Douluo Dalu: From Shinobi to Spirit Master

Rasengan!

The genius creation of the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato—Muji Ninjutsu that doesn't initially require nature transformation.

A technique with limitless potential yet a deceptively low entry point.

This very move carried Naruto Uzumaki through countless challenges, eventually becoming a symbol of his triumph in the endgame.

To use this technique required incredibly precise chakra control, to the point where many ninjas had to rely on shadow clones for assistance.

But for Su Chen, someone deeply familiar with the intricacies of this world and well-versed in its lore, that level of complexity wasn't necessary.

The azure vortex swirled steadily in his hand, growing larger and more condensed by the second. It quickly swelled to the size of a football, though it began to tremble at its limits.

"This is about as far as my control can take me for now."

Su Chen shook his head lightly. Though he had aimed for the advanced Great Ball Rasengan, the instability of the energy made it clear he wasn't there yet. With a simple wave of his hand, he dissipated the technique.

Crackling sounds echoed as he stretched his body, his muscles loosening after the strain. Su Chen twisted his neck, preparing to pay a visit to Ju Douluo and Ghost Douluo.

But before he could take a step—

Owooo!

A chilling howl shattered the silence, resonating from all directions.

Su Chen froze, his dark eyes narrowing.

Gray wolves emerged from the shadows, their hungry eyes gleaming with menace.

"Tch. Got careless," Su Chen muttered, annoyed at himself. The excitement of his recent soul ring breakthrough and testing his new abilities had dulled his vigilance. These predators had approached unnoticed.

"This kind of lapse could cost me in the future."

Making a mental note to remain alert, Su Chen swept his gaze over the wolves. Their blood-red eyes were filled with unrestrained greed—for both him and the corpse of the spirit beast nearby.

"Drawn by the energy fluctuations, huh? Bold of you."

His lips curled into a faint smirk, but his eyes locked onto the largest wolf at the pack's center.

This one was different. Its fur gleamed with an almost silken sheen, and its cunning gaze exuded intelligence far beyond the other wolves.

"A thousand-year soul beast? Interesting."

The wolf leader growled low, its stance dropping as it prepared to strike. Around it, the other wolves responded in unison, their howls rising in a chilling crescendo.

Green light began gathering in their mouths—an unmistakable sign of their wind blade attacks.

Swish, swish, swish!

A barrage of blades, dense and ferocious, tore through the air, sealing all paths of escape. The smaller wolves, though weaker individually, unleashed attacks that could overwhelm even an experienced soul master.

"Be careful!!"

Ju Douluo and Ghost Douluo, watching from a distance, tensed at the scene. Both prepared to step in, but something about the boy's calm demeanor made them hesitate.

"Don't act rashly," Ghost Douluo said, his hand stopping Ju Douluo's movement. "He's just absorbed a thousand-year soul ring. Let's see what he can do first."

Ju Douluo frowned but reluctantly nodded. "Fine, but if he gets in over his head—"

"We intervene," Ghost Douluo finished with a nod.

Meanwhile, in the center of the battlefield, Su Chen stood unmoving.

"You're underestimating me," he said softly, his voice tinged with confidence.

The wolf leader didn't understand the words, but a primal sense of foreboding crept over it as the boy's gaze shifted.

Scarlet.

The boy's black eyes turned blood-red, three tomoe swirling within them.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Wind blades collided with Su Chen's position, throwing up a storm of mud and smoke. The entire area was shrouded in white mist, making it impossible to see what had become of the boy.

The wolf pack remained on high alert, but unease rippled through them as the smoke began to clear.

Out of the haze emerged Su Chen, unscathed and standing tall.

A faint smile played on his lips as he raised his hand.

"Since it's a performance," he said, his voice steady, "I'll make sure the audience is entertained."

-------

Although Ju Douluo was certain the boy didn't need their assistance, his heart still tensed at the sight before him. He couldn't help but tighten his grip on his staff, prepared to intervene at any moment.

As the smoke and dust cleared, what came into view left Ju Douluo, Ghost Douluo, and even the wolf pack's leader, Wolf Head, utterly stunned.

The ground was a chaotic mess of jagged cuts from the storm of wind blades, yet the boy was nowhere to be seen. In his place lay a splintered piece of wood, still faintly smoking from the attack.

"Gone?!" Ju Douluo's brows furrowed in confusion.

Suddenly, a calm voice rang out behind them.

"Over here."

Startled, all eyes turned toward the source of the voice. Su Chen stood casually on the branch of a towering tree, his white hair fluttering lightly in the breeze. A faint smirk adorned his lips, as though mocking the chaos below.

"High-speed movement… or perhaps—teleportation?" Ju Douluo muttered, his gaze fixed on the boy.

"No, it's a blend of both," Ghost Douluo analyzed, a trace of shock flashing in his deep-set eyes. "He used an explosive burst of speed to escape the attack, then executed a replacement technique with the wood at just the right moment."

Ghost Douluo's tone carried a rare hint of admiration as he continued, "This isn't just a clever trick. In a duel against a Soul Master, this technique would be devastating. The instantaneous movement disrupts the opponent's rhythm, and the substitution completely obscures the counterattack's timing."

Ju Douluo's lips twitched as he processed the explanation. "So this is the first soul skill he gained from a thousand-year soul ring… Truly extraordinary."

Meanwhile, Wolf Head, the leader of the wolf pack, was growing restless. Its sharp instincts warned it of something terrifying about the two figures observing from a distance—the kind of power it could never hope to match.

But its gaze returned to the boy.

If it could consume the Linwu Silkworm's corpse and devour this human, it might evolve into a ten-thousand-year soul beast. In the hierarchy of this forest, even the weakest ten-thousand-year soul beasts commanded respect.

The thought was intoxicating.

However, if Su Chen could read its thoughts, he'd undoubtedly laugh.

"A ten-thousand-year soul beast? Barely more than cannon fodder in these parts," he would have said.

In the depths of the forest, the true rulers—soul beasts with over a hundred thousand years of cultivation—watched over the core territory. Compared to them, a mere ten-thousand-year beast was nothing but prey.

Still, Wolf Head's greed and ambition overwhelmed its reason. A feral gleam flashed in its bloodshot eyes as it issued a guttural howl.

"ROAR!"

The wolves split into two groups. Half surged toward Ju Douluo and Ghost Douluo, while the other half charged straight at Su Chen, their claws glinting ominously in the dim light.

"This…"

Ju Douluo's eyes narrowed at the sudden shift in strategy.

But Su Chen simply chuckled.

"So, that's your plan? Sacrifice the weaklings to distract Ju Douluo and Ghost Douluo while you aim for me?"

He tilted his head slightly, amusement flickering in his blood-red eyes.

"Smart… but futile."

A sudden burst of green energy erupted from Su Chen's body, sending a shockwave rippling through the area. Dust swirled violently, and his bare upper body was enveloped in a faint crimson glow, as though the energy itself had seared into his skin.

His stark white hair flared upward, and his eyes, already unnervingly red, burned with a fierce fighting spirit.

"Hah…"

He exhaled a deep, scorching breath, his fists clenching tightly. Slowly, he locked his gaze onto Wolf Head.

A chill ran down the wolf's spine as its instincts screamed at it to retreat.

But it was too late.

Su Chen tilted his neck, the cracking sound echoing ominously, then spoke with chilling calm.

"Since this is a performance, I can't let the audience be interrupted."

His energy surged to a climax.

"Eight Gates Technique—Third Gate: Gate of Life, open!"

A deafening boom accompanied his roar, and the very ground trembled beneath the explosive release of power.