Martial Soul Awakening, a Cuckoo in the Nest

The day the people from Spirit Hall entered the village, Tang San's left hand hurt all night.

Ji Yuan hid in the grass on the back hill. His roots had grown several times thicker, and the ring of dark red veins along his leaves lay hidden beneath their green. Nothing about him looked unusual.

But he could hear Tang San breathing.

He could feel the power deep in that left hand beginning to wake.

Old Jack, the village chief, went from house to house with his cane, hurrying the children along.

"Xiao San, hurry. Lord Su Yuntao is here. You can't be late for the Martial Soul Awakening."

Tang San came out of the smithy, a shade paler than usual, but his clothes were still neatly arranged.

"Grandpa Jack, I'm coming."

Old Jack looked at him and sighed. "Where's your dad?"

Tang Hao's impatient voice came from inside.

"What's there to watch? He'll just awaken a Trash Martial Soul."

Old Jack's face darkened. He struck the ground with his cane.

"Tang Hao, you can be a bastard all you like, but you can't ruin the boy's whole life!"

Tang San said quietly, "Grandpa Jack, let's go."

Ji Yuan sensed it all through his spores. He felt not a scrap of sympathy.

The more pitiful you act, the more you'll get later.

Tang San, you already had a good enough start in life.

Now it's time to give me a share.

The awakening room was packed with children. Su Yuntao stood in the center, his fitted white uniform crisp and clean. The badge at his waist made the villagers afraid to breathe too loudly.

He swept his gaze around the room, his voice carrying its usual impatience.

"One at a time. Stand in the array and don't move."

The first child stepped in. A hoe appeared in his hand, but he had no Soul Power.

The second child ran out crying. His Martial Soul was a wooden spoon, and he had no Soul Power either.

The hope in the room crumbled bit by bit.

Old Jack gripped his cane and muttered under his breath.

"Holy Soul Village has to produce another Soul Master someday. It has to."

Tang San was last in line. He hid his left hand inside his sleeve, the pain in his palm deepening wave after wave.

Ji Yuan's spores clung to the outside of that dormant power and waited patiently.

He was in no hurry.

The best prey was caught when the door opened by itself.

Su Yuntao looked at Tang San and waved him forward. "Next."

Tang San stepped into the six-pointed star array. Golden motes rose from the stones and settled on him.

Ji Yuan felt an alien set of rules sweep through Tang San's meridians. His right hand warmed first, and a slender strand of Blue Silver Grass sprouted from his palm.

Someone in the room murmured.

"Blue Silver Grass?"

"Isn't that just grass from the roadside?"

Old Jack's face fell.

Su Yuntao lost interest too. He shook his head. "A Trash Martial Soul. Blue Silver Grass again, of course."

Tang San looked at the Blue Silver Grass in his hand. He did not seem especially disappointed. His left hand concerned him more.

The dormant power inside it had reached its limit.

Ji Yuan had been waiting for this moment too.

Su Yuntao took out a crystal ball and said casually, "Come on. Let's test your Soul Power."

Tang San placed his right hand on it.

The crystal ball lit up, its radiance making everyone in the room squeeze their eyes shut for a moment.

Su Yuntao's expression changed. He seized Tang San's wrist.

"Innate Full Soul Power?"

Old Jack blurted, "My lord, what did you say?"

Su Yuntao stared at Tang San. For the first time, eagerness entered his voice.

"Innate Full Soul Power. It really is Innate Full Soul Power! What a shame. Why did it have to be Blue Silver Grass?"

Tang San looked at the crystal ball, holding down his delight.

But Ji Yuan was not looking at the ball.

He focused his entire consciousness on Tang San's left hand.

There, the shadow of a tiny black hammer was taking shape.

The door's open.

The spores pierced the base of the hammer's shadow and forced their way into the newborn Martial Soul Origin.

Tang San's face went pale. He clenched the left hand hidden in his sleeve, his knuckles giving a faint crack.

Su Yuntao noticed something was wrong. "What's the matter?"

Tang San lowered his head. "My lord, I'm a little tired."

Su Yuntao glanced at the Blue Silver Grass in Tang San's right hand, then at the crystal ball. "Innate Full Soul Power paired with Blue Silver Grass. What a waste. Still, it isn't entirely hopeless. Would you like to join Spirit Hall?"

Old Jack immediately grew tense.

"Xiao San, Spirit Hall is a big place."

Tang San did not agree at once.

He remembered what his father had said, and he remembered what was happening in his left hand.

"I'd like to go home and ask Dad first."

Su Yuntao frowned. "What would your dad know? Not every child gets a chance like this."

Tang San said quietly, "Dad is all I have."

Seeing that Tang San would not budge, Su Yuntao put away the crystal ball. His tone cooled.

"As you wish. You're the only one in Holy Soul Village with Soul Power this year. I'll write up your certificate."

Old Jack hurriedly said, "Thank you, my lord. Thank you."

Ji Yuan listened to them from inside Tang San, but all his attention was on swallowing the hammer's first mouthful of origin.

Its domineering power lashed back, nearly crushing the spores.

Ji Yuan did not retreat.

He poured in all the Mysterious Heaven Skill Inner Force he had absorbed over the past few months. Fine roots split from the spores and wound around the shadow of the hammer's handle.

Tang San's left hand hurt until it went numb. Sweat beaded on his brow.

He gritted his teeth and made no sound.

Ji Yuan sneered.

