An excited Yu Xiaogang

"No, no, no, Xiaogang, you have to absorb this last Ginseng King! You've made such great contributions to Shrek Academy!"

Flender urged him again. This old brother of his always liked to think of the younger generation, never sparing a thought for himself.

It was truly so moving!

But this time, no matter what, he would make his old brother absorb this Ginseng King!

"Well..." Yu Xiaogang voiced just the right amount of hesitation.

Of course he was going to absorb this Ginseng King, but he couldn't let it look as though he wanted to.

Only after a crowd of people persuaded him could he reluctantly absorb it, unwilling to let everyone's kindness go to waste.

That way, his reputation as the noble Grandmaster Yu, willing to sacrifice himself to help the younger generation succeed, would be firmly branded onto him!

Then he would reap both fame and fortune, gaining strength and a good reputation alike!

At that moment, Flender shot Zhao Wuji and the others a look.

Immediately, everyone from Shrek Academy began persuading Yu Xiaogang, especially Ma Hongjun and the other students.

"Grandmaster, the dean is right! This Ginseng King can not only increase Soul Power but also awaken a Soul Master's potential. Once you absorb it, you'll become stronger, research more theories, and teach us even better!"

Ma Hongjun spoke through tears, as though he would truly suffer to death if Yu Xiaogang refused to absorb this Ginseng King.

"You... all of you..."

Yu Xiaogang looked at everyone persuading him, stumbling over his words, while inwardly he was almost mad with joy.

Yet his face still wore an expression that said, "It's not that I want to absorb it; you're forcing me to."

"Ah, all of you really have put so much thought into this."

Yu Xiaogang let out a long sigh and reached out to pick up the largest Ginseng King.

"Very well. Since you've all gone this far, I can't let your painstaking efforts go to waste, can I?"

With that, Yu Xiaogang found a spot he considered suitable and sat down cross-legged.

Soul Elder, growing stronger, becoming a powerful Soul Master!

Yu Xiaogang gazed at the Ginseng King in his hand, his eyes burning, no longer able to suppress the excitement in his heart.

After swallowing it in one gulp, Yu Xiaogang began absorbing it little by little.

Just then, Tang San, who had remained unconscious all this time, woke up as well.

Feeling that the wound on his back had miraculously stopped hurting, and that even his Soul Power had surged to rank thirty-eight, he immediately turned to Flender in bewilderment.

"Dean."

Hearing the voice behind him, Flender turned around. When he saw that Tang San had awakened, delight immediately spread across his face, and he hurried over.

"Dean, what exactly happened?"

"Why have my injuries and my Soul Power become like this?"

Hearing Tang San's questions, Flender laughed heartily.

"Don't worry, Xiaosan. Let me explain everything."

Flender recounted everything in full, from finding Tang San to Yu Xiaogang discovering the Ginseng Kings, and then feeding one to Tang San.

"Huh?"

After listening, Tang San was rather dazed.

Did such powerful medicinal herbs really exist in this world?

And his Soul Power had indeed increased.

But why did his connection to the surrounding Blue Silver Grass feel so much weaker?

That connection had been very strong before, and that wasn't all.

His other Martial Soul had previously given him a very weighty feeling.

But now, he kept feeling that Martial Soul had become somewhat light, soft, and powerless.

After he described the changes in his Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, Flender patted Tang San on the shoulder and pointed at Yu Xiaogang.

"Don't worry, Xiaosan. Your teacher said these changes are normal. It'll gradually return to normal as you cultivate."

Only after hearing Flender's words did Tang San relax.

So his teacher had said it. Then everything was fine. It seemed these changes to his Martial Soul really were temporary, and it would recover later.

Meanwhile, at Skywater Academy.

"Judging by the time, Yu Xiaogang and the others should have absorbed those ginseng roots by now."

The corners of Yun Tian's mouth lifted slightly. Those were the "Immortal Herbs" he had specially prepared for that bunch from Shrek Academy.

They could indeed increase Soul Power, but the price was a few small changes to their Martial Souls.

They would also burn away their vitality, trading their own futures for a brief period of rapid Soul Power absorption.

Once that time passed, everything would reveal its true colors. Their cultivation speed would return to its original pace, or even become slower, and their aging would accelerate too.

"It's also time to plan what kind of Soul Beast I should hunt for my Sixth Soul Ring."

Yun Tian walked over to a nearby bookshelf and took down a comprehensive guide to Soul Beasts.

"This time, I'll go to the Far North to hunt for a Soul Ring."

At this point, apart from the Far North, the continent's Soul Beast forests no longer had any Soul Beasts suitable for him.

Meanwhile, inside the Seven Treasures Hotel in Heaven Dou City.

Two and a half hours had passed since Yu Xiaogang began absorbing the Ginseng King.

Now, he had finally reached the last stage.

"Power, an endless stream of power!"

Feeling the power continually growing within his body, Yu Xiaogang was utterly exhilarated.

He could feel the barrier to rank thirty being pried open bit by bit.

"Not enough, still not enough! More, more!"

Yu Xiaogang greedily absorbed the energy within the Ginseng King. At this moment, he only wished for as much energy as possible.

"Enough, enough!"

Yu Xiaogang kept his eyes tightly shut. Now, he could clearly feel that the power his body could hold had already reached its limit.

Boom!

An extremely powerful, exceptionally rich surge of Soul Power suddenly erupted from Yu Xiaogang.

That surge of Soul Power also drew everyone's attention completely.

"It's almost done! Teacher is almost finished absorbing it!"

Tang San looked at his teacher expectantly. From this day forward, his teacher would no longer be a Soul Grandmaster.

Instead, he would be a supremely exalted Soul Elder!

And his teacher's cultivation talent would be fully unlocked as well.

His teacher was so talented at researching theories. With his cultivation talent fully unlocked...

Tang San didn't even dare imagine how fast his teacher would cultivate!

But at this moment, Flender's brows were tightly furrowed.

Why did the connection between his Martial Soul and Yu Xiaogang's suddenly feel so faint and elusive?

They shared a Martial Soul Fusion Skill with Liu Erlong. If the connection between their Martial Souls vanished, that meant their Martial Soul Fusion Skill would vanish too!

"No, this should only be temporary."

Flender trusted his old brother. This had to be temporary. Later on, it would definitely recover!

"It's coming, it's coming!"

Yu Xiaogang suddenly grew excited, because he could feel the energy inside his body gathering frantically in his dantian.

Before this immense energy, the barrier to rank thirty was nothing but paper.

"Hahaha, come on! Break through!"

"From this day forward, I, the Grandmaster, will be a mighty Soul Elder!"