Seven days could be a very long time.
Qiangu Longyu discovered that firsthand.
He had waited almost six years for his Martial Soul Awakening.
Compared to that, one week should have been insignificant.
It wasn’t.
During the first few days, he tried to maintain his usual routine.
He read.
He trained.
He reviewed his notes.
He even accompanied Qing Luoyue during one of her endless bird-watching sessions.
Nothing worked.
One question remained constantly in his mind.
What Martial Soul would he awaken?
The most likely answer was obvious.
The Coiling Dragon Staff.
His mother possessed it.
His grandfather did as well.
It was the hereditary Martial Soul of his family, and thousands of years into the future, it would continue to appear among the descendants of the Qiangu Clan.
Everything pointed in that direction.
But Longyu knew this world far too well to place complete trust in probabilities.
Martial Souls could mutate.
They could evolve.
They could degenerate.
Twin Martial Souls could even appear.
And he possessed one variable no one else could account for.
He had reincarnated.
Longyu didn’t know whether that would affect his Martial Soul.
He didn’t know whether his soul, originating from another world, would cause some kind of change.
He knew absolutely nothing.
And he hated not knowing.
“You’re going to wear a hole into the floor.”
Longyu stopped walking.
His father was sitting in a chair, watching him.
“What?”
Ye Zhenyuan pointed toward the floor.
“You’ve been pacing back and forth for several minutes.”
Longyu looked down.
He hadn’t even noticed.
His father smiled.
“Nervous?”
“A little.”
“Good.”
Longyu raised an eyebrow.
“Good?”
“It means you care.”
Zhenyuan stood and placed a hand on his head.
“Listen to me.
It doesn’t matter what Martial Soul you awaken.”
Longyu remained silent.
“If it’s the Coiling Dragon Staff, your mother will probably cry, your grandfather will pretend he never doubted you, and Jiangmo will start planning your training before the day is over.”
Longyu could perfectly imagine all three things happening.
“And if I don’t awaken it?”
Zhenyuan shrugged.
“Then you’ll figure out what you did awaken and learn how to use it.”
A simple answer.
Longyu smiled slightly.
“Grandfather probably wouldn’t put it that way.”
“That’s why I’m your father and he’s your grandfather.”
The seventh day finally arrived.
The Worship Hall was much quieter than usual.
Longyu walked beside his parents.
Qiangu Lanyue held his left hand.
Zhenyuan walked on his right.
None of them spoke much.
When the great doors opened, Longyu immediately saw the other four girls.
Qian Lingyu stood beside several members of the Qian family.
Qing Luoyue remained near Blue Luan Douluo.
Jin Yue was talking with Golden Crocodile Douluo and seemed far more excited than nervous.
Qian Renxue stood beside Qian Daoliu.
The moment she saw Longyu enter, she smiled.
“You’re here.”
“I wasn’t planning to miss my own awakening.”
“You could’ve stayed home reading.”
Longyu looked at her.
“I considered it.”
“I knew you would!”
Jin Yue approached them.
“Who do you think will have the highest innate soul power?”
“Renxue,” Luoyue answered immediately.
Jin Yue frowned.
“You didn’t even think about it.”
“I didn’t need to.”
Renxue lifted her chin slightly.
“Of course it’ll be me.”
“We haven’t even awakened yet,” Lingyu said.
“Doesn’t matter.”
Jin Yue crossed her arms.
“I could beat you.”
Renxue looked at her.
“Try.”
Longyu watched their exchange.
It was difficult to explain to them that this particular competition had probably been decided before it even began.
If Qian Renxue awakened exactly as he remembered…
her innate soul power would be completely beyond the normal scale.
Level twenty.
Something that should be impossible for an ordinary Soul Master.
But Renxue had never been ordinary.
A deep voice interrupted his thoughts.
“That’s enough.”
The five children fell silent.
Qian Daoliu stepped forward.
Only then did Longyu truly pay attention to everyone present.
All seven Worships were there.
Qian Daoliu.
Golden Crocodile Douluo.
Blue Luan Douluo.
The other great Worships.
Qianjun.
Jiangmo.
Some might have considered it excessive for so many powerful figures to gather merely to witness the awakening of five children.
Longyu didn’t.
Those children represented some of the most important bloodlines within the Worship Hall.
And Qian Renxue alone justified the attention.
Qian Daoliu raised one hand.
Six black stones were arranged into a small formation.
A crystal sphere had been prepared nearby to measure soul power.
Longyu knew the procedure perfectly.
He had read about it countless times.
He had watched depictions of it in his previous life.
