Want to Take Me as Your Disciple? Yu Xiaogang, You're Not Worthy!

The gate guards were battered and bruised, utterly disheveled, with none of their earlier arrogance left.

At the same time, they realized that this was no ordinary country child.

That strength was terrifying. It was very likely innate soul power, and not at a low level either. Someone like this was a ruthless figure they could never afford to provoke in their lifetimes!

At this moment, the boy before them was a living god of slaughter in their eyes!

"We're the worthless ones! We're the beggars!"

"Y-Yes, yes, yes! I'm a beggar!"

"We know we were wrong!"

The three burly gate guards were thoroughly scared out of their wits. There was no trace of their former arrogance as they trembled and hurriedly begged for forgiveness.

A cold smile curled at the corner of Ao Yin's lips as he advanced step by step at an unhurried pace.

A crushing sense of pressure bore down on the three of them.

Their pupils shrank sharply in terror, and even their voices changed pitch.

"Y-You... don't come any closer!"

"Don't—~(voice cracking!!!)"

Every bone in their bodies ached with piercing pain. Enduring the agony, the three men crawled desperately across the ground, wanting only to escape this death trap as quickly as possible.

They were truly terrified now.

Run!

They had to get away immediately!

"Trying to leave? Did I give you permission?"

Watching the three men scramble away on all fours, Ao Yin casually picked up several fallen leaves from the ground.

A glint of coldness flashed through his eyes as he flicked his hand, sending the leaves shooting out.

The three burly gate guards had only just risen when they felt as though their legs had been struck by a heavy blow, and they fell to the ground with a cry!

This was the combat skill Ao Yin had obtained by checking in at Holy Soul Village, Little Li Flying Dagger. He could use leaves as daggers, and every throw struck true!

"Since you look down on beggars so much, I'll cripple you today and let you have a taste of what it's like to be a beggar!"

Holding the Coiling Dragon Staff, Ao Yin walked up to the three screaming men on the ground, clearly preparing to smash their legs!

"Stop—"

However, just as he raised his hand, a deep voice suddenly interrupted him.

Hmm!?

Ao Yin turned around and saw a middle-aged man slowly approaching from behind. He wore a simple gray cloth robe and held an ancient book in his hands. His eyes were deep and calm, and he carried an air of composed wisdom, as though he had seen through all the ways of the world.

"Yu Xiaogang..."

Ao Yin recognized the newcomer at once. Understanding dawned on him, and a faint smile quietly rose on his lips.

He knew the plot well. Better than anyone, he knew that Yu Xiaogang and Tang San were cut from the same cloth. He had deliberately caused such a commotion precisely to draw Yu Xiaogang's attention.

The so-called Master who had the most thorough understanding of martial souls on Douluo Continent and was supposedly invincible in martial soul theory... Ao Yin truly wanted to see what he was capable of.

The moment the three beaten guards saw Yu Xiaogang, it was as though they had found a lifeline. Looking utterly miserable, they scrambled and crawled to his feet, wailing for help.

"Master, save us! Please, save us!"

Old Jack stood to the side, already dumbfounded. He had never expected Ao Yin to become this powerful after awakening his martial soul!

As expected of a genius with full innate soul power whom even Spirit Hall wanted to recruit. Even without soul rings, his combat strength still completely overwhelmed three burly men.

But after Little Ao had caused such a scene, this would likely be difficult to settle.

Ao Yin gently supported Old Jack, whose body was trembling, his expression calm and mild.

"Village Chief Jack, no matter who looks down on us, we'll make sure they pay the price!"

At that moment, Old Jack truly felt an unprecedented sense of security.

A trace of pride flickered in Ao Yin's eyes. If he could not even enter the gates of a junior academy, how could he speak of reaching the pinnacle of the continent or ascending to the Divine Realm in the future?

Then, he spoke first and demanded, "Sir, I wasn't the one who struck first. Everyone saw it!"

Ao Yin met Yu Xiaogang's scrutinizing gaze with a calm expression, showing no unease whatsoever.

Yu Xiaogang appeared refined and courteous on the surface, but deep down, he was more of a coward. So long as Ao Yin did not touch Yu Xiaogang's bottom line, he would never step in over such a minor dispute.

As for those three guards who had brazenly abused their position to bully others, coldness rose in Ao Yin's eyes once more.

