In a luxurious room on the fifth floor of the castle, Xu Zihuang, clad in elegant purple robes, sat calmly at the desk, quietly savoring the rich aroma of black tea in his porcelain cup.
Compared to the two tense West Sea Soul Engineer Corps soldiers behind him, he appeared far more composed. The turmoil in the castle and at the island's center seemed to belong to a different world.
Yet the tightly clenched handle of his teacup, the bulging veins on his right hand, betrayed that his emotions were far from calm.
A flicker of light danced in his noble, clear purple eyes, and a faint smile curled at the corner of his lips.
"I didn't expect Elder Wang to escape your pursuit. It seems your control over the southern regions of the Empire isn't as firm as I imagined."
Earlier, when Wang Xiao and Hai Xiao were talking, they had intentionally spread their voices across the entire island using soul power. Naturally, Xu Zihuang heard everything. From their exchange, he was able to grasp the general situation.
He knew Wang Xiao all too well. Cautious by nature, if he had come here, he would have prepared for every possibility.
Were it not for his strong emotional control, he would have burst out laughing by now. These past three years had been spent in constant despair—this sudden glimmer of hope was exhilarating.
With his talent, as long as he could escape alive, he would eventually make Xu Tiannan and his son pay the price. The throne of the Sun and Moon Empire was not beyond reach. He had absolute confidence in himself.
His twin martial souls—Golden Eyes and the Purple Radiance Annihilation Dragon—were far from his only trump cards.
In contrast, the two West Sea soldiers standing behind him were on edge. As the castle fell silent again, they instinctively revealed their soul tool cannons and aimed them at the door, tense as drawn bows.
"Damn it! What the hell is going on in the castle?! None of the people we sent out have come back!"
"How should I know?!"
Under such high tension, both of them were on the verge of snapping. Their orders were to guard Xu Zihuang closely at all times. They couldn't leave to investigate.
"Hmm?" Xu Zihuang, who had been quietly sipping his tea, suddenly raised his head sharply and looked toward the door.
"What terrifying spiritual pressure!"
Even he began to feel nervous. He was certain that no one in the West Sea Soul Engineer Corps, not even the Soul Douluo-ranked Hai Xiao, possessed such overwhelming spiritual power. But even back in the Royal Dragon Soul Engineer Regiment, his father's command, there had never been such a figure.
As if responding to his gaze, the door creaked open—and the two soldiers behind him collapsed to the floor, lifeless.
A pair of blood-red eyes glowed in the dim corridor beyond the door, locking eyes with Xu Zihuang.
Seeing the owner of those crimson eyes, Xu Zihuang's heart skipped a beat. The icy, malevolent aura they exuded was far too similar to that of the sinister Evil Soul Masters.
But he soon breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the soldiers of the Royal Dragon Soul Engineer Regiment following behind—familiar faces among them.
"Young Lord!" the group of soldiers knelt on one knee before him, their voices trembling with emotion. The resounding clang of their armor filled the room, a declaration of their loyalty and devotion.
Just two words—but they carried a world of emotion.
Elder Yu, his hair now fully white, had tears brimming in his eyes. His hunched form stirred deep emotion in Xu Zihuang.
Xu Zihuang remembered Elder Yu well.
He was over eighty years old and had retired from the Royal Dragon Soul Engineer Regiment more than a decade ago, afterward serving as a guardian in Xu Zihuang's household. Though he wasn't in the palace during the coup and thus survived, he must have endured great hardship escaping the wrath of Xu Tiannan and his son.
In Xu Zihuang's memory, Elder Yu had once been vigorous and full of life—not the frail figure he now saw.
"Please rise, Elder Yu."
Xu Zihuang quickly stood and helped the old man up himself, then gestured for the others to do the same.
"Everyone, get up. We can catch up later—this place still isn't safe."
"Tell me the current situation first."
The calm and commanding air around Xu Zihuang caught everyone's attention. In his brows and expression, they saw the shadow of their former prince.
"We were presumptuous," Elder Yu said, smiling kindly at the eight-year-old boy who carried himself with unnerving maturity. His gaze then shifted to the refined man beside Xu Zihuang—Yaoyang.
The blood-red glow in Yaoyang's eyes had faded. He now wore a warm, scholarly smile, completely different from the chilling aura he had earlier.
"Zihuang, you're very much like your father, Zhengxuan."
Zhengxuan was Xu Zihuang's father. Full name: Xu Zhengxuan. His title was Prince Zihuang, and he governed the four richest provinces in the southern Sun and Moon Empire.
