She had disliked seeing Tang Wulin sleeping during the ceremony, so she had prodded him in secret while he slept. That was what caused the scene just now.
Arthur did not say that part out loud.
He stepped forward, voice angry. "Your Majesty, you may not know. We were attacked by evil soul masters on our way to Star Luo City."
"Everyone has been on edge since, watching for danger on all sides."
He glanced around. "As I see it, an evil soul master must be hiding here. Tang Wulin was just hit by one. Startled like that, his instinct was to take a fighting stance. Any soul master with real combat experience would react the same way."
Wu Changkong picked it up at once. "Yes, Your Majesty. Tang Wulin held the rear during the attack on the soul-guided train a few days ago. It drained him badly, and he was up early today for the ceremony. He was bound to be tired."
Arthur kept up the back and forth.
"To time it this precisely at a state ritual and cause chaos this way, it has to be an evil soul master, or someone with an agenda. The goal is likely to make the Douluo delegation embarrass itself before the Star Luo palace, or even to get us suspected of assassination."
Dai Tianling was stunned. What did Arthur mean by saying he did not know? Was that aimed at him or not?
Behind him, Dai Yun'er stopped laughing. How had she become an evil soul master?
Dai Tianling's eyes darkened. He said quietly to the guard captain beside him, "Investigate."
The guard captain bowed. With a wave of his hand, several guards in black uniforms vanished into the crowd.
"Your Majesty, no need for all that trouble." Arthur raised his left hand, and his spiritual domain slowly unfolded.
A visible thread extended from Tang Wulin's body.
"Anyone who acts leaves traces, especially when it happened so recently."
"This thread is the mark left when that evil soul master influenced Tang Wulin."
Dai Tianling stared in surprise. The way he looked at Arthur changed again and again.
A spiritual domain!
Unbelievable. It was the first time he had ever seen one.
The spirit thread was presented so clearly, made so concrete.
It was a hair thin silver white thread, stretching from between Tang Wulin's brows. It trembled faintly in the air, as if alive.
"That is the mark of spirit interference?" Dai Tianling said gravely.
Arthur nodded. "Exactly. The other side used spirit interference to provoke Tang Wulin at the moment the salute cannons fired, making him hallucinate. That caused the scene just now."
He reached out and gave the silver thread a light pinch. It pulled tighter, and the other end swayed.
At last it became clear.
The other end connected to Dai Yun'er.
She stood pale and lost as every eye turned to her.
Bratty girls were like that.
As reckless as could be when causing trouble, with no thought for consequences.
As pitiful as could be when caught, crying buckets.
"How is that possible? The princess is an evil soul master?"
"Shut up, do you want to die?"
The guards around them cried out.
"I, I am not." Dai Yun'er denied it in a panic, her eyes reddening as tears welled up.
Dai Tianling suddenly understood.
This really was something his daughter would do.
Relying on the spirit advantage of her Spirit Eyes martial soul, she loved pranks and never cared if the occasion called for them.
Damn it. He had just been led off track by Arthur's evil soul master story and never thought of his own daughter.
Now how would this end?
The cries around them kept going. The guards looked at each other, none daring to believe the Star Luo princess could be tied to evil soul master methods.
Dai Yun'er's tears were already falling. Her small shoulders shook as she stomped her foot in grievance. "I did not! I only used."
Dai Tianling's face changed. He knocked his daughter out at once.
Then he raged, "Damn evil soul masters, influencing my daughter in secret without anyone noticing!"
"Not only that, they tried to wreck the friendship between Star Luo and the Douluo Federation!"
What a fast cut.
Arthur watched in admiration. No wonder the man was emperor.
Dai Tianling looked solemnly at the Federation delegation. "Rest assured. My Star Luo Empire will hunt down the evil soul masters with everything we have!"
At that, he waved a hand and ordered loudly, "Pass it down. Starting today, launch a nationwide campaign against evil soul masters! The palace, Star Luo City, every major military district, all will be strictly screened!"
"Understood!" The guard captain answered loudly and strode off to arrange the lockdown and search.
The Federation vice-chairman hurried forward, wearing a pleased look. "His Majesty understands the greater good. That is a blessing for Star Luo, and for the whole continent. As long as evil soul masters remain, the world will never know peace."
Arthur nodded along at the right moment. "We fully support His Majesty's move."
Tang Wulin was cleared, Dai Yun'er got taught a lesson, and monitoring of evil soul masters was tightened.
"How am I so smart?" Arthur thought he was truly brilliant.
After the ceremony, the mood in a side hall deep in the palace was nothing like the solemn front hall.
Dai Yun'er knelt on the cold floor, her eyes red, her nose still wet with tears.
She held her head in both hands, her shoulders trembling slightly. She looked utterly pitiful.
Dai Tianling sat above her, watching her with a dark but helpless face.
He had meant to teach his daughter a proper lesson.
Pulling a prank like that at a state ritual had nearly caused a diplomatic incident. If his father had been the one dealing with him, his legs would have been broken long ago.
But seeing his daughter look so wronged, the fire in him died like cold water had been poured over it.
He could not help it. He had over a dozen sons, but only this one daughter.
"Do you know what you did wrong?" Dai Tianling said gravely.
Dai Yun'er muttered softly, "I did nothing wrong. Who told him to sleep during the ceremony?"
"And that Arthur, why so serious? It is all his fault."
Dai Tianling nearly passed out from anger.
He took several deep breaths. No good. If this went on he was afraid he would lose control.
"Enough. Go back and reflect. I will deal with you once this blows over!"
The side hall finally went quiet.
Dai Tianling leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, but his mind was full of the ceremony.
Arthur's whole performance had been clean and efficient. Even he could not help calling it professional in his mind.
"This kid is only how old." Dai Tianling muttered to himself, "And he belongs to the Douluo Federation."
"Teacher." Dai Tianling suddenly spoke.
From the shadows at the side of the hall, a tall figure slowly walked out.
An old man in a white robe, the strongest powerhouse of the Star Luo Empire, Holy Dragon Douluo En Ci.
Dai Tianling stood, respectful. "Teacher, you saw it all."
En Ci's gaze was sharp. He said slowly, "Arthur. He is not simple."
"That spiritual domain alone is unmatched."
"Most important, his Spiritual Power has reached the Spirit Abyss Realm." En Ci sighed. "And he has gone very far in it."
"Spirit Abyss Realm." Dai Tianling gave a bitter smile. "I thought our young monsters had caught up to the Douluo Federation."
"I never expected an Arthur to pop up."
"That hit me hard."