The Arrogant Master

Several days later, Tang Chuan returned to Nuoding Junior Spirit Master Academy.

Standing at the academy entrance and gazing at the familiar gate and bustling crowd, Tang Chuan smiled faintly. By now, his Soul Power far surpassed that of his peers. With the Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone and a mutated Thousand-Year Illusionary Hidden Flower Spirit Ring, his strength was no longer what it had once been.

Yet he had no intention of revealing any of it.

"An ordinary man is blameless, but possessing a treasure makes him guilty." These were the words he always kept in mind.

Thus, before returning to the academy, Tang Chuan immediately activated the Soul Skill granted by his First Spirit Ring. Relying on his Simulation Ability, he restrained and suppressed the immense Soul Power within his body.

To outsiders, Tang Chuan was still that useless boy whose Martial Soul was Blue Silver Grass and whose Innate Soul Power was only level one.

Pushing open the wooden door to Dorm Seven, Tang Chuan skillfully returned to his bed. He then closed the window, gently exhaled, and entered a meditative state.

Immediately afterward, his breathing gradually steadied, and his consciousness slowly turned inward.

His Soul Power flowed slowly through his body like a bubbling spring. With the support of the Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone, it resembled a series of clear, flowing streams, brimming with an extraordinarily rich Life Aura.

The next second, Blue Silver Grass quietly emerged from his palm. It was full of vitality, and wisps of blue-gold light flickered faintly across its surface.

"Now that I'm back, Tang Hao shouldn't be able to see that my Soul Power Level has changed, right?" Gazing at the Blue Silver Grass in his palm, Tang Chuan remained silent for a moment before thinking to himself.

"But... after I absorbed the 100,000-Year Blue Silver Emperor Right Leg Bone, if he was secretly watching me, would he have noticed something?"

Tang Chuan's fingertips lightly brushed the edge of the bed. His gaze remained calm, but beneath that calm lay a sharp power of observation.

"Even if he noticed something... so what? I'm his son, after all. No matter how suspicious he becomes, he can't possibly come and kill me."

"At most—" The corner of Tang Chuan's mouth curled slightly, forming a confident yet Ice Cold arc.

"He'll wonder why my Soul Power has increased so quickly and suspect that I encountered some kind of fortuitous opportunity, that's all."

With that thought, Tang Chuan slowly opened his eyes. The dormitory remained quiet, with only the rustling of the Night Wind sweeping past the treetops outside.

He did not get up immediately. Instead, he lay on his bed, his gaze deep and unfathomable as his thoughts gradually drifted back to the days sealed away in the depths of his memories.

"Heh... Tang Hao, Tang Hao." Tang Chuan's voice was almost inaudible, yet it carried a trace of coldness. "Do you still remember? During those years in Holy Spirit Village, Tang San and I were both your biological sons. But in your eyes, when did I ever exist?"

His fists clenched as those mottled yet vivid memories surfaced involuntarily in his mind.

Before Tang Chuan and Tang San had awakened their Martial Souls, Tang Hao spent his days drinking. He was taciturn, sleeping during the day and hammering iron at night. Apart from the sound of his hammer, all they heard was his snoring.

The two brothers were still young. Even when they were starving, they had to search the fields for wild vegetables and dig up mountain yams themselves. Sometimes, they even had to risk being bitten by wild dogs to steal chickens and catch rabbits.

After returning home, they still had to wake up early to cook for Tang Hao.

Tang Hao's temper back then was as violent as a beast in the mountains.

The vegetables were a little too salty? A slap came flying.

The rice was a little too cold? He kicked the table over.

Tang Chuan still remembered how, once, he had accidentally burned the pot while making porridge. Tang Hao grabbed him by the collar, lifted him up, and threw him outside, where he rolled through the mud and ended up covered in dirt.

And Tang San?

At that time, he was only five or six years old, just like Tang Chuan.

