Yu Xiaogang, Academic Scum

With a smack, Book Elder flung Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul onto the floor. Still not vented enough, he stomped on it twice, his beard bristling and eyes glaring.

"This trash written by that shameless bastard isn't even fit to prop up a table leg—I'd think it filthy. If it weren't occasionally useful as a negative example, I'd have burned it for firewood long ago."

Lin Huo's eye twitched as he watched. He had just been wondering why Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul looked so unusually worn.

After being thrown around, stomped on, and used to prop up tables, how could it possibly not be worn?

Still, Lin Huo was rather curious. Although he had seen Gangzi's absurd remarks the moment he opened Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul, he had also roughly skimmed some of the later content.

Without prejudice, quite a few things in the book were at least passably proper.

It was just that, once its personal style was stripped away, much of it seemed rather similar to content found in other books.

Seeing how deeply Book Elder despised Gangzi's work, it would have been impossible for Lin Huo not to be curious. So, he asked directly,

"Book Elder, what exactly is wrong with this book? Other than some nonsense, the rest of its contents seem fine to me."

"What's wrong?" Violent flames suddenly ignited beneath Book Elder's feet, reducing Ten Core Competencies of Martial Soul to ash in an instant. Only then did he look up at Lin Huo.

"Irresponsible theories, conclusions drawn entirely from imagination, even common knowledge in the Soul Master world exaggerated beyond all reason—the flaws in this book are so numerous that this old man couldn't pick them all out.

"And its greatest problem is that its author is a shameless, despicable, vile academic scum who does nothing but plagiarize other people's achievements, rephrase them, then brazenly parade them as his own theories!"

Book Elder cursed Yu Xiaogang so fiercely that he thoroughly tore him to shreds.

If Yu Xiaogang himself had been here, then judging by Book Elder's manner, he might have ground him to dust on the spot.

The moment he heard there was dirt to be dug up, Lin Huo perked up even more. Looking at Book Elder, he eagerly sought entertainment. "Yu Xiaogang is really such scum? Might I ask Book Elder to explain in detail?"

Book Elder calmed himself slightly. "Then I'll tell you, Little Huo, so you won't be unlucky enough to get fooled by that refined-looking scoundrel someday."

Resting a hand on the table, Book Elder's gaze turned distant. "Yu Xiaogang came from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and was the son of its clan leader, Yu Yuanzhen. Because his Martial Soul mutated, he awakened with only half a level of Innate Soul Power.

"That scum cared greatly about saving face. Later, unable to endure the scornful looks of his fellow clan members, he ran to Spirit Hall seeking help, hoping to solve his cultivation problem.

"His father, Yu Yuanzhen, truly spoiled that wretch. He even swallowed his pride and forcibly shoved that useless half-level Soul Power brat into Spirit Hall to study.

"At the time, through some connections in the Fire Clan, this old man was also undergoing advanced study of Soul Master theory within Spirit Hall. I had quite a bit of contact with that scum.

"Whatever else might be said of him, that scum had an excellent memory. After studying at Spirit Hall for some time, he could casually quote classics and scriptures whenever he spoke with others.

"But that scum was never someone grounded in reality. Though full of book learning, every word from his mouth was empty, impractical talk.

"Perhaps his slick tongue was somewhat useful. Who knew whether the Spirit Hall Saintess at the time—now the current Pope, Bibi Dong—had gone blind, but she somehow took a liking to that scum.

"The Spirit Hall Secret Vault, which this old man and a group of friends had needed to pay a considerable price to enter back then, was freely accessible to that scum simply because of his relationship with Bibi Dong.

"From that time onward, that beast Yu Xiaogang began his utterly unrestrained path of plagiarism. Who knew how many predecessors' painstaking works were stolen by that scum.

"Even the so-called Soul Ring Age Limit Theory in this very book was obtained by that scum after stealing materials from Spirit Hall and the academies of our various clans.

"The crucial part is that plagiarism alone would have been one thing, but he was completely irresponsible about it. He casually copied down a few of the highest records and published them openly, without realizing that every Soul Master was different and had a different limit of endurance.

"Back then, quite a few Soul Masters were fooled by that beast into pursuing the limits of Soul Rings, only to be blown apart by their Soul Rings."

At this point, Book Elder's anger surged higher and higher. He slapped the solid wood desk, leaving a palm print pressed into it.

Lin Huo was not frightened by the slap at all. He was simply surprised to learn that Book Elder had once studied at Spirit Hall.

As for Book Elder saying that Gangzi indulged in empty and impractical talk, Lin Huo found that extremely fitting.

Gangzi considered himself an extraordinary master of theory, but what effort had he actually made?

He had fled from reality and rotted away in Nuoding Academy, muddling through decade after decade without producing a single decent result.

As for taking on a disciple to verify his theories, he had looked down on this student and disliked that student at the academy.

Yet the moment Tang San, with Innate Full Soul Power, appeared, Gangzi was no longer useless, and his spirits immediately rose.

He promptly shamelessly rushed over to Tang San, started showing off, and, like a blind cat stumbling upon a dead mouse, used his erroneous theories to guess that Tang San possessed Twin Martial Souls before coaxing him into becoming his disciple.

Wasn't it obvious that he wanted to ride Tang San's top-tier coattails and reap the rewards without doing any work, so he could become famous across the world?

Aiming too high, lacking ability, having lofty ambitions but little talent, and daydreaming—those words could not have suited Gangzi better.

After Book Elder calmed his anger for a while, he seemed to think of something else, and a faint smile appeared on his face.

"Although that scum enjoyed a period of smug success, thanks to the wisdom and might of the previous Pope, His Holiness Qian Xunji, the matter between that scum and Bibi Dong eventually fell apart.

"Unable to cling to Bibi Dong, that scum at least had some self-awareness and simply left Spirit Hall to wander the continent.

"But who knew what kind of damned luck that scum had? He somehow ran into two of the one-in-ten-thousand Soul Masters capable of using a Martial Soul Fusion Skill, and actually made a name for himself across the continent as part of the Golden Iron Triangle.

"However, that beast eventually received his retribution. I heard that he later held a wedding with Liu Erlong of the Golden Iron Triangle, who is now the dean of Blue Tyrant Academy.

"Apparently, on the day of the wedding, people from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan arrived and revealed that Liu Erlong and he were cousins.

"That bastard truly had no sense of responsibility as a man. To save face, he immediately abandoned Liu Erlong without another word, then fled at top speed without even looking back.

"More than ten years have passed, and now no one knows which remote corner that scum has hidden himself away in to continue harming people."

Who else could he be harming? Naturally, he was in Nuoding City ruining Tang Buddha, the child of destiny.

If Tang Buddha hadn't known how to use hidden weapons, he and Gangzi would probably both be feeding snakes by now—and before long, they'd be getting excreted.

Lin Huo recalled the original story and inwardly complained in speechless disbelief.

Tang Hao was rather big-hearted too. He had truly handed Tang San over to Gangzi completely, letting him use the boy as a guinea pig.

Tang Hao had probably noticed the problem with Tang San as well, which was why he had acted that way.