The air in the Star Dou Great Forest did not smell like a forest should. It didn't just smell of pine needles and damp earth; it smelled of ancient, suffocating power. It was an atmosphere thick with Soul Power, a literal weight that pressed against the lungs of any mortal foolish enough to wander its emerald depths.
Lin Feng opened his eyes.
The first thing he saw was the canopy—a ceiling of leaves so dense they blotted out the sun, save for thin, crystalline needles of light that pierced through the gloom. He lay on a bed of moss that felt like velvet, but his body felt like it had been forged in a furnace and quenched in ice.
"Where... am I?"
His voice was raspier than he expected. He looked at his hands. They were small—perhaps the hands of an eleven or twelve-year-old—but the skin held a strange, metallic luster even in the shadows.
[Ding! System Synchronization Complete.]
[Welcome, Host Lin Feng, to the Continent of Douluo.]
A translucent blue screen shimmered in his vision. Lin Feng's heart hammered against his ribs. Douluo Dalu. Soul Land. He remembered the stories. The spirit rings, the gods, the legendary Clear Sky Hammer.
[Loading Host Profile...]
Name: Lin Feng
Age: 11
Level: 10 (Spirit Scholar - Peak)
Martial Soul 1: Golden Spirit Body (Rank: Divine/Body)
Martial Soul 2: Clear Sky Hammer (Rank: SSS/Tool - Currently Latent)
Systems Active: 1. Multi-Dimensional Simulation System: Predict the future; refine the past.
2. Universal Exchange System: Trade karma and tasks for divinity.
"Golden Spirit Body?" Lin Feng whispered. He closed his eyes and focused on his internal dantian. Usually, a martial soul was an external tool or a summoned beast. But as he channeled his soul power, he didn't summon anything. Instead, his very cells began to vibrate.
His skin didn't just turn yellow; it turned into solid gold. Not the soft gold of jewelry, but a cosmic, indestructible alloy. His muscles hardened, his senses sharpened, and he felt as though he could punch through a mountain. This was the pinnacle of Body Martial Souls—the Golden Spirit Body.
[Task Triggered: The First Step of the Monarch.]
Objective: Obtain your first Spirit Ring.
Constraint: Must be a beast of at least 1,000 years (Purple Tier).
Reward: 1,000 System Points, "Beginner's Gift Pack," and 5% Fusion Rate with the Clear Sky Hammer.
Penalty for Failure: Cultivation reset to Level 1.
Lin Feng gulped. A 1,000-year ring for a first ring? In the history of the Douluo Continent, the standard first ring was yellow (hundred-year). Absorbing a purple ring as a first soul skill was considered suicide—the physical body usually exploded from the sheer pressure of the soul power.
"But I don't have a normal body," Lin Feng realized, looking at his gilded arms. "I have the Golden Spirit Body."
The Simulation
"System," Lin Feng commanded, his voice growing steadier. "Activate Simulation. I need to find a 1,000-year beast that suits a physical defense soul."
[Simulation Starting... Cost: 10 Starting Points (Gifted).]
The world around Lin Feng blurred. Time sped up. In his mind's eye, he saw himself trekking North-East. He encountered a 1,500-year Man-Faced Demon Spider. In the simulation, the spider's poison bypassed his Golden Body's physical armor. He died in 4.2 seconds.
Simulation Restarting...
He moved West. He found a 1,200-year Iron-Armored Bear. They clashed for three hours. Lin Feng's stamina gave out. He was crushed.
Simulation Restarting...
He waited by a stream near the edge of the Great Forest's inner circle—near the coordinates where a certain Skydream Ice Worm was destined to emerge. He spotted it: A Gilded Diamond Boar. 1,100 years old. It was a beast of pure physical might and earth-elemental defense.
[Simulation Result: Success Rate 68% if the Host utilizes the 'Weight' of the latent Clear Sky Hammer without fully summoning it.]
Lin Feng opened his eyes. The simulation felt like a memory. He knew exactly where to go.
The Hunt: The Gilded Diamond Boar
Lin Feng moved through the underbrush like a phantom. He felt a strange pull toward the North—a cold, ancient aura that felt like a billion years of loneliness. Huo Yuhao and the Skydream Ice Worm must be nearby, he thought. But I cannot interfere yet. I am too weak.
