Chapter 729: The Other Side's Move

This bell asks of the immortals, and it also asks of the heart.

If the heart is sincere and the words are true, the bell will resonate.

Ning Yan's transition from kneeling to standing was a process of mental transformation; as he struck the Immortal-Asking Bell, his soul seemed to be baptized amidst the reverberating toll.

This baptism was cruel, like the struggle of a silkworm before it becomes a butterfly. With his face covered in blood, his internal organs were churning. At this moment, he struggled to lift his head, gazing at the imperial palace above.

Vaguely, he seemed to see the Human Emperor sitting in the center of that palace, expressionless and filled with majesty.

"I did not do it."

Ning Yan's voice was hoarse, falling upon the plaza, falling into the hearts of everyone, until his body tilted and he fell into a coma.

Xu Qing caught him and laid him on the ground. Regarding today's events, his heart was filled with turbulent waves; although all evidence pointed to Ning Yan, Xu Qing believed this matter was not Ning Yan's doing.

He lacked that capability, nor did he possess the motive.

On this point, Xu Qing felt the Human Emperor could not have been negligent, yet... he had still done so.

Xu Qing pondered, but his past experiences told him that in any matter, one must not look only at the surface.

The Human Emperor's actions were even more so.

Xu Qing thought, recalling the imperial decree the Human Emperor gave Ning Yan after the death of the Heavenly Lan King. It seemed harsh, but it contained deep meaning, and it dismissed the matter with the two words "wayward and unruly."

"What if this is also a form of protection from the Human Emperor toward Ning Yan?"

Subsequently, Xu Qing recalled the way of thinking his Master had once taught him: to place himself in the Human Emperor's position and view the overall situation from the other party's perspective.

"If I were the Human Emperor, and all evidence pointed to my son, what would I do..."

"The Human Emperor is not the emperor of one person, nor is he merely a father; he is the emperor of the entire human race..."

"There is another point, which is that the time the Grand Chancellor emerged was exactly the moment the Immortal-Asking Bell appeared at sunrise."

"Was this taking the opportunity to hint for Ning Yan to ask the bell? And at the same time, to stimulate Ning Yan's resolve?"

"Of course, there is another possibility: in the eyes of the Human Emperor, Ning Yan is indeed dispensable. Since all evidence points to Ning Yan, then in his view, even if Ning Yan is being framed, he cannot escape involvement. He, or those around him, must be one of the clues, which is why I was summoned."

"Or, perhaps none of this is the case, and there is another possibility I cannot conceive of."

Xu Qing contemplated; he could not fathom the Human Emperor's thoughts.

At this moment, the lingering sound of the bell slowly dissipated in the heavens and earth. Before the palace hall, the Grand Chancellor lowered his head, awaiting the imperial decree. Not long after, a voice that could not be discerned for joy or anger, seemingly devoid of any emotion, echoed out from within the palace.

"All personnel related to this matter in the Creation Palace are to be detained in the Profound-character dungeon."

"Gu Yue Bixuan and Gu Yue Ning Yan are to be detained in the palace's Celestial Prison."

"Martial law is to be imposed inside and outside the Imperial Capital, the formations are to conduct full surveillance, all teleportation arrays are to remain closed, and a curfew is to begin tonight. The five Upper Profound Palaces shall each act as one party to independently investigate this matter and report to Us. Within ten hours, you must find the missing Sun of Dawn."

The Profound-character dungeon is outside the imperial palace, guarded by the Sword-Holding Palace. It only holds major criminals; throughout the years, all the fierce and cruel of the human race have been imprisoned there.

The palace's Celestial Prison, compared to the dungeon, is even more special; it is the prison of the imperial clan.

At this moment, following the issuance of the Human Emperor's decree, thunder rumbled in the sky. The guards on the plaza stepped forward one after another, taking away everyone, including Ning Yan.

Xu Qing could not stop them, nor was there any reason to stop them.

He watched Ning Yan's figure being taken away, analyzing the Human Emperor's decree in his heart. Being detained in the palace's Celestial Prison—from an unfavorable perspective, this was a life-and-death tribulation for Ning Yan.

