Bright Capital and the Emperor

In Xu Yan's utterly shocked gaze, Qian Yuhan kicked down a doorway sealed with rubble and mud, then strode right inside, leaving Xu Yan floating in midair as he stared in amazement at the enormous cavern behind the earthen wall. It seemed to have formed naturally, then been expanded by hand.

"My goodness! You've been living here all by yourself all these years?"

"Yeah. Nobody bothers me, and it's peaceful. I've been doing just fine on my own."

As he spoke, Qian Yuhan gathered all sorts of strange odds and ends from the cave and stowed them in his Storage Soul Tool.

That's right, the things Qian Yuhan was putting into his Storage Soul Tool had been excavated over the years from the ruins of Spirit Hall and the underground tombs of its descendants.

And don't say he was robbing Spirit Hall's graves.

Who was Qian Yuhan? He was Spirit Hall's founding ancestor.

Could an ancestor who'd come back to life be accused of robbing the things he'd passed down to his descendants? That was just taking what was rightfully his!

With the help of the Storage Soul Tool 'kindly provided' by the Zhongli Three Brothers, Qian Yuhan carefully sorted the pile of objects steeped in history, then stowed every last one away.

All that remained was a cave that looked as if bandits had ransacked it a dozen times, with the wind howling through it.

"All right. Since you've already sorted out your things, let's head to Bright Capital and meet His Majesty."

"His Majesty?"

"That's right, His Majesty. Once we get to Bright Capital, we'll go to the imperial palace and meet him first."

At that moment, a sly glint appeared on Xu Yan's rugged face, one most people would never have noticed.

It was true that he pitied Qian Yuhan's background and was quite willing to believe that Qian Yuhan hadn't lied to him.

But whether Qian Yuhan could be trusted, whether he was hiding anything or deceiving them, and how he should be dealt with—all those decisions rested solely with the emperor of the Sun Moon Empire.

He, Xu Yan, and his personal judgment were merely a tiny, insignificant link in the long decision-making process.

Professional matters needed to be left to the professionals.

That was an eternal truth handed down by the ancestors!

He believed that once he delivered this kid to the imperial palace and placed him before His Majesty, everything would work out.

He was even more certain that the professionals in the Bright Capital palace would make a better, more accurate judgment than he could.

With that, Xu Yan walked out of the cave and rose into the air.

A square, lustrous blue metal platform suddenly unfolded beneath his feet. Eight flame nozzles of varying sizes at its base used exquisitely precise control to hold Xu Yan's burly frame steady in midair.

"Whoa! Old Qian, see that? This is a high-grade Soul Tool! Good heavens, it's practically a work of art."

"..."

Unlike the Rakshasa Phantom, who could only marvel at it, Qian Yuhan carefully examined the Flying Soul Tool Xu Yan was using.

In his recollection, the various Soul Tools he and the Rakshasa Phantom had cobbled together over the past few years were mostly crude and rugged. At best... they were just metal implements that served as tools.

But the Soul Tools Xu Yan had used in front of him today, whether the Soul Tool Shield and Soul Cannon from earlier or this flying board, all gave him... a remarkably unique feeling.

He had a premonition that the world of the future would belong to Soul Tools. Powerful Soul Masters paired with powerful Soul Tools would surely become the greatest fighting force on Douluo Continent.

With a jumble of emotions in his heart, Qian Yuhan stepped onto the rear half of the lustrous blue Flying Soul Tool with Xu Yan's help.

A lustrous blue, egg-shaped energy membrane enveloped them. Xu Yan gave a light stomp, and a powerful thrust surged from the Flying Soul Tool beneath his feet, instantly coursing through his whole body.

Then the scenery around them began to blur.

"How's that? I deliberately removed the shock absorption so we could feel the push of high-speed flight. What do you think? Isn't it thrilling?"

"It's all right," Qian Yuhan replied calmly.

"Then I'll speed up a little more. Let's see if we can make it to Bright Capital in time for a late-night snack."

Seeing that Qian Yuhan not only showed no extreme reaction but had even adapted quite well, Xu Yan burst into laughter. Feeling that his 'ahead-of-its-time human-centered design' had been approved, he increased their speed by another fifty percent.

Only after they entered Bright Capital did he slow the Flying Soul Tool beneath his feet, allowing Qian Yuhan to take in the dazzling sights below.

