Chapter 281: The Change in the Heaven Dou Palace

Chapter 281: The Change in the Heaven Dou Palace

Today was a special day—perhaps the beginning of an upheaval that would overturn the entire Douluo Continent...

Qian Renxue had been preparing for this moment. Today, she would act and overthrow Emperor Xue Ye's reign.

Now, inside and outside the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace, everyone was under her control. Even the city guards of Heaven Dou had been replaced by people from the Spirit Hall.

Among the fifty thousand Royal Knights, nearly all had pledged allegiance to "Xue Qinghe."

Due to the "Ten Faces Incident"—the assassination attempt on Xue Beng—the Royal Knights involved in arresting the suspects had all been secretly executed.

Initially, few knew the truth about the incident or the knights' involvement. However, some of those executed had left behind contingencies—records of everything that had transpired.

This revelation spread among the Royal Knights, stirring unease. Some knights had even witnessed similar injustices affect their own families…

No one knew exactly who started it, but dissatisfaction among the knights gradually coalesced. One told ten, ten told a hundred…

What were they fighting for?

Was it merely loyalty to the royal family?

No, they were knights who swore to protect the people of Heaven Dou!

The royal family's actions had already proven unworthy of their allegiance.

Somebody—no one knew who—claimed that Crown Prince "Xue Qinghe" had a benevolent heart, showing none of the arrogance typical of the royal family. Instead, he was genuinely close to the common people.

For a Royal Knight, shifting their allegiance from the royal family was not an easy decision. They were both protectors of the people and sworn vassals of the monarchy.

But if Prince "Xue Qinghe" was a better ruler than Emperor Xue Ye, why not support his ascension?

That way, they would still be serving the royal family—just a different master.

In any other world, their reasoning would have been mocked…

When "Xue Qinghe" took the throne, wouldn't he deal with these knights just as easily?

If they could install one "Xue Qinghe," they could just as easily install a second…

But this was Douluo Continent!

The knights' reasoning was entirely justified.

With measured strides, "Xue Qinghe" walked into the imperial palace, flanked by Kong, She Long, and Ci Xue.

It was Kong's first time in the Heaven Dou Palace. It was far more extravagant than he had imagined. Even as a Rank 99 Titled Douluo, even having lived two lifetimes, he still felt a moment of hesitation.

It was simply too opulent!

Shaking his head, he pushed aside such thoughts.

He must not—at the very least, he should not—be swayed.

The palace guards saw "Xue Qinghe" but treated him as if he were invisible, offering no resistance.

They moved unimpeded until they reached the great hall, where they encountered the first sign of… "complication."

"Qinghe, I know you're in a hurry, but please, don't be so impatient."

Emperor Xue Ye's lips curved into a faint smile, as if he had long foreseen these events.

Though he looked physically frail, his eyes gleamed like a hawk's—sharp and penetrating, much like an old tiger weakened by illness yet still dangerous.

Xue Ye sat alone atop the great hall's throne, the chamber around him empty, not a single attendant in sight.

"Qinghe, your elder brother, third brother, and fourth brother—did you have them all killed?"

"I have misjudged you all along… Among my sons, you were the one who hid the deepest. I always thought you were too kind-hearted, too soft to be emperor. But you have given me quite the surprise!"

" Cough, cough… "

At this point, Xue Ye coughed twice, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. Yet he did nothing to wipe it away, merely remarking indifferently:

"And the poison… that was your doing too, wasn't it?"

"Qinghe, you hid yourself well!"

Hearing this, Qian Renxue's expression remained unchanged. She even found it a little amusing. Even now, Xue Ye still believed that she was truly Xue Qinghe.

"Yes, I did all of it!"

"The entire palace is under my control now. Will you not abdicate?"

Qian Renxue's voice was devoid of emotion.

"Haha! Abdicate?" Xue Ye laughed. "Qinghe, now that your elder brother, third brother, and fourth brother are all dead, who else would inherit the throne if not you?"

"Should I pass it to that useless younger brother of mine?"

"Originally, once I passed away, the throne would have naturally been yours."

"Whether you killed them or poisoned me, I do not blame you. Even swapping out my men and rallying the Royal Knights—I do not blame you either. After all, those things would have been yours in the future anyway!"

"But can you tell me one thing—why did you choose to collaborate with the Spirit Hall?"

"Fighting for the throne, forcing me to step down—those are things you could and should have done."

"But what you should never have done—what you absolutely should not have done—was working with the Spirit Hall!"

Xue Ye stared intently at "Xue Qinghe."

No matter how the throne was fought over, it would still remain within the family. But if Xue Qinghe had chosen to cooperate with the Spirit Hall, was he really planning to hand over the vast Heaven Dou Empire, the legacy of their ancestors?

Even if it meant giving the throne to that useless younger brother of his, Xue Ye would never allow their ancestral foundation to be destroyed.

"Xue Ye, after all this talk, do you think you still have a choice?"

Qian Renxue smirked. The Spirit Hall was her family's domain—what did he mean by collaborating with the Spirit Hall?

"And what's wrong with working with the Spirit Hall?" she asked. "What's so bad about it?"

"The Spirit Hall helps commoners awaken their martial souls, giving them the opportunity to become strong."

"The Spirit Hall provides subsidies to commoner soul masters, ensuring that they won't have to worry about making a living when they are still weak—so they won't have to resort to crime just to survive."

"The Spirit Hall eliminates the degenerates of the continent, so that ordinary people don't have to live in constant fear. Tell me, what is wrong with any of this?"

Hearing this, Xue Ye was nearly enraged to death.

Did this traitorous child even realize how foolish, ignorant, and utterly ridiculous his thinking was?

"Traitor! Do you have any idea how stupid you are?"

"The Spirit Hall awakening martial souls for commoners? That's just their way of winning the people's hearts!"

"Once these commoners gain power, they will have the potential to overthrow the rule of the Xue family!"

"Is that a good thing? If the empire is to last for generations, the lowborn must remain lowborn! They must not be given the chance to rise!"

"The subsidies the Spirit Hall hands out? All of it comes from the treasuries of the two great empires!"

"If it weren't for the Spirit Hall interfering and manipulating these conflicts, my Heaven Dou Empire would have unified the continent thousands of years ago! There wouldn't even be a war today!"

"As for their so-called purge of degenerates—ha! They're not cleansing society. They're just consolidating faith! It's all a ploy to serve their own agenda!"

"You traitor! You fool!"

Qian Renxue and Kong: "…"

Xue Ye's words actually made a lot of sense.

Had the Spirit Hall not interfered and "regulated" conflicts, the Heaven Dou Empire would have unified the Douluo Continent long ago.

The Star Luo Empire would never have been allowed to grow into what it was today.

For the royal family and nobility, consolidating their power and denying commoners the opportunity to rise—wasn't that just the natural way of things?

(End of Chapter)

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