A dense canopy of overarching trees blocked out the sun, serving as an impenetrable barrier to the sun’s glare. Shrouded in darkness, sunlight was completely forbidden from entering the depths of this forest.

Deep within the forest laid a small lake whose clear waters allowed even the lakebed to be visible. This clear and pure water resembled a deep blue crystal in richness, but the waterline rested far below the shores, as if it could dry up at any moment.

A breath of life within the lake waters rippled out, but it wasn’t very intense; truthfully, it was rather weak.

A lone man stood beside the lake.

He wore a black robe and looked to be in his forties. A strand of golden hair hung down from his forehead to rest alongside his cheek, accentuating his handsome and resolute appearance.

He simply stood there, lifeless, an aura of listlessness radiating off him.

A short distance away from him stood several people of varying heights and sizes. They had all sorts of appearances, but one common trait among them was their expression: an expression full of gloom.

“Beast God.” A woman in a green jade cheong sam had quietly arrived at the black robed man’s side, a respectful tone lacing her voice when she spoke up.

The black robed man addressed as the Beast God began trembling, a tint of agony gracing the corners of his mouth. “Beast God? I fear that we are all that is left of the soul beasts. Who am I supposed to be the god of?”

The green robed woman went silent for a moment before softly saying, “Ten thousand years have already gone by. Ten thousand years have gone by since Huo Yuhao established the Spirit Pagoda. The Spirit Pagoda still exists today, but as for us soul beasts… we are nearing extinction.”

The Beast God bitterly remarked, “Humanity… They have already grown too powerful for us to contend with. Star Dou Forest is the sole haven left for us soul beasts.”

“That’s right…” The green robed woman trailed off in silence.

The Beast God suddenly raised his head, two golden blazes of rich light emitting from his eyes. In that moment, a terrifying aura broke out, causing the entire world to shudder.

Hum… The ground beneath their feet shook for a moment before increasing in intensity The lake waters were still as clear as before, but bubbles were now rapidly rising from its surface. After another moment, the quivering of the earth intensified even further, becoming even more violent.

“What’s going on? Have the humans come?” The green robed woman cried out in alarm.

“Let us fight to the death then!” A powerful, burly man bellowed out as his entire body underwent a sudden transformation. He transformed into a ferocious bear over thirty meters in height, his entire body covered in a dark gold luster.

“Bear Lord, calm down. It isn’t the humans!” Beast God shouted out. His formerly grim face was now overcome with an indescribable euphoria.

“Finished! Finished! Finished!” A muffled voice resounded throughout the forest without warning. The voice seemed to echo from all directions, which, in addition to it being muffled, made it difficult to determine the gender of the voice.

Bang! The earth cracked open, and the entire forest shuddered. The little water still within the lake was sent spraying upwards, instantly exposing the barren lakebed.

Bang! A silvery light bubbled up from the crevice in the earth and then heavily smacked into the shore.

It was a giant claw of a glorious silver color. That silver claw was covered in numerous silver hexagonal scales, each one refracting light to create an astonishing splendor. That pounding sound brought with it an incomparable oppressive power that made all living beings kneel reverently.

The Beast God’s rapt gaze grew even brighter as he took a step forward and kneeled down on one knee. He respectfully proclaimed, “I welcome the lord!”

The earth exploded forth instantly, releasing a powerful aura that even caused the ferocious, thirty meter tall bear to be sent flying. A gigantic figure over three hundred meters in length suddenly soared out before landing heavily.

The nearby towering trees that had once stood tall were now replaced by this giant beast. When faced with this silver colossus, however, they could only prostrate themselves before it.

“It died, but I still live!” The deep voice roared with sorrow. “Those despicable humans want to exterminate us!? Since I have awakened, their day of destruction has arrived at last!”

A resplendent silver light blinded all of the soul beasts. They could only kneel, head lowered, as their bodies trembled with ecstasy.

The Beast God eagerly said, “Lord! Humanity has already grown too powerful! Even I am unable to contend for very long against their best soul mechas! Humanity has managed to thoroughly suppress us with their science and technology!”

The silver figure slowly lowered its head and spoke, but this time, its voice didn’t resonate throughout the forest. “In order to destroy them, you must first understand them! Follow me! Since our world is already on the brink of destruction, then we will go and conquer their world!

