Douluo Dalu 2: You are an Evil Soul Master, but also a good person ?

"Is this your replication?" Xiao Hongchen asked, his face full of question marks. Was he still dreaming?

"Yes," Xu Cheng replied without turning his head, busy cleaning up the tools and sweeping the metal shavings into a trash bag.

"..."

Xiao Hongchen turned his head and injected soul power into the metal.

A faint blue light lit up, slowly moving along the engraved patterns. A soft glow rose and hovered about an inch above the metal.

"It actually worked?" Xiao Hongchen stared at the metal in his hand, muttering to himself.

"Alright, spill it! What level soul engineer are you really?" Xiao Hongchen grabbed Xu Cheng by the neck, complaining loudly.

He had checked the time earlier; he had only napped for about ten minutes.

Even for him, a Level 3 Soul Engineer, replicating a Level 1 core formation would take at least fifteen minutes.

And this was Xu Cheng's "first time" touching a soul tool.

"It really is my first time..."

Xu Cheng chuckled, playing along.

In the Holy Spirit Cult, he was the Holy Son.

To counter Tang San's ten-thousand-year plan, he had to make early moves, taking control of the Holy Spirit Cult. Without a group of strong followers, the evil soul masters wouldn't submit to a child, even if he was exceptionally talented.

So over the years, managing to divide (and deceive) a portion of the massive Holy Spirit Cult into his own faction had never been easy for Xu Cheng. This was also why he appeared mysterious and elusive in front of Tang Ya.

Only in school, surrounded by the youthful atmosphere, could he temporarily hide that side of himself...

"You're not being honest!" Xiao Hongchen grumbled.

Xu Cheng just smiled, not explaining further.

After familiarizing himself with the process, he began connecting the nodes and crafting the metal mold.

The nodes were connected by precise "conduction lines," made of a special material. They were first linked to the core formation and then connected to the metal mold.

Since it was a Level 1 soul tool, everything was the most basic.

The metal was polished, the circuits assembled, and finally, the core formation was embedded into it.

A Level 1 soul ray.

Xu Cheng attached it to his arm, examining it with satisfaction. This was the first soul tool he had ever made, even if it was only Level 1...

"Let's go to the shooting range and test it."

Xu Cheng looked at Xiao Hongchen.

"A mere Level 1 soul tool needs testing?" Xiao Hongchen yawned lazily.

"It's the first one I've made with my own hands. If you don't want to go, I'll go alone."

"No way I'd believe that..."

The two walked out of the experimental area.

...

"Buzz!"

A humming sound echoed.

Shooting Range No. 8.

Xu Cheng slowly lowered his right arm, the soul ray attached to it still emitting a faint black destructive energy from its muzzle.

The moving target in front of him now had a charred mark on its forehead, right between the eyes. Xiao Hongchen was stunned.

"Holy crap, that's accurate?!"

Xu Cheng had immediately set the difficulty to the highest level—a human-shaped target with evasion speed set to Level 5.

Hitting such a target was already insane, let alone...

Hitting it! And right between the eyes!

"Is your martial soul really the sun?"

"Dual martial souls, Blood Pupil."

Xu Cheng raised two fingers to the corner of his eye.

His blood-red pupils contracted sharply, and a faint red glow surrounded his eyes, giving off an eerie vibe.

"That's so cool! I thought your eyes were naturally like that. So it's your martial soul!" Xiao Hongchen was excited, leaning in to take a closer look.

"Having eyes as your martial soul makes you a natural for soul tools! A body-type martial soul, probably spirit-related. How did the Body Sect not snatch you up... ouch."

"..."

Xu Cheng quickly covered Xiao Hongchen's mouth.

"I'm from the royal family. Don't talk nonsense."

"Damn, my dude."

Xiao Hongchen, now freed, was still brimming with excitement.

Blood Pupil, despite the ominous-sounding name, wasn't something people would fuss over. After all, in the original story, Na Na's martial soul was a ghost, and she was still treated normally at school. No one would label you as an evil soul master just because of your martial soul...

Just then, the bell rang, signaling the end of class. The two continued their banter as they headed to the cafeteria.

The Royal Academy of the Sun Moon Empire.

Backed by the Mingde Hall, the academy was naturally well-funded.

Even the cafeteria was luxurious, with prices lower than the market and a wide variety of delicacies listed on the menu.

"One serving of braised earth dragon claws, please. Oh, and Xu Cheng, what do you want to eat?"

"Grilled soft-bone rabbit. I love rabbit meat... and make it extra spicy!"

[T/N: What is it Most MC's in DD Fanfic eating rabbits]

The two sat down in the cafeteria and started digging in.

"Brother!"

A voice called out.

Xiao Hongchen looked up. "Oh, it's Meng. Who's that next to you?"

"Let me introduce you. This is my new bestie, Tang Ya! And who's that next to you?"

Meng Hongchen sat down across from Xiao Hongchen, pretending to be casual.

Of course, she wouldn't admit that she had come over because her brother was sitting next to a handsome guy...

Xu Cheng looked up and examined the famous love-struck, romance-obsessed Meng Hongchen from the original story.

Her silver-white hair cascaded over her shoulders, and her light blue eyes, similar to Xiao Hongchen's, carried a softer, more feminine charm. Her lips seemed to exude a faint fragrance.

A stunning beauty, but unfortunately, a bit of a romantic...

"This is my buddy, Xu Cheng!"

Xiao Hongchen quickly introduced him. "My roommate."

"Funny, this is my roommate too," Meng Hongchen said, covering her mouth as she giggled.

"Then let's eat together," Xiao Hongchen said casually.

Xu Cheng and Tang Ya exchanged a glance. Tang Ya glared at Xu Cheng before looking away, while Xu Cheng just smiled and didn't say anything.

"..."

At the table.

Meng Hongchen kept steering the conversation.

She complained about the practical soul tool control department, saying it was a waste of time teaching them soul tool knowledge when they could have more practical combat training instead.

The practical soul tool control department, also known as the "martial soul department," focused on controlling soul tools in conjunction with martial souls, rather than researching and manufacturing soul tools.

After some more casual chatter, Meng Hongchen finally brought the topic to Xu Cheng.

"Hey, Xu Cheng, your eyes are so pretty. Are they contact lenses?"

"Me?"

Xu Cheng was taken aback.

"His eyes are his martial soul. They're natural" Xiao Hongchen interjected, completely missing the romantic undertone.

"Really..." Meng Hongchen narrowed her eyes, sending a chill down Xiao Hongchen's spine.

"Uh, the food's really good today..." Xiao Hongchen quickly buried his head in his meal.

"Xu Cheng, your martial soul is your eyes?" Meng Hongchen instantly switched to a gentle tone, looking at Xu Cheng with a soft smile.

"Yes, Blood Pupil."

Xu Cheng replied with a smile.

As for Meng Hongchen, if he could win her over, he would.

Since Jing Hongchen had extended an olive branch, and as a prince of the Sun Moon Empire who had no intention of avoiding the royal power struggle, it wouldn't be wise to refuse.

Besides, even if he didn't win her over, he definitely couldn't let her fall into the hands of his rivals.

His two elder brothers—Fourth Prince Xu Jiran, who had a strong faction in the court, and Crown Prince Xu Tianran, who, despite being crippled, was deeply cunning—were both closely watching him...

(End of Chapter)