Although he had heard it countless times, old Oggy still found Meng Cheng Xian's voice disturbingly peculiar.
His voice was adjusted to resemble his previous self on Earth.
Despite having the body of a six-year-old child, his voice sounded like an old man's.
Fortunately, he hadn't laughed. Otherwise, his voice combined with his laughter would create a truly chilling ensemble: an evil in the present world.
Old Oggy entered the house. The surroundings, while not entirely chaotic, were coated with layers of dust, showing that the interior hadn't been touched for a long time.
"Little Xian, hurry up and awaken your martial soul! The Second-Degree Soul Master from the Sun and Moon Divine Hall is almost here."
Meng Cheng Xian stood up, revealing half of an adorable face—a feature he had clearly inherited from Shi Hao and his wife. Back on Earth, he was by no means handsome.
The left half of his face was concealed by a black mask, adding a certain flair to his appearance.
It wasn't something he made himself, Shi Hao had gone out of his way to capture a specialist to craft it. Had Meng Cheng Xian done it on his own, it would have been a haphazard contraption at best.
He was dressed in a patchwork outfit, with a tattered cloak covering his grayish-black arm.
This wasn't due to a lack of better options—it was simply his preference. Back on Earth, he had grown used to wearing ragged clothes.
He wore no shoes, and his mismatched feet, each a different color, gave him an unusually bizarre appearance.
The reason was straightforward: his feet were incredibly tough. Shoes or no shoes, it made little difference to him. Besides, he had grown accustomed to it and wasn't keen on changing.
"Alright, I'm coming." he said.
Following old Oggy, Meng Cheng Xian walked toward the place where martial souls were awakened.
Oggy said little, over the years, he had simply come to accept Meng Cheng Xian's eccentric nature.
They arrived at a dilapidated shrine that had fallen into disrepair over time. Inside, eight children stood in line, nervously awaiting their turn to awaken their martial souls.
Though they understood the chances of possessing soul power were minuscule, they couldn't help but harbor a glimmer of hope.
The odds might be slim, but it wasn't impossible.
Should they awaken a martial soul and possess soul power, their chance to escape poverty would be within reach.
Moments later, a young man in his twenties entered, dressed in the uniform of the Sun and Moon Divine Hall. He announced:
"I am Peter, a Level 23 Second-Degree Soul Master. My martial soul is a tiger."
Then, Peter flexed his muscles, causing a light breeze to stir around him as he released his soul power.
Two soul rings appeared around his body—one white and one yellow.
Following this, a tiger radiating soul power materialized at his side.
The tiger roared, its sound echoing through the shrine and frightening the children, who instinctively stepped back.
"See that? This is my martial soul." Peter declared smugly.
The children's eyes lit up with admiration and awe:
"Wow, that's so cool!"
"Master Peter is so handsome!"
"I hope I can awaken a martial soul as good as Master Peter's!"
.....
Their effusive praise nearly sent Peter over the moon, his vanity thoroughly indulged.
Meanwhile, Meng Cheng Xian mused to himself:
"White looks so much better—why did he settle for yellow?"
Though it seemed a trivial thought, it was exactly what he was pondering.
Relaxed and unconcerned, he wasn't thinking about the benefits of absorbing higher-year soul rings.
One by one, the children took their turns awakening their martial souls. Meng Cheng Xian stood last in line, having arrived the latest.
If old Oggy hadn't reminded him, he might have forgotten about the event altogether.
Though Meng Cheng Xian had his grievances with the Sun and Moon Divine Hall, his ire was directed toward their gods and fanatical followers obsessed with their so-called gods.
He bore no ill will toward ordinary people. After all, humanity had shown him 'kindness' on Earth, and he valued humans deeply.
It might have sounded strange, but he adhered to a strict set of principles—one of which was never to kill indiscriminately or harm any being unless it furthered his cultivation.
"The iron hoe. Innate soul power: 0. Next."
"The chicken. Innate soul power: 0. Next."
"A droplet of water? Innate soul power: 0. Next."
Child after child stepped forward to awaken their martial souls, with all results showing a soul power of zero.
Peter wasn't surprised. Having visited numerous villages for soul awakening ceremonies, he was well aware that very few people possessed the qualifications to become soul masters.
It was not uncommon for an entire village—or even multiple villages—to produce no one with innate soul power.
In this world, those without innate soul power almost 100% could not cultivate.
Of course, this limitation didn't apply to individuals like Li San, Xiao Yao Zi, or Meng Cheng Xian.
They had delved into areas far beyond the reach of ordinary people—subjects too daunting or inaccessible for most, as these pursuits were even more challenging than cultivating soul power.
Martial arts in this world were not popular because they paled in comparison to cultivating soul power and demanded immense time and effort.
For an ordinary person to achieve anything significant in martial arts required decades of dedication.
Even Li San, the least talented of the three, was considered a once-in-a-century prodigy in martial arts.
As for the other two old men, calling them geniuses would be inaccurate—they were fundamentally not human at the end of their past lives.
At this moment, Meng Cheng Xian stepped up in front of Peter. Seeing the peculiar child before him, with half his face concealed by a mask and wearing ragged, beggar-like clothes, Peter didn't hold out much hope.
"Step into position so I can help you awaken your martial soul." Peter instructed.
Six glowing stones encircled Meng Cheng Xian's body, emitting a strange light.
A few seconds later, a pale white glow enveloped his figure.
Originally, the glow had been a faint golden hue, influenced by the Kai Tian Sword.
However, Meng Cheng Xian didn't like it. He had repeatedly broken and modified his martial soul until it took its current form.
Though its strength hadn't improved, he had successfully changed its color.
Peter frowned at the sight and asked:
"Could this be a body martial soul? Kid, is your martial soul your body?"
"Yes." Meng Cheng Xian replied.
Hearing the child's voice, Peter was startled, momentarily wondering if he had gone deaf or was hallucinating.
But as a professional, he quickly regained his composure and said:
"So it's a trash martial soul, but you'll definitely have innate soul power. Let's see how much."
A body martial soul wasn't a secret, and while it was considered the weakest type, it always guaranteed some level of innate soul power.
Meng Cheng Xian placed his hand on the crystal ball, deliberately diluting his soul power to lower its apparent level.
The ball radiated a dazzling light, and Peter's eyes widened in shock.
"This… this is full innate soul power!" he exclaimed.
But his excitement quickly faded, and he sighed while shaking his head.
"What a pity—a person with full innate soul power, yet they're saddled with the most useless martial soul."
Taking out a pen, Peter scribbled something down and handed the paper to Meng Cheng Xian.
"This is your certification. You can use it to enroll at the Olap Elementary Academy."