Chapter 2: Master Yu Xiaogang

Heavenly Battle Empire, Nuoding City, Nording Academy.

In the top floor of the dormitory, in the room at the far corner, a seven‑eight‑year‑old child sat quietly at an old wooden table, intently leafing through a thick, tattered book.

"The legendary Tang San, God King, should be arriving at the academy to report in a few days, right?"

Whoa—

The book before Xiao Xian turned another page.

He had a rather calm expression on his youthful face, showing no emotion at all.

He has been transmigrated for seven years.

He has long become accustomed to this unfamiliar world.

Douluo Continent.

There is no dazzling magic here; what exists is merely martial souls that have been cultivated to their peak… perhaps not even that peak.

Everyone awakens a martial soul at the age of six.

Some people have wolves, some tigers, some grass, some Hammer.

Grass and Hammer appear outside the body and are considered instrument martial souls.

Wolves, tigers and the like merge with the person and are Beast Martial Souls.

As long as martial soul awakening detects soul power, one can cultivate.

Become a superior among the hundreds of millions of commoners on Douluo Continent.

Xiao Xian is already impressive.

The martial soul he awakened is a dog.

A dog that appears outside the body, with long pale‑purple hair.

When it appears, it is half a meter long and half a meter wide.

According to classification, Xiao Xian's awakened martial soul is a Beast Martial Soul, yet it has not merged with his body—clearly unusual.

His soul power is even more formidable.

A full half rank.

With such talent, he far outpaces one in ten thousand Soul Masters on the entire Douluo Continent; in Ranking, he would sit in the top 99.999%.

That means his existence is indeed one in ten thousand.

"Although the talent is lacking, everything is still under plan for now; we're just waiting for Tang San… to enroll."

Xiao Xian's expression remained blank as his left hand on the desk gently turned a page.

A faint Suction emanated from the palm of his left hand.

Huh—

Within the tightly sealed room, a wind seemed to surge out of nowhere.

Whoa—

The tattered book before Xiao Xian was pulled by the wind and actually turned a page.

……

The tattered book continued to flip several more pages.

The sunlight by the window dimmed briefly, then brightened again.

Xiao Xian looked up toward the door.

After a moment.

A creaking sound.

A middle‑aged man of ordinary looks, hair split three‑to‑seven, with a slightly decadent air, pushed the door open.

Standing in the doorway, his first glance fell on the old book that Xiao Xian had already leafed through many pages.

A stiff expression on his face seemed somewhat pleased.

"Teacher." Xiao Xian closed the book, stood up, and looked at the middle‑aged man, his face showing the obedient demeanor of a seven‑year‑old child.

"Xiao Xian, sit down, have a meal first. If there's anything you don't understand in the book, I'll explain after you finish eating."

The middle‑aged man pressed down with his right hand, took a few steps forward, and took two oil‑paper packets from his coat, placing them on the table.

"Yes, thank you, Teacher." Xiao Xian pushed the book aside, opened one of the smaller oil‑paper packets, and a familiar aroma of chicken legs wafted out.

Inside the packet were two hot chicken legs and two hot mantou.

The middle‑aged man, naturally a notorious wastrel of the Douluo world, was Master Yu Xiaogang.

"Xiao Jue?"

Master pulled a chair and sat down, asking.

Xiao Xian had already taken a bite of a chicken leg, his mouth full of meat scent and juice, and gave no reply.

He simply extended his hand and pointed outside the door.

"Woof!"

A robust creature covered entirely in pale‑purple hair squeezed in from outside the door, barking "Woof" at Master, looking eager and excited.

"Eat, eat, of course I also brought some for you."

Master picked up the other oil‑paper packet on the table, skillfully opened it in a few moves, and found four chicken legs inside, along with two pieces of meat that resembled chicken breast yet were slightly different.

Master placed the chicken legs and meat onto a large white plate on the floor, wiped his hands, and sat down again.

His gaze naturally fell on the pale‑purple creature that was devouring the food with gusto.

