Holy Soul Village.
After Wang Feng helped Tang San back to the village, he didn't go to Tang San's house, but returned to his own.
As he walked along the ground, Wang Feng looked around Holy Soul Village, taking in how it had changed over the past few years...
The ground was paved with stone, unlike the purely dirt roads from a few years ago. It was smooth and level.
The stones had been brought over from Notting City, so the cost had naturally been considerable.
The once ordinary Holy Soul Village had begun building all sorts of novel structures over the past two years.
Colorful flowers had been planted along both sides of the road.
In the center of the village stood a stone pillar, with a handprint on it.
Wang Feng had suggested the pillar to Village Chief Jack back then, and it had been erected and redecorated.
A ring of uniquely shaped stone sculptures surrounded the pillar. They looked somewhat like the heads of dragon-shaped Soul Beasts.
Streams of water spouted from the dragons' mouths, circling around the center of the pillar.
It looked like a miniature garden.
In front of the pillar stood a sign.
The sign introduced the pillar's origins.
It was noon. Many visitors from elsewhere looked around Holy Soul Village with curiosity, then walked to the center to admire the pillar before turning to the sign.
The sign was covered in lines of small writing:
"Many years ago, there was a girl named Xiao Xun in Holy Soul Village. She was innocent, lively, and adorable... There was also a young man named Xiao Yan. The two had grown up together and were childhood sweethearts... until one day, they both reached the age for Martial Soul Awakening."
"Xiao Yan was the village's hope. He was exceptionally gifted, and the villagers all had high hopes for him. They all believed he would awaken a powerful Martial Spirit and become a mighty Spirit Master. However, on the day of Martial Soul Awakening, Xiao Yan failed to awaken a Martial Spirit. He... did not have the talent to become a Spirit Master, even though many of the other children had awakened their Martial Spirits."
"He was the only one who hadn't. Xiao Yan became a useless person whom everyone in the village looked down on, a useless person who didn't even have a Martial Spirit."
"Yet at that time, Miss Xiao Xun awakened a powerful Martial Spirit, along with Innate Full Soul Power, something rarely seen in a century."
That was where the story's introduction ended.
Many visitors were left hanging as they read, only to find a line of writing below:
"...But what you may not realize is that the Spirit Saint Handprint on this pillar... was not left by Miss Xiao Xun... It was left by Xiao Yan!"
"If you want to know what happened next... and the reasons behind it all, please explore Holy Soul Village..."
When they saw this,
many visitors were dumbfounded.
"Wow, that's so mean! How can they not tell the whole story?"
one visitor from out of town complained indignantly.
"Hey, look. There's another line of small writing in the handprint on the pillar: 'Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river; don't look down on a poor young man!' Wow, that's so inspiring! Could that have been left by Xiao Yan? He must have become a Spirit Saint later, but how did he manage it?"
"No way, I'm staying in Holy Soul Village for a few years so I can see the whole story behind this Spirit Saint Handprint!"
Wang Feng watched with a grin as visitors came in from outside the village, stopped in front of the pillar, and finally obediently stayed.
"Holy Soul Village is so remote, and it only has agriculture. Even if its output increases, it won't make much money."
Wang Feng chuckled to himself.
Holy Soul Village was doing so well now, naturally, not just because its crops were producing more.
It was because of the visitors from elsewhere.
In his previous life, this would have been called developing tourism.
And the Spirit Saint Handprint was an idea Wang Feng had come up with back then...
Then he had written a whole Douluo Continent version of Soul Breaking the Firmament... Perfect.
After all, in the original Douluo Continent, no one ever said exactly who the Spirit Saint in Holy Soul Village was.
Wang Feng figured he could make up whatever he wanted, right?
And once there were visitors, Wang Feng had Grandpa Jack arrange for a stretch of vacation lodges built entirely from wood, with mountains and water all around. He could also add the story's next installments, keeping the visitors hooked while getting them to spend a little money in Holy Soul Village.
Gradually, life in Holy Soul Village naturally became much better.
