"Little San, the path I've planned for you is to restrain enemies while inflicting poison," Yu Xiaogang said as they walked.
"Restrain enemies? Blue Silver Grass is so fragile. How could it possibly restrain anyone?" Tang San asked doubtfully.
"That involves the choice of Soul Ring. If the Soul Ring you absorb possesses toughness, then the toughness of your Blue Silver Grass will naturally be enhanced."
Yu Xiaogang had originally been speaking calmly, until he spotted a solitary bamboo standing in the forest.
"This is a Ten-Year Solitary Bamboo. Its defining trait is toughness. Its attack power is weak, but its defense is decent. It's very suitable for your Blue Silver Grass," Yu Xiaogang said, patting the bamboo.
"Then..."
Tang San took a dagger from Twenty-Four Bridge Moonlight Night, intending to hunt the Lone Bamboo for his first Soul Ring, but Yu Xiaogang stopped him.
"Let's look around for a Soul Beast better suited to you first. If we truly find nothing, it won't be too late to come back and absorb the Lone Bamboo."
"Yes, Teacher." Tang San obediently put away his dagger.
"He really wants Tang San to absorb a Lone Bamboo." Na'er was speechless. "What is he thinking, making his disciple absorb a ten-year Soul Ring?"
"Who knows?" Even Di Lintian had no idea what Yu Xiaogang was thinking. As a disciple of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, how could he not know the immense difference between ten-year and hundred-year Soul Rings?
"Isn't Tang San's Martial Soul the Blue Silver Emperor? Why does that Grandmaster want him to take the control route?" Na'er saw at a glance the bloodline hidden within Tang San's Blue Silver Grass.
"Just a thief," Di Lintian said flatly. He also felt that Yu Xiaogang had thoroughly ruined Tang San's potential. If Tang San's Blue Silver Emperor took a pure support path and absorbed Soul Rings with life attributes, he would absolutely be able to awaken the Blue Silver Emperor bloodline on his own.
Although he would have little combat power in the early stages that way, Tang San's hidden weapons would be enough to carry him through them. By the later stages, he would become another Tang Hao, one possessing inexhaustible vitality.
In fact, aside from the life-support route, Di Lintian felt that Tang San's Blue Silver Grass could also take the sharpness route. Combined with Tang San's hidden weapon techniques, it could absolutely kill without leaving a trace.
"How could this happen?"
Yu Xiaogang led Tang San around Soul Hunting Forest and saw many Soul Rings suitable for Tang San. There was even a five-hundred-year Mandala Snake, the Soul Ring he considered most ideal for Tang San, but they had all been killed by someone else beforehand.
"Teacher, a Soul Master is slaughtering Soul Beasts throughout Soul Hunting Forest. We should go back and absorb that Ten-Year Solitary Bamboo," Tang San said angrily.
"That's our only option." Yu Xiaogang nodded.
The two returned to where they had seen the Lone Bamboo. Tang San held the short dagger in his hand, somewhat unsure where to begin.
Yu Xiaogang truly deserved to be called Grandmaster. He had the foresight to take an axe from his Soul Tool and hand it to Tang San.
"Use this to chop it down."
Tang San nodded, gripping the axe tightly with both hands before swinging it with all his strength.
A flash of pale white Soul Power passed over the Lone Bamboo's body, leaving it completely unharmed.
A trace of embarrassment appeared on Tang San's face as he used the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer his father had taught him before he left home!
A moment later, the Ten-Year Solitary Bamboo was finally chopped into two by Tang San's Disorder Splitting Wind Axe Technique.
A pale white Soul Ring rose from the remaining bamboo roots, circling above them and emitting an exceedingly weak Soul Power fluctuation.
"This Ten-Year Solitary Bamboo should grant you a powerful defensive Soul Skill, while also greatly enhancing the toughness of your Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul." Yu Xiaogang stood with his hands behind his back, speaking confidently.
"Mm." Tang San nodded heavily, sat cross-legged on the ground, and began drawing in the pale white Soul Ring.
