Jealousy Made Monsters of Them; Tang San Challenged Him Again

The pale-purple Soul Ring circling Huo Linfei shuddered violently. The surging Soul Power radiating from him swiftly drew inward, returning to his body.

"Director Su, what's wrong with them?"

The moment Huo Linfei opened his eyes, he saw Yu Xiaogang and the others standing frozen, their expressions stiff. Puzzled, he turned to Director Su.

"They were passing by. They saw you absorbing a Soul Ring and stopped to watch."

Director Su paused, then finally came to his senses and answered.

Even though he had been there from the start and had tried to prepare himself, he still could not help being shaken when he saw that Huo Linfei had successfully absorbed a Thousand-Year Soul Ring.

"By the way, why did it take you so long? Was it hard to refine? You never looked like you were in pain, and your body doesn't seem to be injured."

Director Su finally asked the question that had been bothering him all along.

"Uh... well, I fell asleep."

Huo Linfei scratched his head awkwardly.

What the hell? He fell asleep?!

Damn it, does he even hear himself?!

Who falls asleep while absorbing a Thousand-Year Soul Ring?

And this was his First Soul Ring, not his third or fourth! It was far beyond the limit, yet he said he fell asleep and absorbed it painlessly after a nap?!

What kind of joke was that?!

Director Su was utterly numb. Yu Xiaogang, Tang San, and the others were dumbstruck; they had yet to recover from discovering that Huo Linfei's First Soul Ring was a thousand-year one.

Now, hearing what Huo Linfei said, their mouths twitched and their eyelids jumped.

Inside, every one of them was ranting like a madman.

The two teachers from Noding Academy were the most shocked. They could barely tell whether they were dreaming or awake. What they had seen was so fantastical that it was hard to believe.

But beneath Tang San's shock and disbelief, jealousy grew unchecked.

Even I, a God King, couldn't do that! What gave Huo Linfei the right?!

"Thank you for finding a suitable Soul Ring for me, Director Su, and for guarding me all this time."

Huo Linfei withdrew his Soul Ring and bowed slightly to Director Su.

As for Yu Xiaogang and the others, he barely knew them, and there was already bad blood between them. He could not be bothered with them.

"It's nothing. It was my duty."

Director Su waved a hand. Even now, with the truth right before his eyes, he found it hard to believe. It would be a long time before his heart settled.

"Now that you've absorbed your Soul Ring, we should head back. There are no Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts in the Soul Hunting Forest, and thousand-year Soul Beasts are fairly rare, but we've already run into two. Who knows whether we'll encounter another? It's dangerous to stay."

"All right, Director Su."

Huo Linfei nodded in agreement.

He had obtained his First Soul Ring, so there was no reason to remain.

Just as Huo Linfei and Director Su were about to leave, Yu Xiaogang, who had been silent until then, stopped them.

"Wait. How did you absorb a Thousand-Year Soul Ring? Why didn't your body explode?"

At that rude demand, Huo Linfei rolled his eyes. "No comment. As for why I didn't explode, I'll just say that only a worthless Soul Master would."

The jab cut both ways.

To tell the truth, Huo Linfei was baffled himself. He did not know what had happened; the absorption had taken place without any effort on his part.

But since Yu Xiaogang had come looking for an answer, Huo Linfei was not about to pass up the chance to show off. Opportunities like this were rare.

"You!"

Hearing Huo Linfei throw his own published words back at him, Yu Xiaogang bristled with anger, but he could not argue.

How could he?

If he did, would he not be admitting that his own theory was wrong?

So he could only swallow his anger like broken teeth. Let the boy insult him; words would not tear flesh from his bones.

A moment's impatience could ruin a greater plan.

Yu Xiaogang took a deep breath, steadied himself, and changed the subject.

"What Soul Beast did you absorb? What's your first Soul Skill? What Soul Power Level have you reached?"

Huo Linfei had underestimated how thick-skinned the Grandmaster was. His face twitched at the barrage of questions, and he answered irritably.

"What's it to you? I'm not your disciple. Why do you need to ask about everything? Don't you know these things are private to a Soul Master?"

"This is important!" Yu Xiaogang said, his face livid.

He had no wish to talk to this irritating brat either, but as a grandmaster of theory, he could not see something so far outside the norm without wanting to know everything about it.

"What the hell does that have to do with me?"

Huo Linfei's tone was flat. He clearly had no intention of giving Yu Xiaogang the time of day.

"Huo Linfei, is that any way to speak to my teacher?! Don't think absorbing one Thousand-Year Soul Ring makes you so great!"

Tang San could not hold back at the sight of Huo Linfei's attitude. He spoke angrily and revealed his Yellow Soul Ring, ready to fight at any moment.

He dared disrespect my teacher again. That was one more reason he deserved death.

"If it's nothing special, why didn't you absorb a thousand-year ring? Why settle for a hundred-year one?"

Huo Linfei scoffed at Tang San, his expression openly mocking.

"You! What's wrong with a Hundred-Year Soul Ring? Mine is 423 years old, the optimal age, and it's a perfect match for me. It might not be any worse than yours. It even raised my Soul Power Level to thirteen."

Tang San's face darkened at Huo Linfei's disdain, but as he spoke, a trace of pride crept into his expression.

"Exactly!" Xiao Wu immediately chimed in, taking Tang San's side.

Yu Xiaogang, standing nearby, unconsciously straightened his back at their words.

Huo Linfei almost laughed. He looked at master and disciple as though they were fools. What an odd pair.

A Thousand-Year Soul Ring might not be as good as a Hundred-Year Soul Ring?

What twisted logic was that?

Jealousy had twisted their faces beyond recognition and scrambled their wits. They were so obsessed that they spoke without thinking. No... that was wrong. They had no wits left to scramble.

Beside Huo Linfei, Director Su shook his head. They were beyond help. How had the headmaster become friends with someone like Yu Xiaogang?

"Do you dare fight me again?"

Having obtained his First Soul Ring, Tang San's confidence had soared. He challenged Huo Linfei once more.

So what if Huo Linfei's First Soul Ring was a Thousand-Year Soul Ring? If it was not a good match for him, he might not be stronger than Tang San.

Tang San remained convinced that his teacher Yu Xiaogang's theory was right.

Huo Linfei gave him a curious, amused look. He had no idea where someone he had already beaten found the nerve to challenge him again. Still, thrashing a weakling would do no harm, so he accepted.

"Why wouldn't I?"