Martial Soul Orphanage, Martial Soul Awakening

The plaza of the Martial Soul Orphanage was packed with a dense crowd of children, numbering over a thousand.

Their faces were a mix of anxiety and anticipation as they awaited the Martial Soul Awakening ceremony that would determine their fates.

Over ten thousand people participated in the awakening here every year, and for this, Martial Soul Hall dispatched dozens of deacons every month.

Twenty were responsible for presiding over the awakening, while the others maintained order to ensure the ceremony proceeded smoothly.

"Nana, don't be nervous. You'll definitely be fine." Ling Feng patted Hu Liena on the shoulder, offering comfort.

Ye Fan leaned against a nearby pillar and spoke indifferently, "It's just an awakening; keep a calm heart. Talent isn't everything."

Yan stood to the side, clenching his fists in encouragement, "Don't worry, Nana. Even if the awakened Martial Soul is ordinary, we can still become strong through hard work! I'm sure I'll awaken a powerful beast Martial Soul!"

Li Taibai crossed his arms, gazing at the ongoing ceremony in the distance, and suddenly remarked, "Gold will always shine; there is no use in rushing."

Hu Liena sniffled and nodded vigorously, "Mm! I will definitely awaken a powerful Martial Soul and not let my brothers down!"

Over an hour later, it was finally their group's turn.

"Group forty-three, prepare!" the deacon in charge of roll call shouted loudly.

Hu Liena, Li Taibai, Ling Feng, Ye Fan, Yan, and over a dozen other children responded and stepped forward, quickly walking to the designated area to stand in a line, their eyes fixed on the awakening array platform ahead.

The children walked one by one to the Martial Soul Hall deacons at the core of the awakening arrays, waiting for the verdict of fate.

As the twenty deacons simultaneously channeled their soul power, twenty awakening arrays lit up at once.

The runes on the arrays flowed incessantly, emitting a strange power that surged into each child's body.

"Martial Soul, Hoe! Innate Soul Power, level one!"

"Martial Soul, Sickle! Innate Soul Power, level two!"

"Martial Soul, Dagger! No Innate Soul Power!"

"Martial Soul, Blue Silver Grass! No Innate Soul Power!"

"Martial Soul, Wildflower! No Innate Soul Power!"

"Martial Soul, Dogtail Grass! No Innate Soul Power!"

The pronouncements rang out one after another, mostly filled with disappointment. The few children who possessed soul power only had low-level innate soul power, failing to attract much attention. Until—

"Martial Soul, Flame Lord! Innate Soul Power, level eight!"

"Martial Soul, Heavenly Fox! Innate Soul Power, level nine and a half!"

Two gasps of surprise rang out almost simultaneously, instantly drawing the attention of the entire plaza.

Behind one boy, the phantom of a burning giant of flame emerged, its aura overbearing.

Behind Hu Liena, the phantom of a snow-white, fluffy Heavenly Fox quietly appeared, its intelligent eyes scanning the surroundings with an innate charm and nobility.

"Whoa—" The plaza erupted in chaos.

"Level eight innate! And level nine and a half! These are geniuses!"

"Heavenly Fox Martial Soul! Isn't that a top-tier Martial Soul?"

"To think there are such powerful characters among this batch of children!"

The orphanage director, an elderly man with graying hair, was flushed with excitement, his hands trembling slightly.

He looked at Hu Liena and the boy with the Flame Lord Martial Soul, his cloudy eyes flashing with brilliance, "Wonderful! Truly wonderful! Two more gifted geniuses!"

"With this, the funding from Martial Soul Hall will surely increase; the orphanage can finally expand!"

Hu Liena looked at the Heavenly Fox phantom behind her, her small face full of surprise, then looked nervously at Ling Feng and the others—they were still on the array platform, showing no signs of movement.

"What is going on with you lot?" A middle-aged man in a black deacon's uniform walked over, frowning; he was the captain of this group's awakening ceremony. "Why haven't they awakened their Martial Souls yet?"

The deacon responsible for Ling Feng wiped the sweat from his forehead, his face bitter, "Captain, I don't know! My soul power is almost drained, but his Martial Soul still hasn't stirred!"

