Notting Academy, the back mountain.
A man and a pig stood in the woods. They were Yu Xiaogang and his disciple, along with Yu Xiaogang's Martial Soul, Luo Sanpao.
"Teacher, you broke through?" Tang San asked in shock.
He saw that Luo Sanpao's purple skin now gleamed with a faint pink sheen.
The sheen looked like a crystal shell, a little like a scorpion's carapace.
The purple fat pig had turned into a pink fat pig. It was downright greasy.
Beneath Luo Sanpao, three Soul Rings—yellow, yellow, and purple—pulsed faintly, radiating far more pressure than before.
Tang San felt both nervous and eager.
He had studied Martial Soul Theory and knew that a Thousand-Year Soul Ring skill was worlds apart from a Hundred-Year Soul Ring skill in power, so he was a little nervous.
Still, Tang San was eager to witness the strength of a Soul Elder.
"If I hadn't broken through, how could I spar with you?"
Yu Xiaogang's face glowed, and he was brimming with confidence.
If he'd broken through thanks to Tang San's Immortal Herb, he probably wouldn't have been so happy. That would have been relying on an outside force.
But now, through his own efforts, he had successfully broken through the bottleneck that had plagued him for nearly thirty years.
"I wonder when the system will trigger another quest!" Yu Xiaogang thought, filled with anticipation.
Yu Xiaogang warned him, "Xiao San, my strength has increased greatly. You'd better be careful!"
"Come at me, Xiao San!"
Tang San's expression turned grave. He immediately set Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track into motion and charged at Yu Xiaogang.
He knew that all of Yu Xiaogang's strength lay in Luo Sanpao.
Capture the leader and the rest will scatter. If he could take Yu Xiaogang down first, he might still win this spar.
Yu Xiaogang smiled faintly and chanted, "Fart like thunder, Earth-Shattering Luo Sanpao!"
The first Soul Ring beneath Luo Sanpao lit up. He used this area-of-effect Soul Skill as a defensive skill.
Seeing this, Tang San had no choice but to use his footwork to retreat. He was incredibly fast, leaving what looked like an afterimage where he had stood.
"Luo Sanpao can only use its Soul Skills three times a day. I wonder if that's changed now!"
Tang San still planned to wear Yu Xiaogang down. Once Luo Sanpao ran out of Soul Power, his chance would come.
But in the next instant, he saw something astonishing.
Yu Xiaogang, whose body was frail, seized the moment while Tang San dodged—when his old strength had spent itself and his new strength had yet to gather—and launched an attack.
He burst forward at an astonishing speed. Boosted by a Soul Elder's Soul Power, he was somehow no slower than Tang San's Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track.
"Damn it!" Tang San's eyes widened as he watched Yu Xiaogang close in.
Yu Xiaogang held an embroidery needle between his fingers and jabbed it toward Tang San's brow.
"Is that... a Hidden Weapon?" Tang San's pupils contracted. He recognized Yu Xiaogang's method.
"How does Teacher know how to use Hidden Weapons, too? And I've never seen a technique like his!" Tang San thought.
But he could tell that Yu Xiaogang wasn't flicking the needle at him. He was holding it like a weapon and stabbing at him.
Seeing this, Tang San hurriedly used Mysterious Jade Hand to block.
With a sharp clang, Tang San felt a sting, but he used the force to retreat several steps in a row.
"A Soul Elder's Soul Power really is something else. Even my Mysterious Jade Hand hurts!"
"Xiao San, how was that? Do you still want to keep sparring?" Yu Xiaogang asked with a smile.
At last, he felt like a teacher. He had regained the youthful confidence he'd once felt as the sect's young master.
"Teacher, what Soul Skill was that just now?" Tang San asked curiously.
He wanted to know whether this world had a Hidden Weapon legacy, too.
If Yu Xiaogang had shot the embroidery needle at him just now, he might not have been able to stop it.
Yu Xiaogang thought for a moment, then said, "That's my Self-Created Soul Skill!"
