Checking In at Holy Soul Village

Before long, they reached the end of the path. Yu Xiaogang looked up at a large stone monument at the village entrance. The barely legible words "Holy Soul Village" hung crookedly on a smooth stone wall.

Heh, I ran straight to where the novel's protagonist began. Tang Hao should still be traveling the continent with Ah Yin right now! Settling down here wouldn't be bad.

Thinking this to himself, Yu Xiaogang strode into the protagonist's newbie village. He could already smell the smoke and aromas of farm cooking, while Luo Sanpao toddled closely behind him.

After entering Holy Soul Village, Yu Xiaogang saw a scene much like the one from the animation: a small square, with a broken stone pillar in the middle covered in moss and a blurry handprint on its surface. Several little brats were playing beneath a large tree, while a few farmers weeded vegetable plots nearby. It was an idyllic rural scene.

Yu Xiaogang walked onto a nearby field ridge and called out to an old farmer who was hard at work:

"Excuse me, sir? Which way is the village chief's house?"

Hearing an unfamiliar person calling to him, the old farmer straightened up and used the sweat towel around his neck to wipe the beads of sweat from his forehead. He saw a young man he did not recognize standing on the ridge, waving and calling to him, and assumed he was a passing traveler.

After all, Holy Soul Village was ideally located at the border of the Two Great Empires. Travelers and merchant caravans often passed through, buying supplies or collecting mountain goods, so the villagers were used to such visitors.

"Oh! Village Chief Jack's house is the first one on the left at the village entrance. If you're tired, there's a small tavern next door where you can rest your feet!" The old farmer immediately called back cheerfully, pointing in the direction with his hand. That tavern belonged to his son, after all—why not drum up some business when he could?

"Thanks, sir! Let's go, Luo Sanpao."

After thanking him and giving Luo Sanpao an order, Yu Xiaogang waved to the old farmer and headed for the tavern he had indicated. First things first, he needed to fill his stomach. Only after eating would he have the energy to look for Old Jack. At this point in time, Old Jack was not actually old yet. The farmer had called him Village Chief Jack, so Yu Xiaogang had to pay attention to that.

When Yu Xiaogang reached a small house, he saw several ox carts parked outside. Waves of fragrance and lively chatter drifted from within. A wooden sign hung over the entrance, bearing the character for "tavern." The strange blend of Eastern and Western styles throughout Douluo Continent still fascinated him—Western-style buildings with Chinese characters on their signs. Unable to resist, he summoned his Phone Martial Soul and took a photo as a souvenir. This was where Tang San had grown up, after all. He had to check in and commemorate the visit.

After taking the photo and putting away his Phone Martial Soul, Yu Xiaogang pushed open the door and entered. He swept his gaze around, spotted an empty seat, and walked over to sit down. A child of around eight immediately came forward and asked, "What would you like to eat, sir?"

"Two portions of your best food. Oh, and add a chicken leg." After speaking, Yu Xiaogang glanced at Luo Sanpao, who had been following him, and added the last part.

"Alright, it'll be ready soon! Dad! Another order! Two grilled meat sets, plus a chicken leg!" The child shouted as he ran toward the kitchen.

Yu Xiaogang looked around. People sat at only a few tables, eating and chatting. Listening casually, he heard talk about a Soul Master battle somewhere, someone's son awakening a good Martial Soul, and Soul Master nobles in Notting City harassing widows again.

It was all meaningless chatter. Yu Xiaogang listened for a while before losing interest. Just then, his food arrived. He took a bite and found it quite good, flavorful and well-seasoned.

After finishing his meal, he paid thirty Copper Soul Coins. Yu Xiaogang felt he would not have to worry about making a living from now on. The original Yu Xiaogang had left him twenty thousand Gold Soul Coins, enough for him to live extravagantly for a long time. So long as he did not gamble or frequent brothels, those Gold Soul Coins would last him ages.

He walked to the small courtyard next door, knocked on the wooden gate, and called inside:

"Is Village Chief Jack home? I'm an independent Soul Master passing through!"

