"Oh, oh, oh!"Pretending to be clueless, Zhu Wu quickly placed his hand on the crystal ball. The moment he did, a powerful suction surged from beneath his palm, drawing out the warmth within his body. It rushed along his arm and poured into the crystal ball.
In just a blink, the crystal ball began to glow brightly.
"Level 6 soul power?! How is that possible?"
Su Yuntao was stunned.
Level 6. When I awakened that silkworm martial soul just now, I clearly saw only six abdominal segments…Having read the original novel, Zhu Wu, who was familiar with the categorization of innate soul power, didn't feel particularly excited about his level 6 awakening. Instead, he grew cautious and began to recall the earlier scene.
Su Yuntao's interruption had prevented him from observing closely, but the initial image of the martial soul still lingered clearly in his mind.
Although the martial soul was small, he had seen it up close.
Everyone knows that a typical silkworm has ten abdominal segments. Having only six was obviously unusual.
Could this mean my martial soul has a natural limit—only capable of cultivation up to the Soul Emperor level?He thought of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, which capped its cultivation at the Soul Sage level due to its seven floors.
The possibility weighed on him. Martial soul limitations were definitely not good news.
"Big brother, is level 6 really high?"Collecting himself, Zhu Wu scratched his head and asked with an innocent look.
Su Yuntao snapped out of his thoughts and studied Zhu Wu, nodding with a trace of pity.
"Very high. In my experience, those with a domesticated silkworm martial soul rarely awaken any soul power at all. Even when they do, it's never above level 1. Around here in the towns near Nuoding City, the last time someone awakened with even 1 level of soul power from a silkworm martial soul was over twenty years ago."
"She was a very beautiful girl. We even attended Nuoding Academy together."
If only I hadn't been so young and naive back then—should've gone after her!
Come to think of it, this child in front of me kind of looks like her...Su Yuntao's eyes flickered with a hint of nostalgia before he shook his head lightly.
Why am I telling this to a kid?
Sigh. "What a pity. Such high innate soul power wasted on one of the weakest beast-type martial souls. If it had been a mantis or a hornet—at least something with offensive potential—it would've been a different story. Then I could have..."He sighed again, then suddenly turned serious.
"Little one, would you like to join the Spirit Hall?"
Even if the martial soul is weak, innate level 6 soul power is still very rare!
"Ah?"Zhu Wu blinked at the sudden offer, then shook his head.
"Big brother, I don't think I can. I heard from folks in Nuoding City that joining the Spirit Hall means going far away for school. Right now, it's just my grandfather and me at home. He's already 71, and he has trouble moving around. I need to stay nearby to look after him."
So... is there an option to relocate the family?
If yes, then joining Spirit Hall wouldn't be a bad idea. It's not like I awakened the high-profile Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon martial soul, so I wouldn't attract too much attention. Stay low, stay alive—that's the plan.
Of course, as a transmigrator, having a defective martial soul almost guarantees I'll stir up trouble eventually.
You're forcing me to hunt immortal herbs, huh?
"I see."Su Yuntao's expression softened a little. "In that case, I won't push. You can start out at Nuoding Academy as a working student."
"If you ever change your mind and want to join the Spirit Hall, come find me at the Nuoding City branch."
"Mm-hmm, thank you, big brother!" Zhu Wu nodded repeatedly.
Suddenly, an idea popped into his mind.
"Big brother, can I ask—what was the name of that pretty girl who awakened a silkworm martial soul and had 1 level of soul power? What village was she from? And do you know what soul beast her first soul ring came from?"
"Since I also awakened a silkworm martial soul, I want to learn from her experience."
"You're a clever one."Su Yuntao looked a little surprised. He assumed the boy thought that the girl had also joined the Spirit Hall and must have left behind some knowledge worth referencing.
"Her name was Bai Jin'er. She was from Sangshu Village, north of Nuoding City. Her first soul ring came from a ten-year-long-legged spider. The soul skill was called 'Silk Spit'—it allowed her to shoot spider silk up to ten meters."
He explained in detail, then sighed and said darkly, "But from what I know, she died six years ago during childbirth. That's also why I can share this information now."
"Little one, remember—never casually ask others about their soul skills. It's a major taboo among soul masters."
Died in childbirth… Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan really knows how to tie up loose ends.Zhu Wu's heart sank. He remained calm on the outside and gave a polite nod.
"Thank you, big brother. I'll remember."
