After carefully putting away the Awakening Stone and the Soul Testing Crystal, Su Yuntao pushed open the door and walked out of the Awakening Room.
The corridor was deep and secluded.
As he walked, he couldn't help but recall the shattered mirror that had floated in the silver-haired boy's palm, and the dazzling crystal ball that followed.
In all his years as a patrol officer of the Spirit Hall, he had presided over countless children's awakening ceremonies, but this was the first time he had personally witnessed "innate full soul power."
Even if a martial soul had mutated into a shattered mirror, if a soul ring could be obtained, the martial soul might still undergo new changes.
Therefore, he ultimately extended an invitation to the boy to join the Spirit Hall.
The boy neither accepted nor refused, only saying that he needed to discuss it with his parents before making a decision.
This was reasonable; life choices naturally require careful consideration.
Being cautious was always a good thing.
'But... a shattered mirror martial soul? Sigh...'
Su Yuntao shook his head with amusement.
In his opinion, this boy was unlikely to achieve anything significant.
No matter how high his innate soul power, if the essence of his martial soul was too poor, he would ultimately find it difficult to accomplish anything.
Thinking this, Su Yuntao prepared to hand over the files of the awakened individuals to his colleagues at the Linfeng City branch.
But as soon as he took a step, he suddenly remembered his superior's specific instructions before his departure—
"All files must be brought back to Notting City. Do not contact any members of the Linfeng City branch."
"Strange, why must the files of the Linfeng City children be brought back to Notting City?"
Completely baffled, he decided to stop thinking about it.
He straightened his belongings and embarked on his journey back to Notting City.
Meanwhile ,Dongfang Jing followed the flow of people out of the Martial Soul Branch.
Anxious parents were already waiting outside, crowding around their children as soon as they appeared, bombarding them with questions about the awakening results.
Amidst the noise, Dongfang Jing paused slightly.
He gazed at the scene for a moment, his eyes shifting with emotion.
But ultimately, a deep calm settled in.
Yet, beneath his eyes lay a barely perceptible resolve.
He turned and headed home.
As he passed by several middle-aged women who were gathered together and seemingly chatting idly, he clearly felt several gazes quietly falling on him.
The gazes were varied—some curious, some indifferent—but few truly compassionate.
Dongfang Jing quickened his pace, then began to run.
The wind whistled past his ears until the familiar wooden house came into view, at which point he gradually slowed down.
It was his home, neither too big nor too small, a common sight in Linfeng City.
He gently pushed open the door, and before it was fully ajar, a little "cannonball" rushed out and pounced into his arms.
He instinctively bent down, opened his arms, and precisely met the "cannonball."
"Guoguo~!"
A soft, sweet voice approached from afar, filled with joy.
"Welcome home!"
"Yes, I'm back."
Holding the little one in his arms, the coldness on Dongfang Jing's face melted, revealing an extremely gentle smile.
Six years ago, he was sent to this strange world by the kind-hearted people of Dayun Motorcycle, born in a poor village outside Linfeng City.
But before he even opened his eyes, he was abandoned in the wild by his "biological parents," nearly ending up in the belly of a hungry wolf.
Fortunately, a patrol team from the Spirit Hall passed by. A couple in the team took pity on him and took him home, raising him as their own son.
In his previous life, Dongfang Jing was an orphan, and in this life, he experienced parental love, which he cherished immensely.
Three years passed, and a new member joined the family—Dongfang Yao, three years younger than him.
Although not related by blood, their relationship was closer than that of siblings.
"Brother, what spirit did you awaken?"
Little Yao was only three years old, her words still childish and unclear.
But she was precocious, her thinking different from other children, and she already understood the concept of spirits.
Dongfang Jing gently stroked his sister's soft hair, and with a thought, summoned his spirit.
Several shards of mirror floated in his palm, translucent, with a faint purple halo around their edges.
Sunlight streamed in through the window, refracting them into dazzling, ever-changing colors.
