urina felt a splitting headache, as if someone had struck her with a blunt object and then tossed her into a high-speed washing machine. Golden stars flickered before her eyes, and her ears buzzed so loudly she couldn't hear a thing.
Shouldn't she be in... where was she supposed to be? Her memories were like a pile of water-soaked paper, mushy and illegible. She only remembered her name was Furina, but as for the rest... well... there seemed to be something very important she couldn't recall.
"Ouch... where on earth is this?" She groaned as she opened her eyes. Instead of the soft bed or grand palace ceiling she expected, she saw a gloomy, filthy sky with a few ragged clouds hanging listlessly. The air smelled of mold mixed with an indescribable sour stench that hit her nose directly.
She struggled to sit up, but her body felt as soft as overcooked noodles, lacking any strength. She turned her head to look around, and her heart sank further.
She was clearly in a narrow, dead-end alley. On both sides were crumbling walls with peeling paint. Trash was piled in the corners, its original color long gone, and a few moldy pieces of hard bread lay pitifully on the ground. She was slumped on a pile of damp straw. Her outfit, which should have been flashy enough to blind someone, was now covered in mud and bits of grass, looking dull and gray.
"What's going on..." Furina was a bit dazed, but mostly found it hard to accept. A person like her... a... (she tried hard to remember what kind of person she was, but her mind was blank) anyway, she shouldn't be in a dump like this!
Just as she was trying to sort out the mess in her head, a cold, emotionless voice rang out directly in her mind, giving her a huge fright.
[Ding-dong! Congratulations, lucky Transmigrator! Welcome to experience life in the world of Douluo Continent 2: The Unrivaled Tang Sect! Current Location: Border of the Star Luo Empire, a trash alley in some nameless little broken town.]
Furina: "..."
Transmigration? Douluo Continent? Those terms sounded familiar, but she couldn't remember where she'd heard them. Experience life? Who starts 'experiencing life' in a trash heap?!
[Since you are a distinguished guest from another world, here is a Newbie Gift Pack: One Three Martial Souls Awakening opportunity! Along with this System's caring companionship service~]
"Three Martial Souls?" Furina repeated subconsciously. She seemed to understand this a bit. "That sounds pretty powerful?"
[Exactly! It's super powerful! Please concentrate and feel the power within your body! Guide it!] The System's voice carried the enthusiasm of someone selling low-quality products.
Although Furina was full of questions, she did as instructed. She closed her eyes (mainly because the smell in the alley was too strong) and tried to feel her inner self. It... it really felt a bit different? There was a warmth in her belly, a strange energy flowing.
She tried to touch that energy.
There was no world-shaking commotion, only a faint white light that flickered in her palm, almost invisible. Then, something appeared in her hand with a 'poof'.
It was a... cake.
It was small and white, looking quite fluffy, with a crooked little cream flower piped on top. It smelled of sweet milk, forming a tragic contrast with the dirty, messy alley.
Furina stared at the cake in her hand, silent for a full minute.
"What is this?" she finally couldn't help but roar in her mind. "My Spirit is a cake? Can I eat it? A food system Spirit? That's it? What happened to'super powerful'? System, come out and explain!"
[Uh... well...] The System's voice sounded a bit guilty. [food system Spirits are also very promising! Food is the first necessity of the people! Look, if you're hungry, you can conjure food yourself. How convenient! Sustainable development!]
Furina looked at the little cake, wanting to cry but having no tears. In her imagination, her Spirit should have been at least a glowing sword or an elegant staff, right? A cake? How do you fight with this? Throw it at people? Or hope the enemy eats too much and can't move?
She tried to feel around again and sensed other energy clumps in her body, but the other two were gray and lifeless, completely impossible to communicate with, let alone activate. It seemed that for now, this cake was the only thing she could use.
"Fine, fine, a cake it is," Furina thought self-deprecatingly. It was better than nothing. She held the cake, hesitated for a moment, and took a small bite.
Mmh... it actually tasted pretty good? Sweet, soft, and melted in her mouth. A faint warm current slid down her throat, and that feeling of total weakness seemed to lessen just a tiny bit.
"You really can eat it..." she muttered, finishing the cake in a few bites. With something in her stomach, her mind felt a bit clearer.
She had to figure out what kind of hellhole this was.
