Chapter 1058: The Secret of the Golden Throne

Three days later.

In the top-floor office of the Consul Hall at He Palace, Lei En saw off the last batch of Empire senators, then sat in his chair and exhaled gently.

For the past three days, he has done almost nothing but accept loyalty!

Nobles and lords from across the lands, provincial governors, heads of the great legions and knightly orders, internal ministers, Empire senators, mayors and city lords, vassal kingdoms and duchies beyond the Empire, and various factions within the Empire swarmed to Nuosiruier, seeking an audience with the emperor outside the walls of the Floating Shell Castle.

Their purpose was singular: to offer their loyalty to the emperor.

Although many had long cooperated closely with the Consul, that was merely cooperation; Lei En's status has shifted from Consul to emperor, changing a hierarchical relationship into one between ruler and subjects, and the Empire's political landscape will undergo a major reshuffle.

If one does not wish to be purged, one must pledge allegiance to the emperor immediately.

Lei En indeed harbors plans for reform.

But the immediate priority is to balance the Empire's power transition, so in the short term—at least three to five years—he has no intention of sweeping reforms, instead accepting the loyalty of various forces to steady public sentiment.

During these three days, every Empire newspaper has been publishing endless reports, with the emperor and the doctrine that "power comes from the people" as the central theme.

Lei En, while receiving loyalty from all sides, also tasks the Thundercast Celestial Soldiers hidden among the populace to monitor public reaction.

Broadly speaking, the Empire's citizens do not oppose his coronation; most accept it gladly and welcome it enthusiastically.

Some even whisper privately that the Consul should have claimed the throne long ago!

Few lament the dissolution of the Supreme Council; this is evidently the result of the Ministry of Education's work over the past decade, with thousands of newly built schools using standardized textbooks that portray the Supreme Council in a neutral, even slightly disparaging, manner.

Young people raised in schools have an extremely high approval rating for the Consul.

By age distribution, young people's support for the emperor far exceeds that of middle‑aged and older citizens; many youths even reach a level of worship, treating him as a deity.

The youth also love to speak out, debating loudly and offering grand pronouncements.

Whether on street corners or in newspaper editorials, supporters of the emperor constitute an overwhelming majority; even the few who voice discontent or nostalgia for the Supreme Council are swiftly drowned out by a flood of opposition, wielding little influence.

In just three short days, people have already accepted the fact that the Empire now has an emperor.

To the vast majority of commoners, the emperor remains too distant to feel any immediate change, so after the initial shock and excitement, life quickly returned to calm.

But for Lei En, the new challenges are just beginning!

He rose and walked to the window, looking toward Rike Palace.

After the coronation, the millennia‑sealed Rike Palace was reactivated; the Rike Guard stationed themselves around the magnificent palace, a post every five steps and a sentry every ten, maintaining strict vigilance. Before the towering palace gates, a squad of Imperial Fist stood on each side, while several other Imperial Fist units patrolled constantly inside and outside the palace.

Behind Rike Palace lies the emperor's inner court, including the sleeping chambers, prayer hall, training arena, royal garden, and so on, occupying more than half of Floating Shell Castle's area.

In fact, the entire Floating Shell Castle was once the emperor's private domain.

But over the past millennium, both Rike Palace and the inner court were sealed, He Palace was converted into the Consul's office area, and the Temple of Truth was erected.

Now that the emperor has returned, the inner court will naturally be reactivated.

But Lei En is not enthusiastic about this.

More than four or five Empire senators and nobles earnestly offered to fund and labor on rebuilding the inner court for the emperor, but Lei En rejected them all.

Indeed, Lei En does not even plan to reside permanently in Rike Palace, intending to continue working out of He Palace.

A leap of spirit.

Lei En appeared inside Rike Palace, standing before the Golden Throne.

"Your Majesty!"

A group of beautiful palace maids were carefully polishing the palace's pillars and walls; they were recruited for the newly formed "Inner Court Department" overseen by Viola. The maids number fewer than a hundred, but each hails from noble families or possesses striking talent and beauty, and most are supernaturals from Longhaired Lady Freya's Beauty and Goodness Church.

The maids, upon suddenly seeing Lei En, were startled, quickly stepped forward to salute, their eyes filled with curiosity and awe.

