Beginner Gift Pack

Qin Muchu felt as if tears were about to spill from his eyes. Apart from the Beginner Gift Pack, even the cheapest item cost a million Gold Soul Coins. Did this system think he could turn stone into gold? Worst of all, he could not even afford the Beginner Gift Pack. Wasn't a beginner gift pack supposed to be free?

"Come on, at least give me enough Gold Soul Coins to keep me from starving." Anxiously, Qin Muchu opened the final option—Balance Check. "Huh?!"

His balance showed 191, and it went up by one every second. 192, 193...

"Hahahahahaha!"

Qin Muchu burst out laughing. His heart, which had been dead just moments ago, sprang back to life. This damned system—no, this glorious system—earned coins automatically while he did nothing! Who said it was a rip-off? It was incredible.

He reined in his excitement and counted on his fingers. Sixty coins a minute meant 3,600 an hour and more than 80,000 a day. Give him a few days, and the Beginner Gift Pack would be nothing. Even something costing a million or so would be within reach eventually. He did not dare dream of Million-Year Soul Rings, Soul Bones, or Divine Positions, but a hundred-thousand-year Soul Ring? That would be his for the taking.

Qin Muchu sat down cross-legged, intending to cultivate at once. But he was too excited to settle into it despite several attempts, so he ran laps around the courtyard to let it all out.

"Woof, woof~"

Dahuang watched his master's strange behavior and barked anxiously, suspecting that something unclean had latched onto him.

Qin Muchu went over with a smile and patted the dog's head. Even Dahuang seemed downright handsome now.

"Dahuang, your master's about to soar."

Dahuang blinked, his eyes full of confusion. He had no idea what Qin Muchu meant, but his master did not seem to have been possessed. He thought no more of it and lay back down for a nap.

A little over two hours passed, and the system balance finally topped ten thousand. Qin Muchu eagerly selected the Beginner Gift Pack and bought it.

"Ding! Beginner Gift Pack purchased. In light of the host's abysmal talent, the Beginner Gift Pack has received a special upgrade. Item replaced with a Million-Year Soul Ring. Note: all Soul Rings provided by the system are Special Sacrificial Soul Rings and can be absorbed regardless of physical condition."

!!!

He could buy this for ten thousand Gold Soul Coins? Qin Muchu rubbed his eyes in disbelief. Once he confirmed he was not imagining it, the excitement he had only just calmed down surged back.

A Million-Year Soul Ring! Even Huo Yuhao, the chosen son of this world, had only started with a Soul Ring of that caliber. Did that make him a protagonist too?

He could already picture himself standing at the peak of the continent, looking down on every Soul Master and leaving the world nothing but the lonely silhouette of an invincible man.

As for his terrible talent being the reason the Beginner Gift Pack had been upgraded? So what? Had nobody heard of rising from the ashes? The worse his talent, the better it was for him.

The next day, Qin Muchu finished cultivating and began considering what to do next. There were still more than two months until Junior Soul Master Academy began classes, and he was definitely going to Nuoding Academy.

If he did nothing, Tang San would eventually enter that academy too. And where Tang San went, Tang Hao would not be far behind.

Given enough time, Tang Hao might notice the secrets he was hiding. There was no telling.

After all, Qin Muchu was no Titled Douluo. He had no idea what special abilities a powerhouse at that level might possess. The safest course, then, was to make Tang Hao take Tang San out of Fasinuo Province.

Qin Muchu stroked his chin as he thought. Slowly, a plan took shape. He found pen and paper and wrote a letter containing only a dozen or so words: "Your Excellency Haotian, Spirit Hall knows where you are and is on its way. Flee at once."

With that done, Qin Muchu folded the letter and tucked it into his clothes. After some thought, he wrote several more copies to be safe, then headed to the market in the west of the city.

Nuoding City was the closest city to Holy Soul Village, and plenty of villagers came to its market every day to buy and sell produce. It was not hard to find someone from the village. Before long, Qin Muchu found several villagers and offered each of them a Gold Soul Coin to deliver a letter to Tang Hao. A Gold Soul Coin just for dropping off a letter on the way? They happily agreed.

Qin Muchu was not worried in the slightest that Tang Hao might doubt the warning. Whether Spirit Hall was actually coming did not matter. What mattered was the message he had conveyed to Tang Hao: Your identity has been exposed.

Knowing Tang Hao's temperament, Qin Muchu was sure he would take Tang San and flee the moment he saw the letter.

With everything settled, Qin Muchu returned to his courtyard in high spirits and resumed cultivating.

In Holy Soul Village, Tang Hao stumbled out of the blacksmith's shop with a jug of wine in hand. His coarse short jacket was covered in wine and sweat stains. It was hard to say when he had last washed it; its stench carried from a distance. His black hair was piled on his head like a heap of straw, and a beard covered most of his face, leaving only his cloudy eyes visible. He still held a jug of cheap ale in his right hand, tipping it back every few steps. Wine dripped from his beard, but he paid it no mind.

Looking so disheveled, he was impossible to connect with the Clear Sky Douluo who had once shaken the continent with his name.

"Tang Hao, you've got a letter."

Old Jack, the village chief, arrived at the blacksmith's shop leaning on his cane. He wrinkled his nose at Tang Hao's smell. "Tang Hao, you ought to wash those clothes. You're in your forties or fifties. You can't keep relying on little San to look after you."

Tang Hao took the letter and stuffed it into his clothes. He waved a hand without saying a word and went on drinking his cheap ale. Old Jack stamped his cane in frustration and left, grumbling curses.

"Dad, dinner's ready." A young voice came from inside the blacksmith's shop a moment later. A little boy stepped out wearing clothes covered in patches. He had short blue hair and a steadiness in his eyes far beyond his years. He was Tang Hao's son, Tang San—the future Asura God and Sea God.

"Mm." Tang Hao drained the last of his ale and stood. The letter slipped from his clothes as he moved. He picked it up and gave it a casual glance. That single glance left him frozen in place, as though lightning had struck him.

"Your Excellency Haotian, Spirit Hall knows where you are and is on its way. Flee at once."

He stared at those lines. His rough hands began to tremble. Your Excellency Haotian—how many years had it been since anyone had called him that?

Countless thoughts rushed through his mind. Was the writer friend or foe? What did they want? Was Spirit Hall really coming?

But whatever the truth, they could no longer stay in Holy Soul Village. They had to leave at once.

He strode inside and quickly packed a bundle. Without stopping to eat, he took Tang San by the hand and headed for the door. "Little San, we have to leave Holy Soul Village right now."

"Dad, why do we have to leave? Where are we going?" Tang San asked, puzzled. He had lived in this little wooden house for six years, and the sudden prospect of leaving made him reluctant to go.

"You don't need to know why yet. Just come with me. I'll tell you someday."

And so Tang Hao and Tang San left Holy Soul Village without anyone noticing. All they left behind was a blacksmith's shop, a witness to the days when a Titled Douluo had lived there in seclusion.