The little four-room house in the northeastern part of Holy Soul Village was Xiao Yan's home, while the detached two-story house next door was Qian Chongling's residence.
Old Jie Shi walked up to the door, knocked, and casually asked, "Xiao Huo, are you home?"
It was a pointless question, really. On the Douluo Continent, elders cared even more about martial soul awakening at age six than people on Blue Star cared about the college entrance examination. After all, if you did poorly on that exam, there were still other paths you could take.
But being able to become a Soul Master and being unable to become one were as different as heaven and earth. So, unless an elder had bubbles in their brain, they would generally wait at home and even prepare a whole table of good food.
If the child became a Soul Master, it was a celebratory feast. If not, it served as consolation.
Sure enough, just then, a voice came from inside the house, followed by a figure stepping out.
Though dressed in plain clothes, she was tall and slender, with a graceful figure that caught the eye. She was nearly forty, but time had left few traces on her, instead lending her an extra touch of charm.
Upon seeing the beautiful woman, Xiao Yan immediately called out, "Mom!"
Feng Yuhan smiled sweetly. She had also spotted Village Chief Jie Shi and her child, and asked, "Village Chief, since you've found time to come over, have all the children finished awakening their martial souls?"
Jie Shi smiled. "Yes, they've all finished."
Feng Yuhan asked, "Then how did it go?"
Feng Yuhan would have been lying if she said she did not care about the village where she had been born and raised. The more Soul Masters the village had, the better its future development would be.
"Three children had soul power this time. Your little Yan even had level-four innate soul power."
Feng Yuhan's bright eyes lit up at the news. She was not surprised that her child, Xiao Yan, could become a Soul Master. After all, both she and Xiao Huo were Soul Masters, so the chances of their child becoming one were quite high.
Level-four innate soul power, however, was a little unexpected. To her, that was a very high level of innate soul power. He should have little trouble becoming a Soul King someday.
"That's wonderful! Sorry, I got so excited that I neglected my manners. Please come in, Village Chief."
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Feng Yuhan invited Jie Shi inside.
The furnishings were quite simple: a square dining table, a few wooden stools, and a large cooking stove. Something seemed to be stewing in the iron pot on the stove, sending wafts of fragrance through the room.
A sturdy, gray-clad middle-aged man of about forty saw Feng Yuhan and Jie Shi come in. He quickly set aside the bamboo-shoot-like plant he had been halfway through peeling, stood up, and said, "Village Chief, what brings you here?"
"Hahaha, surely you haven't forgotten what day it is?"
"Your little Yan awakened a mutated martial soul, with level-four innate soul power. He's bound to achieve great things someday."
Xiao Huo was beside himself with joy at the good news. For a moment, he stood frozen, unsure what to say, though his expression made the excitement in his heart plain to see.
"Little Yan has good potential. I intend to send him to the junior Soul Master academy in Nuoding City," Jie Shi said, getting straight to the reason for his visit.
Contrary to Jie Shi's expectation that Xiao Huo would agree immediately, Xiao Huo looked torn between hope and apprehension.
"Let me think about it," Xiao Huo said with a troubled expression.
"What did you say?" Old Jie Shi looked as though he could hardly believe his ears.
"This is a chance to become a Soul Master! Only by becoming a Soul Master can you earn the right to control your own destiny! Little Yan is fortunate enough to have the potential, and this is the perfect opportunity for him to study at Nuoding Academy. Yet you're telling me you need to think about it?"
"How about this, Village Chief? I'll give you an answer in a few days. There's still some time before Nuoding Academy starts its term," Xiao Huo said.
"You... forget it. I'll go notify the other two families first. I hope you won't disappoint me in a few days." With that, Jie Shi turned and walked out.
Once Jie Shi had gone some distance, Feng Yuhan asked in confusion, "Dear, going to Nuoding Soul Master Academy is the only choice. Why did you say you needed to think about it?"
