Chapter Five: Growth

In the blink of an eye, Tang San was three years old, and during these three years, he had hardly seen the outside world. At most, he could peek through the cracks in the wooden house to catch a glimpse of the outside. The sky outside was bright. Most of the children his age who were still alive couldn't even speak properly and spent their days in a daze. There was no education here, nothing at all, they were just kept alive like livestock.

The door suddenly swung open, and a huge wolf monster entered from the outside. "Come out! Get them all out," the wolf monster ordered the pig monster, who was usually very aggressive and often kicked the children around.

The pig monster immediately screamed, and upon hearing her scream, all the children trembled. As they walked out the door, almost all the children huddled their bodies. For them, the outside world was even scarier. Outside, there were several large carts, and pulling these carts were adults. The carts were filled with large cages. The human slaves pulling the carts had empty expressions, and they seemed to be completely indifferent to the appearance of these children, as if they were used to all of this. They were herded onto the carts, and the cages were closed. Under the urging of the wolf monster, the carts were pulled forward. Clearly, they were about to be moved to another place for survival. The road was smooth, paved with stones, and as the wheels rolled over them, they made squeaking and creaking sounds. This was the first time Tang San had seen the outside world in the three years since he arrived in this world.

The sky was clear, the air slightly cool, and today's weather seemed decent, at least not as cold. While most of the children were still shivering from the cold, Tang San was doing okay. On both sides of the road, there were astonishing forests. The reason for describing them as astonishing was that the vegetation within Tang San's sight was incredibly tall. Compared to the plants in his memories from his previous life, the plants here had some similarities but were much larger. Some of the sturdy trees were nearly a hundred meters tall, and you had to tilt your head parallel to the sky to see them clearly. Occasionally, there were massive creatures flying in the air, resembling birds, but it was difficult to get a clear view of them. The air was filled with rich spiritual energy and vitality. After three years, Tang San was completely certain that this was a world highly suitable for cultivation, a world with an extremely high level of life. Undoubtedly, those powerful monster races and spirit races were born and nurtured in such an environment. In three years, Tang San had successfully cultivated the first level of the Mysterious Heaven Skill.

In his original world of Douluo Continent, breaking through the first layer of the Mysterious Heaven Skill required some special methods. But here, it happened naturally. As he circulated his meridians, the internal energy of the Mysterious Heaven Skill flowed smoothly, breaking through the first layer's bottleneck effortlessly. He was only three years old now. In his previous world, it took him until he was six to achieve this breakthrough. While the insights were different, the abundance of spiritual energy in this world played a significant role.

Despite his progress, he remained physically frail. He didn't want to draw any attention from the monstrous races. Even the most ordinary wolf monsters in this world were likely equivalent to reaching the second level of the Mysterious Heaven Skill. Combined with the inherent difference in physique, any resistance would be suicidal. In this world, humanity was in ignorance. If he truly wanted to change the status of human slavery and dispel this ignorance, that would probably be the most important task at hand.

They walked for more than an hour, at least according to Tang San's perception of time. They arrived at a place that resembled a village. The simplest wooden houses were everywhere, inhabited by ragged-looking humans, mostly men with few women in sight. This village seemed to be home to over a thousand people. The human-powered cage cart came to a halt, and its doors opened. Some human women approached, bowing deeply and respectfully before the wolf monsters.

The lead wolf monster snorted, "These brats are your responsibility now, take them away." Tang San was momentarily stunned. Were they being returned to the world of humans to live a normal life again? These children, who had been raised like livestock for three years, had no real wisdom. Faced with an unfamiliar world, they could only feel fear.

They were dragged into the village, and to Tang San's dismay, even the human slaves here didn't show much compassion for these children. Their eyes were dull, and they mechanically brought the children into the village. In the days that followed, they began to receive education. Yes, these children were granted the privilege of learning. What did they learn? First, they were taught to recognize things, to understand the tools used by slaves, and to learn simple words. The food here was scarcer than before. It was clear that food was in short supply in this village. Women and children received even less, while only the stronger men had a chance to eat a bit more.

Inside the village, at least their movements weren't restricted anymore. Tang San noticed that the male humans here often left for some time, likely to engage in slave labor. Deaths in the village were common. Through the villagers' conversations, he learned that he and the other children belonged to another village. In these human villages, it was forbidden to raise children born in their own village; they exchanged and adopted children from other villages instead.

Tang San didn't rush into anything, nor did he make any surprising moves. He quietly lived in this place and secretly practiced his skills. Another three years passed, and he was now six years old. At six years old, children were expected to help with village tasks such as weaving mats and carrying lighter items. These children had been living together since they arrived three years ago, and it remained the same. During the past three years, one-third of the children had died for various reasons, with lack of medical care being the main issue, along with starvation.

As night fell, in this unremarkable human village, a figure silently slipped away.

Tang San, like most of the human children, initially had a slightly hunched posture. However, his movements were swift. The moment he entered the forest, his back straightened. His originally dim eyes suddenly became bright. He took a deep breath. The night in Wind Wolf Town was very cold, with a significant temperature difference between day and night. Yet, this chilly air was filled with rich spiritual energy, invigorating his spirit.

Tang San held his hands in front of him, forming a hugging posture. A faint white light appeared around his body, and with a gentle push of his toes against the ground, he became agile. With his past-life experience, he was familiar with manipulating the Xuan Tian Gong. However, this body needed training to catch up with his thoughts.

From the age of five, he would often sneak out at night. One reason was that the spiritual energy in the wilderness was much richer, and at the same time, he could also practice better in this wilderness. His agile footsteps were like the Ghostly Shadow Step, one of the abilities he was most skilled at in his previous life. This was also his top priority for practice because in this dangerous world, there was nothing more important than preserving his life. Over his hands, a jade-like glow gradually emerged. This was another profound skill, the Profound Jade Hands, which made his palms impervious to poisons and weapons. After an hour of training, a slight heat began to emanate from his body, and the internal energy of the Xuantian Technique flowed smoothly. However, what left him somewhat helpless was that the martial soul he had awakened in the Douluo Continent in his previous life seemed to have not appeared in this world. But that was also normal; he was reborn into this world, bringing only his memories and not his previous abilities.

At the age of six, he had finally completed the third level of the Xuantian Technique. It was an achievement he wouldn't have dared to dream of in his previous life. However, in terms of strength, he was far from achieving the same level he had in his previous life when he reached the third level of the Xuantian Technique. In the world of Douluo Continent, he had the awakening of a martial soul, which granted him immense power. Moreover, he had the rare dual martial soul. The Xuantian Technique provided internal strength, while the martial soul was the powerful means to unleash that strength. He still vividly remembered that when he broke through to the third level on the Douluo Continent, he fused a powerful soul ring and possessed formidable soul bones, which laid the foundation for his future. 

However, now, apart from the Xuantian Technique and the abilities recorded in the Xuantian Treasure Record he had brought from his original world, there were no other abilities available to him. Although continuous training in the Xuantian Technique would make him stronger, it seemed like it wasn't enough.