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Qin Shuang had only been with the team for a few days, but her diligence and cultivation talent were gradually earning everyone's approval.
Especially Zhao Wuji—this girl's martial soul was the same as his own, and he seemed to value her highly. Qin Shuang had lost both parents and was alone, while Zhao Wuji himself had experienced many setbacks in life.
Although Yu Xiaogang had some reservations about Flender adding more people to the team, he eventually accepted it after considering Flender's reasoning. The team would indeed need substitutes in the future, so he didn't object further.
However, compared to Qin Shuang's arrival, the situation for others wasn't as smooth.
Ma Hongjun, for instance, though still training on schedule, seemed distracted. Rumor had it that he had already become romantically involved with a noblewoman and might even end up as a 'live-in son-in-law'. (Basically a male that married up in social status and doesn't bring much to the table)
The others continued to train diligently, but it was clear their minds were also preoccupied.
Tian Dou Imperial Academy was never short of handsome boys and beautiful girls, all of whom possessed decent talent. After all, those with poor aptitude wouldn't have made it into such a prestigious academy.
The members of Shrek Academy stood out with their exceptional talent and secured spots in the team lineup, making them exceptionally prominent within the academy.
This led to the girls receiving countless love letters daily, while the boys often found themselves being confessed to by beauties just walking down the hall. Even Yang Xiong and Ning Rongrong weren't spared—beautiful girls shyly handed them love letters, only to be chased off by the little devil Ning Rongrong.
As for the boys pursuing Ning Rongrong, they quickly learned the consequences of crossing her.
---
Tian Dou Imperial Academy had two teams. Since the two teams lived together, they frequently battled every two or three days.
As the two sides grew more familiar, it became increasingly difficult for Shrek Academy's team to secure victories. The gap in spirit power was significant—the lowest-ranked member of the Imperial Battle Team was at Level 35, with the highest at Level 39. Initially, skill and teamwork could compensate for this disparity.
But over time, as both sides became more familiar with each other's tactics, the weaknesses of Shrek Academy's team became more apparent.
Especially for Tang San—the Imperial Battle Team had recently added a Level 34 fire-attribute soul master, putting Tang San's Blue Silver Grass at a severe disadvantage. Although Tang San's combat abilities were formidable, the control capabilities of his Blue Silver Grass weakened significantly under flames.
Dugu Yan also seemed to have learned from past failures. She used her poison with greater caution and took full advantage of the characteristics of her Jade Phosphorous Serpent Beast Martial Soul.
As for the Shi brothers, they fought cautiously in every battle, focusing on protecting Ye Lingling and preventing Yang Xiong from ambushing her.
Yu Tianheng's combat talent was no slouch either. His martial soul was extremely powerful, surpassing Dai Mubai in many aspects. If not for Yang Xiong's overwhelming strength, Shrek Academy's team might have already been defeated by the Imperial Battle Team.
Yu Xiaogang, noting that Tang San's martial soul was being countered, suggested that Ning Rongrong teach Tang San the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda Sect's Heart Separation Control. However, Ning Rongrong politely declined, citing sect rules.
Unwilling to give up, Tang San directly proposed learning the Heart Separation Control during his trade with Ning Fengzhi.
Ning Fengzhi was generous and immediately agreed, arranging for Ning Rongrong to teach Tang San. However, according to Ning Fengzhi, Ning Rongrong would only teach up to the fifth level, Five Apertures Dispersed Heart, omitting the final two levels.
Even so, this was sufficient for Tang San. Reaching the fifth level of Heart Separation Control allowed him to multitask effectively, significantly enhancing the control capabilities of his Blue Silver Grass. Unfortunately, the grass itself remained vulnerable to fire and sharp objects, so its offensive power didn't improve qualitatively.
One day, while Yang Xiong was meditating in his dormitory, Tang San suddenly paid him a visit.
Yang Xiong was puzzled. "Tang San, shouldn't you be receiving Master Yu's guidance right now? Why do you suddenly have time to visit me?"
Tang San spoke with an unusually grave expression. "Yang Xiong, I agree to exchange your Rasengan for my Purple Extreme Demon Eye. What do you think?"
Yang Xiong smiled. "I've actually expected you to come to me for this for a while now. Our self-created soul skills can perfectly compensate for each other's weaknesses."
Tang San sighed. "Through these recent battles and cultivation sessions, I feel that the limitations of Blue Silver Grass are becoming more and more apparent. The Rasengan is very suitable for me—it gives me the explosive power I need."
"However, I have one condition: my Purple Extreme Demon Eye can only be practiced by you and cannot be passed on to others."
Yang Xiong shook his head. "Tang San, I understand your concerns. Given your strength and talent, you will surely achieve great things in the future. You won't be alone—you'll likely have your own faction someday."
"The exchange of self-created soul skills should be fair and equal. I'll teach you the Rasengan, and you'll teach me the Purple Extreme Demon Eye. But it shouldn't be limited to just me. In the future, I may pass it on to the core disciples of my sect, and you can do the same with yours. This way, neither of us loses out."
"Of course, these self-created soul skills cannot be shared with outsiders, as they involve privacy and confidentiality."
Tang San fell silent for a moment before speaking. "Right now, I'm still alone. Am I losing out too much by doing this?"
