Douluo Continent, a small village near the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
Chen Ci lay leisurely on the grass halfway up a hillside, a blade of Blue Silver Grass between his lips.
He watched a Soul Master from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect enter the village. This was the Soul Master responsible for conducting Martial Soul Awakening for children of the appropriate age.
With the arrival of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's awakening Soul Master, the entire village grew extremely lively.
Chen Ci rose and headed toward the village, murmuring:
"I wonder what kind of Martial Soul I'll awaken?"
On Douluo Continent, Martial Soul Awakening was largely determined by one's parents' Martial Souls and bloodlines, with mutations occurring only in a small minority.
At this thought, Chen Ci added:
"I wonder if an Earthling's bloodline will work on Douluo Continent. Just give me the great god Fuxi or the great goddess Nüwa. Failing that, the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors would do."
That was right. Chen Ci was a transmigrator, and he had arrived on Douluo Continent in his own body.
For him, awakening a Martial Soul was entirely random.
Before long, it was Chen Ci's turn to awaken his Martial Soul.
Holding a register, the Soul Master from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect stood in the center of the village and called:
"Next, Chen Ci."
Chen Ci took a deep breath, stepped forward, and pressed his hand against the glowing crystal ball.
Hopefully, it won't be too bad. I'm not asking for Innate Full Soul Power. Rank seven or eight will do.
Rank four or five is fine too. That'll be enough.
In the timeline of Douluo Continent I, which brimmed with opportunities, as long as he could cultivate, Chen Ci was confident he could reach the continent's summit.
The next instant, a wondrous sensation enveloped the entire village.
Everyone present inexplicably felt a nameless sorrow, anger, joy...
The various emotions intertwined, vanishing in an instant and giving way to a feeling of severed attachments and extinguished desires.
In the end, everything dissolved into nothingness, as though it had never existed. Only countless streams of Sword Qi crisscrossed above the village.
The crystal ball before Chen Ci blazed with dazzling light.
Seeing that radiance, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's Soul Master in charge of the awakening said in disbelief:
"This... it's actually Innate Full Soul Power!"
Chen Ci opened his eyes and saw that a longsword had appeared in each of his hands.
The instant he saw the two longswords, Chen Ci knew what his Martial Souls were.
They were none other than the Amorous Douluo's Passionate Sword and the Ruthless Douluo's Ruthless Sword from Legend of the Dragon King.
One sword governed ultimate control; the other governed ultimate slaughter.
Meanwhile, within the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
Sword Douluo Chen Xin, who was playing a board game with Ning Fengzhi, suddenly turned to look in a certain direction.
Ning Fengzhi held a white piece and placed it on the board, saying:
"Nine, twelve. Check.
"Uncle Jian, you're letting your mind wander during our game.
"You've lost this round."
Hearing Ning Fengzhi's words, Chen Xin returned to his senses, picked up a black piece, and set it on the board.
Leaving a single remark, he departed without another thought for the game:
"Fengzhi, I'm the one who won this round."
Watching Chen Xin leave, Ning Fengzhi looked down at the board in puzzlement. Only then did he discover that Chen Xin had just played a divine move, breathing life into the black pieces and turning defeat into victory.
He rose, leaning on a scepter, and gazed toward the distant place where Sword Qi crisscrossed the sky, murmuring:
"Could the turning point for the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect have arrived?"
He had manifested this game from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's fortune, intending to deduce the sect's future.
And today, the black pieces had finally claimed their first victory.
Inside the village, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's Soul Master asked eagerly:
"Little Chen Ci, would you like to join our Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?"
Chen Ci was somewhat tempted. In the world today, the person with the greatest attainments in the way of the sword was undoubtedly Sword Douluo Chen Xin of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
Being taught the way of the sword by Chen Xin would be quite good.
The next instant, a figure whose sword intent pierced the heavens descended from the sky and landed opposite Chen Ci.
Once he saw the newcomer's face clearly, Chen Ci recognized him at a glance as Sword Douluo Chen Xin.
Having arrived in the village, Chen Xin addressed the Soul Master responsible for the awakening:
"There are still quite a few children over there waiting to awaken. Go help them awaken first.
"Leave this to me."
"Yes, Elder Jian."
Chen Xin turned his gaze to Chen Ci and said:
"Young man, what is your name?
"I am Chen Xin of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, a rank ninety-six Power Attack System Titled Douluo. My title is Sword.
"Would you be willing to become my disciple and enter the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect to cultivate?"
Even without knowing what Chen Ci's Martial Souls were, the sky-piercing Sword Qi and Innate Full Soul Power alone told Chen Xin that Chen Ci's swords were anything but ordinary.
An appreciation for his talent arose, and he wanted to take Chen Ci as his disciple.
This would also allow him to nurture the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's next supreme elder.
Chen Ci immediately cupped his hands and said:
"My name is Chen Ci. I am willing to take Elder Jian as my master."
Chen Xin nodded, then brought Chen Ci back to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's mountain gates.
He landed directly in the small pavilion where he and Ning Fengzhi had been playing.
Ning Fengzhi looked at Chen Xin, who had left only to return, then glanced at Chen Ci beside him, some understanding dawning in his heart.
Presumably, the sky-piercing Sword Qi from earlier had arisen because of this young man.
Ning Fengzhi looked at Chen Xin and said:
"For this little fellow to catch Uncle Jian's eye, his talent for the sword and his Martial Soul must both be extraordinary. I wonder what his Martial Soul is?"
Chen Xin shook his head and said:
"Fengzhi, I don't know either."
Ning Fengzhi nodded, looked at Chen Ci, and said:
"Little fellow, what is your name, and what is your Martial Soul?"
Chen Ci manifested the Passionate Sword, which stood upright before him.
The instant the Passionate Sword appeared, Ning Fengzhi and Chen Xin felt something tug at their emotions.
"My Martial Soul is the Passionate Sword."
Chen Xin laid a hand on the Passionate Sword, carefully sensing the sword's inner heart, and said with some regret:
"What a pity. A sword ought to govern slaughter, but this sword leans toward control over emotions and desires."
Hearing this, Ning Fengzhi also felt it was something of a pity.
Although he did not understand the way of the sword, he knew that no one in the world understood swords better than Chen Xin.
Seeing their reactions, Chen Ci grew a little anxious.
He had still been planning to use the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect's influence to gather whale rubber to temper his body and study the way of the sword under Chen Xin.
Thus, Chen Ci also manifested the Ruthless Sword, which he had originally intended to conceal, and said to the two:
"Master, Sect Master Ning, I have another sword."
Hearing Chen Ci say he had another sword, Ning Fengzhi and Chen Xin both looked astonished.
Chen Xin once again used his sword heart to sense the Ruthless Sword. After a moment, he said to Ning Fengzhi:
"Fengzhi, this is a sword of ultimate slaughter that extinguishes emotions and severs desires. Its killing power even surpasses my Seven Kill Sword."
At this moment, Chen Xin's eyes were filled with admiration as he looked at Chen Ci.
Twin Martial Souls, Innate Full Soul Power, and both were sword-type Tool Martial Souls of exceptionally high quality. He was simply the perfect successor to Chen Xin's way of the sword.
Ning Fengzhi, meanwhile, was thinking:
Why not betroth Rongrong to him?
Chen Ci combined ultimate slaughter and control in one person, was Chen Xin's disciple, and would be nurtured by the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect in the future.
There seemed to be no more suitable son-in-law than Chen Ci.