Katyusha

The person before him looked tiny, though he wasn't very tall himself.

She had long golden hair, smooth as silk and shimmering in the light. Her eyes were blue, and her pointed ears gave her an elfin quality. Her outfit was a fitted short dress with several layers of fabric, mainly black and white, accented with blue and gold. Her back and sides were exposed, as were the areas beneath her arms. Her necklace featured an iris motif, lending her an air of elegance. Seen from behind, her sleeves faded into blue, and their front edges were shaped like fish fins. She wore white sandals.

"Katy?"

Yue could hardly believe his eyes. He rubbed them hard, then opened them again. Katy was still looking at him with a cheerful smile.

Xiao Ka leaned forward slightly, tilted her head, and blinked. "You still remember me, Yiren!"

"Wait, isn't this the Sun Moon Continent?"

Xiao Ka nodded. Her Martial Soul hadn't awakened yet, so she couldn't manifest, but she could sense everything happening outside.

"This isn't Solaris?"

"No."

"Then how are you here?" For the first time, Yue's face showed the sort of expression unique to children.

"Hmm... I don't know either." Xiao Ka lifted her head and thought it over carefully. "I just went to sleep, and when I woke up, I'd followed the Blood Oath Pact here."

After calming down a little, Yue thought carefully about the situation, but couldn't make heads or tails of it.

It seemed they'd both crossed worlds, and Katyusha had become his Martial Soul.

Or perhaps they'd resonated with each other. His Martial Soul was the Blood Oath Pact, but...

Yue waved a hand, and a blue-and-white Soul Ring floated over.

His first Soul Skill was one of Katy's abilities.

After explaining his guess, Yue asked, "Can you only stay in my Sea of Consciousness?"

"Well..." Xiao Ka closed her eyes and tried to sense it. "I think I can go out, but not right now. You're too weak. Once you get stronger, I should be able to leave."

The smile that had appeared when he heard Katy could go out vanished beneath her remark that he was too weak. A sense of dejection spread through the entire Sea of Consciousness.

Xiao Ka realized she'd said the wrong thing and quickly waved her hands. "No, that's not what I meant. I..."

"It's okay." Yue quickly composed himself. Xiao Ka was right. He was too weak right now.

"Wait for me. I'll get stronger as soon as I can, so you can see this whole new world for yourself." Yue stepped forward and hugged Xiao Ka, making his promise with determination.

"Okay!" She swallowed the words she'd been about to say and quietly rested in Yue's arms.

Then she gently pushed him away.

"Someone's waiting for you outside. You should go."

"Okay!" Yue nodded and left the Sea of Consciousness with a thought.

When he opened his eyes, Yue looked at the Blood Oath Pact in his hand and felt the power inside him. For a moment, he couldn't tell what he was feeling.

"Xiao Yue, are you all right?" Seeing Yue open his eyes, Jing Hongchen asked with concern.

"I'm fine, Grandpa!" Yue pulled himself out of his complicated feelings and smiled at Jing Hongchen. "Grandpa, I don't think I need to hunt Soul Beasts. My Martial Soul is called the Blood Oath Pact. Once I reach a bottleneck, it can absorb the energy of heaven and earth and condense a Soul Ring for me."

As he spoke, he drew the Soul Ring over and studied the unusual ring closely.

"I know about that already. But you must never tell anyone. If I weren't checking your health every year, I'd have thought you were a Soul Beast reincarnated as a human."

Seeing Jing Hongchen's serious expression, Yue nodded. If something was difficult to explain, it was best not to tell anyone.

"I'll tell people your Soul Rings mutated because of your Martial Soul. Xiao, Meng, you must keep this locked away in your hearts too."

"Okay, Grandpa."

"Got it! I'd never do anything that could hurt my brother!"

Xiao and Meng both nodded. They understood how serious it would be if ill-intentioned people became convinced that Yue was a Soul Beast and killed him.

"That's enough about Yue for now. Meng, Xiao, it's your turn to awaken your Martial Souls."

Meng obediently nodded. She and Xiao took turns stepping into the center of the awakening platform.

