Although Yu Xiaogang was only a Soul Grandmaster, he was still quite knowledgeable.
First, he had ties to both the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and Spirit Hall, and had read many books related to Martial Soul Theory.
Second, he had once traveled the continent with Liu Erlong and Flender.
So by now, he had realized that he probably hadn't been hit by someone else's mental attack Soul Skill.
After all, a Soul Master capable of controlling him so easily could likely have killed him outright with less effort than it took to control him like this.
Besides, even if he really had been hit, Yu Xiaogang had no way to break free.
"I haven't been hit by anyone else's Soul Skill, so this 'system' is real, not a hallucination?"
Yu Xiaogang was close to tears. He had never seen anything like this before and had thought someone was plotting against him.
But now, it seemed this system was probably real.
Now that he was past fifty, he had finally encountered his own opportunity.
Hanging on the wall by Luo Sanpao, Yu Xiaogang regretted acting so rashly and putting himself through all this extra suffering.
"Luo Sanpao, why haven't you let me down yet?" Yu Xiaogang said.
Fortunately, Luo Sanpao's Soul Skill wasn't very powerful. Otherwise, Yu Xiaogang might already have been gravely injured or even dead.
Luo Sanpao shook his big, fat head and waddled forward, then bit Yu Xiaogang's clothes and pulled him down.
He didn't understand why his master wanted to torture himself.
Yu Xiaogang had Luo Sanpao put him down on the already-collapsed bed, then recalled him into his body.
"Since this is my opportunity, I might as well take a look!"
"I'm only looking at this Evil-Warding Sword Manual, not practicing it. That should be fine, right?" Yu Xiaogang thought.
With a thought, he opened the Evil-Warding Sword Manual on the light screen. Page after page of cultivation knowledge unfolded before his eyes.
"So Soul Power can also circulate through meridians. This meridian diagram is rather interesting!"
"This really is my opportunity! Even if I don't practice this skill, just publishing its meridian theory would be enough to cause a sensation!"
He seemed to see again the grand reception he had received twenty years ago when he published the Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul.
Back then, the clans, Spirit Hall, and Bibi Dong would surely have looked at him with new respect, wouldn't they?
As soon as Yu Xiaogang understood what meridians were, he subconsciously closed his eyes, drew on his Soul Power, and guided it to flow along the meridians.
For someone with Soul Power, this skill was remarkably easy to learn.
Besides, the technique seemed to possess a strange allure, making him unable to control himself and compelling him to practice it.
When he had practiced his meditation method in the past, he could quickly enter a meditative state and circulate his cultivation technique.
The next moment, he felt a warm current.
"What a wondrous way to cultivate. It's far more effective than the meditation method!" Yu Xiaogang remarked.
He had seen Spirit Hall's meditation method, which was the best on the continent. It was probably the finest cultivation method anywhere.
Of course, powerful Soul Masters sometimes adjusted their cultivation methods to suit their own Martial Souls.
"This method doesn't rely on a Martial Soul for cultivation. Maybe it really can help me break through the bottleneck at level twenty-nine!" Yu Xiaogang thought.
He believed he couldn't break through because of the flaws in his Martial Soul.
This method, however, had little to do with Martial Souls. Only at level thirty would he be held back by the bottleneck of needing a Soul Ring.
"Heaven is helping me! If I can break through to level thirty, I should be able to outshine Xiao San, right?"
Yu Xiaogang knew he was already past his prime for cultivation, so he didn't expect much of himself.
All he wanted now was to train Tang San into a talent and make a name for himself.
Yu Xiaogang shook his head, calming his surging emotions, then continued circulating the technique and transforming his Soul Power.
"Hmm, something's wrong!"
The next moment, Yu Xiaogang suddenly felt a burning sensation in his meridians. A jumble of distracting thoughts rose in his mind, along with an urge to let off steam.
As soon as those thoughts arose, the Soul Power in his meridians immediately began to run wild.
"Oh no!"
The Soul Power surged through him, and Yu Xiaogang immediately spat out a mouthful of blood.
Already injured, Yu Xiaogang was struck by the backlash of his rampaging Soul Power and promptly fell unconscious.
In Dorm Seven, Li Ping'an was discussing Self-Created Soul Skills with Xiao Wu when he suddenly received a system notification.
[Sub-System has bonded with Yu Xiaogang. Yu Xiaogang has received the Newbie Gift Pack!]
[Congratulations, Host! You have received the Sunflower Manual (Martial Soul Version)!]
"The Sunflower Manual? What am I supposed to do with this thing?" Li Ping'an was speechless.
He hadn't expected Yu Xiaogang to receive a reward like this. He really hadn't arranged it.
If Li Ping'an didn't intervene, the main system would arrange rewards and missions for a Sub-System based on the relationship between Li Ping'an and its host.
Yu Xiaogang had just been sneering at Li Ping'an, and now karma had come back to bite him.
"It's a shame the Sunflower Manual is useless to me. I don't want to turn myself into a eunuch!" Li Ping'an thought.
Before he had strengthened his willpower, he wouldn't even look at the manual.
He knew the Sunflower Manual had a kind of magic to it: once you read it, you couldn't help wanting to practice it.
Only a cultivation method even better than this one could free Li Ping'an from its allure.
"I wonder if Yu Xiaogang can resist the temptation and avoid reading this technique?" Li Ping'an suddenly felt an urge to go watch the show.
"Ping'an? Ping'an? What are you thinking about?" Xiao Wu's voice reached his ears.
"You're not still thinking about that Grandmaster from earlier, are you?"
"Your Martial Soul might be a little lacking, but I believe in your comprehension. You can definitely become a strong Soul Master!"
Xiao Wu was confident because the system had said Li Ping'an was the Child of Fortune.
How could a Child of Fortune be held back by a problem with his Martial Soul?
"Come on, I'm fine. He's just a Soul Grandmaster. What right does he have to mock me?"
"Where were we?" Li Ping'an asked.
"Oh, I was saying that I've figured out the Soul Skill you mentioned last time!" Xiao Wu said.
"I'm about to reach level twenty. Once I break through, I'll absorb a Soul Ring with a mental attack."
"Then I'm sure I'll be able to create the kind of Soul Skill you described!"
Xiao Wu took Li Ping'an's idea of Fist Intent—the fist technique imbued with mental attacks—very seriously.
She couldn't cultivate Soul Power on her own right now. She could only increase her Soul Power by absorbing human vitality.
Originally, she could have leisurely passed her juvenile stage, then cultivated just like a human once she reached maturity.
But the system's warning still hung over her.
Since she couldn't cultivate Soul Power, all she could do was study Soul Skills and improve her strength.
That way, she'd have a better chance of escaping when she faced that Titled Douluo in the future.
As long as she absorbed a Soul Ring connected to mental power, she'd be able to understand the principles behind mental attacks and research a Soul Skill of her own.
Besides, she had already planned to condense a Charm Soul Skill as her second Soul Skill.
"You're level twenty already? Xiao Wu, you're amazing!"
Although Li Ping'an already knew, he praised her anyway to lift her spirits.
"Of course! Do you even know who I am? I'm Notting Academy's big sister!" Xiao Wu said smugly, lifting her chin.
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