"Look! This is the capital of our Sun Moon Empire. It's called Sun-Moon City."

"Of course, we can also call it Bright Capital. It's the political and economic heart of our empire, and the pride of the Sun Moon Empire." Xu Yan pointed proudly at the vast expanse of buildings below. "I'll bet you anything that even if you put together the capitals of the Star Luo, Heavenly Soul, and Spirit Empires, they still wouldn't compare to Bright Capital."

It was midnight, but that only made the impact of Bright Capital, the greatest city on the continent, all the more powerful.

Qian Yuhan looked out and saw a vast expanse of buildings directly beneath the Flying Soul Tool, with another vast expanse stretching into the distance.

There were so many buildings that the eye couldn't find their end. Most stood more than five stories tall, and he even spotted high-rises of ten or twenty stories.

It was a sight this 'primitive man' from tens of thousands of years ago had never seen before.

The lights of countless homes made the seemingly endless city shine brilliantly, nearly rivaling the stars filling the night sky.

Between the buildings, broad stone-paved streets crisscrossed in a vast network. Some of the main roads were more than thirty meters wide.

"Bright Capital truly lives up to its name!"

Seeing a foreigner like Qian Yuhan marvel so openly at his capital, Xu Yan felt a swell of pride. The corner of his mouth curled into an utterly cocky grin.

He planted a foot on the acceleration button and pushed the Soul Tool to its top speed.

"Hold on tight, kid! The imperial palace is up ahead."

When they reached a landmark three thousand meters from the palace, Xu Yan pulled off a midair drift and brought the Flying Soul Tool, its blue flames spitting, to a stop.

The reason was simple: the Imperial City was different from anywhere else! Flying was strictly forbidden over the Imperial City.

Under the watchful eyes of the patrolling Soul Tool guard squad at the Imperial City gates, Xu Yan unhurriedly pulled a plaque from his robes.

It was a dark gold token engraved with a fire dragon baring its claws and fangs.

The moment the Soul Engineers saw the token, they all dropped to their knees and bowed respectfully. Xu Yan merely waved a hand with an unconcerned air.

"Come on, that's enough. There's no one else around, so who are you putting on a show for? We're all brothers here. Go on and get back to what you were doing. I'll treat you all to a late-night snack after work one of these days."

After speaking, Xu Yan gave Qian Yuhan a light pat on the shoulder with his left hand and said with a smug look, "Kid, I'm not bragging, but I'm someone of note in this palace. As long as you're not plotting a rebellion, just mention my name if you run into trouble here. It'll work every time."

If someone really did rebel and gave your name, wouldn't you be done for?

Watching Xu Yan's unbearably smug expression, the Rakshasa Phantom said as much.

They entered the palace through a side gate and skirted several less important halls inside.

Xu Yan led Qian Yuhan farther into the Imperial City with practiced ease, swinging the token in his left hand and draping his right arm over Qian Yuhan's shoulder.

Whenever a patrol approached, he raised the token, as if he were afraid no one would notice what a fine thing he had.

And, to be fair, the vast Bright Capital palace really was frighteningly enormous.

Even at a run, Xu Yan and Qian Yuhan took a full quarter of an hour to reach a magnificent golden-roofed palace.

"At this hour... my fourth uncle, the emperor, is probably still up all night reviewing memorials. Wait here for now while I find someone to announce us."

Putting away the token, Xu Yan straightened his clothes and appearance, then trotted over to a side entrance of the golden hall to chat with the red-robed palace attendant standing there.

"Well, look who it is, Marquis! You finally made it. His Majesty has been waiting inside for you for ages."

Seeing that Xu Yan, whom he'd been waiting for all this time, had finally arrived before dawn, the red-robed attendant let out a breath of relief.

As he gestured for another purple-robed attendant to go inside and announce them, he glanced from the corner of his eye at Qian Yuhan, who stood farther away at the foot of the steps, seemingly lost in thought.

"..."

After a long moment, the red-robed attendant withdrew his discreet gaze and asked Xu Yan quietly, "...Marquis, is this the prospective son-in-law the princess picked herself? He's handsome enough, and he seems about the right age for the princess, but you can't become a royal son-in-law just by being good-looking."

"Chief Steward Wang, he's eleven, and he has four rings." Xu Yan didn't argue with the attendant. Instead, he cut off everything the other man might have said with a few concise words.

