At the entrance of the Star Luo Imperial Palace:
"I'm not lying, really, I am the Teacher of Gods! I'm going to cultivate a god, truly. You have to believe me—please, let me meet His Majesty, I have something very important to tell him."
Smack!
A palm struck across his face, and a short-cropped figure was sent flying.
Yu Xiaogang was slapped hard by the guard and crashed to the ground.
"You? What the hell are you? You want to see His Majesty? Do you even deserve it? Just a level 29 trash with a useless pig spirit, and you dare call yourself a teacher of gods? What a joke." The guard spat with disdain.
Yu Xiaogang clutched his swollen cheek and said miserably, "I'm not lying, really, really not lying—I am the Teacher of Gods!"
The guard directly unsheathed his sword and barked: "Get lost. The Star Luo Imperial Palace is not a place for you to act wild!"
Seeing the cold steel flashing, Yu Xiaogang's eyes flickered with fear. He realized if he kept pestering, this guard might actually kill him.
He scrambled up and ran away.
Once he was sure he was safe, Yu Xiaogang turned back toward the Star Luo Palace with bitter hatred:
"You damned guard, I, Yu Xiaogang, am the Teacher of Gods. Today you dared disrespect me so, but when my disciple Tang San returns as a god, I will make sure he teaches you a lesson!"
The petty-minded Yu Xiaogang etched this grudge firmly in his heart. But soon he began worrying again. He rubbed his bristly cropped hair and muttered bitterly:
"Why still no progress? I clearly already used the title of 'Teacher of Gods,' yet I still can't get in."
After taking the mission from Tang San and Tang Hao, Yu Xiaogang began traveling across the continent, planning to use some influential power as his entry point, link together forces across the land, and build an alliance. That way, when Tang San returned, he could hand him something of value.
But—easier said than done.
Our Yu Xiaogang was only a level 29 "Waste Martial Soul Master," his spirit being nothing more than a pig. With such a background, meeting minor lords and nobles was barely possible.
But his targets? The Heaven Dou royal family, the Star Luo royal family, great sects…
All of them, without exception, gave Yu Xiaogang the cold shoulder.
At first, Yu Xiaogang still put on airs, refusing to reveal his true identity, just asking for an audience. The result? Either he was scammed for "gifts" and then ignored, or he was simply thrown out outright.
Back then, he could still act aloof: brushing the dust off his clothes and leaving, muttering, "If you don't welcome me, others will. I, Yu Xiaogang, am the Teacher of Gods. When Tang San returns as a god, you won't even be qualified to grovel at my feet."
But later, everywhere he went, the response was the same—he was ruthlessly kicked out.
At last, Yu Xiaogang grew anxious.
He hadn't forgotten Tang San's command.
Before Tang San's return, he must establish an alliance to prove his worth—otherwise, Tang San might not even recognize their master-disciple relationship.
So, in desperation, Yu Xiaogang threw caution to the wind and played what he thought was his trump card: "I am the Teacher of Gods! The man who will cultivate a god!"
The result? Well, you can imagine.
A man with level 29 soul power, whose martial soul was a pig, claiming he was about to produce a god—how would anyone react?
By now, Yu Xiaogang was completely unaware that people already regarded him as nothing but a swindler.
"What do I do… what should I do?" Yu Xiaogang's head ached. He didn't know when Tang San would return, but he had to deliver results before then, or his "teacher" status would vanish.
Since kingdoms, duchies, and empires were "short-sighted," he decided next to target sects.
Yu Xiaogang's little cropped head tilted in thought.
First requirement: the sect must be influential enough to rival the two great empires, so he could use it as a foundation to unleash his grand ambitions.
That left the Upper Three Sects—both old and new—as the best choices.
Dragon Elephant Sect? Just Spirit Hall's lapdogs. Cross them off.
Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect? The easiest choice—his own family. But returning meant bowing his head and enduring their mockery. Having roamed the world for decades with nothing to show, Yu Xiaogang's pride would not allow it.
Clear Sky Sect? After suffering calamity, they'd withdrawn from the world, hidden in dangerous lands. With Yu Xiaogang's fragile level-29 strength, he'd be eaten by soul beasts long before finding them. Cross them off.
