Douluo Continent, Star Dou Great Forest, mixed zone.
"Boom!"
A muffled explosion erupted deep in the dense forest.
Lu Ren's right fist slammed into the back of an enormous, pitch-black scorpion. What burst from his knuckles was not the ordinary glow of Soul Power, but a dazzling black radiance that devoured light.
The instant that black radiance struck the scorpion's back, it detonated a second time.
"Black Flash!"
The Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast Scorpion King began to disintegrate from within. Its eight jointed legs twitched a few times before it crashed to the ground.
Black blood seeped into the soil. Above the corpse, a deep black Soul Ring slowly rose.
"Whew."
Lu Ren drew back his fist and shook his wrist.
The lingering black radiance on his knuckles dispersed like mist.
He looked at the Ten Thousand Year Soul Ring before him, his lips pulling into a smile.
"Finally, level forty."
Lu Ren sighed with feeling.
There was no question that he was a transmigrator.
A year ago, Lu Ren had still been worrying about his college graduation thesis. While lying in bed scrolling through his phone one night, he had just finished reading the second Douluo Continent novel, only for the later plot to infuriate him into passing out. Sudden death, transmigration-the full package.
When he woke up, he had arrived on the Douluo Continent, without parents or a family. Even his body had inexplicably shrunk.
He had turned thirteen outright.
Fortunately, he had a Martial Soul and Soul Power-even Innate Full Soul Power. His luck was decent; he could become a Soul Master.
At this point, someone might wonder: as a fourteen-year-old transmigrator with Innate Full Soul Power, having only just reached level forty at this age, barely a little stronger than the native Bei Bei, wasn't he a disgrace to transmigrators?
But what if he had only cultivated for a year?
That was right. Unlike everyone else, who started cultivating at six, Lu Ren had started at thirteen.
Lu Ren sat cross-legged and reached out to touch the black Soul Ring.
As though alive, the Soul Ring sensed his Soul Power fluctuations, automatically contracted around his body, and began merging into him.
Soul Power circulated through his body, and the fourth Soul Ring's integration brought a warm sensation.
This Ten-Thousand-Year Scorpion King was of fairly decent quality, carrying a trace of icy coldness, but Lu Ren had long since altered his Soul Power circulation routes into a complete mess.
Combining traditional Soul Power cultivation methods with the special Cursed Energy inside him, he had forcibly carved out a path no one had ever walked.
Speaking of Cursed Energy...
Lu Ren sank his awareness into his body, where there was a form of energy entirely different from Soul Power.
Soul Power was warm and positive, like sunlight.
Cursed Energy, however, was cold and negative, like the undercurrents of the deep sea.
It was an aggregation of negative emotions.
Anger, fear, resentment, jealousy... when these negative emotions arose in the hearts of living beings, they produced minute amounts of Cursed Energy.
And Lu Ren could absorb this Cursed Energy and make it his own.
This was his cheat.
As a transmigrator, how could he possibly not have a system that went ding?
It was precisely this system that had given Lu Ren a Jujutsu Kaisen template, granting him Yuji Itadori's complete set of abilities.
Heavenly Emperor Yuji, tempered by sixty-eight years-that monster who had beaten his way through Sukuna in the world of Jujutsu, used Black Flash as a basic attack, and possessed a physique comparable to the Heavenly Tyrant. Everything he could do, Lu Ren could do too.
Lu Ren had once seriously considered this: if he revealed all these abilities, how would the people of the Douluo Continent view him?
The answer was that he dared not imagine it.
So over the past year, he had hardly used Cursed Energy. He fought Soul Beasts with hand-to-hand combat and Black Flash and cultivated with Soul Power, stubbornly disguising himself as an ordinary Soul Master.
The only time he had failed to hold back was half a year ago.
He had encountered several Shrek Academy students on the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest. They had set their sights on a Thousand-Year Soul Beast he had just hunted, insisting they had spotted it first and demanding that Lu Ren know what was good for him and hand it over.