"To break through level twenty-nine, I had no choice but to study Martial Soul Theory. At last, I've made some progress!"
"Then, Teacher, can I learn this Soul Skill?" Tang San asked.
Yu Xiaogang shook his head. "Xiao San, with your talent, you don't need to learn a Soul Skill like mine!"
How could he dare teach Tang San the Evil-Warding Sword Manual? If he did, Tang Hao might come and beat him to death.
Tang San was a little disappointed. He was very interested in Yu Xiaogang's movement technique and Hidden Weapon technique, but unfortunately, Yu Xiaogang wasn't willing to teach him.
He hadn't expected that, even before Yu Xiaogang used his third Soul Skill, he would have little chance of winning unless he used his trump card.
But he didn't want to reveal his Hidden Weapon trump card just then. Otherwise, this wouldn't be a spar anymore—it would be a fight to the death.
"Wait, maybe even if I use Hidden Weapons, I still won't be able to beat Teacher!"
"Teacher uses Hidden Weapons, too. He might be able to recognize my technique!"
"There's always someone better, and there are heights beyond the sky. This world really does have deep foundations!" Tang San thought.
Tang San felt a little regretful. It seemed his plan to use Yu Xiaogang to farm system Filial Points had gone up in smoke.
"Should I poison Teacher?" Tang San shook his head, forcing the thought out of his mind.
He hadn't discovered Yu Xiaogang doing anything to betray him, so he couldn't quite bring himself to do it.
It was different with Tang Hao. He had killed Tang San's mother and abused him so badly that he'd had no childhood. Tang San could bring himself to do it to him.
"Teacher, can you show me the power of a Thousand-Year Soul Ring skill?" Tang San asked.
"Well..." Yu Xiaogang hesitated, but when he saw the eager look in Tang San's eyes, he couldn't bring himself to refuse.
"You're my disciple, of course you can!"
He hadn't hesitated because he was unwilling to reveal his secret. It was because his Soul Skill was a little hard to talk about.
"The Pink Lady's Soul Ring should have given me an enhancement skill that gets people fired up. Why did it turn out like this?"
He had learned what his third Soul Skill was that morning.
The Soul Skill, which should have stirred people up and enhanced their condition, had somehow turned into an offensive skill.
"Xiao San, you need to be ready. If my Soul Skill hits you, it might not be good for your body," Yu Xiaogang warned.
"Teacher, I'll be careful."
Tang San was very confident. His Mysterious Heaven Skill nourished his meridians, and together with his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, it could heal his injuries.
"Good. Then watch closely!"
Yu Xiaogang chanted the Soul Skill incantation: "Fart like a boar in heat, passion-stirring Luo Sanpao!"
The third Soul Ring beneath Luo Sanpao lit up, and Luo Sanpao's entire body turned pink.
A cloud of pink gas burst from behind Luo Sanpao and spread rapidly, enveloping Tang San in an instant.
"This..." Tang San was stunned.
Before he could think it through, he felt his blood begin to boil and his Soul Power grow chaotic.
Even after he circulated the Mysterious Heaven Skill, he couldn't regulate his Soul Power. If anything, his heart began to beat even faster.
He was only seven. His body wasn't capable of that sort of thing, so his blood surged wildly and his Soul Power ran amok. His eyes turned bloodshot, and he panted like an ox!
Seeing this, Yu Xiaogang hurriedly used his first Soul Skill again, driving away the pink mist with a barrier of light.
"Xiao San, are you all right?" Yu Xiaogang was startled. He hadn't expected his Soul Skill to be so powerful.
As the pink mist cleared, Tang San looked at Yu Xiaogang. For some reason, the image of Yu Xiaogang dancing with a sword in red makeup came to mind.
For a moment, even Yu Xiaogang began to look handsome and refined to him.
"No... No!"
It was like a nightmare. Tang San's mind was in chaos, and Soul Power battered his meridians. He spat out a mouthful of blood and fainted.
"Xiao San!"
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