Hey!
Have you ever felt despair?
No matter what I do, I cannot change the despair of my fate.
You may want to defy fate, but fate has no power over you.
You may want to accept your fate, but fate won't accept you.
It seems full of choices and hope, but fate, full of malice, has already predetermined everything from the very beginning.
My fate is not in my own hands, but in the hands of that day…
Boom!!
The decisive battle at Jialing Pass.
A series of deafening explosions resounded in the sky at an altitude of ten thousand meters. The battlefield of those awe-inspiring god-level powerhouses created a tremendous spectacle that could be witnessed by all living beings within a radius of a hundred miles.
However, this epic battle eventually came to an end.
The figure high in the sky, which suddenly turned from azure to blood red, finally defeated the two gods of purple and gold.
"I refuse to accept this! I refuse to accept this!"
Outside the military tent of the Spirit Empire army, a black-haired youth looked at the defeated Angel God and Rakshasa God in the sky and let out a roar of unwillingness!
Our Spirit Hall was already certain of victory, so why did we lose?!
Tang San, the Sea God, had clearly been killed, so why was he able to return?
How could he possibly win?!
These heartfelt questions reveal an untold amount of helplessness and resentment.
"As expected, he truly lives up to his reputation as Tang San..."
Knowing that the outcome of the battle was decided, Hu Liena clenched her trembling hands. Although she saw her beloved mentor, the Rakshasa God Bibi Dong, who was like a mother to her, being severely injured and dying, and she was in great pain, she could not feel hatred for that man. She only felt ashamed and regretful.
After all, this man is a prodigy who leaves all other geniuses far behind; he is the true and only protagonist of the Douluo Continent.
I originally intended to compete with her, but in the end I even developed feelings for her. Now it seems that I am nothing but a joke.
Then, Hu Liena, controlling her emotions, addressed the soldiers of the Spirit Empire in the command camp:
"Pass down the order: our army shall lay down its weapons and send envoys to surrender to the Heavenly Dou Empire."
However, the black-haired youth outside the tent immediately returned inside, took two steps forward, knelt on one knee before Hu Liena, and stared at her with bloodshot eyes, saying:
"Your Highness! We still have an army of 100,000 and several Title Douluos. The empire's lifespan is not over yet. We can still fight!"
World War I?
Hu Liena scoffed, shook her head, turned and looked up at the angel statue, saying:
"Both gods have been defeated, and the Spirit Empire is doomed. We are all just mortals; let's not make any more pointless sacrifices."
Then she glanced at the dark-haired youth out of the corner of her eye and gave him the order:
"Zhang San, I hereby order you to represent our army in negotiations with the Emperor of Tiandou."
The young man kneeling on the ground coldly replied, "I will not surrender."
"What?"
Hu Liena was immediately startled. Zhang San, who always followed her orders, had actually defied her commands today.
"I will never admit defeat to Tang San!"
The cold-faced, black-haired youth stood up. He first glanced at Hu Liena, who was staring at him with a mixture of surprise and doubt, and then turned his gaze to the other elders and generals of the Martial Soul Empire who were also looking at him with astonishment. His once humble eyes were now filled with contempt.
Hu Liena angrily shouted, "Zhang San! Are you trying to rebel?!"
"Well?!"
However, Zhang San then did something that surprised Hu Liena even more. He lit up his spirit rings, and five spirit rings appeared behind him: yellow, yellow, purple, purple, and black.
"You audacious scoundrel! How dare you disrespect the Holy Maiden?!"
The other elders and generals of the Spirit Empire were immediately enraged. Almost none of the spirit rings they displayed behind them were below the fifth ring level, and there was even a titled Douluo with a ninth ring.
However, Zhang San did not look at them, as if the suffocating pressure emanating from these powerful figures did not exist.
"Ghost Dragon, possess me!"
Zhang San shouted and unleashed his martial spirit. A pair of ugly, bumpy black wings appeared behind him, while sharp claws appeared on his hands and feet.
Daring to display their martial spirit within the commander's camp is clearly an act of rebellion.
"court death!"
Just as everyone was about to make a move against Zhang San, Zhang San flapped his wings and flew up into the clouds.
The titled Douluo immediately asked Hu Liena for instructions: "Holy Maiden, that madman is trying to escape! Should we give chase?"
"No, he's not escaping, his purpose is..."
Hu Liena stared at the young man she had never paid any attention to before, and realized that he was facing the battlefield of those god-level powerhouses.
"Has he gone mad?!"
"Tang San! I will fight you to the death!"
A voice filled with anger and resentment suddenly burst into the already settled battlefield where three god-level powerhouses had just emerged.
Whether it was Tang San, who already possessed the power of both the Sea God and the Asura God, or Bibi Dong, who was on the verge of death, or Qian Renxue, whose divine essence was shattered, they all turned their surprised gazes toward the lowly and unknown Soul King.
