Chapter 40: Yu Xiaogang's Surprise

Chapter 40: Yu Xiaogang's Surprise

Early the next morning, Su Mo and the others were led by Zhao Wuji to the Star Dou Forest to hunt Oscar's third spirit ring.

Not long after they left, a long-lost friend of Shrek Academy's headmaster, Flender, arrived at the academy.

"Xiaogang, you've finally come! I've been waiting for you for so long!"

Flender's face was full of excitement when he saw Yu Xiaogang, welcoming him into the academy with joy.

"Yes, it's been a while!"

Yu Xiaogang sighed, looking around at Shrek Academy.

"By the way, where are Xiao San and the others?"

Yu Xiaogang immediately asked about Tang San. After all, his purpose for coming was to continue teaching him.

Flender laughed heartily: "Haha, Xiaogang, you've come at an unlucky time! One of the students broke through to level 30, so Zhao Wuji took all the students to the Star Dou Forest this morning!"

"Is that so? Looks like I missed them by a step!"

Yu Xiaogang smiled lightly, not too bothered by the timing. Since he was already here, he knew he would see Tang San once they returned.

"Xiaogang, our Shrek Academy has recruited quite a few little monsters this year. I guarantee you'll be amazed!"

Flender led Yu Xiaogang into the academy, chatting as they walked.

Flender's steps then slowed, and with a touch of pride, he added, "But speaking of impressive students, your old academy, Nuoding Academy, really stood out this year. Out of the five new students we recruited at Shrek, three of them came from Nuoding Academy!"

"What? Three students from Nuoding Academy?"

Yu Xiaogang stopped in surprise, staring at Flender in disbelief.

At Nuoding Academy, he hadn't noticed any students outstanding enough to enter Shrek Academy.

"You didn't know?"

Flender raised an eyebrow, curious about Yu Xiaogang's reaction. Had Yu Xiaogang not realized how impressive his old academy was?

"Besides Tang San and Xiao Wu, who's the third one?"

Yu Xiaogang asked with growing curiosity.

"A little monster named Su Mo, the same age as Tang San."

Flender didn't hold back, quickly revealing Su Mo's name.

"What? Su Mo? Are you sure his name is Su Mo? And he's from Nuoding Academy? What's his martial spirit?"

Yu Xiaogang's surprise deepened at the mention of Su Mo's name.

In Yu Xiaogang's memory, he quickly recalled a scene from six years ago—before he had taken Tang San as his disciple—a boy named Su Mo had come to him, requesting to become his apprentice.

However, upon learning about Su Mo's talent, Yu Xiaogang had regretfully turned him down.

In the years that followed, Yu Xiaogang focused entirely on teaching Tang San and hadn't paid any attention to what became of Su Mo after he entered Nuoding Academy.

With Tang San as his disciple, how could he have had time to care about Su Mo?

Nonetheless, Su Mo had always been a unique student at Nuoding Academy. Even though Yu Xiaogang didn't actively seek information, he had heard about Su Mo's unwavering dedication to his training over the past six years, spending nearly all his time cultivating.

But despite knowing how hard Su Mo worked—even tirelessly—Yu Xiaogang never expected to hear Su Mo's name mentioned at Shrek Academy, a place that only accepted monsters.

"Yes, he's from Nuoding Academy. Both Tang San and Xiao Wu know him. His martial spirit is the Soul Hunting Spear!"

Seeing Yu Xiaogang's intense surprise, Flender's curiosity only grew.

Why was Yu Xiaogang so shocked? Could there be more to Su Mo than he realized?

"It's really him. What's his current level?"

Yu Xiaogang was now certain it was the same boy he had once refused as a disciple.

"Level 22 Spirit Grandmaster!"

"Why? Are you that surprised?"

Flender, puzzled by Yu Xiaogang's reaction, couldn't help but ask.

After all, this was a student from Nuoding Academy!

"Do you know what Su Mo's innate spirit power was?"

Instead of answering directly, Yu Xiaogang countered with a question, his tone tinged with disbelief.

Truthfully, Yu Xiaogang was astonished. He couldn't understand how Su Mo had advanced so quickly.

"What was his innate spirit power?" Flender's curiosity deepened as he saw Yu Xiaogang's unsettled expression.

"Innate spirit power of level 2!"

Yu Xiaogang stopped beating around the bush, lifted his head to look at Flender, and slowly said:

"Innate spirit power of level 2."

"What?"

"How is that possible..."

Sure enough, upon hearing Yu Xiaogang's words, Flender immediately exclaimed in disbelief.

"Innate spirit power at level 2, how could he have progressed so quickly?"

"Exactly, how is that possible..."

"Back then, Su Mo wanted to take me as his teacher, but when I found out about his talent, I declined."

"Now, I'm just as shocked by how fast he's been cultivating!"

Yu Xiaogang, seeing Flender's shock, nodded in agreement and continued.

"I never would have thought his innate spirit power was only at level 2..."

Flender muttered to himself, thinking about Su Mo's situation before speculating, "Xiaogang, do you think it might have something to do with his naturally strong physique?"

"After all, his body is strong enough to withstand a thousand-year spirit ring for his second ring. A faster cultivation speed would make some sense, right?"

After Su Mo entered Shrek Academy, Flender had been curious ever since learning that Su Mo's second spirit ring was a thousand-year one. So, on the day they traveled to Soto City, Flender had questioned Su Mo, who had given the same explanation he shared with Ning Rongrong earlier.

Flender knew Su Mo had an unusually strong physique, further enhanced by consistent physical training, making him far stronger than his peers.

"What?"

"A thousand-year spirit ring??"

Yu Xiaogang's face turned even more shocked when he heard Flender's words.

He had never imagined that Su Mo would have a second spirit ring of a thousand years.

"Surprised, aren't you? Haha..."

Seeing Yu Xiaogang's reaction, Flender laughed, and then he explained Su Mo's situation in more detail.

It was clear now—although Su Mo had come from Nuoding Academy, Yu Xiaogang didn't seem to know much about him.

"I can't believe it—so Su Mo actually has such a talent!"

Yu Xiaogang exclaimed in amazement after hearing the full story.

A naturally powerful body and exceptional strength in a spirit master were rare but not unheard of in the past.

However, Yu Xiaogang had never paid much attention to these kinds of talents before, as most spirit masters with such gifts typically didn't take advantage of them and instead focused on cultivating their martial spirits.

"A strong physique does make it possible to break through the limits when absorbing spirit rings!"

"A powerful body can indeed increase cultivation speed, which is a theory I've discussed before. If his body is strong enough to bear a thousand-year spirit ring as his second one, then a faster cultivation speed makes sense!"

"I really didn't expect he would have such capabilities!"

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