While Wu Lan was laughing as he imagined Yu Xiaogang's future, Flender brought Mubai, Ma Hongjun, and Oscar to rest in the room provided by the Soul Arena, then left to bring in temporary teammates to join them.
Tang San and Rongrong also joined.
Yu Xiaogang, meanwhile, went to gather information about the opposing group.
When Rongrong arrived, Oscar immediately tried to speak with her, but she ignored him and instead stuck close to Tang San, attempting to start a conversation.
Oscar burned with jealousy at this sight.
Tang San, on the other hand, did not reject her attention. In fact, he felt a sense of pride that such a beautiful woman would follow him around, though he also felt a trace of sadness that this woman was not Xiao Wu.
If Wu Lan had known this, he would have scolded him as a double-standard dog, mocking him for always shouting that he would only ever love Xiao Wu while still accepting the attention of other women.
And if another woman showed him affection, Tang San would just excuse it by saying he had been "caught by surprise."
Mighty Tang San, the one who could evade any attack, failed to evade a kiss from a woman.
Who would believe such nonsense?
Suddenly, Tang San's thoughts were interrupted when kicked open the door by a large man with spiky hair and strode inside, holding a woman in his arms.
Everyone turned their eyes toward him as he walked forward.
Unlike in the anime, this time only Rongrong was present, so spiky hair guy approached her directly and demanded she accompany him.
This made Rongrong explode in anger.
"How dare you!" she shouted.
While the others were furious, Tang San was actually delighted. An opportunity to impress Rongrong had arrived right at his doorstep. Without hesitation, he stepped toward the spiky haired man and threw a punch.
The man responded with his own punch.
When their fists collided, the impact created a powerful air shockwave.
Tang San remained standing firm, a smile still on his face, while the spiky haired man was pushed back, shock flashing across his expression.
Just as they were about to continue, a middle-aged man named Director Ao arrived and stepped between them, stopping the fight.
After warning them, the spiky haired man, whose name was revealed to be Kuang Xi, apologized and left the room.
Director Ao then informed them that in their next match, they would be facing Kuang Xi's team, and warned them of how dangerous they were. Every opponent who had faced Kuang Xi's team had either ended up crippled or dead.
Mubai and the others were shocked, their faces pale, but Tang San dismissed the warning and did not take them seriously.
After wishing them good luck, Director Ao left.
Yu Xiaogang soon returned with information about their opponents:
- One Rhino martial spirit user.
- Two attack-type martial spirits.
-Two speed-type martial spirits.
- One disc-type support martial spirit.
- One spider-type control martial spirit.
All of them are above level 35.
Just as Yu Xiaogang was about to discuss the strategy, Flender returned, bringing with him two people around eighteen to twenty years old.
"These are the temporary teammates who will play with you from now on," Flender introduced. "Bai Lang, level thirty-five, his martial spirit is the Silver Moon Wolf, an agility-type. And Hu Ge, level thirty-four, a weapon-type martial spirit master. His martial spirit is the spear."
After introductions, they all greeted one another and discussed their abilities.
Bai Lang and Hu Ge were surprised that Tang San, with a Blue Silver Grass martial spirit, was considered the strongest among them. Though curious, they didn't ask further questions, it wasn't their business, and they were being paid to participate in these battles.
Yu Xiaogang, wanted his disciple to stand out even more in the fights. To achieve this, he needed everyone to follow Tang San's instructions during battle. So, he began his act.
"Since you now know each other's abilities, you also know that my disciple Tang San is the strongest among you. He is the controller of the group, so all of you must follow his commands during battle."
As he said this, he cast a meaningful look toward Tang San.
Tang San was delighted at the opportunity to command the group. Seeing his teacher's look, he understood the hidden meaning.
"Now, I will explain the strategy," Tang San began confidently. "Mubai will hold their leader, and Fatty…"
Tang San quickly analyzed the opponents' team, assigning each ally a target, and finally declared that he would personally take on the enemy support-type opponent.
His logic was that he would eliminate the support first and then return to provide backup for his teammates.
Flender felt that something was wrong with this strategy, but he chose not to interfere. He had already left training matters to Yu Xiaogang, so he simply cast them one last look before heading to the spectator seats.
If Wu Lan had been there, he would have cursed Tang San on the spot. Every target Tang San assigned to his allies was one they could not possibly defeat quickly. Tang San's real intention was clear: he wanted Mubai and the others to hold off the enemy, exhausting their stamina and soul power, while he swooped in to defeat the opponents himself.
If the team won, all the credit would go to Tang San. If they lost, people would still praise Tang San for trying so hard to carry the team.
A brilliant plan for fame, no matter the outcome.
Yu Xiaogang's eyes lit up with excitement upon hearing his disciple's idea. He understood Tang San's plan perfectly. No one else grasped the true meaning of this "strategy."
Thus, teacher and disciple walked the same path, fooling others together.
Wu Lan would have clapped sarcastically and said, "If I didn't already know Tang Hao, I would have thought the two of you were father and son."
Wait, according to Tang San himself, they actually are father and son.
Once a teacher, always a father.
[Author's Note:
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