Chapter 18: Master's Suspicion

Seeing that the intimidation effect had been achieved, Shi Quan then retracted his Blue Silver Vine Whip, released Xiao Wu from under his feet, and turned to run toward Hou Shan.

Tang San was also unable to determine Shi Quan's specific strength in his heart, so he did not go up to take revenge immediately, but instead quickly stepped forward to help Xiao Wu up, saying apologetically: "I'm sorry Xiao Wu, it's my fault for not protecting you well."

Xiao Wu shook her head, gently rubbing the back of her neck, and said: "It's not your fault, it's my own carelessness; this stinky guy is actually so powerful."

Tang San looked coldly in the direction Shi Quan had left and said: "Shi Quan's strength is not simple, but don't worry, I will definitely find an opportunity to help you take revenge."

"No need." Xiao Wu shook her head, her gaze shifting to the whip marks on the tree trunk. While feeling lingering fear, she said with a fierce look: "Isn't this stinky guy just relying on his powerful soul skill right now? He only has innate soul power of level one. As long as my strength is a bit higher, I can take revenge myself. He actually dared to trample me on the ground; just wait until I throw him onto the ground a few more times."

"Alright!" Tang San smiled and rubbed Xiao Wu's head in agreement, though his gaze toward the direction Shi Quan had left remained cold.

Tang San knew of Shi Quan's talent. As time passed, logically speaking, the gap between Shi Quan and them would only grow larger, so Xiao Wu taking revenge in the future was inevitable.

Yet Tang San always felt that Shi Quan's strength was not that simple. Regardless of whether Xiao Wu could take revenge herself, he would not let Shi Quan off easily, but before that, he had to confirm a few things.

……

Nighttime.

Yu Xiaogang's dormitory on the top floor.

Every night, Yu Xiaogang would give Tang San private lessons.

"Little San, is there something on your mind?" Yu Xiaogang asked, looking at Tang San with concern. He had noticed that Tang San was somewhat distracted during class today, a situation that had never happened on weekdays.

After a pause, Tang San opened his mouth to ask: "Teacher, I have a question I want to ask you."

Yu Xiaogang nodded and said: "Go ahead."

"Teacher, what I want to ask is, does innate soul power necessarily determine one's future achievements?"

Yu Xiaogang frowned. It was precisely because his own innate soul power was only half a level that his soul power had remained stuck at level twenty-nine to this day. However, he still patiently said: "Generally speaking, yes. Innate soul power determines a person's talent. The stronger the talent, the faster the cultivation speed naturally is, and the higher the realm one can reach in the future. Of course, to become a powerhouse, besides talent, there are factors in other aspects, but talent is undoubtedly the most important among these many factors. You should know these basics, right? Why? Have you encountered any problems with your cultivation?"

"There is no problem with my cultivation." Tang San shook his head and continued: "Teacher, with innate soul power of level one, is the strongest one can reach only a Soul Elder?"

Although Yu Xiaogang had some doubts, he still nodded and said: "If the innate soul power is only level one, cultivating normally, becoming a Spirit Master is not difficult. It is extremely difficult for ordinary people to even break through to Great Soul Master. Those with level one innate soul power who can become a Soul Elder are few and far between, and even if they do become a Soul Elder, they are among the weakest."

Tang San continued to ask: "Teacher, is it possible for the detection of innate soul power to be wrong?"

Yu Xiaogang shook his head and said: "Generally, such a situation will not occur. If there is a problem with the Spirit Detection Crystal, it would only fail to detect soul power; it is rare for there to be an error in the innate soul power level."

Tang San then fell silent. Yu Xiaogang paused for a moment before asking: "Little San, what do you want to say?"

After taking a long breath, Tang San said: "Teacher, do you remember Shi Quan?"

Yu Xiaogang said: "The child with the mutated Blue Silver Grass martial soul?"

"Yes." Tang San nodded and continued: "His innate soul power is level one, but I feel his soul power is not low."

"Not low?" A hint of curiosity appeared in the depths of Yu Xiaogang's eyes. "Can you sense his soul power level?"

"No..." Tang San then recounted the battle between Xiao Wu and Shi Quan to Yu Xiaogang.

After listening, Yu Xiaogang's eyes were filled with surprise and astonishment. "According to what you say, this Shi Quan's soul power level is at least level five or above. The possibility of a problem with the detection is minimal; it is impossible for level one innate soul power to cultivate so fast! Unless..."

Not knowing what he had thought of, Yu Xiaogang's expression became serious.

Tang San looked at Yu Xiaogang curiously, "Unless what?"

Yu Xiaogang said with a serious expression: "Unless this Shi Quan is an Evil Soul Master."

