Douluo Continent: My Martial Soul is the Black Dragon, I am the Lord of the Gods

Chapter 145 Jealousy
……

“He…” Arou lowered her head slightly, her face looking somewhat unnatural, and her voice carrying a hint of hesitation.

“He was Xiao San’s teacher. When we were in Notting City, we had some contact because of Xiao Wu. He… he seems to like me a little.”

"Seeing you walking with me, he might... feel a little unhappy, which is why he treated you that way."

"I like you?" Xuanming paused, then inexplicably laughed.

Arou, who was seeing Xuanming laugh for the first time, was stunned and stared at him blankly. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, just thought of something funny." Xuanming rested his chin on his hand, suppressing his laughter.

Threatened by Qian Xunji, he fled from Wuhun City and immediately hooked up with Liu Erlong. In the future, he even had the audacity to go to the Pope's Palace to ask Bibi Dong for the cultivation method of twin martial souls. He also shamelessly guaranteed that Tang San would not be an enemy of Wuhun Hall in the future.

He had been hiding in Nottingham for almost twenty years, and then he met Ah Rou, and it all started again?

"And what about you?" Xuanming asked.

"I only see him as a friend, nothing more," Arou explained hurriedly, her eyes showing a hint of panic.

“Ordinary friends…” Xuanming stroked his chin, thinking thoughtfully for a moment.

"But why would he be hostile towards me because of you?"

Arou frowned slightly, pondered for a moment, and said, "It must be jealousy, right?"

"He seems arrogant and erudite, but in reality, he is extremely jealous."

"He has a strong sense of self-esteem and always hopes that others can recognize and admire him, but he becomes very self-conscious when provoked."

“A… very cowardly person.” Arou sighed helplessly, the image of Yu Xiaogang with his always stern face flashing through her mind.

Cowardice—that was the deepest impression Yu Xiaogang gave her.

Despite being extremely insecure, they have an inflated sense of self-importance, crave recognition from others, fear being looked down upon, and are easily angered by it.

But because of his cowardice, he dared not show it, so he became someone who always had a stern face and kept everything bottled up.

He would only argue with others about Tang San. Tang San was less his student and more his pride and his pillar.

It was even his hope to continue living.

"Jealous? Why would you be jealous of me?" Xuanming still couldn't understand.

"Because you also have a mutated martial soul," Arou said.

"In the few months since Yu Xiaogang came to Shrek Academy, Xiao Wu and the others have had many conflicts with him because of you. Then Dean Flander contacted his student Qin Ming and found out about you."

"What news?" Xuanming asked.

"Your past." Arou's expression was somewhat unnatural, and her eyes darted away slightly.

"My past? What happened?" Xuanming asked, puzzled.

Arou hesitated for a moment, then asked, "You...you're not a transformed soul beast, are you?"

“I never said I was; it was all your own guessing,” Xuanming said.

Arou paused for a moment, then said with a hint of reproach, "But you didn't explain either."

For so many years, she had never been able to understand how Xuanming could still unleash such terrifying power even after undergoing a transformation and rebuilding his cultivation.

It wasn't until she arrived at Shrek Academy and learned from Flander's student that Xuanming wasn't a transformed soul beast at all; he was a human, and even his birthplace could be found.

Ning Rongrong, who had known Xuanming before, even shared Xuanming's childhood experiences with everyone.

To be honest, compared to Xuanming, Tang San's childhood seems wonderful!
"No, you're getting off-topic. What does this have to do with Yu Xiaogang being jealous of me?" Xuanming asked.

“Because you are all Martial Soul mutated, and you are all Dragon Martial Soul mutated,” Arou said. “But your mutation is a benign mutation, which gives you such powerful talent and strength. Whether it is in terms of cultivation speed or strength improvement, you are far superior to ordinary people. But his mutation is a detrimental mutation. Not only did it not bring him any benefits, but it also made his cultivation path more difficult. He even lived half his life in the ridicule of others.”

“Rongrong had a conflict with her classmate Dai Mubai before, and when she used you as an example to praise you in the academy, Yu Xiaogang would stand up and say that it was just because you were lucky, and there was nothing to brag about.”