The little girl's eyes lit up, her bright, sparkling eyes blinking and darting around before she exclaimed repeatedly, "Wow! Brother's martial soul is so beautiful! It must be incredibly powerful!"
Dongfang Jing chuckled, "Whether it's powerful or not, I don't know yet, but your brother here has innate full soul power!"
"Clap clap clap clap!"
The little girl immediately clapped excitedly, "Amazing! Amazing! As expected of my brother! Invincible, unparalleled in the world! The number one genius under heaven is none other than my brother Dongfang Jing!"
The undisguised praise from his little sister brought a slight smile to Dongfang Jing's lips, and he occasionally responded with a joke.
"Are you hungry? I'll cook for you. What does Yao'er want to eat?"
"Anything is fine, oh wait, I want fried chicken!"
Dongfang Yao.
His sunny and cheerful younger sister was a talkative little rascal full of energy.
She was also the only warm sunshine in his life.
After lunch,the still-young Dongfang Yao rubbed her eyes and went back to her room for a nap.
Watching his sister's peaceful profile as she drifted off to sleep, Dongfang Jing silently tucked her in and quietly left the room.
The gentle smile on his face gradually faded.
He pushed open the door to his parents' room and stood there silently for a long time.
The room was very tidy, without a speck of dust, yet it exuded a sense of desolation.
He walked to the cabinet, looked at the smiling adoptive parents in the photograph, and murmured to himself.
"Mom and Dad, I awakened my Martial Soul today! I have innate full Soul Power!"
"Don't worry, I will cultivate diligently and become stronger as soon as possible. I will definitely protect Yao'er."
"..."
"And I will definitely find out the truth."
His fists clenched suddenly, his eyes flashing like unsheathed blades, even brighter than before.
He and Dongfang Yao's parents were both members of the Spirit Hall; his father was a Soul Venerable, and his mother a Great Soul Master.
They were neither instructors nor Guardian Knights.
They guarded the entrance to the Soul Hunting Forest year-round, occasionally patrolling outside the city.
Otherwise, Dongfang Jing wouldn't have been found by the couple.
Yet, this very couple mysteriously disappeared a year ago.
The news came from a neighbor, who said that the Soul Beasts kept in the Soul Hunting Forest had suddenly rioted and were gathering to attack the defenses.
How could that be?
The Soul Beasts imprisoned in the Soul Hunting Forest were only ten or a hundred years old; a thousand-year-old beast was extremely rare.
They hadn't even developed intelligence yet, so how could they be gathering to break out?
This kind of talk was clearly treating them like ignorant children!
He continued questioning his neighbors and went to the Spirit Hall for inquiries.
The answers he received were always the same:a spirit beast uprising, and he died in the line of duty. Dongfang Jing took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his turbulent emotions, and returned to his room.
After his parents disappeared, he and his younger sister had relied on each other for survival.
Fortunately, his adoptive parents had left some savings, and the Spirit Hall had also provided a pension.
Life wasn't as warm as before, but it wasn't dire either. He gathered his thoughts.
He composed himself and raised his hand again.
With a slight thought, the few crystalline shards of mirror reappeared in his palm .
"Is this a spirit?"he murmured softly.
In his previous life, as an orphan, he had exhausted himself just trying to survive, leaving no time for anything else.
He had basically never been exposed to entertainment or games.
He had only heard bits and pieces of "Douluo Continent" from a few peers—memes like "mother's entanglement," "the path to death," and "resurrection."
He only learned about spirits and spirit beasts word for word from the book after he actually transmigrated here.
After carefully examining his martial soul for a moment, he raised his head, his gaze falling on a corner of the room.
There, a blurry, indistinguishable figure stood silently, identical to himself.
It wasn't completely transparent, yet it was as if it had blended into the air, almost imperceptible.
Without focused observation, it was easily overlooked by the naked eye.
Yes, besides the Shattered Mirror martial soul, Dongfang Jing had also awakened this shadowy figure.
Perhaps calling it a "mirror image" would be more accurate.
Because whatever Dongfang Jing did,that mirror image would move in sync, perfectly synchronized.
(End of Chapter)