Yu Xiaogang Takes Tang San as His Disciple

After the afternoon practical combat class ended, Tang San did not return to the dormitory with Lin Chen.

He said he wanted to wash his face and told Lin Chen to go on ahead. Lin Chen did not ask further questions and simply nodded before leaving. Tang San stood by the sink, watching Lin Chen's back disappear at the end of the training field before slowly turning on the tap.

Cold water came rushing down, splashing across his face.

He did not turn it off right away. He simply bent over and let the icy stream wash over his face and hair. Droplets ran down his chin, spreading into a small dark patch on the bluestone floor.

He raised his head and looked at himself in the mirror.

A six-year-old face. Black hair plastered wetly to his forehead. His eyes were slightly red from the water. He looked utterly disheveled.

He did not even know what he was upset about.

Lin Chen had treated him quite well. He had brought him all the way from Holy Soul Village to Nuoding City, helped him enroll, and taught him how to survive at the academy.

But ever since that girl named Xiao Wu had appeared, all of Lin Chen's attention had been drawn to her.

They had moved into a separate little building together, eaten together, attended class together, and played around on the fighting platform together.

And he, Tang San, was like an extra person, trailing behind the two of them and watching them laugh and chat.

He clenched his fists.

He had his own advantages too. He had known on the day of his awakening that he possessed innate full soul power and twin martial souls.

Su Yuntao had only recorded his Blue Silver Grass at the time, saying that he had innate full soul power at rank ten and was a genius.

But only he knew that a heavy hammer was hidden within his left arm.

Still, there was always a stubborn fire burning in his heart. Lin Chen had been born at rank thirty, drawing the descent of the God Kings from the Divine Realm. He had witnessed that spectacle with his own eyes.

And what about him, Tang San? So what if he had twin martial souls? Blue Silver Grass was mocked as a useless martial soul, while his other martial soul could not be revealed. All he could show off was his innate full soul power at rank ten.

There was a full twenty-rank gap between ten and thirty.

He did not know how to catch up, but he knew that he had to.

"Student Tang San."

A voice came from behind him.

Tang San suddenly came back to himself and turned around.

Yu Xiaogang stood in the washroom doorway, wearing a gray robe faded white from washing.

"Teacher Yu." Tang San turned off the tap, wiped the water from his face, and greeted him politely.

Yu Xiaogang walked in, stood beside him, and turned on the tap to wash his hands.

"Daydreaming here alone?" Yu Xiaogang flicked the water from his hands, his tone calm. "Something on your mind?"

Tang San was silent for a moment before shaking his head. "No."

"It's normal for young people to have things on their minds." Yu Xiaogang did not press him. Instead, he took a handkerchief from his sleeve and wiped his hands.

"When I was your age, I often daydreamed alone too. I had too many things on my mind, but no one to talk to about them."

Tang San said nothing.

Yu Xiaogang was in no hurry to continue. Leaning against the sink, he looked out the window. Only after a long while did he slowly speak. "I heard your answer in theory class this morning."

Tang San's face reddened slightly.

When Teacher Liu had asked a question that morning, he had been distracted and casually answered, "Blue Silver Grass restrains the earth attribute," earning laughter from the entire class.

"Blue Silver Grass is a plant-type martial soul. It is restrained by fire, restrained by metal, and possesses almost no offensive power," Yu Xiaogang said slowly. "That is common knowledge. But common knowledge is not necessarily correct."

Tang San looked up at him in confusion.

"I have studied martial souls for most of my life and reached a conclusion: there are no useless martial souls, only useless soul masters."

Yu Xiaogang turned to look Tang San in the eyes. "Most people see Blue Silver Grass as a useless martial soul, but I see limitless possibilities in it."

Tang San's heart skipped a beat.

"Your Blue Silver Grass has innate full soul power, correct?" Yu Xiaogang asked.

"Yes."

"That proves that your Blue Silver Grass is far from ordinary." Yu Xiaogang's tone was certain. "Ordinary Blue Silver Grass can never possess more than rank one innate soul power, yet you reached rank ten. That means your martial soul has mutated, and it is a beneficial mutation."

Tang San listened intently.

