Firearm Blueprint

Hu Liena's face grew a shade more annoyed. Given her attire and Ling Chen's small, childlike stature, looking up meant he could see right down there; Ling Chen had caught a glimpse more than a few times.

If it were a child, she wouldn't have cared much. But the one before her was clearly no child.

Ling Chen scratched his head in embarrassment; this was getting hard to explain. Regardless of whether Hu Liena was wearing anything or not, Ling Chen had seen it, and no matter how he put it, he was the one who had taken advantage.

Given his current size, he couldn't exactly claim to be a giant baby.

"Uh... this..."

Ling Chen pursed his lips, looking absentmindedly at the dungeon ceiling while poking his fingers together.

"Smack!"

Hu Liena's hand reached through the cell door and slapped Ling Chen across the face, her face flushed as she cursed.

"Pervert!"

Ling Chen clutched his burning, swollen cheek, the stinging pain rendering him unable to speak for a moment.

However, seeing Hu Liena's cheeks even redder than his own, Ling Chen couldn't tell if it was from anger or shyness. He met her gaze for a split second before hurriedly looking away.

The atmosphere turned awkward, and Ling Chen used the gap to secretly reminisce for a moment.

But soon, Ling Chen rubbed his face and looked at Hu Liena with a straight face.

"Are there any more questions?"

Hu Liena let out a cold snort, clearly still fuming, but the mission had to be completed.

"One last question: why did you choose to leave with Tang San?"

When Hu Liena asked this, she couldn't help but lower her head; she still couldn't let go.

Ling Chen: ?

Listen to that, is that even human talk? You want me to go against the future Sea God and Asura God? And join you in surrounding and killing Xiao Wu?

He was only at what level? A little shrimp at level ten or twenty; it was already a miracle he was still alive. He didn't want to get hit by Tang San's hidden weapons; that would hurt like hell.

Ling Chen coughed twice and gave a helpless smile.

"Everyone has their own choices. Just like how you chose to believe in Tang San back then, I also chose to believe in him."

Hearing this answer, Hu Liena's heart skipped a beat.

"Is that what you think, too?"

Ling Chen nodded without hesitation, though that wasn't what he was thinking at all.

What a load of crap! Don't I know what kind of person Tang San turns out to be? Dual gods, dual gods—the God of Double Standards. Tang San just hasn't shown his true colors yet, and I don't have the strength to make a move.

Staying under someone else's roof for now was simply the best strategy Ling Chen had.

Hu Liena had asked what she needed to ask; next was to take the intelligence back to report to Bibi Dong.

Not long after Hu Liena walked out of the dungeon, Yan was already waiting for her on the path she had to take.

"Nana, why did delivering a meal take so long? Doesn't that kid refuse to eat anything from our Martial Soul Hall?"

Hu Liena rolled her eyes at Yan and ignored him.

Seeing this, Yan hurriedly followed, enduring her cold attitude.

He could understand Hu Liena doting on that pretty boy Tang San, but if she was going to ignore him for the sake of a seven-year-old kid, then there was a problem.

"Nana, what is wrong with you? I could understand you being bewitched by Tang San for a moment, but this..."

Hu Liena looked at Yan, speechless; he was even more delusional than she was.

"Enough, Yan! Did the Pope not punish you enough? I am on a mission from the Pope to redeem my sins. If you have nothing better to do, go cultivate! Don't get your arm chopped off again next time!"

Hu Liena rolled her eyes at Yan once more and headed toward the main hall of Martial Soul Hall, leaving Yan alone in the wind.

The dungeon was protected by a special formation that only Hu Liena could enter; it was impossible for Yan to sneak in and find out the truth.

He followed Hu Liena to the main hall and, after eavesdropping on the intelligence Ling Chen had provided, he left in secret, filled with regret.

He had misunderstood Hu Liena; she had only stayed in the dungeon for so long to gather intelligence.

Ling Chen lay on his bed, lost in thought.

Tang San should have started establishing the Tang Sect by now, though Ling Chen wasn't sure how far along he was.

Furthermore, Ling Chen had yet to obtain a new Soul Ring to increase his strength.

The White Dragon in the Dragon Pillar Space had consumed quite a few Soul Rings, and Ling Chen felt uneasy if he didn't absorb them.

"I'll ask Hu Liena tomorrow if she can take me to hunt Soul Beasts."

Ling Chen hadn't released his clone yet; he could use the excuse of hunting Soul Beasts to let the clone hide in the Heaven Dou Empire.

It wouldn't be long before Qian Renxue's identity was exposed, and chaos would ensue. Once Qian Renxue failed, he could follow the trail to find Qian Daoliu's location.

At that point, he would have his clone outside scavenge the remains while he used a displacement technique to swap places with the clone in the dungeon, allowing him to escape unscathed.

However, Ling Chen still needed to draw something to temporarily win Bibi Dong's trust.

The next day, Hu Liena came to deliver food as usual, but when she heard Ling Chen wanted to obtain a Soul Ring, she refused him.

"Once your domain unfolds, it won't be easy for us to bring you back. This is precisely why the Pope has confined you here; she fears you might interfere with her plans."

Ling Chen chuckled, acting as if he weren't currently unable to leave this place.

"What? Does your Pope intend to keep me here indefinitely? Or does she plan to use me as a bargaining chip with the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect?"

Hu Liena nodded silently.

"That is the current situation. We need the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect to relinquish their position among the Upper Three Sects."

Ling Chen spread his hands. Let Bibi Dong scheme all she wanted; in the end, she would only die at the hands of Tang San anyway.

"You Martial Soul Hall members certainly know how to play games, but it is all in vain. I believe there are some things that Martial Soul Hall would find quite interesting."

Ling Chen placed a blueprint into Hu Liena's hands. Hu Liena opened it to find a long-barreled weapon.

"This is..."

Ling Chen gave a sly grin. Were the Tang Sect's hidden weapons really that impressive? Aside from the Buddha's Fury Tang Lotus, weren't they all just cold weapons?

But in Ling Chen's original world, if a weapon didn't pack a nuclear punch, how could one dare call it a weapon of mass destruction?

"This is a musket. The manufacturing methods and usage instructions are all written inside. I hope your Pope will allow me to go out and obtain a Soul Ring. I can wait for you to finish testing the weapon before you come to find me again."

This served as a partial pledge of allegiance for Ling Chen. If he could turn Martial Soul Hall into his own faction, dealing with the Tang Sect later would be more than enough.

Hu Liena took the blueprint and left. She had no real authority at the moment and followed all of Bibi Dong's arrangements.

The musket Ling Chen provided was nothing more than an old-fashioned matchlock. Given the current forging technology of the Douluo Continent, this was all they could manage to build.

However, this was only the beginning. Ling Chen would eventually have to whip up a couple of cannons to truly open Bibi Dong's eyes.