Soul Hunting Forest.
"Lin Mo, Xiao San, we're about to enter Soul Hunting Forest. From now on, don't leave my side."
As his voice fell, the weary look in his eyes suddenly brightened.
He brought his hands together before his chest, then quickly spread them downward, murmuring an incantation.
"Come out, Luo Sanpao."
With a soft poof, a wisp of pale purple Soul Power flowed from his palm and quickly took the shape of a creature.
It looked a lot like a dog, though its body was more like a pig's.
It was over a meter and a half long, and its waist was probably just as wide.
Its fur was pale purple all over, its two little ears drooping as its big, deep-blue eyes blinked.
What set it apart was the round bulge on top of its head.
At the same time, Lin Mo, standing nearby, finished releasing his Martial Soul and once again entered the Innate Life State.
His black hair turned white, and he looked like an immortal drifting through the world!
"Xiao San, haven't you always wanted to know what my Martial Soul is? This is it. His name is Luo Sanpao, but you can just call him Sanpao."
Yu Xiaogang crouched down and gently stroked Luo Sanpao, who was rubbing against his feet.
Luo Sanpao narrowed his big, deep-blue eyes and gave a contented little grunt.
"Teacher, this is your Martial Soul? But didn't you say Beast Martial Souls possess their masters?" Tang San asked, confused.
This was different from what his teacher had taught him before!
Yu Xiaogang didn't rush to answer Tang San. Instead, his gaze shifted to Lin Mo.
Although this wasn't the first time he'd seen Lin Mo in this state, he couldn't help looking him over again.
Lin Mo seemed to have merged with the surrounding landscape. Even his whole being gave off an indescribable, otherworldly air.
Yu Xiaogang grew even more curious about what kind of Martial Soul Lin Mo had.
Only when Tang San pressed him again did Yu Xiaogang snap out of it. He looked at the two of them and said frankly:
"I'm sure you've both figured it out by now. My Martial Soul, Luo Sanpao, is a Mutated Martial Soul, just like Lin Mo's mysterious Martial Soul.
"But unlike Lin Mo's, which underwent a beneficial mutation, my Luo Sanpao Martial Soul underwent a harmful one."
At that, Yu Xiaogang paused and gently patted Luo Sanpao's head.
Luo Sanpao seemed to sense its master's feelings and rubbed its head against Yu Xiaogang's palm.
"That's why, when my Martial Soul awakened, my Innate Soul Power was a measly half-rank. No matter how hard I try, I'll never break through rank thirty in my lifetime.
"That's the most important reason I chose to study Martial Soul Theory."
It wasn't that he'd insisted on taking this path. He'd had no other road to take!
"Teacher..." Tang San's eyes suddenly filled with sympathy.
Tang San had already begun to understand his teacher, and naturally knew of the pride he kept buried in his heart.
His teacher's Martial Soul had mutated into this pig-like form. It wasn't hard to imagine the blows he'd suffered since childhood.
Yu Xiaogang's feelings were especially complicated at that moment.
His gaze unconsciously moved between himself, Tang San, and Lin Mo. All three of them had Mutated Martial Souls.
Lin Mo's Martial Soul had mutated into an unknown, powerful Martial Soul, giving him the talent of Innate Full Soul Power.
Tang San was the same. Through Martial Soul Mutation, he'd gained Twin Martial Souls and a talent that stood head and shoulders above all others. He, too, had Innate Full Soul Power.
They'd all experienced Martial Soul Mutation, but compared with those two, their circumstances were worlds apart.
It would hardly be an exaggeration to call it the difference between heaven and hell.
Feeling Yu Xiaogang's gaze, Lin Mo gave him a warm smile.
Yu Xiaogang looked away and took a deep breath, his serious expression returning.
"S anpao, go on ahead and clear the way!"
Yu Xiaogang quickly composed himself and directed Luo Sanpao to open up a path for them.
At his command, Luo Sanpao immediately set off on four short legs, waddling its plump bottom as it ran ahead with its nose close to the ground, constantly sniffing.
This was one of Luo Sanpao's advantages over other Beast Martial Souls. As an External Beast Martial Soul, it had a far keener sense of danger than Soul Masters of the same rank.
As Luo Sanpao cleared the way ahead, Yu Xiaogang began giving Lin Mo and Tang San a practical lesson, explaining all sorts of information about Soul Beasts.
"The easiest and most direct way to judge a Soul Beast's age is by the color of the Soul Power it uses.
"That corresponds exactly to the color of the Soul Ring produced after it dies: ten years is white, a hundred years is yellow, and a thousand years is purple."
As they walked, Yu Xiaogang pointed to a Soft Bone Rabbit in the grass, munching on Blue Silver Grass.
The rabbit was about a size larger than an ordinary hare, and a faint white glow covered its body.
"See that Soft Bone Rabbit? The Soul Power glowing around it is white, which means it's at least ten years old but hasn't yet reached a hundred."
Lin Mo listened quietly nearby, while Tang San pondered.
He pointed to a bamboo plant in the distance and said thoughtfully, "Teacher, according to what you've said, this Lone Bamboo is less than ten meters tall, which means it hasn't reached a hundred years old.
"It's a Plant-type Soul Beast, so it should suit my Blue Silver Grass. Should we hunt it?"
"No."
To Tang San's surprise, Yu Xiaogang simply shook his head. "An ordinary Soul Master would make that choice, yes."
"But I'll give my disciple something better!"
As he said this, Yu Xiaogang's voice brimmed with unquestionable confidence.
Even his gaze toward Tang San held a trace of anticipation!
At Yu Xiaogang's words, Lin Mo, who'd been silent for a long while, suddenly raised his head and looked at him in surprise.
If he'd previously only been a little uncertain about which Yu Xiaogang this man was...
As a seasoned anime and webnovel fan, Lin Mo knew Douluo Continent inside out!
He'd read every volume of the original novel and seen every part of the manga and anime. He knew the details of the world like the back of his hand.
That was why Lin Mo hadn't panicked when he first learned he'd transmigrated to Douluo Continent.
As long as he could awaken a Martial Soul and gain Soul Power, he was confident that, with his knowledge of what lay ahead, he could carve out a bright future for himself on Douluo Continent.
Based on what Yu Xiaogang had said, Lin Mo could be almost one hundred percent certain of the man's identity!
The man before him clearly resembled the Yu Xiaogang from the manga in Lin Mo's memory.
Once he realized that, Lin Mo's gaze toward Yu Xiaogang lost some of its wariness and grew gentler.
They looked like the same person and were all called "Grandmaster."
But the Yu Xiaogang from the original novel, the anime, and the manga might as well have been three entirely different people.
The Grandmaster in the original novel had some unique theories, but his conduct left much to be desired.
The Grandmaster in the anime had a somewhat improved image, but there were still things at his core that Lin Mo found hard to accept.
Of them all, the only one who truly deserved to be called Grandmaster was probably the Yu Xiaogang from the manga—the man standing right before him.