Douluo: Rise of the Dragon God

The morning sun cast its first rays over Sky Dou Village. A small and tranquil settlement on the outskirts of the magnificent Heaven Dou City.

This was a relatively large and much more prosperous village than the others, comparable to a small town. The residences were more detailed, and the clothes were more refined.

The village comfortably accommodated about two thousand families.

Today, for most six-year-old children, was undoubtedly the most important day. This was because today was the day the Spirit Master would arrive to perform the Martial Soul Awakening that happens every year.

Among them was Yu Chen.

A calm boy with peaceful eyes and short, dark hair. Last month marked six years since he arrived in this world.

That's right.

He was not originally from this world. He came from a world called Earth, a blue planet surrounded by oceans. An ordinary planet, where magic and fights with spirit beasts were just stories and entertainment.

When he arrived in this world, he didn't even know the language nor did he have enough vision to see his parents' faces. He only knew that they left him in this village and left after talking to him.

Yu Chen didn't know what they had said. But he distinctly remembered feeling the warmth of his mother's tears falling on his cheeks.

It was only when he began to understand the words of this world that he realized he wasn't in just any world, but one of his favorite worlds. The world of Soul Land. Or more precisely, the world of Douluo Dalu.

Thinking of this, a bitter smile appeared on his rosy lips. In his hand, the black and violet ring seemed to reflect the sun's rays penetrating the windows of the village's spirit hall.

This was the only "inheritance" his parents had left him. A simple, unadorned ring, which he first used as a necklace pendant around his neck, and now was on his right thumb, still a bit large.

"Congratulations! A Battle Bow with 1 Spirit Power."

The Spirit Master, a man in his thirties with thick, slightly plump hair, smiled, patting the back of the boy who seemed extremely happy.

Behind the chubby Spirit Master, something in the shape of an alchemical furnace, with three spirit rings, floated gently.

Yu Chen looked at it and twisted his lips. "One white ring and two yellow ones. What a waste of potential."

He knew that the ideal combination would be two yellow and one purple. But it seemed that this was a combination not everyone could have. Su Yuntao didn't have it, and this master in front of him didn't either.

The Spirit Hall truly knows how to use all kinds of people.

Yu Chen shook his head.

"Next!"

Mo Chen, the chubby Spirit Master, called out. About twenty children were still left, and over ten had already been awakened. Among them, only three had spirit power, with one of them having only half a point. This was enough to see how difficult it was to become a Spirit Master.

The next person was a little boy. He was excited, but also nervous. It was possible to see sweat droplets on his forehead. Unfortunately, he also had no spirit power, even though he had an iron sword as his Spirit.

This happened to all the others. Yu Chen also began to feel his hands sweaty and slippery. His heart was racing, and his eyes more tense. Finally, after almost everyone had finished, Mo Chen looked in his direction.

"Next!" Were the only words that came out of his mouth.

Yu Chen swallowed hard. As he began to walk, it felt as if his feet were stuck to a pound of cast iron. Each step seemed more difficult than the last. His heart seemed to want to escape through his mouth.

"Hm. Very good. What's your name, little boy?" Mo Chen smiled, gesturing for Yu Chen to enter the circle of black stones.

"Yu Chen!" He replied, and gave a slight bow to the Spirit Master. Even though he was an orphan, he was raised by the blind old woman of the village, so he understood the basic principles of the world.

He positioned himself in the center of the black stone circle, as instructed.

"Yu Chen? All right! Now calm your mind and try to feel my spirit power in your body."

Mo Chen said, and then began to concentrate his own Spirit Power into the six black stones on the ground.

Zzzzz

The stones hummed and released dark threads of light that enveloped Yu Chen in an energy cocoon, causing him to begin to levitate about a meter off the ground.

"Is this spirit power? It's so warm and comfortable."

Yu Chen felt a warm force emerge from within his body. He closed his eyes and began to try to feel some change happening in his body.

Suddenly, bright points of light began to manifest around him, spinning and rapidly clustering.

The light was so bright that Mo Chen had to squint his eyes. In a matter of seconds, the light particles formed a majestic figure behind Yu Chen.

"This... an animal-type spirit!" He said, excited.

It was a serpent.

Its body, about two meters long, was covered in scales that looked like translucent crystals, glowing with an ethereal shimmer under the hall's light.

On its head, a dazzling crest, made of the purest golden crystal, shone with a soft and powerful energy. The Crystal Crest Serpent hovered silently, its eyes like liquid gold fixed on Mo Chen, exuding a noble aura.

