After swatting the obstacle, Yu Xiaogang, away-
The vicious gleam in the Mandala Snake's eyes intensified, and it lashed its long tail.
It lunged straight at the two boys on a foul-smelling gust.
Facing this four-hundred-year-old Ferocious Beast-
Neither Tang Tian nor Tang San retreated even half a step.
Instead, they raised their right hands simultaneously, in perfect sync.
"Blue Silver Grass, Entanglement!"
Their low cries rang out in unison.
The Blue Silver Grass in Tang San's hand moved like a nimble swimming snake.
It precisely coiled around the Mandala Snake's wildly thrashing tail.
But it soon showed signs of breaking free.
Just then-
The Blue Silver Grass surging from Tang Tian's palm-
Actually charged straight toward the snake's head!
"Stop right there!"
The Blue Silver Grass instantly bound the Mandala Snake's hideous triangular head tight.
It forcibly froze the snake's lunging body in midair!
Yet at this tense moment-
A disgruntled protest rang out in Tang Tian's mind.
"Agh! Stupid master! You big idiot!"
Inside the Sea of Consciousness, the miniature Little Iron Hammer vibrated with anger:
"For a slippery long worm like this, you should've let me out to smash its head into a meat pancake with one blow!"
"Why are you playing with grass?"
"That's stuff for women! There's no aesthetic of violence to it at all!"
[Your Tool Martial Soul, Little Iron Hammer, expressed contempt for your fighting style.] [She believes the control system is wasting your talent.]
However-
The sight made Dean Zhang's jaw drop.
As a rank-forty-two tool Soul Ancestor, he had been about to step in and save them, and the long staff Martial Soul in his hand was already glowing.
But what had he just seen?
That rank-twenty-nine Grandmaster had been taken down in a single move.
Yet these two children, who had only just awakened their Martial Souls and did not even have Soul Rings-
Had actually restrained a four-hundred-year-old Mandala Snake through sheer force?!
Especially Tang Tian.
His Blue Silver Grass had absurd toughness and strength.
It could even stand against the Mandala Snake's explosive power head-on!
"Fine lads!"
An opening in battle vanished in an instant.
Dean Zhang dared not delay, and the Soul Rings beneath his feet flashed.
The long staff in his hand whistled through the wind.
It smashed down like a pillar holding up the heavens.
"Third Soul Skill, Sky-Piercing Staff!"
Bang-!
The blow struck the Mandala Snake precisely at its vital point, seven inches below its head.
With a crack of breaking bone-
The Mandala Snake's wildly struggling body instantly went limp.
As for the final blow, Tang San delivered it himself.
The Mandala Snake could not have been any deader.
With the threat dealt with-
Dean Zhang immediately rushed toward the bushes nearby.
"Grandmaster! Grandmaster, are you all right?"
Yu Xiaogang was in a daze.
That blow had left him seeing stars.
He had even vaguely seen his great-grandmother beckoning to him.
Hearing the shouts-
He abruptly came to his senses and felt his chest.
Realizing he was still alive, he let out a great sigh of relief.
"Thank goodness Tang Tian invited Dean Zhang along. Otherwise, this old face of mine would've met its end here today..."
He struggled to his feet.
Just in time to see a Yellow Soul Ring slowly rising above the Mandala Snake's corpse.
"A Soul Ring! Hurry! That's a four-hundred-year Soul Ring!"
Ignoring the excruciating pain in his body-
Yu Xiaogang scrambled over, stumbling and crawling.
With an anxious expression, he shouted at Tang San:
"Tang San! Absorb it before the Soul Ring dissipates!"
"This is the perfect Soul Ring!"
He was far too desperate now.
He urgently needed Tang San to absorb this Soul Ring.
To prove that his theory was correct.
To cover up the embarrassment of being taken down in a single move.
Yet Tang San remained where he stood, his brows knitted tightly, looking utterly baffled.
"Grandmaster, why should I absorb this?"
Tang San pointed at the snake, his tone somewhat resistant:
"Big Brother said we're going to follow a different path."
"Although this snake is also a hundred-year one, it doesn't suit my path."
