Turning Tang Ya to His Side

A lingering streak of sunset on the horizon fell across a barbecue stall, lighting the faces of two teenagers.

Huo Yuhao was busy beyond belief, preparing ingredients and threading them onto skewers.

Hui Ye sat beside him, cheering him on and directing Huo Yuhao like a supervisor.

"Hurry! Hurry! Hurry! There, yes, right there!

Put the seasonings there.

The fire, light the fire!

Do you even know how to grill fish?"

Huo Yuhao was so busy that sweat covered his forehead.

Tian Meng kicked up a fuss in Huo Yuhao's mind. "Yuhao, he's ordering you around. Ignore him!"

Huo Yuhao acted as though he hadn't heard, concentrating on lighting the fire and grilling the fish.

The first grilled fish came off the fire. Before they could call out to sell it, Hui Ye snatched it up and took a huge bite without the slightest hesitation, speaking as he ate.

"Not bad. Not too salty or too bland, crisp outside and tender inside, cooked just right. Yuhao, I have high hopes for you. This business has a bright future."

Black lines appeared on Huo Yuhao's forehead. "It's not like you haven't eaten it before."

He knew perfectly well that if he wanted to sell fish without trouble, he had to feed this guy first.

Only after a certain someone had polished off five grilled fish did Huo Yuhao finally speak up. "Brother Hui Ye, it's time to sell the fish."

"Huh? What did you say?" Hui Ye looked utterly bewildered.

Huo Yuhao watched him silently.

"Ahem, your grilled fish was so good that I forgot."

Hui Ye smiled faintly, without the slightest trace of embarrassment on his face.

He grabbed a grilled fish, raised it in the air, drew a deep breath, puffed out his chest, and roared:

"Come one, come all, don't miss out! Freshly grilled fish! If it doesn't taste good, you don't pay!"

"Eat one, and you'll be craving two!"

"Eat two, and you'll be craving three!"

The harsh voice startled Huo Yuhao.

Pedestrians on the street turned to look, their attention genuinely caught, and stopped to watch at the stall.

One of the Shrek students asked, "How much for your grilled fish?"

Hui Ye said, "Five Copper Soul Coins."

The student exclaimed, "That expensive?"

Without further ado, Hui Ye shoved the grilled fish into his hands. "Eat first, pay afterward. Only pay if it tastes good."

Under everyone's watchful eyes, the student held the grilled fish, his face flushing red. Too embarrassed to put it back on the stall, he had no choice but to take a bite.

At first he was reluctant, but after one bite, his eyes lit up. His little nibbles turned into great chomps.

"Another one," the student said indistinctly around a mouthful of fish.

His actions opened up the market, and more and more people came to buy grilled fish.

Just then, a young woman pushed through the crowd and came to the stall. Puffing out her cheeks, she said, "Well, Yuhao, you're selling grilled fish here without even telling me!"

"Senior Tang Ya."

Huo Yuhao explained, "It's my first day at the stall. I wanted to test the waters first, so I didn't tell you where I was."

"Just treat me to a grilled fish, and I'll forgive you."

Hui Ye folded his arms and glanced at Tang Ya. "If you want fish, get in line."

Tang Ya turned her head, and her anger flared. "Why are you here too?"

"What, am I not allowed?"

Hui Ye roared beside Tang Ya, "Grilled fish for sale!"

A sharp pain shot through Tang Ya's eardrums. She hurriedly covered her ears and swore, "Are you trying to kill me? Keep it down!"

"I'm selling things. If I'm quiet, who'll hear me?"

Instead, Hui Ye called out even louder.

"Grilled! Fish! For! Sale!"

"Damn!"

Tang Ya glared at him, finding this detestable fellow even more repugnant.

She had wanted to go through the back door, only to run into a tiger blocking the road. After a bitter half-hour wait, she finally got her first bite of grilled fish.

Her beautiful eyes swept over Hui Ye, carving him up with more than ten thousand cuts in the space of a few minutes.

"I advise you not to make eyes at me. I'm not interested in you," Hui Ye said calmly.

They hardened.

Tang Ya's fists hardened.

"Have you no shame?"

