Amori also perked up, ears perked.

"Heavenly Road," Old Wei said, a nostalgic look on his face, mixed with a hint of confusion. "It's a place filled with both danger and opportunity."

He glanced at Tang Tian and Amori, then shifted the topic. "Alright, the Heavenly Road is still far away from you. Let's discuss something more practical."

"More practical issues?" Tang Tian pouted in dissatisfaction. "Hey, old man, you don't want to trick us into doing something bad again, do you?"

Amori looked astonished. "Base Tang, have you seen through his scheme too?"

"Of course!" Tang Tian said proudly, smirking. "In front of a god-like man, what monsters or ghosts can remain unmasked? With his sleazy personality, how could he invite us for barbecue? There's no such thing as a free lunch; he must have ulterior motives!"

"Exactly! He must have ulterior motives!" Amori echoed, raising his voice.

Old Wei: "..."

"You don't have to deny it, old man. Given that you're our principal, um, we can discuss anything," Tang Tian said with a knowing expression.

"Right, we can bargain to our heart's content!" Amori added.

Old Wei paused for a moment, then suddenly slapped his thigh. "Sure enough, you two are geniuses! Nothing escapes your eyes. Well, I'll be straightforward then."

The two remained motionless, staring at Old Wei.

Feeling pressured, Old Wei cleared his throat. "Um, a few days ago, I checked our school's points and found that we don't have enough. You know, if the school's points are insufficient, we could lose our qualifications. Um, the Starwind Martial Conference is coming soon. As long as you participate and achieve good results, the school's points will be sufficient. As the school's prodigies, you can't just watch the school decline like this, can you?"

"Can you?" Tang Tian suddenly turned to Amori.

Amori looked confused. "Why can't I?"

Tang Tian withdrew his gaze, looking righteous. "I can too."

Old Wei was taken aback, then exploded with anger. "As students of this school, how can you be so indifferent to its fate? Has your blood gone cold? Are you not men? You..."

The two squatted, wide-eyed, looking at Old Wei innocently, their gazes pure and unblemished.

Seeing this tactic ineffective, Old Wei gritted his teeth. "So, what conditions do you want?"

"Fly, Niu! You go!" Tang Tian waved his hand in a boss-like manner.

Amori's large, bright eyes sparkled as his finger, the size of a carrot, began to gesture rapidly. "Points are hard to earn right now. All students in the city can participate in the Starwind Martial Conference. Oh, just think about that brutal process; it's absolutely shocking! We will have to fight against how many people..."

He spoke passionately, not stopping for three minutes.

Old Wei smiled. "Are you done?"

Amori and Tang Tian exchanged glances, a bad premonition growing in their hearts.

Old Wei spread his hands, looking helpless. "I forgot to mention, I've already signed you up."

Tang Tian: "…"

Amori: "…"

As it turned out, schemers can't outwit rogues.

Having gained no benefit, Tang Tian and Amori felt a bit dispirited.

"Three-stage mind techniques, young man, what do you think?" Old Wei looked at Tang Tian and suddenly said, "Your true power has already reached the second stage perfection. It's time to enter the third stage!"

"Third-stage mind techniques? What suggestions do you have?" Tang Tian asked casually.

"You asked the right person!" Old Wei said, looking pleased. "Entering the third stage, besides mind techniques, what's more important is that you need to clarify your development path. Greedily pursuing too much will only scatter your energy and leave you with nothing."

Tang Tian was taken aback. "That sounds quite reasonable."

"You've spent so much time on basic martial arts; to be honest, you've missed the golden period," Old Wei said solemnly. "The most golden five years for a person are between twelve and seventeen. And you've spent those five years on basic martial arts. Many will think you're wasting time, but I see both advantages and disadvantages."

"Oh, go on!" Tang Tian perked up. For so many years, almost everyone had lamented and puzzled over him; it was the first time he heard someone say there were both advantages and disadvantages.

"You spent a full five years on basic martial arts, so your foundation is very solid and quite comprehensive. This will greatly help you in your future martial arts training. You can pick up other martial arts very quickly. As long as you persist, the lost time can definitely be made up. Young man, I have high hopes for you!"

Tang Tian nodded without a hint of modesty. "Hahaha, old man, you have a good eye!"

"Haha!" Old Wei laughed heartily. "However, this road is bound to be bumpy, so you need to be mentally prepared."

Tang Tian shook his head without a care. "In front of a god-like youth, what bumps are there? They're all nothing!"

"Ambitious! I like ambitious youths!" Old Wei grinned. "Now let's talk about your development path. Your physical quality is excellent, your foundation is solid, your reactions are quick, and your presence is strong and fierce. Do you know what this suits?"

Tang Tian listened intently and quickly asked, "What does it suit?"

"Close combat!" Old Wei pronounced the four words emphatically. "Close combat requires balanced physical qualities, super reaction ability, a fierce presence, and a fearless heart, with especially high demands on basic martial arts. What do you think, young man? Isn't it intriguing? A close combat expert, what a cool title!"

Tang Tian's eyes lit up, nodding repeatedly. "I like this! I love fighting! Old man, I didn't expect you to have some skills!"

