Yu Xiaogang and Liu Erlong

After delivering the harsh ultimatum to his ex-girlfriend Bibi Dong—"Do not look down on the young"—Yu Xiaogang resolutely departed from the "filthy" place that was Spirit Hall.

Upon leaving, he considered becoming an elder at some other sect, firmly believing that with his talent and learning, he would inevitably be treated with the fairness he deserved.

He simply couldn't bring himself to look at any ordinary, small-scale sects.

For a genius like him, who only appeared once in ten thousand years, he felt he should at least aim for the Upper Three Sects or one of the two great empires.

After much deliberation, Yu Xiaogang realized he had yet to publish his Ten Core Competencies of Martial Spirits, and he figured that charity should begin at home.

Although he was considered a disgrace to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and was looked down upon by many of his kin, he still held deep feelings for the clan; after all, his father was the Sect Master.

On the other hand, there was the old saying: "Returning home without showing off one's success is like wearing fine silks in the dark." Yu Xiaogang wanted to bring his peerless theories back to the clan, make his father look at him with newfound respect, and slap the faces of those clansmen who had mocked him as a failure.

In the end, Yu Xiaogang returned to the clan.

Although Yu Yuanzhen considered Yu Xiaogang a failure in every conceivable way, he was still his son, so he had no choice but to indulge him.

Yu Xiaogang presented his pride and joy, the Ten Core Competencies of Martial Spirits, to his father. Yu Yuanzhen frowned, then turned to look at the eagerly expectant Yu Xiaogang.

Ultimately, he sighed, shifted his expression to one of delight, and said with feigned shock:

"Excellent! Excellent! My son is truly the number one theoretical master on the Douluo Continent!"

Yu Xiaogang was deeply moved. As expected, his father had the eye to recognize true talent; how could someone with the mortal eyes of Bibi Dong ever hope to grasp the intricacies of his work?

"Father! I am prepared to publish this theory and share it with the world, so that it may benefit the entire Douluo Continent!"

Yu Xiaogang said excitedly.

Yu Yuanzhen felt heavy-hearted. He looked up at Yu Xiaogang's excited eyes, then swallowed his worries back down, thinking:

I am the dignified Sect Master of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan; surely I can prop one person up! Theory is not like martial spirit cultivation, where strength is strength and weakness is weakness—it is plain to see. Theory is highly malleable; with a little manipulation, I can turn Xiaogang into a master of theory for a generation!

Xiaogang will never make it on the path of martial spirits, so as his father, I must consider his future. If I mold him into a master of theory, even if it's a fabrication, it will become the truth given enough time. By then, even after I pass away, Xiaogang will have a fallback and won't be left destitute if he is ever expelled from the clan...

Parents who love their children plan for their long-term future. As a father, Yu Yuanzhen had truly done everything he could for Yu Xiaogang.

Thus, Yu Yuanzhen leveraged his connections and financial resources as the Sect Master of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan to frantically manufacture a "God of Theory" across the Douluo Continent.

Yu Xiaogang's fame thus became a household name. To spirit masters and knowledgeable nobles, it was obvious at a glance that Yu Xiaogang's level was that of a failure.

However, out of respect for the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, they could only insincerely praise Yu Yuanzhen for having sired such a brilliant prodigy.

As for the commoners, who could barely read and couldn't afford books, they couldn't read Yu Xiaogang's work. But having heard the public opinion that Yu Xiaogang was a "Master," coupled with the brainwashing stories of his "success" fabricated by storytellers, they were easily swayed.

The commoners, who made up ninety percent of the Douluo Continent, naturally believed that Yu Xiaogang was an impeccable master of theory, even though they had never once read his Ten Core Competencies of Martial Spirits.

Ironically, Yu Xiaogang, who gained his fame from the common people, was in reality an arrogant noble who looked down on the poor more than anyone else.

Could this be considered a form of dark humor?

