“Did I really just lose?”
Tang San muttered to himself, the confidence he had gained after absorbing his first soul ring shattered instantly under Qi Dao’s two sword strikes.
He still couldn’t understand why the gap between him and Qi Dao was so enormous.
And that swordsmanship of his…
It was sharp and unpredictable, nothing like the kind of swordsmanship a boy of his should be capable of mastering.
“Before you stick your neck out for something this meaningless again, you should first consider whether you actually have the ability to back it up.”
Qi Dao ignored his muttering.
He simply left those words behind before turning to call out to Xiao Chenyu and the others.
“Let’s go!”
Xiao Chenyu and the others hurried after him.
Wang Sheng shook his head and said to Xiao Wu, “Sister Xiao Wu, you should go to the infirmary yourself.”
With that, he led the other members of Dormitory Seven away as well.
Because of Yu Xiaogang, there was already a rift between him and Tang San.
At this point, he couldn’t be bothered to pay him any attention.
In the blink of an eye, the huge training ground was left with only Xiao Wu and Tang San.
Tang San looked at Xiao Wu and smiled bitterly.
“Xiao Wu, it seems we’ve been isolated by them.”
Xiao Wu froze for a moment before asking blankly, “Isolated?
Have we?”
“Wang Sheng even told me to go to the infirmary!”
Tang San’s expression stiffened.
Fine.
More precisely, he was the one being isolated.
Of course, having lived two lifetimes, Tang San didn’t really care about this so-called isolation.
Lone beasts were always alone.
Cattle and sheep gathered in herds.
But when his gaze fell upon the direction in which Qi Dao had disappeared, Tang San clenched his teeth slightly, a trace of unwillingness flashing through his eyes.
Qi Dao’s strength had far exceeded his expectations.
His strength, speed, and reaction were all vastly superior to Tang San’s, while his swordsmanship was exceptionally unpredictable.
Tang San’s Blue Silver Grass was completely helpless before the edge of his sword.
As for the small amount of paralyzing poison attached to the Blue Silver Grass…
If the Blue Silver Grass couldn’t even touch the hem of Qi Dao’s clothes, how could it possibly poison him?
Even the Tang Sect’s secret techniques, which Tang San was most proud of, had been rendered useless before the absolute difference in strength.
Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track was primarily an exquisite footwork technique.
It didn’t provide much of a boost to his actual speed.
Purple Demon Eye could clearly see Qi Dao’s movements, but Tang San’s body simply couldn’t react in time.
Mysterious Heaven Skill and Controlling Crane, Capturing Dragon had been almost completely useless in his exchange with Qi Dao.
And then there were the Tang Sect hidden weapons…
This was what weighed most heavily on Tang San’s mind.
No matter how tricky a technique he used to launch his hidden weapons, Qi Dao would shatter them with a single sword strike.
Tang San couldn’t determine whether Qi Dao had seen through his techniques in advance or whether his reactions were simply that fast.
If it were merely a matter of reaction speed, then things would be fine.
But if Qi Dao had already seen through his hidden-weapon techniques…
A barely perceptible killing intent flashed through Tang San’s eyes.
…
After Tang San left the infirmary, the bloody marks on his wrist had already healed.
He immediately went to Yu Xiaogang’s dormitory.
Pushing open the door, he found Yu Xiaogang sitting behind his desk, writing diligently.
He was recording the changes that had appeared in Tang San’s Blue Silver Grass martial soul after Tang San absorbed his first soul ring.
Tang San’s successful absorption of a Datura Snake soul ring was undoubtedly a confirmation of the Martial Soul Mimicry Theory among his Ten Core Competencies of Martial Souls.
The core of his Martial Soul Mimicry Theory was that a plant-type martial soul did not necessarily have to absorb a plant-type soul beast’s soul ring, while a beast-type martial soul could likewise absorb a plant-type soul ring.
“Teacher!”
Tang San entered the room and respectfully called out.
Yu Xiaogang stopped writing.
When he saw Tang San, his eyes immediately lit up.
His beloved disciple had come!
“Xiao San, what brings you here?”
“Come over.”
Yu Xiaogang smiled.
Tang San lowered his head and quietly walked over.
Seeing his dejected expression, Yu Xiaogang continued smiling.
