Jiang Shengyu was well aware of Xu Tianran's intentions.
Unlike most of the Sun Moon Empire's current aristocracy—who had long grown complacent in their luxury and lost any ambition for unifying the continent—Xu Tianran was a rare exception.
His past experiences had twisted his mind and deepened his obsession with greatness. He was desperate to establish a legacy that would surpass all emperors before him, and unifying the entire Douluo Continent was undoubtedly the kind of historic feat worthy of eternal glory.
But aside from a few likeminded individuals, no one—including the emperor himself—shared his enthusiasm. That's why Xu Tianran had been working behind the scenes to win over powerful allies. Though he had recruited a few, it wasn't enough.
Jiang Shengyu was clearly his next target.
A disciple of Kong Deming, the Silvermoon Douluo, and current Hall Master of the Soul Hall, Jiang Shengyu's potential was limitless. Xu Tianran had a clear vision of what the future Soul Hall could become under Jiang Shengyu's leadership.
And most importantly—Jiang Shengyu was not an evil soul master.
The thought of the evil soul masters lurking in the shadows made Xu Tianran's face darken.
"I'll have to try another approach," he muttered to himself before turning his wheelchair and leaving.
Meanwhile, as Kong Deming and Jiang Shengyu walked out of the palace, the elder reminded him,
"Shengyu, court affairs run deep. Stay out of them as much as you can."
"I understand, Teacher," Jiang Shengyu nodded. Unless absolutely necessary, he had no desire to meddle in imperial politics. Compared to the three Douluo nations, the Sun Moon Empire's court was a minefield.
And it wasn't just about power struggles—there was also Ye Xishui, an evil soul master and an Extreme Douluo who operated from the shadows. She wasn't the kind of person he could afford to offend. If she ever decided he was a threat, she wouldn't bother with politics—she'd simply strike him down.
Jiang Shengyu didn't want trouble, but trouble came looking for him anyway.
One day, just as he stepped out of the Soul Hall headquarters, two plainly dressed men blocked his path. They bowed politely and said,
"Young Master Jiang, our master invites you for a meeting."
"And who is your master?" Jiang Shengyu asked casually.
One of them shook his head. "His identity is sensitive. We cannot say here. Please rest assured—he means you no harm."
Harm? With seven nine-tier soul tools on his person, unless a Titled Douluo personally made a move, no one was capable of harming him.
Jiang Shengyu chuckled and shook his head. He pointed past them and said,
"Sorry, I've already got plans. Someone's coming to meet me."
The two turned in the direction he pointed and saw Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen walking over. From a distance, Meng Hongchen waved and called out,
"Shengyu!"
The moment they saw the two, the expressions of the men trying to stop Jiang Shengyu shifted slightly.
"Who are they?" Xiao Hongchen asked as he approached, glancing at the two strangers before turning to Jiang Shengyu.
Jiang Shengyu smiled, threw an arm around his friend's shoulders, and casually brushed it off.
"No one important. Don't worry about it."
Meng Hongchen, still watching the two suspicious figures, frowned but followed after them without comment.
Back where they stood, one of the men whispered to the other,
"What now?"
"They're the grandchildren of the Red Dust Douluo. His Highness ordered us not to involve anyone else. We have no choice but to withdraw for now," the other replied, clearly annoyed.
They watched Jiang Shengyu and the others walk away, sighed helplessly, and turned to leave.
As they strolled away, Meng Hongchen asked,
"Shengyu, who were those two really? They didn't look unimportant."
"Who else? They were sent by the crown prince, Xu Tianran," Jiang Shengyu replied with a sigh.
Xiao Hongchen's eyes narrowed. "Trying to recruit you?"
Jiang Shengyu flicked his bangs dramatically and smirked.
"I mean, with talent like mine, isn't it only natural the crown prince would want me on his side?"
"Jiang Shengyu, keep showing off and you'll get yourself killed," Xiao Hongchen scoffed.
"Ever heard the saying 'if I can't have it, I'll destroy it'? You piss off the wrong guy, and someday you'll trip over a pebble and die from a stubbed toe."
Jiang Shengyu paused for a moment, then replied,
"That curse is really…"
"Effective?" Xiao Hongchen offered.
"Childish," Jiang Shengyu deadpanned.
Turning to Meng Hongchen, he added dramatically,
"Dream-jie, it must be hard having him as a brother."
Meng Hongchen bit her lip, barely holding back laughter as she patted her brother on the shoulder.
"Calm down, ge."
"…Heh," Xiao Hongchen sneered in mock fury.
Meanwhile, just as Jiang Shengyu was being targeted by Xu Tianran, Jiang Qingtong had her own visitor—Ma Xiaotao.
Ever since Ma Xiaotao had been knocked out by the backlash from the nine-tier defensive soul tool Seven-Leaf Mirror Lotus, she had made it her mission to find Jiang Qingtong nearly every day.
At first, it was out of sheer curiosity: how could a two-ring Soul Grandmaster possibly knock her out?
Once she learned that Jiang Qingtong was equipped with multiple nine-tier soul tools and had spirit rings far beyond the standard limit—even at the thousand-year level—Ma Xiaotao's curiosity turned into a burning desire to spar with her.
She called it "friendly competition between sisters-in-arms."
But no matter how talented Jiang Qingtong was, a two-ring Soul Grandmaster couldn't possibly take on a six-ring Soul Emperor. Though she had her soul tools to protect her and wasn't worried about getting hurt, it was just exhausting!
To the point that, one day, upon spotting Ma Xiaotao waiting outside the dorm again, Jiang Qingtong grabbed Jiang Nannan's sleeve and said urgently,
"Senior! Let's go. Now!"
"Huh… Qingtong, is she really that scary?" Jiang Nannan was rarely around for these encounters. Since they weren't in the same grade, their schedules barely overlapped.
Jiang Qingtong sighed. "You don't get it. She's so annoying, I…"
Before she could finish, Ma Xiaotao had already spotted them and was running their way. Before Qingtong could escape, the fiery redhead appeared before them and blocked their path.
"Trying to run again?" she said with a grin.
"Hello, Senior Sister," Jiang Nannan greeted politely.
Ma Xiaotao gave her a nod before turning to Qingtong.
"Why the cold shoulder?"
"Xiaotao-senpai, there are so many strong seniors in the inner courtyard. Why don't you go spar with them instead of always picking on me?" Qingtong groaned.
"Because you're the only one with nine-tier soul tools who can withstand my full power," Ma Xiaotao replied bluntly.
Whenever she sparred with other inner courtyard students, she always had to hold back. The full force of the Evil Fire Phoenix was far too destructive—even most inner courtyard students would walk away injured.
But Jiang Qingtong, protected by nine-tier defenses, was the perfect target.
In Ma Xiaotao's eyes, she was the ideal sparring partner.
A perfect punching bag.
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