Dorm Seven.
Under the bed, Little Iron Hammer feasted on the Purple Gold Essence.
Halfway through eating.
Halfway through eating, Little Iron Hammer suddenly froze.
Through the gap beside the bed, she stole a glance at the boy sleeping soundly above, his breathing even.
A tiny trace of guilt actually surfaced, no bigger than a fingernail.
"Mm... this seems to be what he worked so hard to dig out of that pile of rocks today, risking getting cut..."
"That money-grubbing master seemed to be muttering about selling it to repay that old man called the dean..."
"Isn't it a little wrong of me to secretly eat it like this?"
However, before the great demon king called appetite, that feeble flame called conscience.
Could not even last three seconds.
"Hmph! What's wrong with it!"
The next second.
The haughty Little Iron Hammer instantly snuffed out that trace of guilt.
She planted her hands on her hips with complete self-assurance:
"If this hammer gets stronger, doesn't that mean he gets stronger?"
"We're one!"
"Besides, this metal is so hard. If he uses it to forge weapons himself later, he'll definitely work himself half to death."
"I'm doing this for his own good!"
"I'm helping him digest this hard-to-chew metal ahead of time, so he won't wear his hands out later!"
"Exactly, that's it!"
"Hmph, hmph, he should be thanking this hammer for working so hard on the late-night shift!"
Having finished convincing herself.
Little Iron Hammer took the last bite with a clear conscience.
"And considering how hard he worked to find food for this hammer."
"It wouldn't be out of the question to treat him just a tiny bit better from now on... even if he is that idiot Tang Tian..."
As the final bit of Purple Gold Essence was devoured.
The metal, once brimming with spirituality, became a pile of grayish-white powder devoid of spiritual energy.
[Ding! Your second martial soul, Little Iron Hammer, has successfully devoured the rare metal Purple Gold Essence.] [Little Iron Hammer feels extremely satisfied and is very pleased with how she pulled it off without anyone noticing.] [Although she calls you an idiot, deep down she is actually a little touched.] [Affection +10! Current affection: 14/100 (ordinary).] [Congratulations, host! You have received a feedback reward: Intermediate Metal Identification ability!] [Intermediate Metal Identification ability] [Your eyes are the measuring stick!] [As a human metal detector, you can see through the internal structure of metals. From now on, you are the undisputed king of bargain hunting!]
Tang Tian thought, Will my bargain-hunting ability be able to go head-to-head with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's from now on?
There was a limitation, though: it only worked on metals.
Otherwise, he would really have soared!
Early the next morning.
Sunlight spilled through the windows onto the floor of Dorm Seven.
Tang Tian stretched as though he had just woken up.
Then he immediately reached under the bed and felt around.
All his hand touched was a pile of fine powder.
An almost imperceptible "just as planned" smile curled Tang Tian's lips.
You little thing, you thought I couldn't handle you?
Now that you've eaten my stuff, you're my hammer from now on.
But then.
His expression changed, instantly turning to shock and utter devastation.
He leaped out of bed and shouted:
"Oh no!! My treasure!"
"How did my treasure turn to ash?!"
That shout startled everyone in the dorm awake.
Xiao Wu, still drooling, sat up groggily.
Rubbing her eyes, she mumbled:
"What treasure?"
"Big Brother Tang Tian, did you wet the bed?"
The grief on Tang Tian's face nearly cracked: ...
What the hell did she mean, wet the bed?
This rabbit's mind really did work differently from everyone else's!
Tang San, who was about to head out for his morning training, hurried over.
Looking at the handful of ash in Tang Tian's hand, he asked in confusion:
"Brother, is this that Purple Gold Sword Bamboo? How did it... weather away?"
Tang Tian looked utterly heartbroken, as though he had lost millions of Gold Soul Coins:
"Maybe I slept in the wrong position last night and pressed down on some kind of feng shui..."
"Ah, my money!"
In the Sea of Consciousness.
A certain Little Iron Hammer, having eaten and drunk her fill.
Turned her back guiltily.
An elegant purple-gold pattern had appeared on her originally silvery-white hammer body, looking especially conspicuous.
She decided she absolutely would not show herself until Tang Tian summoned her.
She would pretend she knew nothing.
And although Tang Tian was outwardly wailing to heaven and pounding the earth.
Inside, he was blooming with joy.
Because as this piece of metal was digested.
He felt the bottleneck of his soul power, which had been stuck at rank 10, loosen!
He stepped straight into rank 11!
The density of his soul power had genuinely increased.
More importantly, Little Iron Hammer's aura now.
Was more solid and weighty than before!
That purple-gold sheen looked full of destructive power at a glance.
This time, he had made a killing.
That afternoon, in the woods thick with Blue Silver Grass on the Back Mountain.
Blue Silver Grass grew densely here, making it a rare place of peace and quiet.
Tang Tian was just as he always was.
Lying in a soft bed of Blue Silver Grass, basking in the sun.
With a grass stem between his lips.
Watching Tang San and Xiao Wu cultivate nearby.
Just then.
A burst of hurried footsteps broke the quiet.
Wang Sheng, the leader of the work-study students, ran over panting, his face full of anxiety:
"Bad news! Bosses! Someone's here to pick a fight!"
Before his words had finished.
A group of upper-year students had already swaggered over.
Leading them was a tall, even rather burly boy.
He wore an elaborate school uniform.
He was none other than the boss of Nuoding Academy.
The sixth-year student, Xiao Chenyu.
Behind him, lackeys such as Liu Long and Ling Feng also wore arrogant expressions, their noses pointed skyward.
Xiao Chenyu swept his gaze around.
His eyes finally landed on Tang Tian, who looked the most laid-back, and the two who were cultivating.
He sneered and said in a mocking tone:
"I heard two geniuses with innate full soul power joined the work-study students this year, and they're pretty arrogant."
"You won't even pay the protection money we're collecting?"
"Are you refusing to show us upper-year students any respect?"
"If you know what's good for you, step forward yourselves!"
He kicked the turf on the ground.
Pointing at this dense patch of Blue Silver Grass.
He threatened viciously:
"You planted this patch of grass, didn't you?"
"What's the point of planting so much worthless Blue Silver Grass?"
"If you don't accept my challenge, I'll have someone pull out every last bit of Blue Silver Grass here!"
"Rip it out by the roots! Let's see where you'll go to laze around after that!"
Hearing the words "pull out the grass."
Tang Tian, who had been lying flat, frowned slightly.
This is my precious feng shui spot. This brat is narrowing his own path.
He raised his eyes slightly and sized Xiao Chenyu up.
As I remember, Xiao Chenyu, wolf martial soul, rank 11, white soul ring.
He's the city lord's son, at least. His family shouldn't be short on resources, right?
Yet after all that blood, sweat, and toil, he only got a white soul ring?
"Tsk, tsk."
Tang Tian muttered softly, his eyes showing three parts sympathy, three parts shock, and four parts disdain.
"Are rich kids these days all this pathetic?"
Xiao Chenyu clearly had not heard Tang Tian's jab.
Seeing that none of them spoke, he thought they were afraid.
He immediately grew even more smug.
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