The gigantic figure slowly stepped forward, towards the forest’s exit. Through the canopy of the of towering trees, a single ray of light broke through and illuminated its tremendous form. But with each step it took, it slowly began to shrink in size. Just as its figure disappeared into the distance, it had taken on the form of a human being.

Glorybound City was a small town sitting on the border between the ocean and the eastern coast of the Sun Moon Federation.

Today was an exceptionally bustling day in the city, it was the annual Awakening Day.

All of the people residing upon the Douluo Continent possessed something called a “martial soul.” The martial soul was a part of the body which could be awakened when they became six years old, regardless of whether they were animals or plants. Through the means of an awakening ceremony, they were able to awaken their own martial soul. This was precisely the purpose of the annual Awakening Day, to awaken their martial souls.

If someone’s martial soul was a hoe, then their ability to till the fields would far exceed those of others. If instead they had an animal for a martial soul, they might possess some of the abilities of said animal. Due to this, the martial soul had long since become the most significant factor in determining someone’s life.

However, the emergence of soul power was even more important. Soul power was a type of energy that nourished and upgraded the martial soul. Although everyone possessed a martial soul, only one in a thousand people might possess soul power.

The soul power rank represented someone’s future and power. As soon as their martial soul was awakened, they could cultivate soul power in order to nourish and upgrade their martial soul. Thus, over the 100,000 years the Douluo Continent has existed, the most noble profession has been that of a Soul Master.

Due to this, even commoners would look forward to their children becoming six years old and awakening their martial soul, in hopes that they would possess soul power. If they possessed soul power, their lives would be transformed, benefitting them and their whole family.

The moment dawn arrived, the streets in front of the Red Mountain Academy were packed. The streets were flooded with parents and their children who had come to participate in the Awakening.

“Dad, what do you think my martial soul will be?” A small boy, just barely six years old, said with excitement as he looked towards his father. He loved to listen to his father’s stories about Soul Masters. He had a pair of large eyes filled with a longing for the future.

The young boy had a head full of short black hair and a stature slightly taller than others of the same age. However, his most attractive feature were his large, clear black eyes and long eyelashes which wouldn’t lose to a girl at all. Even with his commoner’s clothing, his outstanding appearance could easily draw the eyes of others.

His father was a middle aged man who shared a similar appearance. He had a medium build and an average height, everything about him was just average.

“Dad doesn’t know either. It all depends on luck.” His father released a gloomy sigh within his heart. Actually, the Awakening Day was a decisive day that decided one’s life and future. Whether or not someone had soul power would decide the trajectory of their life. Fortunately, in this era those who were unable to become Soul Masters were still able to have a pretty good future.

“I’ll definitely have soul power, right?” The pretty young boy’s eyes were filled with hope.

His father patted his head and smiled. “Regardless of whether or not you have soul power, dad will always love you.”

There was an unceasing torrent of parents and children passing as they exited the academy. The overwhelming majority of them all left with sighs of disappointment, but occasionally one of them would be overjoyed. There was no need to ask why; their martial soul must have given birth to soul power. This immediately attracted the envious and jealous gazes of others.

As time passed, the sun’s radiance intensified, while the pretty young boy’s previous enthusiasm continued to wane.

“Tang Wulin!” A teacher walked out from the Red Mountain Academy with a list in hand, calling out the next name.

“I’m here!” With wide eyes, the pretty boy jumped up full of excitement.

Tang Ziran was also slightly startled as his excited son pulled him forward with his small hands.

“Follow me.” Perhaps it was due to the excessive workload on Awakening Day, but the teacher seemed somewhat apathetic as he quickly turned around and began walking ahead. Tang Ziran brought Tang Wulin and hastened to catch up with the teacher.

As they walked along the small path inside of the academy, Tang Wulin was excitedly taking everything in. It was just like he had said, everything was a novelty to him. Red Mountain Academy was an elementary grade comprehensive academy able to hold two thousand students. The buildings within the academy were all simple and unadorned with white roofs and red walls. The academy grounds were exceptionally clean. Awakening Day was right before the start of a new term. In comparison to the clamor outside of the walls, the academy seemed unusually peaceful. Tang Wulin’s excited heart seemed to have been calmed by this environment.

The teacher brought them to the front of a circular building before telling Tang Ziran, “Would the child’s parent please wait here for a moment?”

