Chapter 290 - 286: The Enraged Emperor of Southern Tang

Chapter 290: Chapter 286: The Enraged Emperor of Southern Tang

"The Crown Prince has been killed!" "The Crown Prince has been killed!"

"The Crown Prince—he’s been killed!"

The voice echoed throughout the great hall.

All the ministers in the hall froze, stunned by the sudden news. When they recovered, their faces were drained of color.

"The Crown Prince is dead?" "How is that possible?"

"Who would be so bold as to assassinate the Crown Prince, especially here in the Imperial Capital, Golden Scale Imperial City!"

"If this is true, it’s a vicious slap in the face to the Royal Family!"

"The Crown Prince is protected by over a thousand soldiers of the Imperial Army. Who could possibly have such power?"

The hall instantly erupted with the ministers’ clamor and cries of alarm.

"This is impossible! How could my son be dead? He is my only son! He can’t be dead."

Emperor Li Bi muttered, looking utterly lost. His face was deathly pale as he snapped at the Imperial Army soldier, "How could the Crown Prince just die for no reason? Who killed him? If you dare deceive me, your entire clan will be executed!"

"Your Majesty, I am not deceiving you! Every word I’ve said is true," the Imperial Army messenger said in a panic. "The Crown Prince was cut down right at the Imperial Palace gates. It was Lord White Cloud of Red Sun Province. Many people saw it with their own eyes. Right now, Commander Jiao is leading ten thousand men from the Imperial Army to besiege Lord White Cloud."

"Lord White Cloud... What audacity! I haven’t even attacked White Cloud City, and he dares to strike first by killing my Crown Prince."

Emperor Li Bi’s face was livid, his eyes blazing with fury. His voice was chilling as he growled through gritted teeth, "During the siege, do not kill him. Tell Commander Jiao to capture him alive. I want to execute him by a thousand cuts!"

"Your Majesty, I’m afraid that won’t be possible," the messenger from the Imperial Army said with a grimace. "Commander Jiao and the ten thousand soldiers of the Imperial Army... I fear they won’t be enough to handle Lord White Cloud."

At these words, all the civil and military officials were inwardly shocked. Even National Master Meng Shuming couldn’t help but furrow his brow.

"What? Ten thousand men of the Imperial Army can’t handle one insignificant Lord White Cloud?" Emperor Li Bi exploded with rage. "Is my Imperial Army made up of useless trash? Or are you trying to tell me that at his young age, Lord White Cloud has already entered the Innate Realm?"

The ten thousand soldiers of the Imperial Army all possessed a cultivation of at least the Martial Arts Sixth Realm. Faced with such an immense force, even an Innate Realm master would have to give way. If completely surrounded, they might even risk being killed.

"Your Majesty, Lord White Cloud’s cultivation should be at the Martial Arts Ninth Layer, not the Innate Realm. But he has so many Heaven-shattering Thunders! With a single toss, he can kill or injure a huge number of our men. The Imperial Army has suffered devastating losses," the messenger quickly explained. "Commander Jiao sent me to request reinforcements from you. If we delay any longer, he’s afraid he won’t be able to hold out."

"Utter nonsense!" Minister Ma of the Ministry of War shouted. "How could ten thousand soldiers of the Imperial Army fail to surround a single, measly Martial Arts Ninth Layer Martial Artist? Heaven-shattering Thunders? Even if he has them, he can’t possibly have twenty or thirty of them!"

"He has more! By the time I left, Lord White Cloud had already thrown thirty or forty Heaven-shattering Thunders, killing over a thousand soldiers of the Imperial Army outright." The messenger’s eyes were wide with terror. "By now, he’s probably used a hundred of them! If you Excellencies don’t believe me, you can go to the Imperial Palace gates and see for yourselves."

The hall immediately erupted in an uproar. It seemed the soldier wasn’t lying; after all, lying to the Emperor was a beheading offense. The ministers were all astounded. Many were starting to believe him, and even Minister Ma of the Ministry of War was now half-convinced. They were intensely curious about this legendary Lord White Cloud, wishing they could fly to the palace gates that very instant to see what was happening.

"Guards! This man barged into the great hall. Drag him out and beat him to death!"

A cold voice suddenly rang out.

The ministers were startled. Looking up, they saw Emperor Li Bi’s face was livid and dark, a clear sign of his foul mood.

"Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare my life! Everything I said is the truth! I haven’t deceived you! The Crown Prince was truly killed by Lord White Cloud, right at the Imperial Palace gates! Many people can vouch for me! I’ve been wronged! Your Majesty, spare me!" the messenger cried out in terror, proclaiming his innocence. It was useless. He was immediately seized by two palace Guards and dragged away.

The poor messenger had no idea the Emperor was having him killed simply to vent his own foul mood. Whether his report was true or false no longer mattered. If it was true, he deserved to die. If it was false, he also deserved to die.

Soon, a few blood-curdling screams echoed from outside the hall, followed by silence.

The hall fell silent. The atmosphere was suffocating. The ministers didn’t dare to breathe, terrified of angering the Emperor on his golden throne.

"National Master, ministers, accompany me to the Imperial Palace gates. We will see for ourselves what is happening!" Emperor Li Bi said, his face dark. His expression made it clear that he, too, now believed the Crown Prince had likely been killed by Lord White Cloud.

"As you command!" the ministers in the hall replied, bowing deeply.

"To the palace gates!"

At the sharp cry of a eunuch, Emperor Li Bi departed for the Imperial Palace gates, escorted by his civil and military officials and a large contingent of Guards in a grand procession.

Within the Imperial Palace, they descended flight after flight of stone steps, heading straight for the gates and drawing ever closer.

"That’s strange... Weren’t there supposed to be lots of Heaven-shattering Thunders? Why don’t I hear any explosions?"

"You’re right. There aren’t even any sounds of fighting. Could that soldier have been lying?"

The officials were puzzled. The explosions from Heaven-shattering Thunders were deafening, and they were already very close to the palace walls. They should have been able to hear something, but there was only silence from up ahead.

"Faster! Pick up the pace!"

Under a massive, golden-yellow canopy, Emperor Li Bi urged them on from his sedan chair. He was secretly hoping that the soldier had been lying, which would mean his Crown Prince was still alive. After all, he had only one son, his sole heir to the throne. It was a strange quirk of fate; the Emperor had fathered more than a dozen princesses, but Li Yu was his only son. Thus, no matter how flawed the Crown Prince was, the Emperor had no choice but to protect him. He couldn’t possibly pass the throne to anyone else.

At Emperor Li Bi’s insistence, the procession quickened its pace considerably.

A moment later, the Emperor’s retinue finally passed through the Imperial Palace gates. The instant they were outside, the thick stench of blood and the acrid smell of gunpowder assaulted them. Emperor Li Bi’s heart plummeted, and his face grew so dark it seemed water could drip from it.

Lifting their eyes, they saw a scene of utter carnage. The ground ahead was covered in corpses, bloody severed limbs, and shattered Steel Helmets and Armor.

Of the supposed ten thousand soldiers of the Imperial Army, only four or five thousand remained by the looks of it. They were covered in dirt and grime, their faces etched with terror. With trembling hands, they gripped their weapons, steeling themselves as they maintained their encirclement.

In the center of the encirclement sat a young man in green robes. He was lounging on a large, soft, comfortable sofa, one leg crossed over the other, casually scrolling through his phone.

The ground around the sofa was littered with bodies. The terrified soldiers of the Imperial Army trembled as they clutched their weapons, but not one of them dared to take another step forward.