Feng Jingfan continued crawling, her actions becoming slower and slower until finally, she was no longer able to move as she hung there in the air.

She hadn’t been able to die a comfortable and eternal death lying down—too many knives were stuck in her, propping her body 30 degrees in an exhausting posture.

Her hand continued to remain raised, forever reaching out.

The fake lotus saint who had spent her whole life learning to be elegant and righteous had died in the ugliest manner possible.

The entire palace floor was filled with blood, seeping from the countless knife wounds, flowing and forming an illegible drawing.

Feng Xuan lay curled up on the bed, coughing incessantly. His life had already been sapped dry from the beginning, having been with the Empress, Epsilon, and Feng Jingfan for so long in addition to taking care of court matters. It was almost time for him to draw his last breath, and he had been holding on stubbornly. Feng Jingfan’s blow earlier had made him feel like his entire body was going to collapse.

He lay there coughing, yet a hint of gleefulness was apparent on his face. So what if he was about to die? In the end, he was still the victor. He had chosen the most ruthless ruler, after seeing Fuyao’s merciless actions without any hesitation; watching Fuyao stop Jingfan with her finger, succinct and straightforward. If she hadn’t acted as she had done, he might have wavered—Xuanji didn’t need a weak, indecisive, good person for the Emperor!

30 years ago, when his own father had acceded the throne to him, he, too, had been covered in blood, the blood of his siblings.

His father had said to him then—it didn’t matter to have more children as there would be more options then. The first generation of Xuanji had difficulty picking a good leader because he had too little children, and in the end, the son had caused Xuanji to fall for several decades. If not for the capable next generation, the nation would perhaps have ended a hundred years ago.

His father had also said to him—”Don’t love too much. If you love too much, it will be hard for you to part in the future.”

Hence, he had never truly loved, all those warm emotions and doting were, but necessities, such as the Empress; the entire Five Regions Continent knew that he, Feng Xuan, was a cuckold who had welcomed a tiger into his home and had become a laughingstock. However, he had to love the Empress to be a cuckold; he had never loved that fake bitch, so how could he be a cuckold?

The one who was a cuckold was probably the man who was as powerful as a deity.

He once thought that there was a way to resolve it—Ze Ning was young, and Epsilon was in his prime; when a man and woman spent an extended amount of time together, it was inevitable that some sparks would fly. As long as they committed adultery, Epsilon’s technique would be broken, and her pride would fall. By then, where would they find the capacity to flaunt their power?

As such, he had already taken action on Epsilon for many years, those heart-meddling pills, adding a little at a time in his food, in the bath, even on those close to him, just to make him lose control, to make him launch himself upon his wife. However, what he had never imagined was how respectfully that b*tch had held herself, remembering her royal status and not letting Epsilon come within three meters of her. Thus, Epsilon had remained as powerful as ever, all those years of planning had been completely suppressed by the power of his martial ability.

However, suppression was after, merely suppression. After suppressing a fire for so long, once it exploded, it would burn even more ferociously. After all, it worked, didn’t it? Look, even his daughter had used the same method to end the pair once and for all.

Desire and hatred were the same, they were both fearsome blades, and if used correctly, they could become the most opportune weapon.

Such as Meng Fuyao, if she hadn’t been driven by hatred and revenge, would she have been this ruthless?

However, her hatred also had to be contained within a certain threshold, if he were to let her hatred run wild, she might really burn Xuanji up.

Feng Xuan continued coughing, spitting out a mouthful of phlegm and blood. He picked up the decree and smiled invitingly at Meng Fuyao.

His face was deathly pale and his eyes a sunken black, and under the dim candlelight, along with the stench of blood, he waved the Imperial Decree in what he had deemed as a tempting manner, giving a ghastly smile at Meng Fuyao.

Meng Fuyao stared at the smile, feeling as if she were looking at a ghost that had suddenly popped out from the ground. The creature definitely had no humanity; since birth, its mission had been to devour all of the flesh that had fallen off itself.

She fell silent for a long time.

Feng Xuan wasn’t in a hurry. He waited patiently, not believing that anyone wouldn’t be moved by the power to rule thousands of miles’ worth of mountains, rivers, and land. She, Meng Fuyao, General of Wuji, King Meng of Dahan, Prime Minister of Xuanyuan, who loved to meddle in the political affairs of every nation, a born politician who always had a trick up her sleeve, why wouldn’t she accept the offer to expand her authority? Which General, King, or Prime Minister would refuse the chance to become the Emperor of a nation, the Empress of Xuanji?

The stench of blood lingered in the air, and a single candle flickered dimly. Outside, long rows of windows were beginning to lighten as a pink hue appeared on the eastern horizon. Even the darkest night would pass, and the sky was starting to light up.

After the sky brightened, it would signal the coronation ceremony of the new Empress that Feng Xuan had painstakingly chosen.

And, the new Empress, still squatting atop the roof of the palace, gazed silently at the countless people who had died fighting for the Imperial Decree.

The scroll was soft and shiny, glistening in the dark like the holy text of a saint, untainted by the blood around it.

Meng Fuyao finally moved.

She jumped from the ceiling beam and drifted down, stopping before Feng Xuan.

Feng Xuan closed his eyes and smiled contentedly.

He gripped the decree tightly, waiting for Meng Fuyao to retrieve it. Then, he would shrink back and raise his conditions to her.

However, it didn’t go as he had imagined.