"If you are willing," Yu Xiaogang paused, a trace of anticipation in his eyes, "I can guide you. I have spent my entire life researching martial soul theory and have an in-depth understanding of the traits of various martial souls, soul ring combinations, and cultivation paths. Blue Silver Grass, the martial soul everyone overlooks, happens to be one of the subjects I have studied most."

Tang San froze.

"Guide me?"

"Yes." Yu Xiaogang nodded. "No tuition, and it will not take much of your time. Spend an hour with me after class each day, and I will teach you the basic theories of martial souls and the key points of cultivation. How much you can learn will depend on your own comprehension."

Tang San hesitated.

Of course, he knew who Yu Xiaogang was. Tang San still remembered clearly the scene in the Academic Affairs Office yesterday, when Lin Chen had humiliated him to his face. "A piece of trash who couldn't break through rank thirty by fifty"—those had been Lin Chen's exact words.

Yet the man before him had a calm, sincere gaze. There was no anger, no attempt to curry favor. He was merely like a scholar discussing the knowledge he had spent half his life researching.

"Teacher Yu," Tang San said, "why do you want to help me?"

Yu Xiaogang fell silent for a moment before saying something that surprised Tang San. "Because I see a possibility in you."

"What possibility?"

"The possibility of proving that my theory is correct." Yu Xiaogang's voice was low, yet it carried a stubborn strength.

"I have written theories my whole life, and no one has acknowledged them. But if I can raise an outstanding soul master, then my theories will no longer be empty words on paper."

Tang San looked at him.

There was no falsehood or calculation in Yu Xiaogang's eyes, only an almost obsessive sincerity.

"I want to take you as my disciple," Yu Xiaogang said, word by word. "Not because of your innate full soul power, but because you are the first student willing to seriously listen to my theories."

Tang San's heart began pounding wildly.

Lin Chen's figure flashed through his mind.

That boy who had been born at rank thirty and drawn the descent of the five God Kings was now with Xiao Wu. They ate crystal carrots together, played around on the fighting platform together, and lived together in that separate little building behind the academy.

And he, Tang San, stood here all alone.

He needed a master.

He needed to grow stronger.

"Alright."

Tang San raised his head and bowed deeply.

"Master."

Yu Xiaogang was stunned for a moment. Then, a faint smile slowly bloomed across that stern face.

There was relief in that smile, excitement, and the release of someone who had finally waited for this day.

"Good, good." He said "good" twice in a row and reached out to help Tang San up. "From today onward, you are the disciple of Yu Xiaogang. I will teach you everything I have learned in my life without holding anything back."

He paused, then added, "But Tang San, remember one thing."

"Please speak, Master."

"Your Blue Silver Grass has innate full soul power. That means it is definitely not ordinary Blue Silver Grass." Yu Xiaogang's expression grew serious.

"You have innate full soul power. In two days, I will personally take you to Spirit Hunting Forest and help you choose the most suitable soul beast. A good beginning determines how far you can go."

"Thank you, Master."

The afterglow of the setting sun streamed through the window, falling over master and disciple.

Tang San suddenly felt much of the stifling heaviness in his heart fade away.

He had a master now.

Someone was willing to teach him, guide him, and help him plan his cultivation path.

He would grow stronger.

One day, he would catch up to Lin Chen.

At that moment, in the little building on the other side of the academy, Lin Chen lay on his bed with his arms beneath his head, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Xiao Wu lay sprawled on her own bed, her raised legs swinging back and forth as she held a copy of Strange Tales of the Continent borrowed from the library and read it with great interest.

"Brother Chen, do you think ten-thousand-year soul beasts really exist in this world?"

"Probably."

"Then can they turn into humans?"

"Maybe."

"Wow... If we ran into a ten-thousand-year soul beast that had turned into a human, wouldn't we strike it rich?"

Lin Chen smiled but did not answer.

He closed his eyes, and Tang San's departing figure from that afternoon surfaced in his mind.

That kid should have gotten in touch with Yu Xiaogang by now.

Fine by me.

Let him follow that master around. When he realizes that the results of all his painstaking cultivation are not even as good as me casually fooling around, the look on his face will definitely be worth seeing.