Douluo Dalu II: The Peerless Tang Sect

Chapter 121 Revisiting Zhangyang Village! (Part 1)

In Zhangyangzhuang, a group of children were playing in the open space at the village entrance. Under a large tree beside the open space, several elderly people, looking rather frail, sat on the ground chatting together.

When Zhu Ziyang and his group appeared at the village entrance, they immediately attracted the attention of the elderly people. They all stood up, their eyes filled with fear and vigilance, because Zhu Ziyang and his group were all dressed in fine clothes and exuded an air of nobility, clearly not people like them who could afford to offend them.

The elderly were filled with unease, wondering what these distinguished guests were planning to do in their remote mountain village. The children hid behind the old people, their young eyes filled with fear and curiosity.

"Gentlemen, what brings you here?" An old man with thinning hair and few teeth stepped forward and asked respectfully.

"Grandma, I'm here to keep my appointment," Zhu Ziyang said with a smile. Then, his gaze swept over the group of elderly people behind him, his eyes lighting up as he approached one of them, an old woman. "Grandma Yang, do you remember me?"

This old lady, Granny Yang, was the same woman who had let Zhu Ziyang and his companion stay overnight a year ago. Zhu Ziyang had a deep impression of her, so he was able to recognize her again when they met. However, the old lady was quite old, and she looked at Zhu Ziyang with a hint of unease and doubt on her face. She was about to settle things from a year ago.

After all, what ordinary person is worthy of a Soul Master's promise?

"Grandma, it's that big brother and big sister from last year!" The little girl hiding behind her shouted happily.

"You, you really came!" Grandma Yang finally remembered, her body trembling slightly, her face filled with a complex expression of disbelief and extreme excitement.

"Yes, Grandma, we're here." Jiang Nannan stepped forward, her smile as gentle as moonlight, leaving the elderly and children present stunned.

Xian Lin'er and Cai Mei'er exchanged a glance and sighed inwardly. Then, Xian Lin'er stepped forward and said, "Gentlemen, we're here to help the village children awaken their martial spirits. Are these the only children in the village?"

"What? Awakening a martial soul?"

"Was it someone sent by the lord?"

"Are we really here to awaken the children's martial spirits?"

"..."

Xianlin'er's words immediately excited all the old people. Whether they believed it or not, they all spoke up, while the children watched all this with bewildered eyes.

"Everyone, it's true! It's true!" Granny Yang exclaimed, her voice drowning out the others' chatter. "Remember what I told you last year? These are those two young Soul Masters! They really have come to awaken the children's Martial Souls!"

After Grandma Yang finished speaking, she immediately pulled her little granddaughter to kneel down before Zhu Ziyang and the other three, and cried out in gratitude, "Thank you, Soul Master! Long live the Soul Master!"

With Granny Yang taking the lead, the other elderly people followed suit and knelt down to thank Zhu Ziyang and his three companions.

This scene left Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan at a loss, while Xian Lin'er and Cai Mei'er calmly accepted their thanks. The two women were older than any of the elderly people present, and naturally had seen many injustices in the world. They were used to it and their hearts were strong enough that they would not be affected by it.

"Please get up," Cai Meier said, then with a flick of her sleeve, she helped all the elderly and children to their feet. "You don't need to thank us. Now go and gather all the children together."

"Yes, yes, yes!" The elders were all shocked by Cai Meier's actions. They looked at her as if she were a deity, believing her words without a doubt, and immediately put them into action. Several elders went back to the village separately, while the children were left behind.

There are currently nine children present, the oldest being eight years old and the youngest only five.

"Nannan, do you still remember me?" Jiang Nannan bent down, reached out and pinched the little girl's cheek, and said.

"Yes! I remember, big sister is also called Nannan, right?" The little girl had a good memory, and her dirty little face was beaming with a smile as she answered.

"Mmm!" Jiang Nannan smiled happily.

Xian Lin'er and Cai Mei'er sighed as they watched this scene, then said to Zhu Ziyang, "Ziyang, do you feel a sense of injustice?"

