Douluo: Martial Soul Seven Kill Sword, The Sword Opens Heaven's Gates

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Over the next few days, many independent soul masters gradually entered Tiandou City.

Their purpose was to attend this academic exchange conference.

The venue for the academic exchange conference was set up on the large playground of Seven Treasures Academy. Before the conference, the academy had erected a fence around the playground to prevent non-academy students from taking advantage of the event to enter the campus and disrupt the teaching order.

The conference had numerous spectator seats, but no tickets were sold. Any soul master could enter by presenting their soul master's notebook or publicly displaying their soul rings.

To ensure the smooth running of the conference, both the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect and the Tiandou Empire deployed substantial security forces.

Even Sword Douluo personally maintained order on-site.

Ning Tianchen and Ning Rongrong greeted Crown Prince Xue Qinghe at the entrance to the venue.

"Brother Xue, Uncle Ning is waiting for you at the main stage. Let's go over," Ning Tianchen greeted him with a smile.

As a representative of the Tiandou Imperial Family, Xue Qinghe's entourage was quite impressive. His entire guard team had been replaced by the Royal Knights.

Aside from the bedridden Xue Ye, who couldn't attend, the Tiandou Empire spared no effort in showing its grandeur.

Additionally, the Feng, Shui, and Huo families from Element City also made a significant show of presence, further adding respectability.

Surprisingly, Huyan Zhen, the master of the Elephant Sect, personally attended the event. However, he behaved much more modestly and didn't cause any trouble.

Xue Qinghe introduced with a smile, "Tianchen, Rongrong, this is my younger sister, Princess Xue Ke. Those behind her are her classmates from Yue Xuan. Haha, my sister has good interpersonal relationships—these are her classmates accompanying her. Please arrange their seats as you see fit."

Ning Tianchen nodded with a smile.

There were plenty of extra seats inside the venue, intended as favors for the various invited guests.

"Good day, Lord Ning." These students bowed respectfully, seemingly putting into practice all the etiquette they had learned at Yue Xuan.

Ning Tianchen was not only the youngest baron in the empire but also the empire's top genius.

These second-generation heirs dared not put on airs in front of him and even hoped to curry favor with him.

---

They had learned the opening time of the conference the previous day, so Yu Xiaogang arrived half an hour early.

But when he reached the street, he was utterly stunned.

Because some anxious attendees had already arrived several hours early.

Since no tickets were sold, the best seats were naturally first-come, first-served.

"Erlong, let's hurry up. If we don't, we won't get good seats—or even be able to squeeze in!" Yu Xiaogang said anxiously.

The academic exchange conference lasted three days. On the first day, renowned scholars would analyze the most popular soul master theories on the continent. Near the end, there would be about half an hour of interactive sessions.

Compared to the following two days, the interactive session on the first day was much shorter.

To make a name for himself, Yu Xiaogang had to astonish everyone on the first day.

But first, they had to get into the venue.

Many soul masters, to avoid missing any details of the conference, wouldn't leave the venue until the conference ended, essentially eating, drinking, and sleeping there.

If they couldn't get in on the first day, they'd have even less chance on the following two days.

Yu Xiaogang himself was also a scholar and naturally wanted to hear how these so-called academic giants analyzed current soul master theories!

Liu Erlong helplessly said, "Xiaogang, if we had known, we would have left earlier. The streets of Seven Treasures Academy are already packed with people—we can't even squeeze in."

Yu Xiaogang angrily responded, "We have to squeeze in even if it's impossible! If I miss this conference, when will I ever prove myself?"

To avoid being barred from the venue due to disrupting order, Liu Erlong didn't dare use her strength to push forward. Instead, she led Yu Xiaogang slowly through the side, trying to inch forward.

On the other hand, a young man dressed in blue finery stood on the balcony of a building by the street, searching the crowd for someone.

This person was Tang San, and the one he sought was Yu Xiaogang.

Previously, Tang San had said he wouldn't attend the conference, but before leaving, Xue Ke had given him a few entry tickets.