"If it goes to waste, so be it. I don't want it."
"You-!"
Yu Xiaogang was so furious he nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.
Feeling as though he were playing a lute to a cow, he scolded Tang San in exasperation, like iron that refused to become steel:
"Foolish!"
"How can you listen to a child's nonsense?"
"I suffered such serious injuries and endured so much."
"All to hunt this snake for you, and you won't even appreciate it?!"
Just as Yu Xiaogang was about to invoke his authority as an elder to guilt him into submission-
A clear voice edged with mockery cut in.
"Bleh, bleh, bleh! Shame on you!"
Xiao Wu poked her head out from behind Tang Tian.
With her hands on her hips, she said irritably:
"Hey, mister, you still have the nerve to raise your voice?"
"It was clearly Brother Tang Tian and Tang San who held that big snake tight with Blue Silver Grass, giving the dean a chance to attack."
"If Brother Tang Tian hadn't reacted so quickly and tied up its head-"
"You'd probably have been poisoned by now, lying stone-cold on the ground!"
Xiao Wu looked at Yu Xiaogang with disdain and muttered:
"Getting sent flying was bad enough, but now you want to steal the credit too. Shameless."
Yu Xiaogang froze completely.
What?
Tang Tian and Tang San had restrained the Mandala Snake?
He looked at Dean Zhang in disbelief, hoping for a denial.
Yet Dean Zhang nodded as well and said with feeling:
"Indeed, it was all thanks to these two children working together so seamlessly."
"Especially Tang Tian. Even I feel inferior to that control of his."
At that moment, Yu Xiaogang felt as though the sky had collapsed.
This wasn't how the script was supposed to go!
He, Yu Xiaogang, was supposed to display his mighty prowess and help his disciple obtain a Soul Ring.
Then his disciple would shed tears of gratitude and revere him as a renowned teacher from then on.
Instead, the reality was:
He had made a bold declaration, only to be slapped in the face and taken down in one move.
And in the end, he had needed two children without Soul Rings to save his life?
What was wrong with this world?
Had his theories really become outdated?
Or was he truly just... trash?
"Pfft, hahahaha! This hammer's dying of laughter!"
Inside the Sea of Consciousness, Little Iron Hammer mercilessly twisted the knife again:
"Master, look at that weakling human's face! He looks as miserable as if he'd eaten shit! So satisfying!"
"He's as weak as a chicken, yet he insists on posing as some big bad wolf."
"If it had been this young lady, that hammer blow would've blasted the snake to oblivion!"
Watching Yu Xiaogang lower his head and withdraw into himself-
Tang Tian's lips curved slightly, and he said nothing more.
After all, when killing a man and striking at his heart, it was enough to stop once the point was made.
That night in the Soul Hunting Forest felt especially long.
For safety's sake, they decided to take turns keeping watch in pairs.
Dean Zhang paired up with Tang San.
Yu Xiaogang, meanwhile, was awkwardly assigned to Tang Tian.
As a girl and someone requiring special protection, Xiao Wu remained on standby to relieve them at any time.
Throughout their watch, Yu Xiaogang kept his back to Tang Tian.
He sat beside the fire without saying a word.
No matter how one looked at his back, it exuded a stubborn, desolate air of "I'm sulking."
Looking at the scene, Tang Tian could not help finding it a little funny.
This Grandmaster still needed to strengthen his mental resilience.
Early the next morning-
After a quick wash-
Everyone ate some dry rations and continued searching for Soul Rings.
Perhaps adversity had finally given way to good fortune.
Their luck really did seem to have improved.
They had not gone far-
When, at the entrance to a mist-shrouded valley-
Tang Tian suddenly stopped, a sharp gleam flashing in his eyes.
Following his gaze-
They saw, in the center of the valley-
An extremely peculiar plant growing.
Its entire body was a deep purple-gold.
Its bamboo stalk stood as straight as a sword.
The edges of its leaves were so sharp they seemed capable of slicing through the air.
It faintly exuded a keen, metallic chill.
It was purple gold sword bamboo!
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