Leaving Lingyun

Three days later. 🍟♣ ♝☮

When Ling Yi announced the end of class again, the others left the classroom one after another, Yu Xiaogang hesitated as he walked towards the podium.

Ling Yi, who was using his Soul Skill to repair the body of the half-step Great Body Teacher, looked up at Yu Xiaogang who had approached, smiled slightly, and asked, "Xiaogang? Was there something you didn't understand in class just now?"

Watching Ling Yi's pale green light shimmer as he methodically stuffed organs, muscles, and bones back into the body that resembled a corpse but was still a living person, Yu Xiaogang felt somewhat uncomfortable, even though the other man's smile was heartwarming.

Furthermore, if he remembered correctly, the serene-looking teaching material on the operating table seemed to be a Five-Ring Soul King.

The course that just ended was about "The physical attributes and mental strength of the Beast Martial Soul King".

"Xiaogang?"

Ling Yi's unhurried voice rang out again, instantly bringing Yu Xiaogang back to his senses, his gaze focusing on the other's patient and gentle smiling face.

"City Lord..."

Yu Xiaogang's lips trembled a few times, as if he was making a difficult decision. Fortunately, Ling Yi showed no impatience and simply waited quietly for him to continue.

Of course, the waiting process did not prevent Ling Yi from reassembling the teaching materials in his hands back to their original state.

As Ling Yi shoved the last bicep back into place, his green-glowing fingers ran along the bright red crack in the skin, instantly restoring it to its original state. At that moment, Yu Xiaogang finally spoke again, "City Lord, I would like to request a leave of absence. I intend to withdraw from those research projects—"

"Are you asking for leave? Quitting?" Ling Yi moved lightly to the shelf next to the operating table, washed his hands in the basin, and asked with surprise, "Is something wrong? Do you need any help?"

Faced with Ling Yi's good intentions, Yu Xiaogang remained silent and simply shook his head.

Seeing this, Ling Yi did not press the matter further, maintaining his image as a considerate leader who did not make things difficult for others or pry into their personal privacy.

A flash of electricity disappeared from his hand, evaporating the moisture while disinfecting. He nodded and said, "Alright, I'll have Gu Ying give you some money later. You'll need money for food, drink, and lodging when you're traveling..."

"No need," Yu Xiaogang quickly waved his hand, refusing, "City Lord, I have money here..."

"Take it if I give it to you." Ling Yi raised his hand and pressed it down, stopping Yu Xiaogang from saying anything more, and said, "The research you participated in at the ' Martial Soul Research Institute ' was paid for."

After a pause, Ling Yi glanced at Yu Xiaogang and continued, "Originally, the settlement was supposed to be completed once all the research results were available, along with a share of the profits from subsequent sales of the finished products... But since you're withdrawing now, let's settle the accounts with you first."

"However, I need to say something upfront. Since you dropped out midway, we can't settle accounts based on the final research results. We can only calculate your previous work. I hope you can understand that, after all, I also need to consider the other people in the project."

Hearing Ling Yi's words, Yu Xiaogang, whose mind was preoccupied with other matters, didn't pay any attention and immediately nodded without hesitation, saying, "I understand, City Lord, calculate it however you see fit—"

To be honest, if Ling Yi made it clear that this was the result of his own labor, Yu Xiaogang wouldn't have even wanted it. It's just money; he's never really understood the concept of money since he was a child.

Furthermore, if all goes well, he will immediately allocate a large sum of money for his own benefit.

In comparison, the rewards for those research projects at the Martial Soul Research Institute were utterly insignificant!

After receiving Ling Yi's approval, Yu Xiaogang turned and headed to several project research labs at the research institute.

First, there is the standardization of ingredients for Foundation-Fortifying Soup. This research project is based on the ingredient list of Ling Yi's "Tenfold Tonic Soup" from a long time ago. The main purpose is to find more easily accessible ingredients and ingredient ratios.

"Foundation-Fortifying Soup" is made primarily from ordinary animal bones, with varying amounts of Soul Beast, fifty-year-old "Vitality Blue Silver Grass," and some common medicinal and edible ingredients added as auxiliary ingredients.

The effect is to strengthen the foundation and cultivate vitality, making it a good formula for those who are building a foundation or are at a lower level of cultivation.

The original "Tenfold Tonic Soup" required each ingredient, which was affordable for a Soul Master with some wealth, but that meant it was a luxury that could only be indulged in occasionally every six months.

Similar to the imported ingredients like white truffles, blue lobsters, and caviar that Ling Yi had in his previous life, it's not that ordinary wage earners couldn't afford them, but the price was enough to make them hesitate.

