Capital of the Heavenly Soul Empire — Heaven Dou City, Heaven Dou Plaza.
Today marked the grand finals of the Continental Advanced Spirit Master Academy Soul Tournament.
It was Shrek Academy facing off against the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy.
Heaven Dou Plaza was packed to capacity, a sea of tens of thousands of spectators eagerly awaiting the battle.
Up in the imperial stands, the Emperor of the Heavenly Soul Empire and the high officials sat watching. For them, this once-every-five-years tournament was not only a spectacle, but also a chance to measure the younger generation — to see whether Shrek Academy was fading, and whether the Sun Moon Empire's soul tool technology had become even more terrifying.
As the anticipation of the crowd grew…
In the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy's resting area, the air was heavy. Every competitor sat with heads lowered, deep in thought about how they could defeat Shrek Academy.
Even their supervising teachers, Elder Zhang and Elder Ma, both Rank 8 Soul Engineers, felt helpless.
The reason was simple: among Shrek's competitors was a girl named Zhang Lexuan, whose strength was monstrous, completely above her peers.
Her cultivation was already half a step from the Soul Sage realm, and she had mastered extremely advanced combat techniques. More than once during the earlier rounds, she had single-handedly defeated entire teams.
Facing such an opponent, the Sun Moon team was naturally under immense pressure.
Exchanging glances, Elder Zhang and Elder Ma decided they had to ease their students' burden. Pressure could be good, but too much of it would only harm their performance.
After all, even if they lost, it wasn't the end of the world. For generations, the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy had always come in second place.
What was another second place? As long as they secured the runner-up spot, no one would criticize them.
Elder Ma cleared his throat, his tone sharp as he addressed the team:
Enough. The finals are about to begin. Sit up straight! What kind of attitude is this, slumping like beaten dogs?
Yes, Elder Ma! The students straightened at once, their spirits visibly lifted.
Elder Zhang added encouragingly, "You are all outstanding talents of the Sun Moon Empire. In today's match against Shrek Academy, just do your best.
Take the opportunity to experience battle, learn from it, and go further on your path as Soul Engineers. I believe one day, our Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy will defeat Shrek Academy!"
While their teachers tried to rally them…
In the front-row luxury seats of the audience, a young boy sat quietly, guarded by escorts. He wore a dark black robe, fingers idly rubbing the sapphire soul tool ring on his hand as he waited for the finals to begin.
The boy was not yet twelve years old, standing at 1.68 meters. His short black hair framed sharp brows and deep black eyes. His features, though still youthful, were strikingly handsome: a high forehead, well-shaped brows and cheekbones, a straight nose, a defined jawline, and skin smooth and pale.
His appearance drew constant side glances from noble young ladies nearby.
Some of the noble girls from the Sun Moon Empire even recognized him. They gathered together, whispering excitedly:
"I saw him once at a banquet — he's Wang Chen of the Marquis Wang clan."
"They say Miss Meng Hongchen of the Red Dust family is very close to him. Look at his nose, so high… his skin's so fair…"
"Strange though. The Wang clan's clan tournament is about to begin — to select the most outstanding youths for special cultivation. Why is he here in the Heavenly Soul Empire, instead of preparing?"
"Maybe he's already given up. Among his cousins are three older geniuses. The strongest, Wang Teng, has already reached the third ring, a Soul Sovereign, and is even a Rank 3 Soul Engineer.
Wang Chen's still just a Grandmaster at best. How could he possibly compete with Wang Teng?"
"So unfair… poor Wang Chen… I just want to hug him tight and comfort him…"
"Save it. He's still the Marquis's great-grandson. He doesn't need your pity — much less your hugs.
Besides, Miss Meng Hongchen is leagues above you. Not only is she beautiful and talented, but her grandfather is a Rank 9 Soul Engineer, the Dean of the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, Head of Mingde Hall, and a Duke."
"Ugh! You're so mean! Always crushing my dreams! I'm not talking to you anymore!!"
"…"
Through it all, Wang Chen sat calm and unbothered, as if the whispers weren't about him.