"Evil Soul Master? Teacher, what is an Evil Soul Master?" This was the first time Tang San had heard this term.

Yu Xiaogang explained in a deep voice: "Evil Soul Master refers to those Spirit Masters who possess an Evil Spirit martial soul. Normal Spirit Masters can only increase their soul power level through their own cultivation, while Evil Soul Masters, in addition to cultivation, can also cultivate by devouring soul power, Soul Rings, Mental Power, flesh and blood, Soul Soul, martial souls, etc. The cultivation speed of an Evil Soul Master cannot be judged by common sense."

"Devouring?" Cold light flickered in Tang San's eyes. Isn't this the same as those people who practiced evil arts in his previous life? If this were in the pugilistic world, they would be hunted down by everyone.

"But..." Yu Xiaogang's tone paused, a look of contemplation appearing in his eyes. "The mutation of Blue Silver Grass is already rare, and I have never heard of Blue Silver Grass being able to mutate into an Evil Spirit martial soul. Little San, didn't you see him use his martial soul? Can you tell if there is any difference between his Blue Silver Grass and ordinary Blue Silver Grass?"

Hearing Yu Xiaogang say this, Tang San shook his head straight away and said: "When Shi Quan used his martial soul, he directly turned the Blue Silver Grass into vine whips. Simply looking at it, it didn't look any different from ordinary Blue Silver Grass."

"This is the strangest point. I said before that his mutation should be inconspicuous, which is why it looks like ordinary Blue Silver Grass. If it really were an Evil Spirit martial soul, his Blue Silver Grass couldn't possibly have no changes..." Speaking of this, even Yu Xiaogang, who prided himself on having the strongest theories, could not help but fall into deep thought.

He could not grasp Shi Quan's specific situation right now.

Yu Xiaogang said in a deep voice: "Little San, I will investigate Shi Quan's matter. You can just focus on your studies and cultivation. If he really is an Evil Soul Master, I will report it immediately, and there will be specialized people to handle it then."

"Alright, Teacher." Tang San nodded, a cold sneer in his heart. If Shi Quan really were an Evil Soul Master, that would save him a lot of effort, though it was a pity he couldn't take revenge personally.

……

Yu Xiaogang had also heard of Shi Quan's matter before.

Shi Quan, from Shi Family Village. He had heard of this village for many years in the academy; the village was famous for stone carving and clay modeling, and most of the stone carvings and clay sculptures in the academy came from Shi Family Village.

"Indeed diligent." Yu Xiaogang looked out from the dormitory window at Shi Quan walking toward Hou Shan.

Previously, his mind had been on Tang San, and he had rarely paid attention to other matters and people.

After Tang San mentioned it, Yu Xiaogang conducted a simple investigation and quickly grasped most of Shi Quan's situation in the academy.

"And he is also very eager to learn." Yu Xiaogang said to himself: "There are many Blue Silver Grass in Hou Shan, but even with a Mimicry Environment, his cultivation speed shouldn't be this fast. There must be other reasons."

Watching the figure gradually blur and disappear in the distance, Yu Xiaogang stood in place for a moment before turning to walk out of the dormitory and heading downstairs.

Library.

"Maerde." Before he even got close, Yu Xiaogang's voice came from outside the library.

"Xiaogang, why have you come to the library?" Maerde stood up and looked toward the library door.

Yu Xiaogang said helplessly: "Besides the office, this is the only place I can find you."

Maerde laughed, "You wouldn't come to the temple without a reason; tell me, what's the matter?"

Yu Xiaogang didn't beat around the bush and said directly: "You should know Shi Quan, right?"

Maerde nodded and said: "He is a rare, good child who is hardworking and motivated."

"It seems you like him very much." Yu Xiaogang looked at Maerde with some surprise. As friends, he knew Maerde's temperament very well. Maerde was serious and a bit rigid in his work; it was very difficult to gain his approval, but Shi Quan had clearly gained Maerde's approval.

Maerde said with a chuckle: "Isn't it because I saw you found a disciple? I was wondering if I should also find a disciple?"

Yu Xiaogang looked at Maerde in surprise, "His innate soul power is only level one, and you actually want to take him as a disciple?"

Maerde looked at Yu Xiaogang seriously, "So what if it's level one? Xiaogang, I see your shadow in him. If this child can maintain this diligence and eagerness to learn, I feel his future achievements will not be below yours."

"Just based on him?" A hint of disdain appeared in the depths of Yu Xiaogang's eyes. In his view, Shi Quan could not be compared to him at all. He was a member of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family of the Three Upper Sects, and all his knowledge, besides his own research, had been accumulated from the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Family and the Spirit Hall. What right did Shi Quan have to compare with him?

