Chapter 2, Douluo Continent
"Chen Xuanji, hand over the Yi Jin Jing. That's not something you can possess."
"Chen Xuanji, although you are a genius, what we love to do most is suppress geniuses."
"Hand over the Yi Jin Jing."
"You don't deserve the Yi Jin Jing!"
"Child, Mom is sorry. Mom can't watch you grow up. If you're lucky, you can live happily.
I'm sorry... I'm sorry... Mom... can't... stay... with... you... anymore..."
"Ah—"
A little boy woke up from his sleep! The little boy had black hair, wore ordinary cloth short-sleeved clothes, and was covered with a cotton quilt.
"How many nightmares is this?" The boy looked out the window, where he could only hear the hooting of owls and the chirping of various insects.
After watching the night view for a while, he lay back down and muttered to himself, "I've been in Douluo Continent for six years and I can still have nightmares from my past life. Is it karma from my past life?
Probably just an obsession. It's already incredibly difficult to be reborn. It seems even the heavens don't want Chen Xuanji to die."
That's right, Chen Xuanji was reborn, or rather, transmigrated. He had taken a secret medicine to forcefully enter the Black-level Floating Pagoda realm and sacrificed his life force to enter the Second-level Battle Pattern realm, killing Qin Yang, the owner of the Nine Yang Divine Skill.
Originally, he should have been reporting to Yama, but he unexpectedly arrived in this plane called Douluo Continent.
He had read Douluo Continent before, after all, he was a teenager who loved anime and novels. However, after he started practicing martial arts, he didn't have much time for leisure.
He knew about the opportunities and important characters in Douluo Continent, but nothing else.
Unfortunately, he was still an orphan in this life. His parents died when he was born, and he was a premature baby who was rescued by an old man.
The old man's name was Chen Chen, and he was probably in his seventies. He was also a relative in this life, having raised him.
Old man Chen Chen was a three-ring Soul Master who had once served as a deacon in the Martial Soul Branch Hall before retiring due to his age.
After Chen Xuanji's parents died, he happened to meet Chen Chen, who took the infant Chen Xuanji and raised him. Now, Chen Xuanji was six years old and would be able to awaken his Martial Soul next week.
Next week, a deacon from the Martial Soul Main Hall of Fasno City would come to this Heavenly Soul Village to help the children awaken their Martial Souls.
Chen Xuanji didn't care about awakening his Martial Soul, or what kind of Martial Soul he would awaken. Even with Blue Silver Grass and no innate Soul Power, he could still become a powerful being.
From the age of two, when he could walk, Chen Xuanji had begun to cultivate the Yi Jin Jing again. Now, after four years of cultivation, Chen Xuanji had passed the first two stages of the Yi Jin Jing.
Using the cultivation path of the Yi Jin Jing (Muscle/Tendon Changing Classic), he tempered his essence, energy, and spirit. Moreover, the energy in this Douluo Continent was abundant, and the Yi Jin Jing absorbed energy faster than in his original world.
However, he also encountered a bottleneck; he couldn't enter the first cycle of the Yi Jin Jing.
The first cycle of the Yi Jin Jing opens all the meridians and acupoints in the body, allowing one to learn and sense the magnetic energy of the universe.
Chen Xuanji felt something invisible restricting the improvement of his true energy; in this world, it should be called soul power.
Being unable to progress was extremely frustrating for a cultivator like him, but he could familiarize himself with other martial arts in advance. After all, while internal energy couldn't be improved, external martial arts could still be practiced.
This feeling of being unable to progress now should mean that his soul power had been fully accumulated, but his martial soul hadn't awakened yet. If it awakened, it would likely be innate full soul power.
Level 10 Soul Power is a bottleneck, a limitation of this world. Although it's a limitation, Soul Rings and Soul Bones still greatly enhance a Soul Master's abilities. Chen Chen, who took Chen Xuanji in, was over seventy years old, full of energy, and occasionally went out for romantic encounters. As for how Chen Xuanji knew about it, old Chen Chen took her along, asking the people there to look after her, and then took Chen Xuanji away after he was done.
