Defective Product, Yao Lao, Old Tang

The sky over Aolai City was gray and overcast, much like Tang Wulin's mood at this very moment.

The gates of the Spirit Pagoda slowly closed behind him. Tang Wulin walked down the steps clutching the glass bottle, his footsteps feeling light and unsteady.

His father, Tang Ziran, followed behind him. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, he remained silent.

Just moments ago, the spirit master had announced Tang Wulin's random result with a tone of slight pity.

"This is a defective product!"

Tang Wulin had spent all thirty thousand federal credits he had saved from three years of blacksmithing. He had stood before the spirit soul extraction platform full of anticipation, only to draw a ten-centimeter-long, dark-gold little snake.

The spirit master said it was an experimental product created from non-spirit beast genes, ranking dead last among all spirit souls, lacking even a trace of spirit beast bloodline.

Three years of sweat, over a thousand days and nights swinging a hammer at the forge, his palms worn raw time and time again—every cent he had saved was soaked in his sweat and blood. In the end, all he got in return was the spirit master's sighing dismissal: "a defective product."

For any child of Tang Wulin's age, this would be unbearable.

Back home.

"Son, don't be sad." Tang Ziran's voice was hoarse, his rough hand resting gently on Tang Wulin's shoulder. "Dad will find a way to earn money. Don't worry, I will definitely buy you a suitable spirit soul in a short time."

Tang Wulin said nothing and walked straight into his room.

Na'er, standing to the side, had seen everything and followed him inside.

Back in his room, Tang Wulin finally couldn't hold back his tears and began to sob.

Na'er sat down beside Tang Wulin and gently hugged him, her own voice becoming choked with emotion.

"Brother, don't cry."

After a long while, Tang Wulin's sobbing slowly ceased. He sat up from Na'er's embrace and said softly, "Na'er, go out for a moment. I need to fuse with the spirit soul."

Na'er looked at Tang Wulin earnestly and asked, "But isn't this spirit soul bad?"

"Mom and Dad work so hard; I can't let Dad go out and scrape together that much money to buy another one. Even if it's weak, it's still a spirit soul. As long as I fuse with it, I can become a spirit master. We can worry about the future later," Tang Wulin said with a smile.

Na'er didn't say anything more, slowly walked out of the room, and gently closed the door.

Tang Wulin released his martial soul, Blue Silver Grass, and slowly brought it toward the little grass snake.

"A trash martial soul paired with a defective spirit soul—it seems quite fitting," Tang Wulin chuckled to himself, his voice filled with self-deprecation.

The process was smooth so far; such defective spirit souls almost never showed a shred of resistance.

But just as his Blue Silver Grass was about to touch the little snake, a blinding dark-red light erupted without warning from the desk drawer nearby. Immediately following, a strange, ghostly white flame surged from the light, rapidly coalescing into a phantom human figure within the cramped room!

"Stop!"

An aged voice rang out, interrupting Tang Wulin's movements.

It was the form of an old man, his figure translucent as if viewed through a layer of mist. With white hair and beard and clad in a simple, archaic white robe, he looked at Tang Wulin with a strange smile.

"If you truly fuse with this spirit soul, your future achievements will be greatly diminished." The old man glanced at the little snake in the glass bottle, his tone tinged with surprise. "I never imagined this world could actually create such a life form out of thin air."

Tang Wulin opened his mouth, taking a long time to find his voice. "Who... who are you?"

"Hmm, you can just call me Yao Lao." The old man stood with his hands behind his back, looking out the window. "Douluo Continent, Aolai City, spirit masters, spirit beasts—it's an interesting place, though it's a pity there is no Dou Qi here."

"Are you a spirit master as well?" Tang Wulin asked.

Yao Lao stroked his white beard and laughed. "I am no spirit master, nor do I belong to this world."

Tang Wulin was startled. "You don't belong to this world? Then where are you from?"

Yao Lao's eyes grew deep, as if recalling something. "My world is called the Dou Qi Continent; it's somewhat similar to the name of your Douluo Continent. As for how I came here, I'm not entirely sure, but it seems quite difficult to return now."

"If you want to go home, you could look for the Titled Douluo of our world. I've heard they can ascend to the heavens and descend into the earth—they are capable of anything," Tang Wulin suggested.

Yao Lao laughed heartily. "Although I haven't stepped out of your house in the few years I've been in this world, I have sensed a few powerhouses passing by nearby. I suppose those are the Titled Douluo you speak of. However, they cannot help me return home. Perhaps the gods of your world could do it."

"Then do you know of the Tang Sect ancestor, Tang San? I heard from my father that he became a god tens of thousands of years ago, and I heard his martial soul was the same as mine—Blue Silver Grass," Tang Wulin asked again.

Yao Lao shook his head and looked at Tang Wulin. "I don't know him. But speaking of gods, isn't that old fellow hiding inside this child's body going to come out yet?"

"Yao Lao, what are you talking about?" Tang Wulin was confused.

But just then, a warm sensation spread from Tang Wulin's chest without warning.

Immediately after, a golden silhouette slowly emerged from within his body.

The light was not blinding, yet it carried an indescribable majesty. The silhouette gradually condensed into a slender human form with long blue hair draped over its shoulders and a luxurious golden robe. The facial features were blurred and indistinct, but those deep blue eyes were watching Yao Lao calmly.

Tang Wulin's body stiffened. How could there be another person inside him!

"Who are you?" Tang Wulin asked foolishly.

The golden figure pondered for a moment and said in a gentle voice, "You can call me Old Tang. The person who left me in your body hoped that I could look after you for a while."

"Who left you in my body?" Tang Wulin asked again.

Old Tang shook his head. "I don't know. I am merely a wisp of divine consciousness."

At this, Yao Lao looked at Old Tang and said, "I can feel that the person who left this wisp of consciousness is no simple character. If I am not mistaken, the one who left you behind is a god of this world, is he not? Yet, I do not sense the existence of a God Realm in this world."

Old Tang did not answer Yao Lao's question. "You are not from this world!"

Yao Lao nodded. "Knowing it is enough, why keep harping on about it? I am no better off than you; I am merely a soul. If not for absorbing some of Little Wulin's life force over these years, I might not even be able to manifest like this now."

"You have crossed the line. You cannot continue to absorb his life force!" Old Tang said sternly.

"Rest assured. Can you not see that his life force is outrageously strong? It is as if he is favored by the entire plane."

Old Tang's blurred eyes stared fixedly at Yao Lao, remaining silent.

"Alright, alright, don't worry. I won't absorb any more. It would be useless anyway; what I lack now is no longer life force." Yao Lao looked at Old Tang and said.

Only then did Old Tang shift his gaze toward Tang Wulin. "Since I have already appeared, I will tell you now!"

"The reason I exist within your body is because you have the essence of the Golden Dragon King sealed inside you. Those eighteen seals will gradually break over time, so you must absorb the Golden Dragon King's power within that seal before that moment arrives, or you will die! And the first seal will break before you turn ten."

"Die!"

This word was originally too distant for the nine-year-old Tang Wulin, but Old Tang's words seemed to pull that distance infinitely closer, as if he only had half a year left.