Chapter 888: The General!

These words, once spoken, were like thunder sweeping across the firmament, falling upon the mortal world and into the hearts of the ministers both inside and outside the Ancient Emperor Star.

It became a rumbling sound, yet it did not stir up any greater storm.

Because the events unfolding today had, from the very beginning, left everyone in shock.

First was Xiang Ningyan's sudden rebellion, and then the three items he sacrificed, each more sensational than the last, especially the one that provoked the punishment of the human race's destiny, manifesting as chains to bind the Human Emperor.

Such an event, capable of shaking destiny, could only mean one thing... that what Xiang Ningyan said was true.

But compared to these, the blade strike from the King of Suppressing Flame was the most unbelievable and soul-shaking event of all.

No one could have imagined that the King of Suppressing Flame, who had always been dedicated to the human race and served as the human race's God of War, would actually defect.

Such a thing was completely irrational.

They could not fathom for what reason the King of Suppressing Flame would choose to take up arms against the Human Emperor!

After all, at the level and status of the King of Suppressing Flame, there were fewer and fewer things in the world that could move him, especially since he had truly fought for the human race from the bottom of his heart all these years.

The many times he had been on the verge of death, the many times he had been severely wounded, and the various alien races he had slain—these things could not be faked.

And yet, the blade of such a Heavenly King, who possessed an independent and noble soul and was wholeheartedly devoted to the human race, had actually struck at the Human Emperor.

The waves caused by all of this could be described as a raging sea.

Therefore, the true identity of the Xiang Ningyan standing here today was no longer important in the hearts of the crowd.

Even some of the old ministers had reached a judgment in that very instant.

The major case concerning Xiang Ningyan from several years ago was still extremely clear in everyone's memory.

It was just that the matter regarding Xiang Ningyan's older brother, the Eleventh Imperial Prince, was a taboo of the Human Emperor, and no one would or dared to touch upon it.

Thus, as the chains binding his body continued to break one by one, the Human Emperor, who was restrained in mid-air, spoke in a faint voice beneath his calm expression, which now echoed across the Ancient Emperor Star.

"Your appearance does not surprise Me much; only the move by the King of Suppressing Flame is the first thing today that has caused Me some astonishment."

"King of Suppressing Flame, are you willing to tell Me the answer to this?"

The Human Emperor looked up, gazing at the King of Suppressing Flame who was locked in battle with the old Eunuch.

The King of Suppressing Flame said nothing, continuing to strike with all his might; the sound of roaring echoed, and blade light erupted across the heavens and earth.

Responding to the Human Emperor was only Xiang Ningyan's brother, the Eleventh Imperial Prince.

"Choosing to strike you is naturally for the human race, for the sake of righteousness! Father Emperor, you, this Human Emperor, are a cancer to our human race and are not fit to be Emperor!"

"And as for the name 'Little Eleven,' I haven't heard it from your mouth for a long time. Back then, those three words made me feel warm, but now, hearing them from your mouth is the height of hypocrisy!"

The Eleventh Imperial Prince's expression was twisted, his eyes suffused with bloodshot veins, revealing deep hatred; he was not surprised that the Human Emperor had revealed his identity.

In his view, he did not care about identity at all; the only thing he cared about was... killing the Human Emperor!

For this, he had endured and prepared for too many years.

The Human Emperor remained expressionless, withdrawing his gaze from the King of Suppressing Flame to look at the Eleventh Imperial Prince, seemingly indifferent to the other's mockery, and continued to speak calmly.

"When did you possess Xiang Ningyan?"

The Eleventh Imperial Prince laughed upon hearing this, his expression becoming even more ferocious at this moment.

He was usually gloomy and would not normally have such emotional fluctuations, but today was different from the past; he had endured for too long and prepared for too long, and today he had finally erupted to take his revenge.

Thus, his emotions were as such.

"Of course it was when you, Father Emperor, locked my foolish younger brother in the Royal Dungeon. To make you do that, I deliberately revealed my presence in that affair."

"Only in this way would the surface suspicion be directed at Xiang Ningyan, and I calculated that Xiang Ningyan would use the Immortal-Questioning Bell to prove his innocence, and that you, as great as you are, would be busy with private matters and would not pay too much attention to it."

"Therefore, locking him up was the only choice."

"In this way, I could use the Royal Dungeon to subtly possess him with my consciousness."

The Eleventh Imperial Prince's voice spread in all directions.

Xu Qing was thoughtful upon hearing this.

"The mysterious man in black in the private residence that day was indeed this Eleventh Imperial Prince."

Xu Qing's eyes narrowed; back then, when he was soul-searching to track down the mastermind behind the framing of the Alien Immortal Sect, he had found a private residence.

There, he had met a man in black for the first time.

While pondering, Xu Qing quickly recalled that Xiang Ningyan had once said in the dungeon that he felt a familiar fluctuation deep within the dungeon...

And the reason the other party possessed Xiang Ningyan was obvious: the Eleventh Imperial Prince's identity was hidden, and what he needed to do required approaching the Human Emperor.

Furthermore, in the human capital, killing the Human Emperor would naturally face immense resistance.

So for this matter to succeed, one had to prevent outsiders from coming to the rescue.

Thus, the Ancient Emperor Star, where the ancestor worship took place, was isolated from the inside and outside, making it the best battlefield.

Here, outsiders needed qualifications to step in.

And qualifications could only be granted by the Human Emperor using destiny.

