Chapter 1: Soul Awakening
Douluo Continent, Tiandou Empire, Shuofeng City, Qinghe Village.
Spring has arrived, bringing life back to life, and it's time for the annual Soul Awakening.
"Hoe, Innate Soul Power Level 0, I'm sorry you can't become a Soul Master."
"Rag, Innate Soul Power Level 0..."
"Blue Silver Grass, Innate Soul Power Level 0..."
As one child after another returned dejected, a young boy in the crowd couldn't help but grow nervous. His eyes were bright, and his eyebrows were a pair of heroic swords.
He wasn't from this world, but a reincarnation. Abandoned by his parents in this life, he was fortunately picked up by the old village chief.
The old village chief's surname was Gu, so he also had the surname Gu in this life: Gu Han, a rather ordinary name.
"Next."
Soon, Gu Han's name was called for Soul Awakening.
Hearing the call from the soul responsible for this awakening, Gu Han obediently stepped into the center of the six awakening stones.
"Close your eyes, feel the changes in your spirit power, then open your right hand."
Spirit Hall official Lu Rentao possessed two spirit rings, one white and one yellow. As his spirit power drew upon them, Gu Han felt something within him about to burst forth.
Unlike Tang San, whose awakening filled the room with golden light, his awakening was quite ordinary. When he opened his hand, a longsword shone through, emanating a deep blue.
At the same time, an unnamed manual suddenly appeared in his mind. Simply by closing his eyes and calming his mind, he could read the contents of the book.
Moreover, the book was truly remarkable. Gu Han hadn't systematically studied the meridians or breathing techniques, yet upon seeing the book, he was able to understand it and practice it effortlessly according to the instructions.
After a few attempts, his spirit power, as expected, circulated through the various meridians in his body, ultimately returning to his lower dantian, as indicated in the book.
"It's a sword, a decent weapon spirit. Let's test your spirit power."
Seeing the longsword in Gu Han's hand, Lu Rentao's heart raced. Perhaps this year, he'd discover a spirit master, adding to his achievements.
For each spirit master discovered, the officer in charge of awakening would receive a corresponding bonus and merit.
With this thought, Lu Rentao produced a crystal ball.
"Here, child, place your hand on it and send your spirit power into it."
"Okay."
Gu Han nodded and placed his hand on the crystal ball, which then illuminated with a faint blue light, filling half the crystal.
"Innate Spirit Power Level Five!"
Lu Rentao's eyes widened in surprise. He hadn't expected to discover a genius. This one had the potential to become a Soul King. With hard work, he might even become a Soul Emperor.
If he could recruit him into the Spirit Hall, he might even reach even higher heights.
Thinking of this, Lu Rentao squatted down and sincerely extended his hand. "Child, congratulations! You can become an excellent spirit master. Our Spirit Hall has the best resources and teachers in the entire continent. Would you like to join the Spirit Hall?"
"I want to ask the village chief,"
Gu Han didn't respond directly. However, even if he joined the Spirit Hall, it wouldn't be a big deal. After of getting to know him, he knew that the Spirit Hall Pope at that time was still Qian Xunji, and he had only ascended the throne a few years ago.
In other words, it was still very early in the original plot, so it wouldn't be a big deal for him to join the Spirit Hall.
Moreover, the Spirit Hall could indeed be of great help to him, a common spirit master. Furthermore, the Spirit Hall had helped him awaken his spirit, so he wouldn't be hostile even if he didn't join the Spirit Hall.
As for asking the village chief, it was mainly because he wanted to go to school locally before moving to a larger city.
"Okay, Old Gu is outside. I'll take you to see him."
Lu Rentao nodded. Gu Han happened to be the last child to awaken, and now that the matter was settled, he could ask Old Gu's opinion.
"Alright, children, the spirit awakening ceremony is complete. Everyone, follow me."
Lu Rentao waved his hand and led a few children out of the village's spirit hall. Seeing them emerge, Village Chief Gu hurried forward and cautiously inquired.
"Master Spirit Master, has anyone awakened spirit power this year?"
"Of course, this child! He awakened an ice-attributed iron sword and possesses spirit power as high as level five innate."
Lu Rentao's demeanor brightened noticeably. He looked at Gu Han as if he saw a vision of his own future advancement.
"Xiaohan, I was right. You will truly become a spirit master!"
Village Chief Gu, upon hearing this, was instantly excited. Although he had only casually offered encouragement at the time and hadn't truly hoped this adopted child would awaken a spirit and become a spirit master, upon hearing the Master Spirit Master announce that Gu Han had awakened his spirit, his excitement shifted slightly.
"Grandpa, calm down. The Spirit Master needs to speak." Gu Han, feeling a bit overwhelmed by his grandfather's enthusiastic gaze, quickly changed the subject.
"Ahem, Old Gu, I invited this child to join the Spirit Hall earlier, and he said he wanted your opinion."
