Decisive

In a luxurious room on the fifth floor of the castle, Xu Zihuang, dressed in magnificent purple robes, sat at the desk, calmly savoring the rich, fragrant black tea in a porcelain cup.

Compared to the two West Sea Soul Engineer Corps Soldiers standing behind him with tense expressions, he appeared far more composed. The turmoil in the center of the island and within the castle seemed to belong to a different world from the one he occupied.

Yet his right hand, tightly gripping the handle of the porcelain cup with veins bulging across it, revealed that his heart was nowhere near as calm as he appeared.

Light flickered in his clear, noble purple eyes, and a faint curve formed at the corner of his lips.

"I never expected Elder Wang to escape your pursuit. It seems your control over the southern Empire isn't as deep as I imagined."

Earlier, when Wang Xiao and Haixiao had spoken, they had deliberately circulated their Soul Power so that their voices carried across the entire island. Xu Zihuang, situated in the heart of the island, had naturally heard them. From their conversation, he had gained a general grasp of the situation.

He could not have been more familiar with Wang Xiao. Wang Xiao had always been cautious. Since he had come here, he must have made thorough preparations.

If not for his strong control over his emotions, he would likely have burst into laughter by now. For the past three years, he had lived in despair every day. Now that a turning point had suddenly appeared, how could he not be delighted?

With his talent, as long as he escaped alive, he would definitely have a chance to make Xu Tianran and his son pay the price in the future. Even the throne of the Sun Moon Empire was not beyond his reach. He had complete confidence in himself.

His Twin Martial Souls, the Golden Eye and Purple Sun Annihilating Heaven Dragon, were far from his only trump cards.

The two West Sea Soul Engineer Corps Soldiers behind Xu Zihuang, however, felt the exact opposite. Noticing that the castle had fallen silent once more, they revealed the Soul Guidance Cannons they carried close to their bodies and stared fixedly at the door.

"Damn it! What exactly is going on in the castle right now?! Why hasn't a single person who went down earlier returned yet?!"

"How would I know?!"

Under such extreme tension, their emotions were on the verge of exploding.

Their orders were to remain at Xu Zihuang's side and protect him at all times. They could not possibly leave to investigate on their own.

"Hmm?" Xu Zihuang, who had been lowering his head to sip from the rim of his cup, suddenly snapped his head up and looked toward the door.

"What terrifying Spiritual Power!"

For a moment, he grew nervous as well. He was certain that no one on the West Sea Soul Engineer Corps' side possessed such terrifying Spiritual Power—not even Haixiao, a Soul Douluo. But there had been no such figure in the Imperial Dragon Soul Mentor Corps commanded by his father back then either.

As though responding to his gaze, the door before him was pushed open with a series of creaks. At the same time, the two West Sea Soul Engineer Corps Soldiers behind him collapsed one after another, devoid of all life.

A pair of blood-red eyes stood out sharply in the dim corridor beyond the door, meeting Xu Zihuang's gaze.

The instant Xu Zihuang saw the owner of those blood-red eyes, his heart skipped a beat. That incomparably cold aura was simply too similar to those strange Evil Soul Masters.

But he quickly let out a breath of relief, because he saw the Imperial Dragon Soul Mentor Corps Soldiers following behind. Many of them were familiar faces.

"Young Master!" The Imperial Dragon Soul Mentor Corps Soldiers dropped to one knee before Xu Zihuang, their expressions filled with emotion. A string of resounding metallic clanks echoed through the spacious room, as if expressing the turbulence in their hearts.

Just two words, yet they seemed to contain countless emotions.

Elder Yu, whose hair had long since turned gray-white, had reddened eyes. The sight of his hunched body moved Xu Zihuang deeply.

Xu Zihuang remembered Elder Yu clearly.

Elder Yu was over eighty years old. More than a decade ago, he had retired from the Imperial Dragon Soul Mentor Corps. After retiring, he had gone to serve as a guard at Xu Zihuang's family estate. Although he had survived by not following Xu Zihuang's father to Ming City to guard the imperial palace, he must have endured countless hardships over the years while evading the pursuit of Xu Tianran and his son.

In Xu Zihuang's memories, Elder Yu had possessed a rosy complexion. He had not looked so aged as he did now.

"Elder Yu, please rise."

Xu Zihuang hurriedly stood and personally helped Elder Yu up, while gesturing to the others.

"Everyone, get up as well. We can reminisce later. This still isn't safe."

"First, tell me the exact situation."

Seeing how exceptionally calm Xu Zihuang was, everyone's eyes brightened. From the familiar contours of Xu Zihuang's brows, they seemed to vaguely see the shadow of Prince Zhengxuan from back then.

"We were putting on airs." Elder Yu looked at the eight-year-old Xu Zihuang, who was mature beyond belief, with a gratified smile. Then he shifted his gaze to Yaoyang, who had withdrawn his Martial Soul and now carried an elegant bearing.

Yaoyang's gentle, spring-breeze-like smile no longer held the slightest trace of the coldness from before.

"Zihuang, you resemble Uncle Zhengxuan greatly."

Zhengxuan was Xu Zihuang's father's given name: Xu Zhengxuan. He bore the title King Zihuang and governed the four richest provinces in the south of the Sun Moon Empire.

From the title King Zihuang alone, it was not difficult to see how deeply the old emperor of the Sun Moon Empire had favored him. He had directly used one of the several Martial Souls inherited by Sun Moon Empire royalty as his title—something unprecedented in the tens of thousands of years of the Sun Moon Empire's history.

Xu Zihuang's name had originated from this as well.

Xu Zihuang looked at Yaoyang's gentle eyes in surprise. He had no impression of Yaoyang whatsoever, yet he could sense the sincere closeness Yaoyang felt toward him.