The title "Prince Zihuang" itself showed the immense favor the old emperor had for him—granting him one of the Empire's core martial spirits as a noble title was unprecedented.
Xu Zihuang's name came from that very title.
He met Yaoyang's gentle gaze with a hint of surprise—he had no memory of this man, but he could clearly feel the sincere affection from him.
"This is our first time meeting, isn't it?"
Yaoyang nodded, a flash of regret and nostalgia in his eyes.
"It's been almost ten years since I last saw Uncle Zhengxuan. I didn't expect that to be our final farewell."
"You're right—now isn't the time for reminiscing. We'll talk more once we're out of here." He patted Xu Zihuang's shoulder and calmly repeated Wang Xiao's plan in full detail, mainly for Xu Zihuang's understanding.
"Everyone, check your fixed-installation soul cannons. Make sure everything's perfect." Then, as if remembering something, Yaoyang turned to Xu Zihuang and smiled faintly.
"By the way, my name is Yaoyang. Don't stray too far from me—otherwise I might not be able to get you out of the soul cannon's blast range in time."
Xu Zihuang raised an eyebrow, silently speculating, but said nothing. He tied back his shoulder-length hair into a neat wolf-tail and, flanked by Yaoyang and the Royal Dragon soldiers, ascended to the rooftop.
The view from the rooftop was vast. From here, the central battlefield was visible in striking clarity.
In the sky above, the battle between Wang Xiao and Hai Xiao had reached a critical point. Hai Xiao's true form—the Violet Thunder Manta—was covered in deep wounds, its pale white belly ripped open in several places, its aura faltering. Meanwhile, Wang Xiao seemed to grow stronger with every exchange, gaining the upper hand.
Xu Zihuang slowly withdrew his gaze and looked around the island. The city walls had been heavily damaged, many parts reduced to rubble.
But he felt nothing but excitement—for beyond those walls lay the freedom he had longed for.
Was he finally escaping this prison?
Around him, the soldiers were assembling long, black cannon barrels—each over two meters—aimed at the battlefield, awaiting the order to fire.
Just as everything was in place, footsteps echoed behind them.
"You useless fools! You can't even handle something this simple?!"
Elder Yu's furious voice followed.
He frowned at the golden-haired girl his subordinates brought in.
The girl's white dress was stained with blood. Though her soul power had been sealed, Elder Yu stood protectively between her and Xu Zihuang.
Xu Zihuang narrowed his eyes when he recognized her—Yin Ziyue.
"What happened?"
"Young Lord, she took advantage of these two idiots' carelessness and released her martial soul—she killed the nine noble ladies you handpicked!" Elder Yu scowled and glared at the two young soldiers.
As soon as she saw Xu Zihuang, Yin Ziyue fell to her knees. Gone was the aloof noble heiress—in her place was a desperate girl, groveling like a dog.
"Your Highness! They were all sent by the Crown Prince—they deserved to die!"
"Oh? And what about you?" Xu Zihuang stared into her teary blue eyes, intrigued.
She finally looked up. Her disheveled golden hair fell to her shoulders, and a spark of hope lit her gaze. Smarter than the others, she understood that she was likely to be silenced. By killing the others, she had cut off her return path to the Empire.
It was her way of proving loyalty.
"Your Highness, I am the second daughter of the Marquis of Yin City in Mingdu. I volunteered to bear your heirs. I have no ties to the Crown Prince. Please take me with you—I know where my family's rare metal mines are in the south. My talent is decent, and I'm well-versed in noble affairs. I can be of use to you…"
Yin Ziyue spoke quickly—this was the most humiliating moment of her sixteen years. Yet she didn't feel degraded. To leave with Xu Zihuang meant boundless possibilities. Her noble family had raised her as a political pawn—this was her only chance at real power.
In truth, she had no choice.
Stay, and she would almost certainly die. Leave, and she might survive.
But before she could finish, Xu Zihuang calmly interrupted her, his purple eyes razor sharp.
"Those women are dead, and that's that."
Yin Ziyue smiled slightly—until Xu Zihuang spoke again:
"But you seem to have overestimated your worth. You're not valuable enough to risk my men's lives for. Their lives are far more precious than yours."
Without changing expression, Xu Zihuang stepped forward, seized a soldier's soul sword, and drove it into her snowy-white throat.
Only when he returned the bloodstained blade did the others react, their eyes burning with awe.
Their young lord was even more ruthless and decisive than they had imagined. A ruler like this was worthy of their loyalty.
Yaoyang gave Xu Zihuang a look of open admiration.
"If only Uncle Zhengxuan had been this decisive, things might not have ended the way they did."
.(End of chapter)
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