"Who is it? Wait a moment! I'll be right there!"

A somewhat deep male voice came from inside the courtyard. Before long, the wooden gate opened, and Village Chief Jack looked at the young man before him with confusion. "May I ask who you are, Lord Soul Master? What business do you have with me?"

"Oh, hello, Village Chief Jack. I'm an independent Soul Grandmaster traveling the continent. I've been feeling tired lately and want to find somewhere quiet to settle down. Are there any vacant houses for sale in the village? The quieter, the better. I prefer peace and quiet."

Yu Xiaogang immediately smiled at Old Jack, who was clearly much younger than in the animation. His hair was half black and half white, his back was still straight and sturdy, and he was not hunched over as he had been in the animation. That meant Tang Hao would not come here to live in seclusion for another ten-odd years.

Yu Xiaogang could make arrangements in advance and see whether he could use the abundant Soul Master knowledge in his head to fool the ancient Tang San into becoming his disciple. Tang San in the animation had been somewhat beautified, after all. He seemed easier to fool than the novel version.

"Of course, respected Lord Soul Master! There are still vacant houses in the village. Not long ago, Old John's family on the western side of the village moved to Notting City to live with his son. His house is beside a pond, with a small hill nearby and pleasant scenery. It's secluded and some distance from the other villagers' homes. It completely meets your requirements. Before Old John left, he entrusted the matter to me as village chief. For just five Gold Soul Coins, you can purchase it, along with the nearby fields."

The moment Old Jack heard that the young man before him was a Soul Grandmaster, he immediately became respectful and began using honorifics. More importantly, the young man had a small purple beast beside him. One glance was enough to tell that it was some unknown Soul Beast, which made his claim even more convincing.

"Alright! Thank you, Village Chief Jack. Here are eight Gold Soul Coins. I'll take Old John's house. The extra three are to ask whether you can find some people to help clean it up and buy some furniture for settling in. If the money isn't enough, I can add more—I misspoke, I mean add more. Can you take me to see it now?"

Yu Xiaogang was delighted to hear that there was actually a house that met his requirements. He immediately took out Gold Soul Coins he had withdrawn in advance from his storage Soul Tool and kept in his clothing pocket. After all, one had to be cautious while traveling.

Besides, he was about to become a homeowner. That was something he would never have dared imagine on Earth, where housing prices in big cities were far too expensive.

"Certainly, respected Lord Soul Master. Please follow me."

Old Jack replied happily as well. Helping Old John sell the house would earn him a little profit too. One Gold Soul Coin was enough for him to live on for a long time. On Douluo Continent, a family of three commoners spent roughly one Gold Soul Coin per month.

"Old Jack, don't be so formal! Village Chief Jack, I'll just call you Old Jack. My name is Yu Xiaogang. You can call me Master Yu or simply Master. I'm fairly well-known among commoner Soul Masters, after all."

Yu Xiaogang spoke politely as he followed behind Old Jack, wondering whether he could experiment on Douluo Continent with the wild ideas he had gotten from novels and the skills he had seen in other animations. Perhaps that could turn him into a true master of both theory and practice. His modern way of thinking and Phone Martial Soul would not let him down.

"Alright, Master Yu!" Old Jack replied as he walked with Yu Xiaogang, thinking that this Lord Soul Master was quite easygoing.

After walking for around fifteen minutes, Yu Xiaogang saw a wooden cottage and a small courtyard enclosed by a fence. A tall Osmanthus Tree stood in the courtyard, lush and verdant in the early summer.

Yu Xiaogang looked it over and found the rustic little courtyard quite satisfactory. He thanked Old Jack, then asked him to bring the village Carpenter and Mason over to help tidy up and renovate the house with some semi-modern upgrades. He ordered a whole stack of bookshelves and blank books as well. Altogether, it took two weeks and cost around twelve Gold Soul Coins. Gold Soul Coins really did go a long way among commoners. So long as something had nothing to do with Soul Masters, it was very cheap.

