"What are you laughing at?!"
Tang San looked at Ye Qiu, frowned, and his face was cold.
"Although I'm not entirely clear on all of Grandmaster's theories, he should have some understanding of the limits of spirit rings that a Spirit Master can absorb, right?"
Ye Qiu pulled Xiao Wu behind him and looked at Tang San and Yu Xiaogang, who was still standing with his hands behind his back, with a half-smile.
Tang San glanced at Ye Qiu and Xiao Wu's tightly clasped hands, a cold glint flashed in his eyes, and he quickly said, "That's natural. These things were researched, summarized, and published by my teacher! I don't know how many Spirit Masters he has benefited…"
"Then, Grandmaster, in the theories you've published, what is the limit for the second spirit ring?" Ye Qiu remained calm and collected, with a puzzled expression, as if genuinely seeking guidance.
"Seven hundred and sixty-four years!"
Tang San knew Yu Xiaogang's theories by heart. For such a simple question, he didn't need to think at all.
Yu Xiaogang was also very satisfied with Tang San's performance.
As expected of his disciple, he nodded contentedly.
Seeing Yu Xiaogang's lack of self-awareness, Ye Qiu disdainfully curled his lips: "Then, do I need to ask Zhuqing to summon her Spirit for you to see?"
Upon hearing this, Tang San froze in the distance. He was about to retort, but no sound came out.
Yu Xiaogang's pupils constricted slightly.
He had already seen the information on several Shrek academy students earlier.
Naturally, he knew that Zhu Zhuqing's second spirit ring was a thousand-year one.
Dai Mubai and the others also knew.
At this moment, their gazes towards Yu Xiaogang were filled with surprise and uncertainty.
Flender hesitated, looking at Yu Xiaogang as if asking for help.
He also didn't know what to say.
He was good at tricking people, but academic discussions were simply not his area of expertise!
Even Tang San couldn't refute Ye Qiu.
The first time he saw Zhu Zhuqing's thousand-year second spirit ring, he also couldn't believe it.
He even began to doubt Yu Xiaogang's theory.
This was a good opportunity for his teacher to clear his doubts.
He wanted his teacher to utterly defeat Ye Qiu!
Tang San looked at his beloved teacher with hope, hoping he could provide a reasonable explanation.
Yu Xiaogang remained silent until everyone's gaze fell upon him.
When he had no choice but to speak, he finally extended a hand, clenched it into a fist, and placed it on his chin.
He slowly and solemnly began to speak, saying, "Zhu Zhuqing is just an anomaly! She cannot represent the entire Spirit Master community!"
Ye Qiu looked at Yu Xiaogang mockingly.
What kind of explanation was that?
Yu Xiaogang naturally knew that this explanation would not convince the crowd.
His eyes trembled, and he was clearly thinking rapidly.
Suddenly, he caught a slight odor from his arm.
His stern face finally relaxed.
Looking at Zhu Zhuqing, a look of confidence appeared on his face.
"If I'm not mistaken, she must have had some fortuitous encounter… for example, a Spirit Beast's sacrifice."
"Sacrifice?!" Tang San's face alternated between green and pale.
This word made him think of his heaven-defying third spirit ring.
At the same time, he agreed with Yu Xiaogang's guess.
This was indeed a very good explanation.
But he still couldn't let go of why he was sacrificed by a Stinky Skunk that was less than a hundred years old?!
He glared hatefully at the still calm Ye Qiu, wishing he could kill him immediately!
Ye Qiu was only slightly surprised by Yu Xiaogang's guess.
As expected of an academic, his mind worked quickly.
However, the expressions of Zhu Zhuqing and the other girls were more obvious.
And when Yu Xiaogang saw the surprised expressions of Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong, he immediately beamed with joy.
"It seems my guess was correct!"
Flender's face showed delight: "Haha… Xiaogang! Your theory is indeed the strongest!"
"Ye Qiu! What else do you have to say?!" Tang San was also happy for his teacher.
