Chapter 25: Xiaogang's First Spirit Skill
Yu Yuanzhen captured the spirit beast and looked it over carefully. It turned out to be only a two‑hundred‑year‑old specimen.
"I'm not entirely sure how the Golden Holy Dragon cultivates, but are you certain you want to absorb this one?" he asked doubtfully.
Yu Xiaogang straightened his back solemnly. "The Golden Holy Dragon was a mutation of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon. Its essence must be of the lightning attribute. The Thunder Skunk is also lightning‑based. If I absorb its ring, that power will awaken my Luo Sanpao's bloodline and grant me a powerful skill."
Seeing his son so resolute, Yu Yuanzhen simply said, "Very well then—kill it."
Yu Xiaogang struck, and soon the soul beast lay dead, a glowing yellow‑orange spirit ring hovering above its corpse. Eagerly, he began absorbing it.
The process was painful, but within his endurance. In time, the ring fully fused into his body. For the first time in his life, Yu Xiaogang was a true Spirit Master. For someone with his miserable innate rank, this was nearly a miracle. At last, he could stand above the common rabble. His chest swelled with pride. One day—through two hundred times the normal effort—he would awaken the bloodline of the Golden Holy Dragon, rise through the ranks of Grandmaster, Spirit Elder, Spirit Ancestor… even to a Titled Douluo.
"Enough of your self‑admiration," Yu Yuanzhen said calmly, hands clasped behind his back. "Summon your martial soul. Use your first spirit skill on me, and let me see what kind of power you've gained."
"Alright, Father!" Yu Xiaogang was still intoxicated by his success. He slapped his chest and called out proudly, "Luo Sanpao!"
With a puff, the plump violet creature appeared before them—part pig, part dog, completely absurd. A yellow ring gleamed faintly around its round body.
Yu Yuanzhen examined it from head to toe, disappointed that he sensed no significant change.
"First spirit skill!" Yu Xiaogang commanded.
The ring lit up. Luo Sanpao's small face grew serious, and it floated upward until it was eye‑level with Yu Yuanzhen.
"What will it be?" Yu Yuanzhen wondered. "A lightning‑type assault skill? A speed technique?"
But then the creature's expression contorted—it seemed to be straining.
Yu Yuanzhen blinked, baffled.
Then, suddenly, Luo Sanpao twisted around, its fat purple rear aimed squarely at his father's face.
Was it preparing a lightning‑charged charge attack? A rapid strike, perhaps? Yu Yuanzhen waited curiously.
And then Yu Xiaogang bellowed with inexplicable bravado: "Thunderous fart, earth‑shaking blast—Luo Sanpao!"
Pfffft!
A jet of thick, yellowish gas erupted directly from Luo Sanpao's rear, hitting Yu Yuanzhen square in the face.
The pungent reek filled the air. The blast's pressure blew Yu Yuanzhen's jade hairpin away, his hair whipping wildly as golden fumes spread through the forest. The stench was unbearable.
Yu Xiaogang bowed his head, his expression unreadable.
Yu Yuanzhen likewise lowered his head into the mist.
Silence. A silence so deep it felt deafening.
Finally, as the yellow smoke faded, Yu Yuanzhen broke it with a slow sigh. "Xiaogang… I think that's enough. You've officially become a Spirit Master—good for you. Now perhaps you should… learn some management skills. The sect could use someone to handle trade and affairs."
Yu Xiaogang froze. He heard the hidden meaning clearly—his father intended to give up on him as a cultivator.
If even his father abandoned him, what would he have left? Without the sect's triple resource allocation, without his father's guided transmissions, his future as a soul master would die here. He would watch as Yu Xiaomen—the half‑breed he despised—rose to Titled Douluo while he remained forever a one‑ring joke.
No.
Father can't give up on me. Not yet.
Thinking quickly, Yu Xiaogang straightened. "Father, I refuse to stop here. My first spirit skill may seem unimpressive, but I can feel it—Luo Sanpao's bloodline has stirred. I'm certain that with time and perseverance, it'll evolve into the Golden Holy Dragon."
Of course, it was nonsense. The Thunder Skunk's ring had done nothing of the sort.
"You mean… your Luo Sanpao's bloodline has awakened?" Yu Yuanzhen looked skeptical, studying the creature closely—but saw no change.
"Only faintly, Father," Yu Xiaogang insisted. "It's a subtle awakening only its master could feel. I'm sure that with every ring I add, it will continue to evolve."
"Are you certain?" Yu Yuanzhen's face was unreadable. "The path ahead won't be easy."
Yu Xiaogang lifted his chin proudly, hands clasped behind his back. "No matter how hard the road, I will keep training. My talent may be poor, but effort can bridge any gap. One‑fold, ten‑fold, a hundred‑fold effort—it doesn't matter. I believe there are no useless martial souls—only useless soul masters."
Yu Yuanzhen burst into booming laughter, his frustration dissolving. "Good! Very good! Truly my son. If you really have that determination, then I'll support you. But don't make me regret it."
With solemn resolve, Yu Xiaogang nodded. "I won't, Father."
Father and son returned to the sect soon after.
When word spread that Yu Xiaogang had become a soul master, ridicule increased rather than faded. His first spirit skill was a fart.
Everywhere he went, jeers followed. Yet he gritted his teeth and endured, continuing his nightly cultivation under his father's guidance and consuming thrice the resources of a core disciple.
No matter the humiliation, he told himself, Effort pays off. Someday, they'll all regret laughing at me.
(END CHAPTER)
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