On the hillside at dawn, Huo Yuhao closed his eyes and waited for the sun to rise. When the morning sun rose and its light spilled across the earth, Huo Yuhao opened his eyes, hoping to absorb that wisp of purple qi from the sun, but there was no response.
"Ah, still no luck?" Huo Yuhao sighed. Then he picked up a basket and went to the vegetable garden to gather vegetables.
Huo Yuhao had been living in Fu'an Village for half a month. At first, Grandma Guifen, who had taken Huo Yuhao in, let her stay because she had no family and had not awakened a Martial Soul. In the beginning, Huo Yuhao had been somewhat unaccustomed to this female body. She could not even tie her hair into a braid properly, and it was Grandma who taught her step by step. To repay her, Huo Yuhao also helped Grandma with the chores: cooking, gathering firewood, cutting grass, and feeding the pigs. At first, Grandma had worried that someone as delicate as Huo Yuhao would not be able to do those things. But after seeing how neatly she did them, she let her carry on.
Huo Yuhao had been here for half a month now, and she had also learned from Grandma that this was Douluo Continent, ten thousand years in the past. This place belonged to the western part of Star Luo Province in the Star Luo Empire. Although it was part of the province where the capital was located, Fu'an Village lay deep among the mountains, in a remote area. The nearest town was a week's journey away, so the people here had gradually left the village to make a living elsewhere. It was no exaggeration to call this a backwater.
During this half-month, Huo Yuhao had not given up on cultivation. Since she had not awakened a Martial Soul, she had no Soul Power to cultivate, so she had wanted to practice the Tang Sect Secret Arts from her previous life instead. But when she tried, she found that the Mysterious Jade Art would not circulate, and the Mysterious Jade Hand and Purple Demon Eye did not respond. The Hundred Solutions to Hidden Weapons, Controlling Cranes and Capturing Dragons, and Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track could still be used, but they were not much use to Huo Yuhao as she was now. All she could do was hope that awakening her Martial Soul would solve the problem.
There were only eight households in Fu'an Village, all of them elderly. During this half-month, Huo Yuhao had grown familiar with the old people in the village. They had no objection to the village taking in a little girl; instead, they liked her very much.
After gathering the vegetables, Huo Yuhao returned to the courtyard to help prepare food. A bowl of vegetable porridge and a steamed bun made up her breakfast. After eating with Grandma, Huo Yuhao washed the dishes and began the day's work.
"Yuhao, how long is it until your sixth birthday?" Grandma called out to Huo Yuhao and asked.
"About half a year, I think. Why, Grandma?"
"Nothing. I was just checking your age since you still haven't awakened your Martial Soul. This is the most important thing in life. If you awaken Soul Power, you can become a Soul Master and won't have to spend your whole life scratching a living from the soil. We can't be careless about this."
Huo Yuhao nodded at that. "Then what's your Martial Soul, Grandma?"
"Mine? Just a pair of Chopsticks. I don't have any Soul Power." As she spoke, a pair of Chopsticks appeared in her hand.
Huo Yuhao looked at the Chopsticks, then at Grandma. Grandma smiled and said, "That's why awakening your Martial Soul is such a life-changing event, little Yuhao. If you have even a trace of Soul Power, you won't have to stay here like us. You'll be able to have a different life. A pretty girl like you will definitely awaken a pretty Martial Soul."
Although Huo Yuhao could more or less guess what her own Martial Soul would be-probably her eyes-she did not want to dampen Grandma's spirits. "Mm, it'll definitely be a pretty Martial Soul," Huo Yuhao answered with a smile.
Huo Yuhao slung a bamboo basket over her back and left the courtyard to cut grass for the pigs. As she walked along the village path, she ran into the village chief.
"Little Yuhao, hurry home and get your grandma. Go to the warehouse in the middle of the village. There's something very important." After saying that, the village chief hurried off toward another house.
"Okay, Grandpa Village Chief." Huo Yuhao turned and ran back to the courtyard.
