Xiaogang, you really know how to give your teacher a hard problem!

Yu Xiaogang hurriedly sat down, set the booklet he had brought on his knees, and looked at Li Qingshan.

"Teacher, please go ahead."

Li Qingshan closed his book and said slowly,

"You already have your First Soul Ring, and we've settled on a path for Sanpao's development. Next, I intend to take you away for a period of training."

"Away for training?"

Yu Xiaogang paused in surprise.

Growing up, he had spent most of his time within the clan. Even when he occasionally went out, a clan elder usually accompanied him.

Now that his teacher had suddenly said he would take him away, anticipation stirred in his heart.

"Will we be encountering Soul Beasts or taking part in Soul Fighting?"

"Encountering Soul Beasts and taking part in Soul Fighting are only two of the things you'll need to do." Li Qingshan nodded, his expression turning serious. "You've read plenty of books and made plenty of notes over the years. But some things only become clear once you've seen them with your own eyes—or even tried them with your own hands."

"Take Sacred Dragon Breath. Using it on a motionless boulder is nothing like facing a Soul Beast that can run and dodge."

"When to strike, what distance is right, how to protect yourself and Sanpao when attacked—these are things you'll have to learn through experience."

Yu Xiaogang listened intently and nodded without thinking.

Li Qingshan looked toward Luo Sanpao, crouched by Yu Xiaogang's feet. "And Sanpao will need access to more resources suited to his growth."

"How the flesh of different Dragon-Type Soul Beasts affects him, and what sort of environment helps him cultivate—those are all worth testing."

"If we always stay below the clan's mountain, there's only so much I can find."

Yu Xiaogang's eyes gradually lit up as he listened.

He had rarely had a chance to experience any of those things before.

Especially now that he possessed Sacred Dragon Breath, he wanted to know what he and Luo Sanpao could truly do against a Soul Beast.

Li Qingshan watched his reaction. His face remained composed, but his thoughts had already turned elsewhere.

I can't stay below the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's mountain forever. My materialization progress is only twenty-five percent. I'm still a long way from truly becoming a Level 99 Limit Douluo.

There's a limit to how much progress Yu Xiaogang can bring me, too. If I want to make this identity real sooner, I'll have to go out and find more people.

Better yet, I could coax a few more promising disciples into studying under me.

Taking disciples brings rewards, and once I've taught them something worthwhile, they and the people around them can build up trust in me. Why would I keep something this good limited to Yu Xiaogang alone?

Once I truly become a Limit Douluo, I'll have all the more reason to hold my head high when someone asks about my cultivation.

At that thought, a faint smile tugged at Li Qingshan's lips.

"Well? Are you willing?"

"I am!" Yu Xiaogang answered at once, then added a little sheepishly, "But I should tell my father first and pack a few things."

"Of course."

Li Qingshan nodded.

Before he could say anything more, Yu Xiaogang seemed to remember something and hurriedly spoke up. "Oh, Teacher, my father asked me a few days ago to ask you something."

"What is it?"

"He wants to meet you."

At those words, the smile on Li Qingshan's face faltered almost imperceptibly.

Yu Xiaogang did not notice. He went on,

"I've told Father what's happened recently."

"He was delighted after seeing how Sanpao had changed. He said you solved a problem that had troubled me for years, and that he ought to thank you in person no matter what."

"If you have time, Teacher, why not come up the mountain with me?"

Up the mountain?

Li Qingshan's heart tightened.

He now had forty levels of Soul Power and genuine Twin Martial Souls, but he was still far from being a Limit Douluo.

Yu Xiaogang had limited experience and had seen his Martial Soul change with his own eyes, so he was naturally inclined to believe Li Qingshan's story.

But Yu Yuanzhen was different.

He was a Titled Douluo through and through!

If they sat down face-to-face and Yu Yuanzhen proposed a sparring match, or wanted to sense Li Qingshan's cultivation for himself, how was Li Qingshan supposed to handle it?

I can't expect him to pour me tea and show me the door the moment I release a wisp of my aura, can I?

Li Qingshan lifted the tea bowl from the table and used the act of drinking to settle his thoughts.

"You really know how to give me a hard problem, kid..."

When Yu Xiaogang saw that he had not answered at once, he hurriedly said, "If it's inconvenient, Teacher, I'll go back and tell Father to wait until you're free—"

"No need."

Li Qingshan set down his tea bowl and spoke abruptly.

Just then, he had remembered the wisp of power that had recovered within his Sea of Consciousness.

The Spiritual Power of a Limit Douluo!

It would last only three breaths, but if he planned things properly, it might be enough to solve the problem before him.

Who said that meeting Yu Yuanzhen meant he, a mere level-forty Soul Master, had to sit obediently in front of the man?

An idea quickly took shape in Li Qingshan's mind. He looked at Yu Xiaogang, his composure restored, and said,

"Since your father wishes to meet me, I can certainly see him."

"But there's no need to trouble your clan with a visit."

Yu Xiaogang paused, still unable to work out what his teacher had in mind. Then he saw Li Qingshan take a small firework from the cloth bag beside him.

He had prepared it as a signal before going into the mountains.

Now it would come in handy.

Li Qingshan handed him the firework.

"Take this."

Yu Xiaogang quickly accepted it. After looking it over, he appeared puzzled.

"Teacher, what is this...?"

"After you return and see your father, explain our plans to travel and train," Li Qingshan said slowly. "Then find an open space and set off this firework."

"I'll appear then and meet him."

Yu Xiaogang looked up, curiosity rising in his eyes.

But when he thought of the many abilities his teacher had already displayed, he asked no more questions. He carefully put away the firework and nodded solemnly.

"Understood!"

Li Qingshan waved a hand.

"Go on."

Yu Xiaogang rose, bowed, and left the courtyard with Luo Sanpao.

Only after Yu Xiaogang's figure had vanished among the trees did Li Qingshan slowly let out a breath. Then he closed his eyes and sank his awareness into his Sea of Consciousness.

The wisp of a Limit Douluo's Spiritual Power lay there quietly, waiting for him to call upon it.

Three breaths... That should be enough.

Li Qingshan ran through his plan once more. A glint of amusement gradually entered his eyes. Yu Yuanzhen wants to meet me, does he? Then I'll give him a sight to remember!

The Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan.

Yu Xiaogang returned up the mountain. As soon as he entered his father's courtyard, his steps faltered.

Yu Yuanzhen was not alone.

Several clan elders were there as well, including his uncle Yu Luomian. They sat around a stone table, apparently discussing something.

"Xiaogang, you're back?"

Yu Yuanzhen looked up and beckoned him over.

"Good timing. Your uncle and the others want to see how Sanpao has changed."

Ever since Yu Yuanzhen had seen the change in his son's Martial Soul with his own eyes, he had told several elders about it. The Love Sword Douluo, whom none of them had ever heard of, had also become a subject of discussion.

Some were astonished, some curious, and some remained doubtful. After all, level-ninety-nine cultivation was almost beyond belief.

Yu Xiaogang hurried forward and bowed to them before taking the firework Li Qingshan had given him from inside his robe.

"Father, Teacher has agreed to meet you."

Yu Yuanzhen's eyes sharpened. He asked in puzzlement,

"Oh? Where is he now?"

"Teacher told me to set off this firework when I returned. He said he would appear then." As he spoke, Yu Xiaogang walked to an open spot in the courtyard, set down the firework, and lit its fuse.

Whoosh!

A streak of fire shot into the sky, then burst overhead into a shower of golden-red sparks.