Xiao Hongchen's Martial Soul was the Three-legged Golden Toad. He had innate rank ten Soul Power and a top-tier Beast Martial Soul with the bloodline of a divine beast. He had a strong affinity for metals and Soul Tools, could manipulate metal, and could help Soul Tools unleash their full potential. His Martial Soul was an excellent fit for becoming a Soul Engineer.

Meng Hongchen's Martial Soul was the Vermilion Clear Ice Toad. She had innate rank ten Soul Power and a mutated top-tier Beast Martial Soul with ice, fire, and poison attributes. Its core was poison of the utmost potency, capable of corroding souls.

"I never expected all three of you to have Innate Full Soul Power. Xiao's Martial Soul is also an excellent fit for becoming a Soul Engineer. But little Meng's Martial Soul is suited to becoming a powerful Soul Master."

After awakening their Martial Souls, the three children stood obediently in front of Jing Hongchen. He was overjoyed. Three geniuses all at once—what a blessing for the Hongchen Family.

"Grandpa, does that mean I can go to Shrek with my brother?" Meng wasn't particularly concerned about her Martial Soul. What mattered to her was Jing Hongchen saying she was suited to becoming a powerful Soul Master.

Jing Hongchen nodded. Seeing how excited Meng Hongchen was, he knew what she was thinking.

She couldn't bear to part from Yue. If she'd awakened the same Three-legged Golden Toad as Xiao, or a toad like his own, he would have suggested that Meng become a Soul Engineer too.

But her Martial Soul was the top-tier Beast Martial Soul, the Vermilion Clear Ice Toad. Going to Shrek with Yue would indeed be good for her future. After all, the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy certainly couldn't cultivate Soul Masters as well as the continent's number one academy, Shrek Academy.

"I'll talk to Mu En again later. You can go to Shrek with Yue in six years. At least you'll have each other for company while you're away from home."

At that, Meng jumped for joy and threw her arms around Jing Hongchen.

"Yay! Grandpa, you're the best!"

Time flew by. Six years had passed since Yue awakened his Martial Soul, and Shrek had begun recruiting for a new year.

Jing Hongchen traded the crafting method for a Level 8 Soul Tool in exchange for Yue and Meng being allowed to attend Shrek as exchange students.

Being exchange students meant the two would only study in the outer academy for now and wouldn't represent Shrek in the Soul Master Tournament.

In the future, they could choose whether to join Shrek permanently. The doors to the inner academy would always be open to them.

At the Hongchen Family estate, Yan Shaozhe, dean of Shrek Academy's Martial Soul Department and Bright Phoenix Douluo, had arrived.

"Yan Shaozhe, I'll be leaving these two children in your care."

"Don't worry. Once they join Shrek, they'll be members of the academy. We'll do our best to cultivate them."

"Good. I have important matters to attend to, or I wouldn't have troubled you to come get them. Give my regards to Dragon God Douluo."

"I'll pass them along."

While the two men chatted, Yue and Meng were saying goodbye to Xiao.

"Xiao, study hard at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy. I hope I'll see a stronger you when I come back."

"Big Brother, don't worry. By the time you return, I'll have become a genius Soul Tool engineer."

"Great. It's a promise!" Yue held out his right fist.

Xiao was taken aback, then smiled. "It's a promise."

His right fist gently bumped Yue's.

Meng Hongchen fidgeted nervously. She waited until Jing Hongchen and Yan Shaozhe were almost done talking before speaking. "Brother, take care of yourself."

Xiao hadn't expected her to call him brother so suddenly. He smiled. "With Grandpa here, nothing will happen to me. You're the one going away, so take care of yourself and don't cause Big Brother any trouble."

"I won't!" Meng Hongchen puffed out her cheeks and muttered a quiet protest.

"All right, Yue, Meng, it's time to go!"

Hearing her grandfather's voice, Yue and Meng hurried over to Yan Shaozhe.

"Grandpa, take care of yourself!"

"I will! You two as well. Your safety comes first."

After a brief farewell, the two followed Yan Shaozhe on the journey to Shrek.

PS: In this book's alternate setting, the Hongchen Family is the Hongchen Family, and the imperial family is the imperial family. The Hongchen Family is a power on the scale of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect in Douluo I: it cooperates with the imperial family but is independent of it.