Unlike before, his body was now brimming with strength, and a power he had never possessed before flowed through it. It was probably the so-called Soul Power.
He did not know why his Soul Power had only begun flowing under those circumstances. However, he remembered that certain special Martial Souls in this world required special awakening rituals to awaken fully.
Presumably, that slapdash awakening ritual earlier had failed to awaken his Martial Soul completely, leaving his Soul Power unable to circulate.
But the stimulus of a life-or-death struggle had allowed his Soul Power to break through its shackles... yeah, right!
A near-death power-up was the sort of treatment reserved for protagonists. It would never happen to him.
His transformation back then had been caused by his Second Martial Soul.
The spear had pierced that middle-aged man's body and come into contact with his blood and Soul Power, triggering the spear Martial Soul's innate ability.
Devour could plunder the other person's blood Qi-their vitality-as well as their Soul Power, and feed a portion back to him.
Although his first strike had failed, it had also accidentally triggered the spear Martial Soul's innate ability. The plundered Soul Power had entered his body and run rampant, stimulating his own Soul Power and fully activating his black dragon Martial Soul.
"A domain..." Xuan Ming stared at the hemisphere filled with white light in his palm.
This was his black dragon Martial Soul's Innate Domain. Its effect was simple: it could suppress everything within its range, including but not limited to sound, smell, physical strength, and light. Only he remained unaffected.
"This is turning into some knockoff cosplay," Xuan Ming grumbled inwardly.
His Martial Soul Awakening had given him two dopey dragons and a spear, and now a white-light domain had appeared too.
His current appearance was now practically identical to a certain character at the pinnacle of combat strength in an anime from his previous life.
Except he was a weakling.
"A turning point in life..." Xuan Ming closed his right hand, and the white light vanished from his palm.
Although his black dragon Martial Soul had fully awakened, the mutation of his body-the two dragons on his back-could no longer be withdrawn.
Fortunately, he was no longer the ordinary person he had been before.
Still, even for a Soul Master, this appearance was rather too conspicuous.
For a little weakling like him to stand out so much...
After some thought, Xuan Ming tried controlling the twin dragons behind him, winding them around his waist.
It went fairly smoothly.
The twin dragons had grown out from his spine. Since they were his Martial Soul, they possessed his subconscious awareness. At the same time, because these two dopey dragons were connected to his spinal nerves, they were governed by both his nerves and his consciousness. Some simple stimuli could trigger their movements without passing through his brain for instructions, which was why that sort of rebellion had occurred.
But when they rebelled, the corresponding information stimulated his brain, and the twin dragons would come to their senses.
Mistake! He's one of us!
They really were just like a cat's tail.
Chapter 4: First Encounter with the Old Poison Freak
Since he did not know the way, Xuan Ming could only follow the main road. He occasionally encountered people along the way, but he did not dare speak to them.
Because he was now halfway to being a displaced vagrant.
Douluo Continent was in a feudal era that blended Eastern and Western elements. Commoners could not leave their places of residence at will. To travel, they had to obtain permission and a travel permit from their local administrator. Otherwise, they would be considered unregistered persons.
Unregistered people had no human rights. They could easily be treated as fugitives and might even be reduced to slavery at any moment.
Only Soul Masters, with their exalted status, could freely enter and leave cities using Soul Master booklets that proved their identities.
He had no Soul Master booklet to prove his identity, nor did he have a Soul Ring. He was not even a Soul Master.
If someone with ulterior motives noticed him, it could easily cause unnecessary trouble.
So, although he followed the road, whenever he noticed someone approaching ahead, he would hide, just in case.
So, his most pressing task now...
Xuan Ming stopped in his tracks.
Right, where was he supposed to go now?
Spirit Hall?
Honestly, he did not really dare go there now. After all, he had only just been sold off.
Two thousand Gold Soul Coins was a huge sum to most people and low-level Soul Masters!
Not to mention that his actual value was at least a hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins!
How many people could face that kind of money without getting ideas?
Soul Masters were indeed the most exalted profession on Douluo Continent, but class distinctions existed in their world too.
High-level Soul Masters looked down on low-level Soul Masters, and Soul Masters from great sects looked down on those from minor households.
Not to mention that he was not even a Soul Master yet, merely a Soul Scholar who had not obtained a Soul Ring.
Even if he was highly talented, so what?
Perhaps reporting a talented person like him would earn someone a small reward from their superior, but could that little reward really compare to a tangible hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins?
A hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins, and all they needed to do was lay hands on a little Soul Scholar who was not even a Soul Master. Extremely low risk, extremely high returns-how many people could resist such temptation?
He was not being paranoid. He had simply seen and experienced too much darkness, whether in his previous life or this one.
Not to mention that he had only just been sold by the Spirit Hall patrol deacon who had helped awaken his Martial Soul. If he had to take that risk and gamble again, he certainly did not dare.
"Soul Rings..." Xuan Ming looked toward the distant forest.
His village stood on the border between the Star Luo Empire and the Heaven Dou Empire, not far from the Star Dou Great Forest. The village fell under Aolai City's jurisdiction. Since it was on the border between the two great empires, conflicts broke out from time to time, so the city was very small and did not even have a junior Soul Master Academy.