Tang Ziran nodded his head and told his son, “Listen to the teacher’s commands, and good luck son! Dad will be waiting right here for you.”

Tang Wulin rigorously nodded his head. “I’ll definitely have a powerful martial soul, dad!”

As he watched his son follow the teacher into the circular building, a trace of disappointment and frustration appeared within Tang Ziran’s eyes as he reminisced of the past. Every single elementary academy would have this circular building. It was called the Awakening Chamber, and it was specifically used to aid six year old children in the awakening of their martial soul. Before the day of the awakening ceremony, the academy would invite a Spirit Master from the Spirit Pagoda to conduct the awakening ceremony. Decades ago, he had the same hopes when he entered the Awakening Chamber.

There wasn’t just a single awakening area within the Awakening Chamber, rather there were seven floors and within each one was an Awakening Chamber. Tang Wulin was brought to the Awakening Chamber on the third floor.

As soon as he entered the Awakening Chamber, Tang Wulin was dazzled. All of the floors, the walls, and even the ceiling had wonderful inscriptions carved into them to create an elegant, decorative design.

Within the Awakening Chamber was a middle aged man wearing a simple orange robe, that featured the embroidered form of a soul beast.

Since childhood, Tang Wulin had loved to listen to his father’s stories and within those stories, Spirit Masters would always appear. These Spirit Masters from the Spirit Pagoda were powerful and mysterious existences. They were an exceptionally special group of Soul Masters and held an extremely majestic status on the Douluo Continent. However, this was the first time he had ever seen one.

“Hello.” Tang Wulin shyly replied.

The Soul Master wore a gentle smile on his face. “Come here child. Stand in the middle.”

Tang Wulin blinked for a moment before he cutely walked over and stood in the middle. He couldn’t help but ask, “Lord Spirit Master, what kind of martial soul will I have?”

The Spirit Master replied with a smile, “Ah, I don’t know either! After you’ve awakened, you’ll naturally be able to see what it is. Anyway your eyes are so pretty, it would be just perfect if you got a martial soul related to your eyes.”

Tang Wulin’s eyes shined. “Soul eyes? I heard that the first master of the Spirit Pagoda had spirit eyes….”

The Spirit Master interrupted him, “Quiet down. I’m about to begin.”

Tang Wulin stood nervously in the middle of the Awakening Chamber with his eyes darting all over the room, after all, he was only six years old. Without a parent accompanying him in this strange and exciting environment, how could his mind be serene?

Right at that moment, a gentle white light shone from the Spirit Master’s hands and attracted his attention.

That white light, could it be the fabled soul power that only Spirit Masters possess?

While under his astonished gaze, the Spirit Master raised his right arm slightly. The white light vibrated before flying off towards the sky and blossoming into fireworks that illuminated the Awakening Chamber with its splendor.

Starting from the ceiling, the inscription lines filled with light as it moved towards the walls. It was as if it possessed a strong and revitalizing energy, as well as a life of its own. The lines kept lighting up until they converged below Tang Wulin’s feet.

A comfortably numbing energy crept up his legs before entering his body from his heart. Tang Wulin’s body couldn’t help but tremble as he struggled to hold on. It felt as if his body was being electrocuted.

Everything blurred before his eyes, and an unclear image unceasingly flickered within his mind. He wanted a clear look at it, but he could only feel its flowing shadows. In the end, he was able to see it, but he couldn’t remember what it was.

From the view of the Spirit Master, Tang Wulin’s body was already being enveloped in the light, and in turn, was releasing its own light. Within this ancient traditional ceremony, his martial soul had been awakened.

“Ah——!” Tang Wulin suddenly screamed, causing the Spirit Master to jump in fright. An ordinary child usually wouldn’t feel too much during their Awakening, but an extremely low number of them would experience intense pain due to their weak bodies being unable to bear the energy.

The Spirit Master’s body disappeared in a flash and appeared in front of Tang Wulin. In case the situation truly did take a turn for the worse, he would immediately stop the ceremony and ensure Tang Wulin’s safety.

After he got close, he was astonished to see that some golden lines were flickering on Tang Wulin’s forehead. Afterwards, those golden lines began to spread to his four limbs, creating a network of golden lines.

What kind of martial soul was this? This Spirit Master was extremely experienced; he had awakened thousands and tens of thousands of children. Yet, this was the first time he had seen the situation that was occurring in Tang Wulin’s body.

