"Alas, these are turbulent times..."
Ultimately, Kong Deming Youyou sighed and decided to give up.
After all, the dead cannot be brought back to life. The Old Emperor is already dead, so any further investigation is pointless.
As the head of the Hall of Enshrinement, he was not protecting a particular emperor, but the entire royal family, or one could say the royal family's inheritance.
As long as inheritance continues, an empire can endure.
He will not participate in the subsequent struggle for the throne among the princes. As long as the country remains in the hands of the Xu family, he will not concern himself with it. He only hopes that not too many people will die...
As for the Old Emperor's funeral arrangements, they were naturally left to be handled by the royal family.
...
...
...
That evening.
The news of the emperor's death spread throughout the entire palace in an instant.
"What! Father... how could this be! What exactly happened?!" Upon hearing the news in the palace, Sixteenth Prince Xu Tianan slammed his fist on the table, furious beyond measure!
Yes, he wasn't sad, he was furious!
If the Old Emperor were still alive, he would have plenty of time and space to develop and make many preparations to deal with Xu Tianhe.
And now, the Old Emperor has inexplicably died.
That means he will have no choice but to start the battle for the throne with his brothers ahead of schedule!
He sent a message to his brothers, Genius, planning to unite and suppress Xu Tianhe...
Now that the Old Emperor is dead, everyone is his enemy, so what's the point of joining forces?
"Bang--"
Just then, a loud bang came from the entrance of Xu Tianan's palace.
"Who! Who dares to trespass into the prince's palace... Ah—"
Immediately following were the sounds of fighting and screams of agony.
"What's going on!"
Upon hearing the commotion, Xu Tianan immediately sensed something was wrong and quickly led all his guards out.
However, when he saw what was happening outside, he was immediately enraged!
Dozens of fully armed soldiers stormed into his palace and detained all his guards and maids!
Upon seeing this scene, Xu Tianan had a bad feeling, but he still tried to remain calm and coldly rebuked Dao: "You audacious madmen, how dare you invade the palace! Do you know that this is a capital offense!"
The leader outside was a Black-Robed Figure. Upon seeing Xu Tianan's appearance, he sneered and said indifferently, "Heh, the Eighth Prince has ordered that Your Majesty's assassination is very likely related to you, Sixteenth Prince. Please do not resist and cooperate with our investigation."
The Black-Robed Figure is naturally a member of the Holy Spirit Cult, possessing peak... Spirit Douluo's combat strength can be considered a special consideration for Xu Tianan.
"What?! Father was poisoned... No! Even if there were suspicious circumstances surrounding Father's death, it couldn't have been me!"
"Furthermore, that trash Xu Tianhe, what right does he have to investigate me? What qualifications does he have to investigate me?!"
"I am a prince! No one but my father can judge me! Even if someone wants to judge me, they need evidence, not just accusations against me!"
Upon hearing this, Xu Tianan was furious!
Let's not even talk about how his father died!
What right does that trash Xu Tianhe have to investigate him?
Even if an investigation is necessary, it requires evidence! That bastard Xu Tianhe actually framed him! He even sent people to break into his palace to arrest him!
This is absolutely outrageous!
Is there no law anymore?!
At this moment, Xu Tianan wished he could tear that bastard Xu Tianhe to pieces!
"Hehehe, Sixteenth Highness, we only obey the orders of Eighth Highness. If it really wasn't the Sixteenth Highness who did it, then we, Eighth Highness, will certainly not make things difficult for you."
As soon as Black-Robed Figure finished speaking, he burst forth, his body surging with black energy that coalesced into a large, pitch-black hand that reached straight for Xu Tianan.
"How dare you!!"
Just then, an old man with a powerful aura rushed out from behind Xu Tian'an, carrying a large number of Soul Guidance Devices, and collided fiercely with the Black-Robed Figure.
Although Xu Tianan received a lot of funding, he ultimately lacked real resources. The most expert he had was just an ordinary Rank 8 Soul Engineer, who had even achieved that rank through drug use.
The Evil Soul Master was already incredibly powerful, practically invincible within its realm, so the outcome was obvious.
"Boom—"
A huge explosion was heard.
One figure was forced back, spitting out blood, his face deathly pale.
"Evil... Evil Soul Master!! The Eighth Prince is actually colluding with the Evil Soul Master!"
The old man's gaze was filled with horror and terror as he looked at the other person.
The Evil Soul Master is infamous in the Sun-Moon Empire as well!
No one expected that the Eighth Prince would collude with the Evil Soul Master! If this gets out, the royal family will lose all face!
"Hehehe, you know too much about Dao."
With a wave of his hand, the Black-Robed Figure sent dozens of men behind him charging toward Sixteenth Prince.
Because Xu Tianan is quite important, the Black-Robed Figure brought exceptionally powerful subordinates this time, most of whom came from the Imperial Palace Guard, including a Soul Saint and three Spirit Emperors.
"Your Highness, run! I'll hold them off!!" This old man was not from any other faction, but a trusted confidant whom Xu Tianan had recruited by chance. He was extremely loyal to Xu Tianan and used his Physical Body to block Xu Tianan.
In an instant, the old man was engulfed by countless cannon shots, his fate unknown.
"Old Mo!"
Upon seeing this, Xu Tianan's eyes widened in fury, and he simultaneously summoned a large number of Soul Guidance Cannon bullets to launch a frenzied counterattack.
The guards of the mansion were considered loyal, but only a dozen or so had fled. Most of the guards chose to defend the mansion to the death.
It's just a pity...
The disparity in strength between the two sides is too great...
A few minutes later.
Black-Robed Figure emerged from Sixteenth Prince's mansion with his men and then set it on fire.
"Whoosh—"
In an instant, the flames spread throughout the entire mansion, soaring into the sky and illuminating a large part of the heavens.
...
At the same time.
Similar incidents occurred in the palaces of the ten princes vying for the throne, including the Eighth Prince and the Twentieth Prince …
Tonight is destined to be a sleepless night.
...
...
The next day.
The news instantly caused a sensation throughout the entire imperial city.
The evidence is conclusive that the Sixteenth Prince conspired with several other princes to murder the Emperor!
The Eighth Prince led his men to capture the princes, and the nine princes confessed to their crimes. The Sixteenth Prince committed suicide by self-immolation out of fear of punishment.
The Eighth Prince moved into the palace, took control of the government, and declared three days of national mourning.
...
...
The moment everyone received the news, their minds went blank, completely unaware of what had happened to Dao.
Last night, the Old Emperor passed away, and everyone was still reeling from the shock. Today, we hear this other bombshell news. Who can handle this...?
Especially those forces that support these princes, they woke up to find that the sky had fallen!
Outsiders may only have a vague understanding, but these powerful people can see the situation perfectly well!
They don't know how the Old Emperor died, but they do know that the Eighth Prince used this opportunity to eliminate dissidents and wipe out all his rivals in one fell swoop!
What's most baffling is that the Eighth Prince, a good-for-nothing who just loafs around doing nothing, somehow managed to wipe out the Sixteenth Prince and his nine brothers in one night!
This is a bit outrageous!
The only good news is that the Eighth Prince only targeted his brothers and did not involve other related factions...