Lu Rentao then coughed lightly and got down to business.
"Yes, yes, of course I do. How could I not?"
Upon hearing this, Village Chief Gu nodded repeatedly. While the village had work-study spots, joining the Spirit Hall wouldn't require them. Not only would it save him a lot of tuition, but once Xiaohan reached level ten, the Spirit Hall's Spirit Masters would also help him hunt for spirit rings.
Such a good offer, there was no reason to refuse.
Gu Han didn't object. He had no aversion to the Spirit Hall, and with his current status, joining the Spirit Hall would be quite convenient for him.
He'd asked his grandfather's opinion primarily because he wanted to cheer the old man up and give him a sense of involvement.
"In that case, the Spirit Hall will cover the child's tuition and other living expenses from now on. Go back and pack up, and report to the Spirit Hall in Shuofeng City in a few days."
Seeing that things were going smoothly, Lu Rentao calmed down, though he couldn't hide his joy.
The main reason he couldn't do it today was because he still had many villages to awaken, and he didn't have time to return anytime soon.
So, he had to let him pack up and head into the city himself.
After all, the journey wasn't far, and an adult would be enough to accompany him. Village Chief Gu naturally nodded in agreement.
After respectfully seeing Lu Rentao off, he excitedly took Gu Han's hand and returned home.
Watching the old village chief rummaging through his belongings, Gu Han asked, somewhat puzzled, "Grandpa, what are you looking for?"
Old Gu didn't respond. Instead, he crouched under the bed, unrolled a small brick, and pulled out a wooden box.
"Grandpa, what's this?"
Gu Han asked, puzzled.
He pulled a cloth bag from the box, sat down at the wooden table, and opened it. Inside was a bag of gold soul coins and a white jade pendant, carved with an exquisite little sword, just like his martial spirit.
"Xiaohan, you know, you're my adopted child. These things were placed in your cradle. I've been keeping them for you, and now it's time to hand them over to you."
Old Gu took Gu Han's hand and placed the items in his.
Looking at the bag of gold soul coins and the white jade pendant, Gu Han placed the gold soul coins back on the table, holding the jade pendant, which might have been left by his parents in this life.
"Xiao Han, what's this?"
"Grandpa, keep this money. The villagers have been so kind to me over the years. You can use it to improve everyone's lives."
Gu Han took two steps back, summoned his spirit, the Mysterious Frost Sword, and feinted a few times before smiling.
"Besides, I'm going to be a spirit master in the future. This money will be child's play for me."
"You know that's in the future, kid. For now, keep this. It'll be convenient for you to buy things at school later."
Old Gu smiled and patted Gu Han's head.
Gu Han felt a slight warmth in his heart. To avoid disappointing the old man, he finally took five coins as a token.
"Grandpa, I don't need that much money. Five is more than enough."
"Ah, you kid..."
Old Gu sighed. This child had always been so sensible and sensible that it was heartbreaking. He knew her character, and seeing her attitude, he didn't insist. However, he still planned to give the money to Gu Han so that he could use it if he needed it.
"Grandpa, it's still early. I still have to finish my training today."
"Go ahead,"
Old Gu waved his hand.
He said he was going home to pack up, but in reality, he didn't have much to bring.
Gu Han had been running for a while every day since last year. While the results weren't great, it had made him stronger than the average child, making him less susceptible to illness.
After leaving home, Gu Han trotted to the stream at the village entrance and sat on the large rock where he often rested. He studied the nameless martial arts book in his mind.
Although he didn't know what it was, he was certain it wasn't from the Douluo Continent.
The descriptions of meridians and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth were completely foreign to the Douluo Continent.
Perhaps this was the so-called golden finger.
Following the book's instructions, Gu Han tried practicing the martial arts again.
Gradually, he felt a mystical energy from heaven and earth slowly flowing into his limbs and bones, flowing along his meridians and into his lower dantian.
The feeling was so exhilarating that for a moment Gu Han completely lost track of time. It wasn't until he heard the call from the old village chief, Gu, that he slowly emerged from this state. When he opened his eyes again, it was already dusk.
"Is it already so late?"
Gu Han shook his head. He'd only been sitting for a short while, but he hadn't expected it to stretch from noon to dusk.
"Xiao Han, stop sitting there! Go back and eat,"
Gu's voice echoed again.
"I understand, Grandpa."
Gu Han no longer cared about the matter, leaping off the boulder and following the old village chief home.
He couldn't confirm his own spirit power level, but in just this afternoon, his spirit power had increased significantly, and he could clearly sense that its purity was much stronger than before.
"It seems this technique not only accelerates cultivation, but also makes spirit power even more refined."
A hint of confidence curled Gu Han's lips at this thought. With this nameless technique, even if his innate spirit power was low, what did it matter? He could still become a Titled Douluo, or even a God.
Thinking of this, a sense of heroism rose in Gu Han's heart.
(End of this chapter)