New Upper Three Sects—among them, the Body Sect was the best target. If he could persuade them, he could wield their power for his ambitions. But again—the Body Sect's base was deep in dangerous terrain, and with Yu Xiaogang's useless body, that was impossible.
So in the end, there was only one option left.
Yu Xiaogang clasped his hands behind his back, a "wise" gleam flashing in his eyes.
Meanwhile, Ning Fengzhi was troubled.
In the Soul Master Tournament, Spark Academy had unveiled a terrifying technology: allowing powerful martial spirits—once monopolized by great clans—to flow into the hands of commoners.
Why did Ning Fengzhi fear Spirit Hall so much? Because Spirit Hall's free spirit awakenings had drawn countless commoners into becoming soul masters. Those new generations formed Spirit Hall's foundation for dominance.
But Spark Academy's potential was even greater. Spirit Hall gambled on latent talent among the masses; Spark Academy could directly grant martial spirits to whomever they wished.
Ning Fengzhi foresaw Spark Academy overturning the entire continent's balance. To preserve the aristocratic golden age, Spark Academy had to be destroyed.
If not for their powerful backer, he would already have struck. Knowing Snow Empress stood behind them, he could only bide his time.
After the tournament, Ning Fengzhi began investigating Spark Academy.
First, he sent spies into their ranks to uncover the secret of their martial spirit–granting technology—perhaps even steal it.
But Spark Academy was sealed tighter than an iron fortress. His spies were immediately rooted out, before they could do anything.
Fortunately, his weren't the only ones exposed—spies from Spirit Hall, the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect, the Body Sect, Heaven Dou, Star Luo… all were caught.
Clearly, everyone else had the same idea.
Though he failed to penetrate the academy's core, Ning Fengzhi still gathered indirect intel.
He investigated many Spark Academy students. Among them: children orphaned by famine, enslaved girls rescued from noble abuse, young laborers who had escaped imperial conscription for corvée service…
All of these people had one thing in common: they were victims under the current order.
Even Zhao Hengning and Luo Xingqi, who were both deeply connected to his Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
Zhao Hengning's elder brother had joined Spirit Hall. Because of his exceptional talent, he was expected to become an elder. But Ning Fengzhi secretly instructed Gu Rong to have him eliminated. His martial soul was none other than the Bone Dragon.
Then there was Luo Xingqi, whom Ning Fengzhi considered especially tied to him.
At first, when Ning Fengzhi learned that Luo Xingqi had been a slave, he was overjoyed. He bought her freedom himself, thinking he had found an excellent way to draw close to her. By presenting himself as her benefactor, he could win her loyalty and extract intelligence from within Spark Academy.
But further investigation nearly scared him out of his wits. Luo Xingqi was actually born into a rising soul master clan. Her parents had benefited from Spirit Hall's martial soul awakening, and they used the wealth-generating ability of their martial souls to build a vast commercial network spanning the two great empires.
Back then, Ning Fengzhi coveted their trade network and sought to buy it outright. They refused.
So he used his cunning, orchestrating a scheme that left Luo Xingqi's parents drowning in debt. In the end, they committed suicide, and he absorbed the Luo family's business empire at a fraction of its worth, greatly strengthening the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
Because of this, Luo Xingqi had fallen into slavery, which eventually gave rise to the story of Ning Fengzhi "buying her freedom" and returning her liberty.
Damn it! One soul master with a direct grudge against Gu Rong, whose martial soul was the Bone Dragon.
Another with a direct grudge against him, whose martial soul was the very Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda he longed for. What kind of hellish cosmic joke was this?!
This discovery drove Ning Fengzhi to dig deeper—and the more he uncovered, the more drenched in cold sweat he became.
Lin Chen bore a grudge against Yu Xiaogang, so his martial soul was the Golden Holy Dragon.
Ye Qingmei bore a grudge against the Star Luo Empire, so she had twin martial souls: the White Tiger and the Nether Spirit Cat.
Su Qingqian bore a grudge against the Heaven Dou royal family.
And so on, and so forth.
Damn it! Wasn't this as clear as day? Spark Academy existed for one reason only: to strike at the proud and noble clans of the soul master aristocracy. That had to be it!
In the past, those mud-legged commoners were trampled without the power to resist. But once they gained the power of revenge…
Ning Fengzhi didn't dare imagine the outcome.
