Learning that the Qianyuan Empire operated on a so-called "Rebellion Succession System", you muttered under your breath. They were all lunatics—*not a single sane one in the bunch*.
Grandfather rebelled. Father rebelled. The only one left was you.
「On the day the coup broke out, your uncle was given a last-minute order by the Qianyuan Human Sovereign. I was dispatched to the border to suppress the invading monstrous clans. Clearly, because of your father's involvement, your grandfather had already stopped trusting me.」 Yang Hong sighed, picking up the thread of that fateful year.
「By the time I quelled the monstrous uprising and returned to the capital, everything was already over.」
「To this day, I still don't know what kind of spell that bastard cast on your mother. She actually stole my military tally, helped him disguise himself as me, and snuck an elite battalion into the capital undetected.」
「Your father was ruthless—he struck before your grandfather could make his move. He sacrificed a few of his brothers as cannon fodder, letting them take the front line while he lurked in the shadows, biding his time...」
....
「After paying a blood-soaked price to clear all obstacles, your father finally made his move...」
「Alone, he walked over the corpses of his brothers, up a stairway paved with white bones, and marched straight into the Qianyuan Imperial Palace. There, he challenged your grandfather—the Earthbound Immortal—to a life-or-death duel...」
「That battle shook the very foundations of the empire. It nearly tore the Qianyuan Empire apart...」
Listening to your uncle's account, you could almost *feel* the sheer brutality of that cataclysmic clash.
In that war, even the so-called Celestial Realm powerhouses were nothing more than pawns. Countless Celestials fell in the carnage.
Noble clans from across the land threw their hats into the ring, choosing sides in the chaos.
In the end, it all came down to that one decisive battle.
「Uncle—was my father also an Earthbound Immortal?」 A thought suddenly struck you.
To fight a life-or-death duel against an Earthbound Immortal like the Qianyuan Human Sovereign, your father must have been at least on the same level.
But your uncle's next answer left you utterly stunned.
「No. He was only at the Celestial Realm.」 Yang Hong shook his head, then fixed you with a complicated gaze. 「But he possessed the Supreme Imperial Bone—it let him unleash power on par with an Earthbound Immortal.」
「That was the first time the Supreme Imperial Bone revealed itself to the world. Before then, no one knew of its existence... let alone that your father carried such a physique.」
「No one knows the full details of that battle. Your father lost in the end, but the Qianyuan Human Sovereign paid a heavy price for the victory. He was suspected to have suffered a crippling injury, and he didn't show his face to the public for decades after that...」
「Your father, a mere Celestial Realm cultivator, challenged an Earthbound Immortal head-on, injured him grievously, *and got away*...」
「From that day onward, the Supreme Imperial Bone became famous across the land—a forbidden treasure coveted by countless souls...」
「Rumors spread like wildfire back then. People said that if your father had just bided his time a little longer, if his cultivation had advanced even a step further, your grandfather would have died by his hand...」
BOOM!
Your eyes narrowed sharply. You weren't surprised to learn your father had the Supreme Imperial Bone—but you *never* imagined it was this overpowered.
To go toe-to-toe with an Earthbound Immortal at the Celestial Realm, to injure one that badly... and it didn't seem to have a time limit like the Nine Steps to the Heavens technique.
He'd come *so close* to succeeding.
No wonder so many people were after your Supreme Imperial Bone. No wonder that mastermind Chen Tai had been obsessed with you for so long, coveting what was yours.
You took a deep breath to steady your roiling emotions. 「Did my father die in the end?」
「Yes.」
「Killed by the Qianyuan Human Sovereign?」
「No!」 Yang Hong dropped a bombshell. 「He died by *my* hand!」
Your body jolted. You stared at your uncle in disbelief.
*He* was the one who killed your father?
「Son... when I came back from the border, what I found was a Qianyuan Empire reduced to rubble and ashes. Everything was in chaos...」
「That bastard, after starting his rebellion, didn't hesitate to abandon you and your mother. He ran for his life without a second glance...」
「All the mess he left behind fell on your mother's shoulders...」
「When I got back, Xiu'er was already wasting away from grief, on her deathbed. She clung to my hand, begging her own brother to protect you...」
「But the situation was so dire—what could I do? What *could* I do...」
Yang Hong's eyes turned bloodshot, his emotions finally breaking through his usual stoicism. It was hard to imagine the pressure he'd been under back then.
Given his status, he'd undoubtedly been dragged into the mess, guilt by association. Even though he hadn't participated in the rebellion, his own sister and brother-in-law had been at the heart of it.
In that climate, he could have jumped into the Yellow River and still wouldn't have washed off the suspicion.
Back then, he'd barely been able to save his own skin, let alone clean up the colossal mess left behind.
Looking at the distraught Yang Hong before you, you could almost picture the scene in your mind's eye.
「I followed Xiu'er's last wish. I found the secret place where she and your father used to meet, back when they were in love. That's where I tracked him down.」
「When I found him, he was half-crazed, rambling like a fool—clearly, he'd paid a terrible price for his failed rebellion...」
「I killed him with my own hands. Then I took his head to the palace and swore on my entire family's life that *you* were already dead...」
Listening to your uncle's calm words, a chill ran down your spine—mixed with a surge of gratitude. You'd never imagined he'd gone to such lengths to find a way to save you.
Back then, to keep you alive, the man before you had gambled with his own life.
「Did the Qianyuan Human Sovereign believe you?」
「I placed his own son's head right in front of him. What reason did he have not to believe me?」 A sardonic smile tugged at Yang Hong's lips.
「As for the price I paid? I was stripped of all my titles and honors, exiled to this godforsaken place. I'm forbidden from ever leaving here, forbidden from ever setting foot in the capital again. For the rest of my life.」
「And just like that, it seemed like the matter was finally laid to rest. Before I left the capital, too many eyes were watching me—I couldn't take care of you openly. So I secretly handed you over to the Sun family to raise.」
「On the surface, the Sun family has always been loyal diehards of the Qianyuan Human Sovereign. But who would have guessed? The Suns had actually defected to your father long ago—they were one of his many hidden trump cards...」
「With the Sun family's cover, and the other safeguards your father left behind, you were able to survive all these years...」
Listening to your uncle's explanation, you finally understood just how lucky you were to be alive, to be standing here right now.
If things had been even slightly different, if you'd been left in anyone else's care, the grass would be growing over your grave a long time ago.
Wait a minute.
A sudden realization hit you, and you blurted out the question. 「If that's the case... how did I get exposed?」
「Paper can never wrap up fire forever. Among the hidden trump cards your father left behind, someone betrayed him. They sold out the Sun family—and you.」