Pistol

Xu Yanli settled into a life of cultivation and studying Level 1 Soul Engineer knowledge, with not a moment to spare.

Xu Yanli really did have quite a knack for Soul Engineering. After all, he had been a science and engineering student in his previous life, and had studied mechanics.

"Your Highness, Prince Xiaoyao, are you ready?" a teacher asked with a smile, holding a timetable in his hand.

"I'm ready," Xu Yanli said earnestly. His hands moved swiftly, picking up speed.

The small carving knife flipped up and down in his hands. Before long, he had finished a Level 1 Soul Tool core array, then forged one small component after another into shape.

Xu Yanli gazed excitedly at the finished product in his hands. It was something he had always wanted to get his hands on in his previous life, but never had.

No, that wasn't quite true. He had gotten to handle one during military training, a few times.

A gun!

And it was a gun capable of firing in bursts. What was more, it consumed very little Soul Power. The core array he had just made continuously drew in energy from the air, filling the gun with bullets.

When the examiner pressed the pause button, he stared at the time displayed above in disbelief.

A Level 1 Soul Tool had taken less than half an hour to complete. It looked powerful, too—and it was an original design.

"Your Highness, Prince Xiaoyao, would you like to try it out? There's a testing room next door," the examiner said with a smile.

Xu Yanli nodded, weighing the rather hefty pistol in his hand.

He raised the Soul Tool Gun, aimed at the center of the target, and fired. The shot struck dead center.

Thank goodness his aim wasn't as crooked as a ball of tangled yarn.

The examiner paused, then hurried behind the target to inspect it. He was horrified to find that the energy bullet had not only pierced the bull's-eye, but had embedded itself in the wall behind it.

He turned around excitedly and said, "Your Highness, could I take a look at this?"

Xu Yanli readily nodded and handed it over.

He had used an acceleration array and an energy-absorption array in the gun. The former sent the energy racing down the barrel, while the latter kept the Soul Tool pistol constantly charged to full.

The examiner hadn't thought much of it before trying it himself. But the moment he did, he was startled. The gun was so powerful, yet it didn't consume a single bit of Soul Power.

Clearly, Xu Yanli had passed his Level 1 Soul Engineer examination.

Whether his Soul Tool pistol would astonish other people was no concern of his.

At last, he could take a day off.

Xu Yanli stretched. His bones crackled all over, and he was exhausted.

After leaving Mingde Hall, Xu Yanli saw that his personal Soul Guidance Carriage was already waiting at the entrance.

All these things had been provided after his Martial Soul Awakening, including the luxurious Prince Xiaoyao Mansion beside the First Prince's Mansion.

The shares of the imperial allowance he had missed out on during the previous six years had all been sent over, along with extra.

Xu Yanli looked at his Martial Soul and sighed inwardly. If he had awakened an ordinary Martial Soul, perhaps he would have died quietly without a trace. He certainly wouldn't be treated like this.

But there were no ifs. A hint of ambition flashed in Xu Yanli's eyes. One day, he would stand above all others across the Douluo Continent.

No—not just the Douluo Continent, but the Douluo God Realm as well!

Xu Yanli could feel the Soul Power inside him nearly solidifying. He reckoned it wouldn't be long before he broke through to Level 30.

But cultivation wasn't what gave him the biggest headache. It was the nobles flocking around him, along with the Evil Soul Masters secretly contacting him.

After all, the Sun Moon Emperor—his good Imperial Father—had only announced to the public that he had awakened the Purple Brilliant Heaven Destroying Dragon Martial Soul. He hadn't said a word about the Angel Martial Soul.

Those Evil Soul Masters thought that Xu Yanli had suffered bullying ever since childhood and must harbor resentment. On top of that, Xu Tianran was paralyzed from the waist down and had a deep, calculating nature. Surely he would be harder to control than the young prince.

They even wanted to abandon Xu Tianran and switch their allegiance to Xu Yanli. After all, if Xu Yanli wanted to fight for the throne, the Evil Soul Masters' support would be like snow in a winter drought.

Xu Tianran, for his part, was also planning to abandon the Evil Soul Masters. After all, there was hope his legs could recover, so why choose such a filthy path?

At least in public, he couldn't accept the Evil Soul Masters. As for behind closed doors, who knew?

In truth, the Evil Soul Masters reaching out to Xu Yanli was a pretty good arrangement for Xu Tianran.

After all, if everyone accused him of colluding with the Evil Soul Masters in the future, Xu Yanli would only need to reveal his Angel Martial Soul to refute it all.

Xu Yanli was also somewhat hesitant about what to do with the Evil Soul Masters. They were a real hot potato.

One idea he had was to wait until he obtained Electrolux before dealing with the Evil Soul Masters.

After all, once he had Electrolux, he would be the Holy Spirit Cult's chosen Holy Emperor.

As for the Evil Soul Masters slaughtering the innocent and piling up corpses, Xu Yanli scoffed inwardly. What did that have to do with him?

Besides, any cooperation would come with conditions. His condition was that they must not harm anyone from the Sun Moon Empire. As for the Original Three Kingdoms—including Shrek Academy—they could wreak havoc to their heart's content.

The problem of getting into Shrek Academy was much more serious than dealing with the Evil Soul Masters, and there was also the issue of the nobles piling up around him.

Xu Yanli let out a sigh. It seemed he would have to wait until he was at least eleven before he could resolve some of his problems.

Xu Yanli shook his head, clearing his mind, and resumed cultivating, determined to break through to Level 30 as soon as possible.

Night gradually fell.

A maid came over carrying a bowl of something black and gloopy. She said respectfully, "Your Highness, Prince Xiaoyao, His Highness the Crown Prince sent you this Whale Rubber. He said to eat it while it's hot."

He had forgotten to mention that a few days ago, Xu Yanli had openly declared his support for Xu Tianran.

And after the old emperor heard that there was hope for Xu Tianran's legs to recover, he immediately issued an edict and officially made Xu Tianran the Crown Prince.

The emperor had always refused to appoint Xu Tianran as Crown Prince because of his legs. He had been waiting to see whether any of his other sons could surpass Xu Tianran.

Unfortunately, none had. In terms of cunning and methods, Xu Tianran was the most suitable. Most importantly, Xu Tianran had now reached Level 87.

It could be said that he was currently the most powerful member of the Sun Moon Empire's imperial family.

Xu Yanli slowly opened his eyes, picked up the bowl from the tray, and gulped it all down.

Xu Yanli felt parched, his whole body burning hot. Unfortunately, he had the desire but not the strength to act on it.

"Don't follow me," Xu Yanli said through gritted teeth as he looked at the maid in front of him.

This young lady was beautiful, but what a shame.

Xu Yanli headed for the cold spring in his back courtyard. After making sure no one was around, he stripped off his clothes and jumped in.

Xu Yanli could guarantee that Xu Tianran had done this on purpose. Hadn't he only secretly watered Xu Tianran's favorite flowers to death yesterday?