Yang Xiong glanced at Tang San. "Sorry, it's currently my medicinal bath time. Sit down and wait for a bit."
Tang San sat down nearby while Yang Xiong stepped out of the bath, went into the bathroom to wash up, and changed clothes.
Ever since he began practicing Tai Chi, Yang Xiong, aside from intense physical training, had also developed a preference for a peaceful life and picked up the habit of brewing tea.
When the dorms were initially built, each room was spacious, structured as one-bedroom apartments with a living room. They were fully equipped, and the living room not only had the medicinal bath barrel but also a tea table, chairs, and even a desk for reading in quiet moments.
Yang Xiong brewed a cup of tea for Tang San and then said, "Tang San, what brings you here today? Didn't we just get a week off? Shouldn't you be out having fun?"
Tang San took a sip of tea and smiled. "Xiao Wu was too tired and has been sleeping ever since we got back to the dorm. I just wanted to balance work and rest a bit."
"But you don't seem to rest at all. I have to admire your perseverance in training."
Yang Xiong smiled. "I've been used to this since I was young. Not training or taking medicinal baths makes me feel uncomfortable."
Tang San hesitated a moment before speaking. "By the way, Yang Xiong, I noticed that your medicinal bath ingredients aren't simple. Many of the poisonous herbs you use are extremely toxic—probably even a Soul King would struggle to endure them, let alone a Soul Elder."
Yang Xiong replied, "That's likely due to the changes in my body's endurance. I've been tempering my body since childhood, exposing it to all kinds of toxins, gradually building up resistance. Besides the poisons, I also include various spiritual herbs in the bath. The combination improves absorption for both the body and soul power."
"Anyway, was there a specific reason you came to see me?"
Only then did Tang San respond, "Yang Xiong, I'm planning to use this week off to craft some hidden weapons. You've seen the Zhuge Divine Crossbow. I'm still missing some poisons, and I noticed you have quite a few. If possible, I'd like to buy some from you."
Yang Xiong chuckled. "That's not a big deal. Just tell me which poisonous herbs you need. I can't guarantee I have them all, though."
Tang San shook his head. "I should still pay for them. I know some herbs are rare and valuable, so I'll just pay market price."
Yang Xiong looked a bit helpless. "That's a bit tricky since I actually don't know the prices. I got all these herbs from the sect directly and never spent a coin on them."
"Besides, you're crafting hidden weapons for all of us. You shouldn't have to bear the full cost yourself. The materials aren't cheap, and you're putting in so much time and effort."
As Yang Xiong said, Ning Fengzhi had apparently granted him considerable access within the sect. All his medicinal bath ingredients were prepared in advance, including materials needed for later stages of his defensive techniques from The Path of Defense. Before he even asked, people delivered them. Many of the herbs were aged; they may have been personally prepared long ago by Bone Douluo or leftovers from his own use.
As for the countless poisonous herbs obtained from the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well, Yang Xiong had never looked into their market value and had no intention of using them.
In short, at the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School, he never had to spend money. Whatever he needed, the logistics department could provide quickly.
After discussing it, Tang San wrote a long list of herbs on a piece of paper. Yang Xiong studied it carefully, thought for a moment, and then crossed out a few names.
"I have these right now. I'll go get them for you. As for the ones I crossed out, I don't have them. Maybe we could find them at the sect, but since we're at Shrek now, that'll have to wait."
Tang San smiled. "I'll figure out the rest. No need to trouble you to go back to the sect."
Then Yang Xiong returned to his bedroom, fiddled around for a bit, and came back with several wooden boxes, handing them to Tang San.
The herbs Yang Xiong gave were fairly common and, while valuable, could all be bought on the market. He didn't offer the rarer ones, especially those from the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well.
From Yang Xiong's perspective, since Tang San was making full hidden weapon sets for both him and Ning Rongrong, providing some herbs wasn't a loss. Besides, Yang Xiong never liked taking advantage of others, especially classmates.
Tang San carefully examined the wooden boxes and was delighted. "Thanks! With these, I should be able to finish the hidden weapons over the break. I'll give you your set in advance when I'm done."
Yang Xiong smiled. "It's no big deal. I just happened to have these herbs."
Tang San teased him. "Yang Xiong, sometimes I really envy you, being from a sect and having a Title Douluo as a teacher."
Yang Xiong shook his head. "You can't look at it that way. Others might envy the wealth of being in a sect, but I also envy your freedom. A sect can be a lifelong shackle for its disciples. And you have a teacher who truly cares for and supports you."
Tang San said, "My teacher has indeed treated me well, guiding me all these years. Without him, I wouldn't be where I am today."