My name is Pete. I'm a thirty-first-level Soul Elder, and my Martial Soul is a Hunting Knife. My Innate Soul Power was level one. It took me thirty years to become a Soul Grandmaster. With my talent, that should have been my limit. I could have become a mercenary near some Soul Hunting Forest, or gone to Spirit Hall to serve as an official in some small place and scrape by. Otherwise, I could have accepted a stipend and spent my days eating and waiting to die. But I didn't want that. I'm the son of a hunter, and my parents had no Soul Power. I was lucky enough to have Soul Power, and I lived a life my parents had labored all their lives without ever being able to attain. At first, I had been full of hope and anticipation for the life ahead, but my talent was poor, and I could never break through level thirty. I wasn't willing to stop there. I wanted to climb higher. I wanted great strength, and I wanted the power and influence of nobility, too. But my talent couldn't make it happen.
But once, I took part in a Soul Hunting Operation on the outskirts of Sunset Forest. There were eight of us: one Soul Ancestor, three Soul Elders, and four Soul Grandmasters. But in the outer region, we encountered a group of powerful Soul Beasts. The eight of us tried to retreat, but the Soul Beasts kept us pinned down. In the chaos, I accidentally killed one of our own. At that moment, I felt the Soul Power that had not increased in a long time begin to break through. Later, only two of us escaped from that group of Soul Beasts. One of them was gravely injured. Before we left the forest, I killed him, and I felt that same sensation of my Soul Power growing again. I was overjoyed to discover that my Soul Power had risen by a level-something that might not have happened even if I cultivated for a whole year.
I also tried killing Soul Beasts, but nothing happened. After that, I killed beggars, elderly people with no family, and lone Soul Masters. Although ordinary people did not give me as much as Soul Masters, it was better than attracting less attention. Every time I killed someone, I moved to another place. After all, Spirit Hall's oversight was a hassle, and staying in one place too long made it easy to get exposed. In three years, I had gained ten levels and broken through to Soul Elder. I would never have imagined that before.
Today I came to this remote village. After observing it, I found thirteen people in all, all elderly, weak, women, or children, with no Soul Masters among them. This remote place was perfect for my operation. I found the village chief and used my status as a Soul Elder to tell him that something very important required all the villagers to gather. I stayed in the warehouse and watched as the people gradually assembled in front of me. Once I had counted them all, I began to act.
Huo Yuhao did not know why a Soul Master had come to Fu'an Village, but she felt that something was wrong. When she brought Grandma to the entrance of the warehouse, Huo Yuhao understood why a Soul Master had come.
The Soul Master radiated an aura of bloodlust and greed, one Huo Yuhao knew all too well: the aura of an Evil Soul Master. "Run! There's danger!" Huo Yuhao shouted as she pulled Grandma away.
Pete had just been about to act when Huo Yuhao called him out. In an instant, three Soul Rings-white, yellow, and purple-appeared in front of Pete. The villagers began to scatter in every direction. His third Soul Skill activated, and Pete's Hunting Knife turned blood-red as his body became more agile.
Huo Yuhao pulled Grandma along and instinctively ran toward the edge of the village. She used Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track with her feet, but her five-year-old body, burdened by an elderly woman, could not move very fast.
Screams rang out behind them without pause. Many of the old people had barely taken a few steps before the Evil Soul Master behind them cut them down. Hearing the sounds behind her, Huo Yuhao could only urge Grandma to hurry.
"Yuhao, run! I can't get away." As Grandma spoke, she pulled her hand free from Yuhao's and turned toward the people behind them.
"Grandma!" Huo Yuhao tried to turn back and pull Grandma away, but the sight before her filled her with despair. How could a group of old people outrun a Soul Elder? The villagers' bodies lay all over the ground, and their blood stained the earth red. Grandma had only taken a few steps back when the blood-red Hunting Knife slit her throat.
Pete felt the power coming from his Hunting Knife. It was weak, but it thrilled him. The people before him were no longer people, but nourishment that would make him stronger. Looking at the little girl in front of him, Pete did not hesitate. He slashed toward her neck.
Huo Yuhao desperately fled forward, but it was all in vain. The blood-red blade slashed toward her neck. Intense pain shot into her brain, then a sweet, metallic taste rose in her throat. Next came a feeling of suffocation that left Huo Yuhao unable to think, and she gradually fell unconscious, collapsing to the ground with a thud.
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