Thirty Years East of the River, Thirty Years West

"But then again, I'm pretty strong."

"I actually killed three Soul Kings in an instant."

Xu Tianyuan clicked his tongue in wonder.

After all, he was only level 29.

This went beyond fighting opponents of a higher rank. He was cheating in the truest sense of the word.

What was more, Cruel Sun was not even his strongest skill.

It was not daytime yet, either.

Much less noon, when he would be at his strongest.

Merely using his own Sun Martial Soul to activate the template at night was enough to crush three Soul Kings.

Once the blazing sun hung high at noon, the upper limits of his power would be unimaginable.

"Should I go find Xu Tianran?"

Remembering the mastermind behind tonight's assassination attempt, Xu Tianyuan's gaze turned cold.

An impulse welled up inside him.

He wanted to charge straight into the crown prince's chambers, find Xu Tianran, and settle the score face-to-face!

But reason ultimately prevailed.

Although he had bound himself to the Sin of Pride template, the laws of heaven governing the Douluo Continent still subjected him to its level system.

At only level 29, he could, at most, threaten a Soul Emperor.

At noon, even a Soul Saint might not be his match.

Xu Tianran, however, had become a Soul Douluo long ago.

Wouldn't going there be serving himself up on a platter?

Besides, Xu Tianran had already won over plenty of people in the imperial palace, including some Titled Douluos.

Otherwise, those three men in black could never have swaggered in without encountering any resistance.

Someone had pulled strings to transfer away all the Imperial Palace Guards and the Soul Engineers on duty.

To play it safe, he would have to wait until his strength reached a certain point.

He needed to become a Soul King, at the very least, to stand a chance.

Once he became a Soul King, combining that strength with his noon form, "Above Heaven and Beneath Heaven, I Alone Reign Supreme," should make ordinary Titled Douluos no match for him.

Before then, though, if Xu Tianran went mad and kept sending assassins after him, it really would be a problem.

Xu Tianyuan sank into thought.

The imperial palace was Xu Tianran's territory.

If he stayed here, he might survive one or two assassination attempts.

But if Xu Tianran caught on, learned how strong he was, and sent a Titled Douluo to assassinate him, he would have no escape from death.

With three Soul Kings failing tonight, Xu Tianran would certainly reassess the risks. The next batch of assassins would only be stronger. Staying in his chambers was like remaining inside a hunting ground prepared by his enemy.

So what he needed most now was a powerful backer.

Or a powerful faction to join.

His backer needed enough strength to keep everyone in line, or at least guarantee him a period of peaceful growth.

With Sunshine, Xu Tianyuan believed his cultivation would progress quickly.

He could become a Soul King within a year at most.

By then, he would certainly be able to start "refusing to eat beef."

"Then..."

"The Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy!"

After a little consideration, Xu Tianyuan quickly found his answer.

On the continent, the only places that could fully guarantee his safety were Shrek Academy, the Star Luo Empire, the Body Sect, the Holy Spirit Cult, and the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy.

As for the Heaven Dou Empire and the Dou Ling Empire, frankly, they were sorely lacking in high-level combat power. They could only scrape together a handful of Titled Douluos.

If Xu Tianran was determined to kill him, fleeing to either of those places would be courting death.

Shrek Academy was known as the continent's foremost power, so his safety would naturally be assured.

Most of its teachers were quite responsible, too.

But there were inevitably a few rotten apples.

Xuan Zi was foremost among them.

That man was notoriously unreliable.

He had no desire to stay in the same place as Xuan Zi. Who knew when he might be sold out?

As for the Star Luo Empire, the Sun Moon Empire had once caused it so much trouble that even its emperor's family name had changed. As the Sun Moon Empire's sixth prince, he would probably be arrested immediately and used as a bargaining chip if he actually went there.

The Star Luo Empire and the Sun Moon Empire had been enemies for years. His identity alone was the greatest problem.

The Body Sect was also very powerful. With Du Busi presiding over it, keeping him safe would certainly be easy.

Unfortunately, it only accepted people with body martial souls.

His Sun Martial Soul was not a body martial soul.

He did not even qualify for admission.

The Holy Spirit Cult?

It was full of sinister, deceitful Evil Soul Masters.

He despised them from the bottom of his heart. If he ever had the chance, he would have to wipe them out.

Those Evil Soul Masters slaughtered living beings and had no moral limits. Even if he temporarily had nowhere left to turn, he would never consider seeking refuge with the Holy Spirit Cult.

So after weighing every option, the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy was the only path left.

Not only was it nearby, but its overall strength also ranked among the continent's best.

It did not have many Titled Douluos-only Jing Hongchen.

But Jing Hongchen had Kong Deming, the world's foremost Soul Engineer, backing him.

If Xu Tianran wanted to secure his position as crown prince and eventually ascend the throne, he had to maintain good relations with Kong Deming. He could not afford to offend him.

Kong Deming's influence throughout the Sun Moon Empire's Soul Engineer establishment...

Was beyond words.

Without exaggeration, practically every Soul Engineer had some connection to Kong Deming.

So even the crown prince had to show him some respect.

Once Xu Tianyuan joined the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy, he would simply stay inside.

With detection, surveillance, and reconnaissance soul tools everywhere in the academy, coupled with Kong Deming's influence, would Xu Tianran still dare to send assassins?

Making a move inside the academy would be a direct slap in the faces of Kong Deming and Jing Hongchen. The price would be steep, and Xu Tianran would not take that risk lightly.

"Then it's happily settled."

With his plan decided, Xu Tianyuan looked at the two charred corpses on the floor and the man in black who had been split in half. His eyes shifted as an idea formed.

When these three men failed to return and report tonight, Xu Tianran would certainly send more people.

If a Soul Douluo came next, never mind joining the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy-he might not even survive the night.

Xu Tianyuan's thoughts raced, and he soon came up with a plan.

He could not sit quietly in his chambers and wait for the next wave of assassins to arrive.

He had to blow this incident wide open and force Xu Tianran to put away his butcher's blade for the time being.

He put away Divine Axe Rhitta, which stood taller than he did, then quickly scooped up some blood from the floor and smeared it over his face and body.

Warm blood covered his cheeks, chest, and arms.

Xu Tianyuan looked down at himself. Covered in blood, he looked utterly bedraggled-exactly like the survivor of an assassination attempt.

Once he finished, he immediately left his chambers.

Outside, everything was silent.

The eunuchs and palace maids who should have remained in attendance all night were nowhere to be seen.

Clearly, someone had sent them away beforehand.

Beyond that, a curtain of light enveloped the entire residence.

It appeared to come from a sound-isolating soul tool.

Clearly, all of it was Xu Tianran's handiwork.

"Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west. Since you're so eager to kill me, remember to prepare yourself to be killed when the time comes."

Xu Tianyuan drew a deep breath, patted his face, and forced a panicked expression onto it before running toward the emperor's sleeping quarters.

As he ran, he shouted.

"Murder! Assassins! Help!"