After chatting for a while, Yang Xiong noticed Tang San looking conflicted and spoke up.
"Tang San, if there's something you want to say, just say it. We're classmates, no need to hide anything."
Tang San hesitated for a while before speaking. "Then I'll be a bit presumptuous. I think your self-created soul skill is very impressive. As you know, my Blue Silver Grass lacks explosive power. Would you be willing to teach me your skill? Of course, I won't ask for it for free, you can name your conditions."
Yang Xiong picked up his teacup, thought for a moment, and replied, "Tang San, we're classmates, so I'll be honest. My Rasengan does help make up for certain weaknesses, but it was created under my teacher's guidance and is now a sect secret. It can't be taught to anyone but direct disciples."
"Besides, you know how important self-created soul skills are. We've fought plenty of times, and I know you have several of your own. Would you give them away just because someone offered you something?"
Tang San fell silent for a while, then gritted his teeth and said, "What if I'm willing to trade one of my self-created skills? I don't think that would be a bad deal for you."
Yang Xiong smiled. "Tang San, we've fought a lot lately. You know I've also been working on my own skills. While our methods differ, I can still deal with most of your techniques. But there's one I truly don't understand, the one where your eyes turn completely purple and you attack the enemy mentally. I think you know what I mean."
Tang San was quiet for a long time before replying, "I understand. I'll need to think about it.
After Tang San left, Yang Xiong couldn't help but shake his head. Tang San really was getting impatient, he clearly wanted his self-created skill. Based on the original story, Tang San wouldn't give up easily.
Though he had been a disciple of Tang Sect's outer branch in his past life, the so-called Tang Sect secret arts were actually stolen from the inner sect. Even if his intentions were good, his methods weren't exactly honorable.
Most of Tang San's techniques came from the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record, including Mysterious Heaven Skill, Purple Demon Eye, Ghost Shadow Perplexing Step, Controlling Crane Catching Dragon, and Mysterious Jade Hands, along with a wealth of knowledge about rare herbs.
Out of all these, Yang Xiong was only truly interested in Purple Demon Eye and the herb knowledge.
Even though he carried several valuable herbs with him for emergencies, he never mentioned them to anyone, especially not to the sharp-eyed Tang San. If Tang San found out, it would definitely cause trouble.
As for Purple Demon Eye, it was the only method Yang Xiong knew of in the entire Douluo world that cultivated spiritual power. Trading it for a non-upgraded Rasengan wouldn't be a bad deal.
Other techniques weren't very useful to him. For instance, Ghost Shadow Perplexing Step was just an agile footwork technique. Against absolute speed, it wasn't very effective.
Mysterious Jade Hands hardened the palms, but it had no value for a Body Martial Soul user like Yang Xiong.
Controlling Crane Catching Dragon had its merits, but Yang Xiong had already cultivated Tai Chi to near perfection, allowing him to redirect force more effectively than Tang San.
As for Mysterious Heaven Skill, that was Tang San's biggest secret, and he'd never share it.
So when it came to the Tang Sect's arts, only Purple Demon Eye was truly worthwhile. Even at the Title Douluo level, it was still powerful, Tang San's real strength lay in how it gave him a massive advantage in spiritual power.
Yang Xiong had considered creating his own spiritual cultivation method, but he had never found a way in. Even the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School's library lacked any useful references.
Still, Yang Xiong suspected that Tang San would never agree to trade Purple Demon Eye. Tang San probably thought he could figure out Rasengan on his own, since it looked deceptively simple.
Only Yang Xiong knew the true difficulty of Rasengan. It required extreme control and long-term training to manipulate soul power into fine streams and spin them correctly between the hands. Even more so if one wanted to develop an advanced version of it.
As Yang Xiong expected, Tang San never brought it up again. However, Yang Xiong noticed signs of injury on Tang San's hands, likely the result of practicing Rasengan in secret.
In the days that followed, everyone fully relaxed. Oscar slept for days on end. Zhu Zhuqing continued her usual intense training, with Dai Mubai faithfully sticking by her side like he had turned over a new leaf.
Tang San locked himself away crafting hidden weapons, even spending less time with Xiao Wu.
Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong, after sleeping a few days, suddenly became energetic and dragged both Yang Xiong and Tang San out shopping. The two girls were inseparable, acting like best friends.
They had a wild time shopping in Soto City. Yang Xiong found it more exhausting than training, while Tang San quietly slipped away to the blacksmith shop.
As for Ma Hongjun, Dai Mubai reported that he was fully indulging himself in the red-light district, earning disapproving looks from the girls.
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