Purple Imperial Heaven-Extinguishing Dragon, Shadow Monarch!

Six thousand years ago, the Douluo Continent, having lost the protection of the God Realm, suffered an unprecedented catastrophe: the invasion of the formidable Abyss Plane.

Abyssal creatures are the species native to the Abyss Plane. Ordinary abyssal creatures possess neither consciousness nor intelligence; they fear neither life nor death, driven by a single intent: to devour every shred of vitality they see and carry it back to the Abyss Plane to nourish it.

Back then, through the suppression of the Douluo Plane's will and the desperate, self-sacrificial struggle of several major powers, the abyssal species were driven back into the Abyssal Passage and sealed away with countless barriers.

As time passed, the Douluo Continent and the Abyss Plane remained in conflict for over six thousand years. This long history was a tapestry of blood and tears, with countless soldiers filling the gaps with their own lives.

The sudden appearance of an Abyssal Tide now caused a flicker of unease in Dong Zi'an's powerful heart. He knew all too well what this represented.

A new struggle was likely about to begin.

"Commander, fortunately, the abyssal creatures in this tide belonged to the Ant Emperor Clan, ranked seventy-sixth. Coupled with our timely rescue, we prevented them from spreading further."

Li Jie looked at the rescue information transmitted to the soul device in his hand, a flash of relief in his eyes as he reported solemnly.

The Abyss Plane consists of one hundred and eight layers; the higher the rank of the race, the greater their strength. The Ant Emperor Clan possessed above-average strength, balanced in both offense and defense.

Their Western Legion was stationed in the western frontier and served as the most steadfast pillar of the Blood God Legion. Snow City happened to fall within their rescue jurisdiction, so when the Abyssal Tide struck, they had mobilized immediately, arriving in time to encircle and suppress the creatures.

"But so many Federation citizens in Snow City have already died. It is all too late."

Dong Zi'an sighed with regret, his expression then turning fierce as he spoke ruthlessly.

"Those sons-of-bitches! When my time comes, I will enter the Abyssal Passage myself and slaughter them to my heart's content!"

He had been present during the encirclement. To a Limit Douluo like him, a mere Ant Emperor clan member was no match.

However, these abyssal creatures did not dissipate upon death. Instead, they would carry the stolen vitality with them and return to the Abyss Plane in a unique way to be recycled. This was the fundamental reason the Abyss Plane could launch endless attacks against the Douluo Continent.

He had previously followed the dying creatures to see where they returned to the Abyss Plane, hoping to investigate if a new passage had opened.

Regrettably, he had returned empty-handed. After drifting through the air for a distance, the dead creatures simply vanished into thin air, escaping even his tracking as a Limit Douluo.

"Commander..."

Li Jie started to speak, but Dong Zi'an waved him off.

"After I left, did you find any new clues or anything peculiar?"

Dong Zi'an asked with deep meaning. He believed that if an Abyssal Tide appeared over Snow City, there had to be a unique reason for it.

"Not that I'm aware of..."

Li Jie shook his head in thought, but as if remembering something, he quickly scrolled through the communication soul device in his hand. The moment his finger stopped, he blurted out.

"Today is the day Snow City holds the unified martial soul awakening for six-year-olds!"

"Martial soul awakening?"

Hearing this, a sharp glint flashed in Dong Zi'an's eyes. He looked at the orderly scene within Snow City, pondered for a moment, and gave an order.

"Take me to see the surviving children."

"Understood! However, Commander, because today was the day of the awakening, the number of casualties among the children is high... and many are still unconscious."

Li Jie hesitated before reporting.

Now that the Federation was unified, every city had established free institutions to awaken the martial souls of children.

On this day of awakening, faced with the sudden Abyssal Tide, even though Snow City had activated its defensive soul devices and deployed the garrison, the casualties remained heavy.

Abyssal creatures did not fear death, but soul masters did, for they were independent individuals with their own thoughts and emotions.

"Go see the ones who have woken up first."

Dong Zi'an closed his eyes, his heart heavy with pain. Today was supposed to be the day those children were reborn into the world of soul masters, yet they had instead walked toward death.

"You aren't injured, but little brother, you still need to rest more. Don't run around for now. If you need anything, just call for your sister."

At the Soul Guidance Emergency Center, the healing-type soul master finished checking on Jiang Xiu and gave him a gentle reminder.

"Mm, thank you, sister."

Jiang Xiu lay on the bed and thanked her. He knew she meant well, but what he wanted most right now was to awaken his martial soul.

Having faced death, he craved power more than ever!

Tap, tap, tap!

Steady footsteps echoed, followed by the opening of the soul guidance center's doors. Jiang Xiu's gaze shifted. In his line of sight, two soldiers in military uniform walked in, and judging by the insignia on their shoulders, their ranks were not low.

Are these military personnel here for post-battle condolences? Forget it, I'm just a child; they probably won't be visiting me.

Jiang Xiu didn't think much of it. He clearly couldn't leave right now, so he might as well take a nap, and he turned over.

But the next moment, two shadows appeared before Jiang Xiu, their tall figures blocking the light.

As soon as Jiang Xiu opened his eyes, he saw two large faces.

"Little one, don't be nervous. We are from the military, we're the good guys. We just want to ask, did anything unusual happen when you were awakening your martial soul?"

