Su Yuntian awakened the martial souls of more than a dozen children in succession. By the end, he could not help heaving a deep sigh. Every one of them had soul power, but most had mediocre talent. Fortunately, there was still one promising child who could enter the sect today, so the trip had not been wasted.
"Come, child. You're the last one. Step up." He beckoned to Nezha.
Nezha swallowed and nervously walked into the center of the formation. Whether his future held pummeling Little Scumbag or just eating his fill and waiting to die all depended on this moment.
Su Yuntian stirred the soul power in his palm, and the formation's patterns lit up. Nezha felt the ground fall away beneath his feet as an invisible force lifted him slowly into the air.
Then all six Awakening Stones hummed at once. Their light blazed, far more dazzling than during any previous awakening, almost flooding the entire Awakening Hall with snowy white light.
Su Yuntian's pupils contracted, and his heart skipped a beat. "This child, could he..."
Such a tremendous awakening phenomenon swept away every trace of fatigue in his heart. He had a faint feeling that today might truly bring an unexpected windfall.
By then, Nezha had already closed his eyes. He felt as though he were enveloped in a world of warmth, like being held in his parents' arms when he was little. A current poured in through the crown of his head, coursed through his organs, and flowed into every limb and bone, warming him with an indescribable comfort.
Yet amid that warmth, a powerful throbbing suddenly surged through both hands. Two forces battered wildly against their restraints, as though trying to tear through the shackles of his body and burst free.
Nezha's heart tightened. Having read Douluo, he naturally understood that this was most likely a sign of twin martial souls awakening.
The first rule for transmigrators-never flaunt your wealth.
Almost instinctively, he clenched his left hand and extended only his right. He ruthlessly suppressed the restless power in his left hand, forcing it back inside his body and concealing it.
A long spear appeared in his right hand. It was eighteen feet long, its shaft crimson from end to end, like refined iron heated all the way through. Intricate flame patterns curled around it, and gold thread wrapped the grip. Its head was a flame-shaped, double-edged serpentine spearhead, with a slightly curved tip and thin, gleaming blades that faintly shimmered with the cold light of purple flames. A fiery red tassel was bound around its neck, bursting like blazing fire when it moved.
"The spear's name is-the Fire-Tipped Spear!" With a stir of his mind, Nezha unconsciously spoke its name aloud.
Only after saying it did he realize. Isn't this the signature weapon of Nezha, the Great God of the Three Altars Assembly? It actually became my martial soul. This is going to defy the heavens!
"What a magnificent spear!"
Outside the awakening formation, Su Yuntian could not help exclaiming. The spear's design was so splendid that merely looking at it was enough to feel the extraordinary aura washing over him.
In all his years, he had seen plenty of martial souls, but this was truly his first time seeing one with such an impressive appearance.
"Come, child. Let's test your innate soul power."
With that, he handed over the crystal ball.
Nezha withdrew the Fire-Tipped Spear into his body, raised his right hand, and gently pressed it against the crystal ball. In an instant, dazzling light erupted from its core, like a little sun falling into his palm. It filled the entire crystal ball to the brim, leaving not a sliver of empty space.
"This is... could it be? Yes, it has to be-"
Su Yuntian's face flushed with excitement, and even his voice trembled. "Child, you actually have innate full soul power! Are you willing to join our Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect? As long as you join, you'll definitely..."
"Sir."
Nezha interrupted him helplessly.
"As children of Nine Treasures City, shouldn't we already belong to the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect?"
With that reminder, Su Yuntian finally came to his senses. His mouth opened, his weathered face reddened, and he wished he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into. A mighty Soul King, getting this excited over someone with innate full soul power-he truly had no composure.
He drew a deep breath, then slowly exhaled, barely managing to suppress his surging emotions. At last, he recovered some of the bearing expected of a powerful Soul King.
"Child, your parents should be outside, right?" He cleared his throat, trying to make his voice sound steadier. "Let's go out. I want to speak with them personally."
