Tang Feng turned over and drew his gaze away from the stone wall, but his thoughts drifted even farther.
Over the past three years, he had leafed through almost every book related to Martial Souls in the reading room. He already had an extremely clear prediction of the awakening awaiting him tomorrow.
On the Douluo Continent, bloodline was the absolute deciding factor in Martial Soul inheritance. Top-tier Tool Martial Souls such as the Clear Sky Hammer and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda were exceptionally stable in their inheritance, with almost no unexpected outcomes.
He remembered reading that the Clear Sky Hammer had only one recorded mutation in a hundred years, an even lower probability than inheriting the maternal Martial Soul. This was entirely different from Beast Martial Souls such as the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, which were more strongly affected by bloodline purity and mutated relatively often.
Thus, Tang Feng was more than ninety percent certain that he would awaken his father's Clear Sky Hammer. The remaining ten percent might be his mother's Soul Breaking Spear. Although the Soul Breaking Spear was also of excellent quality, it ultimately fell a notch short of the Clear Sky Hammer.
The real uncertainty lay in his innate Soul Power.
Theory told him that innate Soul Power was heavily influenced by parental inheritance, usually fluctuating one or two ranks above or below the parents' levels. Without some special opportunity, such as practicing a profound cultivation method from childhood or consuming heavenly treasures, it was difficult to break out of this framework.
This also led to a cruel phenomenon: many commoner female Soul Masters with high innate Soul Power were frequently seized by great nobles to serve as breeding tools.
The scene of Tang Jian's awakening two years ago was still vivid in his mind. Tang Jian's father had rank-six innate Soul Power, while Tang Jian had awakened with rank-six-and-a-half innate Soul Power, only half a rank higher.
In contrast, his own father, Tang Yi, had rank-five innate Soul Power, and his mother, Yang Jin, had rank-four innate Soul Power. His starting point was a cut below Tang Jian's.
By the most rational calculation, reaching rank six, one rank above his father, would already count as a normal result; if he were fortunate enough to touch rank seven, he would truly need a measure of luck's favor.
Over these three years, Tang Feng had consciously tempered his body through the Disorder Splitting Wind Hammer and strengthened his physique by running with weights, building a much firmer foundation than ordinary children. But at most, this could only bring out his own potential more fully.
"Ah..." An exceedingly soft sigh slipped from his lips into the silence.
Rational analysis could not suppress that thread of burning fantasy deep in his heart. What if? What if I'm that once-in-a-century genius? What if I have Twin Martial Souls and innate full Soul Power?
Even knowing how slim the chances were, he could not help quietly sketching these possibilities in his mind. He smiled mockingly at himself, his fingers unconsciously rising to his neck.
A silvery-white pendant hung there, set with an ice-blue gemstone that gave off a cold, dim glow in the dark stone chamber.
It was a gift his maternal grandfather, Yang Wudi, had given him on his third birthday. That day had also been their final farewell, as Spirit Hall's army bore down upon them. Before leaving for the front lines, his grandfather had gently placed the pendant in his small palm and wished him health, peace, and safety.
At the time, he had thought it was merely an ordinary pendant. Only later had he learned that it was a Storage Soul Tool. But since he had yet to awaken his Soul Power, he could not open it, much less know what lay inside.
After tomorrow's awakening, he would possess Soul Power. Then, perhaps the pendant's secret could be revealed.
Now, he did not know where his grandfather and the Breaking Clan had ended up. This pendant was the last keepsake the old man had left him.
Tang Feng gripped the pendant tightly. The cold metal pressed into his palm, yet it gradually settled his tangled thoughts.
"Sleep. Tomorrow will be the moment that decides everything," he told himself.
With apprehension and excitement in his heart, Tang Feng slowly fell asleep, hoping for a pleasant dream.
The next day, between seven and nine in the morning.
After giving Tang Feng a few brief instructions, his grandfather, Tang Lie, hurried away. As the sect's seventh elder, he had to join the other elders in attending today's awakening ceremony.
After finishing breakfast, Tang Feng headed alone to the assembly hall. When he entered, quite a few people had already arrived. Some children were accompanied by their parents, who spoke softly while repeatedly stroking their children's shoulders or heads.
More of them, however, were children like Tang Feng, whose parents had fallen in that great battle, standing alone and silent in the corners.
Without realizing it, these children drew closer to one another, forming a small, quiet group.
They exchanged no words, only occasionally meeting one another's eyes and nodding lightly. Their gazes held the same precocious maturity born of losing their shelter, along with an unspoken sympathy between those sharing the same plight.
