Martial Soul Awakening-It Caught Fire?

Eastsea City.

Maple Forest Orphanage.

"You're all six years old now, old enough for your Martial Souls to awaken. No matter the outcome, I hope you remember that this will always be your home."

The Dean had a head of white hair, and a gentle smile rose on her wrinkled face.

"Also, I wish for all of you to become Spirit Masters."

Several boys and girls in the courtyard listened attentively, their eyes filled with longing.

Off to the side, the Spirit Transmission Master who had come specially from the Spirit Pagoda with Eastsea City's financial support gave them an indifferent glance and urged, "Hurry up and begin."

He had little hope that this rundown orphanage could produce any Spirit Masters.

He only wanted to finish his work quickly and save enough money to buy a higher-quality Spirit Soul for himself, allowing him to advance to the realm of a Three-Ring Spirit Venerable.

This era was no longer like ancient times, when one could simply hunt Spirit Beasts for Spirit Rings in order to advance. Now, one needed to obtain Spirit Souls.

Looking at the thin, undernourished children in the courtyard, the Spirit Transmission Master's tone was far from kind, but ripples had long stirred in his heart.

Even if they awakened Martial Souls and possessed Soul Power, becoming Spirit Masters, so what?

The most ordinary ten-year white Spirit Soul cost seventy thousand Federal Coin, while a hundred-year yellow Spirit Soul cost a full million Federal Coin.

Even if one settled for a random Spirit Soul costing thirty thousand Federal Coin, drawing a defective one would ruin their entire life after absorption.

And besides...

Which of these orphanage children could afford thirty thousand Federal Coin?

Would the orphanage pay for them?

They did not even have an Awakening Room...

Their only chance was to be luckier: to awaken a better Martial Soul, possess a higher level of Innate Soul Power, and perhaps have the opportunity to be recruited by the Spirit Pagoda.

That was, in fact, the main reason the Spirit Pagoda and Eastsea City's treasury persisted with this welfare policy.

Yet as far as he knew, over all these years, those recruited into the Spirit Pagoda through this method were negligible compared to the total.

"Yes, Lord Spirit Transmission Master."

A trace of nervousness appeared on the Dean's face, as if she feared upsetting him and causing him to refuse to awaken the children's Martial Souls.

She hurriedly looked toward the children in the courtyard. "Be good, all of you. Listen to Lord Spirit Transmission Master's instructions, understand?"

The children, their eyes full of anticipation, immediately became solemn and answered in unison, "Yes, Grandma Dean!"

The Spirit Transmission Master had been lost in thought. Hearing this, he came back to himself, and a complicated expression appeared on his face. In the end, he could no longer maintain the cold persona he had just put on.

"Come in one at a time."

With that, the Spirit Transmission Master entered a crude little room. After making a few simple preparations, he beckoned one child inside. Light shone from his hand as he began the Awakening Ceremony.

A moment later, a boy emerged, drenched in sweat. The terror in his eyes had not yet fully faded, but it had already turned into deep disappointment.

Martial Soul: Leaf. No innate Soul Power.

The Dean patted the boy's shoulder and comforted him. "It's all right. Even without Soul Power, the children of our orphanage can still attend ordinary classes. In the future, you can join the military and contribute your own strength to the Federation."

The boy gave a vague sound of acknowledgment, clearly not taking it in.

"Next."

Martial Soul: Grass Root. No innate Soul Power.

"Next."

Martial Soul: Fire Poker. No innate Soul Power.

"Next."

One child after another entered the room, then walked back out in dejection.

Lin Jin watched it all unfold. The eagerness in his eyes gradually cooled, becoming somewhat numb.

At the same time, worry rose in his heart. Could he really awaken a Martial Soul with innate Soul Power?

When he had first arrived in this world and confirmed the era, his excitement over learning that the God Realm had been swept away by Space-Time Turbulence, leaving no God Kings to manipulate the mortal world, had already faded.

The Battle Armor and Mecha he had envisioned now seemed far away.

That was right!

The prerequisite for everything was that he could become a Spirit Master.

How could he not feel uneasy?

"Blue Silver Grass, first-level Soul Power. Congratulations."

At that moment, the Spirit Transmission Master's voice rang out. The exhaustion from earlier seemed to have dissipated considerably because a child with Soul Power had finally appeared.

But it was immediately replaced by disappointment.

Blue Silver Grass. Even with first-level Innate Soul Power, what could it amount to?

Shaking his head, he looked toward the courtyard. "Next."

Lin Jin was still spacing out when the Dean's gaze fell upon him. "Lin Jin, don't be afraid. Go on."

Lin Jin froze for a moment, then nodded and walked into the room.

"Focus your mind and calm yourself. Don't be nervous."

Seeing that this was the last one, the aura around the Spirit Transmission Master relaxed considerably, and he uncharacteristically added a few more words.

Lin Jin took a deep breath. Then light flared in the Spirit Transmission Master's hand, its power resonating with the arrangements in the room.

The next moment, a numb tingling sensation surged up from the soles of his feet and into his body, making Lin Jin's body tremble slightly.

The world before his eyes blurred. Image after image flashed through his mind, but he could not remember any of them. He could only sense shifting light and shadow.

"Hmm!"

Suddenly, Lin Jin let out a muffled groan.

The Spirit Transmission Master jumped in fright, thinking something had gone wrong during the awakening.

If something like that happened, it would leave a rather "vivid" mark on his record.

It would make future promotion difficult!

A nervous expression appeared on the Spirit Transmission Master's face, but in the next instant, his gaze froze.

Before his eyes, Lin Jin's body trembled continuously. Sweat dripped endlessly from his tightly shut eyes and face.

At the same time, crimson flames enveloped Lin Jin's entire body in the blink of an eye!

Every inch of skin, every strand of hair, even his feeble Spiritual Power—it all seemed to be burning at that moment!

"H-How is this possible..."

The Spirit Transmission Master was utterly stunned.

How had he ever seen a scene like this?

How could someone's Martial Soul awakening result in something like this?

The Spirit Transmission Master did not know what was happening, but he knew one thing: if this continued, the child before him would likely be burned alive!

He understood that the right choice now was not to interfere.

After all, this was not his work error, but a problem with the other party's Martial Soul. Even if he did nothing, the organization would not be able to fault him afterward.

But his heart seemed unable to accept making such a choice.

"Damn it!"

With an angry curse, coldness suddenly spread from the Spirit Transmission Master, who was merely a Two-Ring Great Spirit Master.

Snowflakes drifted down, intending to freeze Lin Jin and extinguish the flames on his body.

Snowflake was precisely his Martial Soul.

But in the next instant, something terrifying happened.

The falling snowflakes...

Were actually ignited!

Moreover, as if tracing back to their source, the flames seemed intent on igniting even the Soul Power within his body.

Even his Spiritual Power was breeding an unbearable heat, as if it too would ignite in the next moment.

"How is this possible? What kind of Martial Soul is this? It only just awakened—how can it be this domineering?!"