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'Should I take Little San straight to the Blue Silver Forest for his martial soul's second awakening?' Tang Hao wondered briefly before shaking his head.
Tang San's mental strength wasn't up to par yet, he couldn't sense the Blue Silver King hiding in the forest. Tang Hao figured his son would need to hit at least level sixty before that was possible.
More pressing was the fact that even if they found the Blue Silver King and it agreed to awaken Tang San's Blue Silver Grass, none of it mattered unless Tang San reached level forty first. With his constant stomach issues, even handing over a soul bone early wouldn't push him past that wall.
The only choice left was to start adding soul rings to the Clear Sky Hammer sooner than planned.
Anger simmered in Tang Hao's chest. This was all Yu Xiaogang's fault. His son,a rare genius with twin martial souls, had been dragged down, barely able to grow his soul power because of those wretched side effects.
"Father, can I add a soul ring to my second martial soul now?" Tang San asked, his voice tinged with hope.
He'd been itching to make the switch. The Blue Silver Grass felt like a burden—Ma Hongjun's flames could smother it easily, and Ning Tian's Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Sword made it look even worse. Tang San was fed up with feeling powerless.
Tang Hao gave a short nod and glanced at the door. "Come in."
The door swung open, and Yu Xiaogang hurried inside, his face tight with worry. Before Tang Hao could say a word, he blurted, "Clear Sky Douluo, you can't let Little San add a soul ring to his second martial soul! You're capping his potential, it'll destroy him!"
Smack!
That was the last straw for Tang Hao. His hand lashed out, striking Yu Xiaogang from across the room. The force sent him crashing through the door and into the inn's hallway wall, leaving a dent.
"Hmph. Tang San is my son. I don't need you meddling in how I raise him. Mind your own business. Once he's got his soul ring, I'll bring him back. Little San, let's go."
With that, Tang Hao smashed through the window and disappeared into the night.
"Clear Sky Douluo, wait! There has to be another way… Little San, don't go!" Yu Xiaogang called out, slumped against the wall. Blood mixed with spit trickled from his mouth, and a few teeth were missing, making his words slur.
If Tang San switched now, he'd never outshine Bibi Dong.
Tang San shot him a look; cold and empty, stripped of the respect he once had. This man had nearly ruined him. If not for Yu Xiaogang being his teacher and Tang San's own sense of duty, he might've written him off entirely.
"Teacher, please tell Xiao Wu and the dean not to worry. I'll be back," Tang San said, his tone flat. Then he stepped lightly, using the Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track, and followed his father out the window.
The noise woke the rest of the Shrek. As Tang San vanished, Flender and Zhao Wuji rushed in, followed by Xiao Wu, Dai Mubai, Oscar, and Ma Hongjun.
"Xiaogang, what happened? Who hit you?" Flender asked, eyes wide.
"Where's Tang San?" Zhao Wuji added, his voice tight with dread. If anything happened to Tang Hao's son, they'd all pay for it.
"He's fine. His father took him," Yu Xiaogang replied, struggling to stand with Flender's help. His missing teeth garbled his speech.
"Then what's this about?" Flender stared at the swollen, red mark on Yu Xiaogang's face; a clear handprint. Anger flared up fast.
It had to be Tang Hao. That man had no shame, throwing his Titled Douluo weight around like a bully. First, he chased off Shrek's top students, and now he'd beaten up his best friend.
Zhao Wuji's face darkened too, a mix of relief and unease settling in. If it'd been him in Yu Xiaogang's place, he might not have walked away so easily.
Xiao Wu stood there, her expression grim, shoulders shaking slightly. She'd known a Titled Douluo was watching her—Ning Tian had warned her but knowing and facing it were worlds apart. Without Ning Tian as her support, she'd have crumbled.
Dai Mubai broke the silence, his voice soft and a little high-pitched. "Dean, is Third Brother's father really that strong?"
Ever since their martial soul fusion, Dai Mubai had warmed up to Tang San. He didn't see him as a wreck anymore or hold a grudge for past fights. Instead, there was an odd bond between them. Tang San felt it too, no longer bothered by Dai Mubai's quirks.
"Don't ask what you don't need to know. All of you, back to bed," Flender snapped, throwing a sharp look at Oscar and Ma Hongjun, who seemed curious too.
After they scattered, Flender turned to Xiao Wu, softening his tone. "Go rest, Xiao Wu. Tang San's with his father, he'll be okay."
"Yes, Dean," she replied, heading to her room. Her lone figure lingered in the hallway.
Flender, Yu Xiaogang, and Zhao Wuji assumed she was anxious over Tang San. They exchanged sighs and said nothing more.
