Chapter 2: Twin Spirits? No, a Combination Spirit
Three days passed quickly. Xia Tianling still went to the mountaintop every morning to call Tang San over for breakfast, while also conducting his moral education. Tang San, after eating each day, would return home to learn forging from Tang Hao, which wasn't different from the original story.
"Little San, come out quickly! It's time!" Xia Tianling shouted from outside the door, his own heart brimming with irrepressible excitement. After waiting for six years, he could finally find out what his spirit was!
"Go on, don't delay lunch," Tang Hao's impatient voice sounded faintly from inside the house.
Led by Old Jack, they arrived at the Spirit Hall in the center of the village. Of course, this so-called Spirit Hall was just a slightly larger wooden house, specifically used for the annual awakening ceremony.
There were nine children awakening this year. The other seven children were laughing and chatting, ignoring the two newcomers.
The village children generally looked down on Tang San; favoring the rich and scorning the poor exists everywhere. As someone with memories of two lives, although Tang San's social experience was shallow due to his obsession with hidden weapons in his past life, he was mentally mature. Thus, he wasn't willing to interact with these children and was rather pleased they ignored him. It could be said that apart from the "precocious" Xia Tianling, he had no other friends in the village.
Xia Tianling, on the other hand, simply couldn't be bothered with these little kids, focusing all his energy on his "educational" mission, determined to transform the hypocritical and selfish Tang San from the original story into a qualified, progressive youth. It seemed his efforts were already showing initial results.
Just then, a young man who had been sitting stood up. He had sharp eyebrows, sword-like eyes, and a handsome appearance. On his chest was a fist-sized character for "Spirit," and he wore an exaggerated black cape.
Xia Tianling looked closely; it was indeed the image of Su Yuntao from the original story. In his previous life, Su Yuntao was known as the "Blind Douluo," referring to the fact that those he overlooked often ended up becoming gods.
"Hello, respected Battle Spirit Master. We'll have to trouble you this time," Old Jack bowed respectfully to the young man.
Su Yuntao gave a faint nod, interrupting Old Jack who seemed about to say more, "My time is limited, let's begin. I've already visited six villages. I hope your village can produce a child capable of becoming a Spirit Master."
"Alright children, line up."
Although Su Yuntao wasn't overly respectful to Old Jack, he was very responsible regarding his duties and treated the unawakened children gently. He smiled and said, "My name is Su Yuntao, a level 26 Battle Spirit Master, and I will be your guide. Now, I will awaken your spirits one by one. Remember, no matter what happens, don't be afraid."
He then arranged six black stones in a formation and motioned for a child to stand inside. "Don't be afraid. Close your eyes and feel carefully."
As he spoke, Su Yuntao's eyes suddenly lit up. Amidst the children's terrified gazes, he let out a low shout. "Lone Wolf, possess!"
Strands of cyan light shot out from between his eyebrows. Su Yuntao's figure immediately swelled, wolf-like features and fur appearing on his body, turning him into a veritable werewolf. Two halos lit up beneath his feet, circling from his feet to his head – one white ring, one yellow ring.
"This!" Seeing this, Tang San's eyes widened in astonishment as he stared at Su Yuntao after his spirit possession. Level 26, Lone Wolf, one white, one yellow! Exactly as Brother Ling had said! Could Brother Ling really predict the future?
Su Yuntao calmed the frightened child and was about to continue the ceremony when he turned and saw Xia Tianling standing at the very edge, looking at him with delightful surprise, his eyes shining with a golden light, seemingly eager to step forward for a closer look.
"Eh? You're not afraid of me?"
"Master Su, of course I'm not afraid! Wolves are my favorite!" Xia Tianling replied excitedly. Before transmigrating in his previous life, his favorite animal had been the wolf. "I hope my spirit can also be a cool wolf!"
"Hahahahaha! Alright, alright, little fellow. Good luck, it'll be your turn soon," Su Yuntao laughed heartily, encountering such an interesting child for the first time.
Regarding his own spirit, Xia Tianling genuinely hoped to awaken a wolf-type spirit beast to fulfill his wish from his past life. He had even asked the system about it, made a wish, and received a reply after spending some Fate Power.
["The essence of a spirit lies in the combination of soul, bloodline, and subconscious. Around the age of 6, these three mature simultaneously, allowing for awakening. However, the Host's body was shaped by ??? using materials like ???, and thus is only constrained by the Host's subconscious."]
["Therefore, the Host's spirit cannot be determined by me. Due to ??? reasons, I also cannot shape a new spirit for you. Your spirit will be determined by the deepest desires in your heart, the things your subconscious most wants to rely on or craves."]
"Sickle, no spirit power."
"Hoe, no spirit power."
"Blue Silver Grass, no spirit power."
Just as Xia Tianling was eagerly anticipating what his own spirit would be, it was Tang San's turn. As spirit power was injected, a warm golden light began to bloom from Tang San's body. Tang San extended his right hand, and a stalk of Blue Silver Grass sprang forth upon it.