The carriage had traveled along mountain roads for three days, and he had spent another two days heading back. Unless something unexpected had happened, that should be the Star Dou Great Forest.
But he still faced many difficulties if he wanted to obtain a Soul Ring.
First, he did not know how to cultivate. How was he supposed to perform this so-called meditation?
Over the past two days, he had tried closing his eyes and emptying his mind, but it had not done a damn thing.
Second, absorbing a Soul Ring-how did he do that?
No one had taught him. He did not even know how to attach a Soul Ring to his Martial Soul.
And what kind of Soul Ring should he absorb? How many years old should it be? How was he supposed to know the age of a Soul Beast in front of him?
He knew nothing!
Besides, places where Soul Beasts appeared were extremely dangerous. Although he had previously managed to kill that gravely injured Soul Grandmaster with the subpar combination of one white and one yellow Soul Ring through a lucky sneak attack, he had not been some assassin in his previous life. He did not even know how to fight.
Soul Beasts were unlike ordinary wild animals. They often possessed special abilities. Entering their territory rashly while knowing nothing about such things was courting death.
As he considered his current predicament, even Xuan Ming's pace slowed.
His most pressing task now was to find himself a guide. They did not have to be trustworthy, just someone who would not sell him off in the short term and could teach him these introductory Soul Master skills.
Even Yu Xiaogang would do...
"Stop!"
A sharp command suddenly rang out, carrying immense pressure that froze Xuan Ming in place.
I'm going to die!
Seemingly thanks to the powerful intuition his black dragon Martial Soul had given him, he could sense danger approaching. He had dared to risk his life and take a gamble against that Soul Grandmaster on a sliver of health because he had sensed how extremely weak the man was. His chances of winning had been high.
But now, whoever had spoken could crush him to death with ease!
"I'm in the woods behind you to your left. Come here."
Xuan Ming took a deep breath and moved his feet with difficulty, choosing to comply.
Facing an enemy against whom he had no chance of winning, he did not mind swallowing humiliation to survive.
Only by staying alive could he take revenge. Once dead, he would have nothing.
With a heavy heart, Xuan Ming slowly entered the dense woods. "Where are you?"
"To the left."
The voice was getting closer.
Following the voice again, Xuan Ming walked another twenty or thirty meters deeper into the woods.
Pushing aside the thick bushes, he saw a thin, lanky old man with dark green hair and beard, emerald-like eyes, and a stiff face.
The old man sat cross-legged, leaning against a large rock. He appeared to be in terrible condition, as though he had been gravely injured.
"Come here." The old man looked at Xuan Ming expressionlessly.
Xuan Ming slowly approached and stopped about two meters away from him.
"Do you know medicine?" the old man asked.
Xuan Ming shook his head. "No."
His medical knowledge was limited to taking medicine according to doctors' orders and the instructions.
"Good that you don't." The old man untied a brocade pouch from his waist.
"Come here."
Xuan Ming hesitated, then took a few more steps forward until he stood before the old man.
"Don't move!" the old man snapped, killing intent surfacing in his eyes.
Xuan Ming stiffened and froze in place.
"What are you hiding under your clothes?" the old man asked.
Xuan Ming took a deep breath and slowly opened the large cloak draped over him, revealing the two black dragons on his back. "This is my Martial Soul."
"Martial Soul?" The old man narrowed his eyes, examining the two dragons that seemed to be one with the person before him.
"A Martial Soul Mutation?"
"Yes." Xuan Ming nodded.
The old man paused, then raised his right hand holding the brocade pouch again, signaling for Xuan Ming to take it.
Xuan Ming complied.
But the moment he touched the pouch, a cool little snake, jade-green all over, darted over and wound itself around his wrist.
"This is a Nine-Section Jade, the finest of bamboo pit vipers. Once its venom enters you, you'll dissolve into pus and die within a short while," the old man said.
"There's medicine in the pouch. Take it out and do exactly as I say."
"Make one wrong move, and you die!"
Xuan Ming silently looked at the little jade-green snake on his wrist.
Nine-Section Jade, and that ghastly appearance. Dugu Bo?
He had only just escaped the traffickers, and now he had run into the old poison freak.
Was his rotten luck never going to end?
Chapter 5: Meditation and Cultivation
Under the threat of the Nine-Section Jade, Xuan Ming began following Dugu Bo's instructions.
First, he fetched water from a nearby river and lit a fire. Then, following Dugu Bo's directions, he poured those assorted medicines into it to brew.
Before he knew it, night had fallen.
After a day of contact, Xuan Ming had also noticed something unusual about Dugu Bo. He was severely injured and had remained in a state of circulating his power to heal himself the entire time. He could not even stand.
The medicine he had ordered Xuan Ming to brew was probably meant to speed his recovery.
"Whew!"
After drinking a bowl of medicine and spending another two hours circulating his power to recover, Dugu Bo's injuries seemed to have improved noticeably.
"Give me one." Dugu Bo looked at Xuan Ming, who was crouched beside the campfire grilling fish.
Xuan Ming looked at the eight fish on the grill that he had caught with such difficulty. After some thought, he picked up the smallest one and handed it to Dugu Bo.