(⊙o⊙) What?

Eleven, with four rings... Good heavens! Marquis, I'm old, but don't try to fool me.

At that moment, Chief Steward Wang, an imperial expert with a cultivation level of eighty-six, fell silent.

The higher one climbed in cultivation, the more one understood the value of talent. The words 'eleven years old, four rings' carried far too much weight.

So much so that he was certain the boy standing at the foot of the steps, with his calm face and not even the slightest expression, had a future cultivation ceiling that this old man—doomed to stall at the eighth ring—could never reach in his lifetime.

To say something rather presumptuous, if the princess's match, which wasn't even a possibility yet, really came to pass in a few years...

Then it would be Her Highness the princess who was marrying up, to the future chief Guardian Douluo of the Sun Moon Empire ಥ⌣ಥ.

While the red-robed chief attendant was briefly caught in a storm of thoughts, the purple-robed attendant who had gone inside to inform the emperor hurried out. He looked first at Xu Yan, then at his master, and hesitated to speak.

"What does His Majesty mean? Why aren't you saying anything?" Chief Steward Wang rapped his apprentice on the head with a frustrated chop and snapped, "Speak up! Don't just stand there looking around."

"His Majesty said..." The purple-robed attendant turned his gaze toward Qian Yuhan. "Let him come in and answer his questions."

"All right, I'll take him in right now."

"Oi! Get over here. I'll take you to see His Majesty."

With that, Xu Yan turned and headed for the entrance to the palace hall.

Realizing that his message might have been unclear, the purple-robed attendant hurried to stop Xu Yan, who was about to charge straight into the hall, and continued explaining.

"Marquis, His Majesty means for him to go in alone. You should wait outside. Of course, since it's so late, you're free to leave if you wish."

"Come on, what kind of thing is that to say? I've already come all this way. What's one more wait? Fine, fine. Since my fourth uncle said so, I'll obey the imperial decree." Xu Yan pouted and bowed to the old emperor from a long way off.

Then he silently stepped back, clearing a path for someone to walk through, and watched Qian Yuhan head alone toward the dimly lit hall.

Without the slightest hint of hesitation or awkwardness, Qian Yuhan strode to the entrance. Under the light of a row of old-fashioned Soul Guidance Lamps, he looked up at the plaque over the door: Wenhua Hall.

Wenhua Hall?

That was a pretty good name.

Qian Yuhan was still thinking about it when the doors, radiating a faint warmth, creaked softly before him.

They opened just wide enough for someone to slip through. It seemed someone inside had opened the tightly shut doors for him.

Qian Yuhan turned sideways and stepped into the hall. Before he could steady himself, a wave of warmth washed over him.

Mixed into the warmth was a faint scent of ink and the peculiar mustiness of old books.

"No need to bow. Come in and meet me."

The speaker's voice was not loud. It had the hoarse, weathered quality unique to the elderly, but his words were clear, and Qian Yuhan heard them plainly.

Following the sound, Qian Yuhan looked over and, by the light of the lamps, saw the man seated behind an elegant wooden imperial desk.

The soft, creamy-white light of a Soul Guidance Lamp fell from the side, casting shifting shadows across the face of the old emperor who had seized the throne through the Xuanwu Gate Heaven-Appointed Jingnan—the man who had 'won his position through strength.'

This old emperor, ruthless at heart... no, decisive in battle, had taken the throne from his own brothers. His skin was a healthy bronze.

His weathered face bore a neatly trimmed short beard, and a few dark hairs still mingled with the white at his temples.

Yet all this apparent ordinariness could not conceal his tremendous presence.

The imperial majesty of a ruler who inspired awe without anger radiated from his bright eyes, which seemed to blaze like a roaring furnace.

"Why are you just standing there? Am I really that frightening?!"

Noticing the probing look in the boy's eyes at the entrance, the old emperor slowly raised his head and asked Qian Yuhan, "Or do you have a guilty conscience and dare not come over to see me?"

"No. It's just the first time I've met an emperor, so I find it rather novel," Qian Yuhan answered honestly.

After all, this was truly the first time in his life he had met an emperor since acquiring Style Shift—and this one was the emperor of the Sun Moon Empire.

Unlike Qian Yuhan, who was far calmer than an ordinary person, the imposing old emperor fell silent for a moment before becoming rather perplexed himself.