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At that moment, Luan Yu understood everything. Her heart turned cold. She finally realized what her sister and those big-name figures had been up to all this time.
At the same time, she also understood why, even though there had been so much hidden unrest in Mingdu recently, the emperor had remained completely inactive. Turns out… he was kept in the dark all along.
"Teacher… was this your will too?"
Luan Yu looked up at the sky with a bitter expression. She didn't want to believe that her teacher would be unaware of something this big. But clearly, her teacher had the same mindset as her sister.
Closing her eyes painfully, Luan Yu knew — that emperor, loved by the people and a firm believer in peace with the three nations of the old Douluo continent, had been completely abandoned… by everyone.
In that moment, his popularity among the masses was meaningless. So what if the people loved him? This world was ruled by strength. Only the strong had a voice.
And this emperor, everything he had done in the past had gone completely against those who truly held power. His fate was sealed long ago.
Throughout the night, the sounds of brutal fighting echoed inside the imperial palace. Strangely, though, a thin transparent barrier blocked all noise. Even the nearby noble district, separated by just one wall, couldn't hear a thing.
When the first light of dawn touched Mingdu, the emperor's younger brother — the Prince of War — suddenly marched into the city with his army and took full control of the military.
Then, a shocking announcement rocked the entire Sun Moon Empire: The current emperor had died suddenly during the night. The empress and princess died from food poisoning, and even Crown Prince Xu He didn't survive. The whole empire entered a period of mourning.
Not long after, the Prince of War claimed the throne, presenting himself as the only remaining heir. He took power with overwhelming force. Sure, there were people who objected… but they were quickly and brutally suppressed.
The empire's five Guardian Hands immediately declared their support for the new emperor. Even the Royal Offering Institute backed him, calling on all to recognize his rule and entrust him with the future of the empire.
Any commoners who'd previously suspected foul play — thinking maybe the Prince of War had assassinated the royal family — suddenly believed the official explanation: the emperor and his family had died of poisoning. After all, both the Guardian Hands and the Royal Offering Institute endorsed him. If he were a traitor, would they really support him?
The naïve public bought the story without much resistance. It didn't take more than three days for the new emperor to gain recognition from the entire upper class of the Sun Moon Empire. People figured it must be fate.
They could only sigh about how unlucky the late emperor and his family were. Of course, there were some who saw through it all, but precisely because they were smart, they kept their mouths shut.
The change of regime went more smoothly than anyone expected. No rebellions, no resistance. The Prince of War had already held great military power — now, with the support of the Guardian Hands, no one was foolish enough to stand up to him.
He moved fast and decisively, taking over Mingdu before anyone could react.
Just half a month later, he held the official coronation. Under the watchful eyes of the citizens, he ascended the throne and became emperor. Naturally, Xu Tianran became the crown prince.
Liuxing and Liuying stood beside Luan Yu, looking up at Xu Tianzhen, who was now standing on the high platform in full royal regalia. They couldn't help but sigh — in just half a month, their friend had gone from a county princess to a full-fledged imperial princess.
Just then, a hooded figure brushed past Liuxing and quickly slipped into a nearby alley.
Liuxing snapped his head around to look.
"What's wrong?" Liuying asked, curious why Liuxing was staring so hard in that direction. She had also seen the hooded person but didn't get why he cared.
"Nothing… Just thought that figure looked kinda familiar," Liuxing muttered, shaking his head and saying no more.
"Prince Xu He's really dead, huh? That's a shame. He was actually a nice guy… and our senior, too."
Liuying sighed a little. Someone she sort of knew had died just like that — quietly, without warning. It made her feel a little off inside.
Liuxing stayed silent. He knew the "food poisoning" story was a joke. Based on the information he'd gathered recently — especially after the whole Nana incident — there was no way the entire royal family had simply died from bad food.
But he didn't really care who the emperor was. It didn't matter to him. What he did know, was that his Aunt Feng was probably involved. And now, every noble, every official standing on that platform — they were all in on it.
Even if Crown Prince Xu He had survived, he would have been Liuxing's enemy anyway — because the people Xu He would want to take revenge on included Liuxing's friends and family.
Liuxing had liked Xu He well enough… but an enemy is still an enemy. And the best kind of enemy… is a dead one.
"Sigh… loyalties, huh."
Liuxing let out a soft sigh. No one could say whether people once as close as brothers would end up crossing swords over their beliefs.
But Liuxing was always rational. To him, Luan Yu and Luan Feng were his family. If anyone ever tried to hurt them — even if it was Xu Tianzhen or Ye Guyi — he wouldn't hesitate to strike back.
Not that he thought it was likely… But even if it came to that, he was ready to make the hard choice.
Because Liuxing believed in standing with the people he cared about — not what was "right" or "just."
The upheaval in the Sun Moon Empire quickly spread across the continent.
In the Star Luo Empire, inside the imperial palace, the current emperor, Xu Jiawei, stood staring toward the Sun Moon Empire with a worried expression.
"Big brother… the Sun Moon Empire's gone through a major shake-up. What should we do?"
A crisp, sweet voice rang out — just from the sound, one could tell the speaker was stunningly beautiful. A girl in a yellow dress with golden hair fluttering behind her walked quickly up to Xu Jiawei, her face filled with concern.
"Don't worry, Jiu-jie," Xu Jiawei replied. "We still have time. Send word to the White Tiger Duke — tell him to fortify our borders and prepare for anything."
Hearing this, Xu Jiu settled down a bit. She said seriously, "Big brother, the Sun Moon Empire is incredibly powerful. Their previous emperor honored the treaty after losing the war and always pushed for peace… but now, everything's changed. No one knows what the new emperor is thinking."
"I suggest we speed up the development of soul tools. Better safe than sorry."
Xu Jiawei gave a bitter smile and shook his head. "You think I don't want that? But soul tools aren't something you can master overnight. Without time and experience, we'll never catch up to the Sun Moon Empire. And besides, there are still so many people in our country who oppose soul tool research. The resistance is just too strong. Our Xinguan faction alone… it's just not enough. It's hard… really hard."
That triple "hard" said it all — how helpless he felt.
Even after thousands of years, the old prejudices against soul tools still lingered in the three nations that once made up Douluo. To the ancient soul master clans, soul tools were nothing but heretical, unnatural things.
"....."