"This should be our first meeting, shouldn't it?"

Yaoyang nodded, a trace of reminiscence and regret flashing through his eyes.

"I haven't seen Uncle Zhengxuan in nearly ten years either. I never expected that after this parting, we would never have the chance to meet again."

"You were right earlier. This isn't the time to reminisce. Some matters can wait until we leave this place." Yaoyang swiftly reined in his emotions, patted Xu Zihuang's shoulder warmly, and then repeated Wang Xiao's plan without missing a single detail.

Naturally, this was mainly to let Xu Zihuang know.

"Everyone, inspect the Fixed Soul Cannons in your Soul Tools first. Make sure nothing goes wrong." After speaking, Yaoyang seemed to remember something and smiled faintly at Xu Zihuang.

"Oh, right. My name is Yaoyang. Don't stray too far from my side from now on, or I may have difficulty taking you out of the Fixed Soul Cannons' blast range in time."

Xu Zihuang raised an eyebrow, forming a few guesses in his heart, but he did not ask further. He used a hair tie to bind his shoulder-length loose hair into a neat wolf tail, then ascended to the rooftop terrace at the top of the castle, surrounded by Yaoyang and the Imperial Dragon Soul Mentor Corps Soldiers.

The open, flat rooftop terrace offered an exceptionally broad view. From here, they could clearly see the fierce battlefield in the center of the island.

The battle between Wang Xiao and Haixiao above the island had reached the critical stage where victory and defeat would soon be decided. Haixiao's Purple Thunder Bat Ray true body was covered in wounds so deep that bone could be seen across its snow-white belly, and its aura had weakened considerably. Wang Xiao, on the other hand, only grew more valiant as the battle continued, holding an absolute advantage.

Xu Zihuang slowly withdrew his gaze and looked around the island. The city walls had been caught up in the fighting, and many sections had collapsed beyond recognition.

Yet he felt only uncontrollable excitement, because beyond those walls lay the freedom he had always longed for.

Could he finally escape this cage?

The Imperial Dragon Soul Mentor Corps Soldiers beside him took out dark cannon barrels nearly two meters long from their Soul Tools. They aimed them at the battlefield in the center of the island and waited for the order to fire.

Just as everything was ready, a set of footsteps suddenly sounded from behind them.

"Are you all good for nothing?! You can't even handle something this simple?!"

At the same time, Elder Yu's angry reprimand rang out.

Elder Yu frowned at the cold and beautiful blonde girl whom two subordinates had brought over.

The girl's pristine white formal gown and both hands were stained with blood. Though her Soul Power had been sealed, Elder Yu remained cautious. He stood before her, keeping her separated from Xu Zihuang.

Xu Zihuang frowned and glanced at the girl. He recognized Yin Ziyue.

"What happened?"

"Young Master, she took advantage of these two fools' inattention and released her Martial Soul, killing the other nine noble young ladies you had selected." Elder Yu glared grimly at the two young Imperial Dragon Soul Mentor Corps Soldiers who had previously guarded Yin Ziyue and the others.

The moment she saw Xu Zihuang, Yin Ziyue dropped to her knees and bowed to the ground. There was none of the aloof bearing of a noble young lady she had displayed before. She was practically like a lowly dog.

"Your Highness, Prince, they were sent by the First Prince. They all deserved to die!"

"Oh? And what about you?" Xu Zihuang watched Yin Ziyue's pitifully beautiful azure eyes with interest.

Only then did Yin Ziyue raise her head. Her long golden hair fell messily around her face, while a glimmer called hope burst forth from her beautiful eyes. She was far smarter than the other noble young ladies. She knew full well that in this situation, Xu Zihuang and the others would very likely silence them. By killing all the others, she had effectively severed her own path back to the Sun Moon Empire.

This was also a way of declaring her loyalty to Xu Zihuang.

"Your Highness, Prince, I am the second daughter of House of Marquis of Yincheng, Ming City. I wished of my own accord to bear descendants for Your Highness, Prince. I have no connection whatsoever to the First Prince. Please take me with you. I know that my family has several Rare Metal mines in the south of the Empire. My cultivation talent is decent, and I am also familiar with handling affairs among the nobility. I will definitely be useful to you..."

Yin Ziyue hurriedly explained. This was the most humiliating moment of her sixteen years of life. Yet she did not feel herself to be lowly in the slightest. So long as she could leave with Xu Zihuang, her future would hold limitless possibilities. Xu Zihuang's father had managed the four southern provinces for so many years; his foundation was unimaginably deep. Following Xu Zihuang was far better than remaining in her family as a pawn in a political marriage.

It could be said that she had no other choice at all.

If she stayed on the island, there was a ninety-nine percent chance that she would die. Only by leaving with Xu Zihuang did she have a sliver of hope for survival.

But before she could finish, Xu Zihuang interrupted her directly. His calm purple eyes were utterly captivating.

"Those people being dead is no great matter."

A smile had just appeared on Yin Ziyue's face, but Xu Zihuang's next words instantly froze it there.

"But you seem to have overestimated your value. You aren't worth burdening my men for. Their lives are far more valuable than yours." Expressionless, Xu Zihuang slowly walked up to Yin Ziyue. The next instant, he abruptly snatched the Soul Tool Longsword from one soldier's hand and drove it into her white throat.

Only after Xu Zihuang returned the Soul Tool Longsword, still stained with warm blood, to the soldier did the others come back to their senses. They looked at Xu Zihuang with burning gazes.

This Young Master was even more decisive and ruthless than they had imagined. But only such a lord was worthy of their loyalty.

Yaoyang openly looked at Xu Zihuang with admiration.

"If Uncle Zhengxuan had been as resolute as Zihuang, he would not have ended up like that."

This is so frustrating. No one's reading it, and I don't even know whether I'm writing well...