Chapter 1334: [Ambition] (Part 1)

Hu Xiaotian leveraged the force of a step, his body soaring again like a great bird swooping down on Long Tingzhen and the others fleeing ahead.

Long Tingzhen snorted coldly, grabbed Long Xuan'en and hurled him at Hu Xiaotian, shouting fiercely, "Return him!"

Hu Xiaotian saw the old emperor being thrown over like a ball, hastily reached out, caught his body in midair, then gently lowered him to the ground. Long Xuan'en was covered in blood, his arm bones shattered by Long Tingzhen's grip, suffering immensely.

Long Xuan'en grabbed Hu Xiaotian's wrist and said, "Beloved minister… save me…"

Hu Xiaotian sighed, "Your Majesty, rest assured, I will do my best to save you." In truth, he didn't care whether the emperor lived or died, but holding him seemed still useful. He looked ahead and saw Long Tingzhen's group had already fled into Tianhe Dian.

At that moment, thousands of Feather Forest Army troops arrived from afar to reinforce, their leader shouting, "Hu Xiaotian, you traitor, actually plotting rebellion and holding the emperor hostage!"

Hu Xiaotian looked toward the voice and saw the leader was Mu Rongzhan; sensing trouble, he said to Long Xuan'en, "Why don't you say something!"

Supported by Hu Xiaotian, Long Xuan'en barely stood and shouted with all his might, "Listen, you all: Hu Xiaotian is loyal—he… saved me… come quickly to rescue the emperor!" Seeing Mu Rongzhan leading the Feather Forest Army, he still thought he could be saved.

The Feather Forest Army archers had finished forming ranks, nocked arrows aimed at Hu Xiaotian, and Mu Rongzhan bellowed, "Your Majesty, you need not worry; we will surely rescue you from the rebel's hands, Hu Xiaotian! Rebel, why don't you surrender?"

A cold smile curled Hu Xiaotian's lips; he had long anticipated this outcome, while the old emperor Long Xuan'en still seemed unaware of what was happening. He shouted hoarsely, "Lower your arrows, Hu Xiaotian is a loyal subject… he saved the emperor…"

Hu Xiaotian patted his shoulder and said, "You'd better give up; they intend to kill more than just me."

By now Long Xuan'en fully understood, trembling with rage, he spat, "Rebel! All of them are rebels with wolfish ambition!"

Hu Xiaotian said, "Run, while they haven't shot their arrows—leave this place first."

Long Xuan'en asked, "How to leave?"

Hu Xiaotian grabbed him and hoisted him onto his shoulder; Long Xuan'en screamed in terror. Hu Xiaotian said, "Everyone says I kidnapped the emperor—this matter is as impossible to wash clean as jumping into the Yellow River; I admit it, hoping someone will still hesitate to act against me for fear of harming an innocent."

At Mu Rongzhan's command, arrows rained down like locusts toward Hu Xiaotian and his burden. Anticipating this, Hu Xiaotian had already fled toward Tianhe Dian at the moment of the order; his aim was not to enter Tianhe Dian but to break out of the Feather Forest Army's encirclement.

After several leaps, his body reached the roof of Tianhe Dian, standing on the golden glazed tiles. Looking around, he saw Feather Forest Army troops continually closing in from all sides. The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind; Long Tingzhen had sparked this palace coup, not realizing he himself was merely another prey.

Taking advantage of the moment before the Feather Forest Army's encirclement was complete, Hu Xiaotian leapt from the roof of Tianhe Dian, swooping down through a gap and escaping with Long Xuan'en.

Long Tingzhen's group rushed into Tianhe Dian. The hall was empty; Long Tingzhen roared, "Master! Master!"

Suddenly, a Palace Bell rang above them; several people lifted their heads to look up, and numerous deep Lan-colored beams burst forth. Shining down upon them, Long Tingzhen felt dizzy at the sight of the Lan light, plopping onto the ground; the guards behind him, like deflated balls, instantly grew weak and limp under the Lan illumination.

Qiqi sat in the warm sunlight yet still felt chilly; Quan De'an observed closely, fetched a cloak for her to wear, and Qiqi exhaled, asking, "How is it?"

Quan De'an said, "The Feather Forest Army has begun entering the Imperial City, advancing fully to suppress the rebels."

Qiqi closed her beautiful eyes.

Quan De'an knew her mood was complicated and didn't want to disturb her; as he quietly withdrew, Hong Beimo arrived.

Hong Beimo approached Qiqi respectfully and said, "Your Highness, we have completely subdued Long Tingzhen's rebel faction."

Qiqi opened her lovely eyes, but the news failed to bring the expected joy; she softly asked, "What about the emperor?"

Hong Beimo's expression turned somewhat embarrassed; he pursed his lips and said, "He was abducted by Hu Xiaotian!"

"What?" Qiqi sprang to her feet, her heart a mix of shock, anger, and even a hint of relief—no one could fathom her complex feelings at that moment.

Hong Beimo hastily bowed his head: "This old servant is useless!"

