Witness

"Dazhuang's wife, are you ready? I'm taking Xiao San to gather first!"

Outside the courtyard, Village Chief Jack's familiar yet urgent voice suddenly rang out. Like a stone thrown into a tranquil lake, it instantly shattered Ning Chuan's shock and wild thoughts over the strange notification in his mind.

"Hey! We're coming, we're coming! Village Chief, you go on ahead. We'll be there shortly!" Ning Dazhuang hurriedly called back toward the courtyard, his voice carrying a farmer's characteristic honesty and a trace of respect for the village chief.

Turning back to Ning Chuan, who was still staring blankly, and Ning Xiaohe, who was blinking her big eyes, he spoke even more urgently. "Eat, eat! What are you dawdling for? A respected Lord Soul Master is personally awakening your martial souls. This is a huge matter! How can you make the Lord Soul Master wait by arriving late?"

Ning Chuan abruptly came to his senses, realizing that this was not the time to investigate the strange voice in his head.

The urgent matter was the martial soul awakening! It concerned his future in this world!

Ning Chuan immediately lowered his head and stuffed the remaining half of his coarse-grain bun into his mouth in a few quick bites. Then he picked up the warm tea beside him and gulped down several mouthfuls before barely managing to swallow the dry bun.

Seeing her brother do this, Ning Xiaohe copied him. She held her bowl in her little hands, her small face flushed red as she tried hard to drink water, with a few bun crumbs still clinging to the corners of her mouth.

"Alright, alright, let's go!" Liu Lan quickly cleared away the bowls and chopsticks and urged them on.

The family of four hurried out the door and rushed toward the wooden house in the center of the village, which was normally used for meetings and occasionally held events.

Ning Dazhuang had long strides and walked at the front. Liu Lan held Ning Xiaohe's hand, while Ning Chuan followed closely behind.

After hurrying all the way there, they arrived at the wooden house in the village center just in time to see a young man in fitted white clothes, his expression slightly aloof, leading several other six-year-old village children inside.

The young man wore a badge engraved with a longsword on his chest, with three longswords crossed upon it.

This was the mark of personnel directly under Spirit Hall. Three longswords signified that he was a battle-type Soul Grandmaster.

Ning Chuan's gaze quickly swept over the children before settling on a silent black-haired boy in patched clothing at the very end of the line.

Tang San!

Though still young and childish in appearance, his calm eyes and temperament, which differed somewhat from the other children around him, let Ning Chuan recognize him at once.

This was the original Chosen One of this world, a being destined to become a god in the future.

"Quick, get over there!" Ning Dazhuang urged in a low voice, afraid of disturbing the Lord Soul Master.

Without waiting for further instructions from his parents, Ning Chuan took a deep breath, grabbed his sister Ning Xiaohe's hand, and jogged forward to quietly take his place in the line behind Tang San.

Tang San seemed to sense someone behind him and glanced back slightly. Seeing that it was the Ning siblings, he merely nodded lightly before turning back, his focused gaze returning to the Soul Master standing at the front.

Ning Chuan withdrew his gaze, his feelings extremely complicated.

He knew what would happen next, yet he had no power to change it or take part in it.

He could only be an observer, an ordinary villager who would soon be judged as having "martial soul, no Soul Power."

"Children, this is Master Su Yuntao, a battle soul master from Spirit Hall in Nuoding City. He will lead you through your martial soul awakening ceremony! You must cooperate with him properly. Grandfather hopes that one of you can become a Soul Master!" Village Chief Jack said excitedly to the children from the doorway. Then he respectfully bowed to Su Yuntao. "Master, I'll have to trouble you."

Su Yuntao nodded indifferently. He seemed long accustomed to such awakening ceremonies in rural villages, even showing a faint trace of impatience. "I don't have much time. Let's begin now."

As he spoke, Su Yuntao took the lead in entering the wooden house.

At Su Yuntao's signal, the children filed in after him.

Ning Chuan held his sister's little hand and followed them inside.

The interior of the wooden house was somewhat dim. Stone slabs covered the ground, while an open space had been left in the center.

Su Yuntao walked to the middle of the open space. As he opened the bundle he carried and took out six pitch-black round stones and a shining blue crystal ball, he explained in a routine manner, "My name is Su Yuntao. I am a level twenty-six Soul Grandmaster and your guide. Now, I will awaken your martial souls one by one. Remember, no matter what happens, do not be afraid."

