Douluo Continent, southwestern Heaven Dou Empire, Fasinuo Province.
Soul Emperor Village lived up to its name: it had been named to commemorate the Soul Emperor-level powerhouse who had emerged from the village several hundred years ago.
The name sounded rather grand, but in essence, it remained one of the many unremarkable villages surrounding Nuoding City, a village as ordinary as could be.
The village chiefly made its living from the grain and vegetables grown in the farmland outside it, supplying them to nearby Nuoding City.
At the first glimmer of dawn, before the morning mist had fully dispersed, a child of about six was already running along the dirt road outside the village.
His pace was not particularly fast, but every step was extremely steady, and he deliberately kept his breathing to a certain rhythm.
Sweat soaked the fringe over his forehead and trickled down his cheeks, until his legs grew as heavy as if filled with lead and a searing pain stabbed through his lungs.
Eventually, exhaustion surged over him like a tide, forcing him to slow to a stop and gasp for breath. After walking for a while, he found somewhere to sit and rest.
His name was Lin Mo. He was six years old and an orphan.
He had persisted in this almost self-punishing training for a long time, without fail.
There was no other reason-only a fear of death.
One day six years ago, the village chief had found him while out purchasing supplies and adopted him. From then on, he had taken the village chief's surname, Lin.
Since he was quieter than other children his age, he had been given the single-character name Mo, meaning silence.
Perhaps through some wondrous arrangement of fate, it was exactly the same as his name in his previous life.
Time slipped by, and in the blink of an eye, he had already spent six years on Douluo Continent.
At the age of three, Lin Mo had awakened the memories of his previous life overnight.
His memories from before the age of three rapidly blurred and faded, while those of his previous life kept flowing through his mind, gradually becoming clearer.
After recovering his previous life's memories, he had finally pieced together the truth of his transmigration to Douluo Continent.
Just as the village chief who had adopted him, whom he called Grandpa, had said, he had found Lin Mo, abandoned by his parents, on the road to Nuoding City.
However, the truth was far from that simple. He had indeed appeared as a child on the road one had to take from Soul Emperor Village to Nuoding City.
But he had not been abandoned by his parents.
At the time, he had just transmigrated to Douluo Continent in the form of a blazing meteor, transforming into a newborn the instant he struck the ground.
After confirming that he had transmigrated again and begun his third life, Lin Mo had quickly adjusted his mindset and calmly accepted reality.
Unlike other transmigrators brimming with ambition, however, the first thing to rise in Lin Mo's heart was an appreciation for being alive.
In his first life, he had lived on Earth, but a congenital heart defect had left him frail from childhood. Despite all his efforts, medicine had proved powerless, and he had passed away before turning twenty.
His greatest regret in that life was that he had never truly lived in good health.
Even now, remembering the feeling of life draining from his body bit by bit while he could only watch, powerless, still made his heart tighten.
He had thought his consciousness would return to nothingness, but when he opened his eyes again, he had unexpectedly transmigrated to the Pokémon world and begun his second life.
However, just as he had been preparing, full of hope, to set out on a journey with his first partner, Charmander, he had the misfortune to be caught in the fallout of a clash between Dialga and Palkia. He and Charmander had been torn apart in an instant by the turbulence of space and time.
Two brief lives, one defeated by illness and the other ended by an accident, had left him with an almost obsessive longing for health and longevity.
Since heaven had given him a third chance, he would never die so easily again.
In this life, he would live healthily, and he would live long.
On Douluo Continent, becoming a god and attaining eternal life was possible!
However, to become a god, one's foundation was crucial.
The martial soul awakening at the age of six was the most important step in laying that crucial foundation. A martial soul and innate soul power all but determined the heights a Soul Master could reach in the future.
Thus, from the age of three, he had consciously begun training his body, combining some rudimentary breathing methods and physical training techniques he had learned about in his previous life, never missing a day.
He knew better than anyone that a healthy body was the capital one needed to stay alive, and that a healthy body could only help, not hurt, during martial soul awakening.
A certain Huo Gua ten thousand years later had obtained a decent martial soul at his awakening ceremony, but severe malnutrition had left his innate soul power at a mere rank one.
