Tang Hao's killing intent, Chrysanthemum Douluo's fury: Tang Hao, you beast! How dare you hurt my disciple!

Finally found them!

After finding Yu Xiaogang and Tang San, Lin Hao's eyes lit up, but he feigned a hint of surprise as he walked over.

"Isn't this Grandmaster Yu?"

"It's been a while. Finally found a fine pupil and duped him into becoming your disciple?"

Yu Xiaogang had been picking through white radishes.

But suddenly, a faintly teasing voice came from behind him.

His hand abruptly stopped, and he froze in place.

Turning slowly, Yu Xiaogang furrowed his brows on his stiff face. His gaze settled on Lin Hao, studying him from head to toe for quite some time, but he failed to recognize him.

That was hardly surprising.

Two years ago, Lin Hao had been a little squirt barely over a meter tall. Now he stood over 1.8 meters, tall and straight-backed, with handsome, heroic features, looking nothing like that scrawny child.

Who could have recognized him at a glance?

"You are...?"

Yu Xiaogang frowned, his tone carrying a measure of hostility and uncertainty.

"What, you've forgotten me after just two years, Grandmaster Yu?"

Lin Hao grinned and spoke unhurriedly.

"We met in Golden Chrysanthemum Village two years ago. How could you forget so quickly?"

"You even tried to dupe me into becoming your disciple!"

As he spoke, Lin Hao extended his right hand. With a thought, a golden-purple singular velvet sky chrysanthemum bloomed in his palm, a gentle radiance flowing across its petals.

At those words, Yu Xiaogang's expression instantly turned hideous, as though someone had delivered a ringing slap to his face in public. He couldn't help clenching his fists.

His stiff face twitched several times, embarrassment and anger flashing through his eyes. After taking a deep breath, he spoke in a somewhat strained voice.

"You're... Lin Hao, that singular velvet sky chrysanthemum Soul Master with innate full soul power!"

"How did you... grow so tall?"

Beside him, seeing his teacher's troubled expression and hearing the other party mention "duping someone into becoming a disciple," Tang San couldn't help asking quietly.

"Teacher, who is this...?"

Yu Xiaogang took a deep breath, suppressing his displeasure and embarrassment. Forcing a complicated expression onto his face, he lowered his head slightly and addressed Tang San with a measure of regret and dejection.

"Little San, this is the child I once told you about."

"I met him while helping awaken martial souls in Golden Chrysanthemum Village. He awakened a singular velvet sky chrysanthemum martial soul with innate full soul power. His talent was exceptional."

"Considering his humble background and the likelihood that he would never receive instruction from a renowned teacher, I intended to take him as my disciple."

"Unfortunately... he looked down on my low cultivation, refused to accept me as his teacher, and even insulted me."

"Later, I heard that he joined Spirit Hall."

At this point, Yu Xiaogang shook his head, looking as though he lamented iron's failure to become steel, and sighed.

"What a pity. Such wonderful talent, yet he took the wrong path."

"He's still so young, only two years older than you, yet he's grown so tall. I'm afraid those people from Spirit Hall led him astray and overdrawn his potential."

Hearing this, Tang San's brows immediately furrowed slightly. Hostility and contempt entered his gaze as he looked at Lin Hao, thinking to himself.

So he's the genius with innate full soul power Teacher mentioned.

Although Teacher isn't powerful, he stands unrivaled in martial soul theory. He could tell at a glance that I had twin martial souls.

How could any ordinary Soul Master compare to his insight and learning?

This Lin Hao values only strength and doesn't know how to respect knowledge and theory. He's truly narrow-minded, wasting his talent for nothing.

And he even dared to insult Teacher.

He's already given himself a reason to die!

Meanwhile, a tall figure concealed in the shadows nearby was watching in secret.

He wore a tattered black cloak, its hood covering most of his face and leaving only his sallow features exposed.

When he heard the words "Spirit Hall," his eyes instantly turned scarlet, as though they might spew fire, and his breathing grew heavier.

Another lapdog of Spirit Hall!

For a moment, fury surged through Tang Hao's heart, and his killing intent boiled.

