
Once he fully activated them, his thunder's power would triple on top of the boosts from his Soul Skills.
It wasn't an exaggeration to say that Yu Tianchen could now use all his trump cards, without the Eight Gates Resonance Method, and hold his own against a high-level Soul Ancestor or a low-level Soul King two major stages above him.
As for what level he could reach after activating the Eight Gates Resonance Method, he didn't know.
But he would find out soon enough.
Sparring with his dad was the perfect chance to test the Eight Gates Resonance Method, wasn't it?
Before you continue