Soutuo City
The gates of Soutuo City stood tall under the afternoon light, and amidst the bustling crowd, two twelve-year-old figures stepped through they were, Tang San and Xiao Wu.
To the travelers around them, they looked like any other young soul masters.But anyone who looked closer would notice—
Tang San's calm gaze carried a maturity far beyond his age, a steadiness earned through hidden hardships.
Beside him, Xiao Wu bounced on her steps like a sprite, her long legs moving with effortless grace, her pink outfit bright. Her hair, tied in a scorpion braid, swayed with every motion.
"Little San! Look! The city's so lively today!" Xiao Wu chirped, stretching her arms as if to embrace the whole marketplace.
Tang San nodded, but his smile did not reach his eyes.
He wasn't truly paying attention to the scenery.
His mind was fixated on one place— The Rose Hotel.
The place his memories said he would meet certain individuals… companions who would later be called "Shrek Seven Monsters."
He subconsciously quickened his pace.
But halfway through, his steps slowed again a memory —flashed across his expression as if trying to warn him something has changed.
----
2 years ago
Tang Hao— who had an sloppy and indifferent image in front Tang San—had suddenly rushed in a panic before Tang San had never seen before.
His father… had apologized.
"Little San… I'm… I'm sorry."Tang Hao's voice had trembled. "I wasn't able to keep your mother's relics safe."
Those words had been like a hammer blow.
Tang San had questioned him again and again, his calm façade cracking, his heart surging with dread.
And Tang Hao, a Titled Douluo… an iron-blooded man feared across the continent… had spoken with hollow, mechanical numbness:
"I hid your mother's relic… but someone stole it. I never even sensed them."
His father's eyes—always sharp, always fierce—had turned red, wet.
A grown man, a Titled Douluo trembled before him, unable to stop the tear sliding down his cheek.
Tang San's heart had frozen.
From Tang Hao's words he came to know that it was his mother's soul bone that got stolen.
It was the 100,000-year soul bone—a treasure of immeasurable value for any soul master.
Tang San had swallowed the fury twisting inside him. He stepped forward and held his father upright.
"Father," Tang San had said with a fierce determination he rarely displayed,"I am a twin martial soul master. I will grow stronger—fast. Strong enough to reclaim everything stolen from us."
His fists clenched so tight the knuckles turned white.
"Spirit Hall… and the unknown thief… no matter who they are, no matter what background they possess—I will make them pay."
Only after hearing those words did Tang Hao's broken spirit get steady again and found a bit of his spine returning.
----
Keeping the heavy thoughts buried in his chest, Tang San pushed open the door of the Rose Hotel.
He walked straight to the counter and asked calmly:
"Please provide two rooms."
The clerk—a young man with a face full of mischief—leaned forward, eyes drifting toward Xiao Wu. A teasing smile tugged at his lips.
"Ah… but there's only one room left."
Xiao Wu blinked innocently, but before Tang San could respond—
A lazy, arrogant voice cut through the air.
"That room," the voice declared, "I'll take it."
'He's here.' Tang San turned slowly.
Another person had entered the hotel a blond youth with broad shoulders and an aura of wild confidence. His sharp blue eyes held a faint cruelty, and both his arms were wrapped around two beautiful identical twins dressed in revealing clothes.
Dai Mubai's gaze swept over Tang San and Xiao Wu. His brows lifted.
"You!" he said sharply. "You want this room too?"
Tang San was about to say something, but Dai Mubai cut him off with a loud, domineering announcement:
"Let's fight. Winner gets the room."
The twins cheered softly, clinging closer to him.
The fight unfolded as in the original timeline—but stronger, fiercer.
Tang San, now rank 29, fought with a calm deadliness.
Dai Mubai, now rank 37—much stronger than in canon—was forced to reveal more of his power.
He roared:
"Third Soul Skill—White Tiger Vajra Transformation!"
His body swelled with muscle, white fur bristling, stripes glowing with golden light. Soul power surged like a tsunami.
Yet even facing such a transformation, Tang San did not falter.
Blue Silver Grass shot out like a net of steel wires, sharp as blades and controlled with precision. Tang San's movements learnt from Tang Sect were disciplined, his posture calm, every strike skilled.
In the end, Dai Mubai was forced to retreat a half-step—
Dai Mubai dismissed his transformation, panting slightly. A faint smile rose on his lips—a warrior's smile.
"You're strong," he admitted. "To make me use my third soul skill at rank 29… that's rare. I, Dai Mubai, acknowledge you."
Tang San nodded, expression calm.
The tension between them dissipated.
Dai Mubai turned to leave, waving lazily.
"Hey—Tang San, right? I'm a student of Shrek Academy. Join us. We could use someone like you."
Tang San nodded.
However he was more surprised that Dai Mubai had much higher cultivation than the time in his memories.
He had expected Dai Mubai to be slacking off for another year or two. Yet here he was—stronger than before.
'Level 37 already? Shouldn't he be lazy and fooling around these years?'
Tang San shook his head slowly.
'...It's good,' he thought aloud in his heart.'It's good this way, Zhuqing … wouldn't have to resent him so much after she comes here.'
-----