These tickets were credentials for entering the inner venue; upon showing them to the staff, they would be directly escorted into the venue.

Tang San knew that Yu Xiaogang likely couldn't obtain entry tickets. To ensure his teacher's talent wasn't overlooked, he waited here specifically.

After waiting for an unknown amount of time, just minutes before the conference was about to start, Tang San finally spotted Yu Xiaogang and Liu Erlong in the crowd.

He immediately descended the stairs, using his Ghost Shadow Maze Step technique to slip two tickets into Yu Xiaogang's hands, then quickly disappeared.

"Xiaogang, be careful!" Liu Erlong noticed someone flash past them and immediately became alert.

"Erlong, it's fine." Yu Xiaogang patted her shoulder and waved the two tickets in his hand.

"If I'm not mistaken, these should be tickets for the inner venue. With these, we can directly enter without having to fight through the crowd."

Liu Erlong asked in surprise, "Xiaogang, who gave these to you?"

With Yu Xiaogang's abilities, he couldn't possibly have seen Tang San's figure.

He shook his head and said, "I don't know. That person's strength was very high, and their speed was too fast—I couldn't see clearly. But these tickets should be real. Some of the scholars attending this conference are old friends of mine from the Spirit Hall."

"Perhaps they didn't want my talent to be overlooked and sent these tickets in this manner."

Liu Erlong stopped thinking about it and took Yu Xiaogang to the nearby staff.

After showing their tickets, the two were unsurprisingly ushered into the inner venue.

However, most of those sitting near them were noble offspring, and they didn't know each other.

The true core positions in the venue were centered around the high platform, with about a hundred seats. The powerful figures from various invited factions were seated here. As for their accompanying friends, they were arranged in the inner venue with more seats.

After personally watching Yu Xiaogang and Liu Erlong enter the venue, Tang San showed his ticket and was escorted into the venue by the staff.

Worth mentioning, he didn't sit in the inner venue but chose to squeeze into the outer audience seats with ordinary people.

---

"Brother Tianchen, that guy Yu Xiaogang is here." Ning Rongrong pointed to the nearby inner venue seating area and whispered softly.

Ning Tianchen was somewhat surprised.

Those with tickets for the inner venue were all invited powerful figures. He could confirm that Yu Xiaogang's connections didn't include these people.

He roughly guessed Yu Xiaogang's purpose for coming here. If that was the case, there would be quite a spectacle to watch next.

"Rongrong, don't mind him. A clown is still a clown wherever he goes. It was true in the past, and it remains true now," Ning Tianchen replied with a smile.

As the distinguished guests and scholars entered, the academic exchange conference officially began.

Ke Jie was the initiator of this conference and announced the agenda. He himself was also an extremely accomplished scholar and would participate in the scholars' discussions.

Without excessive formalities or lengthy opening speeches, after a few brief words, the academic exchange conference officially commenced.

There were many popular soul master theories on the continent recently, so a draw was conducted by a ceremonial hostess. Whatever theory was drawn, the scholars would discuss it. After the discussion of that theory concluded, another draw would take place.

The discussion time was not fixed, and the ceremonial hostess had to remain on standby until the theory discussion ended—a rather demanding task.

In the center of the venue, the scholars sat around a large round table.

"The draw begins."

As soon as Ke Jie finished speaking, the ceremonial hostess drew a stick from the box.

There was only a number on the bamboo stick, and each number corresponded to a specific theory.

The hostess held up the bamboo stick and loudly announced, "Number sixteen!"

Number sixteen corresponded to a theory about the Blue Silver Grass martial soul.

The reason the Blue Silver Grass soul master gained widespread attention in academia was ultimately due to Tang San's performance in the soul master tournament, prompting scholars to re-examine this martial soul.

Although Tang San never used the Blue Silver Grass martial soul in the latter part of the tournament, it was undeniable that during the preliminary rounds, Tang San's Blue Silver Grass performed exceptionally stably.

