Grandmaster looked at Tang San and continued, "Little San, bring me the second book from the left on the third row of the bookshelf to your left."
"Yes, Teacher." Following Grandmaster's instructions, Tang San brought over a fairly thick book from the shelf. Strangely enough, there was no title on it.
Grandmaster did not take the book from Tang San. Instead, a faint smile curled his lips as he said with some self-satisfaction, "Little San, this book contains my research on cultivating martial souls and identifying the many soul beasts on the continent. There is a great deal of useful knowledge in it, enough to rival an encyclopedia of the Douluo Continent. I cannot guide you personally while I recover from my injuries, but you must not slack off in your cultivation."
"Yes. Thank you, Teacher. I'll cultivate diligently." Like a baby who had yet to finish milking his source of experience, Tang San answered respectfully.
Although many of Yu Xiaogang's theories were piles of shit, the knowledge of soul beast identification he had secretly learned from Spirit Hall's ancient texts back then was at least useful.
Leaving everything else aside, information on a soul beast of the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger's caliber was certainly not something ordinary people could access. Yet this, too, was not knowledge Grandmaster had gained through his own research, but through lifting and plagiarizing Spirit Hall's ancient texts.
Top-tier fighting strength and the sheer number of soul masters were often the decisive factors in how much knowledge of soul beasts a faction could accumulate, and the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan possessed neither.
Thus, the knowledge of soul beast identification Grandmaster taught Tang San could only have come from plagiarizing Spirit Hall's ancient texts back when he was clinging to Bibi Dong's coattails.
"Oh, one more thing. Now that you have obtained your first soul ring, remember to visit Spirit Hall in Nuoding City later," Grandmaster said after a moment's thought.
"Teacher, I've already awakened my martial soul. Why would I need to go to Spirit Hall again?" Tang San paused, puzzled and uncertain.
Grandmaster explained, "You need to go to Spirit Hall in Nuoding City for a soul master assessment. First, it will test your current soul power. Second, it will allow you to collect Spirit Hall's monthly gold soul coin stipend. That way, you will no longer need to be a work-study student, and you can devote more time to cultivating your martial soul."
"A gold soul coin stipend?" Hearing that there were gold soul coins to collect, Tang San immediately brightened. With his drunkard father drinking every day, he had grown up unable to afford even thin porridge. Delighted, he said, "Teacher, it sounds like Spirit Hall treats commoner soul masters pretty well."
"Hmph. Pretty well? Pretty well, my ass!" Grandmaster snorted, his lips curling with disdain as he said coldly, "The money for these stipends comes from the Two Great Empires. For various reasons, Spirit Hall has overstepped its bounds and taken over distributing this money on the empires' behalf. Their purpose is undoubtedly to buy people's loyalty. Their sinister intentions deserve condemnation!"
"Overstepped its bounds? Teacher, what do you mean?" Tang San asked in confusion.
Brimming with grievances, Grandmaster said, "Little San, think carefully. The Two Great Empires have vast territories. How many children awaken their martial souls with Spirit Hall's help every year? These children are scattered all over the world. If the empires were to take all of this upon themselves, how much money, resources, and manpower would it cost?"
"Since Spirit Hall already shoulders the task of awakening martial souls, the Two Great Empires entrusted this matter to them. However, judging by the ultimate outcome, Spirit Hall has undoubtedly benefited the most from distributing soul master stipends. In recent years, it has even begun showing signs of surpassing the Two Great Empires."
Tang San's expression shifted slightly. "Teacher, are you saying Spirit Hall wants to replace them?"
Having been born in a feudal age in his previous life, Tang San was deeply loyal to those in power. In his eyes, the current Two Great Empires were equivalent to the imperial court of his former life, while Spirit Hall, resembling a religious organization, was undoubtedly a cancer on society.
Grandmaster continued, "Precisely because Spirit Hall has gradually begun to overshadow the Two Great Empires, the empires have started using various excuses in recent years to reduce this funding bit by bit. By now, it has nearly been cut away entirely."
"The Two Great Empires have almost cut off the funding? Then why is Spirit Hall still distributing soul master stipends?" Tang San frowned slightly, unable to understand.
"Little San, there is a saying: a cup of rice earns gratitude, a bushel earns hatred. I wonder whether you have heard it. It means that when you help someone in need, you make them dependent on you. Once you stop helping, however, they begin to resent you. That is human nature. If Spirit Hall stops distributing stipends, it could very well begin to decline as a result." A trace of complexity crossed Grandmaster's face.
"The Two Great Empires have taken advantage of precisely this, gradually reducing their funding for soul masters in hopes of weakening Spirit Hall's prestige among them. Unfortunately, Spirit Hall refuses to play along. Even if it has to empty its own coffers, it insists on continuing to distribute stipends, presumably to win people's loyalty..."
"The soul master world has been frighteningly quiet these past few years. I can faintly sense the wind filling the tower before a mountain storm. Perhaps it will not be long before the situation across the entire continent changes."
"When Spirit Hall passes over small profits, it must be plotting something grand. Little San, remember this: no one in this world treats you well without a reason. They show you kindness because they want to exploit your value, just as Spirit Hall continues to distribute soul master stipends. You must learn to distinguish right from wrong." Grandmaster patted Tang San's head and spoke solemnly.
"Yes, Teacher. I understand." Tang San nodded earnestly.
Perhaps Spirit Hall's reasons for continuing to distribute soul master stipends did not matter much to Tang San at present. He only wanted to collect the money as soon as possible and improve his living conditions, but inwardly, he had certainly begun to develop an aversion to Spirit Hall.
"Teacher, please get some proper rest for now. If you need anything, just tell me," Tang San said to Grandmaster.
At those words, Grandmaster seemed to suddenly remember something. He took a soul master badge from inside his clothes and handed it to Tang San. "This is my soul master identification badge. When you go to Spirit Hall later, collect this month's gold soul coin stipend for me while you're there."
"Yes, Teacher." Tang San accepted Grandmaster's badge with both hands, gave him a slight bow, and left.
Soul masters below rank forty were all eligible to receive Spirit Hall's stipends. Grandmaster, that eternal soul grandmaster, shamelessly collected the stipends Spirit Hall distributed while maliciously smearing its name.
He truly took double standards to their absolute limit.
The empires' money came from taxes collected from commoners. Shouldn't what was taken from the people be used for the people? In the end, to preserve their own rule, the empires simply stopped giving stipends to commoner soul masters. Yet Spirit Hall still got smeared for paying out of its own pocket?
In Douluo II, Spirit Hall was gone from the continent, and Huo Yuhao still had to support himself by selling grilled fish after obtaining his first soul ring. By Douluo Dalu III: The Legend of the Dragon King, things became even more absurd: the money Tang Wulin earned from eight years of forging could only buy a defective white soul spirit.
Which was better, Spirit Hall or the feudal empires? The answer spoke for itself, didn't it?
In his previous life, Tang San stayed in the Tang Sect every day without going anywhere, following the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record in everything he did. At worst, he had merely been someone unable to distinguish right from wrong. His extreme double standards and ungrateful-wolf nature must all have been taught to him by that piece of dog shit, Yu Xiaogang.
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