But from a favorable perspective, it seemed... this was also a form of protection.

And just after everyone was taken away, the Grand Chancellor before the hall suddenly spoke.

"Domain Lord Xu, His Majesty summons you into the hall."

Xu Qing's expression was calm. He walked forward, stepped onto the stairs, arrived before the Grand Chancellor, and bowed slightly.

The Grand Chancellor nodded and turned to lead the way. The moment the two stepped into the hall, the officials originally there retreated one after another, choosing to leave. Even the Grand Chancellor retreated a few steps, waving his hand outside the palace to close the palace gates.

In an instant, only Xu Qing and the Human Emperor remained in the entire palace.

Xu Qing looked up, gazed at the Human Emperor, and bowed.

"Greetings, Your Majesty."

Above the nine steps of the palace, the Human Emperor sat there. The pressure radiating from his entire body distorted the void, making everything within sight hazy, save for those eyes behind the hanging beads, which were exceptionally clear.

Indifferent, sharp; being gazed at by him was like being in the depths of winter.

"Xu Qing, summon the Emperor Sword within your secret storage and let it strike Me!"

The Human Emperor's voice swirled within the hall, forming a lingering echo that did not fade for a long time.

Xu Qing's eyes narrowed. He had not expected that the first sentence the Human Emperor would say when meeting him alone would be this, so he stared into the Human Emperor's eyes.

After a long while, he summoned the Emperor Sword within his secret storage inside his body. This sword... remained unmoved.

The Human Emperor sat there throughout, the fluctuations on his body remaining as usual, his eyes showing no change as he spoke calmly.

"Do you know why the Emperor Sword does not move?"

Xu Qing shook his head.

"That is because I have no shame before the human race, no shame before the Great Emperor. I am not your enemy!"

The Human Emperor's voice was low and deep, echoing through the hall.

And after saying this, the Human Emperor closed his eyes, ending this simple conversation.

After a long time, Xu Qing bowed, turned, and walked toward the hall doors. Just as he reached the doors and was about to push them open, the Human Emperor's final words came from behind him.

"Since Ning Yan has chosen you, then his future is left to you."

The hall doors opened.

Xu Qing stood there, his footsteps pausing for a few breaths. He nodded, stepped out of the hall, and walked until he had passed the plaza and exited the palace. Standing beneath the golden-armored giant, he looked back at the distant hall.

"What kind of person is the Human Emperor, really?"

There was no answer.

Xu Qing withdrew his gaze and walked into the distance amidst the wind and rain.

He did not return to his residence, but instead went to the Sword-Holding Palace at the first opportunity, joining their investigation into the theft of the Sun of Dawn.

Regarding Xu Qing's arrival, the Sword-Holding Palace chose to accept it, and their investigation was very swift. The first direction they locked onto was the Imperial Clan Cemetery!

The Clan Cemetery is not the Ancestral Cemetery.

The latter is where only emperors may be buried after death, while the former is the burial ground for members of the imperial bloodline after they die.

There, the Sword-Holding Palace found a tomb.

It was... the tomb of Ning Yan's biological brother, the Eleventh Imperial Prince.

Since the only clue was the figure and aura that appeared after backtracking time, and Ning Yan had asked the bell to prove his innocence, then there was only one other possibility.

There was someone who looked exactly like Ning Yan, and even possessed the same aura, who had appeared at the Creation Palace.

As for changing one's appearance and aura through techniques, such a thing is possible among mortals, but in the Eastern Wanggu Continent, under careful investigation, unless one's cultivation has reached the heavens, it is impossible to deceive the human race's Heavenly Kings and their formation secret arts.

Not to mention, the Human Emperor had been watching closely during the process of backtracking.

Therefore, Ning Yan's biological brother became the first thing to be investigated, to determine if this prince was truly dead.

This was an old case, but now it had to be dug up.

The result was obtained quickly; through a series of methods, it was determined that the Eleventh Imperial Prince was indeed dead and was indeed buried within the tomb.