Li Jie asked Jiang Xiu with patience. He had already asked several children, but had come up empty-handed. After all, what could a child understand? They were just trying their luck while offering condolences.

Behind Li Jie, Dong Zi'an narrowed his eyes slightly upon seeing Jiang Xiu's strange purple pupils. When he saw the area beside Jiang Xiu under the light, his thick eyebrows twitched violently, but he said nothing, merely circulating his soul power throughout his body.

"No, I hadn't even awakened my martial soul yet when I passed out."

Jiang Xiu shook his head slightly and answered truthfully. Due to certain reasons, he had a fair understanding of the Federation's military; lying to them would yield him no benefits.

Besides, he had indeed blacked out and fallen asleep at that time.

"Not yet awakened your martial soul? Very well, thank you, little one."

After sensing through his spiritual power that Jiang Xiu was not lying, Li Jie offered a word of thanks and turned to leave. As a Lieutenant General and the third-in-command of the Western Legion, he possessed the cultivation of a Super Douluo; discerning the truth from falsehood was second nature to him.

"Wait. Since the little one hasn't awakened his martial soul yet, Li Jie, why don't you help him awaken it now?"

Dong Zi'an reached out to stop Li Jie and gave his instructions, then turned to smile slightly at Jiang Xiu. However, that smile, paired with Dong Zi'an's fierce-looking face, clearly looked worse than crying.

"Help me awaken my martial soul?"

Jiang Xiu's heart stirred, and he felt a faint sense of anticipation. In this life, both his parents were soul masters—and not weak ones at that—both serving in the Blood God Legion.

But four years ago, after they left for the last time, all that returned were two small medals...

From then on, he had been taken to the residence arranged by the Snow City Federal Branch.

That was why he was so desperate for his own martial soul awakening. Born into a chaotic era, only by gaining strength himself could he avoid being slaughtered by others!

Furthermore, if he possessed sufficient ability, he wanted to try and avenge the parents of this life.

"Little one, do you want your uncle to help you..."

"I do!"

Before Li Jie could finish, Jiang Xiu nodded. After all, even if he left this place, he would still have to seek the Federation's help to awaken his martial soul outside. Since the convenience was right here, it was better to awaken it now.

"Good, then let's begin."

Seeing this, Li Jie didn't dally. Six awakening stones flew from his hand, landing on the ground in a strange formation.

"Hum!"

With a soft sound, Li Jie's eyes suddenly transformed into yellowish-brown dragon pupils; his martial soul was clearly a formidable dragon-type. Immediately following, a surge of soul power was injected into the awakening stones, and a hexagram array appeared, signaling the start of the awakening ceremony.

"Don't be nervous. Even if your martial soul is Blue Silver Grass, you will still have a path forward in the future."

Watching Jiang Xiu step into the circle, Dong Zi'an offered a rare, soft word of encouragement. It only made Jiang Xiu's footsteps falter and his mouth twitch; this man truly didn't know how to speak.

As Jiang Xiu stepped inside, countless golden rays appeared within the hexagram array, surging frantically into his body as if they had found their home.

At that moment, Jiang Xiu felt as though he were wrapped in warm sunlight, his entire body glowing with warmth. The next moment, a booming sound erupted from within him, as if something had shattered under the guidance of the golden light.

"Roar!"

A loud, resonant dragon roar rang out. Suddenly, a giant dragon phantom, its body covered in dark purple scales and burning with raging purple flames, flashed behind Jiang Xiu. Its dragon eyes were a crimson gold, like burning fire, revealing endless majesty and brutality. Every single scale radiated a terrifying aura of destruction.

The next moment, illusory dark purple scales faintly appeared on Jiang Xiu's body, and his pair of purple eyes suddenly transformed into dragon pupils, glowing with a crimson-gold hue. Two surging flames of destruction rose up on either side of Jiang Xiu's shoulders.

"This... what is this?"

Li Jie's pupils shook, and he said in disbelief. He could actually feel a sense of suppression coming from Jiang Xiu—a suppression that had nothing to do with cultivation, but rather a suppression of martial soul bloodline!

One had to know, his own martial soul was of the True Dragon rank!

"It is the Purple Imperial Heaven-Extinguishing Dragon! The Purple Imperial Heaven-Extinguishing Dragon with the ultimate attribute of destruction."

Feeling that aura of ultimate destruction, Dong Zi'an narrowed his eyes slightly and spoke word by word in a deep voice.

"The Purple Imperial Heaven-Extinguishing Dragon... didn't that disappear during the change of the Sun-Moon Imperial Family dynasty ten thousand years ago..."

Hearing this, Li Jie's pupils dilated as he immediately recalled the history, but he stopped himself mid-sentence.

"Enough, Li Jie, you go out first."

Dong Zi'an waved his hand to interrupt Li Jie, his deep gaze signaling him to leave. Li Jie nodded heavily, walked out of the Soul Guidance Emergency Center, and stood guard outside.

At this moment, Jiang Xiu suppressed the surging excitement in his heart. While feeling the powerful, destructive attribute of the Purple Imperial Heaven-Extinguishing Dragon, he clenched his left hand tightly, and a trace of ultimate darkness flickered quietly.

"Little one, don't be so nervous. You should have another martial soul, shouldn't you?"

Dong Zi'an once again revealed that smile, which looked even worse than crying, and coaxed him gently.

"!"