"A Beast Spirit! And one of such noble appearance!" exclaimed Mo Chen, his eyes shining with excitement.

"A snake?" Yu Chen exclaimed, excited. At least this meant he would have spirit power.

However, before Yu Chen could even think of admiring his own spirit, a violent sensation shook him from within.

It was as if another entity, a powerful and tyrannical force, was trying to tear its way out of his body.

"Shit, shit, shit!"

He clenched his fists tightly, his knuckles turning white. 'No! Stay inside!', he screamed in his mind, using all his willpower to suppress that overwhelming presence.

A single word echoed in his mind as he felt that presence. "Twin Spirits!"

In that moment of despair, the black and violet ring on his thumb abruptly heated up, becoming almost incandescent.

Yu Chen felt his spirit power, the same warm energy that had just awakened, being violently swallowed by the ring.

"What's happening? This is the ring left by my parents. Could there be some mystery behind it?"

However, the sensation lasted only an instant, ending with the ravenous suction ceasing as quickly as it began. But it was enough. The internal force retreated, subjugated by Yu Chen's will and the mysterious intervention of the ring.

However, Yu Chen barely had time to breathe a sigh of relief when, from the now silent ring, a tiny point of purple light escaped, so small and fast that it went completely unnoticed by Mo Chen, who was still mesmerized by the serpent.

Swish!

The light flowed directly into the center of Yu Chen's eyebrows, disappearing into his skin.

In the next minute, a flow of complex and profound information was imprinted on his mind. A series of diagrams and ancient words formed in his consciousness, consolidating under an imposing title:

"Sovereign Dragon Technique"

The ceremony's light cocoon disintegrated and Yu Chen landed softly on the ground, a little unsteady. He looked at the ring on his hand, his parents' only inheritance, and fell into deep thought, his mind swirling with the whirlwind of events.

That, without a doubt, was a cultivation technique. And in his body, he felt the other presence ready to emerge whenever he wished.

But what truly caught his attention was the connection he felt with the ring on his hand.

"Who the hell were my parents? Where did this cultivation technique come from, and why did they leave me in this village?" He wondered.

Unfortunately, his reflection was interrupted by Mo Chen's excited voice.

"Quick, boy! Come on, let's test your spirit power!"

Mo Chen handed him the blue crystal sphere, his voice full of expectation, eager to see the potential of the boy who had awakened such a magnificent spirit.

Yu Chen took a deep breath to calm his mind and extended his right hand, the one wearing the ring.

As soon as his palm touched the cold surface, the crystal sphere burst into a bright blue light, illuminating Mo Chen's surprised face and filling a considerable part of the hall.

It was a strong and vibrant glow.

"This feeling..."

Yu Chen murmured, watching the sphere's glow intensify.

The ring on his thumb vibrated gently, and a current of spirit power began to flow from his body, through his hand, and into the ring.

His spirit power was now being absorbed by the sphere, and also by the strange ring on his hand.

However, unlike the violent suction before, this time it was a continuous and discreet absorption. He could feel his own power being drained while the sphere still glowed intensely in his hand.

The light in the sphere, though still strong, seemed to diminish a little from its initial intensity under the ring's absorption.

Mo Chen, focused on evaluating the brightness to determine the level, clearly noticed what was happening. Even so, when the sphere stabilized and he finally made his assessment, a wide smile spread across his face.

"Level five spirit power! Excellent! Innate spirit power of level Five!" Mo Chen announced, his voice filled with genuine joy. He took the crystal sphere from Yu Chen's hand. "A high-quality beast spirit with level Five spirit power. Boy, you have a promising future!"

He then added, with a slightly disappointed tone: "Unfortunately, for a single point I cannot directly invite you to join the Spirit Hall; they usually require level six or higher. However, any primary spirit master academy in Heaven Dou City will accept you without problems! You have good talent to become a great Spirit Master."

Yu Chen breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank you for your compliment, Senior." He bowed slightly.

He didn't want to join the Spirit Hall anyway. Besides, he knew that his Spirit Power was definitely not just level Five. It was innate full level ten, or perhaps even stronger. It just wasn't reflected in the sphere because of the ring that absorbed half of his spirit power.

"I have to find a way to figure out what's going on with this..." He thought.

Mo Chen turned to put the crystal sphere back into his tool bag, satisfied with the last awakening of the day.