He reached the stream. There, rooting through the mud for Spirit Herbs, was a beast that looked like a moving boulder. It was covered in jagged, crystalline plates that shimmered with a dull, diamond-like light. Its tusks were two feet long, serrated like saws.
A 1,100-year Gilded Diamond Boar.
Lin Feng didn't hesitate. He didn't have soul skills yet, but he had the foundation of a god. He activated his Golden Spirit Body.
"Hah!"
He leaped from the trees, his body a streak of gold. He slammed his fist directly onto the Boar's snout.
CLANG!
The sound was like a sledgehammer hitting an anvil. The shockwave cleared the leaves in a ten-foot radius. The Boar squealed, its massive head snapping back, but its hide wasn't even cracked. It looked at Lin Feng with small, red eyes filled with murderous rage.
"It's like hitting a wall of lead," Lin Feng muttered, his knuckles stinging.
The Boar charged. It was faster than it looked, its hooves churning the earth into a muddy mess. Lin Feng didn't dodge. He wanted to test the limits of his Martial Soul. He crossed his arms in a block.
BOOM!
Lin Feng was sent flying back thirty feet, his boots carving deep trenches in the soil. His chest ached, but his skin remained unbroken. The golden sheen dimmed slightly, then flared back to life.
"My defense is enough to survive," Lin Feng whispered, a wild grin spreading across his face. "But I need more power to kill it. System! I can't summon the Hammer yet, but can I channel its weight?"
[Warning: Channeling the Clear Sky Hammer's weight into your Golden Body will increase your mass by 500kg. Current Spirit Power consumption: 15% per minute.]
"Do it!"
Suddenly, Lin Feng felt his density triple. The ground beneath his feet cracked. As the Boar circled back for a second gore, Lin Feng didn't just punch. He swung his entire body like a pendulum.
His fist, now backed by the metaphysical weight of the world's heaviest tool soul, connected with the Boar's flank.
CRUNCH.
The Diamond Boar's ribs shattered. It let out a horrific, gurgling cry as it was lifted off the ground and slammed into a massive tree. The tree, five feet thick, snapped like a toothpick.
The beast struggled to rise, its internal organs turned to pulp by the sheer concussive force. Lin Feng walked over, his golden form reflecting the dim forest light like a vengeful deity. He raised his hand one last time.
"Rest now. You will be the foundation of a Legend."
He drove his palm into the beast's skull. The light in the Boar's eyes faded.
Slowly, a mist of deep purple energy began to seep from the carcass. It coalesced in the air, spinning faster and faster until it formed a perfect, shimmering purple ring.
The air grew cold. The pressure increased.
[Warning: 1,100-year Spirit Ring detected. Absorption risk: High. Proceed?]
"Exchange System," Lin Feng panted, sitting in the meditation position. "Buy a 'Spirit Stabilizing Pill' with my remaining points."
[Transaction Complete. Points: 0. Item Consumed.]
A cool sensation flowed through his throat. Lin Feng reached out with his soul power and pulled the purple ring toward him.
As the ring touched his body, Lin Feng screamed. It felt like molten lava was being poured into his veins. His Golden Spirit Body flared to a blinding white-gold. His bones groaned under the pressure of the 1,000-year energy, but they did not break. His marrow, tempered by the Golden Spirit Body, began to absorb the purple essence, turning his very blood into a rich, golden-purple ichor.
Hours passed. The sun set, and the predators of the Star Dou Forest began to howl. But none dared approach the pillar of golden light that sat by the stream.
Finally, the light receded.
Lin Feng opened his eyes. Behind him, a single, majestic purple ring pulsed with life.
[Absorption Successful.]
[First Soul Skill Learned: Golden Vajra Transformation.]
Effect: Increases physical defense by 200%, strength by 100%, and grants immunity to all "Low-Tier" status ailments (poison, paralysis, burn) for 5 minutes.
Lin Feng stood up, feeling a boundless energy. He looked toward the North, where a massive surge of spiritual energy had just erupted—the kind of energy that could only come from a million-year-old worm.
"The story is starting," Lin Feng said, his voice now deep and resonant. "And this time, the Clear Sky Hammer won't be the only thing the world fears."
He vanished into the shadows, heading toward the fate that awaited him.