Yet seeing it from only a few meters away was completely different.
This was real.
Qian Daoliu looked at the five children.
“We will begin.”
His gaze turned toward Lingyu.
“Qian Lingyu.”
The girl took a deep breath.
Then she stepped forward.
Lingyu stood within the formation.
Qian Daoliu activated the stones.
Golden light rose around her.
Lingyu closed her eyes.
Longyu watched carefully.
At first, nothing happened.
Then white light began to emerge behind the girl.
Two wings slowly unfolded.
They did not possess the majesty or overwhelming power Longyu associated with the Six-Winged Seraph.
They were different.
Gentler.
The light they emitted carried a warm sensation.
A faint angelic figure appeared behind Lingyu.
In its hands, it seemed to cradle a pale greenish-white light.
Longyu immediately felt a strange vitality fill the air.
Qian Daoliu observed for several seconds.
“Healing Angel.”
A smile appeared on Lingyu’s face.
Longyu smiled as well.
It suited her perfectly.
“Measure your soul power.”
Lingyu placed her hand on the crystal.
Light began filling it.
One.
Two.
Three.
The intensity continued rising.
Finally, it stopped.
Qian Daoliu nodded.
“Innate soul power, level nine.”
Several satisfied expressions appeared around the hall.
Level nine.
Even within Spirit Hall, that was extraordinary talent.
Lingyu returned to the group.
Jin Yue patted her shoulder.
“Not bad.”
Lingyu looked at her.
“Try to do better.”
Jin Yue grinned.
“That was the plan.”
She didn’t have to wait long.
“Jin Yue.”
The golden-haired girl immediately stepped forward.
Unlike Lingyu, she didn’t seem nervous at all.
She entered the formation.
Light enveloped her.
And then the change came.
Her body tensed.
A powerful bestial presence appeared behind her.
Golden scales began partially covering her arms.
The enormous silhouette of a crocodile manifested behind her.
Heavy.
Powerful.
Brutal.
Golden Crocodile.
Golden Crocodile Douluo’s eyes lit up.
Jin Yue opened her eyes.
For an instant, her pupils seemed to become vertical.
Longyu watched her with particular attention.
It wasn’t the Golden Crocodile King.
At least, not yet.
That was interesting.
Very interesting.
Jin Yue placed her hand on the crystal.
The light rose.
Finally, it stopped.
“Level nine,” Qian Daoliu declared.
Jin Yue smiled proudly.
When she returned, she looked at Lingyu.
“A tie.”
“For now,” Lingyu replied.
Longyu almost laughed.
Qing Luoyue was third.
Her awakening was much quieter.
But no less impressive.
When the formation activated, a current of air swept through the hall.
Her dark-blue hair fluttered behind her.
Then an enormous bird appeared.
Blue feathers.
Elegant wings.
A noble and distant presence.
Blue Luan.
Longyu felt the air around Luoyue become lighter.
He needed no explanation to understand that this Martial Soul possessed an extraordinary affinity for flight.
Blue Luan Douluo showed a faint smile.
Luoyue touched the crystal.
The light rose once again.
“Level nine.”
Three.
Three consecutive level-nine talents.
Even some of the Worships began exchanging glances.
Longyu understood why.
This wasn’t normal.
A generation containing even one level-nine talent was worthy of attention.
Three gathered within the same age group was something else entirely.
And there were still two left.
“Qian Renxue.”
The atmosphere changed.
Longyu felt it immediately.
So did Qian Daoliu.
For the first time since the ceremony began, the Grand Worship’s expression lost some of its tranquility.
Renxue stepped forward.
Before entering the formation, she looked back.
Her eyes settled on Jin Yue.
“Watch carefully.”
“Just do it!”
Renxue smiled and stepped inside.
The formation activated.
For one second…
nothing happened.
Then the hall was flooded with gold.
Longyu narrowed his eyes.
The light was completely different.
Sacred.
Pure.
Overwhelming.
A figure appeared behind Renxue.
An angel.
One pair of wings.
Then another.
And another.
Six wings.
Qian Daoliu’s expression changed completely.
“Six-Winged Seraph…”
Even knowing exactly what was going to happen, Longyu felt a shiver run through him.
Seeing it for himself was different.
Renxue opened her eyes.
Golden light seemed to burn within them.
For a few moments, that six-year-old girl seemed to belong to an entirely different order of existence.
Then the manifestation began to stabilize.
Renxue breathed out.
Qian Daoliu took several seconds before gesturing toward the crystal.
“Renxue.”
She placed her hand on it.
The crystal shone.
Level one.
Three.
Five.