"This guy? Is he looking for death?"
With victory secured and Tang San ready to withdraw and negotiate with Bibi Dong and Qian Renxue, he frowned as he looked at the ant-like figure.
"Fine, I'll grant your wish."
Tang San, clad in blood-red Asura Armor, moved his divine sense, and the Asura Demon Sword in his hand unleashed a blood-red sword aura that slashed towards the Soul King.
Faced with this divine strike that could annihilate him, Zhang San tried to dodge, but he was already locked onto by Tang San's divine sense and could not evade the attack.
That's all...
Is this all I can do?
Zhang San sighed softly to himself, gave up the futile struggle, and closed his eyes.
At the same time, he thought to himself with a wry smile:
In the end, do I not even have a chance to hurt him?
Despite his resentment and unwillingness, Zhang San was still inevitably slashed across the body by the Asura Sword Qi. Immediately afterwards, Zhang San's consciousness blurred, and he could no longer feel the existence of his body, so he thought he must be dead.
At this moment, Zhang San suddenly felt a large number of unfamiliar memories flooding into his mind.
"Run! Don't worry about me!"
"No! We're brothers! We're comrades! I'll definitely get you out of here!"
"You shouldn't interfere with me..."
"I'm the king of soldiers you all talk about!"
"Believe me, I won't die. You all should leave now!"
Could this be another one of my past lives?
A series of inexplicable and nonsensical conversations appeared in Zhang San's mind. Zhang San could not understand this inexplicable memory, nor did he know what the so-called "King of Soldiers" meant, but he was not surprised by his situation.
Zhang San was not just an ordinary deacon of the Spirit Hall. Many years ago, he had fully awakened his past life memories. In those memories, he was an outer disciple of a place called the Tang Sect of Mount Shu, and he had a child named Tang San by his side.
Long ago, Zhang San had already determined that the Sea God Tang San who now roams the Douluo Continent was undoubtedly that same Tang San.
[Congratulations, host! You have awakened the Resentment Collection System!]
"Wh...what?"
This surprised Zhang San greatly; why was this strange voice appearing in his head?
This is a system where you exchange resentment for various items. As long as you collect enough resentment, you can exchange it for substantial and abundant rewards.
"ha?"
Zhang San frowned. Even though this thing that called itself a "system" had provided an explanation, he still didn't quite understand the situation.
Zhang San opened his eyes and carefully looked around. He found that it was a simple and dark room, and he was lying on a hard bed.
This place felt strangely familiar to Zhang San. Although he couldn't remember where it was, he knew that this was definitely not the underworld.
Logically speaking, the Asura sword energy should have already torn him to pieces, and he should have no chance of survival.
After all, that was a strike from a god-level expert. Even if it was just a casual move, Zhang San knew in his heart whether he could withstand it.
Was he rescued at that moment?
[Since you died with immense resentment, in addition to your initial 500 points, you will now receive an additional 16,000 Resentment Points. Please choose which reward to redeem.]
After the system finished speaking, a long list of exchangeable items appeared in front of Zhang San, arranged in a pagoda shape according to different colors: white, blue, purple, gold, and red.
Zhang San temporarily ignored the dazzling array of panels and instead asked the thing in his head:
So, I'm dead?
Yes, you are dead, but your resentment before death drew me here. Through the power of the Most High, you have now been reborn.
The system answered Zhang San's question in a completely emotionless female voice, and then repeated:
[You now have 16,500 resentment points. Please redeem your reward.]
"Huh? Are these items arranged by quality?"
Zhang San found these colors somewhat familiar, somewhat similar to the colors of the year and quality of the Soul Rings, but not entirely. Moreover, the lower the level of the item, the fewer points it required to display, and the more common the item was.
[That's right, Master. White items are common and unremarkable, with low value and requiring the fewest points to exchange. Blue items are of superior quality, more valuable than white items, but still just slightly better common items. Purple items are rare, requiring a certain price and luck to obtain. Gold items are legendary, extremely rare, obtainable only by a very few people with exceptional luck. Red items are divine, generally possessed only by god-level powerhouses or miraculous creations.]
While listening to the system's explanation, Zhang San reviewed the entire redemption list.
The white exchange list contains a wide variety of items, including even unfamiliar things like pots, pans, and twigs. Of course, you can also exchange them for money; one gold soul coin costs only 20 points, and the higher the item is listed, the more valuable it becomes.
Various rare and precious materials, secret manuals and elixirs that were difficult for the Spirit Hall to obtain began to appear after the Purple level, and among the highest-level God-level items, divine artifacts such as the Trident of the Sea God, the Asura Demon Sword, the Angel Holy Sword, and the Rakshasa Demon Scythe were prominently listed.
Furthermore, there was an item labeled "nuclear bomb," but the exchange required many zeros after the number of points, making it clear that it was not something that could be afforded at this stage.
