Chapter 456: Critical Condition on a Snowy Night

Heaven Dou Imperial Palace.

Upon receiving the news, Nan Feihuang rushed over immediately; whether out of a son-in-law seeing his father-in-law off, or as a representative of the Gu Lei Kingdom coming to mourn the Heaven Dou Emperor, he could not be absent.

It was not just him; the other kingdoms had also sent high-ranking envoys, whether they were royal family members, princes, or dukes.

At this moment, everyone was waiting outside the bedchamber of Xue Ye, including Nan Feihuang. Inside, there were only Xue Ye and Xue Ke; only after Xue Ye finished giving his final instructions to Xue Ke would he summon the others.

It was a bit of a coincidence regarding the Hagendas Kingdom; the people they sent were actually the family of his eldest sister, Nan Feiyan.

Seeing Nan Feihuang, Duke Beilixi immediately brought his wife and daughter over to greet him, "Little brother, long time no see. You look more spirited than ever; it is clear your cultivation has made further progress!"

This brother-in-law appeared very enthusiastic, but in truth, his coming here today to mourn the Great Emperor Xue Ye was merely an excuse; his real goal was still Nan Feihuang.

Now that Nan Feihuang's battle achievements had spread, he was famous throughout the world; who wouldn't want to get closer to him? Since the Hagendas Kingdom had such an in-law relationship with him, it was only natural to make use of it.

Feihuang was actually not very accustomed to this brother-in-law's enthusiasm, as they were truly not close, but it was undeniable that he was his eldest sister's husband, so calling him "little brother" was reasonable and appropriate.

"Brother-in-law is too kind; thank you for taking care of my sister all this time."

After all, they were relatives, and in daily life, Duke Beilixi had neither mistreated his eldest sister nor offended him; since he wanted to show goodwill, there was no need for him to be overly cold, otherwise, it would only be Nan Feiyan who felt awkward.

Seeing that Nan Feihuang was willing to engage with him, Duke Beilixi was overjoyed and hurriedly beckoned his wife to bring their daughter over, "Come, Yan'er, come quickly, let Liuliu greet her uncle."

Nan Feiyan walked over; compared to a few years ago, she was a bit older, but her appearance had not aged, and her figure had become even more plump, which showed she had been very well taken care of.

Regardless of whether Beilixi's actions were out of genuine love for Nan Feiyan or to curry favor with the Gu Lei Kingdom, since he had taken such good care of his eldest sister, Nan Feihuang would accept this favor.

"Little brother, long time no see." Nan Feiyan smiled at Feihuang. Over these past few years, she had heard about her brother's deeds more than anything else, and she felt very proud. She understood very well that her current good life, the way her husband's family treated her with such respect, and even the fact that the royal family members of the Hagendas Kingdom did not dare to offend her and were always respectful, were all because she had Nan Feihuang behind her. "Quick, Liuliu, call him uncle."

Putting her daughter down, Nan Feiyan gave her a push from behind.

The little girl was a bit shy. She had also grown up listening to the deeds of Nan Feihuang and had always admired this uncle of hers, but now that she truly saw him, she felt a bit nervous.

What if her uncle didn't like her? "Eldest sister, seeing you in such good spirits, I am relieved." Feihuang smiled, then squatted down to look at the little niece in front of him, "Liuliu, what's wrong? Don't you like your uncle? Come here, let uncle give you a hug!"

"Hello, Uncle. I... I am Liuliu, I am seven years old this year. My martial soul is the Gu Lei Book, just like Mom's! My innate soul power is level four!" The little girl gathered her courage, walked in front of Nan Feihuang, and finished her self-introduction as fluently as possible. It looked like she had practiced this for a long time, just so she wouldn't embarrass herself by being too nervous when she finally met him.

In fact, she was completely overthinking it; how could Nan Feihuang not like his own niece? He valued family ties very much.

"Haha, not bad, you inherited our family's martial soul." Feihuang picked up his niece, "Level four is quite good. Later, uncle will give you some delicious things, and you will become even more powerful."

"Thank you, Uncle!" The little girl felt Feihuang's care and affection for her, and her nervousness faded away quite a bit; she smiled sweetly in Feihuang's arms.

At this moment, a eunuch suddenly came out to convey an imperial decree, "The Emperor has a decree: please invite the Regent Nan Feihuang to enter the palace for a talk."

Nan Feihuang returned his niece to Nan Feiyan, "Eldest sister, the Emperor has summoned me, so I will go see him first." "Alright, little brother, after all, he is your father-in-law; in terms of both emotion and reason, you should see him off on his final journey." Nan Feiyan nodded.

She knew that her brother did not really look favorably upon the Heaven Dou Empire, because the nobles of this empire were too rotten.

As the ruler of a nation, Xue Ye could not shirk his responsibility.

And her little brother's philosophy was that while there were gaps in class and status between people, there were no gaps in their humanity.

He believed that the gap in class status was necessary; this was a world where power was respected, and rulers who possessed power had to implement and instill a philosophy of loyalty to the upper echelons in order to better govern the people, which was also a means of management. Only with class distinctions could there be high and low, and only then could rule be better perfected.

As for some kind of republic where everyone is equal, Feihuang knew that at least this society was not ready for it; wait until technology developed and thoughts were liberated, maybe in ten thousand years.

Moreover, he himself was a great noble now; he would not betray his own class to raise the status of commoners and bring trouble upon himself.

However, the gap in status meant that Spirit Masters could more easily obtain power and enjoy wealth and glory, but it did not mean they could treat commoners without power as if they were not human.

Commoners without soul power worked hard to support Spirit Masters, and after Spirit Masters received sufficient treatment, they would use their own power to protect the commoners in return, keeping them from being harmed by bandits, Spirit Beasts, and Evil Spirit Masters.

This was the goal Feihuang hoped to achieve.

"Little brother, keep it up; with your talent, you will surely fulfill your dreams." Nan Feiyan watched Feihuang's back and secretly cheered him on.

With Xue Ye dead today, the Heaven Dou Empire would be leaderless; Xue Ke did not understand politics, so in most cases, Feihuang would act as Regent.

In this way, the opportunity for the Gu Lei Kingdom would arrive.

After all, as the eldest princess of a kingdom, Nan Feiyan's cultivation talent was not as outstanding as Nan Feiling's, but her political sensitivity was not low.

Feihuang walked into the main hall and saw the Great Emperor Xue Ye lying on the bed with a pale face, his lips cracked and blackened, and his face purple; this was clearly a sign of poison having entered his bone marrow.

It had reached a point where even if Dugu Bo and Ye Nichang joined forces, or even if Feihuang took action himself, he could not be saved.

"Your Majesty!" Feihuang stepped forward to pay his respects.

"Feihuang, you've come. It's a pity that I can no longer see you." The deadly poison within Xue Ye had destroyed his eyes, leaving him completely blind.

Feihuang stepped forward and sat beside Xue Ke, "Your Majesty, I am right here. If you have anything you wish to entrust to Feihuang, please speak."

Xue Ye said weakly, "Feihuang, in this life, I have truly been a failure. The country was not managed well, the nobles were rotten to the core, and the Spirit Hall took advantage of the situation. All four of my sons died unnatural deaths; I truly have no face to see my ancestors. Now, Ke'er is my only child; she is simple and kind-hearted. I know deep down that she actually lacks the ability to hold power, but I have no other choice. Feihuang, you are Ke'er's husband; I hope that in the future, you will take good care of her and not let her suffer any grievances."

(End of chapter)