Today.
The sun was shining and a gentle breeze was blowing. It was a perfect day to go out.
But for Tang San, it was anything but.
In the month since Gu Chen left, he had been in a foul mood. For one thing, Gu Chen, the culprit who had caused him and his teacher to endure a hellish spell in prison, had disappeared.
For another, Xiao Wu, the girl he had fallen for at first sight, had disappeared too. In thirty-five years across two lives, he had finally fallen in love, only for the object of his affection to suddenly run off. His frustration... he truly had nowhere to vent it.
He thought back to a month ago, when he had eagerly followed his teacher into the Soul Beast Forest to hunt for a Soul Ring.
As for what happened...
It was better left unsaid.
But after he returned, Gu Chen, who in his eyes already had a way to die, had vanished, and Xiao Wu, the girl who had captured his heart, had vanished as well. To him, it was as though the sky had fallen.
As a result, he had slept poorly and found no pleasure in eating all month. He had originally planned to find work as a blacksmith to earn some extra money and practice forging Hidden Weapons for himself, but now he was in no mood for that either.
But...
Who could have imagined that after a whole month, the missing Gu Chen would appear before him again? Tang San stared at him in astonishment.
Although Gu Chen's appearance had changed, even down to his hair color, he had always been handsome, so... as far as Tang San was concerned, the change wasn't all that great. Anyone familiar with him would recognize him at a glance.
"Y-you, why did you come back?"
His teacher had concluded that Gu Chen had disappeared because he was afraid of their revenge and had fled. Naturally, Tang San was very surprised to see him here. His teacher had said Gu Chen feared their revenge, yet here he was.
So...
Was he no longer afraid?
"You and your trash teacher can keep staying at Nuoding Academy, so why can't I come back?"
A mocking smile tugged at Gu Chen's lips. The moment he opened his mouth, his words reeked of gunpowder.
He hadn't come back to catch up with Tang San. The two of them had already torn away all pretense of cordiality, but Tang San posed virtually no threat to him anymore, so naturally he paid him no mind.
Not to mention...
Although he had returned for Tang Hao, he also intended to give Tang San a whipping while he was at it.
"Shut up!"
Tang San flew into a rage.
Gu Chen had humiliated his teacher time and again. Did he really think Tang San wasn't there?
"Gu Chen, how could trash like you, with only level-one Innate Soul Power, possibly understand my teacher's greatness? If you disrespect my teacher again, don't blame me for showing you no mercy!!!"
Seeing Tang San come down with Tang syndrome, Gu Chen didn't care in the least.
"Tang San, you motherless thing, I'd like to see just how you plan to show me no mercy!"
Without hesitation, Gu Chen chose to land a critical hit on his opponent's weak spot.
He knew Tang San all too well. He had been an orphan in his previous life and yearned for familial affection to the extreme. That was precisely why, before his Martial Soul awakened, he had remained steadfast no matter how Tang Hao made things difficult for him, never taking it to heart.
Before Tang San revealed his talent for Twin Martial Souls, anyone who wasn't blind could see the two different faces Tang Hao wore. Yet Tang San simply didn't care, and even felt that his father had finally acknowledged him.
All one could say was...
A people-pleasing personality when it came to family was truly terrifying.
So...
How could he not rub a generous helping of salt into that wound?
"You're courting death!!!"
Tang San was utterly enraged.
Gu Chen had indeed landed a precise critical hit on Tang San, and Tang San couldn't bear it for another second. He immediately summoned his Martial Soul, Blue Silver Grass. A yellow Hundred-Year Soul Ring slowly rose from beneath his feet, proclaiming his status as a One-Ring Soul Master.
He activated his Martial Soul.
The leaves of the Blue Silver Grass stretched wildly toward Gu Chen like venomous snakes.
Today...
With old grudges and new piled together...
He decided to kill Gu Chen, who had humiliated him and his teacher time and again. Gu Chen already had a way to die!!!
As for the consequences?
Hmph!
If Tang San hadn't known his father was a Titled Douluo, then after spending time in prison and witnessing the horrors of hell, he might have chosen to swallow his anger. At most, he would have taught Gu Chen a lesson without taking his life.
But now...
With Tang Hao as his backing, his state of mind had quietly changed. Teach him a lesson? No. Since Gu Chen had a way to die, he deserved to die!
So he decided to kill him with his own hands today.
It would be his retaliation for what he and his teacher had suffered back then.
At this...
Gu Chen smiled disdainfully.
"A mere Blue Silver Grass dares to show off in front of me? I really gave you too much face!"
As he spoke, he too summoned his Martial Soul, the Blue Silver Emperor. The moment his Martial Soul appeared, Tang San felt that his own Blue Silver Grass seemed... to have been suppressed by it. Like a subject standing before an emperor, his Blue Silver Grass began to disobey him.
The reason for this...
Was naturally that Gu Chen had silently activated the Blue Silver Domain. Within this domain, he, the emperor, naturally had Tang San, the subject, firmly suppressed. It was only because Tang San had a hidden Blue Silver Emperor Bloodline in his body; otherwise, Gu Chen's move alone might have made his Blue Silver Grass withdraw at once.
This suppression...
Was the absolute suppression of a subordinate by a superior. It could be said that there was no chance of resisting it.
Only if Tang San's Martial Soul awakened into a Blue Silver General or a Blue Silver King would this suppression gradually lessen. As for a Blue Silver Emperor? He could stop daydreaming. The Blue Silver Grass permitted only one emperor to exist.
The Blue Silver Emperor's leaves swayed gently above Gu Chen's palm, and a vast expanse of Blue Silver Grass sprang up at his feet in an instant. It turned into a blue ocean at a speed visible to the naked eye. Tang San's attack was blocked with ease, then torn to shreds by the green ocean.
The result left Tang San utterly stunned.
No, this shouldn't have happened!
He was a One-Ring Soul Master, while Gu Chen was nothing more than trash with level-one Innate Soul Power. Even if Gu Chen had been missing for a month, there was absolutely no way he should have been able to compare with a One-Ring Soul Master like him.
"Tang San, whatever other tricks you have, go ahead and use them!"
Gu Chen didn't take him seriously in the least.
"You..."
Tang San's expression darkened. His left hand twitched, instinctively wanting to use his other Martial Soul, but then he remembered that both his teacher and his father had told him not to reveal it in front of outsiders, and he stopped himself.
But that didn't mean he was out of options.
Whoosh-!!!
Without betraying his intentions, he used his Hidden Weapon, the Sleeve Arrow. The sharp arrow sliced through the air, speeding straight toward Gu Chen.
However...
Clang-!!!
Gu Chen's figure suddenly vanished, and the Sleeve Arrow missed him completely. The sharp arrow struck a stone pillar behind him before finally embedding itself in the ground.
"Looks like that was your last trick. In that case, I won't hold back either."
The voice suddenly sounded from behind Tang San, setting alarm bells ringing in his heart. He was just about to use Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, but before he could move, his feet had already been bound by Blue Silver Grass.
The Blue Silver Grass under Gu Chen's control bound Tang San and hoisted him into the air.
"Little Scumbag, all this time, you two have been coming to provoke me for no reason. As the price for provoking me, I'll give you one hundred consecutive lashes!"
"No need to thank me, it's free!!!"