Half a year later.
Once again, it was the square. Once again, the familiar place. Once again, a group of people gathered together.
Outside Maple Leaf Village, a carriage stood quietly, its driver sitting atop it and peacefully taking in the scenery.
At the village entrance, Ke Lan, Zheng Long, and Zheng Hu were receiving another young man.
This young man was none other than Shen Tianlei, who had come to Maple Leaf Village years ago to help the children awaken their Martial Souls.
Shen Tianlei had broken through to the Soul Elder realm several years earlier. His Soul Power Level had now reached level thirty-eight, and he was getting ever closer to becoming a Soul Ancestor.
Originally, the Heaven Dou Empire mostly assigned Soul Grandmasters to help villages awaken Martial Souls. Once they reached the Soul Elder realm, there was no longer any need for them to do such work.
However, after learning of the tragedy that had taken place half a year ago, Shen Tianlei submitted another request and came personally to help Maple Leaf Village's children awaken their Martial Souls.
"Master Shen, you truly are young and accomplished." Ke Lan looked even older than before. What had happened half a year ago had dealt him a tremendous blow, but he still smiled upon seeing Shen Tianlei.
"I was merely lucky. I will be satisfied if I can break through to the Soul Ancestor realm in this life." Shen Tianlei waved his hand, showing no arrogance.
After saying that, Shen Tianlei sighed. "Old sir, the dead cannot be brought back to life. Please accept my condolences."
Ke Lan froze for a moment before silently nodding. That was right—the dead could not return to life.
Beside him, Zheng Long and Zheng Hu lowered their heads, countless thoughts filling their eyes. Their father had died at the hands of an Evil Soul Master. This hatred could never be forgotten.
Ke Lan said, "Let us go inside. We will have to trouble Master Shen again today."
Shen Tianlei nodded. "All right!"
After that, the four of them headed toward the square.
Nearly four hundred people had gathered in the square. This was the largest number of children Maple Leaf Village had ever had awakening their Martial Souls at once—nine in total.
Five boys and four girls.
Qin Ze was among them.
Qin Ze sat quietly on a stool inside the awakening room. To be honest, he was a little nervous. He did not know whether he would turn out to be a genius or trash.
What Yu Xiaogang had said ten thousand years ago—that there were only useless people, never useless Martial Souls—was the stupidest joke in the world.
On Douluo Continent, the strength of one's Martial Soul determined one's future in life.
Take Huo Yuhao, for example. Without the Sky Dream Ice Silkworm, could he have encountered so many opportunities? Could he have gained the Ice Empress as his second Martial Soul?
I wonder what kind of Martial Soul I'll awaken.
"I'm really nervous. I never thought much of it when I watched my older brothers and sisters awaken their Martial Souls, but now that it's my turn, my legs are actually shaking."
"It's fine. I have a feeling that every one of us will become a Soul Master."
The chatter around him pulled Qin Ze from his thoughts. He turned toward the door. The noise outside had grown more chaotic, clearly indicating that someone important had arrived.
Who else could that important person be, other than the Soul Master who had come to awaken their Martial Souls?
Sure enough, less than a minute later, the door opened. At the sound, the other eight children besides Qin Ze quickly sat quietly on their stools, looking outside with anticipation in their eyes.
Qin Ze saw Uncle Zheng Long opening the door. The two exchanged a glance.
Soon, a refined and handsome young man walked in from outside, accompanied by Ke Lan.
After entering, Ke Lan glanced around and said, "Children, don't be nervous later. Just follow Master Shen's instructions."
"Okay!"
Everyone answered in unison.
Having received their response, a faint smile appeared on Ke Lan's wrinkled face. He said something to Shen Tianlei, then left.
Bang!
After Ke Lan came out, Zheng Long closed the door.
The room instantly fell silent.
Several children looked Shen Tianlei up and down, their faces full of curiosity.
Shen Tianlei reached out and rubbed a boy's head, then walked behind the awakening platform. He first demonstrated the circulation of Soul Power for everyone. Soon, six black stones and a dazzling crystal appeared on the platform.
"Storage Belt!" Qin Ze immediately noticed the belt around Shen Tianlei's waist. He had thought it was merely an ornament, but it was actually a storage-type Soul Tool.
"Come, line up by height. We'll go one at a time." Shen Tianlei looked up at the children sitting on the stools and spoke gently.
Very quickly, all nine children stood and formed an orderly line. Before coming here, they had already learned the order for awakening their Martial Souls.
Qin Ze was the tallest, so he stood at the very end.
The first in line was a little girl named Lin Qin.
Shen Tianlei smiled and released his Soul Power. Pale-blue Soul Power spread outward like a beautiful wave of water.
Everyone was captivated by the sight.
Whoosh!
One white and two yellow Soul Rings rose from beneath his feet, hovering around his body.
A Soul Elder! Qin Ze thought.
From Shen Tianlei's right palm, a vine roughly twenty centimeters tall silently sprang forth. Spiral-like, strange blue patterns covered the vine, growing from its base to its tip like a staircase. At the tip floated three blue points of light, like fireflies.
After summoning his Martial Soul, Shen Tianlei's appearance changed. His already refined face became even more handsome. Pale-blue patterns appeared across his face and limbs, giving him a mysterious air, while his body grew somewhat more slender.
"Wow!" Rather than fear, the children only let out cries of amazement.
Shen Tianlei guided his Soul Power into the six black stones. Once infused with Soul Power, the awakening stones emitted a hazy glow, which eventually formed a pale-golden light barrier that enveloped Lin Qin.
"Come, hold out your right hand." Looking at the little girl standing first in line, Shen Tianlei spoke softly.
Lin Qin nodded and obediently held out her right hand.
The instant she extended her hand, countless motes of light drifted out from the barrier and flowed into her right palm. In an instant, a flower with three different colors appeared in her hand.
"A Three-Colored Flower! Not bad, not bad at all!" Shen Tianlei's face showed delight. This Martial Soul ranked among the better intermediate Martial Souls, and it was an exceptionally rare Healing Type Martial Soul.
"First, use your thoughts to retract your Martial Soul. Then we'll test your Innate Soul Power Level." Shen Tianlei calmed himself and placed the crystal before the girl.
Lin Qin obediently nodded. With a thought, the Martial Soul in her hand immediately returned to her body.
After doing all that, Lin Qin nervously placed her hand on the crystal.
At once, dazzling blue light began spreading within the crystal. In the end, half of the crystal ball was covered in blue light.
"Innate Soul Power Level five!" Shen Tianlei raised his brows and said excitedly.
"Lord Soul Master, my Innate Soul Power Level is five?" Lin Qin thought she had misheard and hurriedly asked.
Shen Tianlei nodded. "That's right. Your Innate Soul Power Level is five, and your Martial Soul is an exceptionally rare Healing Type Martial Soul called the Three-Colored Flower. Congratulations. If you cultivate diligently in the future, then in theory, reaching the Soul King realm will not be a problem."
A trace of envy flashed through Shen Tianlei's eyes. His own Innate Soul Power had only been level three.
Upon receiving a definite answer, the little girl nearly lost her footing. This was truly an enormous surprise.
"Go sit down first. We'll continue." Shen Tianlei's tone remained gentle.
"Yes!" The little girl returned to her stool in a daze, then summoned her Martial Soul. She kept her head lowered as she looked at her right hand, where the Three-Colored Flower trembled with remarkable liveliness.
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