Within the Sword-Holding Palace, among the officials participating in the investigation, some proposed re-investigating the cause of the Eleventh Imperial Prince's death, believing that through this point, they might obtain new clues.

But this was stopped by the current Palace Master of the Sword-Holding Palace.

That Palace Master spoke with profound meaning.

"This matter involves imperial secrets and is unrelated to this case. Without special permission from an imperial decree, do not involve yourselves."

Xu Qing was also among the officials. Looking at the Eleventh Imperial Prince's tomb, he remembered Ning Yan telling him that his brother and mother had died on the same day.

But because it involved imperial secrets, it was difficult to continue investigating, and thus, the clue was interrupted.

However, clues still existed from other directions, so the Sword-Holding Palace's investigation focus was placed on the Creation Palace and that Ninth Imperial Prince. The Palace Master personally went to the Celestial Prison to interrogate the Ninth Imperial Prince.

At the same time, the other palaces were also investigating independently, not communicating with each other. Some of their investigative directions were consistent, while others differed. Ultimately, all investigation reports had to be sent to the Human Emperor, for him to judge personally.

This method, although slightly lacking in efficiency, was not too far off. Most importantly, this type of investigation made it difficult to engage in favoritism or malpractice; every detail would be uncovered.

Thus, time passed, and five hours went by.

During these five hours, the entire Imperial Capital was locked down. The Imperial Capital's personal guards and the guards of the five Upper Profound Palaces had almost thoroughly searched the capital.

Clue after clue emerged before each palace in minute detail.

"Three months ago, the Second Imperial Prince, in order to empower his own taboo treasure, proposed going to the Creation Palace, wishing to borrow the power of the Sun of Dawn there. His application was never approved, and he expressed resentment multiple times. It has been investigated that his taboo is a large-scale destructive magic treasure."

"The First Imperial Prince left the capital in a hurry yesterday to serve as an envoy to the Yanyue Yanyue Xuantian Tribe, and the Yanyue Yanyue Xuantian Tribe has repeatedly invited our human race to offer a Sun of Dawn as tribute. The timing of the First Imperial Prince's departure is thought-provoking."

"Many people within the Seventh Imperial Prince's residence have frequently appeared around the Creation Palace this past month, and they have had secret correspondence with the Fifth Imperial Prince, who is guarding the border with the Heavenly King..."

"The aura of the Sun of Dawn once appeared within the Tenth Imperial Prince's residence."

"Seven days before the incident, an alien race approached the Eighth Imperial Prince, proposing a mysterious transaction and inquiring about the Creation Palace, but the specifics are unknown."

"The Third Imperial Prince visited the Creation Palace ten days ago and had a secret talk with the Ninth Imperial Prince for half an hour."

These clues seemed normal, but if one looked closely, they were shocking.

Undercurrents were surging!

This was the consensus that emerged in the hearts of everyone participating in the investigation, including Xu Qing.

Except for the Fourth Imperial Prince and the dissolute Sixth Imperial Prince, all other imperial princes were actually involved in the case to varying degrees, each with different levels of suspicion.

This matter could no longer be explained by coincidence.

"There is a great hand weaving this behind the scenes, using the investigations of the various palaces to bring many things to the surface."

Xu Qing was silent. He thought of his own inner thoughts when he first saw Prince Ziqing in the imperial palace.

If one side makes a move on the board, then according to the chessboard, the other side... must also make a move.

The various palaces were silent.

Finally, within the Sword-Holding Palace, the current Palace Master shook his head.

"Someone has forcibly brought the struggle for the throne, which was hidden beneath the water, to the surface, using us to convey this undercurrent to His Majesty, so that His Majesty will make a choice as soon as possible."

"Otherwise... greater undercurrents and eruptions could appear at any moment."

"As for why the Twelfth Imperial Prince was pushed out, it might be that person's probing, or it could be a form of deterrence."

After speaking, the Palace Master of the Sword-Wielding Palace let his gaze fall upon Xu Qing.

"Xu Qing, will you go and meet with Xiang Ningyan?"