"Alright then, step aside. I need to awaken the others."Su Yuntao waved him off.
"Okay."Zhu Wu gave a slight bow and quickly left the formation.
In the back of the line, Tang San was quietly observing with a thoughtful expression.
Soul rings and soul skills, huh... sounds interesting.
The awakening ceremony continued.
Soon, Su Yuntao's shocked voice rang through the room.
"My god! Innate full soul power!"
"Uncle, what's innate full soul power?" Tang San asked.
Su Yuntao snapped out of his daze and began explaining.
Zhu Wu listened quietly, but his thoughts drifted elsewhere.
A martial soul of top-tier quality—comparable to the Clear Sky Hammer—and possessing a life-type domain ability, the Blue Silver Emperor was mistakenly trained by "theory master" Yu Xiaogang as if it were an ordinary Blue Silver Grass.
He absorbed beast-type soul rings, which gave his skills poison attributes—yet somehow, he never actually poisoned anyone. His web-binding skill failed multiple times, and he was constantly getting countered by other prodigies. When that failed, he fell back on the Clear Sky Hammer without rings, or relied on past-life martial arts and hidden weapons.
If it weren't for immortal herbs and bloodline awakening that allowed the Blue Silver Grass to evolve, that martial soul would've stayed trash-tier.
Even after evolving, it was mostly just a bridge to stronger soul rings for his Clear Sky Hammer… which he barely used later anyway.
With god-tier weapons in hand, who needs a martial soul?Everything I have now, I earned through hardship... Yeah right, it was all cheat codes!
Still... cheat codes are great. I want some too!
So, where's my system?
Hey, System, hurry up and pick this handsome guy right here!
If the system didn't choose me, that's definitely its poor taste...Zhu Wu muttered internally.
Meanwhile, Su Yuntao had picked up his bag and was heading out. Zhu Wu immediately followed.
Father had a decent Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon martial soul, yet I awakened the weaker maternal silkworm soul. This is clearly a regression. But having level 6 innate soul power? That's surprising.
He couldn't wait to get home and investigate further.
Outside, Old Jack hurried up, his face anxious.
"Master, how did it go?"
"There were two with soul power." Su Yuntao sighed. "One with level 6, the other with innate full soul power. But sadly, the martial souls are a silkworm and blue silver grass."
"You know what that means."
Old Jack's eyes widened.
Su Yuntao handed him two certificates. "Here are their documents."
"Originally, your village only had one spot for a working student, but I promised earlier that Zhu Wu could attend as one. I didn't expect Tang San would also awaken soul power afterward."
"That was my oversight. So I'm approving one extra spot for your village this year."
The last six villages I visited didn't produce a single soul master, so reallocating one extra spot won't be an issue.Besides, a level 6 and a full innate—reporting that to Lord Matthew Nuo shouldn't get me in trouble.
"Thank you, thank you, Master!"Old Jack bowed repeatedly.
"By the way, Master," he asked cautiously, "is there no way to train those martial souls?"
"If they have soul power, they can definitely train," Su Yuntao replied. "But as far as I know, no one with those two martial souls has ever reached Grand Soul Master level. There's no path to follow. And frankly, they're just not that useful. Even if they become soul masters, they'll be useless ones."
"A pity, truly."He shook his head and turned to leave.
"I've got other villages to visit. Farewell."
Watching him go, Old Jack sighed.
"Grandpa Jack, if there's nothing else, I'll head home now." Zhu Wu stepped up.
He was eager to study his martial soul.
Old Jack turned and gave them a warm look.
"Little Wu, Little San, don't overthink it. Having soul power already puts you ahead. Your high innate power means you'll definitely become soul masters one day. That's every commoner's dream. When you enter the academy, study hard and bring honor to our village."
"I will, Grandpa Jack!" Zhu Wu said immediately.
"I'll have to ask my dad about it first," Tang San added.
Old Jack frowned, thinking of Tang Hao's usual behavior, then nodded. "I'll go with you and explain things to him."
He turned to Zhu Wu. "Little Wu, I'll visit your grandfather later. I'll keep your Spirit Hall certificate until school starts—then I'll take both of you there myself."
"Alright," Zhu Wu nodded. "Bye, Grandpa Jack!" He turned and ran toward home.
"Grandpa Jack, what's a soul ring? And how do you get one?" Tang San asked suddenly.
[…]
End of Chapter
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