“Xiao San, what’s wrong?”
“You’ve absorbed your first soul ring.
You should be happy.”
Tang San hesitated for a moment before speaking.
“Teacher, can you tell me about Qi Dao?”
The moment he heard Tang San mention Qi Dao, the smile on Yu Xiaogang’s face froze.
Qi Dao was an obstacle he could never get past.
He was also someone whose humiliation Yu Xiaogang absolutely had to wash away.
Back then, he had kindly intended to take Qi Dao as a nominal disciple, only to be publicly rejected by Qi Dao, leaving him utterly humiliated.
“Why are you asking about Qi Dao?”
“Did he say something to you?”
Yu Xiaogang quickly composed himself, but a trace of nervousness flashed deep in his eyes.
He was afraid that Tang San, the disciple heaven had bestowed upon him, would be provoked by Qi Dao and end up betraying his teacher.
Tang San shook his head.
“Just now, I challenged Qi Dao because of Xiao Wu.
In the end, I was completely defeated.”
As he spoke, Tang San looked seriously at Yu Xiaogang.
“So I want you to tell me about him.
And I want to know exactly where I went wrong.”
“So that’s why!”
After hearing this, Yu Xiaogang immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
As long as Tang San hadn’t been deceived by Qi Dao, that was enough.
Yu Xiaogang pondered briefly, then deliberately put on a profound expression.
“Very well.
Since you want to know, I’ll tell you.”
“The first time I met Qi Dao was five years ago, when he had just entered Nuoding Academy.” Find the original chapter at novelping.com.
“At the time, his martial soul was nothing more than a defective mutated Iron Sword, and his innate soul power was only half a rank.”
Tang San frowned slightly before asking, “Teacher, if his innate soul power was only half a rank, then his cultivation speed should have been extremely slow.
How could he possibly become this strong?”
“That’s exactly the point.”
Yu Xiaogang sneered and continued.
“If you really believe that his innate soul power was only half a rank, then you’re completely mistaken.”
“According to one of the Ten Core Competencies of Martial Souls—the theory that the level of innate soul power is directly proportional to the quality of one’s martial soul—”
“I can say with certainty that his martial soul was never as simple as a defective mutated martial soul.
And his innate soul power was certainly not merely half a rank.”
“What?!”
Tang San exclaimed in shock before frowning.
“Teacher, could the soul power-testing crystal ball really have made a mistake?”
Yu Xiaogang said calmly, “Why couldn’t it?
The Spirit Hall helps countless soul masters awaken their martial souls every year.
It’s inevitable that mistakes will occasionally occur during testing.”
“In my opinion, his martial soul wasn’t a defective mutation at all.
Rather, it was a beneficial mutation.”
“It was only because there were cracks on the blade that everyone mistakenly believed it was a defective mutation.”
“Furthermore, his innate soul power was certainly not half a rank either.
Based on my rigorous analysis and speculation, his innate soul power should have been around rank 5.
That’s why he was able to break through to rank 10 in only three years.”
“If I’m not mistaken, his current level should be around rank 15.”
After listening to Yu Xiaogang’s analysis, a look of realization appeared on Tang San’s face.
So there was actually so much more to the matter!
Seeing his reaction, Yu Xiaogang continued.
“Furthermore, Qi Dao’s talent doesn’t end there, aside from his complete disregard for his elders.”
“Do you know why he has such a great reputation at Nuoding Academy?”
Tang San asked in confusion, “Isn’t it simply because he’s the strongest?”
Yu Xiaogang nodded, but then immediately shook his head.
“Yes, but not entirely.”
“The reason Qi Dao became so famous at Nuoding Academy was because, shortly after entering the academy, he challenged its strongest student at the time, a Rank 13 Soul Master.”
Tang San’s pupils trembled slightly.
“And he won?”
According to his teacher, Qi Dao should have only been Rank 5 at the time, right?
A Rank 5 Soul Warrior defeating a Rank 13 Soul Master!
If he couldn’t use hidden weapons or Tang Sect secret techniques, Tang San admitted that there was absolutely no way he could accomplish such a feat.
Yu Xiaogang nodded before delivering words that shocked Tang San even further.
“He didn’t just win.”
“He won twice!”
“And…”
“Both times, he defeated his opponent with a single sword strike.”