After meditation class ended, Qi Dao was about to head to the woods behind the mountain for some extra training. The moment he stepped outside, someone called out.
"Qi Dao, come here!"
The brief summons carried a note of command.
Qi Dao frowned slightly and looked toward the voice.
Yu Xiaogang stood nearby in a black robe, two books tucked under his left arm and his right hand behind his back. His expression was somewhat stiff.
Qi Dao stayed where he was, his gaze neither servile nor arrogant.
"Grandmaster, you don't seem to be a teacher at this academy. You have no right to order me around."
"If you have something to discuss with me, please set aside that lofty pride of yours instead of speaking to me like that."
Yu Xiaogang's already stiff face tightened further. He felt as miserable as if he had swallowed a fly.
But if he wanted Qi Dao to cooperate with his research into Qi Dao's Martial Soul, he had to lower himself and walk over.
He had to take Qi Dao as his disciple.
Hans might have opposed it, but Yu Xiaogang could approach Qi Dao directly.
As long as Qi Dao agreed, there was little Hans could say.
"Will this do?" Yu Xiaogang said coolly.
He, the foremost Grandmaster of Martial Soul Theory, had taken the initiative to yield to a first-year student with only half a level of Soul Power.
Qi Dao ought to be satisfied!
Qi Dao could tell it was an act. Beneath it, Yu Xiaogang's arrogance had not changed in the slightest.
Still, he said calmly, "Go on. What do you want with me?"
Given Yu Xiaogang's habits, Qi Dao hardly needed to think about it. He had probably come to find out how a good-for-nothing with a defectively mutated Martial Soul had gravely wounded Xiao Haijie with a single sword strike.
Sure enough, Yu Xiaogang opened with, "Qi Dao, I heard you defeated Xiao Haijie from the sixth year yesterday?"
"That's right," Qi Dao said.
Yu Xiaogang's eyes lit up. Then he assumed an air of profundity. "Do you know how many Soul Masters I've studied? Not one of them could defeat a beast Soul Master with a Hundred-Year Soul Ring using only half a level of Soul Power."
"Therefore, I conclude that there must be something special about your Martial Soul."
"So what exactly are you trying to say?" Qi Dao asked. The pitch sounded familiar.
Wasn't this how he fooled Tang San?
A fervent glint flashed in Yu Xiaogang's eyes. "When your parents brought you to see the headmaster, they wanted you to become my disciple, didn't they?"
"I don't normally take disciples, but I can make an exception today. I'll accept you as a nominal disciple and help you uncover the secret of your Martial Soul."
"You must want to know its secret too, don't you?"
Yu Xiaogang watched Qi Dao's expression closely.
But when he heard Qi Dao's answer, his face froze.
Qi Dao shook his head without hesitation. "Sorry, but I refuse!"
Was he joking?
What good would come of becoming Yu Xiaogang's disciple?
Yu Xiaogang immediately grew anxious at the refusal and blurted out, "How can you refuse? Don't you want to uncover the secret of your Martial Soul?"
"You're the one who wants to uncover its secret, aren't you?" Qi Dao looked calmly at Yu Xiaogang, then suddenly drew Peerless from his waist.
A bright, icy gleam ran along the blade as its tip pointed straight at Yu Xiaogang.
Despite being a Level Twenty-Nine Soul Grandmaster, Yu Xiaogang involuntarily took a step back from the sharp point.
Seeing him cower, Qi Dao shook his head. His face seemed expressionless, yet there might have been a trace of mockery in his smile.
By now, the commotion had drawn a crowd. Qi Dao raised Peerless and swept it before them, letting everyone clearly see the cracks along its blade.
Then he looked back at Yu Xiaogang.
"You see? My Martial Soul really is just an Iron Sword Martial Soul that underwent a defective mutation."
"No, that's impossible!"
"There must be something about your Martial Soul that no one knows!"
Yu Xiaogang saw every crack on the blade, but he would rather believe his own deduction than what was right before his eyes.
More and more students gathered around them.
Seeing Yu Xiaogang lose his composure, a first-year student whispered, "Who is that? He looks like he's gone mad."
"I've heard of him. Apparently, he's a friend of the headmaster's, and he has some title... 'Grandmaster,' I think. But it seems he just freeloads at our academy."
"I see. Then why is he pestering our boss?"
"Didn't you hear him? He wants to take the boss as a nominal disciple."
"Huh? A freeloader wants the boss as his nominal disciple? He's dreaming."
As the crowd murmured, Qi Dao spoke, putting an end to the discussion.
"Nothing in this world is impossible!"
"The truly strong never complain about their circumstances, and a true genius..."
"Would never be held back by his Martial Soul!"
"Someone like... me!"
Qi Dao claimed the title of genius without a hint of modesty, then slid Peerless back into its sheath with a sharp shing.
He looked at Yu Xiaogang. "Grandmaster, forgive my bluntness, but judging by what I've seen, you're not fit to be my teacher!"
"I'm not fit?"
Yu Xiaogang's face twisted. He pointed at Qi Dao and snapped,
"You dare say I'm not fit to be your teacher?"
"You think having something a little unusual makes you special. Arrogant and ignorant!"
"You can't see beyond the tip of your own nose!"
"Just you wait. Without my help, someone born with half a level of Soul Power and a Trash Martial Soul will probably never break through the Level Twenty bottleneck."
Qi Dao smiled faintly. "I won't trouble Grandmaster to worry about that."
Seeing that Qi Dao was determined not to become his disciple, and hearing the murmurs around them grow louder, Yu Xiaogang gave a cold snort and turned away.
A Soul Master born with half a level of Soul Power and a Trash Martial Soul, yet he thinks he's some kind of treasure.
After Yu Xiaogang left, Xiao Chenyu came up and whispered, "Boss, good thing you didn't fall for that old man's tricks."
"I asked around. He's just a freeloader. He spends all day looking down on everyone else, but he's the most useless one here. He's still stuck at Level Twenty-Nine at his age. 'Grandmaster' is just a title that sounds impressive."
"Enough. Don't worry about him!" Qi Dao smiled, then turned to Xiao Chenyu, Liu Long, and the others gathered around him. "I'm going to train some more. Coming with me?"
Xiao Chenyu and the others immediately pulled long faces.
"Boss, we'll pass. It's not often we get a little free time."
"If the young don't work hard, their boss will grieve in vain." Qi Dao shook his head. He had no intention of imposing his own standards on them, though, and smiled. "All right, I'll go alone!"
With that, he headed toward the mountain behind the academy.
Watching him go, Xiao Chenyu and the others huddled together.
"With that kind of determination, if the boss doesn't succeed, who will?"
"Maybe the boss really will become a mighty figure someday!"
Liu Long and Ling Feng grinned.
"Then we'll be the underlings of a mighty figure."
"Brother Xiao, do you think the boss will still remember us once he makes it big?"
"Of course he will!" Xiao Chenyu said.
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