"San, tell me who exactly Dao Long is! I'll make that plagiarist pay!"
Yu Xiaogang ground his teeth, his eyes nearly turning red with rage.
As a renowned theoretical grandmaster of the martial soul world, he had always been the one plagiarizing others. Someone actually dared to steal his world-shaking wisdom?
Of course, his martial soul theory contained no plagiarism, only a tiny bit of borrowing!
Besides, to verify the truth of this martial soul theory, he had even had his right leg shattered by Medusa!
Yet this Soul Master named Dao Long had simply sat at home while a theory fell into his lap from the heavens!
Wasn't that eating steamed buns soaked in Xiaogang's blood?
"Mind your words, Grandmaster!" The dean of Nouding Academy happened to return from soul hunting. He strode into the room and lowered his voice to stop him.
"He plagiarized my theory, and somehow he's in the right?" Yu Xiaogang's face flushed crimson, and he nearly exploded with anger.
"There's something you don't know, Grandmaster!"
"Senior Dao Long owns this clinic. He's a level thirty-seven Healing Soul Elder, and he's the one who treated your right leg."
The Soul Ancestor Dean soothed him gently.
"Isn't treating the sick and saving lives what healing Soul Masters are supposed to do? It's not as though I didn't pay gold soul coins!"
"How could they plagiarize my martial soul theory without permission?"
"No! San, help me up. I'm going to argue this out with them!"
Hearing that the man was only a Soul Elder, and a healing Soul Master at that, Yu Xiaogang struggled to rise from his hospital bed.
Martial soul theory was the fruit of his lifelong research!
He would never allow anyone to sully that glory!
"Grandmaster!" The dean pressed a hand onto Yu Xiaogang's shoulder, his heavy tone tinged with helplessness.
If time could flow backward, he would have gone back and slapped his past self for trying to curry favor with Yu Xiaogang!
After investing in him for so many years, he hadn't seen a single penny in returns. If he pulled out now, was there even a chance of recovering his investment?
"We've known each other for so many years. Are you really going to stop me?"
Yu Xiaogang grew even angrier.
If his martial soul hadn't undergone a malignant mutation, what right would a mere Four-Ring Soul Ancestor have to stand before him and pass judgment?
The dean explained helplessly, "Senior Dao Long also has a son, a level fifty-three Soul King!"
A level fifty-three Soul King?
Yu Xiaogang's gaze cleared a little, but his anger still refused to fade.
"A Soul King? Does being a Soul King mean he can do whatever he pleases?" Yu Xiaogang protested.
It wasn't as though he had never seen a Soul King before. What did a Soul King amount to?
Truly, a tiger stranded on the plains was bullied by dogs!
"Of course not, but it was only because that Soul King pleaded your case that this clinic agreed to treat your injuries!"
The dean explained the whole sequence of events.
By the time they had returned to town, Yu Xiaogang's injuries had already become extremely serious.
Although the dean had used information about a soul bone as bait to obtain quite a few gold soul coins, no clinic had been willing to take him in.
In the end, this Soul King had asked his father, Dao Long, to intervene, stabilizing Yu Xiaogang's injuries and keeping them from worsening.
"To be honest, the gold soul coins we paid were nowhere near enough to cover the consultation fee!"
"If that Soul King hadn't put his own reputation on the line, how could you have had such a comfortable place to rest?"
The dean sighed with heartfelt gratitude.
The soul hunting operation he had joined over the past few days had also been arranged by the Soul King, and practically nothing had gone awry along the way!
That alone convinced the dean that the man was trustworthy.
"Come to think of it, that Soul King often asked me about your theories. He might even be an admirer of yours!"
The dean suddenly recalled how enthusiastically the man had asked him all sorts of questions about Yu Xiaogang during their soul hunt.
"Oh, an admirer?" Something stirred in Yu Xiaogang's heart.
At Nouding Academy, everyone treated him as an infamous theoretical clown.
Who would have thought he would encounter an admirer in the outer town of Star Dou Great Forest, and a Soul King above level fifty at that!