Ten.
It didn’t stop.
Jin Yue’s eyes widened.
Lingyu became completely still.
Luoyue leaned slightly forward.
The light continued rising until it reached a point none of the three had imagined.
Qian Daoliu briefly closed his eyes.
When he opened them again, pride could be seen within them.
“Innate soul power…”
He paused.
“Level twenty.”
Silence.
Jin Yue was the first to react.
“TWENTY?!”
Renxue stepped out of the formation with a smile Longyu knew he would have to endure for quite some time.
“I told you I’d win.”
Jin Yue looked personally offended by the existence of the number twenty.
“That’s cheating!”
“How can my Martial Soul be cheating?”
“I don’t know, but it is!”
Lingyu was still staring at the crystal.
“Is it even possible to have level-twenty innate soul power?”
Qian Daoliu answered.
“For an ordinary Martial Soul possessor, no.”
He looked at Renxue.
“But the Six-Winged Seraph is not an ordinary Martial Soul.”
Longyu remained silent.
Everything had happened exactly as he expected.
Renxue.
Six-Winged Seraph.
Level twenty.
For once, his memories had been completely accurate.
Then he heard his name.
“Qiangu Longyu.”
His body tensed.
Every gaze turned toward him.
Longyu slowly breathed in.
The moment had arrived.
He walked toward the formation.
As he passed Renxue, she spoke quietly.
“Your turn.”
Longyu looked at her.
“So it seems.”
“Try to beat twenty.”
“No promises.”
Renxue smiled.
Longyu continued walking.
He passed his mother.
Lanyue watched him with a mixture of pride and nervousness.
His father gave him a small nod.
Then he saw Qianjun.
His grandfather said nothing.
There was no need.
Longyu stepped into the formation.
Six years.
Six years waiting for this moment.
Qian Daoliu raised his hand.
“Relax.”
Longyu closed his eyes.
The stones lit up.
Warm energy entered his body.
At first, it was pleasant.
Then something changed.
Longyu felt pressure building within him.
Not pain.
It was as though something that had remained asleep since his birth had finally been given permission to awaken.
His right hand began to grow warm.
Qianjun took a step forward.
Longyu opened his eyes.
Light appeared in his palm.
Golden at first.
Then dark.
The air within the hall seemed to grow heavy.
The light began to stretch.
A staff took shape.
Black metal.
Golden lines slowly traced their way across its surface.
A dragon coiled around the staff.
Qianjun stopped breathing for an instant.
“The Coiling Dragon Staff…”
Lanyue immediately smiled.
But Longyu knew something was wrong.
No.
Not wrong.
Different.
The dragon on the staff opened its eyes.
Violet.
Dark energy began leaking from its body.
It wasn’t darkness.
Longyu instinctively understood the difference.
That energy did not conceal.
It did not corrupt.
It destroyed.
A thin crack appeared across one of the stones in the formation.
Qian Daoliu lowered his gaze.
Qianjun took another step forward.
Jiangmo’s smile disappeared completely.
“Brother…”
“I know.”
Qianjun never took his eyes off the staff.
He could feel it.
The familiar essence.
The presence that had accompanied the Coiling Dragon Staff of their bloodline for generations.
The draconic spirit was still there.
But it had changed.
Qianjun spoke slowly.
“It is the same…”
His eyes narrowed.
“But it is no longer the same dragon.”
Longyu felt something within the staff respond to those words.
The violet energy intensified.
For an instant, the enormous silhouette of a dragon appeared behind him.
Dark.
Majestic.
Violent.
Still incomplete.
As though it had only just been born.
Qian Daoliu watched in silence.
Finally, he spoke.
“It has not degenerated.”
Qianjun looked at him.
“It has evolved.”
Longyu lowered his gaze toward the weapon in his hand.
Destruction.
He didn’t know how he knew.
He simply did.
As though that word had been engraved directly into his soul.
Destruction Coiling Dragon Staff.
His first Martial Soul.
A smile began to appear on his face.
Then it happened.
A pulse.
Longyu froze.
It hadn’t come from his heart.
It came from somewhere deeper.
His left hand trembled.
Longyu’s smile disappeared.
What…?
The space behind him distorted.
Qian Daoliu abruptly raised his head.
The hall fell completely silent.
A black line appeared in the air.
No.
It wasn’t black.
It was an absence.
A small spatial fissure.
Longyu’s eyes widened.
It can’t be.
Something was watching from the other side.
Two eyes.
Violet-silver.
An entirely different pressure descended upon the hall.
It did not possess the destructive nature of the staff.
It was cold.
