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

Beibei was burning with rage.

His hand clenched and unclenched repeatedly, veins bulging as he stared intently at Xu Cheng in front of him.

Electricity crackled uncontrollably around him, flashing like flickering lights.

"Hey, bro, that's one hell of a light bulb you got there. And it's even got electricity running through it. Couples are over here being all lovey-dovey, and you're just discharging electricity? Not cool, man," Lin Xi quipped mischievously from the side.

"You little—!"

"All right, let's see if there are any soul tools that suit us. The academy will cover the costs," Wang Yan interrupted Beibei.

Compared to Shrek Academy's constant bids, the Sun-Moon Empire's side was utterly bored.

All the soul tools up for auction were below level six, including level-three Paralysis Rays, so-called "high-tier" level-four Milk Bottles, and some new auxiliary combat soul tools.

But with just a glance, Xu Cheng could already see through their flaws.

On the exterior of these soul tools, in some barely noticeable places, there had once been a mark: "Product of Mingde Hall."

It had obviously been erased, whether by the Sun-Moon Empire's black market or by whoever resold it back to the Star Luo Empire. But for someone from Mingde Hall, these traces were impossible to miss.

And from this, one could also see just how weak other nations' soul tool research truly was.

They couldn't even develop low-level auxiliary soul tools on their own, so they could only treat the most basic melee and ranged soul tools like precious treasures—when in the Sun-Moon Empire, those things were ancient relics collecting dust in museums.

A high-tier Milk Bottle?

Then what about the level-nine Milk Bottle that his teacher had integrated into his mecha?

A super Milk Bottle?

As the auctioneer's voice rose and fell dramatically, Wang Yan pressed the bidding button once more.

"Ding! Twenty thousand gold soul coins! Congratulations to bidder number seventy-two for winning this high-tier Milk Bottle!" the auctioneer announced excitedly. She was no match for the princess, Xu Jiujiumu, but being able to host a level-four auction was already a stroke of luck. She hadn't expected her first event today to go so smoothly—almost no lots had gone unsold.

But the next item…

The woman in purple had a momentary look of difficulty in her eyes.

The engraving knife that had failed to sell multiple times already—it looked like she wouldn't be able to achieve a perfect zero-unsold streak.

Still, her professionalism quickly allowed her to set aside her concern as she solemnly introduced the item.

And things unfolded just as she had expected.

At first, the crowd was stunned, their eyes burning with excitement. But as the introduction continued, that fire gradually died down, and people leaned back in their seats, adopting a tactical retreat posture.

The Shrek group turned to He Caitou—he was the "expert" on soul tools here.

"No need. I've heard my teacher talk about this engraving knife before. Even if we buy it, it'll just be a decorative collectible. No one can escape its curse. It really does devour people…"

He Caitou shook his head heavily.

"That scary?" Xiao Xiao shrank her neck.

When they looked back at the knife—

The gray knife, exuding an eerie chill, seemed to manifest a ghostly shadow, forming the shape of a demonic figure that bared its fangs and claws, as if to intimidate them.

"Ten thousand gold soul coins for a useless trinket? Only an idiot would buy that," Lin Xi scoffed in disdain.

As members of the Sun-Moon Empire, they were well-versed in the ranking of legendary engraving knives.

Though this one was ranked ninety-ninth, in reality, it could easily make the top twenty in terms of danger. Yet, no one dared to touch it—after all, it had originated from the Sun-Moon Empire itself.

The Sun-Moon Empire possessed at least two-thirds of the knives on the list. Though this one was powerful, it wasn't particularly rare.

"Ten thousand gold soul coins."

The entire venue fell silent.

All eyes turned toward the source of the voice.

Xu Cheng had pressed the bidding button, his expression calm.

"Oh! Ten thousand gold soul coins! We have a bid of ten thousand gold soul coins!" The woman in purple covered her mouth in surprise before speaking again, this time in a soft voice full of joy.

After all, this item would almost certainly go unsold no matter where it was placed. She hadn't expected that today, she would actually manage to auction it off. And of course, she would get a cut of the sale…

"..."

Lin Xi swallowed nervously and subtly shrank back into his seat, trying to reduce his presence.

If it had been anyone else but Xu Cheng, he wouldn't have reacted this way—at most, he'd just make a few sarcastic remarks.

But Xu Cheng…

Yeah, he really didn't want to end up dancing naked in the streets.

"Brother…"

Nana furrowed her delicate brows, tugging at his sleeve and softly calling out.

"It's fine, I know what I'm doing." Xu Cheng smiled and patted Nana's slender hand.

Even Ma Rulong shuddered slightly.

After all, Xu Cheng was a prince, burdened with heavy responsibilities. If anything happened while researching this item…

Even Xiao Hongchen couldn't help but warn him, "Ah Cheng, don't mess around. That thing is seriously cursed. A few elders of Mingde Hall have already died because of it—I still vividly remember how tragic their deaths were…"

"..."

Xu Cheng chuckled helplessly.

They were all speaking out of concern, so he explained:

"Don't forget my other identity."

"Hmm… fine then." Xiao Hongchen raised an eyebrow before settling back into his seat.

Ma Lao leaned in hesitantly. "Your Highness, if anything unusual happens, please notify us immediately. You cannot afford to take risks."

Being sent here by Jing Hongchen naturally meant he was a supporter of Xu Cheng.

No one wanted anything to happen to him. And neither did he.

"Understood…"

——

After the auction ended, Xu Cheng returned to the hotel.

With fifty rooms available, each of the fourteen contestants from the Sun-Moon Empire, plus Ma Lao, had their own room, excluding the conference room.

"Elder Yi, I got it."

Xu Cheng placed the engraving knife on the table.

In his spiritual sea, a wave rippled as the gray mist thickened, slowly forming a humanoid figure.

Looking at the engraving knife before him, he sighed in admiration. "Absolutely perfect… Such a large chunk of Spirit-Infused Gold, filled with dense life energy—it's intoxicating. Even in my world, a piece this size is exceptionally rare…"

"This Spirit-Infused Gold is more than enough for me to recover my memory fragments, perhaps even revive myself. As for your teachers in the Sun-Moon Empire, don't worry—I promised you, didn't I?"

Electrolux spoke with confidence.

"But, have you ever considered acknowledging me as your teacher?"

"..."

"Hah! You, his teacher? Then wouldn't that mean you outrank me? I'm Xu Cheng's bro! If you became his teacher, you'd be above me? Not happening!"

Tianmeng Iceworm transformed into a plump little iceworm, lifting its head proudly.

"Teacher…"

Without hesitation, Xu Cheng respectfully bowed.

Tianmeng: "..."

Ice Empress chuckled silently, pulling Tianmeng aside to watch.

"Hahahaha!"

Electrolux burst into laughter.

"Interesting. Kid, in that case, I'll accept you as my student."

Xu Cheng smiled faintly.

Elder Yi was a true ancient powerhouse, a golden-finger-level existence. He had passed on Huo Yuhao his third martial soul, and the Necromantic Soul Ring contained all the necromantic magic from another world, including Evolution, Death Lash, Withering, Time Reversal, and Necromantic Cataclysm.

In the end, he alone could summon an army of a million skeletons to battle the Great Star Dou Forest.

A walking undead legion.

And most importantly, thanks to Elder Yi's Holy Son of Light attribute, all these necromantic spells could purify evil soul masters—he was their natural nemesis.

(End of Chapter)