Douluo Continent, Star Dou Great Forest.
A massive Saber-Toothed Tiger Soul Beast, nearly as large as a mountain, lay silently on the ground. Above its body, a pitch-black soul ring glowed ominously—it was a terrifying ninety-thousand-year soul ring.
Lin Fan sat cross-legged in front of the Saber-Toothed Tiger with a serious expression. He summoned his martial soul, the Azure Shadow Sword, and closed his eyes in meditation, beginning to absorb the beast's ninety-thousand-year soul ring as his ninth ring.
"With this, after forty years of cultivation, I've finally become a Titled Douluo."
Lin Fan sighed with emotion, then focused intently on absorbing his ninth soul ring.
Half an hour later.
Lin Fan opened his eyes again, a faint blue gleam flashing within them. His aura became even more profound and ethereal, carrying an otherworldly air.
"Six years to awaken my martial soul, and forty years of cultivation to finally reach Rank 91, Titled Douluo."
"But with my innate soul power of only Rank 6, I'm afraid this is as far as I'll ever go."
Looking back on his forty-six years in the Douluo Continent, Lin Fan couldn't help but feel complicated. He had stumbled and struggled all the way, surviving purely by relying on his foreknowledge of the world, without any cheat system or golden finger.
Reaching the level of Titled Douluo starting from mere Rank 6 innate soul power…
Who could understand the hardships and sacrifices behind that?
Because of this, Lin Fan knew better than anyone how lucky he was to have reached this point.
Sometimes, he couldn't help but wonder:
If he were like other transmigrators, with a cheat system, a guiding old grandpa, or some miraculous aid…
Wouldn't his path have been far easier?
Wouldn't his talent have been better than a mere Rank 6 innate soul power?
But then, Lin Fan shook his head and let go of those thoughts.
"What's the point in thinking about this now? Since I can't progress any further, it's time to retire, settle down, and start a family. After all, with my current strength as a Titled Douluo, I can easily protect a region and live in peace."
Without even sparing another glance at the dead Saber-Toothed Tiger, Lin Fan turned and walked away.
[Host detected. Activating Counterattack System.]
[Name: Lin Fan]
[Age: 12]
[Martial Soul: Azure Shadow Sword]
[Soul Power: Rank 23]
Before Lin Fan could take two steps, a cold, mechanical voice suddenly echoed in his ears.
Instantly, Lin Fan's instincts kicked in. After years of playing it safe, he subconsciously activated his spiritual power and entered a fully defensive state.
But once he registered the voice clearly, he froze.
Was this… excitement or helplessness surging in his chest?
"A system?"
[This is the Counterattack System, designed to help the host defeat everyone who looks down on you and ascend to godhood.]
At that moment, Lin Fan finally confirmed—it was his long-awaited cheat system!
Laughing bitterly, he cursed, "Counterattack, huh? I just became a Titled Douluo, and you're only showing up now? Seriously?!"
[Please accept your newbie gift pack.]
However, as soon as he heard the words Counterattack System and newbie gift pack, Lin Fan couldn't shake off an uneasy feeling. Somehow, it felt all too real.
Still, despite his complaints, a system was a system, and a gift pack was a gift pack—no way he'd reject it.
The next moment, several items appeared before his eyes.
"Soul power boost: Increases soul power by 5 levels (for Grandmaster level and below)."
"Enhance first and second soul rings by 100 years."
"One thousand-year left arm soul bone."
Lin Fan stared at these items in silence.
Was this newbie gift pack… a little too newbie?
The most valuable thing here was the thousand-year-old left arm soul bone.
But—
After pondering for a moment, Lin Fan extended his left arm, revealing a faintly glowing, emerald-colored ten-thousand-year left arm soul bone.
Thanks to this fifty-thousand-year soul bone—dropped from a soul beast he had slain while absorbing his seventh soul ring—he had been able to break through to Rank 90.
"System, not only did you arrive late, but your gift pack is utterly useless for me. Are you sure these are meant for me?"