A One-Ring Soul Master can receive a subsidy of one Gold Soul Coin per month from the subordinate branches and sub-branches of the Spirit Hall, while Two-Ring Grand Soul Master receives ten Gold Soul Coin per month.

The total cost of all the raw materials for Ling Yi's "Tenfold Tonic Soup" back then had already reached more than 800 Gold Soul Coin!

Of course, one pot of original soup can be divided into at least ten portions, enough for ten One-Ring Soul Master to use for one cultivation session. Depending on the absorption, each person can save an average of nearly a month of cultivation time.

Even a Two-Ring Grand Soul Master could save ten days of cultivation time by absorbing all the nutrients contained in a "Tenfold Tonic Soup".

If it were the "Tenfold Tonic Soup," Yu Xiaogang might be a little interested, but for the "Foundation-Fortifying Soup," a medicinal formula that can only work on ordinary people and Soul Scholar, at most reaching the One-Ring Soul Master level, he could only show little interest.

One reason I joined this project was because of Ling Yi's suggestion. After all, when Yu Xiaogang first arrived, his most famous achievement was "improving" the "Wound Medicine." Regardless of whether the cost was too high, the efficacy of the medicine was indeed improved, which shows that he has a certain foundation in herbal medicine.

Another reason is that after hearing about the effects of the "Tenfold Tonic Soup," Yu Xiaogang became interested in the recipe and wanted to study it in depth to see if he could improve it to a more effective formula, preferably one that could work for him, a level 29 Grand Soul Master, or even Three-Ring Soul Elder.

Unfortunately, the "Tenfold Tonic Soup" is much more complex than the "Wound Medicine". Yu Xiaogang has been researching it for a long time, but he only has a few ideas that he doesn't know if they are feasible. Due to the lack of experimental materials, he has not yet had time to verify them.

However, with Ling Yi's guidance, the research team quickly developed a formula for "Essence-Replenishing Soup," a simplified version of "Tenfold Tonic Soup" (a traditional Chinese tonic Foundation-Fortifying Soup), which had a reduced effect and lower cost.

When Yu Xiaogang joined, the research group's goal was to further reduce the cost of "Foundation-Fortifying Soup," which cost five Gold Soul Coin, without weakening its effects, or only slightly weakening them.

When Yu Xiaogang announced his withdrawal from the research project, Qing Yuan, the person in charge of the "Standardization of Foundation-Fortifying Soup Ingredient Selection" project, looked extremely strange.

"Are you really going to quit?" Qing Yuan couldn't help but ask. "Do you know that the research has reached a critical point? The city lord said a few days ago that he would take some time to come and help us overcome this critical point?"

"I know." Yu Xiaogang nodded calmly.

"You know?!" Qing Yuan's tone rose slightly, and his eyes swept over Yu Xiaogang from head to toe. When he noticed the storage bracelet on the other's wrist, which was completely different in style from that of the members of ' Lingyun City ', his brows furrowed slightly, but then he calmed down.

"Yu Xiaogang, I know you probably don't lack money," Qing Yuan said solemnly, turning her gaze from the storage bracelet to Yu Xiaogang's eyes, "But I still have to remind you, if you wait another half month or so, until the City Lord leads us to successfully perfect the ' Foundation-Fortifying Soup ' recipe, not to mention our research compensation, just the profit sharing from the sale of ' Foundation-Fortifying Soup ' on the mainland, every year... no, every month, will be no small sum!"

"According to the patent system established by the City Lord, as long as ' Foundation-Fortifying Soup ' is sold on the Douluo Continent, you and I can both receive our share of the profits, and even after we pass away, our children can continue to enjoy it!"

"Besides money, there's also fame..."

Qing Yuan's earnest advice ended, but unfortunately, apart from the last two words, "reputation," which made Yu Xiaogang's eyes flicker slightly, the rest of the content did not move him at all.

Seeing this, Qing Yuan stopped trying to dissuade him, shook her head, and said to Yu Xiaogang one last time, "Alright, I've told you everything I need to say. Go to Gu Ying and write down your withdrawal statement, and I'll sign it for you."

Upon hearing this, Yu Xiaogang nodded calmly, took out two sheets of white paper from his storage bracelet, and handed them to the Qing Yuan: "It's already written."

"Tsk!" Qing Yuan clicked his tongue but didn't say anything more. He took the two sheets of white paper with a lot of text on them, glanced at them, and saw that the text pattern was almost the same as the template he had only seen once before. He then signed his name on each of them.

