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*****
Of course, Xiao Tian was just joking. He wasn't that desperate. The rewards he had already obtained were more than enough to keep him busy for a while. Besides, they had just fought; too much of a good thing could be a bad thing.
Now that he had the Cornucopia, Xiao Tian was in no hurry to go to the Spirit Hall branch in Nuoding City to register his spirit power and receive their subsidy. In fact, he had no intention of registering at all for the time being.
Soon, a year had passed.
During that year, Xiao Tian would, from time to time, go and torment Tang San or have a sparring session with Xiao Wu, and his own strength had improved by leaps and bounds. Unfortunately, he hadn't received many good rewards from the system during that time. This made him wonder if the system had given out too many good things at the beginning and was now starting to run out of steam.
In the beginning, his little system would still warn him not to flirt with death so recklessly, lest Tang Hao see his son losing constantly and decide to intervene. Xiao Tian, however, paid it no mind. As long as he didn't go too far, Tang Hao might even have to thank him in his heart for igniting Tang San's fighting spirit and making him cultivate even harder.
Therefore, after every ten or so beatdowns, Xiao Tian would intentionally reveal a flaw, making Tang San think he was on the verge of victory, thus keeping him on the hook.
"Xiao Tian, Xiao Wu, the holiday starts tomorrow. Do you have any plans? I was thinking of going back to my village to see my father. If you two are free, would you like to come with me?"
Tang San extended the invitation to both of them, but his eyes kept darting towards Xiao Wu.
Xiao Wu didn't speak, instead looking at Xiao Tian beside her. Wherever he went, she would go. Over the past year, her spirit power had increased the fastest of the three, but残念ly, she was still no match for Xiao Tian. She didn't even know what his spirit power rank was.
So how did she know her cultivation was the highest? Naturally, it was because Xiao Tian had told her so.
Although she would get her bottom spanked every time she lost to him, she gradually found that she was getting used to it. And each time, she would feel an indescribable sensation afterward that allowed her to focus even more on her cultivation.
Xiao Tian fell silent for a moment before finally nodding in agreement. The holiday was quite long anyway. He could go with Tang San to Saint Soul Village first, and then return to Artisan Soul Village to see Grandpa Village Chief afterward.
Seeing that Xiao Wu was seeking Xiao Tian's opinion, Tang San felt a twinge of annoyance but managed to endure it. After a year, he had finally managed to tentatively integrate himself into their little group. Once the time was right, he should be able to ask Xiao Tian those more private questions, right?
To this day, he still couldn't believe that Xiao Tian was truly that strong, capable of using so many different sword techniques. And he still had no idea what Xiao Tian's spirit ability even was. Every time he asked, Xiao Tian would say, "I am a sword cultivator. I don't care about spirit abilities, only about the artistic conception of the Sword Dao. As long as my Sword Dao improves, it will also help my spirit power cultivation."
Xiao Tian was subtly brainwashing Tang San and Xiao Wu with this explanation. After all, he wouldn't be able to hide his cultivation level for much longer. When it was eventually revealed, he would need a legitimate and appropriate reason. 'I walk a different cultivation path. Improving my Sword Intent can accelerate the speed of my spirit power cultivation. Is that not reasonable? I think it's perfectly reasonable!'*
Hehe. 'Go ahead and try to expose me, I dare you!'
Besides, he had his own motives for going to Saint Soul Village this time. If his guess was correct...
The next morning, the three of them set off.
They didn't rush their journey, instead taking their time, and only arrived at Saint Soul Village around noon the next day. As soon as they arrived, Tang San couldn't wait any longer. He ran directly towards his house, shouting, "Dad, I'm home!"
And just as he had expected, the moment he stepped into Saint Soul Village, the system's voice once again exploded in his mind!
[Ding! Warning! Warning! The Life Core of the Douluo Plane (fused with the Ancient Tree of Life), Ah Yin, has been discovered in a cave on the back mountain of Saint Soul Village! Her strength is immense! The Host is advised to maintain a low profile!]
After so many warnings, although the system already knew that its Host was not one for subtlety, it still had its professional ethics. A warning was a warning!
A faint smile appeared on Xiao Tian's lips. It was just as he had predicted. If he were to take Ah Yin away from Saint Soul Village and, say, manhandle her a bit, would that also trigger the system's critical hit reward? Of course, he meant a very proper sort of manhandling; his tastes weren't that heavy. Plus, he could get his hands on a hundred-thousand-year Blue Silver Emperor right leg bone for free.
However, if he remembered correctly, Tang Hao had placed a formation in that location. If he were to move the box containing the Blue Silver Emperor's leg bone, Tang Hao would be alerted immediately.
'No rush, no rush.' He had plenty of patience. Anyway, in the current situation, Tang Hao wouldn't give the hundred-thousand-year spirit bone to Tang San until his rank had reached forty or fifty.
At that moment, Old Jack walked out of his house upon hearing the noise. He saw Xiao Tian and Xiao Wu at the entrance to the village and nodded with a cheerful smile.
"You two must be Little San's classmates. Come with me, let's go find him together."
Xiao Tian and Xiao Wu nodded and followed behind him. This was his first time seeing Old Jack. He was indeed just as kind and amiable as described in the original story.
Then, just as in the story, Old Jack gave Tang San a letter that Tang Hao had left behind, telling him that his father had left on some business.
Xiao Tian laughed to himself. 'Left, my ass. He's just hiding nearby!'
Tang San read the letter and took a deep breath. He had known that his father was hiding something from him. He suspected that his father was likely a hidden expert, just like the floor-sweeping monks from the sects in his past life—seemingly inconspicuous, but actually one of the most powerful people in the sect.
And after a year of studying theory with his teacher, he naturally knew that Spirits were inherited from one's parents, and the more powerful the Spirit, the higher the innate spirit power. His Spirits were Blue Silver Grass and the Clear Sky Hammer, which belonged to his mother and father, respectively. And not just his father, but his teacher too had told him not to reveal the Clear Sky Hammer unless it was absolutely necessary. Could it be that displaying the Clear Sky Hammer would bring about some grave consequences? Like being hunted down?
Tang San was no ordinary child on the inside. The Tang Sect from his past life was an assassin's sect, so he understood such matters all too well.
Tang San muttered to himself, "Dad, wait for me. I will cultivate diligently. Sooner or later, I will become strong enough to make you tell me the truth with your own mouth!"
However, since his father had already left Saint Soul Village, there was no longer any need for him to return in the future. Tang San wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes and expressed his thanks to Old Jack.
(End of Chapter)