"System, are you kidding me that I can exchange for these divine artifacts? And what's that thing with 'nuclear bomb' written on it? Why is it considered a divine artifact? Is it guaranteed to be cooked?"
Zhang San was deeply skeptical. He had personally witnessed the earth-shattering power of those god-level experts using these weapons. While these weapons were indeed powerful, they were weapons that belonged exclusively to the gods. How could he possibly exchange for them in this unknown system?
And that "nuclear bomb"—he'd never even heard of it. It was round and round; how could it be a magical weapon?
This system originates from the Absolute Will, and its reliability is guaranteed by the reputation of the Supreme Being. All items displayed within are redeemable. As long as you accumulate enough points, you can choose from a variety of items, including divine artifacts, soul bones, 100,000-year-old, and million-year-old soul rings—anything on the redemption list. Of course, this includes not only items from the Douluo Continent but also various items from other worlds.
Zhang San, who was still pondering other questions, frowned and asked:
"The Supreme Being? What is that?"
No comment.
The system, which had always been able to answer every question, surprisingly refused to answer this one.
"Fine! I'm not interested anyway, but is it true that you can exchange for spirit rings and spirit bones?"
Although Zhang San was somewhat surprised, he didn't care. As long as this so-called resentment system could provide the good things it promised, he didn't care who it came from.
Can things like soul rings and soul bones really be exchanged?
Needless to say, soul bones are extremely rare. They greatly enhance the strength of soul masters, and each one is priceless. The title of "treasure of the Blood River" is well-deserved.
As for spirit rings, those are things you can only get by killing spirit beasts. They're not something that can be packaged up and traded. Could this system possibly distort the rules of this world?
Once you complete your Martial Soul Awakening, you will be able to unlock the exchange of these items.
"Um?"
Zhang San found it strange when he heard this, wondering when he, a dignified Soul King, had not even awakened his Martial Soul.
Then Zhang San looked down and found that his hands were small and delicate, and his body was the same, so small that when he sat on the edge of the bed, the soles of his legs could not reach the ground.
"What's wrong with me? How did I turn into a child?"
Zhang San remained calm despite the situation, having already died multiple times; even if the sky were to fall, he wouldn't lose his composure.
[You have been reborn into a previous timeline. You are now six years old and an orphan adopted by the Spirit Hall. In three hours, the Spirit Hall will send an officer to conduct the Spirit Awakening ceremony for you and other children of the same age.]
It turned out this was his old room; no wonder it looked familiar.
Zhang San raised an eyebrow and asked:
"So, Tang San hasn't been born yet?"
[That's right. Tang San, the Sea God who killed you in the previous timeline, hasn't been born yet, and it will be another seven years and three months before a Spirit Hall deacon comes to Holy Soul Village to perform his Spirit Awakening Ceremony.]
"Tang San, the Sea God... seven years and three months..."
After muttering to himself for a while, Zhang San suddenly said in a sharp voice:
"System! Exchange one hundred gold soul coins for me now!"
[Are you sure you want to spend 2000 Resentment Points to get 100 Gold Soul Coins?]
"Sure!"
[Ding! Exchange complete! You have 14,500 points remaining!]
A neatly arranged pile of gleaming gold soul coins suddenly appeared on Zhang San's bed.
Every ten first bases, and here there are ten first bases, which is exactly one hundred gold soul coins.
The money that appeared out of nowhere didn't seem like an illusion at first glance. To confirm, Zhang San reached out and grabbed a handful of the brand-new, shiny gold soul coins.
The feel and weight didn't seem like they were fake. To be on the safe side, he picked a few and bit them, leaving his teeth marks on the coins to confirm that they were genuine Gold Soul Coins.
Looking at the gold soul coins in his hand and on the bed, Zhang San couldn't help but smile. He lay down on the bed and started dropping the gold soul coins one by one onto his face, letting these hard and heavy coins hit his face.
It really hurt.
This proves he wasn't dreaming.
"Ha ha ha ha..."
Zhang San laughed. He went from a slight smile to a loud laugh and then to hysterical laughter, laughing until his lungs started to ache.
[Master, your mental state is currently unstable. Would you like to exchange for a "Mind-Stabilizing Pill"?]
"No need, I'm very calm."
Zhang San stopped laughing and said in a hoarse voice:
"I'm just very happy, to be precise, extremely happy."
Even without this resentment system's help, he would never have given Tang San another chance to become a dragon or a phoenix, even if he returned with the memories of his three previous lives.
Now that he has this system, which is essentially cheating, he is even more powerful.
"Tang...San..."
When Zhang San said the name that differed from his own by only one character, his teeth were already grinding together.
"I will make you feel the pain I felt back then, I will make you understand what despair is."
"I will show the world what 'Zhang San's comeback' really means!!"
(End of chapter)