│3rd Person POV │
[Douluo Continent, Shrek Academy, Sea God Island...]
Seated quietly at the edge of Sea God Island, Zhang Lexuan gazed into the distance. Her eyes were fixed in the direction of Star Dou Great Forest, while her mind replayed the events of the last few days.
A few days ago, Zhang Lexuan had broken through to the Soul Douluo realm after absorbing a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring as her eighth Soul Ring. At just 22 years old, she became one of the youngest Soul Masters in the history of the Douluo Continent to reach such a level.
In the current era, Soul Masters who possessed a Hundred-Thousand-Year Ninth Soul Ring could be counted on one hand, and very few throughout history had managed to get a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring at the Soul Douluo stage, let alone at her age. By all accounts, it should have been a moment of celebration; an achievement worthy of pride.
But Zhang Lexuan felt no joy.
The circumstances under which she had acquired her Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Ring and Soul Bone had left a heavy weight on her heart.
Just days earlier, under the protection of Xuan Zi, a Level 98 Super Douluo, more than a dozen Inner Court students from Shrek Academy had entered the Star Dou Great Forest to hunt for Soul Rings. However, due to unforeseen circumstances, Xuan Zi became separated from the group. And it was during that vulnerable window that tragedy struck.
The students encountered a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast—an opponent far beyond what they were prepared for. At the time, Zhang Lexuan, then a Level 80 Quasi-Soul Douluo, was the strongest among them.
Despite their lack of preparation, the group fought bravely. In the end, they succeeded in killing the Soul Beast, but the cost was devastating: more than half the students died in the battle. Only after the beast was slain and Zhang Lexuan had absorbed its Soul Ring and Soul Bone did Xuan Zi finally return, too late to prevent the loss of so many lives.
When the survivors made it back to Shrek Academy, Xuan Zi announced his resignation, stating that he wished to atone for his failure.
But Shrek Academy could not afford to lose its second-strongest Soul Master. The Pavilion Master and the Elders of Sea God Island made a difficult decision; they asked Zhang Lexuan to persuade Xuan Zi to stay, who was still reeling from the trauma of watching her fellow disciples, her junior brothers and sisters, die before her eyes.
In the end, it was only after she fell to her knees and told Xuan Zi that it was not his fault did the man abandon his intent to resign.
The scars from that day remained fresh in her heart. Guilt, loss, and a deep sense of helplessness lingered, forcing her to question her path, her choices, and her future.
It was then, in the midst of her internal turmoil, that a strange buzzing echoed in her mind, pulling her back from her thoughts.
In her spiritual sea, a mysterious notebook had suddenly appeared the day before—its cover bore the title:
[Ye Chen's Diary: Zhang Lexuan Exclusive]
Its sudden appearance and the bizarre way it imprinted the rules of the so-called Diary System directly into her mind were overwhelming enough to break through the haze of her grief and confusion.
With nothing else to distract her, she had begun reading the diary's first entry.
Most of its contents were beyond her understanding, and filled with names and references she didn't understand. But Lexuan was no fool—her sharp intellect quickly picked up on the implication: Ye Chen was someone who possessed knowledge of the future.
Then came the part that truly caught her attention—his list of goals.
One by one, she read through them, growing more stunned with each line.
For someone her age, becoming a Soul Douluo was a near-unprecedented feat. She was nearly 23 and had just reached that level; she could count on one hand the number of people in history who had done the same at a younger age.
But a Titled Douluo at 20?
She was almost certain that no such person had ever existed.
Not to mention his final goal—to become a God and even defeat the revered Sea God.
Zhang Lexuan couldn't understand it.
Why would someone from the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, a sect traditionally respectful of Shrek Academy and its legacy, harbor any animosity toward the Sea God? Not to mention Ning Rongrong, one of the original Seven Shrek Devils, who became a god together with Tang San, was from the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect. No one from that sect should have any reason to hate Sea God Tang San.
The thought alone felt blasphemous.