Old Chen Chen was truly vigorous for his age, which also shows that the people of Douluo Continent have excellent physical qualities. Chen Chen was only a Soul Master with one white and two yellow rank, yet his body was so good.
Chen Xuanji really wanted to awaken her Martial Soul quickly and start cultivating. Here, there weren't so many enemies, so many greedy people coveting the Yi Jin Jing he possessed.
This Yi Jin Jing was the root cause of his death at such a young age. He had offended too many people, and possessing a peerless skill was a crime.
Chen Xuanji had initially considered having many people learn the Yi Jin Jing (Muscle/Tendon Changing Classic) to ensure his safety. However, those who learned it were all killed. To protect their positions, martial arts masters sacrificed themselves, killing sect leaders, cult leaders, and various other masters, leaving a peaceful haven for the martial arts world.
Unfortunately, Chen Xuanji's vision was beautiful, but after those old fogies fell, new successors would continue their work, perhaps even more ruthlessly!
Chen Xuanji couldn't sleep. He got dressed, went outside, and leaped onto the roof. Lying there, he gazed at the moon.
Old Chen had gone off to seek pleasure again tonight, leaving him alone at home. However, aside from indulging his masculine instincts, Old Chen treated him well, providing him with ample food and drink.
He raised him like a grandson. Chen Xuanji planned to support Old Chen in his old age, but he feared the old man might one day die on some woman's belly.
"Martial Soul, Soul Rings, Soul Bones, Soul Beasts! Tang San, Xiao Wu, Angels, Gods? I wonder if this world will be better than my old, scheming world?
The Love Continent, the best-rated online, I wonder if I can find my true love here? Heh, I'm thinking too early.
Douluo Calendar 2607? What time period is that? Old Chen is a deacon of the Martial Soul Branch Hall, which means the Martial Soul Hall is in power. I wonder which pope is in charge."
Chen Xuanji had already started thinking. This small village was very isolated; only Old Chen frequently went out to gather information. Chen Xuanji knew nothing about the continent's political landscape.
The only thing Chen Xuanji knew was that he was in the Heaven Dou Empire, in the Fasno Province. Old Chen said that the Fasno Province was located in the southwest of the Heaven Dou Empire, bordering the Star Luo Empire. The Fasno Province had vast tracts of farmland and was an important producer of grains and vegetables. These agricultural products not only supplied the cities within the Fasno Province but could also be transported to other regions of the Heaven Dou Empire.
His village, Tianhun Village, was located next to Fasno City, the main city of Fasno Province.
Old Chen liked to go to Fasno City to discuss romance and nature.
Chen Xuanji had been taken to Fasno City by Old Chen before. The city was vast; as an important production area for grain and vegetables in the Heavenly Dou Empire, Fasno City was incredibly magnificent.
Chen Xuanji was stunned when he saw the Martial Soul Main Hall of Fasno City; it was too opulent and resplendent.
It truly was a cultivation world where money was no object.
This world was different from the world he had lived in before; everything was different—nobles, popes, religions, dukes, viscounts, and so on.
However, it was still a cultivation world, and Chen Xuanji preferred to cultivate quietly, observe the scenery, and aspire to be a traveler.
As Chen Xuanji drifted into reverie, dawn gradually broke, and a faint, pale white light rose in the distance to the east.
Seeing that glimmer of light, Chen Xuanji got up and stretched.
"A new sunrise is a new beginning. The past is past; let's face the present! Oh dear, time for my morning exercise."
Chen Xuanji jumped off the roof and ran nimbly through the village, his figure like a ghost, silently weaving between the houses.
Chen Xuanji's steps were like walking on clouds, each step light and steady, as if his body and the air were one.
(End of Chapter)