Ning Tian had no clue Tang Hao had taken Tang San off to grab a soul ring for his second martial soul. If he knew, he'd probably be grinning ear to ear.
........
Meanwhile, as the sky lightened, Ning Tian, Zhu Zhuqing, and Ning Rongrong climbed into Qian Renxue's carriage, headed for Heaven Dou Imperial Academy. Ning Fengzhi and the sect's two Titled Douluos saw them off.
Ning Rongrong, ever the chatterbox, spilled everything about Ning Tian to Qian Renxue with barely a nudge—his two thousand-year soul rings, how he'd crushed Dai Mubai and Tang San's fusion skill in one move, and how he'd guessed Tang San's martial soul problems right away.
In short, she hyped him up big time, making Ning Tian sound like a living legend.
Ning Tian wiped a bead of sweat from his brow but stayed calm. He knew Qian Renxue's type, she respected strength and loved a good challenge. The more talented, good-looking, and sharp someone was, the less likely she'd mess with them. She'd just try to pull them to her side.
So, he answered her questions without holding back.
After hearing his fresh take on martial soul training, Qian Renxue's eyes lit up with interest. She studied him like he was a puzzle to solve, not realizing the sharpest players often play the fool.
Half an hour later, they arrived at the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy. With the prince's support and their own skills, they skipped the petty trouble Shrek faced in the original story. After a quick meeting with the three education committee members, they were in.
"Brother Ning Tian, your enrollment's all set," Xue Qinghe said with a warm smile. "If you need anything, just let a teacher know, and they'll get word to me."
"No need for that," Ning Tian replied. "You probably already know my Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Sword's a wood-type martial soul, so I'm into plants and stuff. If you could hook me up with a storage soul tool that holds living things, that'd be perfect. Oh, and we'll need to hunt soul rings in the Sunset Forest eventually, but I don't know the place. A decent map would help too. And maybe…"
He didn't hold back, rattling off his wishlist. Qian Renxue's face twitched just a bit. These weren't big asks for her, but the guy had no shame laying it all out.
Still, it worked in her favor. If he had needs, she could use that.
Her smile returned, bright and easy. "Don't worry, Brother Ning Tian. I'll have everything sent over tonight."
"Thanks, Brother Xue. You're my best bro from now on," Ning Tian said, throwing an arm around him in a quick hug.
"Oh, really? It's an honor to get a nod from a genius like you," Qian Renxue replied, her tone dry. Her ears turned a faint red, though.
Ning Rongrong shot them a weird look. Once Qian Renxue left, she leaned in. "Ning Tian, you're awfully chummy with the prince. Are you…?"
"What's that supposed to mean? I'm straight as a pole," Ning Tian said, flicking her forehead lightly.
"Ow!" Ning Rongrong's eyes watered, but she didn't mind too much. She stomped on his foot in return.
"Hey, these are new shoes Zhuqing got me—they cost a lot!"
"Hmph, that's what you get for smacking my head!" Before she could finish, he tapped her forehead again.
"See who's in charge now," he teased.
"You jerk! I'll get you!" Ning Rongrong's face went pink as she swung her fists at him.
Ning Tian just held her back with one hand, keeping her at arm's length no matter how hard she tried.
Zhu Zhuqing couldn't help but laugh. She hadn't guessed Ning Tian for the playful type, and Ning Rongrong looked more like a punching bag than a pampered princess.
Just then, a man in silver armor approached—middle-aged, maybe fifty. "Which one of you is Ning Tian?"
They stopped messing around. "That's me," Ning Tian said.
The man gave them a once-over. "You two must be Zhu Zhuqing and Ning Rongrong. I'm Sun Buyu, a teacher here. The education committee has decided to put you on the main Heaven Dou Imperial Academy team, but they're off fighting team battles and won't be back for a bit. I'll take you to grab your uniforms, show you around, then set up your dorms."
Sun Buyu led them to pick up their uniforms and gave them a tour. Compared to Shrek, Heaven Dou was a dream, over a hundred training grounds alone.
After settling into their dorms, they slipped into their yellow uniforms and each picked a mimicry training ground that fit their martial souls.
Ning Tian's wood-type Azure Bamboo Cloudswarm Sword thrived in a plant-covered area, making his soul power sharper and his training faster.
........
While training, Ning Tian started plotting his move for the immortal herbs. That night, a servant from the prince's mansion dropped off his requests.
The storage soul tool was a green pouch, matching his martial soul's vibe, stuffed with assorted plants. Ning Tian tossed it in his hand, set the plants on his dorm balcony, and hooked the pouch to his belt.
Then he unfolded the Sunset Forest map. It wasn't super detailed, just marked some danger zones with ten-thousand-year soul beasts.
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