Douluo Federation, Aolai City.
The sea breeze carried a faint salty tang. Today, Red Mountain Academy was unusually lively, with adults and children packed inside and outside the school.
It was Martial Soul Awakening Day for the children. On the Douluo Continent, whether someone awakened a good Martial Soul and possessed Soul Power could have an immeasurable impact on their life.
Even though technology in the Douluo Federation was now advancing by leaps and bounds, and ordinary people could achieve a measure of success through their own efforts,
many opportunities could still only be grasped by powerful Soul Masters.
"Don't be afraid, little ones. My name is Su Haitao, my Martial Soul is Lone Wolf, and I'm in charge of your Martial Soul Awakening." A tall man stood before a group of little children, speaking in such a gentle voice that he seemed quite out of place.
"Who wants to go first?"
"I'll go first."
Tang Heng raised his little hand and stepped out of the crowd. Beside him was a delicate-looking little boy, half a head shorter than him.
The boy's name was Tang Wulin, his younger brother in this life, although he wasn't his father's biological son.
"Big brother... good luck! ヾ(◍°∇°◍)ﾉﾞ"
Tang Wulin tugged on Tang Heng's sleeve, trying to cheer him on.
"Don't worry. Your big brother will definitely awaken an awesome Martial Soul and protect you in the future!"
Although he said that, Tang Heng wasn't so sure deep down.
His father was Tang Ziran, not the God King Tang San. Whether he'd turn out to be a dragon or a maggot depended on what kind of people his ancestors had been.
Su Haitao nodded slightly and guided Tang Heng to the hexagram formation on the floor.
Tang Heng took a deep breath and stepped firmly into the formation.
As Soul Power flowed into it, the formation blazed with a dazzling blue light.
But only a few breaths later, gold and silver light completely filled the room. Su Haitao felt as though his Martial Soul had slipped out of his control, while fear and submission rapidly spread through the depths of his heart.
A resounding dragon's roar rang out, and the radiance faded away.
Tang Heng stood there, utterly bewildered. His neat black hair had turned dazzling gold, his left hand had become a powerful dragon claw covered in thick golden scales, and even his eyes had changed into red, slit-pupiled ones.
"C-could this be the legendary Golden Dragon Martial Soul?"
What kind of Golden Dragon was this? It was clearly the Gold Dragon King!
As Tang Heng grumbled inwardly, he didn't forget to glance at his right hand. The streak of silver on it had quietly disappeared.
Wait a minute. At this point in time, the Gold Dragon King's divine essence was still sealed inside Tang Wulin, and the Silver Dragon King hadn't yet used her world-shocking wisdom to lose her memory and get lost.
Before Tang Heng could make sense of the situation, a square object suddenly appeared deep in his mind, like a third Martial Soul.
Its upper half was covered in lush green grass, while its lower half was all dirt. Tang Heng knew this icon all too well.
Th-this is Minecraft, isn't it?
He could never forget this game. Aside from the ten years he'd spent playing it, the reason Tang Heng had transmigrated in the first place was that he'd been playing the Soul Continent mod. While trying to reroll his starting Martial Soul, he'd accidentally died of sudden cardiac arrest.
Just as Tang Heng wondered what other uses this sudden Grass Block might have, Su Haitao, who had been trembling moments earlier, had already taken out a crystal ball and held it out to him.
"Little guy, let's test your Soul Power! Your Martial Soul is very rare, so your Innate Soul Power might be quite high."
"Okay, sir."
Tang Heng placed his hand on the crystal ball. As expected, dazzling light burst forth, proving that his Innate Soul Power was as high as level ten.
"As expected, Innate Full Soul Power! Hahaha, our Red Mountain Academy can finally produce a genius student!"
Su Haitao was so excited that his heart pounded. Back in the day, an ancestor of his had awakened a Soul Master with a Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul and full Soul Power: the Sea God Tang San.
His colleagues all said he was making it up and that there was no way to believe him.
Today, he had helped a child awaken a Golden Dragon Martial Soul with full Soul Power. That was a fact, beyond dispute.
