The Awakening in Holy Soul Village: A God-Level Martial Soul Descends

Dawn had barely broken, and a faint golden-red glow spread across the distant horizon.

Fasinuo Province, south of Nuoding City, Holy Soul Village.

On a huge blue-black stone at the village entrance stood Su Chen, a boy of about six. The cool morning mountain breeze stirred his slightly disheveled black hair.

He had sharp brows and bright eyes. Even at his young age, he carried a composure and nobility far beyond his peers.

On a small hill in the distance, a thin figure sat cross-legged as usual, breathing in purple mist and absorbing the morning sun.

Su Chen looked toward him, a hint of amusement in his eyes.

Tang San... the Mysterious Heaven Skill, the Purple Demon Eye. This whole routine of yours ends today.

Six years ago, Su Chen had crossed into the Douluo Continent, where the strong devoured the weak, and become an orphan in Holy Soul Village.

For those six years, he had quietly tempered his body while waiting for the turning point of his fate.

Today was the day a Spirit Hall deacon would come to Holy Soul Village for the annual Martial Soul Awakening of its children!

"Su Chen! Tang San! Hurry over! The Battle Soul Master from Spirit Hall is here!"

Old Jack's familiar, raspy shout came from the foot of the hill.

Leaning on his cane, Old Jack led another six or seven village children toward the Spirit Hall Branch at the village center, his steps hurried with anticipation.

Tang San came down from the hill with quick, light steps.

Beneath the appearance of an ordinary farm boy lay the experience and wariness of someone who had lived two lives.

When he reached the village path and fell into step beside Su Chen, Tang San glanced at him.

For some reason, Tang San had always felt that this fellow village orphan possessed an indefinable presence.

Even his father, Tang Hao, who drank himself senseless every day, had never made him feel the pressure in Su Chen's unhurried gaze.

"Su Chen, are you nervous?" Tang San asked. His voice was calm and childish, though his eyes were assessing.

"Nerves won't change fate, Tang San." Su Chen smiled faintly, his gaze steady. "What Martial Soul we awaken and how much Soul Power we have will become clear soon enough."

Tang San paused, privately surprised by Su Chen's maturity.

He looked away and said no more, quietly circulating the Mysterious Heaven Skill's inner energy as he hoped today's awakening would break his cultivation bottleneck.

Before long, Old Jack led the eight children, including Su Chen and Tang San, to a wooden building at the village center that stood a little taller than the others.

A long sword, a hammer, and a ferocious beast were carved above its main door, symbols of Spirit Hall's authority.

A young man stood at the entrance.

He appeared to be in his twenties, handsome, with sharp brows and bright eyes.

He wore Spirit Hall's neat white uniform, with a badge bearing three engraved swords on his chest that marked his lofty status as a Soul Grandmaster.

"Greetings, honored Battle Soul Master. Eight children from our village are here for the awakening this year. Sorry for the trouble," Old Jack said with a respectful bow.

The young man carried a trace of the arrogance common to Soul Masters from big cities. He waved a hand. "No need for ceremony, Old Jack. I'm Su Yuntao, a rank twenty-six Two-Ring Soul Grandmaster. My time is limited. Come, children, follow me inside."

The building's furnishings were sparse.

Six round black stones had been arranged on the floor at its center, beside a transparent azure crystal ball the size of a fist.

Su Yuntao smiled at the anxious children before him and said gently, "Don't be afraid. Whatever you see in a moment, stay calm. I'm here to guide you. Now, I'll show you my Martial Soul... Lone Wolf, possess me!"

At his low shout, two dazzling Soul Rings, one white and one yellow, lit up beneath his feet.

His handsome face elongated, his eyes turned a sickly green, and muscles bulged across his body.

Gray wolf fur burst through his skin, while sharp claws gleamed with a chilling light!

"Ah!"

Apart from Su Chen, who had expected it, and the steady-minded Tang San, the farm children screamed and stumbled backward.

"Don't be afraid. This is normal when a Beast Martial Soul possesses someone." Su Yuntao sighed helplessly, then pointed to the first boy. "You. Stand in the middle of the six black stones."

As Su Yuntao poured six streams of golden Soul Power into them, the stones raised a pale golden barrier. Warm currents enveloped the boy.

"Hold out your right hand."

The boy timidly raised his hand, and a farming hoe appeared.

"A Tool Martial Soul. A hoe. Come, let's test your Soul Power. Put your hand on the crystal ball."

The crystal ball gave no response.

"No Soul Power. You can't become a Soul Master. Next."

"Martial Soul: sickle. No Soul Power..."

"Martial Soul: Blue Silver Grass. A typical Trash Martial Soul. No Soul Power..."

All six children tested in succession had Trash Martial Souls without a trace of Soul Power.

The expectation in Su Yuntao's eyes had long since worn away, leaving only exhaustion and disappointment.

"Sigh. Looks like Holy Soul Village has come up empty again this year." Su Yuntao shook his head and looked at Tang San. "Child, it's your turn. Step inside."

Tang San stepped into the formation.

Golden light surged up, and warm currents wildly stirred the Mysterious Heaven Skill's inner energy within him.

