Star Luo Empire.
Here lies a small city called Yunluo City.
"Ten meters… five meters… three meters… two meters… one meter…"
A six-year-old boy lay sprawled on the ground near the finish line, his chest heaving rhythmically from the intense exertion.
He had black hair and dark eyes, and beneath his healthy wheat-colored skin, the outlines of lean, sinewy muscles were already visible.
His name was Yang Fan.
He was a transmigrator.
The moment he arrived in this world, he realized he'd been reborn into the universe of Soul Land (Douluo Dalu)—as the only grandson of Yang Wudi, patriarch of the Breaking Clan.
At that time, Tang Hao had just clashed with the Spirit Hall. To protect itself, the Hao Tian Sect callously abandoned its four affiliated sects, leaving them vulnerable to the Spirit Hall's retaliation.
Back then, Yang Fan was merely a helpless infant, forced to watch as the Breaking Clan suffered brutal persecution and relentless oppression at the hands of the Spirit Hall.
After losing more than half their members, the entire sect fled like stray dogs to this remote corner of the Star Luo Empire—this very small city.
Years passed…
Relying on their renowned alchemical arts, the Breaking Clan gradually began trading with both the Star Luo and Tian Dou Empires, barely managing to sustain the clan's livelihood.
Though life slowly improved, the scars left by the Spirit Hall's persecution and the Hao Tian Sect's betrayal remained deeply embedded in every clan member's heart.
Having endured hardship since the day he transmigrated, Yang Fan harbored burning hatred toward both the Spirit Hall and Tang Hao—the man who started it all.
But even more than that—he despised the Hao Tian Sect for abandoning them!
Thus, at the age of three, Yang Fan devised a strict training regimen for himself.
Yang Fan was a devoted fan of manga and anime.
Before his transmigration, he had an in-depth understanding of Soul Land.
One crucial detail stuck in his mind: physical conditioning could influence one's innate soul power.
Take Tang San, for example—only after cultivating the Mysterious Heaven Technique did he awaken with innate full soul power.
And innate soul power directly determined a Soul Master's cultivation speed.
Therefore, to become a powerful Soul Master, one absolutely needed high innate soul power.
Otherwise, everything else was pointless!
If someone's potential capped out at the rank of "Soul Grandmaster," no amount of heavenly treasures or rare herbs later on would make a difference—it'd be like feeding caviar to a dog.
Even worse, if a Soul Master's body wasn't strong enough, even awakening an exceptionally powerful martial soul could backfire—causing harmful mutations due to the body's inability to withstand the strain.
In such cases, the person was practically ruined!
For major sects and noble families, this was no secret.
That's why children from influential clans routinely consumed rare herbs and ingredients with mild soul power before the age of six—to strengthen their bodies in preparation for the Martial Soul Awakening Ceremony, ensuring they awakened both a healthy martial soul and high innate soul power.
On the surface, the Awakening Ceremony seemed fair—but for ordinary children, no matter how hard they struggled their whole lives, they might never reach the starting line others were born on.
So, at just three years old, Yang Fan began training himself.
From barely lifting two bricks at first, to now running through mountains while carrying twenty kilograms of weight—
Three years flew by…
Tomorrow would be the day he tested the results of those three years of effort.
"You're already tired, little one?"
"Didn't you say you'd run ten laps today?"
Before the words even finished echoing—
The air behind Yang Fan twisted violently.
An elderly man in flowing white robes suddenly appeared before him.
His face was aged yet radiated profound serenity.
His deep-set eyes shimmered with ancient wisdom, impossible to conceal despite his frail appearance.
"Master…"
This elder, who had just emerged from within Yang Fan's body, was his teacher—Yao Chen.
Yes—that very same Yao Chen: the number-one alchemist of the Dou Qi Continent.
Yang Fan still remembered that night when he was four—Yao Chen had suddenly floated out of his body, tearfully insisting on taking him as a disciple.
That night, their master-apprentice bond was forged.
From then on, this city gained a spectral companion who trained alongside him every day.
During every session of physical conditioning, Yao Chen would point out his flaws and periodically give him special pills to aid his progress.
Without Yao Chen, Yang Fan would never have reached the point where he could sprint through mountains with twenty kilograms strapped to his back.
Yang Fan didn't know exactly why Yao Chen had ended up inside his body—perhaps it was triggered by some spatial force during his transmigration.
According to Yao Chen himself…
Six years ago, while refining a pill, he was betrayed and killed.
His remaining soul fragment was swept into a chaotic temporal rift—and somehow ended up in this world called Soul Land.
Even more absurdly, his soul slipped directly into Yang Fan's body.
At first, Yao Chen tried repeatedly to leave—but each time he did, it felt like a fish pulled from water; his fragile soul fragment risked complete dissipation.
Eventually, he had no choice but to treat Yang Fan's body as his sanctuary.
"Come," Yao Chen said gently, "let your master examine your condition."
With a casual wave of his sleeve, a gentle stream of energy flowed into Yang Fan's body.
Wherever it passed, an indescribable comfort washed over him.
As the energy circulated through his limbs and meridians, all fatigue vanished instantly.
"That's enough for today," Yao Chen said. "You've hit your physical limit. Push any further, and you'll cripple yourself."
When Yao Chen first arrived in this strange world, he'd been utterly despondent.
Betrayed by his own disciple, cast into a foreign realm where the local "soul power" was vastly inferior to the Dou Qi he once cultivated—
This world's energy couldn't even begin to repair his soul, let alone help him reconstruct a physical body.
Convinced there was no way back, Yao Chen spent three years drifting aimlessly inside Yang Fan's body, lost in despair.
Until one day, he saw the boy straining to lift bricks…
That sight struck him like a beam of light piercing through darkness—his soul trembled.
After observing Yang Fan for a full year, Yao Chen finally revealed himself one night and declared his identity.
And Yang Fan, tears streaming down his face, begged to become his disciple.
"Master," Yang Fan asked nervously, "I've been tempering my body for so long… do you think I'll awaken a powerful martial soul tomorrow?"
If he'd been a native-born member of the Breaking Clan, he might not have worried so much.
But he wasn't!
In Soul Land, innate soul power dictated cultivation speed, and in most cases, the quality of one's martial soul determined their ultimate ceiling.
Look across the entire continent—
Every single titled Douluo had awakened a top-tier martial soul and possessed exceptionally high innate soul power from the very beginning.
So that saying—"There are no weak martial souls, only weak Soul Masters"—was utter nonsense.
For the vast majority, the Martial Soul Awakening Ceremony already decided their fate.
"Well," Yao Chen chuckled, "whether you awaken a powerful martial soul or not… that's not something your old master can predict. You'd have to ask your parents about that."
"Just don't go awakening some beast-type martial soul like 'Vigorous Orangutan' or ' Armor Plated Giant Rhinoceros.' Otherwise, we'll be in quite the awkward spot during tomorrow's ceremony with the Breaking Clan."
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