In early winter in Beihai, the sea breeze carries the chill of the unfrozen depths of the ocean, blowing across this northern coastal city.
In the vast Yao family manor in the east of the city, a child of about five or six years old was leaning on the windowsill of the study, staring blankly at several ice crystal flowers in the courtyard that were not afraid of the cold and were blooming with a pale blue light.
He was extremely handsome, with long, black hair that fell softly over his shoulders, the ends of which swayed gently in the sea breeze. His eyes were rare golden pupils, the irises clear as molten gold, with slightly upturned corners, carrying a childlike liveliness, yet also a depth beyond his years and a wisdom rarely seen in the natives of Douluo.
Her skin was as delicate and lustrous as warm jade, and under the sunlight streaming in from the window, it had a faint, radiant quality. It lacked the roughness and immaturity of an ordinary child's skin, instead exuding a natural air of nobility.
His name is Yao Fan, and he is the youngest grandson of Yao Zhenyue, the current head of the Yao family.
"The Black and White Twin Dragons... Mu En and Long Xiaoyao... both over a hundred years old..."
Yao Fan muttered to himself in a voice only he could hear, a complex expression flashing in his eyes that was beyond his years.
Three months ago, a sudden high fever awakened his memories of his past life—a world called "Earth." He was an ordinary office worker who died on his way to work on his thirtieth birthday after being hit by a truck. When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in this world.
At first, he thought he had come to some ancient society, but after he could understand the language and recognize the characters, he was horrified to discover that he was in the Douluo Continent, and in the legendary era of the Peerless Tang Sect!
What made him even more amused and exasperated was that when he cautiously inquired with his family's teachers about the strongest people in the world, he heard the name "Black and White Twin Holy Dragons," and that both of them were "just over a hundred years old and in their prime."
what does that mean?
Although Yao Fan wasn't a die-hard fan in his previous life, he had read the *Douluo Continent* series of novels. He knew that at the beginning of the main storyline of *The Peerless Tang Sect*, Dragon God Douluo Mu En was already around 240 or 250 years old, quite old, while Long Xiaoyao had long since retired from the world. Now, both of them were only 160 or 170 years old…
"I time-traveled at least seventy or eighty years too early," Yao Fan sighed.
In other words, the main characters like Huo Yuhao and Tang Wutong (this might not be entirely true, since one day in the God Realm is equivalent to one year in Douluo Continent) haven't been born yet. The current dean of Shrek Academy is probably still Yan Shaozhe's teacher's generation. The Sun Moon Empire is likely still accumulating power, the Holy Spirit Cult hasn't surfaced yet, and the Body Sect... well, the Body Sect should already exist.
"Young Master, you're spacing out again."
A gentle female voice came from behind him. Yao Fan turned around and saw a young woman in a light blue dress carrying a plate of pastries into the study. She was Qing Yuan, Yao Fan's personal maid, in her early twenties. She was a Soul Master trained by her family since childhood and already had the cultivation level of a three-ring Soul Master.
"Sister Qingyuan, what is Grandpa busy with today?" Yao Fan jumped down from the windowsill and patted his clothes.
"The patriarch is discussing important matters with Elder Shuang in the council hall." Qing Yuan placed the snacks on the desk and ruffled Yao Fan's hair. "Next month will be your sixth birthday. According to family tradition, a martial soul awakening ceremony will be held for you at that time. The patriarch attaches great importance to this."
Yao Fan's eyes lit up.
Martial Soul Awakening—this was a moment he had long awaited yet was also filled with trepidation. In this world, a person's martial soul determines their starting point, and even to a large extent, their ending point.
The Yao family's inherited martial soul is the Giant, primarily consisting of three subspecies: Storm, Frost, and Mountain, all of which are top-tier martial souls. According to family records, the first ancestor, Yao Qingtian, even elevated his martial soul to the super martial soul "Storm Titan," cultivating it to the level 98 Super Douluo, where he dominated the continent for centuries.
"I wonder which giant martial soul I will awaken..." Yao Fan thought to himself.
