The orange-red firelight illuminated Yu Xiaogang's face, making his face, covered with strange blue patterns, appear even more ferocious in the light and shadow.
His right arm had been completely transformed; the claws of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, now possessed by him, rested on his knees, with a flash of electricity occasionally appearing at his fingertips.
Dai Mubai's pupils suddenly contracted.
He stared blankly at that face, his mind completely blank.
He had seen that face countless times.
Shrek Academy, the Grandmaster always stood by the training ground with a gloomy face and his hands behind his back.
The teacher who taught them about Soul Beast and analyzed their opponents' tactics.
The person who suddenly disappeared before the finals, enraging Dean Flender and leaving Liu Erlong devastated.
Yu Xiaogang.
"You... you're Grandmaster?!"
Dai Mubai's voice was hoarse and trembling, his eyes filled with disbelief.
"Impossible... this is impossible... how could you have become like this? Your hands... your legs..."
Dai Mubai suddenly realized something halfway through his sentence.
The Grandmaster was crippled and was cared for by Liu Erlong for two years.
The hatred he harbored for Xiao Yan was probably no less than his own.
Yu Xiaogang looked down at his right paw, a self-deprecating smile playing on his lips.
Surprised?
He slowly raised his right claw, his five fingers spread wide.
The claws, covered in blue scales, gleamed with a cold, eerie light in the firelight, with faint arcs of electricity flickering at their tips.
"These hands were formed by fusing the forelimbs of Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon cub with five thousand years of cultivation."
He moved his right leg again.
"This leg belongs to the hind limb of a six-thousand-year-old Thunder-Patterned Python."
He raised his head and looked at Dai Mubai, a strange light flashing in his eyes.
"My situation is similar to yours."
Dai Mubai fell silent.
He stared at Yu Xiaogang for a long time, then suddenly smiled.
That smile was full of sarcasm.
"I see... I see... Hahahaha..."
He laughed louder and louder until tears streamed down his face.
"I thought I was the only one who turned into a monster... Turns out you were too... Turns out you were a monster too!"
Yu Xiaogang wasn't angry; he just looked at him quietly.
He only spoke slowly after Dai Mubai had finished laughing.
Do you know why I've become like this?
Dai Mubai didn't speak, he just stared at him.
" Xiao Yan..."
When Yu Xiaogang uttered that name, his tone was terrifyingly calm, but the flames burning in his eyes were incredibly intense.
His voice remained calm, but Dai Mubai could hear the surging hatred beneath that calm.
"I was taken care of by Liu Erlong for over a year. That stupid woman thought that would cheer me up."
She brought me water and food every day, and told me about the news outside... Yu Xiaogang's voice finally showed a slight fluctuation.
Do you know what it feels like to grow stronger every day just by hearing the name of your enemy?
Do you know what it feels like to lie in bed every day, like a dead person waiting to die? Do you know what it feels like for someone you once trampled underfoot to now be high above, revered by thousands?!
He suddenly turned his head and stared at Dai Mubai.
You know that!
Dai Mubai's breath hitched.
Yes, he knows.
He knows it all too well.
He knew all about the feeling of being abandoned by the whole world, the feeling of watching his enemy enjoy boundless glory, and the feeling of lying in a dark basement waiting to die.
"So, I chose this path." Yu Xiaogang looked down at his right paw.
"Use the body of Soul Beast to regain the strength to stand up again. Pay the price of becoming a monster to gain the chance to take revenge on Xiao Yan."
He gripped his right claw tightly, arcs of electricity leaping from his fingertips.
"I'd be willing to become a true monster just to kill Xiao Yan."
He stared into Dai Mubai's eyes.
"And you?"
Dai Mubai fell silent.
After a long silence, Dai Mubai spoke.
"But I still can't beat him."
His voice was full of frustration.
"You saw it, even though Zhu Zhuqing didn't make a move."
I am no match for him.
He's too strong... Twin Martial Souls, two Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring, and that eerie flame... I can't even get close to him..."
That's because you're not strong enough.
Yu Xiaogang interrupted him, " The Soul Beast you fused with is too low-level; it only barely restored your mobility. You haven't unleashed its true power at all."
He stood up, walked up to Dai Mubai, and looked down at him.
What if I told you I could make you stronger?
Dai Mubai raised his head.
How strong is it?
"Strong enough to kill Xiao Yan."
Yu Xiaogang said, word by word.
"Even surpass him."
Dai Mubai's pupils suddenly contracted.
"You... you can do it?"
"I can." Yu Xiaogang took out a token from his pocket and handed it to Dai Mubai.
The token was entirely gold, with Six-Winged Angel engraved on the front and three characters engraved on the back: " Spirit Hall ".
Dai Mubai's eyes widened.
" The Spirit Hall?!"
As a prince of the Star Luo Empire, he naturally recognized the Spirit Hall's token.
Moreover, the token in Yu Xiaogang's hand is under the jurisdiction of the Pope within the Spirit Hall.
"That's right." Yu Xiaogang put away the token.
"I am now an elder of the Spirit Hall, under the protection of His Holiness the Pope. Within Spirit City, I have a dedicated laboratory, inexhaustible resources, and state-of-the-art equipment."
If you come with me, I can make you ten times stronger than you are now!
Dai Mubai's heart raced.
Spirit Hall...
That was the most powerful force on the entire continent, a behemoth that even the Star Luo Empire had to be wary of.
In the past, Dai Mubai might have hesitated, after all, he was a prince of the Star Luo Empire, and naturally stood on the opposite side of the Spirit Hall.
But now the Star Luo Empire no longer has a place for him.
If I could really join the Spirit Hall and gain access to their resources...
"But..."
He suddenly thought of something, and a hint of hesitation flashed in his eyes.
Why would the Spirit Hall help me? What do I have that would make them want to invest?
Yu Xiaogang smiled.
That smile was eerie and chilling.
"Because of Xiao Yan, that's all."
Dai Mubai was taken aback.
He leaned down and whispered in Dai Mubai's ear, his voice like a devil's whisper.
"Do you get me?"
Dai Mubai fell silent.
He certainly understood.
Enough hatred, enough madness, enough... disregard for the cost.
I'll go with you.
Dai Mubai finally spoke, his voice hoarse but firm.
Yu Xiaogang up, a satisfied smile playing on his lips.
"Very good. You'll be glad you made this decision."
He turned and walked away into the distance.
"Let's go. It's a long journey, we need to hurry."
Dai Mubai struggled to his feet, staggered a couple of steps, but ultimately followed.
In any case, at this point, he had no other choice.
Only by believing in the Grandmaster Grandmaster he gain the power to avenge himself.
Therefore, Dai Mubai followed behind the Grandmaster without the slightest hesitation.
Two figures disappeared into the vast mountains and forests.