Yu Xiaogang's Madness, His Theories Crumble

Nuoding Academy, Dorm Seven.

When Gu Han appeared in the doorway, Xiao Wu, who had been sitting on the edge of a bed and idly swinging her legs, froze. Then, an incredulous light burst into her eyes.

"Gu Han!"

Like a nimble rabbit, she sprang up from the bed and threw herself at him, wrapping her arms tightly around him. Her voice choked with emotion.

"You little jerk! You actually came back. You were gone for so long without sending a single message. I thought you..."

Feeling the girl tremble lightly in his arms, and sensing her deep concern, Gu Han's heart warmed with affection and guilt. He gently patted her back and said softly,

"All right, I'm back now, aren't I? The place where I was training was quite far away, and it was difficult to send messages."

Only then did Xiao Wu let go of him. She gave him a light punch with her little fist and pouted.

"If you... if you dare do that again, I won't talk to you!" Despite her words, she couldn't hide the happiness in her eyes.

The two chatted for a long while. Xiao Wu chattered away about all the interesting things that had happened at the academy over the past two months.

Gu Han told her a few things he had seen during his training, but kept the truth about Spirit Hall and Qian Renxue's identity to himself.

"By the way, Xiao Wu, while I was away, I met an older sister, too." Seeing that they had talked about just about everything, Gu Han brought it up.

"An older sister?"

Xiao Wu blinked and asked curiously, "What's she like?"

"She's an older sister who's very kind to me. She takes good care of me."

Memories of the past two months with Qian Renxue surfaced in Gu Han's mind, and the corners of his mouth curled up without him noticing. "Her name is Xue'er."

Seeing the gentle smile on Gu Han's face, Xiao Wu felt a faint, inexplicable twinge in her heart. Still, she smiled and said,

"That's nice. If I get the chance, I want to meet this older sister, too."

Just then, an ill-timed voice, edged with disdain, came from outside the dormitory.

"Oh? If it isn't Gu Han, whose First Soul Ring was a thousand years old. I heard you went away to train. What, did you think there was nothing left to learn at Nuoding Academy, or have you decided you're invincible and don't need to study anymore?"

Yu Xiaogang approached with his hands behind his back, a sneer on his face that mingled jealousy with resentment.

Gu Han had been gone from the academy for the past two months, and Yu Xiaogang seemed to think his Ten Core Theories of Martial Souls had regained their unshakable standing.

Especially after he successfully guided Tang San in obtaining a First Soul Ring for his Blue Silver Grass, his confidence had recovered considerably. He had made Blue Silver Grass more than a Martial Soul suited for healing; it now had the ability to attack and restrain opponents.

Now that he saw the person who had once shattered his theories returning, the resentment he had kept bottled up surged forth again.

He stepped closer and looked Gu Han up and down, his tone certain.

"When we Soul Masters cultivate, we must proceed step by step and build a solid foundation."

"You got that thousand-year Soul Ring through luck. It was just a lucky break. I refuse to believe you'll be that lucky next time."

"If my guess is right, even finding a Hundred-Year Soul Ring for your Second Soul Ring will probably be the limit for you, won't it?"

"Getting another thousand-year Soul Ring is nothing but a pipe dream."

He tried to reclaim his lost ground with the theories he had believed in all his life.

Looking at Yu Xiaogang, stubbornly clinging to his theories, Gu Han found it laughable. He calmly replied,

"Sorry for the trouble, Grandmaster, but I already have my Second Soul Ring."

As he spoke, under Yu Xiaogang's disdainful gaze and Xiao Wu's curious one,

two purple Soul Rings rose from beneath Gu Han's feet. The uppermost Soul Ring even bore a faint black stripe.

The Soul Power fluctuations of the thousand-year Soul Ring spread toward Yu Xiaogang without restraint.

"N-no... impossible! This absolutely can't be!"

The sneer on Yu Xiaogang's face froze, replaced by shock and bewilderment.

He stumbled back two steps and pointed at Gu Han's Soul Ring, his finger trembling uncontrollably. "Your Second Soul Ring is a thousand years old, too?!"

"This makes no sense at all! How can someone's Second Soul Ring be a thousand years old? Aren't Soul Rings normally ordered so that the Third Soul Ring is the thousand-year one?"

"My theories... How could my theories be wrong twice?!"

The theories he had held as the guiding principles of his life were utterly smashed to pieces by Gu Han's two real thousand-year Soul Rings!

His face suddenly turned deathly pale, his eyes lost focus, and he kept muttering, "Impossible," as if all the strength had been drained from him in an instant.

[ Ding! You have greatly changed key character Yu Xiaogang's state of mind, causing his belief in his theories and his worldview to crumble! Reward: divine item "Breath Soil," a small piece. It contains boundless vitality, can nourish all things, and promotes plant growth.]

Gu Han's heart stirred. Breath Soil? That was a treasure. But at that moment, he was more concerned about Yu Xiaogang's condition.

However, Yu Xiaogang suddenly jerked his head up and stared into the distance.

"Y-yes! I haven't completely lost yet. I still have Tang San. As long as I teach him well, I'll surely become famous across the continent. Hahahaha!"

"No... I'm not wrong. He's the one who's wrong. His Martial Soul must be too special. It must be an illusion. He must be lying to me. It's all a lie!"

As if clutching at a lifeline, Yu Xiaogang grabbed Gu Han by the arm, his voice nearly frantic with excitement. "Your Martial Soul must be too special. Tell me, your Soul Rings are fake, aren't they? They're all fake!"

"Yes, I still have Tang San. He has Twin Martial Souls. He's the real genius. If we follow my theories, Tang San will surely become the strongest Soul Master."

"When that happens, everyone will know that my theories are right. My name will resound throughout the Soul Master World!"

He had placed all his hopes and all his stubborn conviction in Tang San. If Tang San succeeded, it would prove that his theories were right.

Seeing Yu Xiaogang in his crazed state, Gu Han glanced at the frightened Xiao Wu and hurriedly led her outside, leaving Yu Xiaogang behind to mutter to himself.

Yu Xiaogang's obsession had taken root too deeply. Even if his theories were shattered, he would only take things further in an extreme direction.

Time flowed like water, slipping quietly by.

Six years had changed so much.

Their lives as work-study students at Nuoding Academy had come to an end.

Over those six years, Gu Han's Soul Power Level had steadily risen thanks to his own efforts and the system's rewards.

The system had appeared only a handful of times during those six years, and most of its rewards had been things other than Soul Power—strange and varied treasures of all kinds.

His Soul Master rank had only reached Soul King. Karma Scissors had also condensed three Ten Thousand Year Soul Rings for him, while his Fifth Soul Ring was especially close to being a hundred thousand years old.

With Gu Han's help, Xiao Wu had also reached the rank of Soul Elder.