The more Li Hanqiu thought about it, the more baffled he became, and his steps gradually slowed.
Tang San did not notice. He kept hurrying forward with his head down and nearly bumped into Li Hanqiu's lower back.
"Teacher... why have you stopped?"
"I was thinking about you."
Tang San tilted his face up, his dark eyes filled with confusion and even a trace of wariness.
"Ahem..." Only then did Li Hanqiu realize what he had said, and he hastily corrected himself. "I meant I'm taking you to the registration office. Don't get lost."
"Okay. Thank you, Teacher." Tang San nodded timidly, though he very subtly put another half-step between himself and Li Hanqiu.
The corner of Li Hanqiu's mouth twitched, but he said nothing.
The registration office was on the main building's first floor, with a handful of people scattered in a line outside.
Li Hanqiu brought Tang San over and joined the back of the line. The students ahead had their identities verified one by one, then collected their tags and left after being tested.
Before long, it was Tang San's turn.
The teacher at the registration office was a plump middle-aged man. He looked quite surprised to see Li Hanqiu. "Teacher Li, what brings you here?"
"Heh, I happened to run into a student at the gate, so I brought him over to register his information." Li Hanqiu pointed at Tang San, who was standing a conspicuous distance behind him.
The plump teacher nodded, his little eyes darting about.
He wondered why Teacher Li, who rarely showed his face, had taken an interest in a new student, but did not dwell on it.
The plump middle-aged teacher took the documents Tang San handed him, glanced through them, and read aloud:
"Tang San... work-study student."
The plump man turned over Tang San's documents. When he reached the second page, his hand shook and his eyes nearly popped out. "Innate... full soul power?!"
The hall fell silent for an instant, then erupted into a buzz.
"Full soul power? Is that for real?"
"Whose little girl is this?"
"A work-study student? A poor family's kid can have talent like that?"
Tang San said nothing. He withdrew his hand and stood quietly.
"What about the martial soul? What is it?" someone urged.
The plump man recovered his composure. "Right, your martial soul. Release it and let us see."
Tang San opened his palm. A tender sprig of blue silver grass emerged, swaying gently in the breeze.
Sighs rose throughout the hall.
"Blue silver grass..."
"What a shame. Full soul power paired with a trash martial soul."
"What a waste of talent."
"How could it be blue silver grass?"
Tang San pressed his lips together, drew his hand back a little, and slowly lowered his head.
Standing behind Tang San, Li Hanqiu felt the last sliver of hope in his heart shatter completely the instant he saw that sprig of blue silver grass.
It really is Tang San. But why is he a girl? Surely someone didn't use the Yin-Yang Reincarnation Gu on him?
Li Hanqiu stood there, unable to make sense of it even after a long while.
It was one thing for him to inexplicably end up with a "comic-version Yu Xiaogang template," but how had Tang San outright turned into a cute girl?
He could not understand it. He really could not.
Just as Li Hanqiu was puzzling over this to no avail, a middle-aged man in gray robes suddenly squeezed through the doorway.
The newcomer sported a sexy crew cut, with stubble so dark he looked as though he had not shaved in three days. There were even grease stains on his cuffs. He looked every inch a wild man who had wandered in from who knew where.
"Move aside, move aside! Let this Grandmaster have a look!"
He shoved the teacher beside him out of the way, his eyes fastening on Tang San and instantly lighting up.
A student nearby muttered, "That poser again."
The registration teacher rolled his eyes. "Grandmaster, you've come in without registering again. If you do this another time, I'll have to report it to the dean."
That was right-the newcomer was Yu Xiaogang. The genuine Yu Xiaogang, authentic through and through.
Yu Xiaogang completely ignored the registration teacher. He circled halfway around Tang San, twirling the few bristles jutting from his chin. "A trash martial soul, blue silver grass, yet innate full soul power. Interesting. Very interesting."
Then Yu Xiaogang cast Li Hanqiu a sidelong glance, his smile never reaching his eyes. "Teacher Li, you're still too young. You see someone with innate full soul power and immediately lose all patience."
"Ah, young people..."
Tang San clutched his luggage, bit his lip, and lowered his head even further.
Li Hanqiu, however, gave a cold laugh. "Gangzi, itching for another beating?"
As he spoke, the little yellow dog at his feet bristled all over and bared its teeth at Yu Xiaogang. Despite its fierce display, however, everyone else found it more cute than threatening.
At the sight of the handsome Li Hanqiu and the exquisite Luo Sanpao at his feet, Yu Xiaogang gave a disgruntled grunt deep in his throat.