"Then, Rongrong revealed all your secrets. Yu Xiaogang didn't believe it, and Flander had no choice but to ask his student about it."

"As a result, after receiving confirmation from Qin Ming, Yu Xiaogang tried to change the subject in various ways to save face."

“You know Rongrong’s personality. Once she starts arguing, she’ll definitely make a scene without any reason and won’t let it go, not to mention that this matter involves you.”

“Yu Xiaogang’s words implied that he looked down on you, which made Rongrong even more unable to tolerate it, and they would argue for a long time every time.”

"You know Rongrong's sharp tongue; when she gets sarcastic, she's just as good as you."

Yu Xiaogang has always lived in his own world and cannot accept that others are better than him, especially Xuanming, who has a similar experience of martial soul mutation.

He always felt that he was well-versed in martial spirit theory and had profound attainments in martial spirit research, but he was limited by the mutation of his martial spirit. He had accumulated a lot of resentment and anger in his heart. The appearance of Xuanming was like a mirror, reflecting his failure and incompetence. In order to protect his pitiful self-esteem, Yu Xiaogang could only try his best to belittle Xuanming.

As the precious daughter of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School, Ning Rongrong naturally saw this. Not only did she disapprove of Yu Xiaogang's behavior, but also, in order to protect Xuanming, she wanted to provoke and strike at Yu Xiaogang even more.

That serious yet infuriatingly sarcastic tone is exactly like Xuanming's!
Shrek Academy has been quite lively these past few months.

Although Xuanming is not here, he is the topic of conversation every day.

Flander even used the example of Xuanming's mutated martial soul and its huge flaws to set an example for Ma Hongjun, who also had a mutated martial soul, encouraging Ma Hongjun to be self-reliant like Xuanming. This was even more of a shock to Yu Xiaogang, as his good brother had actually betrayed him.

Besides Tang San, there was also Dai Mubai, who had clashed with Xuanming. Most of Shrek Academy sided with Xuanming.

After all, Xuanming's life story—a commoner genius with a tragic background, relentless self-improvement, and a remarkable turnaround in his life—resonated with Shrek Academy teachers and most of its students, who also came from humble backgrounds.

On the other hand, Yu Xiaogang, born into the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, one of the seven great sects in the Soul Master world, is the son of the sect leader. He was born to stand at the top, but now he is in this situation, his cultivation is stagnant, and his proud theories are being challenged in front of Xiao Wu.

As 100,000-year-old soul beasts, no one understands soul beasts and soul rings better than them.

Compared to Xiao Wu, Yu Xiaogang's knowledge of soul beasts was no different from that of a three-year-old child.

In the past, it was one thing, but Xiao Wu, out of consideration for Tang San as a playmate, didn't hold a grudge against Yu Xiaogang.

But now, with Xuanming involved and Ning Rongrong leading the charge, Xiao Wu's mouth is really something else!
However, Yu Xiaogang seemed to inexplicably blame all these provocations on Xuanming, and developed strong jealousy and resentment towards him.

"This is inexplicable." Xuanming was speechless.

He did nothing, he barely even spoke a few words to Yu Xiaogang, yet he was caught in the crossfire.
……

Not long after, the battle ended. Since it was the first time for a team battle today, everyone was quite excited and gained a lot of experience. Shrek Academy was going to have a post-match discussion and summary, so Xuanming and Arou left first.

"What's wrong?" Xuanming looked at Arou, who seemed to have something to say.

“I sensed a… very strange aura on you,” Arou said, frowning, her eyes filled with doubt.

"Moreover, I can only sense it when I touch you."

Xuanming paused, revealing the Blue Silver Emperor on his wrist. "You mean this?"

Arou's eyes flickered slightly, and she subconsciously reached out to touch the vines wrapped around Xuanming's wrist. The vines were soft yet resilient, and still carried a hint of warmth. "This is..."

“Blue Silver Emperor,” Xuanming said.

"Blue Silver Emperor?" Arou was taken aback.

“The specifics are a bit complicated and troublesome, so I’m too lazy to explain. If you’re interested, you can ask her yourself,” Xuanming said.

"Of course, you can ask the Dragon King on me if she's willing to."

Arou nodded without asking any further questions.

(End of this chapter)