Hui Ye put down what he was doing and looked at Tang Ya seriously. "Come on, let's talk somewhere else?"

"I have nothing to talk about with you," Tang Ya said with a cold snort.

"I can help you resolve the crisis threatening to destroy the Tang Sect."

"You? Even the academy can't help the Tang Sect. You think you can?" Tang Ya said disdainfully.

Hui Ye wiped the grease from his hands and started walking. "If you believe me, follow me."

After a battle between heaven and man in her head, Tang Ya followed him.

Huo Yuhao was busy beyond belief. "Look, you two can talk about it later if you have something to discuss..."

"Boss, another grilled fish, and hurry."

"Coming, coming."

Tang Ya followed Hui Ye to a corner not far away.

"There's only one way to keep the Tang Sect from being destroyed," Hui Ye said calmly.

"What way?" Tang Ya pressed.

"Close down the Tang Sect."

"How dare you mess with me?"

"As long as there's no Tang Sect, it can't be destroyed."

"Are you asking for a beating?" Tang Ya squeezed her hands together, her knuckles cracking.

Hui Ye raised a hand to interrupt her and asked, "Calm down first. Let me ask you: why are you so determined to revive the Tang Sect?"

Tang Ya was about to answer instinctively. "Naturally, it's..."

"Think it over carefully before you answer," Hui Ye reminded her.

Tang Ya fell silent for a while, then said seriously, "It was my parents' dying wish. I have to fulfill it."

Hui Ye said, "Have you been tired all these years?"

Tang Ya shook her head, then, under Hui Ye's gaze, nodded gently, her eyes dimming slightly.

"What exactly are you trying to say? That you just don't want the Tang Sect revived?"

Tang Ya asked, "Do you hate the Tang Sect that much?"

Hui Ye dug his pinky into his ear. "No, it's not the Tang Sect I hate, but its founder."

Tang Ya's pretty face stiffened, and she looked at Hui Ye in disbelief.

Tang San's glorious deeds on the Douluo Continent were known to everyone. He could be called a legendary figure.

"Do you have a grudge against him or something?"

Tang Ya truly couldn't understand. With tens of thousands of years separating them, what grudge could there be?

"Do you know of the Spirit Hall from tens of thousands of years ago?" Hui Ye asked.

Tang Ya nodded. "Of course. Ancestor Tang San founded the Tang Sect and destroyed the evil Spirit Hall."

"The Spirit Hall—what was evil about it?" Hui Ye stared into Tang Ya's eyes.

"It was evil because... because..."

Tang Ya stammered, only then realizing she couldn't come up with a single answer.

Hui Ye sneered:

"In the past, the Spirit Hall gave commoners a chance to awaken and was naturally opposed to Evil Soul Masters. Back then, there were hardly any Evil Soul Masters on the Douluo Continent.

But what about now?

Evil Soul Masters are everywhere. Over these tens of thousands of years, what have the forces Tang San founded done?

They've promoted Shrek and the Tang Sect in every way possible, but have they ever done any actual good?

He destroyed the protective umbrella over the continent's living beings, and then what?

The order is more chaotic, even worse."

"That's not true..." Tang Ya objected.

"I'm listening. Go on. You'd better be able to make your argument hold water." Hui Ye leaned against the wall.

Tang Ya racked her brains, trying to find a reason to refute him, but unfortunately, she found none.

Had Hui Ye said this to an ordinary person, they would surely have refuted him with all sorts of reasons.

But Tang Ya couldn't. She was the Tang Sect's sect master, and she knew the records in all the unaltered ancient history books by heart.

Deep down, she told herself that Hui Ye was right. Because of her position, she had never thought about it this way before.

Tang Ya took a deep breath and calmed herself. "Even if everything you said is true, so what?

I only want to fulfill my parents' dying wish.

I can't even protect the Tang Sect, so how could I talk about protecting the continent's living beings?"

"Let's not talk about anything so far off. Let's talk about what's in front of us."

Hui Ye paused. "I can make you stronger, make your Blue Silver Grass less useless."

"You're a One-Ring Soul Master. What could you possibly use to make me stronger?"

Tang Ya scoffed.