"Heh heh heh, Tang San, this is only the beginning!" Di Lintian revealed the signature laugh of the Soul Hall.
Na'er felt goosebumps rise all over her body when she heard that sinister laughter.
Half an hour later.
Tang San opened his eyes and slowly rose from the ground, brushing the dust from his clothes.
"Little San, is your Soul Skill defense-oriented?" Yu Xiaogang stepped forward and asked.
Tang San focused and carefully sensed his Soul Skill. With a strange expression, he said, "My first Soul Skill is... Blue Silver Pole Vault. It isn't a defensive type."
"First Soul Skill, Blue Silver Pole Vault!"
A stalk of Blue Silver Grass broke through the earth beneath Tang San's feet and grew wildly. Two seconds later, Tang San stood atop the straight Blue Silver Grass, ten meters above the ground.
His legs exerted a slight force, and the Blue Silver Grass beneath his feet displayed considerable toughness. It bent slightly into a C shape.
The next instant, Tang San shot forward, traveling a full ten meters!
Yu Xiaogang watched this Soul Skill, which had a three-second windup yet only moved him ten meters, and awkwardly rubbed his nose.
Di Lintian, hidden in the shadows, nearly laughed out loud.
Absorbing a Ten-Year Solitary Bamboo could really unlock a Soul Skill like Blue Silver Pole Vault? Then if Tang San absorbed seventeen more Lone Bamboos, wouldn't he unlock the divine skill Blue Silver Eighteen Consecutive Jumps and leap straight into the God Realm?
"This Tang San could gather Soul Power in his legs and run ten meters in under three seconds, couldn't he?" Na'er carefully counted the three seconds from Tang San activating the skill to landing, unable to believe a Soul Skill this weak existed.
"Little San, although this Soul Skill is a bit useless, it at least improved your toughness," Yu Xiaogang comforted Tang San.
"Yes, Teacher. The toughness of my Blue Silver Grass has increased greatly." Tang San controlled the Blue Silver Grass to wrap around a nearby tree, then yanked hard. The tree snapped in response.
Although this tree did not even count as a ten-year Soul Beast, it still demonstrated the growth in the toughness of Blue Silver Grass.
"I knew it. My theory was not wrong. The Ten-Year Solitary Bamboo is the Soul Beast most compatible with your Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul."
Yu Xiaogang laughed loudly, deciding that when Tang San hunted for his second Soul Ring, he would use his connections to help him obtain a hundred-year Lone Bamboo.
"Let's go. We're returning to Sky Dragon Pavilion. In six years, we'll head to Heaven Dou Royal Academy!" Seeing that Tang San had absorbed the Ten-Year Solitary Bamboo, Di Lintian no longer planned to remain in Nuoding City and spoke to Na'er beside him.
"Mm."
Before leaving, Di Lintian gave Tang San one last look and thought, Tang San, we'll meet again in six years.
Just a few days after Di Lintian returned to Sky Dragon Pavilion, a man in black robes sought out Yu Xiaogang and beat him up without a word.
Tang Hao truly had not expected that after he returned to Holy Soul Village to recover from his injuries for two days, Yu Xiaogang would make his son absorb a ten-year Soul Ring—and a Soul Skill called Blue Silver Pole Vault, no less.
After taking a beating, Yu Xiaogang finally learned the black-robed man's identity. He was Yu Xiaogang's idol, the continent's youngest Titled Douluo, the Clear Sky Douluo!
However, when Yu Xiaogang looked at him with a face swollen like a pig's head and eyes full of worship, Tang Hao could not hold back and beat him up again.
In the end, Tang Hao left behind a sentence and an Elder Token from Spirit Hall before turning and vanishing into the night.
"If you let Little San absorb another ten-year Soul Ring, don't even think about seeing tomorrow's sun."
Despite being beaten twice in succession by Tang Hao, Yu Xiaogang still watched him leave with a face full of admiration.
The next day, when Tang San saw Yu Xiaogang's still-unswollen face, he had already branded the person who had hurt his teacher in his heart as someone who had earned death.
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