Dong'er, Don't You Love Me Anymore?

Spirit City, Spirit Plaza.

"Dong'er! Do you not love me anymore!" the Master, Yu Xiaogang, shouted in despair.

Bibi Dong, her right arm linked with Ning Fengzhi and her left arm holding Qian Xunqian, shook her head helplessly and said:

"Xiaogang, I'm sorry, but I don't think I have... love for you anymore. Sigh... although I know it's cruel to say this, in order to draw a perfect period to our romance, I must say it:

Let's break up!"

"No!!!"

"Snowflakes drifting, north winds whistling..."

Yu Xiaogang clutched his head with both hands, fell to his knees with a thud, and roared:

"Dong'er, didn't you used to love watching me study martial spirit theory the most? I'm about to publish my Ten Core Competencies of Martial Spirits! I'm going to become a world-renowned master of theory!"

"This..."

Bibi Dong had the words on the tip of her tongue, but in the end, she swallowed them back down.

There is no harm without comparison. In the past, she only had eyes for Yu Xiaogang, the master of theory, and was naturally deceived by this rote learner who constantly quoted books.

But now, the person she was holding, Qian Xunqian, was a true master of theory—no, a titan of scientific research. According to her, the model for her innate soul power cultivation device had already made a breakthrough.

The next step was assembly and testing on spirit beasts. If successful, she would move on to death-row inmates. By then, even commoners without innate soul power would be able to cultivate!

This single invention alone solved a problem that had plagued the Douluo Continent for ten thousand years. Bibi Dong was a sapiosexual; for her to fall in love, the person first had to have a high IQ.

Thus, Qian Xunqian had indirectly raised the bar for Bibi Dong's choice of partner—what is known in science as a threshold.

After three years of comparison, Bibi Dong realized that her boyfriend was merely a "master" who knew how to recite books. He was barely adequate as an elementary school teacher to explain common knowledge to children, but...

To call him a master of theory was an absolute joke.

However, he was her ex-boyfriend after all, and a breakup should be handled with grace. She held back from mocking Yu Xiaogang's most prized theoretical knowledge to his face.

Unfortunately, while Bibi Dong wanted a graceful breakup, Ning Fengzhi did not. He looked at Yu Xiaogang with a smile, sizing him up from head to toe.

"A dagger hidden in a smile," a "smiling tiger"—that was exactly the type of person Ning Fengzhi was.

"So this must be the future number one master of theory on the Douluo Continent," Ning Fengzhi said nonchalantly.

Yu Xiaogang was delighted. Ignoring the fact that this was a romantic rival, he rubbed his head and said awkwardly:

"Not at all, not at all! I still have a long way to go! But the word 'future' is certainly well-chosen! This brother truly has eyes like torches and a keen eye for talent!"

Qian Xunqian turned her head away, not wanting to look at the fool.

Bibi Dong lowered her head in silence, regretting why she had ever taken a liking to such a person.

"I wonder what profound insights you have, sir? Please share them so I may properly appreciate them... Just now, didn't you mention something about... Ten Core Competencies of Martial Spirits?"

Yu Xiaogang rubbed his nose, chuckled twice, and said:

"It's going to be published in a few days anyway, so there's no harm in telling you now. Dong'er, you are the first to know about my Ten Core Competencies of Martial Spirits! (And of course, the readers in front of the screen.)"

"Brother Yu, please."

"Ahem!" Yu Xiaogang would never pass up an opportunity to show off. He stood with his hands behind his back, chest puffed out, assuming the posture of a great sage.

Seeing this, Bibi Dong felt her anger rising. She had been deceived by such a person simply because she lacked experience. Sigh!

"Innate soul power is directly proportional to the strength of the martial spirit!" After speaking, Yu Xiaogang glanced at the three of them.

Heh heh heh, hurry up and praise my theory!

"Uncle, isn't that just common sense? Our teacher just taught us that today..."

A little girl playing in the plaza tugged on Yu Xiaogang's pants and said.

Bibi Dong couldn't hold it in anymore and burst into laughter: "Little girl, what grade are you in?"

"Big sister, I'm in first grade this year!"

"That's wonderful!"

Ning Fengzhi was a decent man; he managed to save the Master's face by holding back his laughter. One could only say he was worthy of being the future Sect Master of the Seven Treasures Glazed Sect!

"Brother Yu, did you copy this theory wrong? Perhaps you accidentally included common knowledge while you were compiling it?"

Yu Xiaogang turned red—a flush of pure embarrassment. Refusing to give up, he asked the little girl:

"Is this really common knowledge?"

"Yes!" the little girl replied innocently. "If you don't believe me, my classmates are right there; they can all testify. Uncle, you didn't go to elementary school, did you?"

"Pfft!" A mouthful of blood rose in Yu Xiaogang's throat, though he managed not to spit it out.

To salvage his dignity, Yu Xiaogang took a deep breath and maintained his inscrutable image:

"There are nine more. The second one: There are no useless martial spirits, only useless soul masters."

Hearing this, even the refined Ning Fengzhi couldn't help but laugh out loud:

"Hahahaha!"

Qian Xunqian nodded and said, "I never imagined that Uncle could propose such a magnificent theory!"

Yu Xiaogang held his head high, feeling immensely satisfied. Hmph! This is the strength of this uncle—bah! Grandmaster!

"Oh? Since you believe this theory is correct, then why is it that you are now twenty-one years old, yet your spirit power is still only at level eighteen?" Ning Fengzhi asked with a smile.

Qian Xunqian also seized the moment to twist the knife: "Yeah, that's right! Three years ago, Uncle was only level eighteen, so why hasn't it increased by a single level in three years?"

"Pfft!"

Bibi Dong truly couldn't hold it in anymore. Even though a breakup should be handled with dignity, she might regret it for the rest of her life if she didn't participate in such a hilarious spectacle.

"According to your own theory, Xiaogang, it seems you are a trash spirit master..."

"Pfft!" The blade from an ex-girlfriend was the sharpest of all; it pierced straight through Gangzi, leaving him chilled to the bone.

"You... you... you..."

At this moment, Qian Xunqian spoke up to explain:

"Sister Bi, Brother Ning, actually, there is some truth to those words. If viewed in a narrow sense, non-combat spirits are indeed trash, but in a broader sense, all spirits have their uses."

"Take sickle or hoe spirits, for instance; they can help farmers till the land and promote agricultural development. A Blue Silver Grass spirit can also be used to grow grass for fodder to feed rabbits. And a Soft Bone Rabbit spirit could even be used to perform on stage as a rabbit actor through spirit avatar!"

After all, were humans born just to fight?

Certainly not. They were born to develop, to provide for themselves, and to enjoy life!

Enjoyment requires resources, and the acquisition of resources ultimately stems from human labor.

To provide for themselves, people must labor to obtain supplies. In Qian Xunqian's view, the greatest people in this world were not those spirit masters who spent every day cultivating and competing in tournaments.

They were nothing more than consumers who lay on the backs of the common folk, sucking their blood.

The truly great ones were the farmers who inadvertently provided food for the world, the architects and workers who built houses for everyone... and perhaps, in the future, the soul tool masters.

They were the producers, the very foundation that allowed human society to function! They were not trash!