Tang Feng's thoughts involuntarily drifted back three years. Before his eyes, he seemed to see this hall filled with bodies once more. They had been neatly covered with white cloths, every corpse incomplete: severed arms, missing legs, chests and bellies torn open. Death had become hideous and terrifying then.
He still remembered how his father Tang Yi's right arm, which had held a hammer for so many years, had been severed at the shoulder, the bones at the wound shattered and the flesh and sinews mangled. His mother Yang Jin's chest had caved in deeply, a clear fist imprint branded there, with all the surrounding ribs crushed.
Tang Feng drew a deep breath and forced the surging emotions back into his heart. He counted silently. Including himself, there were eleven children, all familiar to him. After all, they were all third-generation disciples of the same age.
Three had come from the late first elder's lineage: Tang Bai, Tang Song, and Tang Rong.
From the second elder's lineage came a pair of twin sisters, Tang Xue and Tang Yu.
From the third elder's lineage, there was only Tang Zhong.
From the fourth elder's lineage came Tang Xia and Tang Xing.
From the fifth elder's lineage came Tang Ming and Tang Zhao, who leaned close together, muttering something quietly.
There was no one from the late sixth elder's lineage. Tang Jian was its only child.
Nor was there anyone from the lineages of Sect Master Tang Xiao and Tang Hao. Sect Master Tang Xiao remained unmarried, while Tang Hao had never appeared again.
Before long, the heavy hall doors were slowly pushed open.
Sect Master Tang Xiao entered first, followed closely by five elders, who took their places on either side in order. They were the rank-eighty-nine second elder, Tang Zhen; the rank-eighty-eight third elder, Tang Ming; the rank-eighty-eight fourth elder, Tang Ran; the rank-eighty-seven fifth elder, Tang Rui; and the rank-eighty-six seventh elder, Tang Lie.
Tang Xiao's gaze slowly swept across the eleven children below. When he saw those few lonely figures, a trace of pain, difficult to detect, flitted through his eyes.
He gave a slight nod and said, "Today is the day of your Martial Soul Awakening. There is no need to be frightened. Simply stand in a line. The second elder will conduct the ceremony for you this time."
He turned his head and exchanged a glance with the second elder. The second elder nodded and stepped forward. With a sweep of his sleeve, six glossy black Awakening Stones, with faint currents of energy flowing within them, flew out and landed precisely on the floor, forming a standard hexagonal array.
His aged but steady voice rang through the hall. "Remember, whatever you feel or see in a moment, do not panic. Focus your minds and use all your strength to hold the hammers in your hands steady."
He raised a thin, withered finger and pointed at the boy standing at the far left with his head lowered. "Now, first is Tang Bai. Step forward."
Tang Bai obeyed and walked into the center of the hexagonal array, a trace of tension tightening his young face. Without another word, the second elder activated his Soul Power.
In an instant, the six black Awakening Stones hummed simultaneously, releasing a soft, milky-white glow. Countless fine points of light streamed from the stones, spiraling into Tang Bai's body as though guided by an invisible force.
Tang Bai shuddered all over and instinctively extended his right hand, spreading his fingers. Dark light gathered in his palm, and an exquisite black war hammer materialized out of thin air. Lightning patterns as fine as gossamer wound around the hammer, and amid flickers of electricity, its body rapidly swelled at a speed visible to the naked eye.
The sudden weight bore down like Mount Tai. Tang Bai swayed, nearly dragged to the ground by its terrifying heaviness. He hurriedly clenched the handle with both hands, veins bulging, barely managing to hold up the huge, constantly trembling hammer.
The seventh elder, Tang Lie, nodded and said, "Your Martial Soul is the Clear Sky Hammer, with a lightning attribute. Control it with your mind and put it away. Next, we will test your innate Soul Power."
Tang Bai closed his eyes and concentrated. Only after several attempts did he finally draw the war hammer back into his body. The pressure on him abruptly eased, and he panted in relief for a moment before placing his right hand on the crystal the second elder offered him, as instructed.
In an instant, a gentle gleam blossomed from the crystal's heart, spreading swiftly like mercury spilling across the ground, until it illuminated nearly sixty percent of the crystal.
"Rank-six innate Soul Power. Not bad," the second elder announced. "Next!"
Tang Bai withdrew with delight on his face. The remaining disciples stepped forward to awaken in turn.
"Tang Song, Clear Sky Hammer, rank-five innate Soul Power."
"Tang Rong, Clear Sky Hammer, rank-five-and-a-half innate Soul Power."
"Next, Tang Feng."
Hearing his name, Tang Feng slowly let out a long breath. Three years of preparation and countless days and nights of anticipation all converged upon this moment.