According to family tradition, direct descendants usually inherit the type of martial soul from their fathers. Yao Fan's father, Yao Yunhai, possesses the Storm Giant martial soul and is a level 78 Soul Saint. He is currently stationed at a large mine near the far north of the family. His mother, Lin Wanqing, possesses the mutated Light Giant martial soul and is a level 72 Soul Saint. She also guards the mine alongside her father.
Theoretically, Yao Fan is most likely to awaken the Storm Giant, since the Storm Giant is slightly superior to the Light Giant in quality, but there is also a considerable chance that he will awaken the Light Giant. As for the Frost Giant and the Mountain Giant, the chances of them awakening are extremely slim.
"Young Master, there's no need to be nervous." Qingyuan seemed to see through Yao Fan's thoughts and smiled. "No matter what kind of giant martial soul you awaken, you are still a direct descendant of the Yao family. Moreover, the patriarch often says that martial soul is just the starting point, and temperament and hard work are the key to how far one can go on the path of a soul master."
Yao Fan nodded, picked up a pastry, and popped it into his mouth. The pastry was made from ice-cold wheat, a specialty of Beihai, and had a sweet taste with a hint of coolness.
"Sister Qingyuan, could you tell me the story of our first ancestor again?"
Qing Yuan sat down opposite Yao Fan, her eyes filled with reverence: "Our first ancestor, Yao Qingtian, was a legendary figure from seven thousand eight hundred years ago. It is said that his original martial soul was only the top-tier martial soul 'Storm Giant,' but when he cultivated to the level of a Title Douluo, his bloodline reverted to its ancestral form, and his martial soul evolved into the legendary 'Storm Titan'..."
Yao Fan was already very familiar with these stories, but he still enjoyed listening to them. Whenever he heard the word "Titan," a strange resonance would well up in his heart.
Titans—a legendary and powerful race that rivaled the Dragon Clan in ancient times, possessing invincible physical bodies and strength capable of tearing space apart. However, for unknown reasons, the Titan race ultimately fell, and today, on the entire Douluo Continent, only the Titan Giant Ape and the Titan Snow Demon are known to possess Titan bloodlines, and even they have diluted bloodlines.
The ancestors of the Yao family were able to revert to Titan bloodlines, and although it was only "mixed blood," it was still astonishing.
"After reaching level ninety-eight, our ancestor traveled across the continent, seeking opportunities to advance further," Qingyuan continued. "He saw the Beast God Di Tian from afar deep within the Star Dou Great Forest, had a brief encounter with the Snow Emperor in the far north, and even ventured overseas to explore legendary ancient ruins..."
"Did he eventually find the path to godhood?" Yao Fan couldn't help but ask.
Qingyuan shook her head: "No. Our ancestor died peacefully at the age of 242. Before his death, he left behind the words: 'The path to Titan is the key of bloodline; divine positions are hard to find, but the physical body can break through the heavens.' Later generations interpreted it as meaning that the Titan bloodline is the key to a higher realm. If one cannot find a divine position to inherit, one can cultivate the physical body to its limit and break through the heavens with force."
Yao Fan fell into deep thought. Breaking through the heavens with force... This sounded like taking a pure power route, not relying on a divine position, but breaking through the level 100 limit on one's own.
Is this possible?
In the original setting, it seems that only after the God Realm left and then devoured the Abyss in the fourth era could one truly break through to level 100 without relying on a godhood. Currently, due to the laws of the plane, it is almost impossible to succeed.
"Young Master, the way you think is really not like a child," Qingyuan suddenly said with a smile.
Yao Fan's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly put on an innocent expression: "I just think our ancestor is amazing!"
Qingyuan didn't delve into it further. After chatting for a while, she got up and left, telling Yao Fan not to read for too long.
Once he was alone in the study, Yao Fan walked to the bookshelf and pulled out a thick classic book—"A Study of the Yao Family Bloodline".
He had secretly read this book many times. It contained detailed records of the martial spirit characteristics, cultivation insights, and research on the Titan bloodline of the family's powerful members throughout the ages.
"Titans were ancient war gods. Their blood was golden, heavy as mercury, and a single drop could shatter mountains..."
"Our bloodline originates from the Titans, but over millennia it has been diluted, leaving only one in a hundred. Those who wish to revert to their ancestral lineage must possess a combination of opportunity, perseverance, and natural talent..."