It looked much like a dog, its length nearly a meter and its waist about the same; at first glance one might think it was a pig.

Yet despite its plumpness, its movements were very agile.

Its whole body was covered in pale‑purple fur that almost dragged on the ground, its small ears drooped, and a lump protruded on its head. Its eyes were deep blue, with a somewhat fierce look.

Master's gaze was firmly fixed on it.

His gaze was somewhat emotional, and deep down he was still a little incredulous.

No.

Or rather.

Master's gaze was not fixed on it.

But it was fixed on the yellow light ring that constantly floated lightly around its body!

On the Douluo Continent, this yellow light ring also has another name.

Soul Ring.

This is a hundred‑year‑old yellow soul ring!

After Xiao Xian took a few bites of chicken leg to satisfy his appetite, he began to chew slowly.

The creature on the ground, a purple‑haired, pig‑like big dog, was, of course, Xiao Xian's martial soul, named Xiao Jue.

The yellow light ring on its body was naturally Xiao Xian's first soul ring.

He was just over seven years old.

With his innate half‑rank soul‑power talent, he managed within just a year and a half to become a one‑ring battle soul master.

As an orphan.

All of this, of course, thanks to Master.

Although Master himself is useless, his resources, his connections, even his status, are absolutely top‑notch.

For the present Xiao Xian, there is no soul master easier to deceive and exploit than Master.

At the very least, without Master's money, he and Xiao Jue couldn't obtain enough "nutritious" food.

Without Master's prescription from the Blue‑Electric Tyrant Dragon clan, he couldn't take a weekly medicinal bath to forge his body.

Without Master's mysterious advanced soul‑power meditation technique, he couldn't perfect Xiao Jue's meditation path, which let him cultivate so rapidly.

Without Master's knowledge of soul‑beast theory from the Spirit Hall and his family, he couldn't carefully choose this soul ring to lay the groundwork for future plans.

Without Master's Spirit Hall token, he couldn't enter the heavily guarded Soul‑Hunting Forest.

Without Master's friend—the Dean of Nording Academy, a Level‑42 Soul Ancestor—he couldn't obtain this four‑century‑old Sunlight Blood‑Dragon Vine soul ring, even with a perfect plan. A seven‑year‑old struggling with an ordinary wolf‑dog would find it hard enough, let alone a four‑hundred‑year‑old soul beast.

Although this four‑century soul ring made the once‑slim Xiao Jue plump again.

But that price is negligible compared to the increase in power.

Even though Master himself is rather useless, what he provides is truly abundant.

Moreover, and most importantly, Master is about to accept another disciple.

Tang San.

"Teacher, I'm done eating." Xiao Xian wiped his mouth, tidied the desk, and reopened the old book beside him.

"Hmm, good. Drink another cup of water, rest a bit, we'll start in a moment." Master still blankly stared at the soul ring on Xiao Jue's body.

"Then I'll read for a while."

Master's gaze toward Xiao Jue's soul ring still withdrew.

His gaze fell back onto Xiao Xian.

He still finds it hard to imagine how, over a year ago, six‑year‑old Xiao Xian found him and persuaded him.

But that tiny figure, that tender yet determined voice, he could never forget.

"We are the unique summoning soul masters of the continent for thousands of years……"

"If the martial soul can leave the body and has spirituality, why can't it cultivate itself?"

"Ordinary people can only meditate for one evening; more would cause mental fatigue, but what about the martial soul?"

"Does it use my spirit? If so, then while it cultivates, I sleep and rest, couldn't it cultivate nonstop?"

"If not, then while I cultivate, it also cultivates, wouldn't that give double cultivation speed?"

At first, facing Xiao Xian's words, Master still scoffed, even his usual lack of patience, preparing to leave.

But the more he listened.

The more serious he became.

Until six‑year‑old Xiao Xian summoned his own martial soul before his eyes, letting the martial soul begin to meditate……

He was almost completely dumbfounded.

……