Ye Qiu didn't speak. Without Tang San's original third spirit ring, it was indeed difficult to challenge him on this point.
However, he wouldn't end it like this.
"Grandmaster is indeed a bit clever, and your guess is correct! However…" Ye Qiu nodded, confirming his guess was correct.
He paused, and then, under Dai Mubai's bloodshot gaze, he turned and took Zhu Zhuqing's small hand beside him.
"However, I want to ask, what is the limit for the third spirit ring?"
"Over seventeen hundred years!" Yu Xiaogang frowned, feeling a bad premonition in his heart, but he had no choice but to answer.
"But Zhuqing's third spirit ring was truly absorbed from a Spirit Beast of nineteen hundred years?!"
As Ye Qiu's voice fell, a cat's meow echoed in everyone's ears.
Zhu Zhuqing, her face slightly flushed, very cooperatively activated her Spirit.
One yellow, two purple, three spirit rings appeared beneath her feet.
After accepting the sacrifice of the thousand-year Dark Shadow devil spider, she clearly felt a significant improvement in her physical fitness.
And since her second spirit ring was already a thousand-year one, she naturally wasn't content with her third spirit ring being ordinary.
Driven by her desire to become stronger, she took the risk of absorbing a nineteen-hundred-year third spirit ring!
When the absorption ended, she still felt a bit of regret.
Because the absorption process was simply too easy… She told Ye Qiu about this, and he even spanked her… in very embarrassing places, up and down…
"I wonder how Grandmaster will explain this situation? I imagine recognizing the approximate spirit ring age by its color shouldn't be too difficult for you, right?"
Yu Xiaogang's face was grim. He could tell that Zhu Zhuqing's third spirit ring's age indeed exceeded seventeen hundred years!
Tang San was also stunned for a moment.
He hated Ye Qiu even more in his heart, and he became even more convinced that he could have absorbed that two-thousand-year Man Faced Demon Spider spirit ring back then!
At the same time, he looked at his teacher with some doubt.
This theory indeed seemed to have errors.
Then, in the past, could he have absorbed slightly older spirit rings when he was at the first and second spirit rings?!
Yu Xiaogang, who had originally remained silent, saw that even his disciple was beginning to doubt him, and immediately became agitated.
He opened his mouth, about to speak.
But Ye Qiu preempted him: "Grandmaster isn't going to say that Zhuqing's third spirit ring also came from a sacrifice, and that we deliberately made it up to embarrass you, are you?"
A hint of panic appeared in Yu Xiaogang's eyes, but overall, he remained calm.
He flicked his sleeve, his face stern, and glared at Ye Qiu: "How dare you speak nonsense? How can you slander someone's innocence out of thin air?!"
"Then, Grandmaster, please provide a reasonable explanation?!" Ye Qiu's tone was unhurried, with a slight smile, as if he were truly conversing with a scholar.
With the facts laid bare, Yu Xiaogang had no clue, so he could only resort to vague statements, acting like a dead pig unafraid of boiling water.
"I've already said it before, Zhu Zhuqing is an anomaly! The entire Spirit Master's World…"
At this moment, Dai Mubai and the others also began to doubt the credibility of the Grandmaster their Dean spoke of.
"Alright, alright!"
Seeing that the momentum he had painstakingly built for Yu Xiaogang was about to crumble, Flender couldn't sit still anymore. He was about to intervene when he was interrupted by a rough exclamation.
"Thirty-ninth rank!"
"Old Zhao, why are you so jumpy?!" Flender looked at him in confusion.
"Flender, Zhu Zhuqing's cultivation has actually reached thirty-ninth rank!"
Zhao Wuji, who had no interest in this theoretical debate, discovered something different about Zhu Zhuqing!
Last time at the inn, he was busy stopping the conflict between Tang San and Ye Qiu.
But he hadn't noticed the cultivation levels of Zhu Zhuqing and Xiao Wu.
And Dai Mubai hadn't reported his discovery to him afterward.