Lu Ren had only been a Two-Ring Soul Grandmaster then, while the other side had one four-ring and two three-ring Soul Masters. The outcome naturally needed no elaboration.
After some thought, he had given them the Soul Beast, which still had a breath left, lowering their guard and letting them absorb its Soul Ring.
Then, while they were absorbing the Soul Ring, Lu Ren had launched a sneak attack, disrupting the Soul Ring absorption ritual, knocking them all unconscious, and taking everything valuable.
He had not killed anyone. If he had, Shrek would probably be hunting him down in full force by now. It would have been awkward to put himself in such a miserable position.
That had been the first time he had gone all out since transmigrating.
Looking at the unconscious Shrek students scattered across the ground, he had fallen into thought.
"...This feels so good?"
From then on, whenever he encountered Shrek students in the Star Dou Great Forest, he robbed every last one who had a bad attitude.
Gold Soul Coins, Soul Tools-anything valuable, he took it all. It just happened to cover Lu Ren's daily expenses.
Once, he had not even spared a bag of candy. The student had cried and said it was a gift from his little sister. Lu Ren hesitated for three seconds, returned the candy, and gave him an extra kick for good measure.
"What are you, an elementary schooler? You don't bring anything else valuable, but insist on carrying candy around without eating it? Unbelievable."
As these thoughts ran through his mind, he finished absorbing his fourth Soul Ring.
The process was extremely easy, and Lu Ren was not surprised in the slightest.
After all, his physique was absurdly powerful.
A mechanical notification sounded in his ears.
[Congratulations to the host on breaking through to Four-Ring Soul Ancestor.] [Current Soul Power Level: 42.] [Host's breakthrough to four rings detected. System reminder: the next reward stage unlocks at Seven-Ring Soul Sage, at which point the Ten Shadows Cursed Technique can be obtained.] [Nine-ring Titled Douluo stage unlocks: Six Eyes and Limitless.]
Lu Ren opened his eyes and could not help smiling.
The rewards were surprisingly good.
"Ten Shadows, Mahoraga, Six Eyes, Limitless... plus Blood Manipulation. That's all Three Great Families covered."
He stood and stretched his limbs.
"Once I reach nine rings, I should be able to walk all over this world, right?"
Although Jujutsu Kaisen might not measure up to the Douluo Continent in raw stats, its mechanics far surpassed those of the Douluo Continent.
Just imagine it: Mahoraga's Dharma Wheel overhead, frantically adapting to the rules; Limitless keeping every attack from getting close; his own body invincible in close combat.
Powerful mechanics, coupled with unrivaled stats...
When the time came, even those fellows from the Divine Realm would have to take two Black Flashes before anything else.
"Getting ahead of myself, getting ahead of myself." Lu Ren patted his cheeks. "That's all in the future... if I want to make it happen, I'll have to work harder at cultivating."
He took one last look at the Scorpion King's corpse and inspected it carefully. After confirming there was no Soul Bone, Lu Ren left.
Although there was no Soul Bone, a Ten-Thousand-Year Soul Beast's corpse was worth a good deal of money. Lu Ren had amassed quite a few Gold Soul Coins by robbing Shrek lately, so even though the corpse was valuable, he could not be bothered to deal with it.
He turned and headed toward the forest's outskirts.
On the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest, sunlight spilled through gaps in the canopy, and the air was much fresher than in the mixed zone.
Lu Ren walked along a forest trail in a good mood.
He was a Four-Ring Soul Ancestor now. Next, he could consider spending some time elsewhere, picking up some benefits and improving himself.
If he stayed here much longer, Shrek's people might have to bring Xuan Zi as an escort whenever they came to the Star Dou Great Forest.
Wait, wouldn't that be a good thing?
With Xuan Zi escorting you, go ahead and count your blessings in secret. Something's guaranteed to go wrong.
Quite a few ideas popped into Lu Ren's head about where to go next to reap some benefits.
Go to Shrek?
No. Not even if they beat me to death. Why go there when there's nothing to gain? To wait to be brainwashed into a fanatic?
Wait, I could go to the Sun Moon Empire.
