Rich Second-Gen, Day Four

Spirit Hall was an exceptionally special presence on the Douluo Continent. Wherever there were Spirit Masters, there was Spirit Hall. It existed in the prosperous and luxurious Heaven Dou Imperial City, as well as in remote, desolate villages. Children on the Douluo Continent with no family foundation or backing would undergo the annual Spirit Awakening ceremony at their village's Spirit Hall, awakening their own martial spirits. The Spirit Hall deacons presiding over the ceremony would focus on recruiting Spirit Masters worth cultivating into Spirit Hall, which truly was the best choice for common-born children.

For the major sects and clans, the Spirit Awakening of their next generation was equally important. They had dedicated places for awakening martial spirits and would strictly time the awakening according to the children's birthdays. After all, gaining even one extra day of cultivation was worthwhile. They would also assign roles reasonably based on the characteristics of the children's martial spirits. Awakening a powerful combat martial spirit or a rare support martial spirit was naturally ideal, but awakening a martial spirit useful in daily life was not bad either. After all, people did not live solely to fight.

So far, the lives of six-year-old Ming Sui and five-year-old Ming Sui had not changed much. She got up in the morning to train with her parents, had breakfast with them, then attended her final common knowledge class. Once the class ended, Steward Ming was already waiting outside with prepared clothes. After changing into the outfit for the awakening ceremony, Ming Sui followed Steward Ming into the prepared room, where Ming Zhen and Tang Yunhua were already waiting for her.

The concept of having money became vividly tangible the moment Ming Sui entered the room. She had learned about awakening ceremonies before: six Awakening Stones the size of ox eyes were enough to support the entire ritual. Yet all six walls of this room were covered in large slabs of Awakening Stone. Even the crystal ball used to test Soul Power was of the highest grade, without the slightest impurity. The light it reflected was so dazzling that it made Ming Sui's eyes blur.

Steward Ming, who had arranged all this, quietly hid his achievements and fame.

Tang Yunhua smiled at Ming Sui. "Let's begin, Sui Sui. I'll awaken you."

The Sky Shaking Hammer martial spirit silently appeared in Tang Yunhua's outstretched right hand. Yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black, black, red—Nine Spirit Rings pulsed around her. Black-gold Soul Power flowed into the activation platform. Pale golden light spread from the Awakening Stones on every side, forming a golden dome that enveloped Ming Sui. The golden motes flared brightly upon touching her, eagerly rushing into her body.

It's stable. Tang Yunhua and Ming Zhen exchanged a look and let out long breaths. Though neither mentioned it aloud, they had both worried that Ming Sui's martial spirit might not turn out as hoped. Judging from such a powerful reaction, it should be a formidable martial spirit.

As the light motes continuously surged into her, Ming Sui felt a warm current slowly moving through her limbs and bones. The more light motes there were, the larger the current became, and the faster it flowed. Yet there was no discomfort at all; it was warm and pleasant.

The warm current accumulated faster and faster. After an unknown amount of time, it all surged toward Ming Sui's right hand at once. She could not help raising her hand, palm facing upward. Under the wash of that current, something seemed to break with a soft pop. Golden motes rapidly gathered, while green motes slowly began to multiply among them. Gradually, a golden scepter emerged in Ming Sui's palm.

Ming Zhen was overjoyed. This aura was no less impressive than his own Holy Light Scepter.

The Spirit Awakening succeeded. Tang Yunhua withdrew her Soul Power and watched her daughter curiously studying her martial spirit. Her eyes curved into crescents. "Sui Sui's martial spirit doesn't seem to be recorded anywhere. Did it mutate?" she asked Ming Zhen.

"I can sense Life Aura and Sacred Aura, but there's something else mixed in as well. I can't quite explain it." Ming Zhen was delighted. The waves of Honghu Lake rose one after another; each generation was stronger than the last. But with this martial spirit, she would most likely be a Support Spirit Master. She still needed to learn more skills to protect herself. Ming Zhen began discussing Ming Sui's curriculum with his wife, Tang Yunhua.

Meanwhile, Ming Sui was still staring at her martial spirit, reluctant to blink. It was too beautiful, practically a work of art. The golden scepter was covered in mysterious, powerful runes. Vines representing plants and dragon patterns representing animals twisted and coiled around it.

"Sui Sui, relax your mind and feel your martial spirit. She'll be your companion for life, so you must understand her," Tang Yunhua instructed.

Ming Sui began establishing communication with her martial spirit. The golden scepter turned into green-gold motes and dispersed, then appeared again. She opened her eyes excitedly. This was interesting.

"Dad, Mom, this martial spirit is called the Staff of Life. Its Soul Power is green-gold. Haha, this scepter can grow larger too. I can feel it. This scepter should be extremely hard and resilient," Ming Sui said excitedly.

The couple seemed to think of something at the same time. Who had not had a Monkey King holding a golden staff in their childhood?

"It's very hard? Are you sure?" Ming Zhen asked urgently.

"Mm-hmm. I think it's even harder than Mom's hammer, but my Soul Power is too low right now, so I can't compare it to the hammer. If the difference in Soul Power doesn't exceed twenty levels, I think it should be able to withstand it."

Support Spirit Masters were especially likely to draw attention during battle, not only because their abilities determined a team's lower limit, but also because Support Spirit Masters lacked the means to protect themselves.

Although they did not yet know how Ming Sui's future soul skills would work, her martial spirit sounded like a support-type martial spirit. There would be no issue with deploying it as a support martial spirit on the battlefield. If the scepter was hard enough, she could protect herself during battle and make enemies who came to deal with Support Spirit Masters waste their efforts!

That was merely the simplest scenario. The battle-experienced couple instantly thought of countless combat possibilities. This powerful martial spirit attribute brought infinite possibilities to Ming Sui's future. No one would refuse a Support Spirit Master whose skills were powerful and who could also protect herself—especially one who could coordinate with all kinds of tactics.

The couple, lost in their boundless imaginings, forgot something important.

The awakening ceremony was not over yet.

The large crystal ball glittered brightly, announcing its presence, but the excited Ming Zhen and Tang Yunhua ignored it.

Ming Sui could only remind her excited parents that they still needed to test her Innate Soul Power. Only then did the two snap out of it, awkwardly looking toward the ceiling.

Ming Zhen coughed twice and had Ming Sui place her hand on the crystal ball to begin the test.

Ming Sui only felt a powerful pull coming from the crystal ball through her hand. The warm energy within her body flowed toward the crystal ball along with that pull. Green-gold light instantly illuminated the entire crystal ball, its glow spilling outward. The dense light condensed into liquid and even dripped down the outer surface of the crystal ball.

Tang Yunhua smiled proudly. "Innate Full Soul Power. Congratulations, Sui Sui, and welcome to the path of a Spirit Master."

Ming Sui did not feel much different after awakening her martial spirit. Although her Soul Power had already reached level ten and she could obtain a spirit ring, Ming Zhen and Tang Yunhua did not immediately take her to acquire one. Instead, they had her continue cultivating while placing even greater emphasis on combat technique training. Steward Ming also plunged into the vast sea of cultivation alongside her.

Ming Sui felt that her parents seemed very busy. They were often away from home and no longer even ate dinner with her. If she had not seen them during daily training and breakfast, she would have thought the two of them never came home at night.

Faced with her worried gaze, Ming Zhen and Tang Yunhua reassured her, "Don't worry, Sui Sui. You don't need to worry about us. Once this period is over, we'll have a good talk."

Time passed amid Ming Sui's cultivation and Ming Zhen and Tang Yunhua's busyness.