Qiqi turned to Quan De'an, who hurriedly said, "I used the Black Iron Chain to bind him, and sealed his Dantian Qi Sea; escaping should have been impossible."

Qiqi let out a cold laugh: "Impossible? The very thing you deemed impossible has indeed happened!"

Quan De'an blushed with shame: "This old servant admits his guilt!"

Qiqi coldly replied, "Forget it; he's always full of tricks—perhaps his capture just now was merely a feint, and we can't be sure."

Hong Beimo reminded Qiqi, "The emperor being taken by him may cause trouble."

Qiqi smiled faintly, "Isn't that demoness still in our grasp? Him abducting the emperor serves no other purpose than to use him as a bargaining chip for the demoness's life." She stepped forward, a faint smile touching her lips: "A loss may be a blessing in disguise; his action isn't necessarily bad—it actually confirms the charge of rebellion."

Hong Beimo said, "Hu Xiaotian's subordinates, under the pretense of naval drills in Yunze, have deployed troops; their aim is to pressure the court. I believe once word spreads from here, they will act."

Qiqi asked, "Didn't you say you had a countermeasure?"

Hong Beimo smiled and nodded, "We've already stationed forces in Yuyang Cheng; if they dare to attack, we'll make them suffer badly."

Hu Xiaotian, carrying Long Xuan'en, scrambled into Zilan Palace, passing through various parts of the imperial palace where corpses of dead palace personnel lay everywhere; the turmoil stirred by Long Tingzhen had killed many innocents. The well that once linked to secret passages in Zilan Palace has been filled in; Hu Xiaotian kicked open the study's door, entered, and tossed Long Xuan'en onto the floor. After stepping out to check the exterior situation and confirming no one would search here soon, he returned to the study.

After this ordeal and fright, Long Xuan'en had barely half his life left, stammering, "You… what exactly do you intend to do with me?"

Hu Xiaotian bent low and whispered, "Do you know why you've ended up like this?"

Long Xuan'en trembled, "Long Tingzhen harbors wolfish ambition; he… he wants to usurp the throne…"

Hu Xiaotian chuckled coldly, "The one who wants to seize the throne is Qiqi; you're truly an old fool!"

Hearing Hu Xiaotian say that struck Long Xuan'en like thunderbolts; he stood stunned for a while before uttering, "Qiqi? I… I loved her so dearly, why would she do this? Why treat me thus?" Although he had learned the truth, he could not yet accept it.

Hu Xiaotian pulled a chair and sat: "It's all your own fault—you cling to the throne relentlessly. When your son first drove you from the throne, you struggled to regain it, and I thought you'd learn from the setback, yet you remain utterly foolish, still refusing to relinquish the throne, which has led to today's outcome."

Long Xuan'en didn't even hear those words, muttering, "Why? Why does she treat me like this?" He suddenly lifted his head: "It must be Hong Beimo, who incited Tingzhen to rebel, then joined forces with Qiqi under the pretense of suppressing rebels and purging the court, eliminating Tingzhen afterward, so Qiqi would naturally ascend the throne, with Tingzhen merely their tool."

Hu Xiaotian couldn't help but laugh: "You're not completely foolish after all."

Long Xuan'en looked at Hu Xiaotian and asked, "Why does Qiqi want to deal with you?" After speaking, he nodded: "Now I understand—her poisoning was a feint, and you too are slated for removal in her scheme. Heck, what a vicious girl, truly a descendant of my Long clan." Thinking that the misfortune wasn't his alone, he felt a slight ease.

Hu Xiaotian said, "This is no place to linger; we now share the same misfortune, and to survive we must set aside past grudges and cooperate." Facing the ruler of Dakang, Hu Xiaotian felt no respect left for him.

Long Xuan'en also grasped that a faded phoenix is no better than a chicken; judging from the current situation, Qiqi, Hong Beimo, Mu Rongzhan, and others have laid meticulous plans, already controlling the palace and imperial city, leaving him no chance to turn things over—whether he cooperates with Hu Xiaotian or not, he likely cannot escape death. He sighed, "My plight today is entirely of my own making; perhaps it's best to let things run their course."

Hu Xiaotian asked, "Do you really resign yourself to dying like this? Hong Beimo has always been loyal to you—why did he suddenly turn traitor? Don't you want to know the reason?"

Long Xuan'en closed his eyes, appearing unmoved by Hu Xiaotian's words.

Hu Xiaotian asked, "What exactly lies in that imperial mausoleum? What did Hong Beimo say to make you willingly exhaust the treasury, burden the populace, and mobilize the nation to build a royal tomb—could completing the imperial city truly grant immortality?"

Upon hearing the words "eternal life," Long Xuan'en's eyes snapped open: "Hong Beimo truly possesses extraordinary talent."

Hu Xiaotian said, "You must have gained his favor, otherwise you wouldn't have trusted him for so many years. What is your relation to Ling Jiazi? Do you know the function of the Seven-Star Chain hidden in your scroll?"

Long Xuan'en stared agape: "How… how could you know?"

On the last day of 2015, if you still have a monthly ticket in hand, cast it quickly! (To be continued~^~)