At that thought, Lu Ren's plan became clear: keep camping out in the Star Dou Great Forest for the opportunity involving Electrolux, ensuring he could obtain a chance to become a god.
Then go stir up trouble at Shrek Academy and derail the original plot.
After that, make a beeline for the Sun Moon Empire, head to the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy to reap some benefits, compete for them, and thrash Shrek's people again.
In any case, he was not going to study Soul Tools.
Lu Ren admitted Soul Tools were indeed good, but they were too weak right now and still could not fight the strongest Soul Masters. Besides, he had yet to fully understand his own Cursed Techniques.
As long as he used Jujutsu Kaisen's Cursed Techniques properly, he could basically walk all over everyone, so there was no need to spend effort learning about Soul Tools.
But he could work for them and use the Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy's resources to help himself cultivate and grow quickly.
"When the time comes, I just need to offer them a bargaining chip they can't refuse."
Thinking of the upcoming Continental Soul Master Tournament, Lu Ren could not help smiling.
The Sun Moon Royal Soul Master Academy must be eagerly awaiting the day it could trample Shrek Academy underfoot.
Just then, a somewhat familiar voice interrupted Lu Ren's thoughts.
"I heard there's been a robber in Star Dou lately, specifically targeting Shrek people. There are only three of us. Should we call a few more people?"
Lu Ren stopped in his tracks.
"...?"
"Seriously? Someone's that bold? They dare rob Shrek people?"
The voice came from behind some bushes not far ahead.
Lu Ren narrowed his eyes slightly and silently moved a few steps closer, peering through the gaps between the leaves.
Three people.
Two boys and one girl.
The two speaking both looked about fourteen. One had a gentle bearing and delicate features; the other was somewhat sturdier, with an expression that looked rather punchable.
Beside them stood a girl with a ponytail, looking around as though searching for something. Her pretty face held some surprise; she was clearly taken aback that Shrek students would actually get robbed.
"Of course. I heard he's absurdly strong. Even some of the four-ring senior students, boys and girls alike, have fallen victim."
The delicate-featured boy spread his hands.
"That's why I dragged Xu Sanshi along-to help me hunt Tang Ya's third Soul Ring, and get a little protection while we're at it."
"Bei Bei, I knew you were up to no damn good!"
"If even four-ring senior students got caught, what the hell is the point of bringing me?"
The tall, sturdy boy bristled.
"What are you afraid of? We both have a few trump cards, after all. Together, our combat strength will definitely make one plus one greater than two. We'll at least be able to protect ourselves somewhat. That robber should consider letting us go." The delicate-featured boy was quite optimistic.
"I don't care! You have to compensate me afterward. I'm not working for you two for free!"
"Yes, yes. I'll treat you to a few meals afterward. Will that do?"
"That's more like it."
Behind the bushes, Lu Ren's expression turned peculiar.
Bei Bei, Xu Sanshi, Tang Ya.
Lu Ren's gaze swept over the three and the area behind them.
Unless he was mistaken, the robber Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi had just been discussing was him.
At first, it had merely been revenge. Later... later he discovered that Shrek students really were rich, so he robbed them while he was at it.
It seemed that because of him, Bei Bei had dragged his good buddy Xu Sanshi along.
But would one extra person change the outcome?
The corners of Lu Ren's mouth rose slightly.
He silently circled around from behind the bushes, his footsteps making not the slightest sound.
With his current physique, concealing his presence could hardly have been easier.
Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi were still bickering.
"Speaking of which, what does that culprit actually look like? Has anyone seen him?"
Xu Sanshi scratched his head.
"Supposedly, he's a black-haired boy around our age, but his strength..."
Halfway through his sentence, Bei Bei suddenly felt a weight on his shoulder.
A hand had settled on it.
At the same time, another hand settled on Xu Sanshi's shoulder.
Both froze instantly.
"Gentlemen..."
A voice carrying a smile came from behind them. Its tone was lazy, yet it made the hair on both Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi stand on end.
"Judging by what you were just discussing, have you been looking for me all this time?"
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