Yang Xiong chuckled. "Tang San, there are things I can't say outright. Sect Leader Ning or Master Yu has probably already spoken to you about this. You're not truly alone—you have a vast power backing you. None of us are ordinary wandering cultivators."
Tang San's expression darkened. "Yang Xiong, what exactly do you know? Do you have other information about me?"
Yang Xiong shook his head. "Tang San, we may not necessarily become close friends, but at least in terms of background and position, our enemies are the same. While I do know some information, there are things your family must tell you personally."
After a long silence, Tang San finally spoke. "I understand. We can proceed with the exchange of the Purple Extreme Demon Eye. However, it can only be taught to direct-line disciples of the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda Sect and cannot be leaked externally. If it's leaked without permission, I will reclaim it."
Yang Xiong nodded. "Agreed."
Both retrieved a manual from their soul-guided devices. Yang Xiong's manual was thick—it contained every step of designing and cultivating the Rasengan. Tang San's manual detailed the cultivation of the Purple Extreme Demon Eye.
After exchanging manuals, neither opened them but stored them away immediately. After all, as teammates, there was a certain level of trust between them.
Before leaving, Tang San suddenly spoke again.
"Yang Xiong, there's one more thing I want to clarify about the Rasengan—it's not part of our agreement."
Tang San asked curiously, "Yang Xiong, does the Rasengan have any flaws?"
Yang Xiong shook his head. "The Rasengan is something I developed, and I'm satisfied with its power. However, it's slightly challenging to cultivate. You must reach the Five Apertures Dispersed Heart level of the Seven Treasures Glazed Pagoda Sect's Heart Separation Control. Since you've already learned Heart Separation Control, mastering it shouldn't be a major issue."
"But I want to clarify one point: the Rasengan is something I developed at my current stage. As a Soul Grandmaster, I feel limited by my spirit power. In the future, I plan to further develop it. Any subsequent improvements won't be part of this agreement."
Tang San nodded. "Thank you for the reminder. Let me also remind you—the early stages of cultivating the Purple Extreme Demon Eye are extremely difficult, requiring immense mental strength and talent. I started cultivating it at a young age to reach my current level. Be mindful of this. Additionally, you're older than me, and since you haven't practiced this before, it may be even harder for you."
---
After Tang San left, Yang Xiong couldn't help but smile faintly.
Yang Xiong had anticipated this day for a long time. The limitations of Tang San's Blue Silver Grass were simply too great. Without undergoing ice and fire tempering, the Blue Silver Grass was inherently fragile, particularly vulnerable to fire, ice, and corrosive poisons.
In recent battles against the Imperial Battle Team, Tang San's performance had been less than satisfactory, repeatedly being countered. Especially in formal dueling matches where hidden weapons couldn't be used, the restrictions on him were even greater.
Compared to the original storyline, Tang San had received guidance from Elder Dugu Bo, a Title Douluo. Regardless of how weak Dugu Bo's strength was, his combat experience and understanding of martial souls far surpassed that of ordinary people.
In contrast, Yu Xiaogang, despite possessing some knowledge of martial souls, lacked experience in martial soul transformations and combat. He simply couldn't guide Tang San effectively.
In Yu Xiaogang's eyes, Tang San's martial soul was just ordinary Blue Silver Grass. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't help Tang San master the transformations of his martial soul. This was the gap between theory and practice.
To compensate for Tang San's shortcomings at this stage, the only options were to start cultivating his second martial soul, the Hao Tian Hammer, or find a way to trigger an early secondary awakening of his martial soul. Unfortunately, Tang San couldn't do either—he didn't even know that Blue Silver Grass could undergo a secondary awakening. In the end, trading manuals with Yang Xiong was the simplest solution among all possible methods.
Yang Xiong himself had long admired the Purple Extreme Demon Eye.
The Purple Extreme Demon Eye was a rare spiritual cultivation method in the world of soul masters and one of the cornerstones of Tang San's true power.
The technique was divided into four stages: Comprehensive Observation, Subtlety, Mustard Seed, and Vastness. It granted unparalleled observational abilities and could inflict spiritual damage on opponents.
Tang San's three breakthroughs in the Purple Extreme Demon Eye came from absorbing the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew, assimilating a head-soul bone, and undergoing tidal body tempering on the Sea God Island.
However, the original storyline was somewhat ambiguous. Even if Tang San's mental strength was extraordinary, absorbing the Full Moon Wearing Autumn Dew at Level 40 shouldn't have brought his mental power to Title Douluo levels. Yet, somehow, he managed to see through Xiao Wu's true form at this stage, something even Dugu Bo failed to notice. Was Tang San's mental power really stronger than Dugu Bo's at that time? And Dugu Bo also possessed a top-tier head-soul bone.
From that day on, Yang Xiong began training the Purple Extreme Demon Eye with Ning Rongrong every morning. Ning Rongrong usually liked to sleep in after her nightly meditation, but Yang Xiong dragged her out of bed, much to the annoyance of the little devil.
Still, Ning Rongrong's cultivation talent was impressive. Her progress in the Purple Extreme Demon Eye was significantly faster than Yang Xiong's.
According to Tang San's cultivation pace, he reached the second stage, Detailed, at the age of six. In contrast, Yang Xiong showed no progress after half a month of training, while Ning Rongrong had already begun sensing the purple qi. This made Yang Xiong feel like he simply wasn't cut out for cultivating spiritual power.
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