Of course, this was a controversial theory: "Blue Silver Grass is not a useless martial soul—it may be cultivable."

Qin Tian, the principal of the Spirit Hall Soul Master Academy, was the first to present his views. "According to my research, apart from Tang San as a special case, there has never been a Blue Silver Grass soul master who achieved anything on the path of control system or power attack system soul masters."

"I don't consider Blue Silver Grass a useless martial soul because, through my experiments, I've found that several congenitally low-soul-force Blue Silver Grass soul masters have achieved some success in the healing system."

As he spoke, he passed his experimental report to the person next to him for everyone to review.

Of course, the scholars' discussions weren't limited to the theory itself—they could expand the discussion and use the opportunity to express other viewpoints.

Qin Tian was among the most prestigious scholars. His experimental report was detailed, recording seventeen congenitally level-one soul force Blue Silver Grass soul masters who had studied in primary soul master academies for a few years. By the time he took over the research, these seventeen individuals already had levels eight or nine soul force.

By pursuing the healing route, the Blue Silver Grass martial souls of two individuals gradually became cultivable. Although the healing effect was weak, compared to completely useless martial souls, this already counted as revitalizing the martial soul.

---

From the spectator seats, Tang San, relying on his Purple Extreme Demon Eyes, could clearly see and hear the scholars' discussions.

Hearing that the scholars intended to discuss the diversified development of the Blue Silver Grass martial soul, the audience immediately quieted down, listening attentively, afraid of missing any details.

---

The scholars present were all high-level soul masters, so they only needed a glance at the materials to memorize them thoroughly.

Chen Lei was the first to spot the issue, "His first soul skill is 'Entanglement.' Isn't that just ridiculous!"

"Uh..." The other scholars were still digesting the information when they heard her voice and couldn't help but pause.

Even the audience below couldn't help but perk up their ears to hear what she had to say.

Yu Xiaogang sneered from below, "Envious that I could let Xiao San follow the control system route, they resent my brilliance. She doesn't know Xiao San's teacher is me, yet she dares to insult him with such despicable means!"

Liu Erlong nodded in agreement.

Fortunately, the attention of those around him was focused on the center of the venue; otherwise, he'd surely get scolded.

"Tianchen Brother, is there really something wrong with Tang San's first soul skill?" Ning Rongrong, accustomed to asking Ning Tianchen whenever she encountered something she didn't understand, queried.

Ning Tianchen nodded, "Indeed, there is a problem. But for now, we are spectators, not scholars. Let's listen to what the senior has to say first."

In the venue, Chen Lei sneered, "Principal Qin Tian, let me ask you this: among the dozen or so Blue Silver Grass soul masters you've been studying, if they don't have the Entanglement soul skill, does it mean they can't release Blue Silver Grass Entanglement?"

Qin Tian recalled in his mind.

These dozen or so Blue Silver Grass soul masters were all cultivated as healers, and he never let them try the control system entanglement ability.

After some thought, he gave a definitive answer, "Vine-type martial souls inherently possess entanglement abilities. To put it somewhat inaccurately, I personally witnessed more than half of those healer-type Blue Silver Grass soul masters having entanglement capabilities. However, their martial souls weren't developed along the control system route, so their martial soul strength wasn't sufficient, making the entanglement effect poor."

Ke Jie interjected, "So, doesn't that mean Tang San's first soul ring was wasted?"

All the scholars whispered among themselves briefly and reached a consensus.

A Blue Silver Grass martial soul that inherently possesses entanglement ability was given a first soul ring with an added entanglement skill—who in their right mind came up with this soul ring configuration!

Chen Lei said, "Tang San's first soul ring might perform well in the stage below Great Soul Master, but as the level increases, his first soul skill's effect will only grow weaker, even inferior to the natural entanglement ability of the martial soul itself."