But now, the fluctuations of destiny had manifested as chains, binding the Human Emperor, and until the Human Emperor resolved this, he could not summon destiny for assistance.

The other party had clearly waited a long time for this trap.

They were waiting for the ancestor worship.

And to appear on the Ancient Emperor Star during the ancestor worship, perhaps the Eleventh Imperial Prince had other options before Xiang Ningyan returned.

But after Xiang Ningyan returned, the option of possessing Xiang Ningyan became a spare move for the other party.

Or to be precise, possessing Xiang Ningyan was just one of the methods from the beginning, and after his own rise in the Flame Moon, it

became the best method.

With his own recommendation, the other party successfully used Xiang Ningyan's body to walk into the Ancient Emperor Star and stand by the Human Emperor's side.

This was the closest they had ever been.

Yet, one question remained in Xu Qing's heart, never fading.

"Xiang Ningyan, is he truly unaware of this, or was he willing?"

"And the Human Emperor, as the Sovereign and the highest will of the human race, is he truly unaware of all this? Or did he do it on purpose?"

Xu Qing remained calm; after experiencing so many things, he understood that the color of human nature was not simply good or evil, and the human heart was even more so; its complexity and variability often changed based on one's stance at different moments.

Especially now, the Human Emperor's reaction was also somewhat strange; on his calm face, a meaningful smile actually appeared.

"It seems you have deep feelings for your younger brother; even to this extent, your words still contain an attempt to distance yourself. Are you worried that if today's affair fails, it will implicate your brother?"

"As for Xiang Ningyan, I naturally will not make things difficult for him, so you need not waste your breath on this matter. Since you have appeared today and said so much, you are clearly trying to stall for time."

"No matter what you are waiting for, since you still have words left unsaid, I will give you the time of one incense stick to speak."

"After all, killing one's father and murdering one's sovereign also requires a justifiable reason to tell the world."

The Human Emperor's voice remained calm from beginning to end.

This scene made the Eleventh Imperial Prince's expression somewhat ugly, yet he remained very confident in his preparations and the forces behind him.

Thus, his expression soon returned to normal, and he stared fixedly at the Human Emperor.

"A reason? Why I am like this, do you not know?"

"From the moment you ordered my mother to be executed, and I watched with my own eyes as my mother died before me, causing my mind to collapse, Sister Xuan Zhan, you and I have been irreconcilable enemies!"

"My hatred for you consumes my heart every moment, and I know that you knew I wasn't dead, and I know even better the reason you let me be!"

"Isn't it just that you wanted to use me to fish, to see how many you could catch at the critical moment?"

"I will satisfy you! Because if I do not kill you, my mind will not be at peace; if I do not kill you, I am unworthy of being a son; if I do not kill you, I am unworthy of existing in this world!"

The Eleventh Imperial Prince's voice was shrill, echoing in all directions.

A look of reminiscence appeared in the Human Emperor's eyes; clearly, Xiang Ningyan's words reminded him of the painting that had hung in his residence every day after that event, and the beautiful figure within that painting.

In the end, it turned into a sigh.

This sigh contained the melancholy for that past emotion; as he exhaled lightly, his heart also calmed down again, and he spoke faintly.

"Then, do you have any other backup plans? You may continue to unfold them."

"As you wish!"

The Eleventh Imperial Prince looked down into the depths of the Ancient Emperor Star, then a cold glint appeared in his eyes, and he spoke chillingly.

As his words fell, a muffled roar suddenly came from the depths of the Ancient Emperor Star.

It seemed that some kind of drastic change was erupting within the Ancient Emperor Star, and this change was naturally the result the Eleventh Imperial Prince wanted to achieve by stalling for time.

The next instant, a scene that caused an even greater wave in the hearts of everyone inside and outside the Ancient Emperor Star appeared shockingly before their eyes!

As the sound like thunder continued to erupt within the Ancient Emperor Star, deep within the fog-shrouded Ancient Emperor Star, a heaven-shaking and earth-shattering fluctuation suddenly rose up.

The fog exploded, rolling backward crazily toward the surroundings; amidst an intense feeling of destruction, a five-cornered altar... was actually forcibly pulled out from the depths of the Ancient Emperor Star by some kind of power!

That altar was the source of the immense shock in everyone's hearts.

Because on the altar, there were five huge golden coffins placed.

They were placed at the five corners, each coffin emitting a terrifying imperial aura, containing supreme might.

And each had a shrine standing above it.

There were no statues worshipped in the shrines, only spirit tablets.

They were inscribed with Dong Sheng, Sheng Tian, Jing Yun, Dao Shi...

And the last one, Sister Xuan Zhan.

This scene was like a heaven-shaking, earth-shattering, and ancient-shocking mysterious ritual.

And in the very center of these five coffins, there was a lamp.

This lamp was crafted entirely from purple stone, like a blooming purple thorn flower, with a purple phoenix bird perched upon it, its wings spread, looking lifelike.

But at this moment, this lamp was actually covered in cracks, and red flames were emanating from within; after enveloping the five coffins, through some unknown transformation, it merged with the five coffins and intertwined with the imperial aura, actually causing the color of the outermost layer of the flame to become golden.

Burning fiercely.

The aura of a god spread out within this golden flame.

That is the Divine Fire.

To be precise, it is the Divine Fire that is about to succeed!

"Father, I have revealed to the world both your public sacrifices and the secret ritual for becoming a god that you were conducting; would you say this also counts as a reason to slay you?"

The Eleventh Imperial Prince spoke with a cold sneer.