Xiao Huo said, finding it somewhat difficult to voice his concern, "Nuoding Soul Master Academy is good, but compared to a Titled Douluo, it still falls far short."
At those words, Feng Yuhan understood what her husband meant. They had a Titled Douluo living right next door, so why overlook what was close at hand and seek something farther away?
If they sent Xiao Yan straight to Nuoding Junior Soul Master Academy without even asking Qian Chongling, wouldn't that suggest they thought his teaching, as a Titled Douluo, was inferior to that of a junior Soul Master academy?
Although neither of them believed Qian Chongling would think that way, they should at least ask him. Whether he was willing to guide Xiao Yan was another matter entirely; the two things could not be lumped together.
This showed just how rigid the world's hierarchy was. Compared to other high-ranking Soul Masters, who casually treated human lives like weeds, Qian Chongling was already exceptionally easy to get along with. Yet at times, the couple still feared him more than they respected him.
Time hurried by, and seven days soon passed.
That day, a three-ring Soul Elder from the Spirit Hall Branch in Nuoding City knocked on Xiao Huo's door. Upon hearing that he was a steward from the Spirit Hall Branch, the couple hurriedly welcomed him inside.
The Soul Elder wasted no time. He explained why he had come and opened the bundle he had been carrying on his back. Inside were a letter, a steward's uniform from the Spirit Hall Branch, a crystal ball, and six black stones.
"Old Master Qian had been away from home for several years. He returned home two days ago."
"This is the letter he left for you. You'll understand once you've read it."
"From now on, you'll be in charge of martial soul awakenings in the nearby villages, Xiao Huo. Please report to the Spirit Hall Branch in Nuoding City as soon as possible."
The Soul Elder handled his business crisply and efficiently. He said only a few sentences from beginning to end before leaving.
Xiao Huo and Feng Yuhan were stunned, not even noticing that the Soul Elder had left. After a long while, Feng Yuhan opened the letter.
The letter was short, containing only a few sentences, as follows.
Little Feng, Little Xiao, this old man has spent several years traveling here, and it is time I went home for a visit. If fate allows, we will meet again someday!
Signed: Qian Chongling.
After reading it, Xiao Huo and Feng Yuhan both sighed inwardly. No banquet under heaven lasts forever. Then they bowed toward the distance.
Afterward, Xiao Huo went to find Village Chief Jie Shi and asked him to arrange Xiao Yan's enrollment at Nuoding Junior Soul Master Academy.
Three months later, led by Village Chief Jie Shi, Xiao Yan, Lin Xun'er, and Zhao Fenmian set off for Nuoding Junior Soul Master Academy, beginning the first stage of their journey as Soul Masters.
As for why Qian Chongling had left at that particular time, it was because he had completed the requirements of the first of his Nine Chaos Trials.
The requirement for the first of his Nine Chaos Trials was to live at the future source of evil for five years.
At first, Qian Chongling had not imagined that the so-called future source of evil would be Holy Soul Village. He had thought it was Slaughter City, but that Old Wang next door, who deserved a dose of arsenic, had given him a hint.
Old Wang next door had once again recommended Douluo 2, 3, and 4 to Qian Chongling. Of course, having learned his lesson, Qian Chongling did not dive straight in this time. He read the comments first.
Douluo 2: Evil Soul Masters ran rampant, slaughtering countless humans. A certain father-in-law killed his prospective son-in-law, revived him, then killed him again, repeating the process dozens of times until he had trained that promising young man into a Husky.
Douluo whatever-number-it-was: A certain God of Law Enforcement ushered in an invasion from the Abyss, making an enormous contribution to the continent's family planning efforts by cutting the population straight in half.
In other words, if anyone in the future Douluo World knew who had done all this, they would probably wish that bastard would spiral straight up to heaven on the spot.
Thus, the so-called source of evil had to be Third Brother, and the place where that bastard lived was undoubtedly Holy Soul Village.
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