Morning fog lingered, the moment between night and day—the coldest time.
Yet the soldiers of the Imperial Dragon Soul Engineer Legion on deck were far more at ease. Sailing was relatively safer by day.
Xu Zihuang, Yao Yang, and Wang Xiao sat cross-legged on the deck without pretense. Between them, a supply chest served temporarily as a table. Upon it sat a pot of boiling fish soup, its rich aroma filling the air. Beside it, a tray held several cooked violet lobsters, each nearly half a meter long, their crystalline flesh gleaming appetizingly.
These were Purple Crystal Shrimps, century-old sea spirit beasts from the deep sea. With their strength, catching such prey was no challenge.
There was also black bread and a large jar of black caviar—foods chosen for their ease of storage on long voyages.
After an all-night conversation, and having learned the truth of many matters, Xu Zihuang felt an even deeper closeness to Yao Yang.
Taking a bite of bread spread thickly with caviar, Xu Zihuang smiled.
"I never expected Brother Yang to be a hereditary viscount of the Moon South Archipelago."
"Zihuang, are you mocking me?" Yao Yang's handsome face lit with a warm smile, his demeanor entirely different from the one he had when using his martial spirit.
"The Moon South Archipelago is made up of seven islands: Moon Axis, Moon Jade, Moon Authority, Moon Balance, Moon Sun, Moon Rock, and Moon Edge. I control only the northernmost—Moon Axis."
Xu Zihuang blinked, then asked instinctively, "And the other six?"
Strictly speaking, the archipelago had also been part of his father's fief. But as a child, he had not been involved in affairs and only knew a vague outline.
"Zihuang, do you remember what I told you? The Moon South Archipelago lies far from the mainland, its surrounding seas prowled by powerful spirit beasts. The empire's control here is tenuous at best. Chaos reigns—pirates run rampant. Though the six other islands are nominally under my jurisdiction, in reality they are controlled by the largest pirate groups."
"Young master, that's why I brought you here," Wang Xiao interjected at the right moment. "In this place, the Sun Moon Empire's reach will not be so easy to extend." But as he spoke, his face turned pale and he clutched his chest.
"Uncle Wang!" Yao Yang's face changed, and he quickly pressed his hands to Wang Xiao's back, probing with soul power.
Wang Xiao steadied his breathing and waved a hand.
"It's nothing—an old ailment."
But Xu Zihuang's sharp eyes caught a faint trace of green on his chest. His expression darkened.
"Elder Wang, are you poisoned?"
"Uncle Wang, these matters must be told to Zihuang sooner or later."
Yao Yang and Wang Xiao exchanged a look. Though Wang Xiao's eyes signaled him to stop, Yao Yang ignored it.
"Ten years ago, Uncle Wang was poisoned in battle against those two evil soul masters I mentioned. Because of it, his cultivation has been stuck at rank eighty-nine. Zihuang, once you grow strong enough, your Purple Sovereign Extinguishing Dragon martial spirit's destructive attribute can slow the spread of the toxin. I don't wish to burden you, but with his condition, at most fifteen years remain before the poison consumes him completely."
"If you want to save Uncle Wang, you must reach the level of Soul Sage within fifteen years—and find a cure."
Helplessness filled Yao Yang's eyes. Fifteen years—by the time Xu Zihuang turned twenty-three, his cultivation must reach rank seventy.
Yao Yang himself had been born with innate full soul power, yet only reached Soul Sage at twenty-eight. Though Xu Zihuang had twin martial spirits, his second—the Purple Sovereign Thunder Prison Dragon—bore the dual attributes of Ultimate Thunder and Destruction. Combined with the already higher quality of twin spirits, his cultivation speed would slow drastically in later stages.
Wang Xiao sighed and glared reproachfully at Yao Yang, who deliberately looked away.
"Elder Wang, Brother Yang."
"Yes?"
"Before I turn twenty-three, I will reach Soul Sage. And I will find a way to cleanse Elder Wang's poison." Xu Zihuang's gaze was firm as he looked eastward toward the endless sea—the direction of the Douluo Continent. With his past life's memories, he had confidence.
The Iceworm Tianmeng, Electrolux, the ten-thousand-year immortal herbs at the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well, and the Myriad-Year Profound Ice Marrow in the Dragon Gate Sect of Dragon City, where his mother was born…
He could not be sure he would obtain them all. But he would try with all his strength.