"As the academy's gatekeepers, you judge people by their appearance, freely insult others, and tarnish the academy's reputation. Today, I'll discipline you properly on the academy's behalf!"

"You're the academy's Master, right? Remember to give me a Good Person Award afterward!"

With that, Ao Yin intended to continue punishing them.

Yu Xiaogang froze on the spot, his brows drawing tightly together.

He had never expected this young boy before him to possess such a fierce and domineering temperament.

Right in front of him, they still did as they pleased, showing no intention of reining themselves in.

He had never liked involving himself in trivial disputes, and he knew these guards were of poor character and thoroughly unpleasant.

But this was the entrance to Notting Academy. As the academy's honorary master, he could not allow this farce to continue.

"Enough."

Yu Xiaogang spoke up to stop them, his voice steady and stern.

"This is the main gate of Notting Academy. What kind of behavior is this, brawling here so recklessly? Are you trying to ruin the academy's reputation?"

As his words fell, his gaze finally settled on Ao Yin, sharp and profound.

"And you? Who are you, and why are you arguing here?"

"Master! These two brats came out of some godforsaken backwater and are trying to pass themselves off as work-study students to enroll!" The bruised and swollen guard immediately began accusing them.

"Work-study students?"

Yu Xiaogang raised an eyebrow slightly. He had not heard that term in a long time!

The moment old Jack heard the guards call this man "Master," he guessed that he might be some important figure within the academy. He hurriedly stepped out from behind Ao Yin and carefully explained everything that had happened.

He recounted every detail, from how the two of them had been maliciously obstructed by the guards to how they had been falsely accused of forging their credentials.

Then, he cautiously picked up the Spirit Hall certificate from the ground, now covered in footprints, and presented it to him.

"Master, we truly came here through the proper channels to enroll. This is the awakening certificate issued by Spirit Hall. It's the only work-study student slot from our Holy Soul Village!"

Yu Xiaogang reached out and accepted the record certificate bearing Spirit Hall's seal, lowering his head for a closer look.

The next instant, his mouth parted slightly, and an incredulous expression appeared on his face.

"A mutated staff martial soul, innate full soul power?"

Yu Xiaogang continued reading. The certificate also contained the martial soul illustration recorded by Su Yuntao.

What met his eyes was an utterly ordinary fire poker, though some of its patterns had not been drawn very clearly.

Then he looked at the Pangu Staff that Ao Yin had yet to put away. The instant his eyes fell upon it, his pupils contracted violently!

"Dragon patterns?"

He came from a top-tier dragon martial soul family and had devoted decades to the study of martial soul theory. He knew all manner of dragon-type mutated martial souls inside and out.

The carvings that ordinary people could not decipher were perfectly clear to him.

At that moment, all his attention locked completely onto Ao Yin.

What fight? Who was right and who was wrong?

He had already thrown it all to the back of his mind. Compared to what he had just discovered, it was not worth mentioning at all.

Yu Xiaogang immediately turned to old Jack and spoke solemnly.

"This enrollment qualification is entirely genuine. There is not the slightest problem with it."

"Today, the academy guards neglected their duties and used their authority to bully others. It is a failure of academy management. I apologize to you both."

"These three are of vile character and deliberately made things difficult for new students. On behalf of the academy, I hereby expel them from Notting Academy. They will never be hired again!"

After saying that, he looked at the youth before him. His eyes carried deep admiration and expectation as he said in a low voice:

"Ao Yin, welcome to Notting Junior Soul Master Academy!"

"Are you willing to take me as your master?"

The moment those words came out, old Jack, standing nearby, swallowed hard. Before, a battle soul master had personally invited him to join Spirit Hall Academy, and now an academy master was offering to take him as a disciple?

Last time, little Ao had already missed an opportunity. He absolutely could not miss this one too!

Just as old Jack was about to turn and have a word with Ao Yin, Ao Yin's cold voice rang out first. "I'm not willing!"

Old Jack was so furious that he nearly raised the cane in his hand to give Ao Yin two whacks.

Yu Xiaogang, meanwhile, was somewhat embarrassed. He coughed twice and asked, "Why not?"

"Because you're not worthy."

"Who?"

"You!"

Ao Yin's answer instantly set Yu Xiaogang off. He gritted his teeth and pressed the question, only to receive an even more certain answer.

His head immediately began to buzz.