"Wow! Big brother, you're amazing! ୧(๑•̀◡•́๑)૭" Tang Wulin clapped his little hands, looking even happier than Tang Heng himself. "I want to awaken the same Martial Soul as you, big brother."
"Mm, Wulin can do it too."
Tang Heng ruffled Tang Wulin's hair. Perhaps because he had awakened the Gold Dragon King Martial Soul, he felt a strange closeness to his little brother, as though he were looking at his own son.
The feeling was so bizarre that he wondered if his Dragon King Martial Soul was purer than the other one's.
After all, the other one wasn't the first generation, and he even had the God King's bloodline. Tang Heng had awakened the original version, so it made sense that his was a little purer.
Well, whatever.
He was Tang Wulin's big brother, after all. It was only natural for an older brother to be like a father.
Tang Wulin enjoyed having his head ruffled for a while. When his name was called, he happily ran off to awaken his Martial Soul.
Half a minute later.
Tang Wulin stared blankly at the Blue Silver Grass in his right palm and the faint speck of level-three Soul Power inside the crystal. It was as if the world had turned gray.
"Um, little one, please step aside. There's another child waiting to awaken their Martial Soul."
Su Haitao wore an awkward smile. He hadn't expected one brother to be a dragon and the other a maggot. He shot a strange look at the top of Tang Ziran's head.
With level-three Innate Soul Power and the universally recognized Trash Martial Soul, Blue Silver Grass, he naturally wasn't nearly as warm and eager as before.
Tang Heng, who had watched the whole thing from the side, could only sigh helplessly. Was poor eyesight something that got passed down through generations of Lone Wolf Martial Soul Soul Masters?
Of course, that was just a joke. His little brother hadn't awakened the Golden Dragon King Bloodline yet, and Blue Silver Grass really was just an ordinary weed found by the roadside. Add in that pitiful level-three Innate Soul Power, and unless someone else had transmigrated too, who would ever think this poor little guy had any hope?
On the way home, Tang Wulin trudged along behind the other two, looking completely dejected.
"Dad, am I really not your biological son? Why did big brother get an awesome Golden Dragon, while I got the Trash Martial Soul, Blue Silver Grass...?"
Tang Heng, who was drinking water, nearly spat it out.
Little brother, you've got every part of the process wrong, but the answer's right.
Seeing his son like this, Tang Ziran felt awful too, so he began to comfort him.
"Wulin, the Martial Souls people awaken are closely related to their parents, but maybe Heng'er inherited the bloodline of one of our ancestors? Don't be too upset. What's wrong with Blue Silver Grass? Wasn't the Sea God, who dominated the world tens of thousands of years ago, a Blue Silver Grass?"
"But he was the Blue Silver Emperor."
Tang Ziran smiled awkwardly and patted Wulin on the shoulder. "Then you should train hard with your big brother and prove that Blue Silver Grass isn't a Trash Martial Soul."
Heh. My adorable little brother will spend his whole life proving that Blue Silver Grass really is a Trash Martial Soul, Tang Heng thought as he walked beside them.
The three of them soon got home. Their mother, Lang Yue, had already prepared the meal: three dishes and a soup, with both meat and vegetables. It wasn't particularly lavish, but nothing beat the taste of a home-cooked meal.
"You're all back. Hungry? Mommy made lots of delicious food. Come and try some." Lang Yue wasn't especially beautiful, but she had an alluring charm. She crouched down and smiled as she hugged Wulin and Tang Heng.
"Mom, I'm a little sleepy. I'm not hungry right now."
"Me too. Maybe it's because of the Martial Soul Awakening. I want to get some rest too."
Tang Heng just wanted to see what that Minecraft icon was for. As for Tang Wulin feeling sleepy, it was probably because the Gold Dragon King Bloodline hidden within him was beginning to awaken.
The brothers went back to their bedroom together. Lang Yue hurriedly pulled Tang Ziran aside to ask about the day's Martial Soul Awakening.
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