Seeing the radiance of confidence surrounding Xu Zihuang, Yao Yang smiled with relief.
Wang Xiao, too, was moved. The greatest fortune of his life was meeting this father and son.
But the two men shared the same thought: no matter the cost, Xu Zihuang must be protected until he matured.
The three avoided the heavy subject, returning to their meal. The food was simple, the seasonings limited, but the freshness of the ingredients made up for it. Another bowl of hot fish soup filled Xu Zihuang with warmth.
"Elder Wang, Brother Yang, I'll return to my room to cultivate."
Having regained his freedom, he was eager to practice. He estimated that after over two years of cultivation—even without spirit rings—he had reached at least level twenty. After all, he was born with full soul power, and for soul masters with Ultimate martial spirits, cultivation up to level thirty was unaffected.
As for his Golden Eyes martial spirit, he had ideas for its first two rings. He would develop along the control path. With that foundation, his choice of skills would be broader.
Xu Zihuang spent the whole day in cultivation. When he finally stopped, there came a knock on the door.
He expected soldiers delivering dinner, but instead it was Wang Xiao, the regiment commander himself. As he entered, all sound vanished—the crash of waves, the whistle of wind, the footsteps on deck—silenced.
"Elder Wang?"
"Young master, I had intended to wait until we reached the Moon South Archipelago before giving you this."
Wang Xiao solemnly drew a bright silver metal box from his chest. Inside lay a deep violet ring carved with exquisite dragon patterns, its crystalline body set with a flawless star sapphire.
Star sapphires were essential in crafting top-grade storage soul tools. Even this thumb-nail-sized gem was worth over five hundred thousand gold soul coins.
"Inside is a soul bone left by your father. You may try to absorb it. If you cannot, pass it to your descendants, to be handed down forever."
Xu Zihuang stared in shock as he received the storage tool.
"This was Father's instruction?"
"Yes." Wang Xiao nodded. "You may attempt it in peace. I will ensure no one disturbs you."
With that, he left, leaning silently against the door, his eyes deep.
Prince, when you entrusted this ring to me, you must already have foreseen your end.
Inside, Xu Zihuang slipped the ring onto the index finger of his left hand. He was curious about the soul bone his father left—especially the weight of that final instruction.
There was only one reason a soul bone could not be absorbed: its quality was too high, demanding exacting requirements of martial spirit and body.
The ring contracted slightly, fitting perfectly to his finger. The Sun Moon Empire's soul tool craft was centuries ahead of the three empires of Douluo Continent—this was no exaggeration.
He immersed his consciousness into the storage tool. The space inside was as large as a small room, but it held only one thing: a soul bone.
With a flash of blue light, a strange bone exuding a terrifying aura floated above his left hand. Its overwhelming presence seemed to freeze space itself. Transparent violet crystal, blazing with destructive light. And not one of the six standard bones of the human body—but a left palm bone.
Five finger bones connected to the palm, violet light flowing through them, the sharp tips gleaming as though they could pierce anything.
"An external soul bone?" Xu Zihuang frowned. "But external soul bones cannot be taken from others…"
Which meant this bone had never been absorbed.
And clearly, it shared the same origin as the Purple Sovereign Extinguishing Dragon martial spirit of the imperial family.
So the royal clan holds many secrets I do not know.
He calmed himself, stretched out his left hand, and drew the bone with soul power. The same violet light flared, fusing into his hand. The flame grew darker, merging into him.
Suddenly, the world around him changed.
He stood in the void, a crushing voice resounding from the heavens:
"I was born alongside you. For my clan I shed glory in war. What was my sin, that in the end you slew me yourself? Was it only because you feared my potential? And you dare call yourself Dragon God?!"
"Hahaha! Under your rule, our dragon race will surely be doomed for eternity!"
Xu Zihuang's emotions were swept away, drowned in endless rage and hatred.
Then the vision shifted.
Blood rained from the skies. A colossal violet-scaled dragon, over three hundred meters long, fell lifelessly to the earth below.
"—Huff… huff…"
Xu Zihuang jolted awake, gasping for breath. He stared at his left hand, now filled with immense power, and whispered:
"That dragon corpse… was it the origin of our imperial clan's Purple Sovereign Extinguishing Dragon martial spirit? The progenitor of sub-dragons—Radiant Dragon. Radiant Dragon Claw…"
He glanced toward the sea, now cloaked in night once more. The brief vision had consumed an entire day in the real world.