Tang San instinctively opened his right hand. A slender, delicate blade of Blue Silver Grass, glowing faintly blue, emerged from his palm.

"Blue Silver Grass again? A Trash Martial Soul, without question." Su Yuntao sighed and withdrew his Soul Power, ready to end the ritual.

"Sir, you haven't tested my Soul Power yet," Tang San said earnestly.

Su Yuntao replied helplessly, "Blue Silver Grass is universally recognized as a Trash Martial Soul. It couldn't possibly produce Soul Power... Fine, we'll test it so you can put the idea to rest."

Tang San pressed his small hand against the blue crystal ball.

In an instant, the once-dim ball blazed with piercing azure light!

Its dazzling radiance lit up the entire dark wooden building.

The light surged like mercury spilling across the floor, filling the crystal ball to the brim until brilliant mist overflowed!

"Heavens! This... is this Innate Full Soul Power?" Su Yuntao cried, his eyes nearly popping from their sockets. "Innate Full Soul Power, something seen once in a century! Heaven envies talent—why did your Martial Soul have to be Blue Silver Grass, the most useless Trash Martial Soul of all?"

Tang San's heart settled, and he smiled faintly.

But in the palm of his lowered left hand, he was secretly suppressing a heavy black hammer glimmering with faint lightning.

"Sir, what's Innate Full Soul Power?" Tang San asked, feigning ignorance.

Su Yuntao sighed in bitter regret. He was about to patiently explain Innate Full Soul Power when a cool, level voice interrupted him.

"Deacon, there's still one person left to test."

The speaker was Su Chen.

He stepped forward calmly and walked straight into the center of the Six-Pointed Star Formation.

Only then did Su Yuntao remember him. Seeing the strikingly handsome boy before him, he calmed himself and nodded. "All right, child. Come on. Even after seeing Blue Silver Grass with Innate Full Soul Power, don't lose heart."

Su Yuntao channeled his remaining Soul Power again, and the six black stones glowed gold once more.

The instant that golden light entered Su Chen's body...

[Ding! The host has officially entered a turning point of fate in the Douluo World. Destiny Plunder: God-Level Critical Hit System is now activated.]

[Detected the child of destiny, Tang San, revealing the first signs of his fortune. The system has automatically issued the Ultimate Beginner Divine Gift Pack.]

[Congratulations, host! You have awakened the supreme god-level Martial Soul: Chaos Ancestral Dragon.]

[Congratulations, host! You have received the god-level physique transformation: Pure Yang Dragon Emperor Body! Your Innate Soul Power has risen to its ultimate limit: rank twenty Innate Full Soul Power.]

Boom!

A vast dragon's roar, as though born in the primordial depths beyond the nine heavens and ten lands, exploded above the Spirit Hall Branch and all of Holy Soul Village!

The once-clear sky was swallowed by purple-gold clouds that blotted out the sun and roiling lightning born of chaos!

Boundless, supreme divine might descended from the heavens.

"ROAR!"

Behind Su Chen, endless clouds of chaos erupted!

The phantom of a primordial dragon rose from the ground, vast enough to blot out the sun, its body covered in divine armor of chaos and purple-gold scales!

The dragon had nine claws and held its head high toward the sky.

Its eyes hung like a blazing sun and a cold moon, looking down upon all under heaven, supreme across the cosmos!

A sacred, pure-yang, ancient, and noble presence swept through the room!

Thud!

Su Yuntao's Lone Wolf Martial Soul could not withstand it for even a second.

With a wretched howl, it was crushed by the bloodline supremacy pressing down from the depths of its soul and forcibly driven back into Su Yuntao's body.

"A dragon... a dragon? A god... god-level dragon Martial Soul?" Su Yuntao's face turned deathly pale.

Tang San, standing nearby, suffered an even more terrifying shock than he had ever known!

Bzz!

Tang San's blood churned in his chest. He staggered back three steps, a thin line of blood seeping from the corner of his mouth!

What... what kind of Martial Soul is this? Tang San's eyes widened as monstrous waves rose in his heart. My Blue Silver Grass is so thoroughly suppressed it can't even move! The inner energy of my Mysterious Heaven Skill is actually flowing backward? How is that possible?

His pride in having lived two lives and his confidence in the Tang Sect Secret Arts were crushed to pieces before the Chaos Ancestral Dragon that had burst upon the scene!

[Ding! Detected the host completely suppressing the child of destiny, Tang San, with absolute god-level might. Plundered 500 points of Tang San's initial fortune.]

[God-level critical hit reward triggered: obtained the god-level passive skill Ancestral Dragon Divine Eyes (can see through all illusions and disguises, discern weaknesses, and track Hidden Weapon trajectories).]

The system's notification rang clearly in Su Chen's mind.

Su Chen felt a cool warmth wash over his eyes, and his vision became astonishingly clear. He could see the path of the Mysterious Heaven Skill's inner energy through Tang San's meridians and even sense the Clear Sky Hammer hidden in his left hand!

With a thought, Su Chen slowly drew the terrifying Chaos Ancestral Dragon Martial Soul back into his body. "Deacon, may I test my Soul Power now?"