Holy Soul Village stood on the fringes of the Douluo Continent. It seemed an unremarkable little village, yet it had earned the name Holy Soul because a Soul Master of Soul Saint rank had once emerged from its midst. That distinction had also made it the most prominent of the surrounding villages.
And today was Holy Soul Village's most important day of the year—the day of martial soul awakening.
Su Yuntao, the Spirit Hall deacon assigned to the village, arrived at the Spirit Hall Branch as promised. He was there to awaken the martial souls of the children who had turned six that year, identify promising Soul Masters with the talent to cultivate, and change the future of the entire village.
Lin Chen was one of the children taking part in this year's martial soul awakening.
Unlike the innocent children around him, whose faces brimmed with curiosity and excitement, Lin Chen's eyes held a depth and composure far beyond his age. Beneath that calm lay a faint ripple no one else could easily detect.
For he was not a child native to this world, but a transmigrator from Earth.
Six full years had passed since he had crossed into the world of the Douluo Continent. Lin Chen had long since grasped its rules and background. He knew its central story, and he understood just how terrifying the seemingly inconspicuous little boy beside him—Tang San, whose eyes shone with exceptional resolve—truly was.
The heir to the dual godhood of the Sea God and the Asura God, the son of Clear Sky Douluo Tang Hao, the possessor of twin martial souls, Blue Silver Grass and the Clear Sky Hammer—a chosen son of heaven who would defy the odds with one cheat after another and ultimately stand at the pinnacle of the Douluo Continent.
Anyone else might have tried every possible way to curry favor with Tang San, clinging to the leg of the continent's future ruler in hopes of enjoying smooth sailing and rising through this world alongside him.
But from the moment Lin Chen arrived, he was destined to stand against Tang San.
It was not arrogance, nor was he deliberately singling Tang San out. He had his own path in his heart, beliefs utterly different from Tang San's, and opportunities and a mission that belonged to him alone.
Tang San's Blue Silver Grass followed the path of control, poison, and devouring. Relying on the Blue Silver Emperor bloodline, he would suppress every enemy with forceful control and insidious toxins. His actions seemed righteous, but in truth, everything revolved around his own interests and those of the people close to him. To achieve his ends, he would stop at nothing.
From the beginning of his transmigration, however, Lin Chen had quietly settled on his own path—use Blue Silver Grass as his foundation, pursue life to its utmost limit, cultivate Life Soul Power, master Life Profundity, and wield Life Force to protect what he cherished, defy Tang San's destiny, and shatter the injustices of this world!
He scorned the idea of attaching himself to Tang San and rejected Tang San's principles. He would carve out a wholly different path as a Soul Master, one that belonged to him alone. Even if thorns covered the road ahead, even if he had to become the enemy of this chosen son of heaven, he would fear nothing.
"Next!"
Spirit Hall Deacon Su Yuntao's somewhat languid voice rang out, interrupting Lin Chen's thoughts.
The children ahead stepped forward one after another and completed their martial soul awakenings under Su Yuntao's guidance. But most awakened trash martial souls such as sickles, hoes, and iron pots. Without a trace of soul power, they were destined never to walk the path of a Soul Master.
Soon, it was Tang San's turn.
Tang San stepped forward and, following Su Yuntao's instructions, placed his palm on the Awakening Stone stele before him.
In an instant, six brilliant rays of light flared around Tang San, and the power of martial soul awakening began to surge slowly.
Then a small blade of pale blue grass gradually emerged from Tang San's palm. Its leaves were slender, and it looked entirely unremarkable.
"Blue Silver Grass? Another trash martial soul!" Su Yuntao shook his head at the sight, disappointment crossing his face. To him, a plant martial soul like Blue Silver Grass, which grew all across the continent, had no cultivation value whatsoever. It was bound to be a trash martial soul.
Su Yuntao then took out a soul power crystal and had Tang San test his soul power.
The instant Tang San's palm touched the soul power crystal, it burst into dazzling light. Its radiance reached an incredible intensity, illuminating the entire Spirit Hall Branch.
"Innate full soul power! It's actually innate full soul power!"
Su Yuntao's eyes widened at once. His languor and disappointment vanished, replaced by overwhelming shock and elation. Even his voice began to tremble.
A child whose martial soul appeared to be worthless Blue Silver Grass actually possessed innate full soul power. This was a genius one might not encounter in ten thousand years! Even with Blue Silver Grass as his martial soul, the talent of innate full soul power could make up for everything. His future was limitless!
Tang San remained perfectly calm within. He already knew about his twin martial souls. Without showing anything on his face, he quietly withdrew his Blue Silver Grass martial soul and stepped down from the awakening platform.
As he passed Lin Chen, Tang San instinctively glanced at him. His eyes held a trace of childish innocence, but also a distance that was difficult to detect.
Lin Chen raised an eyebrow slightly, unconcerned, and strode straight onto the martial soul awakening platform.
Standing before the Awakening Stone stele, Lin Chen took a deep breath and gently placed his palm against its cold surface.
Instantly, just as before, six rays of awakening light flared. Vast awakening power flooded into Lin Chen's body, rousing the martial soul hidden within him.
Lin Chen closed his eyes and turned his awareness inward, guiding his martial soul as it slowly emerged.
He did not deliberately conceal anything as Tang San had, nor did he show the slightest panic. Instead, following the deductions he had made over six years using his previous life's knowledge, he released his martial soul completely.
The next moment, a blade of Blue Silver Grass slowly grew from Lin Chen's palm. It resembled Tang San's in appearance, yet the difference between them was as vast as heaven and earth.
This Blue Silver Grass was pale blue as well, but its leaves had a softer, gentler luster than Tang San's. Faint green halos of life, almost imperceptible, lingered over them. It seemed filled with boundless vitality and vigor, as though it contained the purest power of life in the world. Swaying gently in the breeze, it gave off a feeling of profound peace and warmth.
