"Could it be that the theories Teacher spoke of are wrong?"
"Has the path of a Soul Master I've walked all this way been entirely incorrect?"
"Is Blue Silver Grass truly a waste Martial Soul not worth cultivating? Should I have cultivated the Clear Sky Hammer from the start?"
For the first time, in Tang San's heart, regarding the order of the Martial Souls he cultivated...
...a profound doubt emerged.
However...
...his teacher, Yu Xiaogang, had said...
...that if he first cultivated the Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul to the Titled Douluo level...
...and then added Soul Rings to the Clear Sky Hammer...
...it wouldn't be impossible to add nine high-quality ten-thousand-year Soul Rings at that time.
By then...
...his strength would be incomparably powerful.
That being said...
...relying solely on Blue Silver Grass...
...could he really reach the day he becomes a Titled Douluo?
After all, Teacher's words were just theory.
He now had to face reality.
Ever since promoting to Spirit Elder...
...Tang San had clearly felt the gap between his cultivation and the others in Shrek growing wider and wider.
This gap was not something that could be made up for by martial arts or Hidden Weapons.
It was an innate disparity in the quality of their Martial Souls.
Take Ma Hongjun for example; he soaked himself in brothels every day and didn't cultivate properly.
Yet, relying on the advantage of his high-quality Martial Soul...
...his rank was still higher than Tang San's.
In contrast, even though Tang San cultivated with his life on the line...
...he still couldn't compare to those with high-quality Martial Souls.
"Maybe I should switch to cultivating the Clear Sky Hammer! It's not too late to start now."
"After all, this is the world's number one Tool Spirit. If I hadn't chosen to cultivate Blue Silver Grass but the Clear Sky Hammer instead, my strength would definitely be greater than it is now!"
"Moreover, even if I cultivate the Clear Sky Hammer now, it shouldn't be much of a problem."
"My Blue Silver Grass has only added three Soul Rings so far. As long as the other Soul Ring slots are kept free..."
"...once I cultivate the Clear Sky Hammer to Titled Douluo, I can turn back and add Soul Rings to the Blue Silver Grass; the effect will be the same."
"Good! I'll do it that way."
"However, this matter must absolutely not be known by Teacher."
Having made up his mind...
...within Tang San's originally dim eyes...
...fighting Martial Soul reignited.
But immediately after, new problems followed one after another.
Because the matter of switching to his second Martial Soul could not be known by others...
...he had to go hunt for Soul Rings alone.
But with his current strength...
...hunting for a suitable Soul Ring was as difficult as reaching the heavens.
"I must find a way."
...Meanwhile.
Outside the room.
Xiao Wu pressed her rabbit ears against the door.
She listened to the movements inside the house with a serious expression.
Ever since Tang San returned to the academy after the qualifiers ended...
...he had locked himself in his room for three days.
During these three days, Tang San hadn't eaten, hadn't drunk water, and hadn't left the room.
Seeing that her third brother's current condition was even more serious than when he was defeated by Jin Mian last time...
...Xiao Wu grew even more worried.
Fearing that Tang San might do something rash, she guarded outside the door without leaving for a single step.
And not far behind her...
...there was another person whose face was full of worry.
It was Yu Xiaogang.
At this moment, Yu Xiaogang was walking back and forth with his hands behind his back.
Since learning that his disciple Tang San was in a state of self-isolation again...
...he had been guarding outside the door.
He hadn't closed his eyes for three days and three nights, eating and staying outside the door.
Originally, he wanted to go in and offer some advice.
But peering through the crack in the door, he saw that Tang San's state was even worse than it was three days ago.
He understood that the current Tang San could no longer be restored by mere coaxing or empty promises.
He had to figure it out for himself.
After walking back and forth who knows how many times, Yu Xiaogang looked at Xiao Wu and asked softly, "Xiao Wu, how is it?"
Xiao Wu didn't speak, she only shook her head.
"Sigh."
Yu Xiaogang sighed again.
Just then, Liu Erlong walked over carrying three portions of lunch.
"Xiao Wu, after you finish eating, go back and rest first."
"Xiaogang and I will watch over things here."
"If Little San comes out, I will notify you."
Xiao Wu hesitated for a moment.
But having not closed her eyes for three days, she indeed couldn't hold on much longer.
So she took the lunch and said, "Then I'll trouble Teacher Erlong."
Then, Xiao Wu left.
Afterward, Liu Erlong looked at the haggard Yu Xiaogang.
"Xiaogang, after you finish lunch, go back and rest for a bit too."
"I'll watch over things here."
Liu Erlong spoke with concern.
However, she wasn't worried about Tang San, but about Yu Xiaogang.
Yu Xiaogang, who was already famished, took the lunch and finished it in no time.
Then, ignoring his image, he wiped the grease from his mouth.
He sighed, "It's not that I don't want to leave, but I really can't set my mind at ease."
"You haven't been in contact with Little San for long, so you don't understand his character."
"This disciple of mine usually keeps a low profile; on the surface, he looks mature and capable, doing everything steadily, but in reality, his self-esteem is stronger than anyone's. One or two failures would be fine."
"But after several consecutive failures, his self-confidence has taken a severe blow."
"Especially that one called Jin Mian; he dealt the most severe blow to Little San."
"Not only did he defeat the Shrek Seven Devils single-handedly without even activating his Martial Soul, but he also broke through the Hidden Weapons Little San was so proud of."
"It will likely be very difficult for Little San to walk out of this one."
"So I must stay here to prevent Little San from doing something rash."
All along...
...Yu Xiaogang had spared no effort in wanting to cultivate Tang San into an unprecedented peerless powerhouse.
This was so the world would bow down before his invincible theories.
To this end, he would instill the mindset of a genius into Tang San every day.
And he also wanted to build the Shrek Team into a team that exclusively served Tang San alone.
Making others the green leaves to highlight his disciple's outstanding talent.
But who would have thought...
...a small deviation occurred in the plan.
The other members of Shrek, instead of becoming green leaves, had surpassed Tang San.
Looking back at Tang San...
...after mysteriously becoming a Spirit Elder...
...his cultivation speed began to plummet.
Now, he had even collapsed because of losing matches consecutively.
One must know...
...the All-Continent Elite Soul Master Tournament is held every five years.
In other words...
...if Tang San cannot make a name for himself in the tournament this time...
...then he would have to wait another five years.
Five years!
That's five whole years!
He, Yu Xiaogang, was only a Level 29 Spirit Grandmaster; how many five-year periods could he have?
So this time, Tang San must become famous throughout the entire Spirit Master's world.
But he also felt that the cultivation limit of Blue Silver Grass was right there.
To improve rapidly in a short period...
...was simply impossible.
Unless he let Little San switch to cultivating the Clear Sky Hammer now.
As soon as this thought surfaced...
...Yu Xiaogang gave himself a hard slap in his heart.
If he let Tang San switch to cultivating the Clear Sky Hammer now...
...wouldn't his twin spirits talent go to waste?
How could he waste his disciple's talent for the sake of such a thing?
That was his own personal disciple!
But then again...
...having finally reached this step...
...if he gave up this opportunity...
...then he would have to wait another five years.
After thinking it over and over...
...Yu Xiaogang decided that if it really came down to it, he would just have to let his disciple suffer a bit.
After all, he really didn't want to wait any longer.
He believed Tang San would surely be able to understand him...
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