"Yu Xiaogang, see how well I treat you? I even treated you to food and drink. No need to thank me!"
"We have plenty of days ahead. We'll be working together at Nuoding Academy, so I'll have all the time I need to treat you to lavish meals!"
Watching Yu Xiaogang still floundering in the distant cesspit, Yao Xuan smiled faintly and left with Gu Yuena and Xiao Wu.
After all, he had no peculiar fondness for looking at filthy things.
Meanwhile, in the cesspit.
Yu Xiaogang was still desperately floundering in the pool.
One hand clawed tightly at a stone along the edge while the other waved wildly toward the bank. He had shouted until his voice cracked.
"Someone! Hurry, someone! Whoever pulls me out will be handsomely rewarded!"
Not one of the students watching from the bank moved.
They simply stood a short distance away with their arms folded, watching with keen interest.
They looked as though they were watching a fine show.
"Grandmaster, soak down there a little longer. We're finding this quite entertaining!"
One student even called out to him.
"Hey, have you all gone deaf?"
Seeing that no one paid him any attention, Yu Xiaogang grew anxious.
"I, Yu Xiaogang, am still a teacher at Nuoding Academy!"
"Whoever pulls me out will be my benefactor!"
His words drew another burst of laughter from the bank.
"Grandmaster, listen to yourself! Why don't you fish yourself out first?"
One student could not resist speaking up.
"Exactly! If we went down to pull you out, wouldn't we have to soak in there too?"
Another student immediately joined the heckling.
Listening to their laughter, Yu Xiaogang's face alternated between green and white.
Waves of stench rose from his body. He truly had no options left.
In desperation, he gritted his teeth and played his final bargaining chip.
"Who... whoever pulls me out!"
"I, Yu Xiaogang, will accept him as my disciple!"
"I'll hold nothing back and teach him all the Martial Soul Theory I've spent my life researching!"
As he said this, his tone still held a barely perceptible trace of anguish at the cost.
After all, in his view, taking a disciple was a matter of immense importance.
His body of knowledge could turn heaven and earth upside down in the Soul Master World.
Had he not truly run out of options today, how could he have borne to offer such a tremendous opportunity?
"I, Yu Xiaogang, had only intended to take one disciple in my entire life."
"I'm making an exception today because I see that fate has brought us together!"
At this point, he even unconsciously lifted his chin ever so slightly.
Though he was soaking in sewage, he could not surrender even a scrap of his dignity as a "Grandmaster."
The bank fell silent at first.
Then laughter erupted, even louder than before.
"Hahaha, did I hear that right? He's taking a disciple in a cesspit?"
"Grandmaster, take a whiff of yourself before bringing up taking disciples!"
"He really has no brains! He's already soaking in a cesspit, and he's still thinking about taking disciples!"
"I think this Grandmaster has soaked himself stupid. Filth has gotten into his brain!"
"Grandmaster, I think you should first take someone who can fish you out!"
Each mocking remark smashed what little dignity Yu Xiaogang had left to pieces.
He opened his mouth, wanting to say a few more words.
But they all lodged in his throat, and he could not spit out a single word.
Just then, hurried footsteps sounded beyond the crowd.
The dean of Nuoding Academy rushed over with several laborers.
"Disperse! All of you, disperse! What sort of behavior is this, crowding around here?"
With a grim expression, the dean shooed the watching students away.
"Go do whatever you're supposed to be doing!"
Only then did the students disperse in twos and threes, still turning back and laughing as they left.
Once most of them had gone, the dean had someone fetch ropes and planks.
Covering their noses, the laborers struggled mightily before finally hauling and dragging Yu Xiaogang out of the cesspool.
Even so, all of them were suppressing smiles, and none dared be the first to speak.
Yu Xiaogang was set on the ground, drenched from head to toe and reeking to high heaven.
He sat there for a long time, unable to recover his senses.
Today, he had lost every last scrap of dignity he had accumulated in his life.
He no longer had the face to remain here.
"Dean."
Yu Xiaogang raised his head and spoke hoarsely.
"I... I've let the academy down. I've let you down."
"I'll go back, pack my things, and leave Nuoding Academy right away."
At Yu Xiaogang's words, an expression of regret immediately appeared on the dean's face.
"Grandmaster, what are you saying?"
"You've been at the academy for so many years. Even if you've contributed nothing and haven't worked hard either, how could the academy do without you?"
As he spoke, he let out a heavy sigh.
Yet even as he sighed, an indescribable sense of satisfaction filled his heart.
This old thing, drawing a salary for nothing and clinging desperately to his dignity, is finally leaving of his own accord.
Back then, I let him come here and eat for free because of our friendship.
Who would have thought he'd make such a disgrace of himself? It's just as well that he's getting out on his own now.
As dean, he would have one less thing to worry about in the future.
Meanwhile.
Yao Xuan returned to his residence with Gu Yuena and Xiao Wu.
As soon as they entered, Xiao Wu bounced over to him.
"Brother Xuan, Brother Xuan, that stomp of yours was so satisfying!"
"You stomped that Big Wet One's face right into the mud!"
Looking at Xiao Wu's excited expression, Yao Xuan smiled.
"All right, Xiao Wu. You did well today."
"I keep my word. I'll give you that reward now."
As he spoke, Yao Xuan rubbed Xiao Wu's head and raised his hand.
A wisp of nine-colored light condensed at his fingertips.
The light held together without dispersing, rapidly spinning and contracting in his palm.
In the blink of an eye, it became a tiny pendant.
The entire pendant gleamed with a lustrous sheen, and a wisp of nine-colored light slowly flowed within it.
"Put it on."
Yao Xuan held the pendant out before Xiao Wu.
"With this, even a god couldn't harm a single hair on your head!"
At Yao Xuan's words, Xiao Wu's eyes instantly lit up.
"Really?"
"Thank you, Brother Xuan! Thank you, Brother Xuan!"
She reached out with both hands and carefully received the pendant in her palms.
Treasuring it beyond measure, she immediately hung it around her neck.
"I knew I couldn't go wrong following Brother Xuan!"
Seeing her like this, Yao Xuan shook his head.
"Don't thank me just yet."
"This protective charm is only the first part of your reward."
Xiao Wu froze at his words.
"The first part?"
"Then... what's the second part?"
Yao Xuan did not answer directly. He simply raised his hand and pointed at the bed in the room.
"Lie down."
Xiao Wu followed the direction of his finger and blinked.
Though puzzled, she did not hesitate in the slightest when it came to Brother Xuan's words.
As she walked toward the bed, she secretly touched the pendant around her neck.
She obediently ran to the bedside, kicked off her shoes, and lay down.
After lying down, she rolled over and looked curiously at Yao Xuan.
"Brother Xuan, what next?"
Before you continue