NOVEL NEXT Chapter 45: Cracks in the Team
Xiao Wu exploded upon hearing Tang San's voice, her emotions boiling over.
"Shut up! Who's worried about you?" she snapped.
Tang San froze, stunned by her words. He had just thrown a bucket full of rocks into the air to show off his strength in front of her, but now he forgot all about it.
Clang!
The sharp sound of the bucket crashing to the ground broke his daze and yanked him back to reality.
"Xiao Wu, I..." he started, but his voice was weak.
Xiao Wu didn't bother listening to his nonsense. Without a second glance, she grabbed Wu Lan's hand and dragged him toward Soto City. Zhu Zhuqing silently followed behind them.
Watching Xiao Wu ignore him completely, Tang San clenched his fists tightly, his nails digging into his palms. His eyes burned with jealousy and hatred as they fixed on Wu Lan's retreating figure.
Wu Lan sighed softly, fully aware of Tang San's hostility.
Since you're so ungrateful... until I mark your father, I might as well play with you for a bit.
With that thought, he silently activated his domain.
His domain was invisible, undetectable unless one was being healed within it. Without drawing attention, he extended it just enough to envelop Tang San and swiftly marked him before closing it.
The mark was complete. Wu Lan could now heal Tang San anytime, from anywhere.
Tang San, unaware of the invisible mark now placed on him, continued glaring at Wu Lan's back, hatred brewing in his heart. He couldn't stop comparing himself to Wu Lan, questioning what made him different.
Why does Xiao Wu like him more than me?
Meanwhile, Dai Mubai couldn't hold back his laughter at Tang San getting ignored.
Seeing his smug expression, Tang San's emotions finally exploded. He punched Mubai in the face.
Caught off guard and exhausted from hauling heavy rocks, Mubai stumbled back and fell to the ground.
"Loser," Tang San spat, venting his pent-up frustration.
Oscar and Fatty rushed forward to help Mubai to his feet.
Tang San didn't wait for them. Seeing Xiao Wu's group had disappeared down the road, he picked up his bucket of rocks and stormed off without a word.
"Boss, are you okay?" Fatty asked with concern.
"I'm fine," Mubai said with a small grin, rubbing his sore jaw. "Watching Tang San lose it… kinda made my day."
Oscar, still helping him, suddenly noticed Ning Rongrong standing in a daze.
"Rongrong, what's wrong?"
Startled by Oscar's voice, she snapped back to reality, her expression quickly turning to anger.
"Oscar, did you see Tang San's rocks?"
Her words drew the attention of everyone. Mubai, Oscar, and Fatty turned toward Tang San's bucket, realization dawning.
"There's no way... he carried fewer rocks than us?"
"That bastard!" Mubai growled. "He mocked us for being slow, and now this?"
"And Yu Xiaogang said he selected the weights carefully based on what we could handle," Fatty added bitterly.
The more they thought about it, the angrier they became.
"Both master and disciple are the same vindictive bastards. We should report this to the dean!" Oscar said after analyzing the situation.
But Mubai quickly shook his head. "Yu Xiaogang is the dean's brother. Dean Flender already gave him full teaching authority. I doubt he'll go against his own brother just over training weights."
They all exchanged helpless looks. No matter how unfair it felt, they had no choice but to grit their teeth and endure it.
At the academy entrance, Yu Xiaogang and Flender were standing together, waiting for the students to complete their laps.
Soon, they saw Tang San approaching. Yu Xiaogang's eyes lit up.
"See, Flender? Under my guidance, Tang San has become so strong."
Flender, exhausted from listening to Yu Xiaogang's self-praise all morning, sighed internally.
"Yes, yes, you made Tang San stronger," he replied flatly.
Hearing this, Yu Xiaogang looked satisfied.
However, Flender noticed Tang San was alone and asked, "Tang San, where are the others?"
Tang San's expression darkened, and he replied angrily, "Dean, they're too slow. They're dragging me down."
Feeling something was off, Flender decided to check on them. He immediately possessed his Martial Spirit and flew off.
Meanwhile, Yu Xiaogang led Tang San to a private room where a medicinal bath had been prepared using expensive herbs and resources gathered with the academy's budget.
"Get in," Yu Xiaogang said, pleased. "This bath will stimulate your internal energy and improve marrow cleansing. Only the best for my student."
He didn't spare a single thought for the others.
Mubai, Oscar, Fatty, and Rongrong were given cheap medicinal baths made with common herbs. Yu Xiaogang had diverted almost all of Shrek's resources to Tang San alone. After all, Tang San was the living proof of his theory. His future, his prestige, everything hinged on Tang San's success.
If he shines, I shine.
Meanwhile, Flender quickly found Mubai, Oscar, Fatty, and Rongrong collapsed on the ground.
"What are you all doing lying on the ground?"
Hearing Dean Flender's voice, they immediately started complaining about the unfairness.
In the anime, they had shared weights among themselves and completed their punishments.
But now, with only four people and Mubai already carrying extra weight, far beyond his limit, they couldn't share the load. As a result, they all collapsed midway from sheer exhaustion.
Soon, Flender realized the issue.
"I'll talk with Xiaogang. You all rest for today. There are medical baths prepared in your rooms."
With that, Flender called for village women to help carry Rongrong to her room, while he himself carried the others one by one and placed them in their rooms.
Shortly after, he saw Yu Xiaogang emerging from Tang San's room.
Flender approached him, his expression serious.
"Xiaogang, what are you doing?"
Yu Xiaogang looked at him, confused. "What do you mean?"
Flender crossed his arms. "I just found Mubai, Oscar, Rongrong, and Fatty collapsed from exhaustion. Mubai was carrying more than his limit. They couldn't even complete the laps. You said you distributed the weights based on their limits?"
Yu Xiaogang replied with a mocking tone, "Flender, Mubai is level 37. I thought he could carry more weight, so I gave him extra. Who knew they'd be this weak?"
Flender sighed, not wanting to argue with his brother. He turned to leave but paused and said,
"From tomorrow, equal treatment for all. If you can't manage that, I'll take over again."
Yu Xiaogang didn't answer, but his fists clenched under his robe.
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