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The two little lolis had been relentlessly and pitifully staring at him for quite a while. Eventually, Ye Wen could only sigh in resignation and wave his hand.
"Fine, I'll take you on."
Xiao Xiao immediately seized the opportunity, dropping to her knees with a thud and bowing deeply three times. "Greetings, Master!"
"Mm," Ye Wen responded absentmindedly.
After all, it wasn't as if he lacked students eager to become his disciple.
The main reasons for accepting Xiao Xiao were Huo Yu'er's earnest request and Ye Wen's newfound desire to start anew.
Otherwise, no matter how persistent Xiao Xiao might have been, Ye Wen would have simply refused.
Once accepted, Ye Wen wouldn't leave his disciple to fend for herself. First, he treated her to an Immortal Herb spa, enhancing her already exceptional aptitude and boosting her soul power cultivation to the level of a Soul Grandmaster at Level 30.
This alone left Xiao Xiao utterly astonished and overwhelmed with gratitude toward Ye Wen. However, Ye Wen's initiation package was far from just this.
Speaking of which, Xiao Xiao truly had good fortune—perhaps due to her parents' sacrifices.
Ever since Tang San ascended to godhood, the secrets of twin spirit cultivation were no longer obscure. However, that didn't mean one could casually absorb spirit rings for their second spirit.
Yet Xiao Xiao had somehow managed to attach a spirit ring to her second spirit, the Nine Phoenix Salute Flute, while still at the Great Soul Master level. Fortunately, it was only a hundred-year spirit ring. Though it wasted a spirit ring slot, at least it didn't kill her—otherwise, it would have been quite laughable.
However, there was something Ye Wen didn't fully understand. In the original timeline, both of Xiao Xiao's spirits followed the path of control-type soul masters, despite the Nine Phoenix Salute Flute being capable of excelling as an offensive-type spirit.
But it was still early; there was plenty of time to change things.
For Xiao Xiao's third spirit ring of the Three Lives Soul-Sealing Cauldron, Ye Wen bestowed her with an artificial spirit ring.
This act firmly cemented Xiao Xiao's resolve to follow Ye Wen. After all, in this decaying Douluo Continent, the appearance of such legendary artifacts—last seen ten thousand years ago—emerging from Ye Wen's hands was proof enough of his immense strength and profound resources.
As for Xiao Xiao being labeled opportunistic?
Wasn't it only natural for anyone with a functioning brain to aspire to a better life and seek out stronger mentors?
Xiao Xiao's upbringing had taught her that if she offered this opportunity to those gossiping soul masters, they'd undoubtedly grovel at Ye Wen's feet. Such was the reality of human nature.
Next came the much-anticipated phase of teaching the Six Techniques.
Compared to the Douluo Continent of ten thousand years ago, the current era placed greater emphasis on mastering multiple skills, as soul-guiding tools had completely overturned the combat system that had persisted for millennia.
Even proud institutions like Shrek Academy had no choice but to embrace soul-guiding tools, which spoke volumes about the situation.
However, everyone had their own talents and weaknesses to address. Therefore, Ye Wen didn't teach Xiao Xiao all six techniques at once but instead selected the most suitable ones based on her characteristics.
These were Rigid Form, Shave, and Moon Step.
Since Xiao Xiao was a control-type soul master and her primary spirit, the Three Lives Soul-Sealing Cauldron, was cumbersome to wield, Ye Wen prioritized teaching her escape and survival techniques. If she didn't move quickly after using her spirit skills, she'd easily become a target for enemy focus fire.
Though Xiao Xiao always presented herself as a delicate and fragile loli, she was exceptionally ruthless in her training. Each session pushed her until her face turned pale, and she collapsed from exhaustion.
Ye Wen could see that she, too, harbored inner demons.
Because of this, Jiang Nannan acknowledged this junior sister.
Moreover, Xiao Xiao was an especially considerate person. Seeing that both Huo Yu'er and herself were under Ye Wen's tutelage, she conceived the idea of introducing Tang Wulin as well.
Ye Wen, who had been secretly eavesdropping on his disciples' daily training, instinctively wanted to refuse.
The reason was simple: all three of his current disciples were female. Ye Wen feared that allowing Tang Wulin, the male protagonist archetype, to join would disrupt the foundation he had painstakingly built.
After all, based on the original storyline of Dragon King Tang Wulin, Tang Wulin had flirted with numerous female characters while simultaneously playing the pure love card—a hypocritical and manipulative approach.
Ye Wen resolved that if Tang Wulin ever approached him, he would assert his authority as a master and ensure his disciples didn't treat their sect as some random gathering place for anyone.
However, several days passed without Ye Wen hearing any mention of Tang Wulin from his disciples.
"What's going on!?"
Ye Wen initially thought his disciples had matured and stopped meddling unnecessarily.
But the truth slapped him hard—Tang Wulin had quietly joined the Tang Sect.
Watching Tang Wulin diligently studying hidden weapons at the Tang Sect's Shrek branch, Ye Wen was filled with exasperation.
"Is this all God King Tang has to offer?"
In the original timeline, weren't there constant setups for Spirit Fusion Techniques? How did Tang San let his son slack off here without even attempting that?
Ye Wen spied on Tang Wulin for a while and found him obsessively practicing ancient contraptions like the Zhuge Divine Crossbow, which had been around for tens of thousands of years. Unable to bear it any longer, Ye Wen left in silence.
In an era where attacks reached 3,600 shots per second, who was still messing around with Zhuge Crossbows? -_-||
The key to this era was soul-guiding tools. Was the God King Tang really this conservative?
It was only then that Ye Wen remembered—in the original timeline, Wang Dong had been mentally conditioned to feel nauseous at the mere thought of touching soul-guiding tools.
Father? Is this all?
Just as the semester was nearing its end, Ye Wen was helping Huo Yu'er and the other two consolidate their training results when his brows suddenly furrowed.
"Don't make such a commotion right after emerging. Are you trying to ensure that God King Tang notices you?
Domain Expansion—Limitless World—"
Before the three girls could react, a flash of white light blinded them, and they found themselves in an empty white space.
???
The three girls stared at Ye Wen in confusion. Huo Yu'er was the first to ask, "Master, what are you doing?"
Ye Wen simply gestured for silence and softly said, "Come out, esteemed guest. Now that you've regained consciousness, there's no need to hide within a child's mind."
"How unlucky. To think that I'd wake up only to find myself before such a terrifyingly strong individual."
A slightly aged voice echoed through the space, causing the hairs on the three girls' necks to stand on end. Despite the emptiness of the space, they couldn't see anyone.
At this moment, an elderly man with long gray hair slowly materialized from the void.
Though surrounded by chilling death energy, he exuded an aura of extraordinary sanctity.
Ye Wen gazed directly at the figure and calmly asked, "Do you remember your name?"
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