For a moment, both sides stood frozen in place, unsure of what to say.
Flender didn't know what he could offer that would be worthwhile, while Ye Wen didn't want to needlessly offend Flender.
After much deliberation, Ye Wen sighed inwardly. If this weak laborer was all they had, so be it. After all, Flender was still a late-stage Soul Sage. He could handle a power-type Zhao Wuji, albeit with the advantage of type suppression. Presumably, his combat ability wasn't bad and could be of some use.
After careful consideration, Ye Wen said, "How about this for compensation, esteemed elder? In the future, you can help one of our relatives hunt for a ten-thousand-year soul ring."
There was a loophole in Ye Wen's condition—after all, ninety thousand years also counted as ten thousand. However, given Flender's nature, if things got too tough, he'd surely flee.
But this wasn't Ye Wen's main goal. His real intention was to hold onto this condition. If the Golden Iron Triangle ever caused trouble for him in the future, he could secretly summon Flender and eliminate him.
Without Flender, the so-called Golden Iron Triangle wouldn't exist. After all, Liu Erlong and Flender, who would break through to Soul Elder level in the future, along with Yu Xiaogang using their soul fusion technique, barely counted as title-level fighters combined.
Flender, lacking Ye Wen's foresight, didn't think that far ahead. However, being the shrewd merchant he was, Flender quickly noticed the loophole in Ye Wen's condition and hastily patched it up:
"I'll help with hunting spirit beasts, but the spirit beast's age cannot exceed fifty thousand years, and it cannot be a pseudo-dragon, true dragon, or any other extremely terrifying spirit beast. Otherwise, I reserve the right to terminate the compensation."
Hearing this, Ye Wen's lips twitched. You might as well just say you don't want to fight tough spirit beasts.
But it didn't matter anyway. Having Flender help hunt soul rings wasn't the main goal, so Ye Wen nodded in agreement. To avoid making his acceptance seem too easy and raising suspicion, Ye Wen added:
"Don't worry. The soul master who will need your help is my mother-in-law. Her martial soul is also eagle-based, like yours. She'll need her sixth soul ring in the future. For a Soul Sage like you, it shouldn't be too difficult. By then, you might have even broken through to Soul Douluo level, making it even easier."
Flender nodded in understanding, his unease dissipating. He quickly and willingly signed a guarantee slip with Ye Wen, promising that when Ye Wen presented this slip in the future, he wouldn't refuse.
With this, the so-called revenge farce came to a complete end.
The rest of Shrek's five members weren't particularly affected, but Dai Mubai was deeply disheartened. He had lost too badly and suffered the most severe injuries.
After finally trying to rise up, Dai Mubai didn't want to remain a mere weakling.
Late at night, Dai Mubai recalled how Tang San had effortlessly dodged the opponent's attacks during the battle, retaliated, and even commanded others. Suddenly, an idea sparked in his mind.
"Knock, knock, knock, Tang San, are you there?" Dai Mubai knocked on Tang San's door and asked.
However, the response came from Tang San's roommate, Oscar, who mumbled groggily:
"It's Boss Dai, huh…
Tang San went to the training ground to train. You can find him there… zzZ."
Dai Mubai understood and nodded, a flash of admiration crossing his eyes.
Tang San, at level 29, could go head-to-head with Dai Mubai at level 37 without falling behind. This alone demonstrated Tang San's strength. Now, seeing such a powerful soul master still training diligently late at night, how could Dai Mubai, who wanted to grow stronger, not admire him?
Talented individuals aren't scary; what's truly terrifying is those who work harder than you.
Dai Mubai soon found Tang San. At this moment, Tang San wasn't meditating to cultivate soul power but was instead practicing his hidden weapon techniques.
A soul master's meditation isn't effective if continuously performed without breaks. As their mental energy is consumed, their efficiency gradually decreases. If they force themselves to continue, they might even suffer backlash.
To maintain optimal training speed, soul masters set fixed daily meditation times and never exceeded them.
Of course, this was mainly due to the outdated cultivation methods of the current era. In the future, the Douluo continent would see a variety of intense competition.
After the day's battle, Tang San realized he needed to practice his hidden weapon techniques more. Having them nullified by Ye Wen's palm wind was simply unacceptable.
As Tang San trained enthusiastically, he suddenly sensed approaching footsteps. Instantly, he stopped and assumed a defensive stance, asking sternly:
"Who's there?"
"It's me, Tang San."
When he realized it was Dai Mubai, Tang San, who had been slightly tense, immediately relaxed. However, he was puzzled. Why was this playboy, who should've been indulging in debauchery before sleeping, looking for him at this hour?
So Tang San asked, "Boss Dai, what brings you here?"
Looking at Tang San, Dai Mubai hesitated briefly but finally gritted his teeth and said:
"Tang San, I want to learn the technique that allows you to fight effectively even when your vision is impaired. Would you be willing to teach me?"
At this moment, the previously relaxed atmosphere instantly turned icy.
Though sound-based positioning wasn't a particularly advanced skill—it wasn't even recorded in the Xuantian Treasure Record—it was Tang San's self-created soul skill. Asking him to share the foundation of his strength was no small request.
Dai Mubai naturally understood the importance of self-created soul skills to a soul master, but for the sake of his future, he had no choice but to humbly ask Tang San.
So Dai Mubai continued, "Tang San, I won't take this self-created soul skill for free. I'll compensate you in other ways.
Moreover, I promise that once you teach me, I'll never share it with anyone. And you know who I am, right?
If I become the emperor of Star Luo in the future, you can come to me for anything. I won't refuse."
Initially, Tang San had already mentally labeled Dai Mubai as someone who was courting death and was plotting ways to arrange for his accidental demise without implicating himself.
But hearing Dai Mubai's words, Tang San suddenly had other thoughts.
At this point, Tang San didn't yet know about the Hao Tian Sect, but he knew he would eventually fulfill his lifelong wish of establishing the Tang Sect in this world and making it flourish.
Though Tang San had little experience managing a sect in his previous life, he understood the vast manpower and resources required to build one. Relying solely on his current blacksmithing income and soul master stipends, establishing a grand Tang Sect was nothing short of a pipe dream.
But Dai Mubai's promise gave Tang San an opportunity.
After much deliberation, Tang San decided to teach Dai Mubai the sound-based positioning technique. After all, it wasn't particularly important. Ordinary people could master it with a bit of training. It was just that the people of the Douluo continent prioritized soul skills over physical training.
Exchanging a relatively unimportant hidden weapon technique for the future support of a wealthy patron? That was an incredible deal!
As for what the person who taught him this technique in his previous life might think, Tang San could only justify it by saying the benefits outweighed everything else.
Moreover, Tang San thought: 'Everything is for the Tang Sect!'
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