Pausing for a moment, she chuckled, "Principal Qin Tian, didn't your Spirit Hall announce that Tang San is Tang Hao's son? As far as I know, Tang San's mother's martial soul is Blue Silver Emperor, not the ordinary Blue Silver Grass martial soul."

This secret was told to her by Ning Tianchen.

Within the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, there were certain records about Tang Hao's affairs.

Informing her of this matter was also part of the compensation.

Even Ning Tianchen didn't expect her to apply this information to the theory so quickly.

Qin Tian solemnly said, "Blue Silver Emperor is the royal family within the Blue Silver Grass and must indeed be distinguished from ordinary Blue Silver Grass. Madam Chen, are you suggesting that Tang San's martial soul isn't ordinary Blue Silver Grass, and this is the key reason his Blue Silver Grass can become a control system soul master?"

(A/N: In the world of Douluo Continent, scholars are generally referred to as "Sir/Madam." unless they hold specific titles.)

Chen Lei smiled, "We must be rigorous since we can't bring Tang San here for study. But it seems likely that his ability to follow the control system route is closely related to the Blue Silver Emperor bloodline."

Hearing this, Tang San in the audience fell into self-doubt.

Chen Lei was right—why were others' Blue Silver Grass so weak while his own Blue Silver Grass martial soul still achieved full innate soul power?

The birth of dual martial souls has two conditions: one where both martial souls are equally powerful, and another where one martial soul is strong and the other weak, causing the weaker martial soul to appear exceptionally frail.

Upon reflection, Tang San didn't think his Blue Silver Grass martial soul was weak.

Before meeting Ning Tianchen, his Blue Silver Grass was difficult for others to break free from. Coupled with his recently awakened Blue Silver Emperor bloodline, he could conclusively determine that his martial soul wasn't ordinary Blue Silver—it was as powerful as the Hao Tian Hammer.

If so, didn't that prove Yu Xiaogang wasted his first soul ring slot?

Tang San shook his head and gradually calmed down.

First, he knew little about his mother's affairs; Tang Hao only mentioned that his mother possessed the Blue Silver Emperor martial soul.

She tried to sow discord between him and his teacher with mere words—an act worthy of death!

"Hmph, she dares to jump to conclusions without any practice. Such scholars are nothing but frauds," Tang San thought coldly.

Without the Datura Snake, would his Blue Silver Grass possess such resilience?

In Tang San's eyes, these so-called theoretical masters must have been paid by the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect; otherwise, why would they deliberately slander him and his teacher?

On the other hand, Yu Xiaogang's face flushed red, his chest rising and falling violently, panting like a bull.

"Xiaogang, you must calm down. They're obviously deliberately belittling you. You absolutely cannot get angry. Once they kick you out for disturbing the order, when will your theory ever gain recognition across the continent?"

Rarely calm, Liu Erlong earnestly advised, "Xiaogang, think about it. Why are they deliberately targeting you? It's because they fear your theory and are afraid you'll steal the spotlight at this conference."

Yu Xiaogang's anger subsided, and he bitterly said, "Hmph, the Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Sect's intentions are truly malicious. If I fall for their trap, my soul master theory will probably never see the light of day."

"Wait and see. When the interactive session begins, I'll definitely bring a huge shock to this conference!"

---

The scholars did not delve too deeply into the discussion of the Blue Silver Grass theory.

Apart from Tang San's unique case, Qin Tian's research effectively pointed out the singular developmental direction for the Blue Silver Grass, and it was indisputable.

Next, under the ceremonial hostess's draw, the scholars began discussing the issue of martial soul inheritance.

Based on Ning Tianchen's genetic theory, Ke Jie had researched the most comprehensive theory of martial soul inheritance.

This new theory, once announced, amazed everyone, drawing endless admiration from countless scholars and the audience.

Ke Jie did not take credit for it but instead publicly stated, "This theory was researched by our sect's genius in humanities and history. I dare not claim credit; I merely integrated it into the theory of martial soul inheritance."

"Ning Tianchen!" Tang San in the audience couldn't help but clench his fists tightly.

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