But he did not resist.
This instrument of torture was a Soul Tool. While it could seal off its victim's soul power, it naturally still followed the rules governing Soul Tools. He carried the Red Dust Protection Jing Hongchen had given him-a Level 9 Soul Tool that ranked among the finest in the world.
In other words, this torture device alone could not crack his shell!
"Your Highness, I still suggest you cooperate and confess everything you should. Otherwise, in here, even the emperor faces the same punishment as a commoner!" The Soul Emperor leaned leisurely against his chair back and took a sip of tea, looking as though victory was already in his grasp.
"Why isn't your captain coming in?" Xu Cheng curled his lips. "Doesn't he dare?"
"Shut up!" The Soul Emperor narrowed his eyes slightly and slowly straightened in his seat. "Xu Cheng, you're already in here, yet you're still trying to sow discord between us brothers? Isn't that a little ridiculous?"
"Did the Fourth Prince send you?"
Xu Cheng remained utterly unconcerned.
He looked not as though he were in a torture chamber, liable to face brutal punishment at any moment, but as though he were sitting in a teahouse, leisurely enjoying himself.
"Don't change the subject!"
The Soul Emperor's expression darkened.
He had intended to bluff him. After all, faced with a scene like this, an eleven- or twelve-year-old child would most likely be begging for mercy with snot streaming down his face and tears clouding his eyes.
But now that he had witnessed Xu Cheng's courage firsthand, it truly was extraordinary. Was this simply what one should expect of a prince...?
"Then what do you want me to say?" Xu Cheng watched him with interest. "That I killed Wang Shaojie? Isn't that already plain to see? You want me to admit it? Even if I, Xu Cheng, killed him, go report it to His Majesty. Who would dare do anything to me?"
"You lot, on the other hand! You really aren't afraid of dying..."
Xu Cheng shook his head, a trace of pity in his eyes.
"You still have to be alive to enjoy your master's rewards, don't you? You might even drag your families down with you. The losses would outweigh the gains. Besides..."
"Xu Cheng, don't fucking spit on the courtesy you're being shown!" the Soul Emperor snapped.
"Don't fucking think being a prince lets you swagger around like you own the world! Let me tell you today-even princes have their ranks and grades! Our Fourth... pah! Anyway, know your place! You think you're worthy of competing for the Imperial Throne?"
"Nothing but a motherless bastard..."
After his tirade, the Soul Emperor muttered one more insult under his breath, still not quite satisfied.
But Xu Cheng heard it clearly.
He shook his head helplessly.
Before Xu Cheng could speak,
the torture chamber door opened.
Someone called the interrogating Soul Emperor away.
The room fell silent again.
Xu Cheng smiled faintly, closed his eyes, and rested.
Elsewhere.
In a lounge not far from the interrogation room.
"Brothers, since we've already done it, we might as well go all the way and just..."
A vicious gleam flashed through Xu Mochen's eyes.
"Big brother, isn't that going a little too far?"
The Soul Emperor who had just interrogated Xu Cheng looked startled.
This wasn't in the script!
Before the operation, Xu Mochen had only told them to use the Fourth Prince's influence to knock the boy down a peg. At most, they would frighten him and leave some "evidence of guilt" so that, during the Fourth Prince's future Succession Struggle, they could use that dirt to make trouble for his opponent.
If they managed to pry out some major secret, they might even bring his opponent down outright. His Highness the Fourth Prince would certainly reward them generously.
But murdering a prince...
They could neither bear that charge nor dare to take it on.
Hadn't their interrogation just now consisted mostly of intimidation? Once Xu Cheng refused to panic, they were the ones who had to start panicking.
"But..."
Xu Mochen's face was full of conflict.
"Captain, if something's wrong, tell us. We're all here. We can help you figure it out."
Seeing his expression, the Soul Emperor urged him on.
"Ah..." Xu Mochen sighed helplessly.
"I just received word that this boy is actually far from simple. The Holy Spirit Cult may be behind him. And... just last month, he became Cheng Baiqing's disciple-his sole final disciple."
"What?!!!"
Everyone around him cried out in shock.
The Soul Emperor who had interrogated Xu Cheng was utterly numb.
Why the fuck didn't you say that earlier? Are we still brothers or not?
Naturally, they had targeted Xu Cheng because his mother was dead and the reigning emperor paid him little attention. He was a prince relegated to a forgotten corner, yet he "overestimated himself" and fancied competing for the Imperial Throne with their master, the Fourth Prince.
They naturally had a duty to make someone so blind to his own standing face reality.
But Xu Mochen's words overturned all their assumptions!
If Xu Cheng had no backing, then after what they had done, with no injuries on him, they would at most be demoted. After all, nobody would stand up for him. Even if he complained to His Majesty, His Highness the Fourth Prince would shield them.
At worst, they would receive a scolding and then treat it as a vacation. The Fourth Prince would not mistreat them.
But if he had a powerful force behind him, that was an entirely different matter.
Especially with the renowned Elder Cheng involved. If he made a fuss, the Fourth Prince probably would not be able to suppress it.
It might stir up a storm throughout the city. When that happened, even the Fourth Prince would likely have to hand them over to save his own skin.
And more terrifying still,
they had heard another name: the Holy Spirit Cult.
As members of the Imperial Family Inspection Team, they had encountered some of the imperial capital's hidden darkness. Naturally, they knew just how terrifying a force that name represented.
Not only did ordinary people lose their nerve at the mere mention of Evil Soul Masters, but many ordinary Soul Masters and Soul Engineers did too.
If that organization truly set its sights on them, they probably would not enjoy many peaceful nights again. In particular, Evil Soul Masters' methods of torture were the best in the business. Everyone who had experienced them had given their silent approval. Some of the few torture devices they possessed had even been copied from them...
The Soul Emperor who had interrogated Xu Cheng shakily picked up a cup of tea. It trembled and sloshed so badly that only two mouthfuls reached his stomach; the rest spilled everywhere.
Those insults he had hurled just now-if Xu Cheng took revenge on him later...
"And according to the message my father just sent, Xu Cheng's relationship with the Holy Spirit Cult is far from ordinary. He is the Holy Spirit Cult's Holy Son." Xu Mochen looked filled with regret.
The moment those words fell,
the teacup in the Soul Emperor's hand abruptly shattered.
His face turned deathly pale.
His eyes were full of reproach as he looked at Xu Mochen.
Come on, brother. Is this how you screw over your own brothers?!
Before you continue