It lacked the coldness and toughness of Tang San's Blue Silver Grass. Instead, flourishing vitality suffused every part of it, as though it could weather any storm without ever withering, renewing itself endlessly.
"Blue Silver Grass again?!"
Su Yuntao was utterly stunned, his expression shifting spectacularly. Just what sort of day was this? A single Holy Soul Village had produced two owners of Blue Silver Grass martial souls at once. One was already a genius with innate full soul power. What would this other child turn out to be?
For a moment, anticipation and helplessness mingled in Su Yuntao's heart.
He hoped Lin Chen would possess heaven-defying soul power too. Yet he could not help feeling that Blue Silver Grass was still Blue Silver Grass. In the eyes of the world, it would always be a trash martial soul unfit to take the stage.
Lin Chen paid no attention to Su Yuntao's reaction. As he sensed the endless power of life surging through the Blue Silver Grass martial soul in his palm, everything became clear to him.
His martial soul was still Blue Silver Grass, but it was no ordinary Blue Silver Grass. Nourished by his mind and spirit for six years, it was Life Blue Silver Grass, destined to reach the utmost heights of life!
It was fundamentally different from Tang San's Blue Silver Grass!
Tang San's Blue Silver Grass focused on control, Entanglement, poison, and devouring. It suppressed enemies through forceful means and relied on the Blue Silver Emperor bloodline to pursue the ultimate path of control.
Lin Chen's Life Blue Silver Grass, on the other hand, focused on Life Healing, life enhancement, Life Binding, and life evolution. With limitless vitality as its foundation, it could heal all things and strengthen him and his companions. It could also use Life Force to form attacks that nothing could withstand and bindings that nothing could break. Later, it could even evolve a world of life and master the profundities of life and death, taking him along a completely different road to the pinnacle!
This was the path Lin Chen had chosen for himself—the path of Life Blue Silver that belonged to him alone!
"Quick, test your soul power!"
Su Yuntao impatiently held the soul power crystal out before Lin Chen, his eyes full of anticipation.
Lin Chen slowly extended his hand and gently touched the soul power crystal.
In an instant, the soul power crystal blazed with light. Pale blue soul power radiance erupted alongside wisps of pale green life halos. Its brilliance was no less dazzling than Tang San's had been, while its aura was even gentler and more substantial!
"Innate full soul power! It's innate full soul power again!!"
Su Yuntao lost all composure. He abruptly stepped back, his eyes wide as he stared at Lin Chen as though looking at some peerless monster.
One Holy Soul Village, two children awakening Blue Silver Grass martial souls on the same day—and both possessed innate full soul power!
Such a thing was simply unheard of, a marvel for the ages!
Never mind tiny Holy Soul Village; nothing so heaven-defying had happened anywhere on the Douluo Continent in ten thousand years!
Su Yuntao's heart pounded wildly. He knew he had encountered two peerless geniuses in a single day. These two children would surely stir towering waves across the entire Douluo Continent in the future!
Lin Chen withdrew his hand. His face remained calm, but inwardly, he now understood.
Innate full soul power paired with a Life Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul—this opening was practically perfect!
He had every confidence that his Life Blue Silver Grass would let him carve out his own road to the pinnacle. Even if his opponent was Tang San, he would have the strength to fight him—and perhaps even suppress him completely!
Meanwhile, below the platform, Tang San watched the Life Blue Silver Grass in Lin Chen's palm. Feeling that utterly different aura of life, he frowned slightly, and an inexplicable sense of unease rose within him.
They both possessed Blue Silver Grass and innate full soul power, yet he felt no affinity whatsoever with Lin Chen's Blue Silver Grass. Instead, he sensed a faint opposition, a distance, and even the vaguest hint of suppression.
That feeling made Tang San deeply uncomfortable, and his gaze toward Lin Chen gradually grew complicated.
At that moment, the seeds of their destined opposition were quietly sown.
Lin Chen stepped down from the awakening platform, ignoring Tang San's complicated gaze and the shocked stares of everyone around him. He walked straight to a corner, closed his eyes, and focused, beginning to familiarize himself with the Life Soul Power within his body and the characteristics of his Life Blue Silver Grass Martial Soul.
He knew this was only the beginning.
Tang San's path was aloof, filled with schemes and slaughter.
Lin Chen's own path was one of life, acceptance, and protection.
He would use his Life Blue Silver to show the entire Douluo Continent that Blue Silver Grass had never been a trash martial soul. The Life Force could suppress all things and overturn heaven and earth!
He would upend the world's understanding of Blue Silver Grass, break Tang San's destiny as the chosen one, and carve out a unique path as a life Soul Master that belonged to him alone!
For a long time, Su Yuntao could not calm his excitement. Looking at Lin Chen and Tang San with an immensely complicated gaze, he had already made up his mind: he had to report these two geniuses to Spirit Hall. This would be an enormous achievement!
And because of these two owners of Blue Silver Grass martial souls with innate full soul power, all of Holy Soul Village erupted with excitement. It was destined to be ordinary no longer.
Lin Chen slowly opened his eyes. A pale green halo of life flashed through them and vanished, while gentle Life Soul Power surged around him.
He raised his head and looked into the distance, his gaze reaching beyond the borders of Holy Soul Village toward the vast world of the Douluo Continent.
"Tang San, your Blue Silver Grass commands control and slaughter. Mine commands life and protection."
"From this day on, you and I are strangers, standing on opposing sides. Those who walk different paths cannot make plans together."
"As for the road ahead, let's see whether your control Blue Silver can dominate the continent—or whether my Life Blue Silver can subdue the world and ascend to godhood!"
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