Inside the Dean's office at Shrek Academy.
The thick curtains were drawn, not letting in a single sliver of sunlight. The rich smell of strong alcohol permeated every inch of the air, filling the small space.
Several wine bottles were scattered haphazardly on the floor. Shards of glass glinted faintly in the dim light.
Flender was slumped in his chair, his eyes glazed over, completely drunk. His hair was a mess, and his usual shrewd and capable appearance was long gone.
Zhao Wuji was dead.
This news was like a bombshell, setting off a monstrous wave in Flender's heart.
He couldn't accept this cruel reality at all.
His good brother, who had once fought alongside him, who had strived together with him for the future of Shrek Academy, that imposing "Immovable Bright King," was gone just like that.
"Why... Why did this happen..."
Flender's hand trembled as he reached out, grabbed another bottle of wine, forcefully twisted off the cap, and took a large swig.
The spicy liquid flowed down his throat, burning his internal organs. But compared to the pain in his heart, this was insignificant.
"Just what kind of soul beast was it that even a Titled Douluo couldn't do anything to it," Flender murmured, his voice filled with endless grief and confusion.
"That should be the Titan Giant Ape," a somewhat stiff voice came from outside the door.
"Creak."
The door was pushed open, and a middle-aged man walked in from outside. His face was rigid, his eyes looked a bit dull, but his back was ramrod straight.
"Ahem, ahem." The middle-aged man coughed heavily. Looking at Flender slumped in the chair, his brow furrowed tightly.
"Flender, how much have you drunk?"
Flender raised his head and looked at the visitor, a trace of pleasant surprise flashing in his eyes. "Xiaogang, when did you arrive?"
As he spoke, Flender put down the wine bottle in his hand and took a deep breath, trying to sober himself up a little.
He stood up shakily. Although his body was still swaying a bit from the alcohol, his eyes gradually became clearer.
Yu Xiaogang walked to the window and, with a 'swish', pulled open the curtains.
In an instant, dazzling sunlight shone into the room. Flender subconsciously raised his right hand to shield his eyes.
"Flender, I heard about Zhao Wuji. Death comes for everyone. My condolences," Yu Xiaogang said earnestly.
In his impression, Flender had never been a man who drank heavily.
"Xiaogang, I... cough, cough, cough!"
Flender coughed heavily. "Xiaogang, what was that Titan Giant Ape you just mentioned?"
A grave expression appeared on Yu Xiaogang's face. "The Titan Giant Ape is one of the most powerful races among soul beasts. A thousand-year-level giant ape can match an ordinary ten-thousand-year soul beast."
"The soul beast that Zhao Wuji and the others encountered was over twenty meters tall. Its age was at least eighty thousand years."
"Eighty thousand years!"
Flender immediately exclaimed in surprise. Then, a hint of confusion flashed in his eyes. "A soul beast of this age should, by rights, live in the core area of the Star Dou Great Forest. How could it have come to the outer perimeter?"
Yu Xiaogang shook his head. "It was already a great fortune that the few students were able to escape this time."
"Sigh, speaking of which, that child, Xiao Wu, had innate full soul power. What a pity," Flender sighed helplessly.
Immediately, he suddenly thought of something and said to Yu Xiaogang, "Xiaogang, Tang San's mental state has also been very poor these past few days. No matter how we try to persuade him, he won't listen. It's a good thing you, his teacher, are here."
"Oh? Quickly, take me to see him," Yu Xiaogang said hurriedly.
Hearing that something was wrong with his disciple, he could no longer maintain his calm expression.
On the back hill of the dormitory.
A dozen or so wooden stakes stood scattered in the open space. These stakes were not arranged in a row but were clustered together in groups of three or five.
A cold light flashed in Tang San's face. His first soul ring shone, and thick strands of Blue Silver Grass grew out from the ground like arms, binding all dozen or so stakes at the same time.
First Soul Skill: Blue Silver Entanglement!
At this moment, Tang San's eyes were covered with a faint purple layer, and the Mysterious Heaven Skill in his body circulated to its limit.
The next moment, he moved.
"Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!"
His hands simultaneously turned jade-colored. They flashed past his waist, and one after another, hidden weapons shining with a sinister cold light shot out.
In an instant, it was as if more than a dozen hidden weapons had exploded from his body, scattering in all directions.
Some flew straight, some flew diagonally, and some formed an arc.
In almost that same instant, every hidden weapon, as if it had eyes, embedded itself fiercely into the wooden stakes.
"Phew~"
Tang San panted heavily, large beads of sweat falling from his forehead. After launching those hidden weapons, he had less than ten percent of his soul power left.
Tang San's figure looked a bit miserable, but his face was shining with an excited flush.
"I did it! I did it!"
"One Thousand and One Nights, the fourth-ranked hidden weapon technique of the Tang Sect. I've finally mastered the basics!" Tang San shouted excitedly.
Practicing this move required the fusion of other hidden weapon techniques.
At the very beginning, one had to practice launching three hidden weapons at the same time, attacking the same target in a straight line, a diagonal line, and an arc, respectively.
Then six...
Twelve...
...continuing to increase up to one thousand and one, only then would this technique be considered completely mastered.
Tang San recalled the scene in the small grove. Facing more than a dozen enemies at the same time, apart from this move, Tang San couldn't think of any other way to deal with them.
"Lu Feng, I now possess the strength to match you!"
Tang San looked at the hidden weapons deeply embedded in the wooden stakes, and the corner of his mouth couldn't help but curl up.
The positions of the wooden stakes were deliberately placed by Tang San, recalling the positions of the mercenaries at that time. Each of these hidden weapons was embedded three inches deep. The corresponding positions were also the vital points of a human, such as the eyes and throat.
In Tang San's conception, as long as the enemy didn't activate their third soul skill in the first instance, they wouldn't be able to escape the fate of an instant kill.
"Hmm?" At this moment, Tang San walked to a wooden stake, his brow furrowed tightly.
The color of this wooden stake was darker, representing that skinny Soul Ancestor. Because the other's soul power was very high, Tang San had assigned three hidden weapons to him.
"The power of these hidden weapons seems to be insufficient."
Tang San gently pulled out the hidden weapon on the wooden stake, leaving only a shallow mark.
"And this one over here..."
"If I remember correctly, the enemy here was a defense system..."
Tang San checked the marks on the wooden stakes one by one, but the result was still somewhat different from what he had expected.
"Phew~"
Tang San lay weakly on the grass.
The scene of Lu Feng wreaking havoc, his violent fists, continuously replayed in Tang San's mind, unable to be erased.
Tang San found that if he wanted to reach Lu Feng's level, if he continued to practice One Thousand and One Nights, it would take at least another year.
"Damn it! Why has he become so strong!"
Tang San slammed his fist hard on the ground.
It would be a lie to say that Tang San was not envious of Lu Feng's strength.
When he was at Nuoding Academy, Tang San had sparred with Lu Feng many times. After each battle, Tang San would always grow a lot and could even quickly surpass the other.
But this time, Tang San found that he couldn't seem to catch up.
Tang San looked at the sky blankly. He thought about many things.
From his martial soul awakening, to Nuoding Academy. Then he recalled the scene of his first fight with Dai Mubai, and finally, he returned to Lu Feng's bloody slaughter in the small grove.
But the more Tang San thought, the more confused his heart became.
Amidst the surging blue light, a small, emerald-green blade of grass appeared in his palm.
"My choice to cultivate the Blue Silver Grass martial soul, was it right or wrong?"
"A truly powerful control system soul master, just having control effects is far from enough. The soul skill must also have a certain amount of attack power."
"I originally thought that hidden weapons could make up for my shortcomings, but..."
Tang San turned his head to look at the dozen or so wooden stakes. He felt that the stakes were not stuck in the grass but were like thorns, piercing his own heart.
Tang San slowly opened his left hand. Black light surged, and a small hammer appeared in his palm.
"If I had cultivated this hammer martial soul, I probably wouldn't be so frustrated right now."
"Nonsense!"
At this moment, a reprimand came from not far away.