Lin Fan questioned the system, then suddenly asked,
"System, what's my current soul power level again?"
[Grandmaster, Rank 23.]
Lin Fan's face stiffened.
"…System, how old am I?"
[12 years old.]
"TWELVE?! What the hell?! So it's not that you arrived late… it that I transmigrated too early?!"
Lin Fan was utterly speechless.
He had transmigrated way too early… forty-six years early, to be exact!
"System, do you even know what I've gone through these past forty-six years?"
"Forty-six years! You know how many forty-six years a person has in their life?!"
"I don't care! It's not my fault for transmigrating too early. It's YOUR fault for showing up too late!"
"Hurry up and compensate me with rewards suitable for a Titled Douluo!"
[System diagnostic complete. No errors detected.]
Learning the truth, Lin Fan broke down mentally.
Forty-six years… a lifetime's worth of memories he'd rather not revisit.
If he had a cigarette right now, he'd light it.
Since he didn't, maybe he'd bite on a stalk of Blue Silver Grass instead.
[Newbie mission issued. This task cannot be refused or avoided.]
[Mission Failure Penalty: System uninstallation.]
[Newbie Mission: After six years of hard cultivation, you've reached Rank 23 Grandmaster with only Rank 6 innate soul power. However, upon attempting to enroll in Shrek Academy, Tang San took your admission spot. Use the rewards from your newbie gift pack to boost your strength and defeat Tang San.]
Lin Fan's face was full of question marks.
Shrek Academy had already been established?
Tang San had arrived on the Douluo Continent?
Back when Lin Fan first transmigrated, he had carefully investigated the timeline.
At that time, not to mention Tang San, even Tang Hao was nowhere near ready to start drinking milk!
So Lin Fan had quietly devoted himself to cultivating for forty years.
"System, this mission might be newbie-friendly, but your so-called newbie gift pack is utterly useless!"
"You seriously want me, a Titled Douluo, to enroll in Shrek Academy?"
"Who's teaching who here—me, or them?"
"And you expect me to beat up Tang San to prove my eligibility for admission?"
"I'm a respectable Titled Douluo! Picking a fight with a mere Rank 23 Tang San? What about Tang Hao? You think that man won't hammer me to death afterward?"
Even though Lin Fan had just become a Titled Douluo, sure, maybe he could shamelessly bully Tang San for this mission.
But what about afterward?
He'd likely face Tang Hao's wrath—and Lin Fan knew he wasn't quite on Tang Hao's level yet.
Frustrated and furious, Lin Fan muttered bitterly,
"Damn this broken system. When can we hosts finally rise?"
"What kind of garbage system are you? What's the point of having you?!"
"System, how about this—you give me a temporary Rank 99 soul power card or something. Otherwise, I'm really afraid Tang Hao's going to smash me with a single hammer."
[Please complete the newbie mission to earn a random Divine Martial Soul reward.]
"Damn it… Fine, I'll do it!"
Lin Fan's expression turned serious.
As expected of a Counterattack System, it sure knew how to tempt people. For the sake of a Divine Martial Soul, Lin Fan reluctantly decided to cooperate with this unreliable system.
He immediately claimed the reward to boost his soul ring age, increasing the first and second rings by 100 years each.
But…
It was like dropping a single drop of water into the vast ocean—not even the faintest ripple appeared.
"Hmph, at least the attack power of my first and second soul skills increased by… what, 0.0001?"
Lin Fan was at a complete loss for words.
Nonetheless, he summoned the Azure Shadow Sword, transforming it into a massive two-meter-long greatsword. Stepping onto the sword, he soared into the sky as a streak of blue light, flying toward Shrek Academy.
After all, the newbie mission still needed to be done—he couldn't miss out on a Divine Martial Soul.
"Is that a Titled Douluo? Terrifying!"
The sound of his sword piercing through the air drew the attention of other soul masters hunting in the Star Dou Great Forest.
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