NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 1: Chapter 1
Chapter 1: Of All Things, Why Be a Simp? Pah!
Douluo Calendar Year 2616, Star Dou Forest, Soul Beast Mixed Zone.
This area, deep within the forest, was home to soul beasts over ten thousand years old. Few people dared to venture here, so towering trees grew densely.
Yet, one part of the forest was in ruins—nearby trees were snapped in half, branches and leaves scattered everywhere.
Through the gaps in the foliage, traces of blood could be seen on the ground.
As though smelling death, several crows flew over from a distance, circling above and refusing to leave.
These were Blood Crows, a common type of soul beast in the Star Dou Forest. Unlike regular crows that fed on carrion, Blood Crows preferred fresh corpses.
Soon, they found their desired prize: a corpse of a young man in white robes, leaning against an ancient tree.
The Blood Crows descended, landing on the young man's body, about to peck at the bloody hole in his chest—
Suddenly, a faint heartbeat echoed.
The young man's eyes opened, his weak breath forming a single word: "Wood... Thorn..."
A wooden spike emerged from his palm, piercing through the Blood Crow and extending out the other side.
The Blood Crow struggled violently before falling still.
But that small soul skill drained the young man's remaining strength, and his hand fell limply to his side.
His condition was terrible—a gaping hole in his chest, blood flowing out relentlessly.
Yes, he had died once. But now, another soul had awakened within this body.
Perhaps due to this new soul, the body's instincts reawakened, greedily absorbing the surrounding energy to heal.
The wound began closing before his eyes, flesh knitting together as dawn's light illuminated the earth.
When the sun rose, the young man pushed himself off the ground and, though shaky, stood up.
As he straightened, he spat on the ground.
"Of all things, why be a simp? Pah!"
The one he cursed wasn't someone else—it was himself. Or rather, the original soul of this body.
"A genius of Spirit Hall, yet you just had to fawn over Bibi Dong? Now look—dead. But maybe this is for the best. After over two decades of watching helplessly, I can finally take control."
This young man was Jun Yan, a transmigrator. Somehow, he had crossed into the world of Douluo Dalu.
But there was a catch: when he arrived, his soul didn't take over completely. Instead, he became a spectator, forced to watch another soul live this life for 26 years. Until now.
As a spectator, Jun Yan had full knowledge of the body's memories.
"First, the martial souls. Twin martial souls—what I remember as Wood Release and the Rinnegan. Too bad the original couldn't use them properly. Otherwise, he wouldn't have ended up like this."
The original Jun Yan was an orphan with innate level nine soul power and twin martial souls. After awakening, he was taken in as the adopted son of the Platinum Bishop of Spirit Hall, given the name Jun Yan.
Only Jun Yan and his adoptive father knew of his twin martial souls. By his father's request, he cultivated the Wood Release first.
However, Wood Release required powerful chakra—or in this world, soul power. At lower levels, it didn't offer much advantage.
Even so, within Spirit Hall, his talent was second only to Saintess Bibi Dong. Now, at just 26 years old, he had reached Rank 60, the Soul Emperor level.
He came to the Star Dou Forest with Bibi Dong to obtain his sixth soul ring. But unexpectedly, they encountered the Dark Devilgod Tiger.
Despite being Rank 60, both he and Bibi Dong only had five rings at the time.
As a simp, Jun Yan sacrificed himself to cover Bibi Dong's escape, taking the Dark Devilgod Tiger's poisonous tail spike through his chest. He died with unspoken regrets in his heart.
Fortunately—or unfortunately—the tiger seemed more interested in Bibi Dong, chasing her instead, leaving Jun Yan's body intact enough for his soul to awaken.
Thanks to Jun Yan's terrifying regenerative abilities, as long as the wound wasn't fatal, his body could heal itself.
After sitting in meditation to restore his soul power, Jun Yan was nearly back to full strength in just three hours. In less than a day, he recovered from mortal injury to peak condition—a testament to his body's monstrous resilience.
After changing into clean clothes from his storage soul tool, Jun Yan glanced around, then headed east.
Spirit City lay to the north of the Star Dou Forest. Since Bibi Dong fled north, Jun Yan chose the east to avoid crossing paths with the Dark Devilgod Tiger.
He thought, "I'll get my soul ring first and leave this forest. As for that tiger… revenge can wait. You'll pay for this."
---
Meanwhile...
"Elder, are you alright?" Bibi Dong anxiously supported the old man beside her.
Jun Yan's guess was right—a Titled Douluo had indeed been following them.
This Spirit Hall elder had saved Bibi Dong, but...
Panting heavily, the elder said, "The Dark Devilgod Tiger truly lives up to its name. Though its cultivation hasn't reached a hundred thousand years, it was strong enough to battle me to a draw."
The Dark Devilgod Tiger was a top-tier soul beast. Even with only fifty to sixty thousand years of cultivation, it could rival a hundred-thousand-year beast—or a Titled Douluo.
The elder had fought the tiger, forcing it to retreat at the cost of his own injuries. The beast, too, was gravely wounded.
The elder asked, "I remember you came with that Jun family boy… where is he?"
Lowering her head, Bibi Dong whispered, "Jun Yan… to cover my retreat, took a blow through the chest. I fear… he didn't survive."
She hadn't expected someone to die for her.
"Would Xiao Gang do the same?" she wondered.
Then, answering herself: "He probably would."
The elder sighed softly. "He was a genius… what a pity."