Unlike the simple stone houses outside, the interior decoration of the castle was much more exquisite.
The fiery red, fluffy carpet on the floor seemed to faintly radiate heat, driving away the chill of the late autumn morning on the sea.
Rows of soul tool lamps hung on both sides of the walls, their soft, warm light illuminating the central hall of the castle in a brilliant golden glow.
Within the vast castle, Xu Zihuang was the only one present.
The only sound was his footsteps echoing in the hall.
Expressionless, he walked to the head seat of the crystal dining table in the center of the hall and sat down.
Soon, a few soldiers brought in breakfast on trays from outside the castle.
Although the exiled Xu Zihuang wasn’t allowed to bring servants to attend to him, he didn’t have to worry about his daily living arrangements.
The steaming meat porridge in front of him emitted a rich aroma.
Besides that, there were also some stews, seasonal vegetables, and fruits.
Since the island was mostly saline-alkali soil and unsuitable for growing crops, these were all transported from the Sun Moon Empire’s mainland.
Supplies were replenished at regular intervals.
Of course, there was also no shortage of sea soul beasts from the ocean.
Today’s dish was the belly of a thousand-year Deep Sea Bluefin Tuna, evenly sliced and arranged on the tray.
The tender meat looked incredibly appetizing.
Over the past three years, Xu Zihuang didn’t know how many dishes he had eaten made from the rare parts of various sea soul beasts.
Combined with the nourishment of the soul power within his body, even though he had yet to acquire a single soul ring, his physical fitness was already comparable to a normal Grand Soul Master with a beast martial soul.
This was all thanks to the solid foundation laid down when he was young.
His father was the full-blooded third brother of the previous Sun Moon Emperor, and therefore the full-blooded third brother of the current Sun Moon Emperor’s father.
Not only was his father exceptionally talented, having cultivated to the rank of Titled Douluo, but he was also deeply valued by Xu Zihuang’s imperial grandfather and was granted the four richest provinces in the south of the Sun Moon Empire as his fief.
To say his authority was overwhelming would be no exaggeration.
Even before his martial soul awakened, his father often used various rare heavenly treasures to cleanse the impurities in his meridians and strengthen his foundation.
Some of these special treasures were even more valuable than a high-quality ten-thousand-year soul bone.
This was a major reason why he could achieve innate full soul power upon awakening his martial soul.
The cold sunlight scattered onto the smooth marble floor through the windowsill.
Holding ornate silver cutlery, Xu Zihuang sliced the thousand-year Bluefin Tuna belly on his plate.
With his long-tense nerves finally relaxed, his appetite improved considerably.
Of course, his current situation had not fundamentally changed.
After breakfast, Xu Zihuang followed his usual habit and returned to his room to read books on the production of soul tools.
Hai Xiao wouldn’t help him hunt for a soul ring, nor would he provide him with materials to make soul tools, but he didn’t stop him from cultivating or learning the knowledge of soul tool creation.
However, it was obvious that his mind wasn’t on the books right now; his thoughts had already drifted far away.
In the two years since he awakened his martial soul, he had cultivated diligently at first.
But as time passed, he felt increasingly despairing.
No matter how hard he cultivated, as long as he couldn’t acquire a soul ring, his strength couldn’t increase at all.
His soul power would be forever stuck at rank ten.
And even if Hai Xiao helped him get a soul ring, what then?
Hai Xiao was the commander of the Western Sea Soul Engineer Legion.
Although it couldn’t compare to the five direct imperial legions, it was still a rare elite legion.
Hai Xiao himself was a Class 8 Soul Engineer, and he commanded two hundred Soul Engineers who were at least Class 3 or higher.
Trying to escape from here was pure fantasy.
If he hadn’t accidentally awakened the memories of his past life when awakening his martial soul—allowing the two souls within his body to perfectly merge and granting him a mind far superior to ordinary people—these three years of imprisonment would have been enough to completely destroy his will and turn him numb.