Now, he was staring at Zhu Zhuqing with wide, astonished eyes.
Flender was also startled and quickly looked at Zhu Zhuqing.
"It really is thirty-ninth rank!? How is this possible?! How old is she?"
Yu Xiaogang and the others all changed their expressions drastically.
Even Dai Mubai, who already had some understanding, was no exception.
When Zhu Zhuqing first enrolled, she was clearly only at thirty-second rank.
But in just over half a month, how could she have broken through so much?!
"A thirty-ninth rank at less than twelve years old has already broken the record for the entire continent!"
"She might even break through to Spirit Ancestor before she's twelve! This is simply a peerless prodigy!"
Flender's face was filled with ecstasy.
These were students he had taught; when they went out in the future, they would bear the Shrek imprint.
How could he not be delighted!
Unlike his ecstasy, Yu Xiaogang was filled with doubt.
"Impossible, I've never heard of a Spirit Master who can advance so quickly? Zhu Zhuqing, did you perhaps use some method that overdraws your potential?"
"Overdraw potential?" Flender was stunned for a moment.
When he was adventuring in the Spirit Master's World, he had indeed seen some unorthodox methods.
Thinking of this, his face quickly turned grim.
Just as he was about to ask, a sharp retort suddenly came.
"Overdraw your head! There are many things you trash haven't heard of! How can you make random conclusions based on deceptive practices?!"
Xiao Wu, who had been grinding her teeth in anger beside them, finally couldn't hold back anymore.
She had already endured him for a long time back at Notting College.
Now, her life was not in danger, so she wasn't afraid of anything.
She grabbed Zhu Zhuqing's arm, pointed a finger at Yu Xiaogang's nose, and began to scold him loudly.
"Presumptuous! How dare you speak to your teacher like that?" Yu Xiaogang's face darkened, and he sternly rebuked.
Upon hearing the word "trash," he had already lost his so-called Grandmaster demeanor.
His eyes revealed ruthlessness, and his face was distorted.
Tang San also didn't want his teacher and Xiao Wu to clash.
"Xiao Wu, teacher is just concerned about Zhu Zhuqing."
"Hmph! Shut your stinky mouth! This trash is your teacher, but he's not my Xiao Wu Jie's teacher!" Xiao Wu didn't even look at him, simply turning her small face away.
"Xiao Wu… you!" Tang San was scolded and couldn't speak.
Xiao Wu looked angrily at Yu Xiaogang.
"You trash, watch closely, your Xiao Wu Jie is already at thirty-eighth rank!"
Saying this, Xiao Wu removed the disguise on her cultivation.
A red light flashed, and three spirit rings, two yellow and one purple, pulsed beneath her feet.
She looked at Yu Xiaogang with disdain.
"Does Zhuqing have any overdrawn potential? How could Xiao Wu Jie not know?!"
After revealing her cultivation, Xiao Wu deliberately pressed her aura towards Yu Xiaogang.
Flender noticed in time and blocked in front of him.
But Yu Xiaogang's face was still somewhat pale.
Looking at Xiao Wu's cultivation, he was somewhat disbelieving.
His face was full of shock.
"It really is thirty-eighth rank!" Zhao Wuji's eyes widened again.
It had only been a few days since school started.
He had taken them to hunt for spirit rings during that time, and he hadn't even noticed the change in their cultivation levels.
"What in the World is going on?!"
Not only was Flender curious, but Dai Mubai and the others were as well.
"Hmph! No matter what you say, aside from some unorthodox methods that overdraw potential, such progress is simply impossible!"
Yu Xiaogang recovered himself and snorted coldly at Xiao Wu, still convinced that their advancement was abnormal.
"Zhu Zhuqing, Xiao Wu! How exactly did you improve? Don't joke with your future!" Flender said in a deep voice, a strong sense of gravity flashing in his eyes.
"Dean Flander, rest assured, their improvement will not have any problems!"
Ye Qiu chuckled and stepped forward.