Distant.
Profound.
The space around Longyu began to ripple.
The fissure widened slightly.
A draconic head emerged behind him.
Dark scales reflected flashes of silver.
Then came its neck.
Part of an enormous body.
It never fully manifested.
The creature seemed to exist halfway within the fissure itself.
But it was enough.
Everyone present understood what they were seeing.
Longyu still held the Destruction Coiling Dragon Staff in his right hand.
And behind him…
another Martial Soul had appeared.
Qian Daoliu’s eyes narrowed.
Qianjun remained completely still.
Lanyue raised a hand to her mouth.
Zhenyuan lost his relaxed expression for the first time during the entire ceremony.
Lingyu whispered:
“Two…?”
Jin Yue finished the sentence.
“Martial Souls?”
Renxue said nothing.
She simply stared at Longyu.
Qian Daoliu was the one who finally spoke the words.
“Twin Martial Souls.”
Longyu could hear his own heartbeat.
He had considered the possibility.
Of course he had.
But considering something was not the same as expecting it to actually happen.
He looked toward the presence behind him.
He didn’t recognize this Martial Soul.
It didn’t come from his mother.
Nor was it his father’s Sky Rift Eagle.
He couldn’t remember seeing this exact creature in any of the three eras he knew.
And yet, when his eyes met those of the dragon…
a name naturally appeared in his mind.
Void Dragon.
Longyu slowly closed his left hand.
The fissure disappeared.
The dragon vanished.
But no one spoke.
Qian Daoliu looked first at Longyu.
Then at his parents.
Finally, at Qianjun.
The celebration could wait.
There were too many questions.
“Longyu,” he finally said.
“The crystal.”
Longyu remembered there was still one thing left.
His innate soul power.
He walked toward the sphere.
For the first time during the entire ceremony, he had no idea what to expect.
He placed his hand on the crystal.
Light appeared.
It rose rapidly.
One.
Three.
Five.
Eight.
Nine.
Ten.
And stopped.
Qian Daoliu observed the result.
“Full innate soul power.”
“Level ten.”
Longyu slowly released the breath he had been holding.
Level ten.
Lower than Renxue.
Exactly the maximum an ordinary Soul Master should possess upon awakening.
And yet, no one in the hall seemed to believe Renxue had been the only surprise of the ceremony.
Three level-nine geniuses.
An heir of the Six-Winged Seraph with level-twenty innate soul power.
And a boy with full innate soul power…
and two Martial Souls that no one could fully explain.
Qian Daoliu slowly swept his gaze across the hall.
His expression became serious.
“What happened here today will not leave this room.”
No one questioned the order.
“The Healing Angel, Golden Crocodile, Blue Luan, and Six-Winged Seraph may be made public when appropriate.”
Then his eyes settled on Longyu.
“Qiangu Longyu will be known as a Soul Master with full innate soul power and a mutated variant of the Coiling Dragon Staff.”
His voice hardened.
“The existence of his second Martial Soul will be classified as a secret of the Worship Hall.”
Longyu didn’t object.
It was exactly what he would have requested.
Qian Daoliu looked toward the doors.
“From this day forward, no one outside those present is to know of the Void Dragon’s existence.”
Longyu looked down at his left hand again.
Empty.
Then he looked at his right.
The staff had already disappeared.
Six years spent waiting to discover what Martial Soul he would possess.
Now he had two.
One had transformed his family’s legacy through a power he did not understand.
The other should not exist.
And Longyu immediately understood something else.
His questions had just multiplied.
Why Destruction?
Why the Void Dragon?
Had his reincarnation caused them?
Were they independent?
Were they connected?
Could he cultivate both?
What would happen if he added Soul Rings to both?
The final question made Longyu pause.
He remembered the dangers of Twin Martial Souls far too well.
Bibi Dong had walked that path before him.
No.
He would not make the mistake of rushing.
First, he would study.
First, he would understand his body.
And until then…
the Void Dragon would remain without Soul Rings.
Longyu raised his head.
Around him stood his parents.
His grandfather.
The Worships.
Renxue.
Lingyu.
Jin Yue.
Luoyue.
His family.
His friends.
His home.
For six years, he had been a child carrying memories of another world.
He had watched.
He had read.
He had asked questions.
He had waited.
That was over.
Now he possessed soul power.
Now he possessed a Martial Soul.
Two, actually.
And for the first time since arriving on the Douluo Continent…
Qiangu Longyu could truly begin his path as a Soul Master.
But before obtaining his first Soul Ring, there was a far more important question he needed to answer.
What kind of Soul Master did he want to become?