Traveled to Douluo Continent

"Mm..." Hu Haoran felt as though his body were about to explode. He was weak all over, and even his head felt heavy. He struggled to open his eyes, but had no strength. The pain wracking his body made him let out a faint groan without realizing it. That weak groan nearly exhausted all his remaining strength.

"The young master is awake! The young master is awake!" cried a maid dressed in pink peach blossom-patterned clothing. "Quick, find someone to notify the master and madam! Tell them the young master is awake!"

"Water..." Hu Haoran used the last of his strength to utter a single word.

"Yes, Young Master! Water!" The maid in pink immediately ran to pour a cup of water. She gently helped Hu Haoran sit up and slowly fed him from the cup. "Drink slowly, Young Master."

While Hu Haoran slowly drank, a beautiful woman entered the room. She wore a fitted purple-gold martial outfit and a purple-gold hairpin, looking valiant and graceful. She regarded Hu Haoran with a complicated expression. There was concern in her eyes, but also the irritation of someone disappointed by another's failure to live up to expectations. In the end, she shook her head.

"Madam, you came to see the young master," the maid in pink said.

"Mm. Take good care of him. I'm leaving." The woman silently departed.

However, Hu Haoran knew nothing of this. After drinking that cup of water, he gradually regained some sensation. Then a flood of memories poured into his mind. In his hazy, half-asleep state, he slowly sorted through those memories and the events he had experienced.

At last, things gradually became clear...

This was Douluo Continent. In other words, Hu Haoran had been struck by that massive bolt of lightning and transported here. His current name was still Hu Haoran, and he was a descendant of the Blue Electric Tyrant Dragon Clan. After the passage of time, the Blue Electric Tyrant Dragon Clan was no longer as prosperous as it had once been. Even their surname had changed from Yu to Hu.

The woman who had just entered was the mother of this body—Leng Xuewu, a formidable powerhouse not to be underestimated. The maid who had always cared for Hu Haoran was named Taohua. She had been his personal maid since childhood. She had grown up alongside Hu Haoran, loved peach blossoms, and was two years older than him.

The memories continued to sort themselves out. The Blue Electric Tyrant Dragon Clan was now considered a fallen family, with few descendants. Still, thanks to the wealth accumulated in the past, they were not reduced to poverty. There were only five core members left in the entire clan. Leng Xuewu, this body's mother, was an outstanding powerhouse; Hu Xi, this body's father, was a general who fought abroad year-round and was known as the nation's military god; Hu Tingting was the Crown Princess; Hu Moxie was a student of Shrek Academy. As for himself, he was a Waste Martial Soul notorious throughout the region.

He mocked himself inwardly. This body was far too useless, living aimlessly just as he had in his previous life. It was even worse, actually—he was a famous Waste Martial Soul, and at seven years old, he still had not awakened his martial soul. Everyone knew that the age to awaken one's martial soul was six. Yet Hu Haoran had failed his martial soul awakening at the age of six, meaning that he had not awakened one at all. On Douluo Continent, everyone had their own exclusive martial soul. Those with Waste Martial Souls had to engage in production, while those with battle martial souls had to enlist in the military or enter academies for further study. Those without martial souls could only become slaves or cannon fodder on the battlefield. As a member of the Blue Electric Tyrant Dragon Clan, Hu Haoran's failure to awaken a martial soul made him especially "conspicuous."

Based on what he knew from the novels he had read before, Hu Haoran gained a rough understanding of Douluo Continent. However, when he compared his old impressions with his current memories, he discovered that Douluo Continent had changed beyond recognition. The peaceful and tranquil days of the past were gone. It had now entered an era of war. The entire continent was home to five empires and a Kingdom Alliance whose strength did not pale beside that of an empire. The five empires were the Heaven Dou Empire, Star Luo Empire, Bright Soul Empire, Sun Moon Empire, and Cangyun Empire. The Bright Soul Empire and Sun Moon Empire had split from the former Sun Moon Continent, while the Cangyun Empire had slowly risen after the two continents merged. The Kingdom Alliance was formed by seven great kingdoms joining forces with twelve smaller kingdoms, and its national strength was likewise not to be underestimated. Wars frequently broke out among the five empires and the Kingdom Alliance—usually a small war every three years and a major war every five. In terms of national strength, the Sun Moon Empire was the strongest, while the Cangyun Empire was the weakest. The Blue Electric Tyrant Dragon Clan was currently located within the Cangyun Empire.