After speaking, he arranged the six black stones into a hexagonal awakening formation on the ground, then motioned for the first child in line to step inside.

"Lone Wolf, Martial Soul Possession!"

Following Su Yuntao's low shout, a powerful surge of Soul Power erupted. His body began to swell, fur sprouted across him, his eyes glowed green, and his hands transformed into sharp claws.

One white and one yellow Soul Ring rose beneath Su Yuntao's feet, circling his body as they floated up and down.

The sudden transformation frightened every child except Tang San into screaming and retreating. A few were even on the verge of tears.

Ning Xiaohe was also so frightened that she tightly hugged Ning Chuan's arm, her little face pale.

Though Ning Chuan had been mentally prepared, seeing the scene of a beast martial soul possession with his own eyes still made his heart race. Was this the power of a Soul Master?

Su Yuntao shouted, "Don't be afraid. This is my martial soul, Lone Wolf. If any of you become Soul Masters in the future, you will possess such abilities as well."

He motioned for the first child to stretch out his right hand.

Guided by Soul Power, the children awakened their martial souls one after another.

Sickle, hoe, sickle, Blue Silver Grass...

Without exception, they were all farm tools or useless martial souls.

Whenever a child awakened a martial soul, the initial light in their eyes swiftly dimmed, replaced by disappointment.

Su Yuntao's expression also became increasingly indifferent. Clearly, he had seen this situation far too often.

Finally, it was Tang San's turn.

Tang San calmly walked into the awakening formation and stood still.

Ning Chuan held his breath. He knew the main event had arrived.

Just as before, Su Yuntao guided Soul Power into him.

In an instant, intense golden light burst forth from the hexagon, far more dazzling than that of any previous child!

Ning Chuan could even sense the ambient energy of heaven and earth trembling faintly.

"This..." For the first time, astonishment appeared on Su Yuntao's indifferent face as he stared fixedly at Tang San in the center of the light.

The golden radiance gradually faded. In Tang San's right palm appeared a tiny, tender blue Blue Silver Grass, gently swaying with the fluctuations of Soul Power.

"Blue Silver Grass?" The surprise in Su Yuntao's eyes quickly faded, replaced by regret and confusion. "Such intense light, yet it's Blue Silver Grass? What a pity. A standard useless martial soul. It seems Blue Silver Grass is still Blue Silver Grass after all."

Shaking his head, Su Yuntao seemed to find that astonishing light a waste.

However, just as everyone believed it was over, Ning Chuan sharply noticed a flash of electricity within Tang San's lowered, clenched left hand.

Noticing the anomaly in himself, Tang San drew his left hand behind his back, a faint trace of surprise and hesitation flashing across his face.

Clear Sky Hammer! Tang San had awakened the Clear Sky Hammer as well! But he chose to hide it.

Ning Chuan understood. This was the secret of Twin Martial Souls.

"Alright, test your Soul Power." Though Su Yuntao had concluded that it was a useless martial soul, he still had to follow the procedure.

He held the blue crystal ball out before Tang San.

Tang San obediently placed his hand upon it. The next moment, an astonishing sight unfolded!

The blue crystal ball seemed to turn into a greedy black hole, madly devouring the Soul Power guided into it by Su Yuntao. Then it erupted with an incomparably brilliant blue glow, illuminating the entire dim wooden house!

That light was intense and pure, filled with the aura of life.

"Innate Full Soul Power?!" Su Yuntao cried out in shock, his eyes widening round as his face filled with disbelief!

He looked at the crystal ball, then at the tiny Blue Silver Grass in Tang San's right hand. His expression was full of contradiction and absurdity. "How is this possible?! Blue Silver Grass... how could it possess Innate Full Soul Power?!"

Su Yuntao could not make sense of it no matter how hard he tried. In the end, he could only attribute it to an inexplicable mutation.

With an extraordinarily complicated expression on his face—regret, shock, and a trace of unwillingness—he said to Tang San, "What a pity. Such a terrible pity. It had to be Blue Silver Grass. If it were any beast martial soul, or even a tool martial soul, your future would be limitless. But you had to have Blue Silver Grass... Sigh. Go stand to the side first."

Tang San silently nodded and walked to one side. With his head lowered, he looked at his hands, seemingly lost in thought.

Watching this scene, Ning Chuan was filled with emotion as well.

Having read the original story, he naturally knew this was not the end, but the beginning of a legend.

But where was his own beginning?