By now, Ling Xiao had already returned to his room.
Lying on his small bed, he carefully contemplated his future.
"Now that my Martial Soul has awakened and I possess Innate Full Soul Power, I will certainly be sent to Spirit Hall. By leveraging their resources, I can definitely cultivate into a powerful Soul Master."
"However..."
Remembering the fate of Spirit Hall in the original story of the Douluo Continent, Ling Xiao furrowed his brows, feeling a trace of worry in his heart.
After all, Tang San—that guy who came equipped with both a Plot Armor and an Intelligence-Lowering Halo—had completely destroyed Spirit Hall.
"Forget it, no use dwelling on it. I also have Innate Full Soul Power and I know the general direction of events. In the future, I might be able to save Spirit Hall from its ultimate fate."
Ling Xiao exerted force with his waist, snapping upright from the bed.
He shook his head and muttered, "I just hope Tang San hasn't awakened his Martial Soul yet. Otherwise, I might not be able to keep up with that nonsensical, cheat-like leveling speed of his in the later stages."
Ling Xiao stood up and attempted to release his Martial Soul using his intent. He planned to study it thoroughly; truth be told, he was extremely curious about his own Martial Soul.
A flash of light surged from the center of his right palm, and an axe radiating a blackish-red halo manifested, rotating slowly.
Feeling the Soul Power flowing sluggishly through his body, Ling Xiao's eyes flickered. He couldn't resist trying to control his internal Soul Power to inject it into the Martial Soul.
A stream of blackish-red light shot from his palm into the axe. Instantly, the blackish-red radiance of the axe Martial Soul above his palm flared intensely. It grew larger and larger until it finally dropped into Ling Xiao's hand.
Ling Xiao felt a sudden weight.
Thud!
The massive axe slammed directly onto the floor, though Ling Xiao's right hand remained clamped around the handle.
"Damn, it's actually this heavy!"
Ling Xiao had mentally prepared himself, but he hadn't expected that once the axe Martial Soul fully materialized into its normal size, it would possess such staggering weight.
He took a deep breath, gripped the handle tightly with his right hand, and used every ounce of his strength to slowly lift the axe. The muscles in Ling Xiao's right arm tensed and trembled slightly.
Clearly, at this moment, trying to lift this axe with a single arm was an arduous task. He couldn't help but bring in his left hand, gripping the handle with both hands to finally steady it.
"So heavy!"
"But, this axe is truly badass."
Unlike during the Martial Soul Awakening, it was only now that the Martial Soul could be considered truly and fully manifested.
The entire axe was a bronze color, looking exceptionally ancient and majestic.
The blackish-red halo from before had been completely restrained within.
The handle was relatively long, allowing for either a single-handed or double-handed grip; it was slender in the middle and thicker at the end.
The axe head at the top was incredibly broad, covered in mysterious patterns that gave it a sense of immense weight. The outermost edge of the blade was crescent-shaped and silvery-white, gleaming with a chilling light.
Humans on the Douluo Continent were generally taller than those from his previous world. He was only six years old this year, yet his height already exceeded 1.3 meters.
This axe's overall length was definitely over half a meter, nearly half as long as his body. Carefully observing the giant axe before him, Ling Xiao smiled with satisfaction.
The more he looked at it, the more he loved it.
Setting aside his Innate Full Soul Power and the powerful force he vaguely sensed residing within the weapon. Just looking at the appearance of this Martial Soul, anyone could tell it was absolutely no ordinary Martial Soul.
In the Douluo Continent, Soul Masters were symbols of great power, and the most critical factor in becoming one was the Martial Soul. If you awakened a trash Martial Soul, you might as well go back to sleep; strength would have nothing to do with you.
In such a world, one's background was truly vital.
When Ling Xiao discovered he was just an adopted orphan, his biggest fear was awakening a trash Martial Soul or having a decent type but too low Innate Soul Power. Now, that problem had been perfectly resolved.
Furthermore, being able to study at Spirit Hall was excellent for him. Although Spirit Hall faced the danger of destruction in the future, as long as he planned correctly, that ending wasn't necessarily unchangeable.
After all, the reason Tang San could destroy Spirit Hall—besides Spirit Hall's own poor decision-making—was primarily because he achieved Dual Godhood.
As long as Ling Xiao could sabotage Tang San's "cheat-filled" journey to Sea God Island, then no matter how much of a genius Tang San was, he wouldn't be a match for Spirit Hall.
However, thinking about attaining Godhood, a cold sneer appeared on the corner of Ling Xiao's mouth.
Attaining Godhood on the Douluo Continent was truly a joke, and the so-called "inheritance of a Godhood" was even more pathological—especially the Sea God inheritance.
In his view, a true Godhood inheritance should be initiated by a Peerless Douluo who had reached Rank 99, passing various trials to gradually accept the power of that Godhood until finally becoming a God.
Much like how Tang Chen underwent the Asura trials.
However, if one rashly attempted to receive a Godhood inheritance while only at the Titled Douluo stage—or even before reaching it—one might quickly reach the Titled Douluo rank through the "empowerment" of the God's trials, increase the age of their soul rings, or even receive God-Bestowed Soul Rings.
But such a person would have no hope of truly becoming a God. Their path would be cut short, and they could only ever reach Rank 99 at most, just like Qian Daoliu and Bo Saixi.
Yet, Qian Daoliu had relied on himself to devise a shortcut.
He first had Qian Renxue follow her own path to accept the Godhood inheritance and its power prematurely. Then, in the final step, he—a Peerless Douluo who had also received the rewards of the God's trials—would be sacrificed.
By stacking the power of two inheritances, he intended to compensate for the flaw of Qian Renxue not reaching the Titled Douluo rank through her own cultivation, forcibly pushing her to become a God.
One had to admit, Qian Daoliu's brilliance was admirable; he achieved the Sea God's method through a mortal body. Unlike Qian Daoliu, who relied on his own strength, Sea God Island was completely controlled by the Sea God.
The High Priest Bo Saixi was more like his puppet.
After all, although the Sea God Martial Soul passed down through Bo Saixi's family was perfectly suited for the Sea God position—just like the Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul and the Angel God position...
One of the core treasures of the Sea God inheritance, the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud (also known as the Sea God Heart), was not on Sea God Island. Instead, it was in the hands of the inland Heaven Dou Imperial Family.
Her lineage could never achieve Godhood, as if the Sea God was intentionally preventing the inheritors of the Sea God Martial Soul from becoming the Sea God themselves—for reasons unknown.
Once a person chosen by the Sea God appeared, Bo Saixi's sacrifice was already set in stone. One could say her existence as the High Priest was solely to guard Sea God Island until the chosen one arrived to begin the inheritance.
At that time she would sacrifice herself—a tragic tool through and through.
As for the Sea God, he was even more unscrupulous.
He didn't just set up various trials on the island to "empower" Soul Masters and forcibly raise their strength; he also ensured they could never leave the island, forcing them to guard it for life to prevent his inheritance from being destroyed.
Worse, once a candidate for the Godhood was confirmed, he repeatedly and forcibly interfered with the lower realm just to protect his candidate.
It was disgusting.
At this thought, Ling Xiao's loathing for Sea God Island grew.
Suddenly, he heard footsteps. The door to his room was pushed open.
Ling Xiao was startled; with a flash of light in his right hand, he retracted his Martial Soul into his body.
Su Yuntao walked in, followed by two women.
Judging by their attire, they were likely attendants within Spirit Hall.