Meng Fuyao placed both hands behind her back and did not move forward to receive the decree. Instead, she gazed at him coldly and said, “Conditions.”

Feng Xuan froze for a moment before his smile widened even more. ‘Good, this is the aura of an Empress.’ It was fine if he suffered a little disrespect; as long as the successor was strong enough and clever enough, he was satisfied.

It seemed that not searching for her all these years was the right decision. The Meng Fuyao, who had been weatherbeaten by all the trials and tribulations she had encountered, was clearly far more capable and formidable than the sons and daughters he had raised in the Imperial Palace.

“Swear it.” He flicked a finger and the wall behind him opened up, revealing a statue of a mythical creature with a bird’s head and a human’s body. “Swear to the ancestors of the Feng Clan that you, Daughter of the Feng Clan, Feng Fuyao, will remain forever loyal to the Feng Clan, forever loyal to Xuanji, and govern all of the nation, nurturing its people and lands, protecting the nation of Xuanji from all dangers. Should you go back on your word, the Heavens shall deliver just punishment, striking your body with lighting until not even your ashes remain!”

Lowering himself from the bed, he looked towards the statue, back-facing Meng Fuyao as he said solemnly, “The origin of the Xuanji Feng Clan can be traced back to the ancient Phoenix God, mythical and extremely powerful.”

Thereafter, he turned around and gazed at Meng Fuyao expectantly. Nobody had ever gone back on their oath after swearing before the God of the Five Regions Continent. As long as Meng Fuyao dared to swear before this God, it meant that she did not intend to hurt Xuanji or use her position to seek revenge. This was his final test for Meng Fuyao, and also his final attack. Although he personally felt that the position of Empress of Xuanji was more than enough to quench Meng Fuyao’s thirst for revenge, he still had to take precautions; the oath had to be made.

Meng Fuyao met his gaze, chuckling matter-of-factly and said, “Feng Fuyao?”

“You can’t possibly be thinking of remaining as Meng,” Feng Xuan replied. “Feng is the surname of the true nobility.”

“So you’ve decided to transfer the throne to Feng Fuyao? The lowest-ranked princess, born from you and the palace maid Xu Wan, Feng Fuyao?” Meng Fuyao asked again.

Feng Xuan felt that these were all idle talk, that perhaps this child was too excited; hence, she couldn’t help it. He laughed and said, “Yes, since she is your mother, you can give her a title after you ascend the throne. Since you are to be the Empress, she is no longer a palace maid. If you like, you can even change the historical records and give her a better heritage. It’s all up to you.”

Meng Fuyao nodded and strode forward. Lighting three joss sticks, she enunciated each word carefully, “Daughter of the Feng Clan, Feng Fuyao, daughter of Xuanji Tiancheng Emperor Feng Xuan and Xu Wan of the Qingze Tribe, will now accede her father’s position and will remain forever loyal to the Feng Clan, forever loyal to Xuanji, and govern all of the nation, nurturing its people and lands, protecting the nation of Xuanji from all dangers. Should I go back on my word, the Heavens shall deliver just punishment, striking my body with lighting until not even my ashes remain!”

She spoke clearly and fluently without any error. Feng Xuan listened carefully and let out a satisfied smile, then handed the decree to her.

Meng Fuyao received it matter-of-factly.

Holding the Imperial Decree was like holding a blood-red map, littered with words, and she could almost hear the screams and cries of those who had died unjustly, Fourth Princess, Fifth Consort, Sixth Princess, Seventh Prince, Eighth Prince, all of the princes and princesses who had died in the struggle for power. Oh, there was also Eldest Imperial Princess, she’d heard that after the Amethyst Cape Knights had been defeated, she’d been forced to the Duxiu cliff in Jingjiao. The Amethyst Cape Knights had scattered, and in order not to face the humiliation of defeat, she had taken her own life in a fit of rage… Yet another dead.

This was the Xuanji Royal Family, this was the land of Xuanji, this was the decree of Xuanji, a soft scroll decorated with golden and jade leaves, made with fresh blood, offered by a half-dead, rotting old man in a congratulatory manner into her hands.

Meng Fuyao held the decree, unable to feel any of the happiness of reaching the peak of power, nor could she think of any reason to be happy about assuming this position. She suddenly felt the urge to laugh, to laugh hysterically and without care, to laugh at the cruelty and darkness of this world, to laugh at all of the blood, to laugh at the bunch of clowns who had fought to their deaths for this darned scroll, for not knowing their outcome.

Hence, she began to laugh, as hysterically as she could. She laughed for almost a minute. Initially, Feng Xuan thought that she was laughing because she was happy, and laughed along with her. However, gradually, his expression changed, and just as Feng Xuan thought she had laughed herself mad, Meng Fuyao suddenly stopped, as if she had not laughed so hysterically before, grabbed the decree, and turned away calmly, never turning back to face Feng Xuan again.

Ahead, a ray of sunlight began to rise, enveloping the sky in a golden glow, filling the entire palace hall.

Beneath the jade steps, having gone through a night of killing and bloodshed, the square had attained a peaceful silence. The Imperial Army had finally retreated after receiving the orders from His Majesty. The Tang Family’s Changyong Army had always been under the control of Feng Xuan and was the final force he’d saved for his final gamble. Of course, to the crafty Young Master of the Tang Family, His Majesty was now old news; as long as he remained loyal to the new Empress, the Tang Family would be assured eternal honor.