The Might of Lord M14

That evening, Zhang Yang was woken by the nanny and went to the dining room for dinner.

A refined dinner steamed on the table. Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing sat there, smiling.

Though they were smiling, Zhang Yang could see the weariness in their eyes and the bitterness behind their smiles.

"Wow, there's so much delicious food!" Zhang Yang stood excitedly on his chair, surveying the feast spread across the table.

"Hehe." Zhang Lingyue forced a smile. "Son, today is your sixth birthday. Your mother specially prepared this feast for you. It's all your favorite dishes. Do you like it?"

"Mm, I do." Zhang Yang nodded happily, shifting his gaze from the feast to Zhu Ranqing's face. "Thank you, Mom."

"Good boy." Zhu Ranqing smiled with relief. "Come on, it's time to make your birthday wish."

"Oh." Zhang Yang sat down, clasped his hands, pressed them to his forehead, and said softly, "I hope Mom and Dad are happy every day."

Hearing his wish, Zhu Ranqing smiled. "Silly boy, you forgot to wish for something for yourself."

Zhang Yang lowered his clasped hands and picked up his chopsticks, saying casually, "As long as Mom and Dad are happy, I'm happy too."

That casual remark went straight to Zhu Ranqing's tear ducts.

Seeing his wife's eyes redden again, Zhang Lingyue hurriedly changed the subject. "What a sweet talker, my good boy. Here, try this. It's a North Sea City specialty—King Crab."

After dinner, the family went to the living room.

Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing sipped tea while Zhang Yang manifested Lord M14 and lifted it, aiming this way and that.

At first, Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing chatted off and on, but eventually they fell silent, simply watching Zhang Yang fiddle with his Martial Soul.

After watching for a while, Zhang Lingyue suddenly said, "Yangyang, your Martial Soul..."

He paused, searching for the right words, then continued, "...why does it look so strange?"

It was no wonder Zhang Lingyue asked.

Guns had never been developed on the Douluo Continent, so the locals couldn't tell what M14 did from its appearance.

One end was too thin, the other flat and thick. Neither was suitable for gripping with one hand.

The middle could be held in one hand, but the weight on either side was unbalanced.

No matter how you looked at it, it didn't seem like a proper weapon.

"I don't know either." Zhang Yang shook his head, then grinned, showing his little white teeth with a gap between them. "But it's really powerful."

Zhang Lingyue was curious. "Have you tried it?"

"Yeah, in the side courtyard. Come take a look if you don't believe me."

With that, Zhang Yang grabbed M14 and dashed out of the living room in three quick strides.

Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing exchanged a glance, then got up and followed him.

The couple followed Zhang Yang to the woodshed in the side courtyard. In the yard, the servants were chopping firewood and cutting feed.

Seeing the family of three approach, the two servants hurried to their feet. "Master, Madam, Young Master."

"Mm." Zhang Lingyue nodded.

"Brother Wuge, where's the wooden post I shot this afternoon? Bring it over so Dad can see." Zhang Yang asked excitedly.

The servant Zhang Wuge froze. "Young Master, I burned it."

Zhang Yang stared at him in surprise. "Burned it?"

Zhang Wuge answered timidly, "Yes, Young Master. That post was nearly smashed to pieces, so I used it as firewood."

"Burned it? Never mind, I'll shoot another one." Zhang Yang rushed into the woodshed to pick out a log.

Nearby, Zhang Lingyue beckoned Zhang Wuge over. "Wuge, what happened?"

Zhu Ranqing asked curiously, "What wooden post?"

"Master, Madam. This afternoon, Young Master came to the back courtyard and asked me to prepare a wooden post for him. He said he wanted to test his Martial Soul's power."

"Test his Martial Soul's power?" Zhang Lingyue's interest was immediately piqued. "How powerful was it?"

"It was incredible." Zhang Wuge gave a thumbs-up. "When Young Master used his Martial Soul, it sounded like thunder. You wouldn't believe how powerful it was."

"What do you mean? Was it really that powerful?" Zhu Ranqing's eyes lit up with curiosity.

"Of course." Zhang Wuge nodded. "I heard a 'bang,' and that piece of wood, as thick as my arm, went flying."

Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing exchanged a glance.

Zhang Wuge continued, "When I went to pick it up, I saw a hole as thick as a finger right through the wood. You could see light through it."