Keep enduring it.

The more you can endure, the less I have to worry.

The awakening ended, and the children dispersed. Old Jack led Tang San outside, still talking about the work-study place.

"Xiao San, you have Innate Full Soul Power. Even if your Martial Soul is Blue Silver Grass, you must go to Notting Academy. Our village's place is yours."

Tang San hesitated. "Grandpa Jack, I need to ask Dad."

Old Jack's beard trembled with anger.

"Ask him? What can he do besides drink and forge iron? Xiao San, you can't throw your whole life away in that smithy."

Tang San did not argue. He only hid his left hand more carefully.

Ji Yuan drew part of his consciousness back from the spores. On the back hill, his leaves bent though there was no wind.

He had succeeded.

The Martial Soul in Tang San's left hand no longer belonged entirely to Tang San.

The Clear Sky Hammer had gained a root.

A root Tang San could not see, and one Tang Hao might not notice right away either.

Ji Yuan was about to absorb more when another notification sounded deep in his consciousness.

[Successfully parasitized a newborn Martial Soul.]

[Short-duration Consciousness Deprivation unlocked.]

Ji Yuan buried the notifications deep in his consciousness, letting no disturbance reach Tang San's body.

He knew Tang Hao was nearby.

Sure enough, the moment Tang San returned to the smithy, Tang Hao raised his head. His bleary gaze fell on Tang San's left hand.

"Xiao San, what happened to your hand?"

Tang San's heart tightened. "It hurt a little during the awakening."

Tang Hao held out his hand. "Let me see."

After a moment's hesitation, Tang San held out his left hand.

Ji Yuan immediately drew in his spores and hid them in the deepest part of the Martial Soul Origin. He pressed every trace of the cold aura he had swallowed against the edge of the killing intent already inside Tang San.

Tang Hao gripped Tang San's wrist. His expression turned grave in an instant.

"What did you awaken?"

Tang San raised his right hand, and Blue Silver Grass emerged from his palm.

Tang Hao stared at the grass for a long time, complex emotions held deep in his eyes.

At the door, Old Jack said anxiously, "Tang Hao, Xiao San has Innate Full Soul Power. I've given him the village's work-study place. You mustn't stop him."

Tang Hao ignored Old Jack and looked only at Tang San.

"What else?"

Tang San's heart lurched.

Ji Yuan stopped moving too.

The room grew so quiet that only the forge fire could be heard.

Tang San slowly raised his left hand. A small black hammer appeared in his palm.

Old Jack did not see it clearly. He only sensed that something was wrong. He was about to speak when a glance from Tang Hao forced his mouth shut.

Tang Hao stared at the hammer, his hand tightening against the edge of the table.

"Put it away."

Tang San immediately withdrew his Martial Soul.

Tang Hao closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them, only weariness remained on his face.

"Remember, don't let anyone else see it."

Tang San asked, "Dad, what is this?"

Tang Hao said coldly, "You don't need to know yet."

Unwilling to let it go, Tang San asked, "Then can I go to Notting Academy?"

Tang Hao was silent for a long time. He picked up his wine jug and took a swig.

"Go."

Old Jack let out a breath of relief. "That's more like it. Xiao San, I'll take you to handle the paperwork tomorrow."

Tang San nodded. "Thank you, Grandpa Jack."

Ji Yuan, however, felt no relief.

Tang San was leaving.

Notting Academy was too far from Holy Soul Village. If his main body stayed on the back hill, the parasitic connection would eventually fail.

He had to follow.

But he was a blade of grass.

He had no legs, no Soul Ring, and no ability to take human form.

That evening, Tang San sat outside packing a few pieces of clothing, a pair of old shoes, and the reminders Tang Hao had given him.

Tang Hao leaned against the doorframe and said hoarsely, "When you get to the academy, don't cause trouble. Don't reveal the hammer in your left hand."

Tang San answered earnestly, "Dad, I'll remember."

Tang Hao added, "Blue Silver Grass can be cultivated too. Don't look down on it because it's weak."

Tang San nodded. "I won't."

Hearing this, Ji Yuan's leaves brushed lightly against the ground on the back hill.

Blue Silver Grass is weak?

No. You just know how to treat it like trash.

Night fell, and Holy Soul Village grew quiet.

Ji Yuan drove all the energy he had stored over the past few months into his roots, forcibly snapping the deepest ones.

Pain tore through his consciousness. He nearly blacked out on the spot.

But he did not stop.

Fine roots pulled free of the soil one by one. The entire plant curled into a clump, dark red veins flowing through its leaves.

He could not wait until Tang San had gone too far.

He was going to follow his blood bag to the academy.

After Tang San fell asleep, the window remained slightly open, and his bundle lay beside the bed.

A faint glimmer slipped across the floor and into the room. It skirted the wine jug Tang Hao had left by the door, then silently burrowed into a fold of the bundle.

Tang Hao opened his eyes in the darkness and looked toward the window.

Ji Yuan instantly stilled every trace of activity and disguised himself as a piece of dry grass.

Tang Hao watched for a while, then slowly closed his eyes again.

"Was it my imagination?"

Inside the bundle, Ji Yuan's leaves curled inward, his roots gripping the coarse fabric as his awareness pressed close to the spore inside Tang San.

He heard Tang San murmur in his sleep.

"Notting Academy..."

Ji Yuan smiled silently.

"Let's go."

Your road, from this moment on, is mine too.