After handing one of the cards back to Yu Xiaogang, Qing Yuan didn't say anything, but simply waved his hand, indicating that Yu Xiaogang could leave.

After leaving the studio focused on "Standardization of Ingredient Selection for Foundation-Fortifying Soup," Yu Xiaogang successively obtained withdrawal statements signed by the heads of three research groups: "Development of Glandular Functions of Gale Demon Wolf," "Classification of Plant-type Soul Beast Characteristics," and "Research and Development of High-Temperature Resistant Alloy Materials."

After storing these statements in his storage bracelet, Yu Xiaogang took a deep breath, his eyes filled with nostalgia, reluctance, excitement, and anticipation.

With mixed feelings, he had no intention of returning to his residence to pack. After thinking it over repeatedly for the past three days, he finally made up his mind and put all the things he needed to take into his storage bracelet.

Raising his head, Yu Xiaogang looked around the ' Martial Soul Research Institute ' where he had spent almost two and a half years. A determined look appeared on his face as he strode towards the direction of leaving the city.

At the same time, in the City Lord’s Mansion's training ground, Ling Yi, who had his hand on Liu Erlong's slender waist, paused.

"What's wrong?" Liu Erlong turned her head to look at Ling Yi behind her, a hint of confusion and resentment appearing in her watery eyes.

"It's nothing~"

Ling Yi shook his head, a gentle smile on his face, "Let's continue."

Having said that, he continued to support her slender waist with his left hand, while his right hand pointed towards Liu Erlong's spine, starting from the tailbone and moving upwards.

"Remember these nodes, and circulate your Soul Power along this path..."

On the other side, outside the city gate of Lingyun City.

"Yu Xiaogang?"

A young man wearing the standard light armor of the Lingyun City Guard Team suddenly blocked Yu Xiaogang's path and asked a question.

Yu Xiaogang narrowed his eyes, becoming wary as he carefully examined the young man before him, while also observing his surroundings out of the corner of his eye.

"Don't worry, this is the gate of Lingyun City. Unless it's the Spirit Hall or the Clear Sky Sect, no one would dare to cause trouble here..."

The young man seemed to sense Yu Xiaogang's wariness and spoke again nonchalantly.

"..." Yu Xiaogang gave the young man a deep look and asked in a low voice, "You're looking for me?"

"I'm looking for Yu Xiaogang." The young man pursed his lips, skipping over the topic, and continued, "Come with me. Our captain just received a notice that the city lord has ordered that Yu Xiaogang from the ' Martial Soul Research Institute ' has to go out on business, and we've asked him to give you a ride along the caravan route."

"Today we have four caravans setting off. One will pass through Dragon Rising City on its way to Gengxin City in the Star Luo Empire, another will pass through Suotuo City on its way to Snowcap City in the Haagen-Dazs Kingdom, another will go to Silves City first, and then detour to Vast Sea City on the western border of the Heaven Dou Empire, and the last one will head directly north towards Heaven Dou City..."

"Apart from the east, wherever you want to go, there's something suitable for you."

After listening to the young man's words, Yu Xiaogang remained silent for a while before replying in a low voice, "I'm going with the one who went to ' Heaven Dou City '."

Upon hearing this, the young man paused, glanced at Yu Xiaogang, and continued walking forward, "Alright, that's the one our team is responsible for guarding."

"My name is Li Yang, my Martial Soul ' Lone Wolf,' I am a level 28 Power Attack System Grand Soul Master, and I belong to the 29th Squadron of the Lingyun City Ministry of War Guard Team..."

As they were talking, the two arrived in front of a caravan that stretched for seven or eight miles.

"Hey! Brother Li is back? This... is this the one we're taking along? Have you asked him? Whose group are they with?" A burly man greeted the two of them and asked in a loud voice from a dozen meters away.

"Sun Hao." Li Yang gestured with his chin towards the burly man and introduced him to Yu Xiaogang beside him.

"Alright, Da Hao, I've already asked. He's on our team this time. Where's the captain?" Li Yang greeted the burly Sun Hao and asked.

"The captain is checking the protective weapons..." Sun Hao came to Li Yang's side, glanced at Yu Xiaogang, who had a cold and distant expression, and then walked into the convoy together.

Half an hour later.

On the official road leading out of the Green Cloud Mountain Range, Yu Xiaogang sat on the shaft of a carriage, leaning against the back of the carriage, tilting his head slightly back, gazing at the clouds on the horizon, his eyes revealing a look of expectation.