"Hehe, when you grow up, um, your women will also like this title!" Old Wei said with a lewd expression.

"Would Qianhui like it too?" Tang Tian's eyes sparkled.

"Um, of course!" Old Wei nearly choked on his own saliva, clearing his throat a few times. "However, you're still far from becoming a close combat expert. To be a qualified close combat expert, besides the characteristics you already possess, you also need outstanding lightness skills. You need to quickly close the distance between both parties. If your lightness skills are poor, you're doomed."

"Exactly!" Tang Tian clapped his hands. "I must practice lightness skills!"

"You need to possess various unarmed skills. Remember, you are a close combat expert, not just a boxer. You need to learn fist techniques, palm techniques, finger techniques, and joint techniques. You must ensure that after closing the distance, you have enough means to quickly defeat your opponent."

"That makes sense! I’ll practice them all!"

"You need to further strengthen your reaction ability so you can strike more accurately in a shorter time."

"Absolutely right! It must be reinforced!"  

Old Wei said, "As long as you can do these things, you can become a qualified, even an excellent, close-combat expert."  

Amori raised his hands high: "I want to be a close-combat expert too!"  

Old Wei ignored him.  

Tang Tian stayed silent but looked at Old Wei with curiosity.  

Old Wei was taken aback by Tang Tian's gaze and touched his face: "Is there something on my face?"  

"Qualified? Excellent? I want to be a god-like close-combat expert!" Tang Tian said with an air of confidence, then became very displeased: "You actually look down on me! Hmph! That's really inconsiderate!"  

Old Wei reacted, laughing heartily: "You have ambition! However, even a qualified close-combat expert needs to endure some hardships."  

"I'm not afraid of hardship," Tang Tian shook his head and replied seriously.  

"Oh," a glimmer flashed in Old Wei's eyes, "Hehe, let's get back to the mindset. Since you've chosen to be a close-combat expert, I have a very powerful mental skill soul card here, but this skill is not easy to cultivate."  

"Very powerful?" Tang Tian asked curiously.  

"Very powerful!" Old Wei nodded.  

"Then that’s the one!" Tang Tian's eyes sparkled.  

"It’s hard to learn, though," Old Wei reminded him.  

"Don't underestimate me!" Tang Tian glared.  

"Hehe, quite ambitious, young man!" Old Wei chuckled and took out a card: "I hope you won't bring shame to this soul card."  

Tang Tian glanced at the soul card and was stunned: "A silver card?"  

The silver-white card gleamed brightly, with a white figure sitting cross-legged on it. The card felt cold and hard in his hand. Tang Tian never expected that Old Wei would give him a silver card.  

The price of a third-level mental skill silver card was beyond his imagination.  

"Wow, old man, didn't you say there was only one silver card?" Amori exclaimed as if discovering a new continent: "You’re indeed cunning! But since you gave it to Basic Tang, I won’t hold it against you. Basic Tang, it looks very powerful; you should cultivate it quickly!"  

However, to the surprise of Old Wei and Amori, Tang Tian shook his head and pushed the soul card back to Old Wei: "I don’t want it."  

"Don't want it?" Old Wei was taken aback: "Why?"  

"It's too precious." Tang Tian raised his head and said calmly, "I can't accept something so valuable."  

Old Wei was somewhat surprised, staring at Tang Tian for a moment before suddenly laughing: "This soul card isn't given to you for free. I have something I need to ask you to do. If you can't become a close-combat expert, I won't have any hope for my matters either. Hmm, you don't dare to accept, do you lack confidence in yourself?"  

Tang Tian glared at Old Wei: "Old man, who’s afraid to accept? Who lacks confidence?"  

With a slap, Tang Tian snatched the soul card and said seriously: "I know you mean well, old man. I will definitely become a close-combat expert, and whatever it is, I will do my best. Just tell me what it is!"  

Old Wei chuckled: "It’s useless to tell you now; I’ll tell you once you become a close-combat expert."  

"Okay!" Tang Tian nodded and raised his palm.  

"What’s that for?" Old Wei looked puzzled.  

"Swearing an oath by clapping hands! Wow, old man, you’re so old-fashioned!" Tang Tian said with disdain.  

"You little brat, don’t imitate the adults. Do you even know what swearing an oath by clapping hands means?" Old Wei shot back with the same disdain.  

"Of course!" Tang Tian glared: "Don’t underestimate me; I swore an oath by clapping hands with Qianhui!"  

*Smack!*  

The hands of the old man and the young boy collided heavily.  

"All done!" Tang Tian said contentedly.  

"You really have quite a few tricks up your sleeve, little brat," Old Wei muttered.  

"I want to join too! I want to join too!" Amori approached, extending his palm, but no one paid him any attention.  

"Well, let’s talk about this soul card now," Old Wei’s expression suddenly became serious: "This card was something I obtained in my early years, but at that time I had already surpassed the third level, so I kept it all along. This soul card is called 'Crane Qi Jue,' an ancient mental skill soul card."  

"An ancient soul card?"  

Tang Tian and Amori were both taken aback.