The two deacons next to him, who were awakening Ye Fan, echoed, "That's right, Captain. This child is the same; he absorbed a massive amount of my soul power, yet there's no reaction at all!"

"It's too strange; I've never encountered such a situation!"

The middle-aged captain frowned even deeper, a hint of gravity flashing in his eyes, then said in a deep voice, "What are you standing there for? Go help!"

He turned to order the other deacons, "Split into three teams and inject soul power into the awakening arrays for these children!"

Dozens of deacons immediately stepped forward, splitting into three groups to inject soul power into the arrays where Ling Feng, Li Taibai, and Ye Fan stood.

Vast amounts of soul power poured into the arrays, then flowed through them into the three boys' bodies.

"Roar—!"

"Awoo—!"

Almost at the same time, two deafening beast roars rang out.

Behind Ling Feng, a white tiger phantom over a zhang tall suddenly emerged. The white tiger was snow-white, covered in black stripes, with a glowing "King" character on its forehead. Its golden pupils scanned the crowd, exuding the pressure of a ruler over the world.

Behind Ye Fan appeared a creature of strange form—it had the body of a Qilin, yet it was covered in fine scales; its horns were like a deer's, head like a camel's, eyes like a ghost's, neck like a snake's, belly like a clam's, scales like a fish's, claws like an eagle's, palms like a tiger's, and ears like a cow's. Its entire body was wreathed in red and yellow flames, also over a zhang tall, and its roar carried an aura that could burn the heavens and destroy the earth.

The two giant beast phantoms hovered in mid-air, staring at each other, intense battle intent erupting from their eyes as they roared and vied with one another.

In an instant, the sky changed color; the previously clear heavens became overcast with dark clouds, thunder rumbled, and lightning flashed as an invisible pressure shrouded the entire orphanage.

Everyone on the plaza felt a tightness in their chests, as if pressed down by a giant boulder, making even breathing difficult.

Those spirit masters who possessed beast spirits felt their bodies tremble slightly, their spirit power circulation becoming sluggish.

"Good! Very good! Hahaha!" The middle-aged captain was shocked at first, then overcome with wild joy; the wrinkles on his face deepened as he laughed, rubbing his hands together in incoherent excitement.

"This is wonderful! This spirit is clearly extraordinary! It is absolutely a top-tier beast spirit! My promotion is within reach! My promotion is within reach!"

Hu Liena covered her small mouth, her large eyes wide with astonishment, and said, "So powerful... what kind of spirit is this? It is so much stronger than my Heavenly Fox?"

The surrounding children were even more dumbstruck, many of them so frightened that their legs went weak, causing them to collapse onto the ground.

The deacons responsible for the awakening ceremony also stopped what they were doing, gazing up at the anomaly in the sky.

Ling Feng and Ye Fan looked up at the phantom of the spirit in the sky, then exchanged a glance with each other.

Ling Feng's gaze was sharp as a blade, while Ye Fan's eyes were deep as the sea; both of them shared the same thought: this child's potential is extraordinary, and if he cannot be used for our own ends, he must not be allowed to live!

Just then, from Worship Mountain in the center of Martial Soul City, inside the Worship Hall, a golden figure suddenly shot into the sky with lightning speed—it was none other than Qian Daoliu.

Almost at the same time, Golden Crocodile Douluo also transformed into a streak of light, following closely behind.

Inside the Pope Hall, Bibi Dong was busy handling administrative affairs when she suddenly sensed an unusual aura; she jerked her head up, a flash of surprise in her eyes, and immediately rose to walk outside.

Seeing the anomaly in the distant sky, she moved her body and flew directly down the mountain.

Chrysanthemum Douluo Yue Guan and Ghost Douluo Gui Mei exchanged a look, not daring to delay, and immediately accelerated to follow closely behind.

On the plaza, Li Taibai stood on the formation platform, watching the spirit phantoms of Ling Feng and Ye Fan, then looked down at his own empty hands, anxious: "What is going on? Where is my spirit?"

"Why hasn't it awakened yet? Could it be that I don't even have the most ordinary of spirits?"

[Ding! Large amounts of energy detected, meeting the conditions for system activation. System starting...]

A cold, mechanical voice suddenly rang out in Li Taibai's mind.