"According to research, there are two spirit beasts with Titan bloodlines still existing in the world today: the Titan Giant Ape dwells deep within the stars, and the Titan Snow Demon hides in the far northern ice plains. However, their bloodlines are also rare, far less than one ten-thousandth of the ancient pure-blooded Titans..."
Yao Fan's fingers gently traced the words.
"The Great Fortune Celestial Venerable... this is an ancient true god who can travel through all the heavens and myriad realms!" Yao Fan thought to himself with a touch of amusement, "The great fortune he gave me shouldn't make me too unlucky, right..."
He shook his head, suppressing this overly optimistic conjecture. The greater the expectation, the greater the disappointment. Even if there truly was "great luck," it might not directly manifest in the quality of his martial soul.
"However, now that I've come to this world and have the advantage of foresight…" A glint of light flashed in Yao Fan's eyes, "I can't waste this opportunity."
He walked to the window and looked into the distance.
Beihai City is located on the northern coast of the Douluo Continent and is an important port city in the northeastern part of the Heavenly Soul Empire. The Yao family has been operating here for over three thousand years, deeply rooted and controlling nearly half of Beihai City's industries and Soul Master forces.
According to the timeline of the original work, this is seventy to eighty years before the main storyline of Douluo Continent II: The Peerless Tang Sect begins. This means:
The Star Luo Empire was the strongest of the original Douluo Three Kingdoms. After ten thousand years, the royal family is no longer the Dai family, but the Star Crown Xu family. The Star Crown Martial Soul is an extremely powerful top-tier Martial Soul, excelling in support, control, and attack.
The empire's army is well-trained, highly capable, and renowned. Except for lacking an ancestor who became a god, it is far superior to the former Dai family royal family in every aspect.
The Sun Moon Empire lies to the east of the Heavenly Soul Empire, separated by the sea. This nation is the birthplace of Soul Tools, possessing technology that is at least a thousand years ahead of the original three kingdoms of the Douluo Continent. Ambitious, it has always sought to expand westward, annex the three kingdoms, and unify the entire Douluo Continent.
"The current emperor of the Sun Moon Empire should be Xu Tianran's grandfather." Yao Fan tried hard to recall the timeline of the original story and secretly calculated in his mind, "The Sun Moon Empire is still developing in secret and accumulating strength. It has not yet shown its fangs. As for Xu Tianran, the future emperor of the Sun Moon Empire, he probably doesn't even have a fertilized egg in the making at this moment."
Countless thoughts flashed through Yao Fan's mind: the soul tools of the Sun Moon Empire, the evil soul masters of the Holy Spirit Cult, the secret techniques of the Body Sect, the inheritance of Shrek Academy... But then, he shook his head and suppressed these thoughts.
He is just a six-year-old child who has not even awakened his martial spirit, nor does he possess any soul power. How could he possibly interfere with the situation on the continent? Even if he knew about the future crisis, the ambitions of the Sun Moon Empire, and the conspiracy of the Holy Spirit Cult, he would still be powerless to change anything.
What he needs to do most now is to develop steadily and improve his strength. Only with sufficient strength can he stand firm in this great era, protect his family, and change the fate of others.
"Strength, everything requires strength." Yao Fan clenched his small fist, a resolute glint in his golden eyes. "Without strength, even self-preservation is difficult, let alone changing the fate of others. From now on, I will make all the preparations, waiting for the day my martial spirit awakens, waiting for the era that belongs to me to arrive."
As time passed, the snow fell heavier and heavier in Beihai City in early winter. The ice crystal flowers in the courtyard had withered and were replaced by thick snow. The entire Yao Family Manor was covered in white snow, a silver-clad wonderland.
There are only three days left until the Martial Soul Awakening Ceremony.
Yao Fan felt a mix of anticipation and nervousness, but above all, a strong sense of determination.
He knew that the awakening ceremony three days later would be the most important turning point in his life. Whether he would live an ordinary life or soar to great heights, whether he would become a Titan's successor or become an ordinary disciple, would all be revealed on that day.
And he was already prepared.
Whatever the outcome, he will face it with equanimity and forge his own legendary path in this great era of Douluo Continent.
(End of chapter)