Behind him, Xia Tianling's eyes narrowed slightly as he saw the Clear Sky Hammer hidden in Tang San's left hand, turned inward.
"Sigh, let's test the spirit power," Su Yuntao said, handing the crystal ball to Tang San out of principle and diligence.
"Level ten! Innate full spirit power! My heavens!" Su Yuntao, who had initially thought it was just going through the motions, was stunned. But then, remembering something, he calmed down again and said with some regret, "What a pity, truly a pity. Why is it Blue Silver Grass? Even an axe would have been better!"
"Master Su, does innate full spirit power mean the highest innate level is only ten? Can it be higher?" Xia Tianling, standing nearby, thought of Qian Renxue's Seraphim spirit and asked with a hint of mischievous curiosity.
Su Yuntao stated righteously, "Of course not! How can one break through level ten without a spirit ring? The highest innate spirit power is level ten!"
"Alright, alright. Then please awaken mine first. Let's see if I can become a Spirit Master." Xia Tianling couldn't wait any longer and pulled back Tang San, who also wanted to ask more questions.
"Come on, child. I hope you can awaken a better spirit." Su Yuntao sighed, gestured for him to stand in the center, and began injecting spirit power.
Xia Tianling felt enveloped by a warm aura, as if something within his soul was condensing, being born! A surge of righteous aura burst out with Xia Tianling at the center, so powerful that even Tang San nearby stumbled and hastily retreated to a distance.
"This... what on earth is this spirit? To possess such might during awakening!" Su Yuntao was inwardly shocked.
The moment the spirit took shape, Xia Tianling instinctively extended both hands straight out, palms facing inwards and tilted slightly upwards. Two golden shadows were held aloft by him, slowly hovering in the air.
In his left hand was an ordinary-looking hammer, like a blacksmith's single-handed forging hammer. (Note: Original text contains a link to the source website here.) In his right hand was an ordinary-looking single-handed axe, the kind commonly used by carpenters for woodworking.
Unlike ordinary tools, both were entirely a faint gold color, a perfect blend of simple, low-key appearance and restrained, dignified temperament. Furthermore, they bore patterns composed of extremely faint, dark lines. No one knew the meaning of these patterns, but upon closer inspection, they seemed to contain the fundamental principles of heaven and earth, causing slight dizziness with just a glance.
After they fully materialized, an inexplicable dark light immediately radiated outwards. This light wasn't cold or gloomy; instead, it made everyone in the room feel as if bathed in a spring breeze, their hearts becoming incredibly calm, like being held in a parent's embrace. Staring at this hammer and axe, imbued with an incredibly sacred aura, Su Yuntao was simply too stunned to speak.
"Tw-twin spirits!? This... this can't be the legendary twin spirits, right? But even if they are twin spirits, this hammer and axe don't seem to be of very high quality..."
Before Su Yuntao could recover, Xia Tianling clearly felt the blood in his body boiling, as if something else was breaking free from the depths of his soul.
"ROAR!"
A heaven-shaking dragon roar shot towards the sky. The dense dragon might terrified the village livestock and surrounding wild beasts, causing them all to collapse to the ground, losing control of their bowels.
"This... this is... the aura of a top-tier beast spirit!"
Above the wooden house, unseen by the crowd, the shadow of a five-clawed golden dragon coiled appeared, then vanished without a trace in an extremely short time. Accompanying the appearance of the golden dragon phantom were nine deafening claps of thunder.
Everyone was stunned by the dragon roar. No one noticed that with the roar, Xia Tianling's pupils turned a faint gold color, becoming vertical slits similar to a snake's. As the golden dragon phantom disappeared, his eyes returned to their original state.
Coming back to his senses, Xia Tianling stared thoughtfully at the hammer and axe in his hands and suddenly chuckled. So, this is the deepest connection in my heart. It wants me to engage in infrastructure building and farming, huh.
He then spoke up, "Master Su, this doesn't seem to be twin spirits. I can feel they are one entity, a set."
"N-not twin spirits..." Reminded by Xia Tianling, Su Yuntao, still immersed in the dragon might, snapped back to reality. A child who just awakened... his Lone Wolf spirit was actually suppressed by him to the point of almost dissipating. It's simply too terrifying.
"Let's test the spirit power..." Su Yuntao's throat felt a bit dry as he handed over a spirit power crystal ball. Regarding the spirit, he decided to report it directly to headquarters. With his judgment as a mere Grand Spirit Master, it was better not to make rash decisions.
"By the way, child, what's your spirit called?"
Xia Tianling smiled slightly, "My spirit is named... Woodworking Two-Piece Set!"
Su Yuntao: ...
Tang San: ...
Old Jack: ...
What kind of stupid name is that? What the heck is a Woodworking Two-Piece Set?
He then circulated his Dao Sutra, slowly infusing the spiritual power he cultivated into the crystal ball.
Suddenly, the transparent crystal ball erupted in brilliant light.
"This... this... you're also innate—"
BANG!
Before Su Yuntao could finish his sentence, the crystal ball exploded with a loud bang.
(End of Chapter)