Zhang Lingyue narrowed his eyes and quickly estimated M14's power.

With just one level of Soul Power, it could punch through a piece of wood as thick as an arm. Its penetrative power was quite impressive.

As for its lethality, Zhang Lingyue had no doubt.

Hadn't they always said, "Stabs kill, slashes wound"?

A thrust concentrated force at one point, easily piercing skin and muscle to reach the internal organs. A strike to a vital spot could cause severe bleeding or damage an organ, leading to a swift death.

A slash could wreak havoc on muscles, tendons, and bones, but the wound was usually shallower and more open. And because bones often blocked the blade, it was harder for a slash to cause a fatal injury.

The thought filled Zhang Lingyue with anticipation.

Before long, Zhang Yang came out of the woodshed carrying a log half a meter in diameter.

"Brother Wuge, quick, set it up."

Zhang Yang gave the order.

"Right away, Young Master." Zhang Wuge hurried over.

First, Zhang Wuge and the coachman carried over a chopping block to use as a base. Then they set the log Zhang Yang had chosen on top.

Once everything was ready, Zhang Yang manifested Lord M14.

"Dad, Mom, watch closely."

As he spoke, Soul Power surged through Zhang Yang's hands. He braced the stock against his shoulder, closed his left eye, and took aim.

Zhang Lingyue glanced at Zhang Yang's stance, then turned his gaze to the log.

Zhu Ranqing, meanwhile, kept her eyes fixed on Zhang Yang.

Zhang Yang slowed his breathing, laid his finger on the trigger, and lined up his sights on the log.

Bang!

The sudden gunshot, louder than 90 decibels, made Zhang Lingyue—whose attention had been elsewhere—furrow his brow in alarm.

Zhu Ranqing, who had been watching Zhang Yang the entire time, jolted in fright.

At the sound of the shot, the log across from them shuddered violently, and flakes of its dry, rough bark flew everywhere.

M14 disappeared. Zhang Yang hurried over and searched for the bullet's impact point in the dim firelight in the courtyard.

Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing quickly followed.

The family of three crouched there, searching for the impact point.

Soon, Zhang Yang's finger found a small hole in the log. He turned happily to Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing. "Dad, Mom, look!"

Zhang Wuge had already brought over a lantern.

By its light, Zhang Lingyue saw where the bullet had struck.

There was a finger-width hole, its interior blackened where the wood had been charred by intense friction.

The bullet hadn't passed through the log. That was only natural.

The log was a solid half-meter in diameter. To shoot through it, you'd need an anti-materiel sniper rifle like a Barrett.

The fact that M14's bullet had penetrated this far into the log already meant its power was tremendous.

Seeing the result, Zhang Lingyue nodded with satisfaction.

He was already very pleased with its performance.

When Zhang Lingyue had first awakened his Martial Soul, he'd tested its power on firewood too.

After all, his Martial Soul was an axe for chopping wood. Testing it on a log was a natural fit.

But his performance back then hadn't been nearly as good as Zhang Yang's.

Though Zhang Lingyue had been born with five levels of Soul Power, even chopping wood crosswise had been difficult.

The hardness of wood fibers was no joke.

Zhang Lingyue figured that even at level twenty, if he swung his axe sideways at a log, he still wouldn't get the same result as Zhang Yang's shot.

"Dad, Mom, look. Is my Martial Soul powerful?"

"It sure is! My son is the best." Zhu Ranqing clapped as she praised him.

Zhang Yang grinned, then demonstrated its semiautomatic and fully automatic firing modes.

Watching Zhang Yang's Martial Soul strike the log with a series of sharp cracks, Zhang Lingyue and Zhu Ranqing's eyes lit up.

With that rate of fire, combined with its lethality...

Zhang Lingyue's eyebrows practically flew up with delight.

Zhang Yang put his Martial Soul away. Zhang Lingyue patted his shoulder and said slowly, "Good son, you'll grow up to be an incredibly powerful Soul Master."

Zhang Yang clapped happily. "Great! I'll grow up to become a Soul Master as powerful as you, Dad."

"Mm. You'll be even stronger than your mom and me someday." Zhang Lingyue declared confidently, "Starting tomorrow, I'll teach you how to be a Soul Master."

"Yay! I'll be able to become a Soul Master as powerful as Dad!" Zhang Yang cheered excitedly.