My First Loot Drop

Under Lin Yuan's "terrified" gaze and the gatekeeper's awestruck one, Yu Xiaogang strode forward proudly and picked up Yan Beifei's Soul Master certificate. He felt as though he had returned to the days before his Martial Soul awakened at age six.

Back then, he had been full of ambition, the pride of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, one of the Upper Three Sects.

That damned Swine Martial Soul had yet to awaken.

Now that he had blasted this commoner to death with a fart, he felt he had finally vented some of his pent-up anger.

He knew the academy's students had mocked and ridiculed him plenty behind his back.

After today, let's see who would still dare look down on Master Yu Xiaogang.

His only concern was the boy's background.

That was why he was examining Yan Beifei's Soul Master certificate.

When he saw that Yan Beifei came from a small village and that his Martial Soul was Blue Silver Grass with only level-one-and-a-half Innate Soul Power, Yu Xiaogang breathed a sigh of relief. Disdain and contempt filled his eyes.

So he was just a commoner lucky enough to awaken Soul Power. Where had he found the nerve to insult me, a Grandmaster?

Meanwhile, Tang San had stepped forward to check Yan Beifei's breathing. Once he confirmed that Yan Beifei was dead, he too felt a little relieved. Turning around, he said, "Teacher, he's dead..."

"That's what happens when you provoke a higher-ranked Soul Master. He brought it on himself... Wait. What did you just call me?"

Tang San smiled. "Teacher! I nearly forgot the proper ceremony. Teacher, please accept your disciple's bow."

As he spoke, Tang San knelt and kowtowed three times to Yu Xiaogang.

To Tang San, it did not matter whether his teacher was strong. He had the Tang Sect Secret Arts and Twin Martial Souls.

What he truly valued was knowledge.

Strength could not be passed down, but knowledge could.

As long as someone could teach him to cultivate his Martial Soul, he would gladly take even an ordinary person as his teacher.

Clearly, in his eyes, this Master who had recognized his Twin Martial Souls at a glance was the ideal choice.

As for the dead man beside them, perhaps he had made a few valid points.

The Master had indeed wanted to take him as a disciple, had used a few tricks, and could not obtain a Soul Ring for him.

But with the Tang Sect Secret Arts and Hidden Weapons, Tang San could hunt Soul Beasts himself.

And none of that changed the fact that the man had given them reason to kill him.

"You silly child. If you want to become my disciple, why kowtow? That's reserved for parents and rulers. A bow would have been enough."

Yu Xiaogang had no idea what Tang San was thinking. He assumed his imposing display just now had won the boy over.

Seeing Tang San kowtow to become his disciple, he hurriedly bent down to help him up. His grin was so wide it nearly reached his ears.

Even Luo Sanpao, the Swine Martial Soul he had always considered a disgrace, looked much more pleasing to him now.

"A teacher for a day is a father for life," Tang San said, repeating that classic line from the original story.

"Good, good, good! I knew I hadn't misjudged you." Yu Xiaogang said "good" three times in a row, showing just how thrilled he was.

"Come. I'll take you to register at the academic affairs office." As he spoke, Yu Xiaogang took Tang San's hand.

Tang San looked back at Yan Beifei's corpse. "Teacher, what about him? Will this cause trouble?"

Yu Xiaogang glanced sideways at Yan Beifei and said indifferently, "Leave him. Someone will deal with him soon. As for trouble..."

He straightened his chest. "With me here, no one in all of Notting City can hurt you."

If Yan Beifei had already enrolled, killing a student in public at Nouding Academy would have forced Yu Xiaogang to leave under a storm of condemnation, even if the academy's headmaster stepped in to explain matters on his behalf.

The people from Notting City's Spirit Branch Hall might even have come after him.

But Yan Beifei had not enrolled yet. That made things easy.

All Yu Xiaogang had to do was take the boy's Martial Soul certificate. Who would stand up for a poor country lad?

Lin Yuan watched teacher and disciple leave. Only after they had gone some distance did he join a few bolder students who had gathered to look.

Before long, one of the students brought an academy teacher over.

The teacher looked to be in his early thirties. He had an unremarkable face and dark green hair.

Someone had died right at the start of the school year, and he was the one who had to deal with it. His face immediately filled with dismay.

"Does anyone know where his family lives?"

Everyone looked at one another, but no one had an answer. The gatekeeper, afraid of getting dragged into trouble, had fled long ago.

Lin Yuan had no intention of missing this perfect chance to loot the body. He stepped forward and said:

"Teacher, he's from Emperor Soul Village, and he's an orphan. I met him once when I went to the countryside with my mother to buy medicinal herbs. Why don't I take you there?"

As he spoke, Lin Yuan was secretly glad he had asked his parents where Emperor Soul Village and Holy Soul Village were over the past two weeks. Otherwise, he would have had trouble making the offer.

"Then I'll have to trouble you." The male teacher was only an ordinary Soul Grandmaster who had never killed anyone.

The fact that he had not vomited at the sight of Yan Beifei's corpse was already impressive.

Since Lin Yuan had offered to lead the way, the teacher reluctantly hoisted Yan Beifei's body onto his back.

The two of them, along with the corpse, left Nouding Academy and headed toward the city gates.

Throughout the journey, the male teacher seemed too nervous or frightened to say a word. He just kept walking.

He spoke only when the guards at the city gate stopped them for inspection, explaining what had happened.

The guards learned that the eccentric Master had killed Yan Beifei after Yan Beifei had provoked him.

One side was a lofty Soul Master; the other, an ordinary poor country lad. Naturally, no one cared.

After all, this was a world where the strong preyed on the weak.

Once outside the city, Lin Yuan took a moment to get his bearings, then led the teacher toward Emperor Soul Village.

The teacher looked miserable the entire way. His already plain face was twisted like an eggplant struck by frost.

Seeing that the moment was right, Lin Yuan spoke.

"Teacher, Emperor Soul Village isn't far from here. Why don't you head back? I can take him the rest of the way."

"Well... would that be all right?" the teacher asked hesitantly.

"Teacher, I really think you should go back. The villagers of Emperor Soul Village are fierce. Yan Beifei died at Nouding Academy. If they see a teacher from Notting City bringing his body back, they might do something rash..."

Lin Yuan had handed him a convenient excuse.

The teacher had never wanted to go. At those words, he quickly set Yan Beifei's body down and said, "Sorry for the trouble. My name is Mo Hen. You can call me Teacher Mo from now on."

"All right, Teacher Mo."

Lin Yuan watched him leave.

Once Mo Hen was well out of sight, Lin Yuan looked around. Seeing no one nearby, he slung Yan Beifei's corpse over his shoulder and plunged into the dense mountain forest.