"Hmm!" Zhu Ziyang nodded calmly and said, "A little."

"Hehe~ You don't need to hide it from me and Mei'er. We were just like you once," Xian Lin'er said with a smile. "The world has reached a point where change is inevitable. We have high hopes for you."

"That's right, Ziyang!" Cai Meier nodded in agreement. "The common wish of all soul masters from commoner backgrounds is to ensure that all commoners can equally enjoy the right to awaken their martial souls!"

"Senior Sister, Junior Sister, you don't need to say anything more, I understand," Zhu Ziyang replied calmly.

Seeing this, Xian Lin'er and Cai Mei'er said nothing more, and said, "Alright, let's prepare to help the children awaken their martial souls."

"Alright!" Zhu Ziyang nodded, then took out the Martial Soul Awakening Stones he had specially purchased from the Shrek City Treasure Pavilion from his Star Flame Ring. This set of Martial Soul Awakening Stones was free for nobles, but Zhu Ziyang had spent one million gold soul coins—and that was after a 10% discount. Its original price exceeded ten million gold soul coins, and the purchase conditions were extremely stringent, the purpose being to prevent ordinary soul masters from having any improper ambitions.

This resource, which can be called the cornerstone of the Soul Master world, is monopolized to an alarming degree. At least in the original Douluo Continent, the Martial Soul Awakening Stone raw stone mines were firmly controlled by the royal families and nobles of various countries. The production and distribution were strictly controlled. Even Shrek Academy could only obtain five sets from the three great empires each year before it controlled a raw stone mine!

In the era of the Spirit Hall, Spirit Awakening Stones, which were dirt cheap, have now become treasures even more precious than Spirit Bones. It's quite ironic.

After they finished setting up, about fifteen minutes later, elderly people brought children one after another to the village. Soon, all the children in the village were gathered together, along with their grandparents. Only a few children's parents stayed in the village.

After the four people screened and arranged the children, they found that there were a total of 31 children in the village. Among them, only 17 children met the threshold for natural awakening of soul power, and the remaining 14 children were all under the age of six. Without the help of external forces or secret methods, they could only awaken their martial souls after they turned six.

The children were set aside, and their families were very anxious, pleading with Zhu Ziyang and his companions to let them keep their children. Looking at the parents' faces filled with sorrow and despair, and the children's bewildered and somewhat lost expressions, Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan finally softened and promised to come back next year.

This was how the families of the fourteen children, all under the age of six, were appeased.

After that, they truly got down to business and began awakening the martial souls of seventeen children. They divided the children into two pairs, and Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan worked together. Both of them were very familiar with the martial soul awakening ceremony, after all, they had been helping people awaken their martial souls for a whole month.

"Big sister, my name is Yang Zhenzhen." The little girl, whose nickname was Nannan, stood in front of Jiang Nannan and happily said her real name. Then, Jiang Nannan smiled and pulled her into the martial soul awakening formation that had been set up.

"Okay, Yang Zhenzhen, listen to your sister, close your eyes, imagine you are sleeping, and then reach out your hand!" Jiang Nannan's tone was gentle, as if she was coaxing her to sleep.

The little girl was very obedient and immediately did as Jiang Nannan said. Jiang Nannan smiled slightly and then released a burst of soul power into the Martial Soul Awakening Stone. The little girl, Yang Zhenzhen, immediately emitted the light of Martial Soul Awakening, and in a short while, traces of Martial Soul appeared on her body.

A pair of blue-purple butterfly wings appeared behind her, with faint electric currents swirling around them. This is a spirit possession that only appears when a beast spirit awakens. The little girl actually has a beast spirit, and it seems to be a lightning-attribute flying beast spirit.

"This is... a Thunder Moth?" Standing behind Jiang Nannan, Xian Lin'er looked at the little girl's martial spirit and called out its name, her tone somewhat surprised.

She truly hadn't expected that someone with the potential to become a Soul Master could actually emerge from this remote mountain village. Although the Thunder Moth was just an ordinary beast spirit, the possibility of it possessing innate soul power was very high.

(End of this chapter)