"What a joke! It seems fine now, but who knows when side effects might appear! For example, being forever unable to break through to Titled Douluo, and so on!"
Yu Xiaogang sneered.
He came from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan and had once stayed in Spirit City.
Even in top powers like the Upper Three Sects and Spirit Hall, such rapid improvement was unheard of!
Xiao Wu snorted coldly: "Hmph! You ignorant old trash are the real joke! Zhuqing and I both consumed Immortal Herbs that have no side effects whatsoever!"
"What?! Immortal Herbs! How is this possible?!"
Yu Xiaogang was still wondering what the Immortal Herbs Xiao Wu spoke of were.
But his good disciple had already cried out in shock.
"Xiao Wu! Have you really consumed Immortal Herbs?!" Tang San walked over excitedly, even reaching out to grab Xiao Wu.
"Do you want to die?!"
A bloody glint flashed in Ye Qiu's eyes and then disappeared.
He moved to block Tang San, looking at him with murderous intent.
This was something Ye Qiu and Zhuqing had discussed. The sudden surge in the two girls' cultivation needed a reasonable explanation!
Tang San's face changed. After his and his teacher's research, he understood that most of Ye Qiu's Spirit Ability activations were likely related to his line of sight.
He immediately averted his gaze, not daring to look directly.
Xiao Wu frowned, held Ye Qiu's arm, and looked at Tang San with a cold expression.
"Xiao Wu… is what you said true?!" Tang San suppressed the pain in his heart and softened his expression.
"I'm too lazy to lie to you guys!" Xiao Wu turned her head away, unwilling to look at their grim faces.
"!" The shock on Tang San's face lingered for a long time.
He understood Xiao Wu.
This expression and tone absolutely meant she wasn't lying.
But how was this possible?!
Those were the legendary Immortal Herbs!
"How could this be?" Tang San murmured. No one understood the value of Immortal Herbs better than him.
Even in his previous World, they were only legendary items!
Such things should only exist in heaven; they are rarely seen in the human World!
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they stole the creation of heaven and earth!
"Little San, what exactly are these Immortal Herbs she spoke of? Are they some kind of medicinal herb?" Yu Xiaogang looked at his disciple in confusion.
It seemed that everyone present, except for Tang San and Ye Qiu, knew nothing about Immortal Herbs.
Tang San was already too preoccupied to pay attention to them. His lips trembled slightly, and a hint of shyness appeared on his face.
Ye Qiu frowned, looking strangely at his hesitant expression.
And Xiao Wu, who was leaning against him, couldn't help but get goosebumps.
She angrily cursed: "Tang San! If you dare to show such a disgusting expression again, Xiao Wu Jie will kick your head off!"
Tang San's shy expression stiffened, then suddenly became awkward, as if his facial muscles were somewhat out of control.
He slowly took a few deep breaths.
"Xiao Wu… do you… have any extra Immortal Herbs?"
"Hm?" Ye Qiu looked at Tang San in front of him in shock, not expecting him to be so shameless.
Xiao Wu also looked at him with an idiotic expression.
She sneered: "Tang San? Is your brain broken? What are you?"
Amidst Tang San's grim and slightly distorted expression, Xiao Wu intimately pressed herself against Ye Qiu.
She smiled sweetly at Ye Qiu and softly said, "Even if I did, I would only give them to my Xiao Qiu!"
"Pfft haha, Xiao Wu is right! Tang San… stop being so delusional!" Ning Rongrong was also amused by Tang San's embarrassed look.
"Xiao Wu… what kind of bewitching potion did he give you?! These are Immortal Herbs!" Tang San ignored them, still gritting his teeth, his fists clenched.
His fingernails were almost digging into his flesh.
He said heartbrokenly, "Xiao Wu, do you know what Immortal Herbs are?!"
"Of course, I do!" Xiao Wu looked coldly at Tang San, smiling meaningfully.
"Tang San, have you forgotten? You told me all of this!"
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