Heaven-Defying Comprehension

Wuhun City Orphanage

A long line stretched across the courtyard. The six-year-old children chirped and whispered among themselves, discussing the moment that was about to decide their fates.

Old Li, a low-ranking deacon of Spirit Hall, stood at the front. He idly toyed with a deep-blue crystal ball in his hand.

"Next, Su Chen!"

At the end of the line, a short-haired boy stepped forward. His hands were tucked into his pockets, his gait casual, and there was none of the unease or restraint common among children his age in his eyes. He had been transported to this world for exactly six years and had looked forward to this day every day. Since he was here, he had to make something of himself.

"Step into the hexagram formation, close your eyes, and use your heart to sense the energy between heaven and earth," Old Li instructed.

Su Chen did as he was told.

Old Li rapidly formed hand seals, sending several wisps of energy into the foundation stones of the formation. Pale golden light rose beneath Su Chen's feet and enveloped the short-haired boy.

Several chubby boys in the line huddled together and gossiped.

"What do you think Su Chen will awaken?"

"He's always so quiet and never fits in. I bet it'll just be a hoe or a sickle."

"If he awakens a fire poker, the orphanage kitchen can leave all the firewood to him. Then Auntie can stop complaining every day."

At the center of the formation, the golden light writhed continuously before gradually gathering in the young boy's right palm. A sword around two feet long materialized out of thin air.

The blade was covered in reddish-brown rust. Its edge was badly curled, and its surface was pitted and uneven.

"Oh dear, a trash martial soul." Old Li shook his head repeatedly, his face full of regret. "A rusty ordinary iron sword. It would be too dull even for chopping vegetables at home."

Su Chen lowered his head and examined the iron sword in his hand. It was dim and lusterless, without the slightest energy fluctuation. It was unquestionably the lowest-grade ordinary iron sword.

The line instantly erupted in laughter.

"It really is a piece of scrap iron!"

"A rusty iron sword? That's pathetic. It's not even as good as a fire poker!"

Old Li raised a hand and pressed it down, signaling everyone to quiet down.

"Whether a martial soul is trash or not depends on whether it has innate soul power as its foundation. Child, place your left hand on the testing crystal."

Su Chen extended his left hand and pressed his palm against the surface of the blue crystal ball.

There was no reaction inside the crystal ball.

One second.

Two seconds.

Not until the third second did a faint fluorescent glow, smaller than a soybean, barely light up in the deepest part of the crystal ball.

Seeing that tiny gleam, Old Li let out another long sigh.

"Innate soul power, half a rank."

Old Li's tone was full of pity. "With only half a rank of innate soul power, the best you can achieve in this life is the Rank Ten bottleneck. You won't even touch the threshold of Grand Soul Master."

The laughter around them became even more unrestrained.

"Half a rank? Isn't that just being a complete loser?"

"I at least tested at Rank Two soul power! What can half a rank do? Sweep the ground in front of Spirit Hall's gates?"

Faced with the reckless ridicule around him and the verdict the tester had already passed on him, Su Chen did not even furrow his brow.

So what if it was half a rank? As long as he had soul power and could cultivate, there would be a way to defy fate. Tang San could throw his weight around with that bit of Mysterious Heaven Technique from his previous life. A transmigrator could not possibly be stifled by mere half-rank soul power.

[ Ding! ]

A mechanical voice suddenly rang out deep within his mind.

[Heaven-Defying Comprehension has been activated!]

Su Chen narrowed his eyes slightly, a curve forming at the corner of his lips. The standard cheat for transmigrators had finally arrived.

"Kid, what are you standing around for? Go on, let the next one be tested." Old Li waved impatiently.

Su Chen did not move. His gaze was locked firmly onto the testing crystal ball on the table.

"What are you looking at? That crystal ball is expensive. You can't have it as a toy."

"Wait." Su Chen raised a hand, signaling Old Li to step back.

Inside the testing crystal, that faint gleam of soul power had not remained completely still. It was slowly moving along a particular trajectory.

Su Chen stared intently at the path of the circulating soul power, while his knowledge of traditional Chinese medicine meridian theory from his previous life surged wildly through his mind.

The Conception Vessel. The Governing Vessel. The Twelve Primary Meridians. The Eight Extraordinary Meridians.

The Conception and Governing Vessels governed the yin and yang of the human body. Opening the Twelve Primary Meridians could cleanse the meridians and refine the marrow. The route soul power took through the crystal was exactly the same as the way human meridians operated!

The cultivation methods of Douluo Continent's soul masters were far too crude. They only knew how to accumulate soul power through meditation, allowing energy to pile up haphazardly in their dantians and wasting the incredible treasure trove of their meridians.

If soul power were treated as low-grade spiritual energy, then guided through the meridian circulation methods of cultivation from his previous life, through a great heavenly cycle...

Wouldn't using cultivation against martial arts be a complete dimensionality-reduction strike?

