Tang San vs. Xiao Lin

Yu Xiaogang's face turned deathly pale from Xiao Lin's barrage of retorts. His lips trembled, and his entire body swayed like a rag sack drained of all strength.

The "Master" image he had painstakingly cultivated for most of his life collapsed with a thunderous crash before Xiao Lin's casual few words, as fragile as paper.

Innate Full Soul Power, innate soul power at rank eight or nine—those "teaching achievements" he had been so proud of were merely proof that those children had been exceptionally gifted from the start.

His so-called "devil training" was nothing more than making them run and do push-ups—things even a dog could do.

That realization hurt him more than Xiao Lin calling him "trash" a hundred times.

"Teacher..." Tang San watched Yu Xiaogang's devastated appearance, and a complicated emotion rose within him.

He had actually sensed it long ago—Yu Xiaogang's teaching ability was nowhere near as impressive as he boasted.

Many of those so-called "theories" sounded convincing enough, but when put into actual cultivation, their effects were quite limited.

The reason he had achieved what he had today was more because of his own hard work and talent, as well as the private guidance of his father, Tang Hao.

That was right. Tang San already knew that his father was the Clear Sky Douluo.

During this time, his father had questioned him about whether he had taken something from the back mountain. After Tang San said he did not know, Tang Hao had become furious... and had spent this time searching everywhere for something.

But what was done was done. Since he had taken Yu Xiaogang as his teacher, he could not stand by and watch his teacher be humiliated like this. Otherwise, how could Tang San hold his head up in the Soul Master world in the future?

"Xiao Lin!" Tang San suddenly took a step forward, his voice exploding across the plaza like thunder. "You dare insult my teacher! I challenge you!"

The entire crowd erupted in an uproar.

"Tang San is challenging Xiao Lin?"

"Now this is going to be good!"

"One is Shrek's genius, and the other is our Heaven Dou Royal Academy's monster. This is going to be lively!"

The students watching from around the plaza became excited and automatically retreated, clearing a wide open space in its center.

Xiao Lin stopped and turned around. Looking at Tang San's face, slightly twisted with rage, he raised an eyebrow. "You want to challenge me?"

"That's right!" Tang San's gaze was like two sharp blades, pinning Xiao Lin in place. "I'll show everyone who the real genius is! I'll prove that Teacher's teachings were right! I'm stronger than you!"

Xiao Lin fell silent for a moment, then slowly nodded. "Fine. Since you're looking to die, I'll grant your wish."

Xiao Lin naturally would not back down.

He turned and walked to the center of the plaza, facing Tang San from across the open ground.

More and more people gathered around. There were not only students from Heaven Dou Royal Academy, but also the group from Shrek Academy. Flender, Zhao Wuji, Li Yusong, and the other teachers stood nearby, each wearing a different expression.

Xiao Wu stood among the crowd with her hands clenched tightly, a trace of worry in her eyes. Ning Rongrong and Zhu Zhuqing stood not far away as well, curiously studying the young man in azure robes.

"Both sides, prepare—" One bold student voluntarily acted as referee, raising his right hand high. "Begin!"

Before his words had even faded, Tang San moved first.

"Blue Silver Grass! Possession!"

Countless deep-blue Blue Silver Grass vines instantly surged around his body, dancing beside him like spiritual serpents. At the same time, four Soul Rings rose beneath his feet—two yellow, one purple, and one black.

When that profound black Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring appeared around Tang San, cries of shock erupted from the crowd.

"A Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring! Tang San has one too!"

"His fourth Soul Ring is ten thousand years old? Are Shrek Academy's people this strong too?"

"This is going to be good! Their Soul Ring configurations are exactly the same!"

Xiao Lin looked at the Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring on Tang San and a flicker of understanding passed through his eyes.

As expected, a child of destiny was still a child of destiny. Even after Xiao Lin had intercepted so many of his opportunities, Tang San had still found his own path.

That black Soul Ring must have been obtained from some Ten Thousand Year Soul Beast.

But so what?

Xiao Lin smiled faintly and extended his right hand. The Nine Phoenix Ceremonial Flute appeared in his grasp out of thin air.

Immediately afterward, the same four Soul Rings rose beneath his feet—one yellow, two purple, and one black.

At a glance, the two men's Soul Ring configurations appeared evenly matched.

Yet anyone with a discerning eye could see that Xiao Lin's second and third Soul Rings were both purple Millennium Soul Rings, while Tang San's second Soul Ring was merely a yellow Century Soul Ring. In terms of Soul Ring quality, Xiao Lin clearly had the advantage.

"First Soul Skill—Blue Silver Entanglement!"

Tang San launched the first attack. Countless Blue Silver Grass vines surged at Xiao Lin from every direction like a frenzy of dancing snakes, attempting to bind and restrain him. Their surfaces glimmered with an eerie purple light, clearly carrying potent poison.

Xiao Lin did not even move his feet. He merely raised the Nine Phoenix Ceremonial Flute to his lips and played softly.

"First Soul Skill—Guangling Melody!"

Sharp Sound Blades shot from the flute like invisible edges, neatly severing every Blue Silver Grass vine rushing toward him!

The broken stems fell to the ground, purple sap spilling out with a sizzling, corrosive sound.

Tang San's first wave of attacks was effortlessly neutralized.

"Second Soul Skill—Parasitism!"

Tang San was not discouraged and immediately unleashed his second Soul Skill. Countless tiny seeds suddenly grew from the severed Blue Silver Grass fragments. They rapidly sprouted and grew into innumerable small vines, attempting to crawl up Xiao Lin's body.

Xiao Lin remained calm. Two blue-gold trails of sound waves appeared beneath his feet, and with the crisp burst of a musical note, his figure slid backward several yards like Gui Mei, easily evading the vines' assault.

"Third Soul Skill—Spider Web Restraint!"

Tang San swept both hands out, and an enormous Blue Silver Grass web descended from above, falling toward Xiao Lin. The web was covered in sharp barbs and toxic liquid. Once caught in it, one would either be poisoned to death or have a layer of flesh torn away by those barbs.

This time, Xiao Lin did not even dodge. He simply raised the Nine Phoenix Ceremonial Flute and lightly swept it across the web.

An invisible Sound Blade flashed past, slicing the enormous web down the middle. It split into two halves and fluttered weakly to the ground.

"Fourth Soul Skill—Blue Silver Prison!"

Tang San gritted his teeth and unleashed his strongest control-type Soul Skill. Countless thick Blue Silver Grass vines burst from the earth, rapidly intertwining and growing around Xiao Lin to form an enormous cage, attempting to trap him within.

Xiao Lin finally stopped moving.

He looked at the Blue Silver Prison rapidly taking shape around him and sighed softly.

"Is that all?"

He raised the Nine Phoenix Ceremonial Flute and played the third note.

"Third Soul Skill—Ambush from Ten Sides!"

A rapid, tense melody poured forth. Centered on Xiao Lin, visible ripples began appearing in the air within a hundred-meter radius. The ripples interwove into an invisible net that shrouded the entire plaza.

The Blue Silver Prison still taking shape began to crack apart and collapse inch by inch the instant it touched those sound-wave ripples, as though sliced by invisible blades.

Under the vibrations of the sound waves, those thick Blue Silver Grass vines proved as fragile as paper, shattering into fragments and scattering across the ground.

Tang San's expression finally changed.