Chapter 277: Seize the Imperial Palace

Above the firmament, Gu Xuan and Du Gu Yan stood firmly in the void, with a black-striped ghost leopard over thirty meters in size, a deadly poison spiny swine, a fire spirit kite, and a twin-headed golden snake encircling them, protecting the two in the middle.

Seeing the people below who had given up resistance, Gu Xuan's figure slowly descended, and the ghost leopard Douluo and others guarding him also released their martial soul true forms.

At this moment, the reek of blood mixed with the smell of burnt scorchedness permeated the ground, and those of the Holy Dragon Sect who had chosen to follow Tuoba Yu in rebellion had been completely wiped out by the spirit kites.

At this moment, Tuoba Yu was not dead, but he was covered in blood, lying there on the verge of death, having lost his fighting ability.

With a ninety-first rank, he had outright resisted three Titled Douluo, and the ghost leopard Douluo among them had even reached the strength of a ninety-fifth rank super Douluo; that Tuoba Yu could survive already counts as having tremendous vitality.

Gu Xuan approached Tuoba Yu, reached out with his right hand and grabbed his neck, actually lifting him directly upward.

The two-meter-tall Gu Xuan lifted Tuoba Yu up, making his body stand straight before him.

"I admire your loyalty, but it's a pity you've followed the wrong person. I respect your loyalty, so I will give you the highest burial." Gu Xuan said, gently exerting force with his right hand, directly breaking Tuoba Yu's neck and ending his life.

Toward enemies, Gu Xuan will show no mercy whatsoever, for only by completely eliminating danger can absolute safety be guaranteed.

"It's a shame such a loyal person isn't from my Seven Treasure Glazed Sect." Gu Xuan gently lowered Tuoba Yu's body, brushed his face with his right hand, and closed his eyes filled with reluctance and resentment.

Upon hearing Gu Xuan's words, the four ghost leopard Douluo were startled in their hearts and immediately knelt down together, heedless of whether anyone around saw them.

"Young master, we are willing to lay down our lives for the sect! Even in death we bear no grudge!"

Hearing the four suddenly pledge loyalty, Gu Xuan merely waved his hand and continued: "Welcome the army into the palace, purge the rebels, cleanse the imperial palace. Preserve Tuoba's corpse well and bring it back to the sect for a proper burial."

Having said that, Gu Xuan took Du Gu Yan and entered the Bright Heart Hall, more than half of which had been smashed by Tuoba Yu (the residence of the Snow Night Great Emperor).

"Yes." The four ghost leopard Douluo replied in unison.

Although they were Titled Douluo powerhouses, they now began to carry out Gu Xuan's orders like junior officers.

As for protecting Gu Xuan's safety, when he previously supported the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect, the scene of him single-handedly handling the Chrysanthemum Ghost Douluo is still vivid in memory!

Here, even being beside Gu Xuan is the safest place.

Although the Bright Heart Hall was more than half destroyed by Tuoba Yu, the damaged areas were not the core. Gu Xuan and Du Gu Yan walked through the ruined corridor, and Du Gu Yan said: "Little Xuan, you're especially overbearing today!"

Gu Xuan took Du Gu Yan's soft hand, glanced back at her, and asked: "Are you afraid?"

"No fear, your future is to ascend to the supreme throne, unify the continent; iron-blooded methods are what you need." Du Gu Yan smiled slightly: "I just want to stay by your side as your capable assistant."

Gu Xuan smiled gently at her words: "Good, but you, as the elder sister-in-law, need to work hard—Rongrong and Snow Sister have both already opened their divine trials."

Hearing this, Du Gu Yan's expression darkened a bit as she complained: "Didn't you say the City of Slaughter is the inheritance ground of the Asura God? Why haven't we seen Him bestow a divine trial upon us?"

Gu Xuan shook his head upon hearing her: "I don't know the specifics either, but we can go to the City of Slaughter again later; perhaps a surprise awaits."

Du Gu Yan nodded, saying nothing more on the matter, after all, for her this indeed counts as a disadvantage compared to Ning Rongrong and Qian Renxue.

The two entered the Bright Heart Hall of the Snow Night Great Emperor, passing through two corridors and a main hall to reach a study; this is the cabinet of the Bright Heart Hall, also the usual resting place of the Snow Night Great Emperor, because he occasionally needs to review Xueqing He's ability to handle state affairs.

Entering the cabinet, the furnishings are simple: a desk piled with documents, and innermost is a bed.

At this moment, the Snow Night Great Emperor lay on the bed, devoid of vitality, while the fake Xueqing He No. 2 sat before the desk, his eyes somewhat fearful as he watched Gu Xuan and Du Gu Yan enter.

Upon seeing Gu Xuan and Du Gu Yan, Li Nuo knew that the Holy Dragon Douluo and others were likely doomed, and also realized his own life might therefore come to an end.

He had never imagined such a choice before, for he served the Spirit Hall—how could such a powerful force possibly lose?

Seeing the fake Xueqing He No. 2, that is Li Nuo, Gu Xuan discovered that this fellow had not used any disguise technique or altered his appearance; his looks were actually identical to the Xueqing He that Qian Renxue had transformed into using soul bone skills.

In fact, even if Qian Renxue had not told Gu Xuan back then, he could still roughly guess the reason.

Qian Renxue had prepared many substitutes long ago, and this one before us is naturally the best among them, capable of standing in for him and also resembling the original Xueqing He the most.

Thus, having lurked for years in the Tian Dou Imperial household, the changes in Xueqing He's disguised appearance actually varied slowly along with Li Nuo's changing looks.

After all, Li Nuo originally resembled Xueqing He, and with the passage of time growing up, there would naturally be some slight changes.

But Li Nuo lacked Qian Renxue's disguise ability, so Qian Renxue simply altered her appearance to match Li Nuo's growing looks, marking his maturation; when Li Nuo later took her place, no one would notice.

But none of that matters now, for in Gu Xuan's eyes, the Li Nuo before him is already a dead man.

Gu Xuan walked to the bedside of the Snow Night Great Emperor, glanced at his unwilling-to-die appearance, raised his hand and brushed his face: "Father-in-law, don't blame Gu Xuan for being ruthless, for this world is just so cruel. But rest assured, I will take good care of little Snow."

Having done all that, Gu Xuan then turned his gaze to Li Nuo: "Name."

Li Nuo dared not show the slightest hesitation or resistance, for he was only at around rank forty-something, fundamentally no match for Gu Xuan and Du Gu Yan.

"Li Nuo."

"It's clear that if it weren't for being scared out of your wits, you might be even more suited than Snow Sister to be an undercover agent." Gu Xuan wore a cold smile: "Have you considered what would happen after failure?"

Upon hearing this, Li Nuo dared not even breathe: "No… no."

What a joke—he fundamentally didn't think he would fail, so how could he possibly contemplate the outcome of failure?

Gu Xuan walked up to Li Nuo, glanced at the imperial edict lying on the desk, and picked it up.

Looking at its content, Gu Xuan's smile grew richer: "Heh, it seems you've done a good thing; having this saves me a lot of trouble."

Upon hearing Gu Xuan's words, Li Nuo thought Gu Xuan would let him go after seeing the edict, and immediately said: "Your Highness the Prince, this edict can still be altered; the jade seal is right here."

Li Nuo said, holding up a finely carved jade seal with both hands and offering it to Gu Xuan.

ps: Typos will be corrected later.

(End of chapter)