Otherwise, how could a modern homebody like Wang Feng, from the twenty-first century, get used to the hard life of a village like Holy Soul Village, much like the countryside of the seventies or eighties?
How could he possibly stand that...
"Hmph, who made up this ridiculous story?"
Just then, Wang Feng suddenly heard a voice tinged with displeasure.
He turned to look and saw a handsome young man with sharp brows and bright eyes. The young man stood with his hands behind his back, staring at the sign beside the pillar as he spoke in disapproval.
The young man wore a white outfit suited for combat, with a black cloak behind him. At the center of his chest was a Spirit character about the size of a fist.
There was a hint of arrogance between his brows.
Many people in the village watched the young man curiously.
His bearing and clothes were so different from theirs that it was obvious he wasn't an ordinary person.
"Why has Brother Tao come already? Didn't Grandpa Jack say Martial Soul Awakening wasn't for another few days?"
Wang Feng looked at the young man in surprise.
Although he had never met him, judging from the man's clothes and that distinctive air about him,
Wang Feng was certain that this young man was none other than the famous tool character of Douluo Continent: Su Yuntao!
With that in mind, Wang Feng walked over and said lazily:
"Sir, what's wrong with the story?"
Su Yuntao turned and looked at a lazy-looking child who seemed afraid of nothing at all. The boy showed none of the fear and reverence that children from other villages showed when they saw him, and Su Yuntao couldn't help frowning slightly.
"The story is obviously made up. It just keeps people curious; in truth, it's utterly dull!"
Su Yuntao glanced at Wang Feng and pointed at the pillar as he shook his head.
"Disappointed? Why are you disappointed?" Wang Feng asked.
"In this story, Xiao Yan has no Martial Spirit, but it hints that he later becomes a Spirit Saint. That's clearly impossible!"
Su Yuntao said with a faint smile. "A person without a Martial Spirit can't even become a Spirit Master, let alone a Spirit Saint! Isn't this story just made up?"
At that, Wang Feng couldn't help laughing.
Brother Tao was still Brother Tao. This was a familiar refrain.
It was just like when Wang Feng had first read Douluo Continent. When Tang San awakened the Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul, Brother Tao had sworn that it was a Trash Martial Soul with no use at all.
Although he hadn't appeared much afterward, he had probably been thoroughly proven wrong...
"So what?"
Wang Feng said leisurely, "If you think it's made up, then just leave Holy Soul Village."
"You little brat. You're rather interesting..." Su Yuntao laughed despite himself. "I have something important to do here. If you little brat try to drive me away, be careful or your village chief will spank you!"
Su Yuntao looked at the little fellow and said calmly:
"Don't tell me you think I came to your Holy Soul Village early because I'm curious about this made-up Spirit Saint story?"
"..."
Wang Feng shrugged and sighed. "So you're not curious. What a shame. I have the whole story here, including how Xiao Yan became a Spirit Saint. Since you're not interested, I won't let you read it."
With that, Wang Feng turned and started walking into the village.
"Hm? You have the whole story?"
Su Yuntao was taken aback. Watching the boy walk away, he took a few steps forward and reached out, hesitating as if he wanted to call the boy back...
Just then, Wang Feng suddenly turned around.
Su Yuntao quickly pulled his hand back and clasped it behind his back, his expression calm and unruffled. "What is it, little brat? Is there something else you want?"
Wang Feng gave him a strange look, shook his head, and said to himself:
"In a few days, I'll be awakening my Martial Spirit. I wonder what Martial Spirit I'll awaken..."
After saying that, Wang Feng turned and walked away without looking back.
"Heh... This kid..."
Su Yuntao watched the boy leave, thought for a few seconds, and said, "As it happens, I'll stay here for a few days too. I can take a look ahead of time and see if there are any promising children in Holy Soul Village who could become Spirit Masters..."
Several days later.
Grandpa Jack brought Wang Feng, Tang San, and the village's other seven children to the Martial Spirit Hall in Holy Soul Village...