Leaning against the wall, Furina stumbled out of the alley. The street outside wasn't much better; the road was full of potholes, the houses on both sides were low and dilapidated, and the pedestrians wore patched clothes, looking sallow and thin with mostly numb expressions. Occasionally, a few who looked more spirited and better dressed walked by with an air of importance, and ordinary people subconsciously stepped aside for them.
This place really didn't look great. Furina scratched her messy hair. Her tattered clothes, which still showed hints of their original grand style, drew some curious and wary looks.
She wandered to a corner and heard a few old men sighing while basking in the sun.
"...Life is hard, taxes have gone up again." "Tell me about it. The boy at home is already twelve, but he doesn't have the luck to awaken spirit power, sigh..." "Being alive is good enough. You want to be a Spirit Master lord? Keep dreaming!"
Spirit Master? Awakening? Furina pricked up her ears. She seemed to have heard the System mention these terms.
She wandered a bit longer and basically figured it out. In this place, Spirit Masters had incredibly high status. For ordinary people, the only way to change their fate was to awaken spirit power and become a Spirit Master. But Awakening seemed quite difficult and depended on luck. It also seemed that only big cities or large Sects had specialized people to host Awakening ceremonies. In this backwater, for an ordinary person to awaken? It was as hard as climbing to heaven.
Looking at those people with numb expressions, Furina felt a bit uncomfortable. Although she couldn't remember what she used to do, she felt... it shouldn't be like this.
Just then, the System's cold voice popped up again, this time with a hint of... temptation?
[Detected the demands of the common people in the current world: a desire to change their fate, a desire for power.] [Issuing Long-term Core Mission: Found and develop the 'Water God Cult'. Faith popularity will be converted into special points.] [Mission Objective: Guide believers, especially commoners, to awaken Spirit Master abilities. Let the 'Water God's' grace (or rather, your grace) spread across the continent!] [Initial Reward: Automatic condensation of a spirit ring for the 'cake' Spirit (First soul ring, age is random and based on luck). Faith points can be used to unlock more permissions and exchange for good things, dear~]
Furina almost choked on her own saliva.
Water God Cult? She was supposed to be a cult leader? No, isn't this jump too big? From an interdimensional traveler to a Food Element Soul Master and now a religious leader? Is there something wrong with this System?
And Faith points? That sounds so unreliable.
But... "automatic spirit ring condensation"? This reward tempted her. She was just worrying about how to Cultivate this cake Spirit. In this world, it seemed you had to kill Spirit Beasts to get a spirit ring, right? Making her kill things? Just the thought made her feel weak in the knees. And it seemed it really was too difficult for people here to awaken spirit power.
Helping people awaken? She seemed to... well... vaguely feel she might have a way? Although her mind was still blank on exactly how to do it.
"System, what can these points do? Can they make me stronger? Can they... help me remember something?" she asked tentatively in her mind.
[Points have infinite uses. You will naturally know once permissions are unlocked. Including but not limited to increasing strength, acquiring knowledge, and even... influencing the rules of the world!] The System was painting a very grand picture.
Furina looked at the thin children on the street and the sighing old people. She clenched her fists, then relaxed them.
It seemed... there was no other choice. In such a dump, with no money or status and only a Spirit that could turn into cake, was she really going to perform on the streets? Starting a cult... sounded quite interesting? (Even though it felt very unreliable.)
Besides, what if she could actually help some people?
"Fine, fine," she sighed, as if convincing herself. "Water God Cult it is. It sounds quite grand, at least better than the cake Cult."
She found a slightly cleaner corner to sit down and began to ponder how to make her grand debut. Directly shouting "Believe in the Water God for eternal life, guaranteed spirit power Awakening"? She'd probably be arrested as a lunatic.
She looked at her empty hands, and with a thought, another fresh little cake appeared. The milky scent wafted out, attracting a few sallow-faced children nearby who peeked over, swallowing their saliva.
Furina's eyes blinked, and she suddenly had an idea, though it sounded miles away from the 'divine cult' image she had imagined.
She waved at the dodging children, forcing a smile she thought was kind (but was actually a bit comical).
"Um... little ones, do you want to eat a sweet cake?" "It's free." "But, before you eat, you have to say something after me..." "Just say... 'Thank you for the Water God's gift'?"