Only after leaving Nouding Academy had he discovered that it wasn't raining outside at all!
"As expected of my teacher!"
"Your martial soul theory alone is enough to win over a mighty Soul King!"
Tang San stepped forward with a smile and praised Yu Xiaogang's theories.
"Hmph, at least he recognizes quality. But that's no excuse to plagiarize my wisdom!" Yu Xiaogang gave a showy, cold snort.
Since he was still staying in this Soul Master town, he naturally couldn't say anything more.
Once he returned to Nuoding City, he would report this to the Spirit Hall Branch and have them uphold justice for him!
"Dean, what's that Soul King's name?" Tang San asked curiously.
"His name? I really don't know!"
"But during a soul hunt, an Ice-Fire Demon Tiger once caught him across the cheek, leaving a scar."
"That's why everyone called him... Scarface during the hunt!"
The dean stroked his chin and answered after a moment's thought.
"Scarface?" Yu Xiaogang murmured the unfamiliar name, feeling repeated chills creep down his back.
"Grandmaster, there's no need to dwell on it!"
"I've already earned enough to pay for a carriage back to Nuoding City. We can set off right away."
The dean took out a pouch of gold soul coins and shook it with a jingle.
"I see. Then let's hurry back."
Yu Xiaogang didn't hesitate. The sooner he returned to Nuoding City, the sooner he could report Dao Long's shameless plagiarism to Spirit Hall!
And so, supported by the dean and Tang San, Yu Xiaogang left the clinic on a pair of crutches.
It took only two days.
Yu Xiaogang and his two companions returned to Nuoding City by carriage.
Looking at the unchanged city walls, Yu Xiaogang nearly burst into tears.
He swore he would never go soul hunting again for the rest of his life.
"Teacher, I'll help you back to your room first. I have to work at the smithy this afternoon, so I won't be able to keep you company."
Tang San respectfully supported Yu Xiaogang as they reached the academy gates, his eyes unconsciously drifting toward the smithy.
He hadn't enjoyed a moment's peace since coming to Nouding Academy. Now that he was finally back, he could relax a little by forging.
However, to Tang San's surprise, Yu Xiaogang gave him a harsh scolding for the first time.
"San, have you forgotten your promise to me in Star Dou Great Forest to become the strongest Soul Master?"
"What good does going to the smithy all day do? Can forging raise your soul power level?"
"Look at how you use your Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul in combat! Even Wang Sheng, a level eleven Soul Master, can beat you!"
"Is this how you keep your promise to me?"
Yu Xiaogang's eyes reddened. Tang San was the sole practitioner of his martial soul theory, and he would never allow him to waste his life!
"Teacher, that's not what I meant! Forging won't interfere with my cultivation!"
Tang San hurriedly explained.
"Enough! Starting today, you won't go to the smithy anymore. Every afternoon, you'll come to me and learn martial soul combat techniques!"
"I'll use my unrivaled theoretical knowledge to analyze the weaknesses of every powerful Soul Master, past and present, for you!"
Yu Xiaogang waved a hand, his tone brooking no argument.
"Teacher..." Tang San cried anxiously.
"If you're afraid of hardship and refuse this training, then you don't deserve to be my disciple!"
"Or was 'a teacher for a day, a father for life' just something you said casually?"
Under Yu Xiaogang's burning gaze, Tang San couldn't defend himself even with a hundred mouths. If he couldn't forge, what would become of his Tang Sect Hidden Weapons?
"Grandmaster, isn't that a little too strict?" The dean stepped forward with a genial smile to smooth things over between them.
Yu Xiaogang ignored him completely, leaving the dean standing awkwardly to one side.
Just as Tang San was at a loss, he suddenly spotted Wang Sheng practicing spear techniques with Xu Yuan in an open space in the distance.
It was as though he had seized a life-saving straw. If he simply defeated Wang Sheng once, swiftly and decisively, wouldn't that solve the problem?
Before you continue