His brain entered an overclocked state as countless complex meridian diagrams intertwined and reorganized across his vision.

[By observing the circulation of soul power within the testing crystal and combining it with meridian theory from your previous life, enlightenment successful!]

[You have created a foundational cultivation technique: Supreme Guidance Art!]

A vast amount of profound cultivation knowledge flooded into the depths of his memory. Every circulation route and every rhythm of breathing and energy absorption appeared clearly in Su Chen's mind.

Su Chen immediately crossed his legs and sat down directly in the center of the hexagram formation.

His hands formed a strange seal before his chest, and his eyes shut tightly.

The orphanage children looked at one another.

"Did Su Chen go crazy from the shock? Why is he sitting on the ground?"

"I think he couldn't accept having half-rank soul power and broke his brain."

Old Li frowned and stepped forward.

"Child, the awakening ceremony isn't over yet. There are still people waiting behind you. Don't throw a tantrum here."

Before his hand could touch Su Chen's shoulder, an inexplicable repulsive force suddenly burst from the boy's body and knocked his hand away.

The next moment, the air throughout the courtyard became thick and heavy.

The spiritual energy of heaven and earth was drawn in and began pouring toward him crazily!

Above the orphanage, visible currents of air spiraled toward the top of Su Chen's head.

"What's going on?" Old Li staggered back three steps, his eyes wide.

Spiritual energy entered his body and surged through the Twelve Primary Meridians along the route of the Supreme Guidance Art.

The weak soul power that had originally been only half a rank instantly erupted under the guidance of the cultivation technique!

Rank One!

Rank Two!

Rank Three!

The fluctuations of soul power within Su Chen's body rose steadily at a completely unreasonable speed.

His meridians were continuously widened and scoured by violent spiritual energy. Impurities accumulated in his body over the years seeped out through his pores, turning into wisps of black smoke that dissipated into the air.

The rusty ordinary iron sword martial soul floated uncontrollably before Su Chen.

Under the cleansing of heaven-and-earth spiritual energy, large patches of rust peeled off the sword, revealing the cold gleam of the blade beneath.

Rank Five!

Rank Seven!

Rank Nine!

Old Li's mouth fell open, his jaw nearly hitting the ground. Unable to withstand the leaking energy fluctuations, fine cracks appeared across the surface of the testing crystal ball on the table.

"Th-this... is this something that child with half-rank innate soul power could possibly cause?" Old Li trembled as he spoke.

The orphans in line all shut their mouths and backed away in fear, afraid of being swept up by that terrifying energy.

The spiritual energy vortex grew larger and larger. Even the vines on the orphanage's outer wall rapidly grew under its nourishment, climbing up the wall.

A dull rumble came from Su Chen's body.

The Rank Ten barrier shattered instantly!

A violent wave of air spread outward, overturning the foundation of the hexagram formation on the spot. The testing crystal ball rolled onto the grass.

Su Chen slowly opened his eyes. Deep within his pupils, a flash of azure sword light vanished in an instant.

Feeling the abundant power within him, the boy rose to his feet and reached out to grasp the iron sword floating in the air.

The blade trembled slightly.

There was no trace left of a trash martial soul.

Old Li swallowed, his legs going weak.

"Rank Ten... innate full soul power? No, that's not right. You clearly only had half a rank just now! What exactly did you do when you sat down cross-legged?"

Su Chen rotated his wrist and withdrew the iron sword back into his body.

"Whether it's half a rank or full soul power, Old Li, does it really matter?"

"Of course it matters! In Spirit Hall's hundred-year history, no one has ever gone directly from half a rank to Rank Ten during an awakening ceremony!" Old Li stamped his feet anxiously, his eyes shining as he stared fixedly at Su Chen.

The orphanage children were all dumbfounded. One moment ago, they had been mercilessly mocking a half-rank loser. The next, he had directly reached Rank Ten and would soon be able to hunt soul beasts for a soul ring.

"Su Chen, y-you didn't cheat, did you?" a chubby boy stammered.

Su Chen glanced at him.

"Read fewer unreliable novels. It was just a simple breathing technique."

"A breathing technique?" Old Li's eyes nearly popped out. "Even Spirit Hall's advanced meditation methods couldn't force half-rank soul power up to Rank Ten in just a few minutes, even if an elder cultivated them personally! And you call that a simple breathing technique?"

This was not a technique at all. It was a miracle!

Su Chen brushed the dust off his clothes and walked toward the dumbstruck Old Li.

"The awakening ceremony should be over. With my current soul power, there's no problem with staying in Spirit Hall, right?"

Old Li snapped out of his daze and seized Su Chen's arm, his grip astonishingly strong.

"No problem! Absolutely no problem! You're not allowed to go anywhere. Stay right here at the orphanage! I'll report this to the Cardinal at once! No, I'll go directly to Papal Hall and request an audience with His Holiness the Pope!"