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As for those bigger, more rebellious thoughts, Fire Phoenix Douluo figured that prince wouldn't be that foolish. Sure, he had a powerful army under his command, but the real core of the Sun Moon Empire's strength lay in the Five Hands of National Protection—Mingde Hall and the Imperial Offering Hall.
The Five Hands were indeed powerful, but the strongest of them all, the Royal Soul Engineer Legion, was absolutely loyal to the Emperor. The other four groups wouldn't just blindly follow a prince and betray the Emperor either. Mingde Hall and the Offering Hall were even less likely to get involved.
The Offering Hall had always stayed out of imperial power struggles; their sole responsibility was ensuring the survival of the Sun Moon Empire. As for Mingde Hall, they were more likely to take the same stance and remain neutral.
Without their support, there was no way that prince could bypass the Royal Soul Engineer Legion and strike at the current Emperor.
As for calling in foreign forces? Let's be real—assuming the prince was even that dumb, once the other three empires got a chance to intervene, things would spiral way beyond his control. Fire Phoenix Douluo was confident he wasn't that brainless.
Not long after, Xu Tiannan walked out of the Awakening Hall with his little sister, Xu Tianzhen. Just from the slight curve of Xu Tiannan's lips and the mix of excitement and disappointment on Xu Tianzhen's face, it wasn't hard to guess—her awakening had gone well.
After all, she wasn't a commoner. Raised in luxury with all kinds of rare herbs and treasures to strengthen her body from a young age, the chances of her inheriting one of the imperial family's soul spirits were pretty high—as long as she didn't have the bad luck to trigger some weird mutation.
The disappointment on her face probably came from not getting the soul spirit she'd hoped for. According to Meteor's knowledge, the imperial family had three soul spirits passed down through generations: the Sun Spirit, the Silver Moon Spirit, and the rarest and strongest of them all—the Violetflame Sky-Devouring Dragon, a soul spirit of pure destruction. Even within the imperial bloodline, it was extremely rare to awaken this beast of a power.
The name "Royal Dragon" in the Royal Dragon Soul Engineer Legion, one of the Five Hands, came directly from the Violetflame Sky-Devouring Dragon. The other groups also took their names from legendary creatures.
The Fire Phoenix Legion was named after the mythical Fire Phoenix; the Terrorclaw Legion after the Darkgold Terrorclaw Bear, a soul beast known across the continent; and the Evil Monarch Legion took its name from the most powerful soul beast in the Sun Moon Empire, the Evil-Eyed Tyrant Ruler, who ranked second among the top ten ferocious beasts of the continent—ruler of the Devil Forest, the infamous Evil Emperor.
All this showed just how insane the Violetflame Sky-Devouring Dragon was. To be considered on par with those top-tier soul beasts? Yeah, it was rare for a reason.
Legend had it that this dragon was born alongside the Dragon God and was called the "Progenitor of Sub-Dragons." But because its destructive power was just too much, the Dragon God personally wiped it out.
Nowadays, the only trace of its existence was the bloodline that lingered in the imperial family. As for actual living Violetflame Sky-Devouring Dragons? None left—zero.
Judging by Xu Tianzhen's expression, she clearly hadn't awakened that ultra-rare soul spirit. Most likely, it was the Sun or Silver Moon Spirit. But even so, her future looked incredibly bright. Both were top-tier spirits, and her innate soul power was bound to be high.
Whatever Xu Tiannan had said to her must've worked, because that flicker of disappointment was already gone. Truth was, she didn't really care that much about the Violetflame Dragon. What she wanted was to awaken the same soul spirit as her brother. That was all.
Xu Tianzhen skipped over to Meteor and Firefly with her hands behind her back and grinned."Meteor! Firefly! I awakened the Sun Spirit! Full innate soul power too! You guys better catch up!"
Xu Tiannan gave her a helpless look, then turned to Meteor and Firefly with a smile."Don't feel pressured. As long as you've got soul power, you can still become strong."
It sounded like a casual remark, but Xu Tiannan knew that there were people out there who started with low innate power but still worked their way up through sheer effort. Sure, most of them could only reach Soul Douluo level—no hope of ever becoming a Titled Douluo—but even so, on the Douluo Continent, Soul Sages were already considered high-level fighters.
In fact, even in the Four Great Empires, if a Soul Sage was willing to pledge loyalty, they'd easily be given a noble title.
Of course, that's not to say there aren't legends—people who started from zero and somehow became monsters. But those folks were ultra-rare. Maybe one in a billion. Not exactly something you can use as a reference.
Meteor and Firefly didn't seem fazed. Meteor wasn't a fan of the cliché "trash start," but hey, if fate decided to throw him into that trope, he wouldn't mind pulling off a "Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west" comeback story.
Firefly? She was even more chill. She was basically a big-shot rebuilding her power. Different universe, different rules—didn't matter. A powerhouse was still a powerhouse. In Meteor's eyes, she was just that—a true badass.
Xu Tianzhen realized she'd said the wrong thing and stuck her tongue out sheepishly. While she'd been waiting in line, she'd seen a bunch of familiar faces walk away with their heads down. She was still a kid, but she understood—those kids who didn't awaken soul power were now headed down a completely different path from her.
Even if they used to be playmates because of family connections, once they failed to awaken, they were no longer from the same world. She really didn't want Meteor and Firefly to end up like that. Sure, she was helping her brother, but she genuinely wanted to make friends.
Despite her noble background, this was exactly the issue—no matter who she dealt with, they always subconsciously went easy on her. Her older siblings spoiled her, her playmates followed her lead, and she never really felt like she'd accomplished anything on her own.
But Meteor and Firefly were different. They seemed respectful, sure, but they didn't treat her like some fragile flower. She could feel it—they didn't walk on eggshells around her like everyone else.
That's why she truly wanted to be friends with them. Otherwise, she wouldn't have run straight to them to show off the moment she came out.
She only acted like this in front of people she saw as real friends. Anyone else? No way she'd be so eager to share her joy.
Meteor and Firefly didn't mind her bragging at all. It was just a kid's need to show off, nothing more. In fact, her blunt, cheerful attitude made them like her even more.
Xu Tiannan didn't plan to stick around. He gave them a polite nod, then left with Xu Tianzhen. He was just here to accompany his sister through the awakening ceremony. If he stayed to chat, it'd come off as too deliberate.
With a Titled Douluo's power, the awakening ceremony didn't take long. Not like those weaker soul masters who had to rest after a few sessions. So Meteor and Firefly didn't have to wait long before their names were called.
Fire Phoenix Douluo and Luan Yu led the two of them toward the Awakening Hall. The awakening master waiting inside was a Soul Sage. To be stationed at the central Awakening Hall, you had to have some kind of backing—and of course, they were familiar with the handful of Rank 9 Soul Engineers in the Sun Moon Empire.
The moment he saw Fire Phoenix Douluo and Luan Yu, the man quickly bowed in respect."Greetings, Your Honors—Fire Phoenix and Ice Phoenix."
"....."