With the martial soul awakenings complete, Su Yuntian led the children out of the Awakening Hall.
The moment the hall doors opened, the parents who had been waiting outside for so long surged forward.
The open space outside the hall, orderly just moments before, instantly became noisy and bustling. The adults anxiously searched for their children, showering them with questions.
"How did it go? What martial soul did you awaken?"
"Do you have soul power? What level?"
"Can you join the sect?"
Questions rose and fell throughout the crowd. Some parents could not hide their disappointment upon hearing that their children had only level-one soul power, yet still forced smiles to comfort them. Others beamed when they heard their children had good martial souls, pulling them into their arms as their voices rose with delight. Every shade of life played out vividly before the doors of Nine Treasures Hall.
Nezha was also searching the crowd for his parents, but before he could get a clear look, his mother swept him into her arms.
"Zha'er!"
Yin Shiniang crouched down, cupped his little face in both hands, and looked him over several times, as though checking whether he had lost even a single hair. "Quick, tell Mommy. How did your awakening go?"
Li Jing hurried over as well and stood behind his wife. Though he did not urge Nezha to answer, his gaze remained fixed on his son's face. The anxiety and anticipation he could not conceal warmed Nezha's heart.
"Dad, Mom."
Nezha took a deep breath, suppressing the excitement in his voice and trying to sound as calm as possible. "My martial soul is a spear. It mutated, and it's called the Fire-Tipped Spear. As for my innate soul power..."
He paused, raised one finger, and gave it a little wag.
"It's full."
Li Jing froze.
"Full... full soul power?" His voice was hoarse. As though afraid he had misheard, he carefully asked again, "Zha'er, say that again. How much is it?"
"Innate full soul power, Dad."
Li Jing's eyes instantly reddened.
He scooped Nezha off the ground and raised him high above his head.
"My son, my wonderful son!"
The hope that his son would become a dragon was a wish carved into every father's bones. His own martial soul was nothing more than an ordinary spear, and his innate soul power had been only level three. After exhausting half his life, he was still merely a level-thirty-three Soul Elder. He could already see the end of the road for himself.
But his son was different. His son was an extraordinary genius with innate full soul power, someone destined to become a Titled Douluo.
That made him ten thousand times happier than being a genius himself ever could.
"All right, all right. Let me see our son too!"
With reddened eyes, Yin Shiniang took their son from her husband and held him in her arms. She bent her head and kissed Nezha's little cheek, her eyes brimming with boundless tenderness and joy.
"Zha'er, Mommy's precious boy. You're amazing!"
Nezha was a little embarrassed by his mother's kiss, and his small face flushed. Still, he did not struggle, only nestled obediently in her arms.
In his previous life, he had been an orphan, with no one to cherish or love him. Though he had transmigrated to the Douluo Continent in this life, Yin Shiniang and Li Jing's kindness toward him had always been utterly genuine. He never said it aloud, but in his heart, he valued this family bond above everything else.
The family of three embraced, laughing and crying, and only managed to calm down after quite a while.
Not far away, Su Yuntian had been standing quietly the whole time, in no hurry to interrupt.
He leaned against a stone pillar outside the hall doors with his arms folded, watching the scene. Even his usually indifferent face softened a little.
Only once the three had somewhat steadied their emotions did he straighten his robes and walk over.
"You are Li Nezha's parents, correct?"
He stood before the family of three. His tone was calm, but carried an unmistakable gravity.
"I am Su Yuntian, an inner disciple of the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect."
He briefly cupped his hands in a greeting between equals, then got straight to the point. "I'm sure you both already know the results of your son's awakening today. Innate full soul power, and a top-tier mutated tool martial soul. Even in a hundred years, our Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect might not produce another prospect like him."
He paused, his gaze passing over Li Jing to settle on Nezha in Yin Shiniang's arms. A keen gleam flashed through his eyes.
"I would like to take him back to the sect right now so that we can make his training a priority. What do you two think?"
Before you continue