He felt as though his soul were wandering.
Occasionally, he heard a dragon's roar, along with the anguished cry of his older brother, Chu Zihang.
Yet everything seemed to be drifting farther and farther away from him.
He had no idea how much time had passed before he slowly opened his eyes again.
He seemed to have transmigrated again.
A young girl's voice reached his ears. "Who could be so heartless as to abandon a child by the roadside?"
Just like that, six years hurried by.
The orphanage.
Lu Chen sat alone by the second-floor balcony, his feet dangling outside.
Lu Chen gazed forlornly at the empty sky, a sense of loneliness, of standing apart from the world, welling up within him. Yet these feelings did not seem to belong to him, as though something inside his body did not belong in this world.
"Lu Chen, you little monkey, get down from that balcony right now!" A piercing shout exploded in his ears. It was probably Sister Lin's voice.
Before Lu Chen could pull himself out of that loneliness, a dull pain came from his ear.
"You little brat, do you have any idea how dangerous that was?" Lin Mengxi scolded.
Lu Chen hung his head a little, letting Lin Mengxi drag him away from the balcony.
Once they finally reached the room, Lin Mengxi let go.
"S-Sister Lin, wh-what brings you here today?" Lu Chen asked as he rubbed his ear.
"What brings me here?" Lin Mengxi said, exasperated at his failure to get his act together. "Don't you remember what day it is?"
"T-Today? There's nothing special about today." Lu Chen faltered for ages without figuring out what was special about today.
"Your Martial Soul Awakening! Honestly, child." Lin Mengxi gave Lu Chen a light slap on the back of his head.
What Lin Mengxi did not notice was that, when she struck Lu Chen's head, a gleam of golden-red light seemed to flash through his eyes.
Lu Chen himself did not register it either. He only felt his eyes suddenly grow hot for a moment.
Martial Soul Awakening?
Lu Chen froze. Right, today was the day of his Martial Soul Awakening. How had he forgotten?
But if I awaken a good Martial Soul and become a god in the future, wouldn't I have a chance to find my way home?
His eyes instantly lit up. The next moment, he seemed to think of something else, and that light faded again.
This is the Legend of the Dragon King era. Without a golden finger, it's hard to say whether I can even become a god.
There's Buddha Tang blocking the road ahead, and that Huo Cheat standing in the way...
Lu Chen felt rather dejected. Besides, the Douluo Divine Realm was so weak that it probably could not help him find his way home either.
Forget it. Since I'm here, I might as well settle in.
If I'm an ordinary person, I'll live out my life in peace. If I awaken a decent Martial Soul, I'll play this match from behind.
Lin Mengxi was not about to indulge Lu Chen as he stood there spacing out. Taking his hand, she headed toward the little group gathering at the orphanage entrance.
"Well, look, the freak..." a boy with a pointed mouth and monkey-like cheeks sneered. Before he could finish, however, he spotted Lin Mengxi beside Lu Chen and instantly shut his mouth.
As Lu Chen passed him, he bumped into him hard and said with a smile, "Ji Shi, we'll see."
"We'll see, then! Who's afraid of a freak like you?" Ji Shi said angrily, stamping his feet as he spoke in a vain attempt to make himself more imposing.
Lin Mengxi smiled. "Being a freak is good. You know, Shrek means monster too. Maybe you can attend Shrek Academy someday."
But everyone knew Lin Mengxi was joking. After all, this was an orphanage, and the vast majority of them could not possibly awaken their Martial Souls with Soul Power.
There were only seven or eight children in the entire orphanage. They merely gave Ji Shi a silent glance. None of them stopped, all hurrying toward the bus.
After all, awakening their Martial Souls was one of their few chances to turn a losing game around in the future.
Finally, when the sound of the bus starting rang out, Ji Shi could no longer spare any attention for being angry. He rushed over and boarded the bus.
Lu Chen paid Ji Shi no further attention. Instead, he kept looking at his hands and sighed softly, wondering what Martial Soul he would awaken in the future.
He hoped a transmigrator's luck would bless him with a decent Martial Soul.
With a sudden screech of the brakes, the bus slowly came to a stop outside Red Mountain Academy.
Lu Chen looked out the window.
Outside Red Mountain Academy, a sea of people had gathered, all children and their parents. The children's chattering discussions filled his ears, making the place extraordinarily lively.
Lu Chen's gaze suddenly stopped. Were those Tang Wulin and Tang Ziran?
Tang Wulin's looks made him stand out among the children, but more importantly, something about him seemed to be drawing Lu Chen in.
Drawing him in, making him want to swallow the other boy whole.
Is it the Blessing of the Goddess of Life? Or the Golden Dragon King Bloodline inside him?
Lu Chen could not quite guess.
"Come on, let's get off." Lin Mengxi gave Lu Chen a hug. "Little Chen, whether you awaken Soul Power or not, you'll always be Sister Lin's little darling."
Although she said that, she never brought up adoption. After all, Lin Mengxi herself felt she had no way to take responsibility for another life. All she could do was visit the orphanage often and care for the child she had brought there herself.
Lu Chen also knew he could not make himself a burden to someone else, so he had never brought it up either. The two maintained this unspoken understanding.
After what must have been a long time waiting in line, a teacher finally called out somewhat impatiently, "Lu Chen!"
Lu Chen quickly darted out of the crowd and followed the teacher into Red Mountain Academy.
The teacher led Lu Chen into a round teaching building, then took him up to the second floor.
The moment he entered the awakening room, Lu Chen felt dazzled, as though something were calling to him from the depths of his mind, waiting for him to awaken it.
Inside the awakening room stood a middle-aged man wearing a simple, old-fashioned robe. He looked very kind and approachable.
"Don't be nervous, little one. Come stand in the middle," the Spirit Transmitter said.
Lu Chen obediently nodded and walked into the middle, standing in place, though he looked around rather nervously.
Suddenly, a soft white light shone from the Spirit Transmitter's hand. The white light seemed to resonate with the entire awakening room. Dazzlingly beautiful patterns lit up, spreading down from the ceiling along the four walls, and all the energy gathered beneath Lu Chen's feet.
He felt a warm, soothing power slowly flow into his body through the soles of his feet.
Lu Chen suddenly felt the world before him become extraordinarily blurry, as though two worlds were pulling back and forth.
Finally, his spiritual power seemed to have been dragged into another world.
This space was dark and gloomy. There seemed to be neither a sun nor any source of light in the sky, and the ground was soaked in blood. Lu Chen cautiously took a few steps forward.