Lin Mo would never let himself repeat that mistake.
No one looked forward to awakening their martial soul more than he did! It meant not only power, but also a chance to secure a sliver of hope for longevity-becoming a god and gaining eternal life!
Soon, a call from nearby pulled Lin Mo's thoughts back to reality.
"Xiao Mo, didn't the village chief tell you?
"Today's the day you children awaken your martial souls. An important person from Nuoding City's Spirit Hall is already in the village, about to conduct your martial soul awakening ceremony.
"The ceremony seems about to start. Tidy yourself up and hurry over!"
"Sure thing. Thank you, Uncle Wang." Lin Mo gave an honest smile. "Grandpa Village Chief reminded me yesterday, but running has become a habit, and I wouldn't dare break it.
"I'll head over right now!"
With that, Lin Mo quickly rose from the ground, carefully patted the dust off his clothes, and checked that he had left no obvious traces nearby before darting away.
A short while later.
Inside the Spirit Hall of Soul Emperor Village.
Having cleaned himself up, Lin Mo followed the village chief at a brisk pace to the Spirit Hall in the center of the village.
Though called a Spirit Hall, it was really only a somewhat larger wooden house. Still, since it served the functions of a Spirit Hall, it had been kept reasonably clean.
This was where the children of Soul Emperor Village awakened their martial souls.
After entering the Spirit Hall, Lin Mo joined the line behind the other children and waited.
Their young faces brimmed with excitement, but it was easy to see that nervousness and anticipation made up the greater share.
Before long, the other children his age who needed to awaken their martial souls arrived one after another.
"Old Man Lin, you're a little late." The young man standing in the center of the Spirit Hall spoke in an even tone.
He looked to be in his twenties, with sword-like brows and star-bright eyes. He wore a fitted white outfit and a black cape, with a fist-sized character for "soul" in the very center of his chest.
It was the standard attire of personnel directly affiliated with the Spirit Hall.
"Esteemed Battle Soul Master, I'm sorry to trouble you again. All the village's children of the appropriate age are here." Village Chief Lin stepped forward, his tone respectful and humble.
The young man bowed slightly in return. "I don't have much time. Let's begin."
Village Chief Lin turned toward the children, anticipation shining in his eyes:
"Children, this is a Battle Soul Master from the Spirit Hall. He'll guide you through awakening your own martial souls.
"You must cooperate with the master to complete your martial soul awakening. Grandpa hopes some of you will be able to become Soul Masters!"
"Honestly, you said those same few lines last year. Nothing new at all." Su Yuntao curled his lips disdainfully and said:
"Do you think becoming a Soul Master is that easy? I've already visited eight villages and seen only one child awaken soul power-and it was a useless Blue Silver Grass martial soul with innate full soul power..."
At this point, Su Yuntao's tone grew noticeably more downcast.
But Lin Mo, standing behind the other children, understood it as clearly as an image in a bright mirror. Blue Silver Grass with innate full soul power? Isn't that Tang San?
Before Lin Mo could think it through, however, Su Yuntao's voice rang out again. He seemed to have a little more patience when dealing with children.
"All right, children, let me introduce myself. My name is Su Yuntao, and I'm a two-ring Battle Soul Master from the Spirit Hall.
"Next, I'll activate my martial soul to conduct your martial soul awakening ceremony. Remember, no matter what you see next, don't be afraid."
Hearing the name Su Yuntao, Lin Mo's eyes instantly lit up, and he immediately felt assured.
As the saying went, one cry of "useless" from Brother Tao, and another God King joined the ranks!
As Su Yuntao finished speaking, he opened his bundle on the nearby table and took out six jet-black stones and a blue crystal ball.
After arranging the six stones in a hexagon on the ground, he shouted, "Lone Wolf, possess!"
Immediately, two Soul Rings, one white and one yellow, slowly emerged beneath his feet, and his martial soul possession was completed in an instant.
His black hair instantly turned gray, and fur of the same gray covered his exposed skin. His body also swelled considerably.
His eyes turned a deep, eerie green, and sharp claws gleaming with a chilling light extended from the index fingers of both hands. The clothes issued by the Spirit Hall were of excellent quality and very elastic, so the change in his build did not tear them apart.