Maerde shook his head; he knew Yu Xiaogang had his own pride and said nothing, instead rising to walk toward the front desk of the Library, where he leaned over to gather a stack of books and brought them out, and since he couldn't carry them all at once, he went back for a second trip.

A full twenty-plus books were placed on the table.

Yu Xiaogang briefly flipped through the books on the table, which ranged from the basics to some slightly more advanced Spirit Theory, but he did not understand Maerde's specific meaning, "What do you mean?"

Maerde said calmly, "These books are all the ones Shi Quan took from me to study last semester."

"What!" Hearing Maerde say this, Yu Xiaogang could no longer sit still; he picked up one of the books in surprise and began to flip through it, and after confirming the content within, Yu Xiaogang suddenly felt his mouth go dry, "Maerde, are you sure he has already learned the content of these books?"

Maerde nodded, "Every time this child came to borrow books, I would randomly test him on the content within, and every time he could answer fluently, and he would even add some of his own thoughts; he is not only intelligent but also capable of drawing inferences about other cases from one instance, and his level of intelligence is definitely beyond what ordinary people can compare to."

Maerde patted Yu Xiaogang on the shoulder and said, "Xiaogang, do you know why I have delayed taking him as a disciple? It is precisely because I discovered his learning ability is too strong; I am afraid that after I take him as a disciple, in less than two years' time, I wouldn't know what else to teach him. You must know that these books were all self-studied by him; if he were given a platform, had sufficient learning materials, and someone to guide him, I fear he would leap over the dragon gate and soar into the sky, and in a few years' time, in terms of martial souls, he would become the new Master!"

Shi Quan's powerful learning ability was inseparable from the influence of his Spirit Soul martial soul, and coupled with the fact that he began learning from a young age, he was at least five years ahead of his peers, so naturally, his peers could not compare to him.

How could the books that Maerde carefully selected and brought out be simple books? Yu Xiaogang had always been a proud person, and after hearing Maerde's evaluation, he had to admit that Maerde's words were a fact.

"It is just a pity that this child's martial soul is Blue Silver Grass, and his Innate Soul Power is only level one; otherwise, his future achievements would definitely not be low."

Speaking of this, Maerde could not help but sigh; such a smart child, why was his talent so low?

Yu Xiaogang, who was to the side, also came back to his senses and said in a deep voice, "I came today because I wanted to talk about the issue of his talent."

"The issue of his talent?" Maerde frowned, "What is wrong with his talent?"

Yu Xiaogang said, "You should be aware of the matter between Xiao Wu and Shi Quan, right?"

"I have heard a little about it, but it is just a competitive spirit between children; is there a problem?"

Yu Xiaogang shook his head, "I fear the matter is not that simple. I recently heard from Tang San that in the sparring between Xiao Wu and Shi Quan, Xiao Wu lost. Although both sides did not use their martial souls, judging from Tang San's description, I speculate that Shi Quan's soul power level is at least level five, or even higher."

Maerde hurriedly shook his head and said, "That is impossible. His Innate Soul Power is only level one; it is impossible for him to improve that quickly in one year."

Yu Xiaogang said with certainty, "The fact that Xiao Wu lost is true. I previously speculated that his martial soul was a Mutated Spirit, and looking at the current situation, the fact that his martial soul is a Mutated Spirit is almost a certainty; it is just that I cannot yet determine the specific direction of the mutation, and I do not rule out the possibility that his martial soul is a mutated Evil Spirit."

"An Evil Spirit?" Maerde hurriedly shook his head, denying it, "Impossible, how could Blue Silver Grass mutate into an Evil Spirit? How could such a good child possibly be an Evil Soul Master?"

Yu Xiaogang's expression did not change as he continued, "Whether he is or not will only be known after an investigation; for now, it is just a suspicion. We also do not know his soul power level for the time being. Since you are familiar with that child, you can find an opportunity to confirm his soul power level."

Maerde's expression shifted constantly. Being able to be a good friend of Yu Xiaogang, he naturally understood Yu Xiaogang; Yu Xiaogang would not do something like this based on groundless rumors, and since he had said it, Yu Xiaogang must have some basis for it.

"I understand. I will investigate Shi Quan's martial soul and soul power level, and I will tell you the result afterward."

"Good." Seeing Maerde agree, a bit more anticipation and curiosity appeared in the depths of Yu Xiaogang's eyes. This was the first time he had encountered a situation like Shi Quan's, and he also wanted to know what secrets Shi Quan had, and these secrets were about to be revealed soon.

(End of this chapter)