At that point, she had seriously considered disclosing the existence of her Diary Copy to the Pavilion Master and the Elders; if only to warn them of Ye Chen's intentions. But the moment she entertained that thought, she was punished.
Crippling pressure descended upon her soul, paired with a terrifying sensation; as if an invisible hand was gently cradling her heart, ready to crush it at the slightest provocation.
She had never experienced anything so suffocating. It was not pain in the traditional sense, but a primal threat that bypassed reason and struck directly at her instincts.
One word. Just a single word, and she felt certain her heart would be shattered and her soul obliterated.
After that harrowing experience, Zhang Lexuan swore to never challenge the System's rules again. She would rather face another Hundred-Thousand-Year Blood Moon Demon Wolf than provoke that force again.
Then, at midnight, she had received her first rewards from the Diary: a 10% increase in Soul Power and a peculiar Acting Skill.
After absorbing the Soul Ring and Soul Bone from the Blood Moon Demon Wolf, she had already reached Level 84, placing her halfway to Level 85. The sudden increase in Soul Power brought her even closer. With a bit more focused cultivation, she was confident she could break through in just a few weeks.
The Acting Skill was also unexpectedly useful. It allowed her to mask the turmoil she felt inside, particularly the quiet disappointment and pain left by the actions of the Pavilion Master and the Elders earlier that day.
For that, she was quietly grateful to the System. Whatever its origin, it had given her something no one else had: support, even if in a strange form.
Now, the buzzing sensation in her mind had returned; a gentle tremor across her spiritual sea.
The Diary was reacting again. That could only mean one thing: Ye Chen was writing a new entry.
Burying the storm of emotions within her heart, Zhang Lexuan focused her mind and opened the Diary once more, hoping that whatever she read next would help distract her from the pain she could no longer express.
[Earlier Today, Sect Leader Ning Hao had summoned my Father and me to discuss my future Cultivation plans and to make plans for my First Soul Ring hunt. Sect Leader Ning, Elder Zhang, and Elder Yu all agreed that I should start with adding Soul Rings to Sacred Sun Gauntlets first.]
[My Father and I will go to the Sunset Forest the day after tomorrow to obtain my First Soul Ring. When Sect Master Ning heard this, he arranged for Elder Yu to accompany us, for safety reasons. My Father, being a level 63 Soul Emperor, could easily help me acquire a Hundred-Year Soul Ring. But, having extra protection never hurts. Even in a place like Sunset Forest, even though it is not as dangerous as Star Dou Great Forest.]
Zhang Lexuan couldn't agree more with Ye Chen's thoughts.
[Now that the boring meeting is over, I can finally explore the library of our Sect. I have to say, the library is massive. I don't think I will finish reading all the books here, even if I spend decades trying. Truly, the legacy of a Sect with tens of thousands of years of History is truly something else, even if it's in decline now.]
[With just a preliminary glance, I can see that the books here contain knowledge of a very wide range of topics. Books on Soul Beasts, Martial Souls, Soul Tools, Medicine, Biology, History, Geography, and many, many more. I wonder what kind of rare knowledge is stored in the Inner Library, which is only open to Soul Saints and above.]
[Anyway, I should focus on my goal of visiting the library: to study the various Meditation Techniques that Sect has collected and created over the long History of its existence.]
Then, the Diary stopped updating here, leaving Zhang Lexuan to conclude that Ye Chen was likely busy reading the Meditation Techniques he found in the library.
She wondered about the purpose behind Ye Chen's desire to search for Mediation Techniques. Given that the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was doing their best to nurture Ye Chen, they would surely give him the best Meditation Technique the Sect had.
Before she could ponder further, she sensed the presence of two people approaching her from behind. Moreover, she noticed her Diary Copy suddenly shining with a blue light, and the shine only increased as the two presences came closer.
She turned around and saw Ma Xiaotao and Ling Louchen walking towards her.
As soon as they arrived within one meter of her, she heard the Diary System's voice in her mind.