A singular velvet sky chrysanthemum Soul Master with innate full soul power...

It reminded him of Chrysanthemum Douluo, who had hunted Ah Yin all those years ago!

The same martial soul, the same Spirit Hall. New grievances and old hatred flooded his heart together.

The killing intent in Tang Hao's heart churned like boiling magma. He clenched his fists tightly and ground his teeth.

A singular velvet sky chrysanthemum Soul Master with innate full soul power, and a member of Spirit Hall.

I absolutely cannot let a genius like this grow!

Otherwise, he'll surely become a thorn in Little San's and the Clear Sky Sect's hearts!

Inside the market.

Yu Xiaogang was still telling Tang San about Lin Hao, his words carrying a measure of regret and disparagement.

Hearing Yu Xiaogang's introduction and his mention that Lin Hao had joined Spirit Hall,

Lin Hao felt thoroughly satisfied and decided that was enough. He immediately scoffed, looked at Tang San, and said,

"Kid, you probably don't know this, do you?"

"Your wonderful teacher's so-called martial soul theories were all plagiarized from our Spirit Hall's library."

"I saw his so-called research in Spirit City's library ages ago. It's all basic common knowledge that anyone who's studied a little about martial souls would know."

"Taking him as your teacher was a huge mistake!"

"Utter nonsense!"

Upon hearing this, Yu Xiaogang immediately flushed red with anger. A rare look of agitation appeared on his stiff face, and his voice seemed to tremble with grief and indignation.

"Slander! This is blatant slander!"

"All of my research is the fruit of my painstaking efforts, conclusions I reached after personally conducting countless experiments and consulting countless sources!"

"What could a mere child like you possibly know!"

"You mean personally plagiarizing it, don't you?"

Lin Hao shot back coolly, a mocking smile at the corner of his mouth.

"Your theories are either common knowledge or feel-good platitudes."

"You even say things like, 'There are no useless martial souls, only useless Soul Masters!'"

"If there really are no useless martial souls, only useless Soul Masters, then what does that make you, Yu Xiaogang?"

"Sure, your martial soul Luo Sanpao's innate soul power was a little poor, not even reaching rank one."

"But he's an intelligent martial soul that can exist outside your body. You can't even figure out your own martial soul, and after decades, you're still a useless Soul Grandmaster."

"Aren't you slapping your own face by saying that?"

"You-!"

Yu Xiaogang was choked speechless. His chest heaved, his face alternated between green and white, and he looked ready to explode on the spot. His lips trembled, but he couldn't utter a single word in rebuttal.

Having said his piece, Lin Hao said no more. He smiled disdainfully, turned, and left.

After strolling around the market, buying plenty of chicken, duck, fish, meat, and local specialties, and stuffing them all into his Storage Soul Tool,

Lin Hao left Nuoding City, preparing to return to Golden Chrysanthemum Village.

But just after Lin Hao had walked a short distance beyond Nuoding City,

A tall black figure stood quietly in the middle of the road ahead, as though he had been waiting for a long time.

The man wore a tattered black cloak, its hood covering most of his face, exposing only his haggard, sallow features. His messy hair clumped together, and a strong stench of alcohol emanated from him.

"Spirit Hall's lapdog, die!"

Seeing Lin Hao approach, the black-cloaked man abruptly raised his head, revealing bloodshot eyes filled with crazed killing intent. With a low, furious shout, he lifted his right hand.

In an instant, a pitch-black hammer appeared in his grasp.

Immediately afterward, nine Soul Rings-two yellow, two purple, four black, and one red-rose rapidly from beneath his feet and circled his body!

A terrifying surge of soul power and oppressive force erupted instantly.

The next moment, Tang Hao became a black blur. Wielding the Clear Sky Hammer, he charged at Lin Hao with momentum that seemed capable of destroying heaven and earth.

But the moment Tang Hao appeared, Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo, concealed in the shadows, spotted him and recognized him as well.

"Tang Hao! You damned beast! How dare you hurt my disciple!"

Seeing that Tang Hao actually intended to harm Lin Hao, Chrysanthemum Douluo flew into a rage, his effeminate voice booming like explosive thunder!