"You may withdraw first," Lei En said calmly.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The maids bowed their heads and exited the palace; a few bold ones turned back to glance at the emperor, their eyes shimmering, their gazes radiant, striving to showcase their beauty and figure.

Unfortunately, Lei En has no inclination to admire them.

His attention is already fixed on the Golden Throne, observing the seat that symbolizes the Empire's dominion and the rune array beneath it.

That day, as soon as Lei En sat down, he sensed something was wrong; the coronation was still in progress, so he had to endure it for the time being.

When the avatars of the Empire's three gods departed, he immediately rose.

He didn't want to sit for even a second longer!

Now he finally has time to examine it closely.

Lei En activated the All-Seeing Eye, seeing through the floor, walls, and palace dome; his gaze followed the engraved lines, scanning the entire Floating Shell Castle piece by piece, scrutinizing every detail of the rune array.

After a moment.

A look of sudden realization appeared on Lei En's face.

This massive rune array can generate a magical field that shields the entire Floating Shell Castle and creates a spatial seal, accompanied by the Ten-ring Spell "Light of Destruction", integrating offense and defense with formidable power. He had heard of it long ago, so it was not surprising.

However, the rune array harbors a hidden danger!

According to records, it was laid out roughly 170 years after the Empire's founding, taking fifteen years to complete, and at that time there was no Iola Core.

Thus the rune array consumes a massive amount of Aetheric Energy Crystals.

If there are not enough Aetheric Energy Crystals, supernaturals must be used as consumables, directly extracting life force or soul power to sustain the rune array.

The Golden Throne is the control core of the rune array!

However, for some unknown unscrupulous individual, when the rune array was installed, a hidden mechanism was set: anyone who sits on the Golden Throne, regardless of whether the array has Aetheric Energy Crystals or is activated, will unknowingly have their life force drawn, gradually warping their mind.

Occasional sittings cause no issue, but prolonged occupancy of the Golden Throne will certainly shorten one's life and render one's mind unstable.

This magical trap is extremely concealed; ordinary people cannot detect it.

Even a Holy Soul Wizard would find it hard to discern any sign.

Since the era of Emperor Alfar the Great, none of the successive Oryense emperors has been a Saint Rank powerhouse; even the strongest were merely at Legendary Peak and were not spellcasters, so they were naturally kept in the dark.

Aside from the emperor, who would dare sit on the Golden Throne?

Thus the secret has been preserved to the present.

Lei En only now understands why, from the disappearance of Emperor Ai Erfa in New Era Calendar year 271 to the founding of the Supreme Council in year 1568—a span of nearly thirteen hundred years—there were over thirty emperors, averaging about forty years each on the throne.

In a previous age, an emperor ruling for forty years was considered a long reign.

But in Ai Lun E Si it was very short.

Among those over thirty emperors, none were Saint Rank strongmen, but most were Legendary High-rank transcendants, at least able to live three hundred years.

The lifespan of a Legendary High-rank can even more than double.

Although many emperors died by assassination, war, or accidents, shortening their reigns, none of the over thirty emperors died a natural death, which is definitely abnormal.

Moreover, most long‑reigning emperors grew from wise to incompetent, and some even became cold‑blooded tyrants.

The fact that the Supreme Council could seize power that year is also linked to the Empire producing several tyrants. People had grown weary of those on the Golden Throne, harboring endless hatred and hostility toward the tyrants; the royal family's downfall was a source of great satisfaction.

Among humanity's three great empires, only the Oriense Empire has this situation.

The oldest empire, the Lamon Empire, founded in New Era Calendar year 1, has so far passed down only five "Pharaoh Kings." The current ruler, Great Emperor Lamanidis, has governed the empire for thirteen hundred years, still a capable war leader, indulgent and lecherous, with tales of nightly conquests of a hundred women.

The Saref Empire values strength above all; the throne is inherited through duels, so succession is relatively frequent, yet since its founding in New Era Calendar year 800, it has had only twelve emperors.

This is a mystery of the world.

Historians have never been able to find an answer; folk rumors abound, even linking the cause to the curse of Thunder God's Hammer.

The full name of Thunder God's Hammer is "Thunder God's Fury, the Skull‑crushing Curse Hammer."