He could perhaps understand the state of mind of Dai Mubai from ten thousand years ago now, though compared to Dai Mubai, his current situation was even more desperate.
He didn’t even have the chance to resist.
His purple eyes gradually focused, glowing with a faint light.
Xu Zihuang closed the book in his hands and opened the glazed window on the south side of his room.
The biting sea breeze stung his cheeks, but he acted as if he didn’t feel it, looking up at the thick, cage-like fortress walls.
Watching the seabirds occasionally gliding across the azure sky, Xu Zihuang subconsciously clenched his fists.
In an instant, his pupils turned a brilliant gold, and complex, obscure patterns swirled around them.
His entire aura underwent an earth-shattering transformation.
However, no one noticed this momentary change.
Yes, his martial soul was not just the Purple Brilliance Heaven-Destroying Dragon inherited from the Sun Moon Empire’s royal family.
He also possessed another powerful body martial soul: the Golden Eyes.
Back when his martial soul awakened, the two souls in his body had just completed their fusion.
He knew very well the sheer power of this top-tier mental-type body martial soul.
Therefore, he hid this second martial soul.
Twin martial souls, and innate full soul power to boot.
Such talent might have earned him the attention of Xu Tianran and his father, potentially restoring his freedom.
But it was far more likely to invite a fatal disaster.
A completely non-threatening prince was what Xu Tianran and his father wanted to see.
“What’s the point of having great talent?” A trace of bitterness flashed in Xu Zihuang’s eyes.
If he had awakened his past life’s memories earlier, even by just a year, he could have relied on his knowledge of the plot to do his best to change his family’s fate.
He could only say that fate truly loved to toy with people.
…
The seabirds spiraled up from the island into the lingering clouds, gliding with the wind for several hours before landing on the wooden railing of the lookout post atop a giant ship.
This massive vessel had six levels in total—five above the deck and one below.
The hull was over two hundred meters long, and the spacious deck at the front alone was larger than the continent’s top-tier spirit arenas.
On both sides of the deck, dozens of soldiers vigilantly monitored the surrounding waters.
Even though this route had almost never encountered powerful sea soul beasts, no one could guarantee it was entirely safe.
An old man who looked like a captain stood anxiously at the bow, resting his thin, withered hands on the metal railing as he gazed into the distance.
The one hundred noble ladies on this ship represented a hundred noble families of the Sun Moon Empire.
If any accident occurred, as a commander of a ragtag soul engineer legion from a coastal border city, he couldn’t bear the responsibility.
The deck at the bow was solemn, but inside the fifth-level cabin hall above the deck, glasses clinked, presenting a scene of joyful harmony.
At least, that was how it looked on the surface.
In the Sun Moon Empire, just like in the three native empires of the Douluo Continent, the distinction between high and low status wasn’t just between nobles and commoners; it was an unspoken rule even among the nobles themselves.
The five cabin levels above the deck were similarly divided into five classes, separated naturally by their respective family backgrounds.
In the top-level cabin hall, luxuriously dressed noble ladies elegantly chatted while holding glazed cups, occasionally extending their slender hands to cover their mouths as they chuckled softly.
“Do you think the exiled Prince will choose us?”
“If we actually get chosen, doesn’t that mean we have to stay on that isolated island for several years?
I wonder what His Highness the First Prince is thinking.” As soon as she said this, the smiles on the surrounding ladies’ faces instantly vanished, and they looked at the loose-lipped girl with taboo expressions.
Finally, the cold and glamorous blonde girl sitting in the head seat spoke up, letting the matter drop.
“Watch your mouth.
How can we criticize His Highness the First Prince?”
“Gurgle, gurgle…” But what these noble ladies didn’t know was that five hundred meters underwater, directly beneath this giant ship, a string of bubbles suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
A dark shadow darted rapidly through the seawater.
Two yellow, two purple, two black.
In the dim light beneath the surface, these six soul rings were extremely dazzling.
(END CHAPTER)