Sometimes, people showed someone no respect and looked down on them to their very bones because of long-standing prejudice.
In the clan elders' eyes, Yu Xiaogang was saddled with the stereotype of being "trash."
Thus, even when Yu Xiaogang appeared before them looking every inch a respectable man, the clan elders still despised him.
"You-"
At the word "trash," Yu Xiaogang first froze, then thrust out his chest, a hint of boastfulness in his voice. "I, Yu Xiaogang, have now achieved success and renown. Why shouldn't I return?"
The leading clan elder slowly set down his teacup, a mocking smile curling his lips. "Did you achieve success yourself, or did you climb onto a higher branch?"
An elder beside him snorted. "You're probably still stuck at level 29, aren't you? Even if you've become an official in the Divine Realm Empire, you're merely sheltering under someone else's protection. Do you really think you're so capable?"
Those words lit the fuse, and a wave of laughter immediately filled the hall.
Being stuck at level 29 was something they could mock Yu Xiaogang for his entire life.
"Hahahaha!"
Yu Xiaogang rocked back and forth with laughter. He had known these people would make an issue of his cultivation level.
An elder's brows knitted, his expression darkening. "What are you laughing at?"
"Open your eyes wide and take a good look!"
Yu Xiaogang stopped smiling and released his martial soul and soul rings-two yellow and one purple. He was a full-fledged Three-Ring Soul Elder.
"He actually broke through to level thirty?" One elder sprang to his feet, disbelief written all over his face. "How could that trash martial soul possibly break through to level thirty?"
Yu Xiaogang becoming a Three-Ring Soul Elder was rarer than finding a three-legged toad.
"It's only three rings.