During the Third Epoch, the Dwarven Supreme King wielded this war hammer to smash a Phoenix King's skull; that Phoenix King was a demigod who, after death, cursed the hammer at the cost of his soul, ensuring that anyone who wields it will suffer backlash.

The prophecy later proved true; every successive wielder of the war hammer met a bad end.

The three Supreme Kings who used Thunder God's Hammer all died miserably.

Emperor Ai Erfa vanished inexplicably fifty years after the Empire's founding; after him, several generations of emperors who inherited the war hammer also met untimely ends. The hammer disappeared during the first Imperial civil war, until the Usurper Walde resurfaced with it, only to die under mysterious circumstances and extinguish the royal bloodline.

Now it seems the short lifespans of Oriense emperors have nothing to do with the war hammer.

The root lies in the Golden Throne.

Lei En stroked his chin, a thoughtful expression on his face, realizing the Golden Throne's trap might be a conspiracy!

He opened his phone's library and searched for a while, surprised to find no records of the rune array's creator. Logically, such an important matter would have left at least a trace, even if hidden, yet the histories were blank.

It was clear someone had er

ased those records, and it was a major figure.

"Who could it be?"

The Golden Throne was built while Emperor Ai Erfa was still alive; the rune array began to be laid out a hundred years after his disappearance, during the reign of the Empire's fourth emperor, around New Era Calendar year 400.

A Wizard capable of arranging the Ten-ring Spell in that era…

"Augulevi Master!"

In Lei En's mind appeared the image of a Spirit-absorbing Monster's brain Lich; Augulevi was the first Holy Soul Wizard in history, attaining Holy Soul Ascension in New Era Calendar year 384. Over two hundred years later, in year 593, the second Holy Soul Wizard emerged, none other than KangJieladeGreatSage.

The events occurred over two thousand years ago; those people have long vanished into history's dust, and only Augulevi has survived to the present.

This is likely his handiwork.

As for the reason, Lei En speculated that Augulevi has been targeting emperors from early on, paving the way for the later Supreme Council's seizure of power.

Over the long ages, Augulevi may have plotted many conspiracies, hiding behind the scenes, participating in and even directing numerous historical events, manipulating emperors at his fingertips.

"This old monster!"

Lei En felt even more wary.

An old fellow who has lived over two thousand years has seen far too much; I must not be careless.

"This rune array needs to be reactivated, but it requires some modification."

Lei En paced the empty palace, studying the rune array's structure while pondering its redesign.

Now I hold supreme power, ascending the Empire.

But not everyone can be truly loyal; during the past three days of swearing fealty, the Soul Eye detected several schemers—outwardly professing loyalty while inwardly unwilling, even full of hatred.

There will be plenty of time later to deal with them; Lei En is not afraid, but his family and children might be implicated.

Not to mention, his enemies also include an Evil God!

The deceiver's threat looms like a whisper; its followers will stop at nothing and may strike at his family.

Lei En quickly devised several plans; first, he must install an Iola Core to supply power and eliminate the Golden Throne's hidden danger. Though the magical trap has little effect on him—sitting on it for ten years is fine—but the constant suction beneath his seat feels uncomfortable.

"The power of the Destruction Light is quite good and more suitable, but this rune array was laid out over two thousand years ago; many concepts are outdated, and its energy usage is rather crude…"

"Then perhaps we should just build a magical torch of light."

"That would also encompass Nuosiruier within the illumination range, making it safer." Lei En stood alone before the Golden Throne, his mind gradually forming a resolve.

Suddenly, he removed the crown from his head and examined it in his hand.

This crown, woven from golden osmanthus branches, was originally the core carrier of Luoxi's High-level Avatar; the dagger in its hand was a second‑tier artifact, but the God of Magic erased Luoxi's seal and divine power, melting the blade and casting it into the crown.

The Empire's Three Gods jointly poured massive divine power into it, ultimately creating it and naming it the "Three Gods Crown."

It is a second‑tier artifact!

Lei En toyed with the crown in his hand, as if it were neither an artifact nor a treasure symbolizing the emperor's title, his face thoughtful.

The Empire's Three Gods spared no effort in forging the Three Gods Crown, investing divine power that nearly drained their avatars. After the coronation, the avatars could barely sustain themselves and immediately returned to their respective divine realms.

Naturally, the Three Gods Crown's might is immense, fully deserving the name of an artifact!

(End of Chapter)