Spark Academy had to be eliminated early—otherwise, it would become a great calamity.
But how? Spark Academy was under the protection of Ultimate Duoluo!
The thought gave Ning Fengzhi splitting headaches. For several years, he hadn't slept well. Entire nights passed with his hair falling out in clumps—he was nearly bald.
"Sect Master." Gu Rong entered.
"Uncle Gu, what is it?" Ning Fengzhi asked.
"Sect Master, let me tell you a joke to ease your stress. That laughingstock Yu Xiaogang has come to our Seven Treasure City," Gu Rong said.
At the mention of Yu Xiaogang, Ning Fengzhi's interest waned. "Oh? What's he doing here?"
"He claims… he's the Teacher of Gods. Don't you find that hilarious?" Gu Rong chuckled. "A god—do you understand what that means? And him? A mere level-29 trash? He dares call himself that? Dreaming in broad daylight!"
Originally, Gu Rong had just wanted to share a joke. But Ning Fengzhi, constantly anxious, seized upon different details. His eyelids twitched.
"Gu Rong… what did you just say he called himself?"
"Teacher of Gods!" Gu Rong replied. "What's so strange about that?"
"Uncle Gu, surely you know what a god is?" Ning Fengzhi pressed.
"Of course I do. Reaching level 100—you become a god," Gu Rong answered. "But Yu Xiaogang? He only has that one disciple, Tang San, whose potential was crippled anyway. And that's supposed to make him a Teacher of Gods? Ha! Not likely."
Since Tang san's Clear Sky Hammer was ruined, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect had never placed much hope in Tang San.
"Uncle Gu," Ning Fengzhi said gravely, "with Spirit Hall above us and Spark Academy pressing from below, our situation is dire. It's better to believe than not. If Yu Xiaogang is lying, we lose nothing—we can punish him afterward. But if he's telling the truth?"
At this, Gu Rong finally realized. If Yu Xiaogang was just a fraud, the sect lost nothing. But if he was telling the truth, then the sect might have a lifeline. After all… that meant gods!
"Where is Yu Xiaogang? Bring him to me at once!" Ning Fengzhi said urgently.
"Uh… Sect Master, I… I had his legs broken and threw him out," Gu Rong admitted awkwardly.
"…What?" Ning Fengzhi was dumbstruck.
Yu Xiaogang, both legs shattered, crawled in humiliation along the ground like a worm.
Moments ago, he had suffered one of the greatest humiliations of his life—beaten by Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect guards, his legs broken, and tossed aside like garbage.
At this moment, his hatred for the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect surpassed even that which he bore for the Heaven Dou and Star Luo powers.
"Damn it… Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect… thirty years the river flows east, thirty years west! Today's disgrace, I, Yu Xiaogang, will remember. When my disciple Tang San becomes a god, I'll have him destroy your sect first—to avenge my broken legs!" Yu Xiaogang swore bitterly.
Suddenly, disciples of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect surrounded him. Yu Xiaogang panicked—had they heard his outburst just now?
He quickly suppressed his hatred, replacing it with flattery and groveling. "I'm sorry, I was only joking just now. I didn't mean any of that! If you want me to crawl, I'll crawl."
"Yu Xiaogang," one disciple said, "our Sect Master requests your presence."
"What—Sect Master Ning wants to see me?" Yu Xiaogang froze.
Inside the grand hall of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect—
"Seven Treasures, Glazed and Radiant—"
Ning Fengzhi's colorful pagoda released a healing light, enveloping Yu Xiaogang and restoring his broken legs.
During the treatment, Ning Fengzhi unexpectedly discovered that Yu Xiaogang was already a man "without roots." At first, he thought his own men had done this to him, but closer inspection showed the wounds were four or five years old. It clearly hadn't been the work of the sect.
So, Ning Fengzhi let the matter pass. Putting on a kindly face, he said warmly:
"Master, I failed to restrain my subordinates and caused you distress. I will compensate you for your loss. Please forgive me."
Yu Xiaogang, overwhelmed by the honor, hurriedly replied:
"Sect Master Ning, it's nothing, it's nothing. For you to meet me at all—I, Yu Xiaogang, am already most grateful."