"Dang dang... dang dang."
Inside the blacksmith shop, the sound of hammering continued non-stop.
"Brother, how many strikes have you done?" Tang San put down his hammer and asked breathlessly.
"One hundred and thirty-eight... one hundred and thirty-nine."
Tang Yin held the iron hammer, pounding away at the metal with all his might, replying without even thinking.
At this moment, both he and Tang San were drenched in sweat, hot perspiration constantly flowing into their eyes, making them bloodshot.
Seeing how desperately Tang Yin was working, Tang San couldn't help but feel a pang in his heart and said, "Brother, take a rest. We have to go awaken our martial souls tomorrow."
Upon hearing this, Tang Yin nodded slightly, but his hands didn't stop at all, continuing to pound the iron chunk again and again.
Tang San sighed inwardly: "Big brother never knew what giving up meant since childhood. It's a pity he doesn't have a cultivation method—otherwise, he'd definitely be much stronger than me."
Thinking back to when he was cultivating Purple Demon Eye and Xuan Tian Gong, Tang Yin was off doing some training he didn't even understand himself.
Tang San shook his head, tossing away these distractions, and refocused on hammering the metal.
Night passed quickly.
At the break of dawn, Tang Yin and Tang San finally stopped their hammering. After a night of forging, the iron chunk had already taken on a slightly different form.
"Brother, I'm going outside to rest for a bit," Tang San said softly.
"Mm."
Tang Yin nodded. He knew Tang San was going to cultivate Purple Demon Eye while basking in the first rays of the purple qi from the east.
Just as well—he had his own plans. He stood up, supporting his tired, wobbling body, and stepped out of the blacksmith shop early.
"Brother?"
Tang San looked puzzled, unsure why Tang Yin had come out.
"Little San, you go rest. I'm going to lie down on the hillside from yesterday for a bit. The air there is much better."
Tang Yin explained.
Everyone has their secrets—even Tang Yin was no exception.
"Ah, so that's it."
Tang San understood. He thought Tang Yin was up to something else—turns out he just wanted to enjoy the breeze.
Tang Yin waved his hand and turned to head for the hillside.
Seeing this, Tang San didn't hold back either. He used Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track to quickly dash to a hilltop, sat cross-legged, and began absorbing the first purple qi of dawn.
Elsewhere, once Tang Yin was sure Tang San could no longer see him, he raised his hand and made a gesture.
"Wei—Si—Yin."
"Clone Technique."
Suddenly, a puff of white smoke appeared beside Tang Yin, and a person identical to him stood there.
"I did it! Finally succeeded!"
Tang Yin was excited—he had tried many times before and this was his first real success.
"Poof..."
Tang Yin turned his head, only to see the clone technique had already dissipated. Scratching his head, he said: "Still not very stable..."
"Brother, let's go! Grandpa Jack is here."
He turned to see Tang San running over, with old Jack following behind.
Taking a deep breath and flashing a bright smile, Tang Yin said: "Alright, let's go."
On the way to awaken their martial souls, old Jack earnestly said: "Little Yin, Little San, it's been ages since our Holy Soul Village produced a soul master. I hope the two of you can awaken good martial souls. That way, our village might produce another soul master since that Soul Saint."
Looking at old Jack's face, Tang Yin twitched the corners of his mouth.
"Produce a soul master? We'll produce a god! Let's just call it Divine Soul Village from now on!"
Before long, the three arrived at the center of Holy Soul Village—the Martial Soul Hall. Many children were already gathered there; no need to ask—it was time for martial soul awakening.
Tang Yin said: "The Martial Soul Hall really does a good job in this area. Otherwise, kids from commoner families would remain commoners for life. At least this gives them some hope."
At that moment, a young man walked out from the crowd. Without even looking, Tang Yin knew—it's our famously blind Douluo, Su Yuntao!
"So this is a soul master?" Tang San looked at Su Yuntao with great interest.
"Hello, respected Battle Soul Master. We'll be troubling you today," old Jack respectfully greeted the young man.
Su Yuntao replied impatiently: "Hurry up and start. I still have to go to the next village. Don't waste time."
Old Jack nodded and turned to the children: "Kids, whether your martial soul is good depends on yourselves."
With that, old Jack left the place.
"Children, come in. I will awaken your martial souls," Su Yuntao waved his hand, and the children entered the Martial Soul Hall one by one.
Seeing everyone was present, Su Yuntao closed the doors and windows and began his introduction.
"I'm Su Yuntao, a Level 26 Soul Master. I will be your guide. I'll awaken your martial souls one by one."
After speaking, he pointed to a child, motioning for him to come over.