When Yu Xiaogang saw the Carpenter and Mason working with their shovel, saw, and hammer commoner Martial Souls, he was amazed at how quickly they worked. It was his first time seeing such a thing, and he found it quite novel, since the animation had never mentioned it.

Yu Xiaogang drew a rough sketch of a Rocking Chair he had seen in a Tiktok video in his previous life. The Carpenter was delighted when he saw this kind of chair for the first time and said he would make it for free. Now, Yu Xiaogang lay beneath the Osmanthus Tree, sipping afternoon tea while organizing the cultivation Meditation Methods left behind by the original Yu Xiaogang, along with diagrams for several simple Soul Power circulation methods.

"This is what life is supposed to be! What was I doing before? Luo Sanpao, go fetch a blank book from the study. After reading so many cultivation Meditation Methods, I've got some ideas that I need to write down."

Yu Xiaogang instructed Luo Sanpao, who was squatting nearby. Luo Sanpao immediately scampered off toward the study.

Yu Xiaogang now kept Luo Sanpao summoned so that it could move about outside. He had also discovered something when he first cultivated the advanced Meditation Method on Douluo Continent: he and Luo Sanpao could absorb the energy drifting through the air at the same time. The Heaven and Earth Energy Luo Sanpao absorbed outside could be transmitted into Yu Xiaogang's body through the soul connection between them. Yu Xiaogang found this extremely surprising.

Yu Xiaogang had even specifically searched through the original Yu Xiaogang's memories. This had never happened before.

Yu Xiaogang could not help guessing that his fusion with Yu Xiaogang's soul had strengthened his own soul and opened up the Sea of Consciousness. Although his Sea of Consciousness was currently no more than a small pond, it would slowly grow larger in the future.

Yu Xiaogang took the blank book from Luo Sanpao's mouth and began recording one idea after another. At the same time, he considered whether he should go to Notting City Junior Soul Master Academy and become an instructor. After all, he had far too little basic data on hand right now.

Moreover, Yu Xiaogang had connections with the headmaster of Notting City Junior Soul Master Academy. In the original story, Yu Xiaogang had once hunted Soul Beasts and drunk with him. They were friends who had faced life and death together.

Thinking of this, Yu Xiaogang summoned his Phone Martial Soul. Its Soul Power battery displayed a full 100%. The calculation app he had opened was running a simulation of Soul Power circulation through the body's meridians, with progress at 80%. A red exclamation mark indicated insufficient basic data.

"There's a lot to do. I hope I can get it right in one go this time."

As Yu Xiaogang spoke, he relaxed his body and reclined in the Rocking Chair. His Mental Power spread out from the Sea of Consciousness, carefully sensing every tiny meridian in his body. At the same time, he connected through his Phone Martial Soul and entered those sensations into the database, building up more foundations for his Second Martial Soul, the Phone Martial Soul.

The first thing Yu Xiaogang wanted to do on Douluo Continent was create an Internal Cultivation Method suited to his body. The Meditation Methods of Douluo Continent were truly nothing more than meditation. They barely concerned themselves with the meridians, simply allowing Soul Power to flow freely through the body. The body automatically absorbed and converted Heaven and Earth Energy into Soul Power based on the Martial Soul, and as Soul Power circulated through the flesh, it passively strengthened the body. The only difference between low-level and high-level Meditation Methods was that the latter made it easier to absorb Heaven and Earth Energy.

No wonder Tang San had become a god with nothing but an Internal Cultivation Method from a martial arts world. Even after his reincarnation, he was still living off his old foundations and cultivating the Mysterious Heaven Skill.

Yu Xiaogang wanted to see whether he could use the computational abilities of his Second Martial Soul, the Phone Martial Soul, to simulate a simple cultivation method, then gradually test the reactions caused by Soul Power flowing through different meridians. After all, an ordinary modern man genuinely knew nothing about meridians, and he had not studied medicine in his previous life. He could only use brute force, testing them one by one. After nearly a month, he was about to complete a systematic record of his body's meridian and Soul Power reactions.