The next day, Tang San left with Yu Xiaogang to hunt for a soul ring without informing Wu Lan.
That alone proved it, Tang San had truly listened to Yu Xiaogang and chosen to stay away from him.
All Wu Lan's guilt washed away. He had healed Tang San and even his father, but now that he was no longer useful, he was ignored. This kind of person, full of double standards, wasn't worth a shred of sympathy.
Just like that, five days passed. Wu Lan and Xiao Wu settled into a routine: training every morning, opening their healing stall in the afternoon, playing in the evening, and doing light cultivation before bed.
But on the fifth afternoon, while Wu Lan was tending the stall, a familiar voice called out.
"Brother Wu Lan, are you there?" Tang San's voice rang out, hurried and strained. He carried someone on his back.
Wu Lan turned and asked calmly, "What happened?"
He already knew. Just like in the original story, that level-29 'waste' had gone into the forest to show off and ended up poisoned, dragging his disciple into the mess too. If it had been anyone else, they would've died. What kind of teacher does that? Still, it wasn't Wu Lan's problem.
"My teacher was poisoned by a Datura Snake while helping me hunt... Brother Wu Lan, please help him!" Tang San begged, acting like nothing had happened between them.
Wu Lan was honestly amazed by his shamelessness. Xiao Wu stood there, stunned.
"Alright, put him down. I'll heal him," Wu Lan said gently, a kind smile on his face.
"Brother..." Xiao Wu started, but Wu Lan shook his head slightly, signaling her to stay quiet.
She mistook his silence for kindness and thought he was simply too good-hearted, he was healing someone who had scolded and abandoned him.
But Wu Lan heard a familiar sound.
[Healing in progress...]
[Payment detected: Consciousness]
[Would you like to absorb it?]
He didn't know what it meant exactly, but he accepted it.
Once he finished healing Yu Xiaogang, he turned to Tang San. "Little San, do you want healing too?"
Tang San nodded. "Thank you, Brother Wu Lan."
Wu Lan healed him and received another [Xuan Tian Record] fragment.
After they left, Xiao Wu huffed. "Brother, that Tang San is so shameless, and you still healed him."
"Yes, he is. But we didn't lose anything. In fact, we made 20,000 gold coins off them. Let's treat it as compensation."
Hearing that, Xiao Wu burst into laughter. "Brother, you're so bad!"
"Let's close the stall and head home early," Wu Lan said, his smile turning sly. "There's a show tomorrow."
"What show?" she asked, curious.
"You'll see," Wu Lan replied, leaving her guessing.
That night, back in his room, Wu Lan opened his inventory.
[Xuan Tian Record] - Mastery: Intermediate (100%)
[Ring Detonation] - Mastery: Intermediate (0%)
[Trace of Tang Hao's Soul Power]
[Consciousness]
[Soul Ring Age] x10,000
First, he upgraded the Xuan Tian Record.
New information poured into his mind:
Cultivation had become passive, running 24/7 even while he slept. Though slower, it still tripled his usual speed.
Purple Demon Eye gained a new feature: it could predict the enemy's next move.
Jade Hands evolved into Jade Body.
Ghost Shadow Movement unlocked a Phasing Effect, allowing him to let enemy attacks pass through him for 0.5 seconds.
Wu Lan took a deep breath to calm his excitement. Then he selected [Consciousness] and absorbed it.
Suddenly, his Sacred Orchid emerged on its own, rubbing against him like a baby seeking affection. After a moment of confusion, he realized, he had gained Liu Sunpao's consciousness.
His Martial Spirit had become a sentient soul beast.
"Can you understand me?" Wu Lan asked softly.
The orchid nodded.
They talked for a while before he finally drifted to sleep, a small smile on his lips.
The next day at Nuoding Academy, Wu Lan spotted Tang San from afar and moved toward him.
But Tang San immediately turned and ran the other way.
"...So shameless," Xiao Wu muttered.
"Let's go," Wu Lan said calmly. "The fun is about to begin."
Right on cue, a loud voice boomed from the academy gate.
"Tang San! Come out here!"
It was the scar-faced, level-32 pawnshop boss.
Students and teachers gathered, curious about the commotion.
Dean Su came out. "What's the meaning of this? Why are you disturbing the academy?"
The boss pointed. "One of your students borrowed 20,000 gold coins and hasn't paid the interest."
The dean was shocked. "Which student?"
"Tang San. He borrowed it last week."
"I'll call him out to confirm."
Tang San soon arrived, accompanied by Yu Xiaogang.
The moment the boss saw him, he shouted, "You! How dare you run off with my money?!"
Tang San blinked in confusion. "What? I don't know you. I never borrowed any money from you."
The boss narrowed his eyes. "Are you playing dumb?"
Dean Su, seeing Tang San's confusion, leaned toward believing him.
"Are you accusing my student without proof?"
"Wait a second," the boss said. "His name is Tang San. His Martial Spirit is Blue Silver Grass. His teacher is the so-called Grandmaster Yu Xiaogang. And he's an innate full soul power, right?"
"...Yes," Su replied hesitantly.
Tang San's eyes widened. How did this stranger know everything?
"He came to me begging to borrow 20,000 gold coins," the boss continued. "Said the Grandmaster wanted payment to accept him as a disciple."
A stunned silence fell.
Everyone turned to the teacher-student pair.
Many believed the boss, his story was too specific.
Yu Xiaogang and Tang San looked at each other in complete confusion.
Meanwhile, Wu Lan and Xiao Wu stood at the back, barely able to hold in their laughter.
"Brother, is this the fun you talked about yesterday?" Xiao Wu asked, tears of joy in her eyes.
Wu Lan nodded, lips twitching. "Yes. But trust me, it's still not over."