Ever since Li Hanqiu had dropped out of the sky into Nuoding Academy two years ago and taken up the position of "theory lecturer," Yu Xiaogang's standing had plummeted.
They were both "theory grandmasters," and he was clearly the senior, yet all the students-and even the teachers-preferred Li Hanqiu.
Wasn't he just relying on his handsome face and youth? Could those put food on the table?
What angered Yu Xiaogang most, however, was that Li Hanqiu's martial soul was actually a detached martial soul too!
But unlike his pitiful Luo Sanpao, which had only half a level of innate soul power, Li Hanqiu had started at level six and broken through to level thirty-two at just nineteen.
Compared with Yu Xiaogang, who had crossed fifty without even reaching level thirty, the difference was heaven and earth.
Their templates were practically identical, yet Li Hanqiu was simply stronger. Wasn't that an outright slap in Yu Xiaogang's face?
Thus, Yu Xiaogang habitually targeted Li Hanqiu at every turn, even though this behavior made him still less welcome among the students and teachers.
Yet Yu Xiaogang never tired of it.
And sure enough, upon hearing that Li Hanqiu had brought a student over, Yu Xiaogang had come to belittle him first, regardless of whether the student possessed innate full soul power.
Faced with Yu Xiaogang's mockery, Li Hanqiu remained unhurried. "Gangzi, you say blue silver grass is a trash martial soul?"
Yu Xiaogang snorted. "What, do you have another explanation?"
"Then tell me: after wildfire sweeps across the plains, why is it always the first thing to sprout from the ashes?"
Li Hanqiu did not speak loudly, but every word was clear.
"Blue silver grass's strength is its vitality. Wildfire cannot burn it all away; the spring breeze blows, and it grows anew."
"I don't deny that blue silver grass is weak. But to me, that very 'weakness' is an advantage no other martial soul can match."
Li Hanqiu stared straight at Yu Xiaogang. Under his stern, upright gaze, Yu Xiaogang felt uncomfortable all over. Then Li Hanqiu declared in a ringing voice:
"'Weakness' means it consumes very little soul power. 'Weakness' means enemies never guard against it. And 'weakness' also allows blue silver grass to..."
"Allows it to what?" Yu Xiaogang demanded through gritted teeth, unwilling to concede.
Tang San also raised his little head, looking at Li Hanqiu with both nervousness and anticipation.
Li Hanqiu smiled faintly and pointed out the window. Outside, trees flourished and vegetation grew thick. Amid the greenery that filled every corner, blue silver grass spread everywhere, standing out among the other plants.
"Embrace everything..."
Tang San murmured to himself, "Embrace..."
The other teachers were all taken aback as well. No one had ever viewed blue silver grass from such an unusual perspective.
Blue silver grass could be found almost everywhere on this continent. Plants and animals alike could live peacefully alongside it. It was utterly unremarkable, yet it was everywhere.
Precisely because it was weak, it rarely clashed with creatures of any attribute. Precisely because it was weak, its vitality could spread to every corner of the continent.
Li Hanqiu advanced on Yu Xiaogang step by step, looking down at Gangzi, whose face alternated between white and red.
"Blue silver grass is weak, true, but it's certainly no trash. Otherwise, wouldn't your Farting Thunder Pig, with its half a level of innate soul power, be trash among trash?"
Yu Xiaogang's face turned ashen, then pale. He struggled for a long while but could not squeeze out a single word.
The surrounding students held back their laughter, their shoulders shaking.
Li Hanqiu did not look at him again. He took Tang San's hand and headed outside.
Yu Xiaogang stood at the registration office's doorway, staring at Li Hanqiu and Tang San's departing backs. His throat bobbed, but in the end, he did not follow.
His original plan had been simple. Innate full soul power was something rarely seen in a hundred years. Such a promising seedling would become his disciple, without question.
Yet the moment he saw Li Hanqiu, it was as though some underlying code had been triggered in Yu Xiaogang. The words "trash martial soul" had come crashing straight out.
After belittling the little girl, how could he now sidle up and ask, "Would you like to become my disciple?" Where would that leave his dignity as Grandmaster?
He snorted, flicked his sleeves, and turned away, calculating inwardly: I'll give it another couple of days. Once this little girl forgets what happened today, I'll speak to him myself.
Who in the academy hasn't heard of this Grandmaster? What could a wet-behind-the-ears Li Hanqiu possibly use to compete with me?
With that thought, Yu Xiaogang felt assured of success again, and even the dark stubble on his face seemed to relax a little.
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