Soul Land 5: The Rebirth of Tang San

Chapter 40: The Changes in the Bloodline Imprints

Wang Yanfeng gazed deeply at him, then said to Gui Gui, who was beside him, "You go rest first and keep an eye on the gate tonight. It should be fine, but still, be careful."

"Alright, I'll go check the front. You guys should rest early, too. I think you should leave tomorrow. Even though Tang San wore a mask today, his physique is still quite noticeable," Gui Gui whispered.

Wang Yanfeng nodded. "I know."

After Guigui left, Wang Yanfeng's gaze returned to Tang San, and he asked solemnly, "Why did you join the Collision Competition today? This isn't like you. Although you're the youngest of the bunch, you've always been the most composed. Why did you become so impulsive today? Do you realize how dangerous this was?"

Tang San lowered his head, looking like a child who knew he had done something wrong.

"Speak up!" Wang Yanfeng was beside himself with anger. Watching Tang San compete today, he had been truly on edge. Especially when he saw Tang San kill the Flash Leopard and then that fifth-order Flash Leopard pounced at him. Wang Yanfeng had really thought it was over. But who knew Tang San would win three consecutive matches? The rhino demon with strong defensive powers, as well as the swift and perceptive White-Crested Falcon, had both fallen at his hands.

Wang Yanfeng questioned himself. Even if he had participated in the contest, he might not have done better than Tang San.

Tang San murmured, "Teacher, that milk tea was just.... I wanted to earn some money...."

"Milk tea?" Wang Yanfeng paused for a moment, looking at the boy with his head bowed before him. Suddenly, he felt tightness in his chest.

Milk tea. Just for that one cup of milk tea.

An indescribable sadness welled up in his heart. Only then did he realize that the one in front of him, whom he had unconsciously come to consider his peer in the past year, was still just a nine-year-old child. Not only that, but he was a slave, nothing more than a number among livestock. Born a slave, raised a slave, never having experienced the warmth of a family.

That cup of milk tea might have brought him a taste he had never experienced. Our human children are willing to risk their lives just to earn money for a cup of milk tea.

"Yes, the milk tea was sweet and fragrant," Tang San said, still with his head lowered.

Wang Yanfeng took a deep breath, stepped forward suddenly, and pulled Tang San into his embrace, holding him tightly.

Tang San bowed his head, and in his mind, he saw the face and smile of Mei Gongzi today. The cup of milk tea was still beside his bed, and he cherished it simply because she had touched it.

"Never do something so foolish again. If you want milk tea, just tell me, and I'll take you to buy some..." Wang Yanfeng choked out; his tone was no longer harsh but filled with warmth.

Tang San's heart trembled for a moment, and in an instant, the image of his father from his previous life appeared in his mind.

Compared to this life, his last life was happier. At least in his childhood, he had his father's company. In his previous life, his father had been one of the strongest of his era, and he had been a strong pillar of support for him, especially in times of danger.

From Wang Yanfeng, he felt the same care that his father in his previous life had shown him.

"I'm sorry, Teacher. I won't be impulsive again. I've worried you," Tang San sincerely admitted his mistake.

Indeed, had he not been so deeply moved by his encounter with Mei Gongzi, he would never have rashly joined the competition. But the moment he saw her, he simply couldn't control the impulse in his heart.

Today was the happiest day since he had come to this world, having found the reincarnated form of his lover from his past life. And at this moment, he also felt the fatherly love that Wang Yanfeng brought.

He had anticipated a scolding from both Wang Yanfeng and Gui Gui upon his return. But unexpectedly, all he received was warmth.

Wang Yanfeng patted his head. "Forget everything that happened today. You are very talented and you will surely succeed in the future. Rest early. I'll check on your Auntie Gui. If nothing happens tonight, everything should be fine."

"Okay," Tang San replied.

Wang Yanfeng gently patted his shoulder before getting up to leave. After he left, Tang San noticed that the aetherhorn coin he had given his teacher was on the corner of his bed.

The teacher is indeed a good person! Tang San's heart felt warm.

After putting out the light, Tang San sat cross-legged on the bed, calming his mind first.

Then, he gradually entered a meditative state, feeling the energy of the Mysterious Heaven Technique coursing through him.

Today's battles had yielded incredible gains for him.

He had planned to fight a few battles and withdraw at the right time, and he had executed that plan perfectly.

In the first battle against the Flash Leopard, he had killed his opponent. He had then quickly devoured its fourth-order bloodline power to enhance his Leopard Flash ability.

The role of the Leopard Flash was significant for Tang San; the instant acceleration was exactly what he needed in order to gain more adaptability and variability in combat.

The power of the fourth order was far more different from the third than the third was from the second. Just like the control, power, and versatility of his wind blades had reached a completely new level when he had enhanced the bloodline imprint up to the fourth order, his acceleration and agility had instantly exploded once the Leopard Flash skill was elevated to the fourth order.

In the following three battles, he had also absorbed some bloodline power from the rhino demon, falcon demon, and Aetherhorn Deer Demon, forming bloodline imprints within himself.

Since he had only absorbed a small amount, the bloodline imprints formed were roughly equivalent to the third order.

Why devour three more? Actually, that was his exact target number when he entered the competition. A key reason was, of course, to increase the number of his skills, but more importantly, Tang San wanted to test how many imprints he could absorb through the Mysterious Heaven Technique.

He speculated that he was able to absorb one imprint and gain a demonic god transformation skill for every order of the Mysterious Heaven Technique. But this was nothing more than a guess, and it had to be verified through practice.

Since he already had the Wind Blade and Leopard Flash, devouring three more bloodlines would result in five total imprints. If he could imprint all three within his Mysterious Heaven Technique, it would mean that his previous judgment was wrong, in which case he could just keep absorbing skills. If only two could be imprinted, that would confirm his speculation, which meant that he could improve his understanding of the cultivation system in this dimension. Either way, the result held great importance for his future cultivation.

Yet, the outcome was completely unexpected.

At this moment, the power of the three bloodlines he devoured had not been transformed into imprints. Instead, the energy had split into three differently colored orbs of light, silently floating within him.

Tang San could vaguely sense that he could imprint all three skills and turn them into his own. But he also felt his existing skills, Wind Blade and Leopard Flash, were being affected, and they were becoming more active.

What does this mean?

Tang San couldn't help but wonder why the introduction of three new abilities made his two existing skills feel somewhat detached.

This was the first time he had encountered such a situation since he began cultivating.

The feeling of detachment from the two original imprints didn't make him nervous; on the contrary, he felt excited at this moment.

To him, neither the Wind Blade nor the Leopard Flash were powerful abilities; they were decent, but they had very limited room for improvement.

Thus, the most worrisome possibility in this situation was that only the skills that had already been imprinted could continue to improve. It would also mean that the total number of skills Tang San could learn was limited. Until his cultivation broke through to the god level, the Wind Blade and Leopard Flash would be the only skills that could continue to grow with him.