{Other Diary Copy Holders detected nearby.}
{Would you like to add Ma Xiaotao as your friend? — Yes/No (Both parties must agree.)}
{Would you like to add Ling Louchen as your friend? — Yes/No (Both parties must agree.)}
At the same time that the System asked this question, it also transmitted some information detailing the benefits of being friends with other Diary Copy Holders. As friends, they could chat with one another anytime through their Diary Copy, no matter the distance between them. Additionally, they could also sense the location and health of their friends at all times.
After being stunned for a moment, Zhang Lexuan quickly answered affirmatively in her mind to both questions.
She already knew that there were other Diary Copy Holders other than her after reading the System Rules. She just didn't think she would encounter one so soon. Not to mention, she didn't expect the System to possess such a function of adding other Diary Copy Holders as friends.
The next moment, after subtly checking and making sure that no one was around, Ling Louchen said, "Senior Sister, you really have it as well. It seems my suspicion was correct."
"What suspicion?" Zhang Lexuan asked while gesturing to them to sit down beside her. Ma Xiaotao also looked at her friend and rival with a curious expression.
"Senior Sister, Xiaotao, I believe that other Diary Copy Holders are also all females, especially those who are beautiful and talented." Ling Louchen said with a confident expression.
With a skeptical expression on her face, Ma Xiaotao asked, "How did you reach that conclusion?"
"Well, I was thinking, what qualities did I have to receive a Diary Copy? After thinking it through, I can only think about my beauty and my talent that stood out from the rest.
"Then, when Xiaotao came to challenge me to a duel a few minutes ago, I found out she was a Diary Copy Holder as well. Xiaotao is a beautiful girl and as talented as I, so I became more sure of my hypothesis.
"Now that I know Senior Sister is a Diary Copy Holder as well, I am completely sure my hypothesis is correct as well. As they say, once is an accident, twice is a coincidence, three times is a pattern." Ling Louchen finished with a confident expression.
"Heheh~!" Ma Xiaotao let out a mocking laugh as she countered, "If that was the case, how do you explain Vice-Dean Xian Lin'er and Vice-Dean Cai Mei'er not being Diary Copy Holders as well? I met them in the morning today, and the Diary System didn't say anything about them being Diary Copy Holders. They are certainly as beautiful and talented as us."
Xian Lin'er was the Vice Dean of the Soul Tool Department of Shrek Academy, while Cai Mei'er was the Vice Dean of the Martial Soul Department. Additionally, both of them were also Elders of the Sea God Pavilion with Super Douluo Level strength.
In response to Ma Xiaotao's question, Ling Luochen shrugged and answered, "I don't know. Maybe because they are way older and are married?"
Ma Xiaotao was struck speechless by this response.
Hearing their banter, Zhang Lexuan smiled faintly for the first time in the past few days.
Just then, the Diary Copy in their minds buzzed, indicating that Ye Chen was writing in the Diary again. With a glance full of meaning to each other, they quickly focused their mind and began reading the new content.
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A/N: Here's another chapter of Diary System. I hope you guys like this and it would be much appreciated if your share your thoughts about the fic so far.
If you guys see any mistakes, please don't hesitate to point them out.
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As of now, this is how far along each story is.
First Tier:-Five Advanced Chapters for the following stories:
>>One Piece: As Portgas D. Ace.
>>One Piece: Copying The Phoenix Fruit At The Beginning.
>>DxD | A Devil with Three Essences.
>>Chaos' Chaotic Snippets.
>>Douluo Dalu (Soul Land): Diary System in Unrivaled Tang Sect.
Second Tier:- Seven Advanced Chapters for the following stories:
>>One Piece: As Portgas D. Ace.
>>DxD | A Devil with Three Essences.
>>Chaos' Chaotic Snippet.
>>Douluo Dalu (Soul Land): Diary System in Unrivaled Tang Sect.
So this is how it is. If you are joining my Patreon for my One Piece TL fic, don't purchase the Second Tier as I haven't yet posted any chapters for that fic in this Tier yet.
Also, while your support would be appreciated, don't feel pressured to join. I'll upload stuff outside it and not keeping it behind a paywall forever.
Anyway, Good day. See ya guys later.