A faint energy undulated as it was emitted from Tang Wulin’s body. This energy originated from his lower abdomen, the most common place for soul power to appear from. Although the energy was feeble, its existence was undoubtedly real.

The Spirit Master was pleasantly surprised, this was a martial soul with soul power! Most of the time, he could conduct the ceremony for days without encountering a child with soul power. It would seem that today’s luck was pretty good. The only question was: what was his martial soul?

The previous golden lines from before had already disappeared without a trace, as if they had never existed at all. Tang Wulin seemed to be enduring an immense pain as his eyes were tightly closed. He slowly raised his right arm.

The hollow of his palm faced upwards, and a pale blue light emitted from it. In his hands appeared a small light blue grass that quietly rotated and extended in his hand. With a delicate and soft sway, an exceptionally feeble energy fluctuated out.

“Bluesilver Grass?” The Spirit Master’s voice exuded disappointment, but it was once again substituted with amazement in a moment. He had seen the Bluesilver Grass martial soul so many times before, this was a completely ordinary martial soul! Bluesilver Grass was so common that it covered the whole Douluo Continent as well as the Star Luo Continent and Sky Dou Continent. Even the lawn of Red Mountain Academy was covered in Bluesilver Grass. How could this type of trash martial soul give birth to soul power?

So painful! It felt as if Tang Wulin’s body was being ripped to shreds.

His body became limp and numb to the point of being nearly comfortable, as that gentle energy continued to be poured into his body. However, an intense heat quickly bubbled forth from the hundreds of bones of his four limbs. The heat wrecked havoc on his body, making him feel like he had a bloated stomach that was about to burst. Under this pain, he was unable to breathe.

His whole body felt as if it was being ripped apart. Bone, muscle and flesh. There wasn’t a single aspect spared from the pain.

After what seemed like a very, very long time, this fit of pain gradually dissipated. Afterwards he felt a warm thread from the hollow of his palm, Tang Wulin opened his eyes.

A small light blue grass, verdant and lush, was undulating in the palm of his hand. ‘Bluesilver Grass?’

Although Tang Wulin was young, he clearly remembered what he was doing at that moment. Immediately after waking up to reality, he said, “Bluesilver Grass? This is my martial soul?”

Even though he hadn’t properly studied spirit beasts before, he still had some common knowledge. Naturally, he knew that Bluesilver Grass was a type of trash martial soul. Furthermore, it was the worst trash of them all.

“En. It is. This is your martial soul.” The Spirit Master said so with a smile, yet his eyes couldn’t help but reveal a trace of pity.

Possessing soul power was definitely a good thing, but if his martial soul was Bluesilver Grass…

Tang Wulin’s lips softly quivered, and an intense torrent of sadness attacked his tiny heart. After anticipating for so long, it turned out that he actually had a trash martial soul.

“Child, don’t be sad. You possess soul power.” The Spirit Master hastily said.

“I, I have soul power?” Tang Wulin met his words with a look of astonishment.

The Spirit Master nodded in response. “After I tested it, you actually have rank 3 innate soul power. Although it can’t be considered amazing, it still means that you possess soul power. As long as you put in great effort, then you will be able to become a Soul Master too!”

Tang Wulin foolishly stared. “But, but my martial soul is Bluesilver Grass…”

The Spirit Master laughed. “Have you ever heard the tale of the Tang Sect? The founding patriarch of the Tang Sect’s martial soul was actually the Bluesilver Grass! He relied on this martial soul that other deemed as trash to rebuke the Heavens and Earth and defeated the wicked Martial Soul Hall twenty thousand years ago.”

Tang Wulin blinked in surprise. How could he have never heard of the tale of the Tang Sect’s founding patriarch? After all, the legend of the almighty masters of the Tang Sect and Spirit Pagoda were the most widespread legends on the continent as well as the most universally appreciated.

“But wasn’t the Tang Sect’s founding patriarch’s martial soul the Bluesilver Emperor?” Tang Wulin earnestly asked.

“Eh…” The Spirit Master was somewhat embarrassed. Clearly, this little guy wasn’t so easy to fool. “The Bluesilver Emperor is the equivalent of an evolved Bluesilver Grass. If you wish to become a Soul Master, then you must put in your greatest effort.”

Tang Wulin bit his lip. “Thank you, Lord Spirit Master.”