Once the child stood still, Su Yuntao chanted: "Martial Soul, possess!"
The children were instantly frightened into silence by the scene. Su Yuntao motioned for them to relax and explained: "This is my martial soul, Lone Wolf. Once your martial soul awakens, you'll appear in a similar state."
Seeing the children nod, Su Yuntao quickly extended his hand, injecting soul power. A golden light enveloped the child.
"Stretch out your hand."
The child obediently complied. Soon, a sickle appeared.
Su Yuntao frowned slightly and said: "A sickle, huh? Let's see if you have any soul power."
The child placed his hand on the crystal ball, but there was no reaction.
Su Yuntao shook his head helplessly: "Useless martial soul. No soul power. Next."
"Useless martial soul. Next."
"Next..."
...
Before long, it was Tang San and Tang Yin's turn.
Su Yuntao pointed at Tang San: "Your turn."
Tang San nodded and walked up to Su Yuntao, ready for martial soul awakening.
Su Yuntao nodded, thinking to himself: "This kid might awaken something decent."
As he injected soul power, Tang San's body burst into dazzling golden light that filled the entire room.
As the light dimmed, Su Yuntao, through the glow of his martial soul state, saw a swaying Blue Silver Grass!
"Blue Silver Grass..." Seeing this, Su Yuntao held his forehead and muttered: "Got my hopes up for nothing."
"Forget it. Test your soul power yourself. I'll awaken his martial soul next."
He tossed the soul power testing crystal to Tang San and motioned for Tang Yin to come over.
Tang San caught the crystal and placed his hand on it. The previously dim orb immediately burst with a soft blue glow.
Su Yuntao exclaimed in shock: "This is Innate Full Soul Power!"
As the light faded, Su Yuntao sighed: "Such a pity—it's a useless martial soul."
"Uncle, what is Innate Full Soul Power?" Tang San asked in confusion.
"When martial souls awaken, aside from the form determining their strength, the amount of soul power is also crucial. It determines how strong a start a soul master has. The higher the innate soul power, the faster future cultivation will be."
"Oh, I see." Tang San nodded to show he understood.
Only then did Su Yuntao turn around and awaken Tang Yin's martial soul.
"Martial Soul, Awaken!"
As the soul power was injected, Tang Yin felt something emerging from his hand. With a thought, a Blue Silver Grass, identical to Tang San's, appeared.
"Another... Blue! Silver! Grass!" Su Yuntao nearly cracked a tooth in frustration.
Tang Yin scratched his head. He hadn't expected his martial soul to be Blue Silver Grass either. But no one noticed—the Sharingan had quietly appeared in his eyes.
"Test your soul power."
Su Yuntao handed the soul power crystal to Tang Yin.
Tang Yin took it, placed his hand on it. The crystal was instantly filled with soft blue light—but hidden within was a hint of deep blue.
"Another Innate Full Soul Power!" Su Yuntao felt like his heart stopped for a beat.
That was already the second one. Is Innate Full Soul Power growing on trees now?!
Even if it was a useless martial soul like Blue Silver Grass...
Su Yuntao sighed, packed up his things, and headed toward the exit.
Tang Yin and Tang San followed behind and stepped out of the hall.
Seeing Su Yuntao come out, old Jack hurried over and asked anxiously: "Soul Master sir, did anyone in our village awaken a martial soul?"
Su Yuntao nodded, replying regretfully: "Yes, but they're both useless martial souls. Such a pity—Innate Full Soul Power."
With that, Su Yuntao walked away on his own. He still had to awaken martial souls in the next village.
Old Jack stood dumbfounded, muttering to himself: "Innate Full Soul Power... Innate Full Soul Power..."
Seeing Tang Yin and Tang San come out, he quickly ran over and asked: "Little Yin, Little San, was it you two who successfully awakened?"
Facing old Jack's hopeful gaze, Tang Yin smiled and said: "That's right, Grandpa Jack. It was the two of us—just a shame it's a useless martial soul."
He summoned his Blue Silver Grass and showed it to old Jack.
To his surprise, old Jack actually started crying, sobbing as he said: "Who cares if it's useless? As long as you're soul masters, that's enough!"
"Uh..."
Tang Yin and Tang San exchanged glances and wordlessly agreed not to speak.
"Little Yin, Little San, Grandpa will take you home." Old Jack wiped away his tears, smiling kindly at the two.
On the way back, Tang San asked: "Grandpa Jack, what is a soul master?"
"Huh? Didn't Master Su Yuntao explain it to you?" Jack looked puzzled.
"Nope ×2," Tang Yin and Tang San replied in perfect unison.
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(END OF CHAPTER)