Everything changed only on the day they awakened their Martial Souls. After learning that Tang San possessed Twin Martial Souls and Innate Full Soul Power, Tang Hao finally changed his attitude. He even embraced Tang San for the first time.

From then on, Tang Hao no longer made Tang San cook. He even personally taught him blacksmithing.

It was as though only then had he remembered that he had another son—Tang San.

As for Tang Chuan, in Tang Hao's eyes, he was still a useless boy fit only to cook for him. Tang Hao's attitude toward Tang Chuan had not changed in the slightest. It remained exactly as it had been.

A Waste Spirit, Blue Silver Grass, with Innate Soul Power of level one!

With a single sentence, Tang Hao sentenced Tang Chuan's future to death: "Staying in the village and becoming an ordinary blacksmith would be fine. Why go to a Soul Master Academy? It's a waste of time. After you leave, who's going to cook for me?"

Blue Silver Grass drifted lightly around his fingertips, its blue-gold radiance flickering faintly in the night.

"Tang Hao, one day, I'll make you realize that the useless boy you once looked down on will become stronger than your precious son with Twin Martial Souls."

"And that day won't be far away."

After saying this, Tang Chuan slowly closed his eyes. Soul Power quietly circulated through his body, while the light of the Blue Silver Grass in his palm pulsed continuously like a heartbeat.

That night, he meditated without rest, his thoughts never ceasing.

Several days later, sunlight filtered through the branches and leaves, scattering across the forest on the Back Mountain of Nuoding Academy.

As usual, Tang Chuan sat quietly on a slab of bluestone in the Back Mountain forest, meditating with his eyes closed. Blue Silver Grass emerged from his palm and quietly resonated with the Blue Silver Grass around him.

At this moment, not far away on the Back Mountain—

Master and Tang San stood beneath a tree, silently watching the scene.

"Teacher," Tang San had seen all of Tang Chuan's recent daily activities. He spoke softly, "Although Brother's talent is very poor, he truly works hard at cultivation. I can see him going back and forth between the library and the Back Mountain almost every day... He never slacks off."

Master nodded and said calmly, "Your Brother is indeed diligent, and he has a bit of cleverness as well. Knowing that his Martial Soul is Blue Silver Grass, he chose to meditate and cultivate in this forest, where Blue Silver Grass grows abundantly. Plant Martial Souls can indeed accelerate Soul Power growth slightly in environments dense with plants."

Tang San nodded as well. "I also think Brother is very diligent. A few days ago, I even saw him browsing that book, History of Plant Spirit Development, in the library."

Upon hearing this, Master's brows knitted slightly, and his expression soon became somewhat disdainful.

"Xiao San, your Brother... it's a pity, but his talent is his greatest weakness." Master sighed, his tone gradually taking on a hint of mockery. "His Innate Soul Power is only level one, and his Martial Soul is Blue Silver Grass. With such aptitude, he is destined to accomplish little throughout his life."

Tang San froze for a moment. He wanted to argue, but did not know how to begin.

After a moment, he said, "Teacher, I think Brother really likes studying Spirit Theory. Perhaps one day he might become a great Master of Spirit Theory, just like you."

At those words, a contemptuous smile immediately appeared on Master's formerly calm face.

"Heh heh." Master shook his head, his sarcasm completely undisguised. "With that little bit of intelligence, do you really think he can become a Master of Spirit Theory?"

Master's tone gradually rose, carrying the arrogant pride of someone convinced of his own superiority. "Xiao San, you must understand that not everyone can be like your teacher—well-read, devoted to research, capable of proposing Spirit Theory, blazing a new trail, and becoming a great Master of Spirit Theory."

As he spoke, he raised a hand and pointed at his own head, his voice filled with arrogance. "The reason your teacher has achieved what he has today is entirely because of the wisdom in here."

"What does researching Spirit Theory rely on? It relies on originality and wild, unrestricted imagination. As for your Brother, he can't even figure out the most basic cultivation path for Blue Silver Grass. On the road of Spirit Theory, he will never achieve anything significant."