As his memories gradually became clearer, Hu Haoran's strength also slowly returned. Though he still could not move, he was at least able to speak. He spent the night in a muddled state.

A ray of morning sunlight streamed through the window and fell upon Hu Haoran's bedside.

"Mm... water..." His body's instincts made Hu Haoran call out for what he wanted most at that moment.

Taohua instantly woke up and hurried to pour water. "Young Master, drink slowly."

"Taohua, I'm hungry." After sorting through his memories all night, Hu Haoran could now accurately call Taohua by name.

"I'll go prepare something to eat right away." As soon as Taohua spoke, she ran out to make preparations.

In less than a quarter of an hour, Taohua returned carrying a bowl of fragrant porridge.

"Young Master, I made this especially for you. I even used a Yellow Crown White Feather Chicken, a low-level soul beast suitable for nourishing the body, as an ingredient."

After tens of thousands of years of development on Douluo Continent, along with the Soul Masters' endless research and experiments, soul beasts could not only provide Soul Masters with soul rings and strength—their corpses could also be used as ingredients or medicinal materials. Some Soul Masters even cultivated through cooking and eating soul beasts. Such Soul Masters were called Soul Eater Masters. They mastered all kinds of cooking recipes and soul beast medicinal formulas, using soul beasts to the fullest extent. Soul Eater Masters who cultivated this way were also quite formidable. Ordinary people could not possibly obtain profound formulas, but some simple methods for cooking soul beasts were widely circulated, such as the recipe for Yellow Crown White Feather Chicken.

"Mm... Delicious... delicious..." Catching the aroma, Hu Haoran snatched the bowl and devoured its contents.

"Young Master, eat slowly. No one's going to take it from you." Taohua was startled by the way Hu Haoran wolfed it down.

"I finally feel alive again." Hu Haoran spoke with a face full of satisfaction, deeply moved. After all, being struck by lightning and then transported to another world was not something just anyone experienced.

"Young Master, you're so foolish... sob, sob..." As Taohua looked at Hu Haoran, she suddenly began to cry.

"What's wrong? Why are you suddenly crying?" Hu Haoran was at a loss over Taohua's reaction.

"For the sake of a lowly maid like me, you were willing to fall out with Third Young Master Ling and even fight him. In the end, you were covered in injuries and nearly lost your life. I... I... I don't even know how to repay you."

After hearing this, Hu Haoran slowly recalled the entire course of events.

That day, as usual, he had taken Taohua for a stroll through the capital. Since he had failed to awaken a martial soul and could not cultivate, and because he was still young, Hu Haoran had become an idler at home. As the son of the nation's military god, no one dared force him to become a slave. So every day, he simply wandered around the capital. Taohua had accompanied him as usual that day.

At a jewelry shop, Hu Haoran had taken a liking to a pearl necklace produced by a Purple Pattern Peach Blossom Shell. He had intended to give it to Taohua as a gift. Just as Hu Haoran finished paying, Third Young Master Ling appeared and demanded the pearl necklace from him in a contemptuous tone. Third Young Master Ling wanted to give the necklace to a courtesan named Piaoxue from Green Plum Tower.

Hu Haoran refused, so Third Young Master Ling tried to seize it by force and had his men beat Hu Haoran until he was seriously injured.

After recalling it all, Hu Haoran understood the cause and effect. The Hu Haoran of Douluo Continent had been beaten to death by Third Young Master Ling, which was why he had been able to "take advantage of the opening." Thus, Hu Haoran had made his first enemy since arriving in this world. Of course, this certainly would not be his last.

"He's just trash who bullies the weak with his power. Once I awaken my martial soul, I'll beat him until he calls me Dad!" Hu Haoran said dismissively.

"Young Master, he is Third Young Master Ling, the son of the Cangyun Empire's Minister of Finance. His older brother is also a student at Shrek Academy. We shouldn't come into conflict with him." Taohua tearfully tried to persuade him.

"Mm, mm. I'll listen to you." Hu Haoran answered that way, but he certainly would not let it go.

Hu Haoran knew very well that the Ling Family had always been at odds with the Hu Family, opposing them at every turn. Third Young Master Ling—Ling Fengyun—mocked him every time they met and even struck him. Hu Haoran himself had been unable to resist effectively because he had not awakened a martial soul. Yet whether in his previous life or this one, Hu Haoran would never change his unwillingness to admit defeat. He firmly believed that he would awaken a martial soul and accomplish an unparalleled feat. Ling Fengyun would become nothing more than a stepping stone beneath his feet.