In truth, Wang Chen was no ordinary boy. He had once been a university student on Blue Star before transmigrating into the Douluo Continent, born into the Wang clan of the Sun Moon Empire's Marquis household.
The Wang clan was a vast family, well-known even in Mingdu. The clan head, Wang Chen's great-grandfather Wang Yan, the current Marquis, was an 89th-rank powerhouse — second only to the rare Rank 9 Soul Engineers of the empire.
But Wang Yan in his youth had been… less than restrained. With many wives and concubines, he had sired seven sons. Those sons in turn had their own children, and with cousins upon cousins, by Wang Chen's generation, the clan had grown into the hundreds.
Even with the Marquis household's resources, it was impossible to cultivate everyone. Only those with exceptional talent were given priority, while the rest received only average support.
Thus, competition among the younger generation was fierce.
Fortunately, Wang Chen's talent was outstanding.
At six years old, when he awakened his Martial Spirit, it was revealed to be an Artifact Spirit, with innate soul power of rank nine.
The Artifact Spirit was a rare and powerful martial spirit, capable of enhancing soul tools — making them even deadlier.
Soul tools were already formidable; with an Artifact Spirit's amplification, their power became terrifying, like a tiger with wings.
What's more, Wang Chen's Artifact Spirit could not only amplify his own soul tools, but also those of others. It could even enhance mundane items like ordinary swords or iron knives — though such weak weapons were hardly worth the effort.
Because of this, Artifact Spirits were considered among the very best martial spirits for Soul Engineers, rivaling spiritual-type spirits in value.
With his Artifact Spirit and rank-nine innate soul power, Wang Chen stood at the very top of his generation within the Wang clan, rivaled by only a handful.
Now, at only eleven years old, his cultivation had already reached rank 28. Before turning twelve, he would surely break through to rank 30, becoming a Soul Sovereign.
As for innate full soul power? The Wang clan had never seen such a genius in its entire history. That level of talent required a supreme martial spirit — far beyond their family's bloodline.
For Wang Chen to achieve even rank nine, innate power was already extraordinary.
It was for this reason that Wang Chen had traveled from the Sun Moon Empire's capital all the way to Heaven Dou City to watch the tournament.
Fingering the sapphire soul tool ring gifted to him by his "little rich girl," Meng Hongchen, Wang Chen thought to himself:
According to the original story, Zhang Lexuan will crush her opponents like falling leaves in the wind. But I hope the Sun Moon Academy team puts up some resistance… enough to force her to reveal her combat techniques and secret skills. Otherwise, if she doesn't use them, I won't be able to record them in the Black Book to learn.
As his thoughts stirred, deep within Wang Chen's soul, a tattered black book slowly opened…
This Black Book was the very cheat that had brought Wang Chen to the Douluo Continent. But the transmigration had damaged it severely; many of its functions were lost.
Only its most basic ability remained: recording.
Any skill Wang Chen witnessed would be recorded in the Black Book, allowing him to learn it.
Of course, whether he could actually use the skill depended on whether he met its requirements.
For instance, if he recorded a Soul Bone ability but didn't possess that Soul Bone, he could never activate it — no matter how well he memorized the technique.
The Black Book couldn't create something from nothing. It wasn't omnipotent.
Still, this recording ability was enough.
And so, Wang Chen had come here to watch the tournament.
As noble girls whispered and time passed, the finals of the Continental Advanced Spirit Master Academy Tournament at last began!
On the battle platform
Zhang Lexuan stood proudly, clad in Shrek Academy's dark green uniform. Her beauty was radiant, her figure elegant, her posture unshakable.
Her opponent was a tall, broad man in full soul tool armor: Li Li.
His armor greatly boosted both offense and defense by consuming soul power. With it, his combat ability rose by at least fifty percent.
For Soul Engineers, soul power was ammunition, and soul tools were weapons. Equipment quality made all the difference.
In the stands, tens of thousands of spectators rose to their feet, chanting madly:
Zhang Lexuan! Zhang Lexuan!
Victory!
Shrek is invincible!
Defeat the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy!
The roars merged into a tidal wave of sound, crashing over Heaven Dou Plaza.