A Man Must Strive for Self-Improvement!

Time passed quickly. Before they knew it, the village's annual awakening ceremony was to be held today.

At the village chief's home.

Early in the morning, before dawn had broken, Old Jack climbed out of bed. To encourage his grandson Yang Ming, he had specially stewed a bowl of chicken soup and prepared a whole table of dishes.

As he placed a chicken leg into Yang Ming's bowl, tension rarely appeared on Old Jack's usually stern face. Although Yang Ming was not his biological grandson and had been adopted, after all these years, Old Jack had long regarded him as his own. His voice carried uneasy concern as he said:

"Yang Ming, you had a conflict with Master Cao Mengyun from Spirit Hall some time ago. I'm worried that he'll make things difficult for you during the ceremony."

Yang Ming's heart tightened. Looking back on it now, he did feel a lingering fear.

But did he regret it?

Thinking of that pregnant woman, nine months along, smiling after surviving the disaster, and of the villagers' heartfelt affection, Yang Ming smiled freely.

"Grandpa, even if Cao Mengyun really uses such underhanded methods behind the scenes to stop me from awakening my Martial Soul, I still have ways to grow stronger—stronger than Cao Mengyun!"

With the system, Yang Ming naturally had such confidence!

Among the many fantasy novels, there were countless powerful cultivation methods.

For instance, the Chaos Divine Mill Visualization Method used by Zhou Yuan, the protagonist of Origin Venerable, to cultivate his divine soul.

When chaos first opened, a divine mill had been born alongside it. Every rotation of the mill was accompanied by the death of chaotic gods and demons. Once cultivated, each turn of the mill would bring a qualitative transformation to the divine soul. Thereafter, the divine soul would become eternally indestructible.

Then there was the Undying Divine Art cultivated by Zhou Weiqing, the protagonist of Heavenly Jewel Change.

This art was exceptionally demanding to cultivate, requiring the resolve to face certain death. Yet once mastered, one could live as long as heaven and earth, and even possess the Undying Divine Aura, which could automatically detect danger.

There was also the Heaven-Devouring Demonic Art of the Heaven-Devouring Emperor in Shrouding the Heavens.

This art devoured everything, consuming all things to strengthen one's body and potential. Even if one's talent was utterly terrible, one could devour others and push one's realm to the limit. The stronger the opponent, the more one could strengthen oneself.

Beyond that, there was Xiao Yan's Burning Technique from Battle Through the Heavens, the Self-Transformation Freedom Technique of the Desolate Heavenly Emperor from Perfect World, and more.

As long as Yang Ming drew any one of them, it would be enough to defy the heavens!

Defeating Cao Mengyun would merely be a matter of time!

Old Jack had no idea where Yang Ming's confidence came from. He simply took it as a young man's ignorance of the world, a newborn calf unafraid of tigers.

But Old Jack was different. He had traveled and struggled in his youth, and he knew the cruelty of Douluo Continent. Every title and every rank of a Spirit Master was an invisible, intangible step in a towering staircase.

Those standing on a higher step had the right to control the fate of those below.

Was that fair?

Where in this world was there ever such a thing as fairness?

Only the strong had a voice. Only the strong possessed so-called fairness.

Old Jack feared that Yang Ming would only understand the cruelty of reality after being battered by the outside world. He spoke earnestly:

"Yang Ming, I know you're a good child, but sometimes you must understand that excessive rigidity leads to breaking. In many situations, there's no need to stubbornly force your way through. Perhaps if you change your perspective, change your approach, the road through life will become much smoother."

Yang Ming put down his chopsticks, wiped the grease from the corner of his mouth, and asked:

"Grandpa, what do you mean?"

"Ah."

Old Jack let out a sigh. The wrinkles on his forehead were as deep as tree bark.

"Yang Ming, before the awakening ceremony begins, I'll take you to see Master Cao Mengyun first."

"If you can't bring yourself to apologize to Master Cao Mengyun, then in order to ensure that you pass the awakening ceremony smoothly, I'll set aside this old face of mine and kneel before him to offer an apology."

"For my sake, he probably won't make things difficult for you anymore." Yang Ming's expression darkened. He instinctively clenched his fists, his fingernails digging into the flesh of his palms until blood seeped from between his fingers. It hurt, but not as much as his heart did.

Yang Ming did not blame Old Jack. To a remote little village like Holy Soul Village, a battle spirit master like Cao Mengyun from Notting City was like a heavy mountain pressing down upon everyone's hearts.

With just a little word from Cao Mengyun in Notting City, he might affect the village's future development.

If Yang Ming had merely been an ordinary person, an ordinary person with no ability to resist, then perhaps he would have followed Old Jack's wishes, brought valuable gifts to Cao Mengyun's door, and apologized to him.

Was it laughable?

Yang Ming had clearly done nothing wrong, yet he had to go and apologize.

Meanwhile, Cao Mengyun had nearly ridden someone to death on horseback, yet he had become the one receiving an apology.

In truth, it was not laughable at all.

Because those without strength would never have their fate in their own hands.

Only by becoming strong, becoming someone above hundreds of millions, becoming so strong that everyone could only bow their heads and obey, could one control one's own fate!

Never before had Yang Ming desired to become strong as desperately as he did today!

"Grandpa."

Yang Ming stared into Old Jack's cloudy eyes and said, word by word:

"Please believe in me. Believe that I will become someone even stronger than a Titled Douluo."

"I, Yang Ming, always keep my word!"

Old Jack's cloudy eyes stirred.

If Old Jack had previously believed that Yang Ming was like a frog at the bottom of a well, failing to understand the cruelty of the outside world and thus saying such things,

then now, it felt as though Old Jack were seeing Yang Ming for the first time. He looked this sturdy young man over from head to toe.

After years of training, Yang Ming had healthy wheat-colored skin and well-proportioned muscles. Beneath those bulging muscles lay power ready to explode. Under his neat crew cut was a resolute face, and beneath his thick black brows, his starry eyes brimmed with unparalleled confidence.

This confidence was not empty boasting, but the confidence born from true inner strength. It was intensely infectious.

Old Jack rubbed his eyes and secretly wiped away the tears gathering at their corners. They were tears of joy, joy at seeing the younger generation striving to improve themselves!

A man must strive unceasingly for self-improvement!

"Good, very good!"

Old Jack raised his callused right hand and heavily patted Yang Ming on the shoulder. His throat choked up several times, leaving him unable to speak.

After breakfast, the old man and the young man arrived at the Spirit Hall in the center of the village.

Of course, this so-called Spirit Hall was merely a somewhat larger wooden house.

Because everyone possessed a Martial Soul and children underwent Martial Soul awakenings every year, Spirit Halls could be found anywhere across Douluo Continent.

Of course, these were merely branch halls, with differing ranks.

This year, there were nine children in Holy Soul Village undergoing their Martial Soul awakening. Led by Old Jack, Yang Ming was the last to arrive.

Everyone else had already gathered there.

Including Cao Mengyun.

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