For all those years, only Spirit Hall was diligently "blackening" Yu Xiaogang's name; everywhere else, mentions of him were met with unanimous praise and endless acclaim.

During those years, Yu Xiaogang lived a life of luxury and prestige, walking with a swagger in his step.

Relying on his title as a "Master of Theory," he traveled across the Douluo Continent and met his lifelong best friend—the unfortunate Flender—as well as his cousin and lover, Liu Erlong.

The three of them were actually able to form a powerful martial spirit fusion skill—the Sun-Moon Radiance Golden Turn, the Golden Sacred Dragon.

Just like that, the name of the Golden Iron Triangle gradually became famous across the continent, and thanks to the "Master's" reputation, the Golden Iron Triangle soon became known throughout the entire Douluo Continent.

The news naturally reached the ears of Yu Xiaogang's second uncle, Yu Luomian. He didn't know until he checked, and once he did, he was shocked: the Horn of Slaughter in the Golden Iron Triangle was actually his illegitimate daughter, Liu Erlong!

Upon learning that his illegitimate daughter had come to find him to announce she was getting married, Yu Luomian curiously asked who the groom was.

Liu Erlong replied that it was Yu Xiaogang.

Yu Luomian's heart went cold, replaced instantly by boundless rage!

He told Liu Erlong that Yu Xiaogang was her own cousin and that they could not be together! That doing so was against human ethics!

Liu Erlong cried for a long time before being locked in her room by Yu Luomian, who forbade her from seeing that failure, Yu Xiaogang!

Yu Luomian then went to find Yu Xiaogang himself, ruthlessly berating his good-for-nothing nephew. He especially disparaged his theories as worthless, telling him that he was nothing but a false god manufactured by his father!

Finally, he humiliated Yu Xiaogang: "You idiot, you're so good at theoretical research, yet you didn't even suspect your own cousin's martial spirit? You couldn't even recognize your own cousin!"

The scolding shattered Yu Xiaogang's Dao heart. Too ashamed to face anyone, he fled the sect in despair, never again having the face to return to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.

To Yu Luomian, even if Yu Xiaogang hadn't been his nephew, he wouldn't have let Liu Erlong marry him. There was no other reason than the fact that this guy was a failure among failures—not only was his martial spirit useless, but his theories were garbage too.

And yet, this failure lacked even a shred of self-awareness. If Yu Xiaogang had been honest, hardworking, and grounded, his second uncle wouldn't have targeted him so severely.

But instead?

Who could understand the frustration of having a failure around you every day, bragging about how his theories were invincible, while you couldn't even scold him because of your brother's face!

Yu Luomian had been holding it in for a long time, and this incident of Liu Erlong's incestuous marriage finally allowed him to vent years of pent-up anger.

When Yu Yuanzhen learned the full story, there was little he could say. The dissatisfaction within the sect toward Yu Xiaogang hadn't been a one-day affair; this incident was merely the fuse.

Now, thanks to Yu Luomian's exposure, the entire Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan could finally speak the truth about Yu Xiaogang openly!

Just three days after the matter was exposed, the entire Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had already disparaged Yu Xiaogang to the level of a maggot.

Because Yu Yuanzhen had spent a massive amount of manpower and resources over the years to build up his son's reputation, the wages and benefits of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan members had been slashed significantly.

Now, led by Yu Luomian's charge, the entire clan stood united, using the criticism of Yu Xiaogang as a pretext to attack Yu Yuanzhen for his abuse of power.

Although Yu Yuanzhen wasn't completely sidelined, he could no longer make the final call on many matters within the sect, and his prestige plummeted.

The influence of the faction led by his second uncle, Yu Luomian, rose rapidly, beginning to rival that of the old Sect Master.

As for our Master Yu Xiaogang, he dusted off his backside and wandered until he reached Nuoding City. Since he was friends with the dean of the Nuoding Junior Spirit Master Academy, he settled down there to live off free meals.