Lin Chen twisted the meaning of his words. "You do nothing all day but mooch off others, then turn around and complain that their money is dirty."
"Having a friend like you is enough to bring eight lifetimes of bad luck."
"You can't even support yourself, yet you have the nerve to call yourself a Theory Master?"
"Go wash up and get some sleep. Stop embarrassing yourself in public."
As Lin Chen spoke, he stepped forward and shoved Yu Xiaogang aside.
Yu Xiaogang tried to resist, but Lin Chen's strength far surpassed anything he'd imagined. The push sent him stumbling, and he nearly fell to the ground.
He stared in shock at Lin Chen, who had taken out his key and was unlocking the door.
How was this possible?
He was only a One-Ring Soul Master. How could he be stronger than Yu Xiaogang, a Soul Grandmaster?
Was his Martial Soul really that ridiculous?
Yu Xiaogang had originally wanted to seize the chance to lash out and teach this arrogant brat a lesson, but now he found himself hesitating.
He was afraid he couldn't beat Lin Chen.
He was a dignified Soul Grandmaster. If he lost to a One-Ring Soul Master...
He'd lose face in the worst way.
"Bang!"
Lin Chen opened the door, walked into the dorm, and shut it behind him.
Yu Xiaogang was left standing there, utterly bewildered.
"Damn it. I made all those preparations, and in the end, I didn't even get a chance to use them."
Yu Xiaogang clenched his fists, his face twisted with rage.
"Just you wait. One day, I'll make you realize that not taking me, the Grandmaster, as your master was the stupidest decision you ever made."
Yu Xiaogang glared at Lin Chen's dorm door and silently swore to himself.
Lin Chen had no idea what Yu Xiaogang was thinking. By then, he was already sitting cross-legged on his bed.
"System, take in the Soul Power!"
As soon as the thought crossed his mind, a surging stream of Soul Power appeared out of nowhere in his dantian.
There was no need to refine it. It sank straight into his dantian, becoming Soul Power that belonged to him alone.
In mere moments, his level had broken through to twenty-three.
Lin Chen opened his eyes and smiled faintly.
Out of habit, he checked his status panel, then fell into thought.
"I don't know when Gangzi's bad luck will flare up. Until then, I shouldn't keep bringing disaster down on him."
"As for Tang San..."
"He looks like nothing's wrong, but his bad luck must have already flared up. I just don't know exactly how."
"Should I give him a day off?"
In the blink of an eye, Lin Chen cast the idea from his mind.
"I've already brought disaster down on him once at the school gate. Doing it one or two more times won't hurt."
"But Xiao Wu..."
For some reason, Xiao Wu's bad-luck stacks had never gone above three.
Every time disaster struck, she quickly used them up.
From that alone, she seemed far more like a child of fortune than Tang San.
"Then I'll give Xiao Wu and Tang San a little more attention next."
Lin Chen's lips curled slightly.
Nuoding Academy had no classes that afternoon.
The work-study students were either doing chores or cultivating in their dorms.
After Xiao Chenyu and the others graduated, there was naturally no one left to do the work for the work-study students.
But Tang San had already taken on all the chores to win Xiao Wu's favor.
Say what you would about him, Tang San was still frugal.
He would rather waste time doing chores than pay tuition.
If his teacher weren't Yu Xiaogang, the academy would have revoked their work-study placements long ago. What kind of work-study student threw money around so freely?
Tang San finished his chores and returned to the dorm just as his teacher came downstairs.
He was about to run, but Yu Xiaogang called out to him.
"Xiao San!"
Like a child who'd done something wrong, Tang San lowered his head and walked up to Yu Xiaogang.
Yu Xiaogang scolded him in exasperation. "Lin Chen told me you borrowed a thousand Gold Soul Coins from him and spent it all on Xiao Wu?"
At that, Tang San's eyes turned cold.
"Damn Lin Chen. So what if I owe him a thousand Gold Soul Coins?"
"Did he really have to go tattle to the teacher?"
"Now the teacher's scolding me. He's practically begging to die."
His hatred burned, but he didn't dare let any of it show.
"Teacher, don't listen to his nonsense. I spent all that money myself. It had nothing to do with Xiao Wu. Xiao Wu never spends my money."
Yu Xiaogang was so angry he almost laughed.
"You spent it yourself?"
"Then tell me, what could you possibly have done to spend a thousand Gold Soul Coins in just two years?"
"If you can't give me a proper answer today, I'll have to call your father over to deal with you."
Yu Xiaogang knew Tang San well. He was his teacher, after all.
He'd sooner die than believe Tang San could have spent a thousand Gold Soul Coins by himself in two years.
"No!"
When Tang San heard that his teacher wanted to call his father, he panicked.
He didn't want to disappoint his father.
He also didn't want his father to go after Xiao Wu because of this.
Not even the slightest chance of that could be allowed.
"Teacher, please, don't tell my father. I know I was wrong."
Seeing him like that, Yu Xiaogang could barely contain his anger.
He'd been wise all his life, so how had he ended up teaching such a useless disciple?
"How many times do I have to tell you before you understand? This isn't how you pursue a girl."
"You must never let her feel that you can't live without her. That'll only make her think more highly of herself and feel entitled to hurt you without limit."
"Look at yourself now. You're like a dog, being toyed with."
"Do you still not understand?"
The more Yu Xiaogang spoke, the angrier he became. His fists clenched tight.
He wanted to slap Tang San across the face a few times.
Tang San kept his head down. "Teacher, Xiao Wu isn't as bad as you say. She's never hurt me or asked me for anything. I did all of this willingly."
"???"
Yu Xiaogang stared at him in disbelief, as if he suspected he'd heard wrong.
"You..."
Yu Xiaogang tried to curse him, then stopped. He pointed at Tang San, trembling, unable to get a word out.
Tang San raised his head and looked Yu Xiaogang in the eye.
"Teacher, Xiao Wu isn't the kind of person you think she is. She's different."
Yu Xiaogang: "..."
Those words sounded familiar. Bibi Dong had seemed to say something similar to Qian Xunji back then.
"Hopeless!"
Yu Xiaogang flung his sleeve and walked away, finally giving up on the idea of waking Tang San up.
Tang San was beyond saving.
At this point, nothing would help unless Xiao Wu was killed.
Tang San pursed his lips and returned to Dorm Seven.
He sat on the edge of his bed and stared blankly at Xiao Wu, who was cultivating cross-legged on hers.
"Heh-heh..."
As he watched her, he couldn't help letting out a foolish giggle.
Elsewhere.
Yu Xiaogang left Nuoding Academy, planning to mail a letter.
He didn't notice the pair of eyes watching him from the shadows.
"How could a useless piece of trash like him teach my little darling?"
"Hmph, he's practically begging to die."
"Little darling, will you give in for your teacher's sake?"
The Round-faced Bearded Man, hiding in the shadows, couldn't help showing a lecherous grin.
He stepped out of hiding and walked toward Yu Xiaogang.
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