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

"I followed a merchant caravan from the Dou Ling Empire, traveling through Star Luo, Tianhun, and even the Sun Moon Empire, which is how I came to know these things. The nobles fear that we commoners will awaken our martial souls, so they've cut off all possible paths for us to rise in status."

"But the Holy Spirit Church is different! It carries on the will of the Spirit Hall and has managed to survive against all odds!"

"But…"

Some young people nearby hesitated. "Isn't the Holy Spirit Church made up of evil soul masters?"

The middle-aged man's expression remained gentle, his face kind and benevolent, almost like a fatherly figure.

"Children, let me ask you—where did the idea of 'evil soul masters' come from?"

"It was defined by the nobles!"

The man's voice grew passionate.

"What they want is for everyone to believe that the Holy Spirit Church is just a den of evil soul masters, a filthy place filled with corruption. But in reality, they are simply pouring a bucket of dirty water onto those who have been working tirelessly for the sake of us common folk.

"Tell me, can the words of the nobles be trusted?"

"They want nothing more than to enslave us while fearing that we might awaken our martial souls and become a force to be reckoned with. That's why they prohibit commoners from awakening their martial souls.

"We must stand together! We must not be blinded by their wicked lies."

"If anyone is interested, my caravan is currently short on hands. You're welcome to join me on a journey to the Sun Moon Empire, and once you see it with your own eyes, you will understand everything."

"I'm going!"

"Count me in!"

"…"

Watching this scene unfold, Jiang Nannan was momentarily stunned.

At first, she had felt a surge of anger.

Someone had actually come to her hometown to spread the ideology of evil soul masters.

Yet, this middle-aged man showed no signs of possessing soul power—he wasn't an evil soul master. And what he had just said…

Based on what she had learned at Shrek Academy, his words weren't entirely false.

Back in her first year, when she was still a young girl, she had raised similar questions in class. But the answers she received were always vague and evasive.

It wasn't until much later that she realized—some things simply couldn't be investigated too deeply.

"Uncle, when will you be leaving?"

After hesitating for a long time, Jiang Nannan bit her lip lightly and finally stepped forward to ask.

"We're setting off tomorrow. Little girl, are you interested in coming along?" The middle-aged man smiled warmly.

"I… I just want to take a look."

Jiang Nannan hesitated.

If there really was an organization for commoners… could they possibly help cure her mother's illness?

"Haha, good! You are most welcome!"

Soul Tool Assessment Arena

The area was packed with students who had come to watch, a dense sea of people.

The reason?

This assessment was no ordinary test—today, the Mingdu Soul Engineering Academy had come to "challenge" them.

In the resting area, the two academies were split into two opposing sides.

On the left stood the representatives from Mingdu Soul Engineering Academy, led by a young man. Beside him stood a little girl, no more than eleven years old.

On the right was the Sun Moon Empire Royal Academy, with Xu Cheng standing at the forefront, followed closely by Xiao Hongchen and the others.

"Eleventh Prince, I've long admired your name."

The young man was the first to speak.

"You flatter me." Xu Cheng gave a faint nod and casually glanced at the little girl beside him, who was making faces at him.

"Ah, I wouldn't dare flatter you…" The young man replied nervously.

"Planning to join the military after graduation?" Xu Cheng asked, tilting his head slightly.

"You got me there." The young man smiled bitterly.

"In my army, those with ability earn their place. At the very least, you'll need to show me something worth my attention." Xu Cheng's gaze remained fixed on the center of the arena as he spoke in an indifferent tone.

"Of course!" The young man took a deep breath and replied earnestly.

Although Mingdu Soul Engineering Academy wasn't as prestigious as the Sun Moon Empire Royal Academy, standing out within its ranks was still no easy feat.

With his talents, entering the military would be no problem.

But to rise further… now that was difficult.

"Brother! I want to fight you!"

Hearing the two of them exchange words like some cryptic riddle, the little girl grew impatient. She pointed at Xu Cheng and declared, "I came here specifically for you! After a year of 'training,' I've improved a lot!"

The young man leading the Mingdu team twitched violently, quickly turning his head away.

The others around them also pretended not to hear anything, suddenly finding themselves "busy" with other matters.

As if afraid they might burst out laughing.

This little girl really had no idea how vast the sky was.

"She's quite amusing. Cheng, is this your sister?" Meng Hongchen approached, eyes sparkling, and immediately reached out to pinch the little girl's cheeks, rubbing them vigorously as if she wanted to smother her with affection.

"Let go of me! You villain!" Xu Tianzhen struggled desperately but couldn't escape Meng Hongchen's "evil clutches."

"Yes. Since she's the only daughter, Father granted her the title of Princess Tianzhen and spoiled her immensely. Even us brothers, who have fought fiercely against each other, have never laid a hand on her…"

Xu Cheng looked at the helpless little girl and gave a helpless smile.

"Alright, Meng, let her go."

Upon hearing this, Meng Hongchen finally let go, albeit reluctantly.

Xu Tianzhen immediately darted behind Xu Cheng, glaring at Meng Hongchen warily, as if afraid that this "big sister" might ambush her again.

"The academy exchange competition… begins now!"

From the spectators' stands, Lin Jiayi announced into a microphone.

"For the first round: Sun Moon Empire Royal Academy's Xu Cheng versus Mingdu's… uh, Xu Tianzhen!"

Upon hearing this, murmurs and discussions erupted in the crowd.

"Who's Xu Cheng from our academy?"

"The Eleventh Prince. But ever since he placed first in the first-year assessments three years ago, he's been keeping a low profile. This is the first time in three years that I've heard his name again." A senior student quickly provided an explanation, sighing as he spoke.

"Is he strong?" A second-year student asked in surprise.

"Strong? Three years ago, he was already suppressing even Senior Xiao Hongchen. Although he's been low-key, his strength is probably…"

"Even Senior Xiao Hongchen has lost before?!" Many younger students were left dumbfounded.

After all, Xiao Hongchen was hailed as the academy's number one genius.

At just fourteen years old, he had already reached the Soul King level and become a fifth-ranked soul engineer.

In the entire academy, very few could claim victory over him.

"Right now, in the academy, the only one who can defeat Senior Xiao Hongchen is probably that sword fanatic…"

"…"

In the Arena

Xu Cheng and Xu Tianzhen stared at each other.

"Hmph! I'm already a Soul Elder now! I'm not the same Xu Tianzhen as before! I'll beat you to a pulp!" Xu Tianzhen declared confidently, her ponytail bouncing as she spoke, looking rather playful.

"Oh? Then I'll have to take this seriously," Xu Cheng nodded solemnly.

"Match… begin!"

As Lin Jiayi's voice echoed, both of them instantly released their martial souls!

Gasps filled the arena.

Two blazing suns slowly rose behind Xu Cheng.

The radiance intertwined with the great sun in the sky—three suns shining together!

"Brother, you better take me seriously… Solar Divine Light!" Xu Tianzhen grinned triumphantly as she unleashed her third soul skill.

Xu Cheng frowned slightly.

Finally feeling the pressure? Xu Tianzhen thought excitedly.

Meanwhile, Xu Cheng…

What should I eat for dinner? This is so hard to decide…

Half an hour later…

Xiao Hongchen stared blankly at the arena.

Xu Tianzhen, who was still trading blows with Xu Cheng, was barely breaking a sweat.

His lips twitched violently. "Hey! When you fought me last time, it wasn't like this at all!"

That time, an entire testing ground had been reduced to rubble…

And he had been mercilessly beaten by Xu Cheng.

Thinking back on that bitter memory, he could only sigh deeply—

"The ocean, oh, it's all water."

(End of Chapter)