Chapter 10: The Shock of Yu Xiaogang and Tang San
2024-07-17 Author: Xianyu Wangyue
While Old Jack and the young gatekeeper were arguing, a middle-aged man had already appeared not far from Aotian, watching in silence with a frown.
This middle-aged man was none other than Yu Xiaogang. He had short hair and a very ordinary appearance, not much different from before, only much more weathered.
He also carried an air of laziness and despondency.
When he saw the young gatekeeper get up and rush towards Tang San, Yu Xiaogang finally spoke, "Alright, stop."
Hearing the voice, the youth halted his charge and looked angrily at the person who had stopped him.
He was about to curse, but when he saw it was Grandmaster, the anger on his face vanished, instantly replaced by a fawning smile.
"Grandmaster, it's you."
In front of Grandmaster, the young gatekeeper no longer dared to make a move.
Tang San shot a cold glance at the youth and lowered his arm.
If someone hadn't suddenly intervened, this youth would already be a corpse.
Tang San turned to look at the newcomer, not saying a word.
If this newly arrived middle-aged man was as overbearing as that youth, he wouldn't mind sending them both to their graves.
Grandmaster glanced at the youth and snorted coldly, then turned to Old Jack, saying, "Old sir, may I see the certificate from Spirit Hall?"
Old Jack quickly handed over Tang San's Awakening certificate.
Grandmaster looked at the certificate, sizing up Tang San from time to time. A look of startled uncertainty appeared in his eyes, which then transformed into a hint of joy.
Tang San frowned; this middle-aged man's gaze made him very uncomfortable.
Grandmaster bowed slightly and said, "The certificate is real. Old sir, the gatekeeper was rude to you just now. On behalf of the Academy, I apologize. Please entrust the child to me. I will take him inside for registration."
Old Jack quickly replied, "No need to apologize, we were also in the wrong."
Afterward, he gave Tang San a few words of instruction before departing.
Grandmaster glanced at the young gatekeeper and said faintly, "If there is a next time, you can scram."
The youth looked terrified, repeatedly saying he wouldn't dare as he scurried to the side.
Grandmaster looked down at Tang San, a stiff smile forced onto his face, as if he hadn't smiled in a very long time.
"Wait here for a moment," he said.
Then, he looked towards Aotian, who was not far away, and beckoned. "Child, come here."
Grandmaster had noticed this handsome child the moment he had approached.
Aotian's appearance and temperament were simply too eye-catching; even Grandmaster, who had seen the world and weathered many storms, was stunned.
He guessed that this child was also here to enroll. With such an extraordinary appearance and aura, he grew curious. What could this child's Martial Soul possibly be?
Hearing Grandmaster call him, Aotian felt a little puzzled, but he still walked over.
With the stiff smile still on his face, Grandmaster looked at Aotian, who had come to stand before him, and asked, "Are you also here to enroll?"
Aotian nodded without speaking.
"May I see your Martial Soul Awakening certificate?" Grandmaster asked.
Aotian took out his certificate and handed it over. He was curious to see what Yu Xiaogang was up to, and whether he wanted to "guide" him a bit.
The moment Aotian walked over, Tang San's gaze had been fixed on him.
He had noticed this child earlier and had been quite stunned himself.
Now, observing Aotian at close range, Tang San felt an inexplicable sense of inferiority sprout in his heart.
The other boy's clothes were bright and splendid, his appearance one in ten thousand. Standing together, Tang San felt like a mere foil, so dim and lackluster in comparison.
"When did I start caring about a mere mortal shell? Powerful strength is the root of everything. Being good-looking is useless," Tang San thought with a start, quickly admonishing himself.
The moment Grandmaster saw Aotian's certificate, he was stupefied.
"Another one with Innate Full Spirit Power," he couldn't help but exclaim.
He had already been surprised when he saw Tang San's certificate. Now that another one with Innate Full Spirit Power had appeared, he found it difficult to remain calm.
According to his research, in the last hundred years, only nineteen individuals with Innate Full Spirit Power had appeared in the entire Heaven Dou Empire and Star Luo Empire combined.
Yet today, he had encountered two at once.
The population of the Continent was unimaginably vast. For him to meet two children with Innate Full Spirit Power at the same time was a one-in-a-hundred-million chance.
"Could this be fate's will? Is this Heaven taking pity on my unjust destiny and compensating me?" Grandmaster couldn't help but look up at the sky.
He had already made up his mind. No matter what, he had to take these two children as his disciples. Such excellent aptitude absolutely could not be wasted.
When Grandmaster exclaimed, Tang San also looked at Aotian in shock.
Not only was this child before him outstanding in appearance, but his talent was no weaker than his own. At this moment, Tang San actually felt a sense of defeat.
Compared to this handsome child, he truly was a bit dim and lackluster.
"When did I start comparing myself to a little brat? I still have other advantages—my Second Martial Soul, the Tang Sect's ultimate arts. I, Tang San, am not weaker than anyone," Tang San realized with a jolt.
Just after exclaiming, Grandmaster's brows furrowed as he stared at Aotian's Martial Soul, a little puzzled.
A Golden Dragon Martial Soul. He had never even heard of such a thing.
He had once worked at Spirit Hall for many years. With his low strength and trash-tier cultivation talent, he was destined to be a low-level attendant. But by chance, he came into contact with Bibi Dong and won her favor with his unique insights on Martial Souls.
Later, by leveraging Bibi Dong's authority, he gained access to Spirit Hall's various research materials and data. It was only then that he was able to summarize his Theory of the Ten Core Competencies of Martial Souls from the vast data collected by Spirit Hall.
He knew of hundreds, even thousands, of Martial Souls, but he had never heard of a Golden Dragon Martial Soul.
The most supreme of the Dragon-type Martial Souls was the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul, which was also the strongest Beast Martial Soul. Yu Xiaogang guessed that this Golden Dragon Martial Soul was likely inferior to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Martial Soul.
"Your name is Aotian. Child, could you let me see your Martial Soul?" Grandmaster looked at Aotian with anticipation.
He had dedicated his entire life to research. Now that a new Martial Soul had appeared, how could he not be excited?
"Sorry, I don't show my Martial Soul to just anyone," Aotian refused.
He wasn't here to learn from Yu Xiaogang, so why should he be at his beck and call?
He guessed that, in all likelihood, Yu Xiaogang wanted to take him as a disciple.
Grandmaster was stunned, and the atmosphere instantly became a little awkward.
"You don't need to worry. I live right here in Nuoding Academy. Everyone calls me Grandmaster," Grandmaster quickly explained, thinking the child was a bit too wary.
"I don't care what Grandmaster you are. I don't want to show you, and it wouldn't matter even if the Pope came," Aotian said bluntly.
"You child, how can you be so impolite? This is a teacher of the Academy. You will be studying here in the future," Tang San couldn't help but lecture.
"Alright, alright, I won't look," Grandmaster said hastily.
There would be plenty of opportunities to see Aotian's Martial Soul in the future; there was no rush. It wouldn't be good to make things unpleasant.
"I'll take you two inside," he said, reaching out a hand to take Tang San's.
He extended his other hand towards Aotian, but Aotian did not reach out.
Grandmaster didn't mind. He retracted his hand and led the way with Tang San.
Aotian followed behind, a faint smile on his lips. If all went as expected, he would soon see Tang San kneel and accept a master.
(end of chapter)