Chapter 159 – Ning Fengzhi’s Shocking Proposal

For a long while, Ning Fengzhi remained silent, only to finally let out a deep breath and look toward Xu Yang with a level of seriousness he had never shown before.

"Yang'er, can you confirm that everything you said is true? Even if it is, then when exactly did Qian Renxue replace Xue Qinghe? Why have I never noticed anything? A person can't flawlessly imitate another. No matter how convincing the disguise, there should've been some differences in behavior or habits."

Xu Yang replied calmly:

"I can confirm it. As for why you never noticed... that's because from the very beginning, the person you were teaching wasn't Xue Qinghe—it was Qian Renxue. So naturally, there was nothing that felt out of place."

Madam Ning immediately caught the implication and asked:

"So Yang'er, you've known about Qian Renxue for a long time? How did you find out? And why didn't you tell us sooner?"

Once again, all eyes turned to Xu Yang, waiting for his explanation.

Xu Yang said:

"Yes, I've known about Qian Renxue's identity for a long time. In fact, I had a hunch from our very first meeting.

When she approached me, I felt a resonance between our martial souls. But as everyone knows, the Heaven Dou imperial family's inherited martial soul is the Swan, which is life-attributed. There's no way it would resonate with my martial soul.

So I did some research. I found that only the Angel Martial Soul of the Qian family in Spirit Hall has a nature close to mine. Following that lead, I traced it back to Qian Renxue.

But I was too young back then. I didn't know how to explain this to Teacher. And as time passed, it just faded from my mind—until today, when Teacher mentioned Xue Ye's assassination. That's when I remembered again."

Xu Yang wasn't lying about the last part. It had been so long since he'd seen Qian Renxue that he really had forgotten to warn Ning Fengzhi about Xue Qinghe's identity.

"So that explains everything…"

Ning Fengzhi's face grew ashen. He had cherished and taught Qian Renxue with complete sincerity, never realizing he had raised the daughter of his enemy. It was a hard pill to swallow.

"I'll go kill her!"

Chen Xin's expression turned grim. His eyes burned with killing intent as he summoned the Seven Kill Sword and stood up, preparing to fly straight to Heaven Dou City and cut Qian Renxue down on the spot.

"Uncle Jian, we can't kill Qian Renxue just yet. The Heaven Dou Empire must not fall into chaos—or we'll be playing right into Spirit Hall's hands."

Ning Fengzhi stopped him, his voice calm but firm. He knew that now that Xu Yang had revealed his martial soul resonated with Qian Renxue's, she likely already realized her cover had been blown.

And Ning Fengzhi knew his disciple well. Xu Yang was calm and calculating—just like himself. Qian Renxue must have contingency plans in place. If they moved against her now, it would only trigger those traps and throw Heaven Dou into turmoil.

And if that happened, it would only benefit Spirit Hall.

What's more, Ning Fengzhi had a creeping suspicion: even if Chen Xin attacked, he might not be able to kill Qian Renxue. And if that happened, it would mean open war between the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect and Spirit Hall.

He wasn't wrong.

The moment Qian Renxue learned that Xu Yang and Chen Xin were returning, she had already made her arrangements. The Six Elder of Hall of Elders (aside from Qian Daoliu) were already stationed within the Heaven Dou imperial palace, along with seven Titled Douluo-level elders from Spirit Hall.

As for Qian Daoliu himself, stationed far away in Spirit City, he was on standby to support at any moment.

All of this had been arranged to counter any possible exposure of her identity—especially by Xu Yang.

Chen Xin frowned coldly and said:

"Fengzhi, I know your concern. You're afraid I won't be able to kill her.

Maybe one Ultimate Douluo isn't enough—but what if there are two?

Yang'er has already broken through. I've fought him personally. His combat power is no weaker than mine.

I don't believe the two of us together couldn't take out a junior like her."

"What? Ultimate Douluo-level combat power?!"

Everyone gasped and turned their gazes toward Xu Yang, trying to comprehend just what kind of monster he was.

Xu Yang rubbed his nose, trying to hide his pride, but his mind had already turned toward Qian Renxue again.

"Should I kill her?"

"Kill!"

His hesitation lasted only a moment. Qian Renxue might be beautiful, but their stances were irreconcilable. Over the years, Xu Yang had come to understand that there was no room for compromise between Spirit Hall and the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

So when it came time to act, he wouldn't hesitate for a second.

Because in this world, the sect was his home, and these people were his family. What he had to do was protect them—no matter the cost.

Gu Rong spoke up:"Our battle strength isn't the problem. The real issue is—after we kill Qian Renxue, who becomes emperor?

We can't just hand it over to those two fools, Xue Xing and Xue Beng, can we?"

Although the higher-ups of the sect all knew that Xue Beng was feigning incompetence, even Qian Renxue knew—but so what?

A useless person was still useless. Even if he was pretending, he couldn't be much better. Otherwise, Qian Renxue would've eliminated him already. She didn't even see him as a threat.

Ning Fengzhi sat back down in deep thought. Chen Xin followed suit. The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect would never pave the way for another to claim power—not even someone from the Heaven Dou imperial family.

Xu Yang, on the other hand, was lounging on the side, calmly eating fruit. Now that he had reached Ultimate Douluo-level strength, he was confident enough to face anything. So he stayed relaxed.

It wasn't until Xu Yang finished his plate of fruit that Ning Fengzhi finally spoke up.

"Then we'll seize the throne. Yang'er, you will be the emperor."

"Pfft!"

Xu Yang had just taken a sip of tea—only to spit it all out. He coughed violently, then looked up in stunned disbelief.

"Teacher… what did you just say? Can you say that again?!"

Ning Fengzhi calmly repeated:

"I said, we'll take the throne, and you, Yang'er, will be emperor."

This time, Xu Yang was certain he hadn't misheard. He was completely speechless. He kept pointing at himself in disbelief, utterly unable to understand what Ning Fengzhi was thinking.

The others were equally shocked, staring at Ning Fengzhi as if he had grown another head.

Was this still the same Ning Fengzhi they knew?

After all, the Douluo Continent was still in a feudal era. Whether they were soul masters or commoners, people still held the same worldview as ancient China. No one dared speak of usurping the throne.

Even though the powers of the major sects vastly outstripped the imperial family, no one had ever dared to challenge the crown. Not even the proud Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had considered themselves above the throne.

Ning Fengzhi had been raised with the same values. For him to now suggest usurpation, it was no wonder everyone was shocked.

Oddly enough, Xu Yang wasn't surprised by the idea of rebellion. What shocked him was that Ning Fengzhi had chosen him to be emperor.