Chapter 1: Spirit City Orphanage, Martial Soul Awakening
Spirit City Orphanage.
The morning sun was rising, casting its rays upon the Martial Soul Awakening Hall.
Inside the hall, over a dozen children who had reached the age of six stood in a row.
They wore uniform grey orphanage robes, their youthful faces a mix of nervousness and anticipation.
Among these children, some were orphans of Spirit Hall Soul Masters, while others had been rescued by Spirit Hall enforcement teams from the hands of Fallen Spirit Masters.
Today was the day of their Martial Soul awakening, the moment the gears of fate began to turn.
If they awakened a powerful Martial Soul and possessed good talent, as long as they didn't perish prematurely, their futures would be bright, and they would become respected and powerful Soul Masters.
But if they awakened a trash Martial Soul with no innate Soul Power, they could only resign themselves to mediocrity, living as obscure, ordinary people in this World.
At the very back of the line stood a young boy with black hair.
He was completely different from the nervous children in front of him; his expression was exceptionally calm, so calm that it didn't look like the expression a six-year-old child should have.
His name was Su Mo, a transmigrator from Blue Star, and he had been in this World for exactly six years.
As for the reason for his transmigration, he found it inexplicable; it was an ordinary night, he was lying in bed watching a movie, and then he fell into a deep sleep from exhaustion.
When he opened his eyes again, he had become an infant in swaddling clothes, found by a Soul Master from Spirit Hall and brought to this orphanage.
Six years—neither long nor short—had passed; Su Mo had long accepted the fact of his transmigration and had completely adapted to life on the Douluo Continent.
At this moment, although his face remained calm, his heart held a trace of nervousness and anticipation.
Since transmigrating, other than the advantage of knowing the future plot, he had no other cheats; he had no system, nor did he have an old man in a ring.
During these six years, he had silently called out countless times in the dead of night, hoping for a system to suddenly activate so he could reach the pinnacle, but unfortunately, he received no response.
Without a system, he accepted his fate.
As a transmigrator, even if his talent wasn't high, he was confident he could gain a foothold on the Douluo Continent, but that was all; becoming a god was basically hopeless.
Without sufficient talent, a Divinity inheritance would naturally overlook him, and as for becoming a god through faith, that was even harder than ascending to heaven.
However, having transmigrated, he was naturally unwilling to stop there.
Although he appeared composed on the surface, he was still somewhat nervous inside; he hoped for a good start today, to awaken a powerful Martial Soul.
Just then, a soft voice came from the front: "Su Mo..."
In front of Su Mo, a little girl was looking back at him; she was gripping the hem of her clothes tightly with both hands, her little face full of nervousness.
She had reddish-brown hair cut to her ears, delicate, picturesque features, and a pair of large, clear, watery eyes; even though her face was still youthful, one could already glimpse her future beauty that would topple cities.
The little girl before him was none other than the future Pope of Spirit Hall, who would hold power over the entire World and make the entire continent tremble: Bibi Dong.
But right now, she was just a timid little girl.
Bibi Dong had been sent to the orphanage two years ago.
Her village had been invaded by Fallen Spirit Masters, and her family had all died at their hands; she had been hidden away and fortunately rescued by a Soul Master from Spirit Hall, who brought her here.
When she first arrived, having lost her family, she was somewhat withdrawn, didn't like to talk, didn't make friends, and always curled up in a corner alone; when other children played, she would watch from afar, never getting close.
When Su Mo first learned she was Bibi Dong, he was indeed somewhat surprised; after all, she was a genius with Twin Martial Souls and the future Pope who would hold power over the entire World.
But that was all; he did not deliberately try to approach or curry favor with Bibi Dong.
It wasn't that he hadn't considered it—after all, if he could win over Bibi Dong, the future life of being kept and living comfortably would certainly be tempting.
But Su Mo did not do so; he knew the plot trajectory; Qian Xunji would sooner or later take Bibi Dong as his disciple, and if his own talent was mediocre, the two were destined to drift further and further apart.
Qian Xunji would never allow Bibi Dong to get too close to a piece of trash.
Su Mo was not Yu Xiaogang; he had no background from the Upper Three Sects, nor did he have a father who was a Titled Douluo.
To Qian Xunji, crushing him would be as simple as crushing an ant, requiring no hesitation.
Furthermore, Su Mo had always believed that if you rely on a mountain, it will fall; if you rely on people, they will run away; only by becoming strong oneself is the foundation for standing firm.
Therefore, even after learning she was Bibi Dong, Su Mo still went about his days as usual.
Eating, sleeping, completing the orphanage's daily tasks, and spending time reading in the library; since the Douluo Continent had no mobile phones or computers, this was the only way he could pass the time.
There was a modest library in the orphanage containing a large number of basic books, such as a general history of the continent, a Soul Beast guide, and basic theoretical knowledge.
Su Mo discovered that after transmigrating, he had gained an ability: photographic memory.
From the time he could take care of himself until now, he had finished reading all the books in the library and remembered them clearly.
However, one day, half a year after Bibi Dong arrived at the orphanage, Su Mo's daily rhythm was broken.
Su Mo was not a real child, so naturally, he couldn't play with that group of little brats.
When other children gathered in twos and threes to play, Su Mo was always alone—either eating quietly, holding a book to read, or staring blankly at the sky.
Perhaps it was this unsociable oddity that instead attracted Bibi Dong's attention.
That day, Bibi Dong suddenly ran up to Su Mo on her own initiative and spoke to him.
Su Mo was a bit surprised at the time; in the original story, Bibi Dong met Yu Xiaogang in the Spirit Hall library, was slowly attracted by his uniqueness, and eventually fell in love with him.
And now, had he also attracted Bibi Dong's attention by some strange twist of fate?
But Su Mo didn't think in other directions; after all, Bibi Dong was still young and naturally didn't understand romantic feelings; her interest was more out of a child's curiosity.
Su Mo did not deliberately distance himself from Bibi Dong; since she approached him, he would let things take their natural course.
The Bibi Dong in the original story was indeed somewhat complicated, but that was something that hadn't happened yet; right now, she was just a little girl.
Just like that, for over a year, the two ate together and studied together.
When Su Mo read, she would also pretend to hold a book and read, but as she read, her head would start nodding, and she would soon fall into a deep sleep.
Over time, the two became each other's only friends in the orphanage.
"What's wrong?" Su Mo smiled slightly.
"What if... what if I awaken a trash Martial Soul?"
"Rest assured, you will definitely awaken a powerful Martial Soul."
"Really?"
Bibi Dong's eyes lit up, the nervousness on her face instantly dissipating, replaced by full anticipation.
Su Mo gave a soft hum, not saying anything more.
Just as the two were whispering to each other, two figures suddenly appeared at the entrance of the hall.