The Emperor Has Passed Away!

Night had fallen, and the dark clouds over Heaven Dou City hung extremely low, preventing any moonlight from penetrating. The entire Imperial City seemed to be encased in an overturned iron pot.

The wind had long since stopped, and even the copper bells on the eaves hung motionless. The air was stuffy and humid, and breathing it into my lungs carried a heavy, damp feeling, as if a heavy rain was about to fall at any moment.

The lights were still on in the Xue Ye. The bedroom was not large and the furnishings were simple: a dragon bed, a desk with several stacks of folded paper on it.

Xue Ye, dressed in a bright yellow casual robe, sat behind his desk flipping through memorials, his expression somewhat weary.

He was in his early fifties, with most of his hair already white, and deep wrinkles around his eyes. He would occasionally pause as he turned the pages, as if he was not satisfied with a certain passage.

"Knock knock knock... Your Majesty, I have come to bring you tea." A soft knocking sound came from outside the palace door.

Xue Ye looked up and said, "Come in."

As soon as he finished speaking, an Old Eunuch dressed in gray entered carrying a tea tray. He walked very lightly, with his head down, and his gray hair was neatly combed.

"Your Majesty, you should rest now." The Old Eunuch placed the tea tray on the corner of the table, picked up the celadon teacup on it, and gently placed it beside Xue Ye.

Xue Ye didn't look up, casually picked up his teacup, took a sip, and couldn't help but frown. "Why is today's tea a bit astringent?"

The Old Eunuch said expressionlessly, "Your Majesty, it's this year's new tea. It might not be fully brewed yet. This old servant will replace it with a different batch tomorrow."

"No need, this is fine." Xue Ye put down her teacup, closed the folding book in her hand, leaned back in her chair, and rubbed her temples.

The Old Eunuch stood quietly to the side, awaiting Xue Ye's instructions.

Xue Ye glanced at the Old Eunuch and casually asked, "How many years have you served me?"

"Your Majesty, it has been twelve years."

"Twelve years..." Xue Ye repeated the number, her tone tinged with emotion, "I can't believe so much time has passed, even Qinghe has grown up."

The Old Eunuch lowered his head and remained silent.

Xue Ye seemed to have no expectation of him responding, and continued on her own, "The Crown Prince of Qinghe is doing a good job; most people in the court respect him, and the army listens to him as well."

"Sometimes I think, perhaps I should hand over the throne to him sooner rather than later, so I can finally have some peace and quiet."

At this point, Xue Ye's tone suddenly turned cold. "However, Qinghe is being far too hasty. Having ambition is a good thing, but having too much ambition can cost you your head."

As soon as he finished speaking, Xue Ye's aura suddenly condensed, and he spat out the tea in his mouth, laughing at the Old Eunuch: "Qinghe sent you, didn't he? He certainly has a lot of nerve."

"Your Majesty, I don't know what you're talking about." The Old Eunuch, his face pale, hurriedly knelt down and kowtowed in a panic.

"Heh... I don't know what you're talking about?" Xue Ye picked up his teacup, unleashing his full Soul Douluo aura, and coldly said to the Old Eunuch, "You clearly know—"

"Thump!" Xue Ye suddenly felt his body go limp and collapsed to the ground with a thud. His face was contorted in rage, his eyes rolled back, and he struggled to speak, "Impossible! What kind of poison is this? I clearly didn't drink it..."

"Clatter!" The teacup slipped from his hand and smashed on the table, spilling tea all over the table.

"Father, if you can withstand the poison enhanced by the Snow-Colored Swan Kiss, I will personally hand over my head to you."

The Old Eunuch slowly straightened up, his face suddenly changing to Xue Qinghe's handsome face.

"Qinghe... you actually..."

Before he could finish speaking, Xue Ye slid off the back of his chair.

He collapsed to the ground, his body convulsing a few times. His mouth moved as if he was about to say something, but then he fell completely still. His eyes were still open, staring at Xue Qinghe with unseeing eyes.

"How could such an important matter be entrusted to outsiders? Of course, the real plan cannot be told to anyone." Xue Qinghe walked to the corpse of Xue Ye with a cold laugh.

He crouched down, and after confirming that the other's pulse had completely stopped, he took out a blade of grass that glowed with a pale purple light from his sleeve and placed it on the chest of Xue Ye.

"It's all over." Xue Qinghe sighed, and a faint wisp of Soul Power shot out from his fingertip and disappeared into the Immortal Herb.

On the leaves of the Thunderlight Purple Splendor Grass, the extremely fine arcs of electricity instantly lit up, the pale purple light grew stronger and stronger, and the lightning patterns between the veins of the leaves began to pulsate wildly.

"Boom--!"

Outside the palace, the dark clouds that had been gathering all night were finally stirred up. Lightning began to surge deep within the clouds, and the muffled sound turned into a continuous roar, as if a hole had been torn open in the entire sky.

Xue Qinghe looked up at the window and activated his disguise Soul Skill again, transforming into Yu Tianheng's appearance. His martial Martial Soul also changed to the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon, constantly emitting lightning aura.

"Boom!"

A sudden clap of thunder struck the sky, causing the glazed tiles of the palace to shake and dust to fall from the beams.

A bright white bolt of lightning struck down from the clouds, landing squarely on the roof of the palace. The glazed tiles shattered, fragments flew everywhere, and flames spread from the roof.

The lightning bolt pierced through the roof and struck the corpse of Xue Ye, instantly charring his body black.

The light on the veins of the Thunderlight Purple Splendor Grass reached its peak the moment lightning struck, and then quickly dimmed.

Half of the Immortal Herb was burned to ashes by lightning and fire, leaving only a few withered leaves, charred and stuck to the chest of Xue Ye.

The fire spread from the inner room outwards, billowing thick smoke. Upon seeing this, Xue Qinghe decisively leaped away, disappearing into the night on the roof tiles.

"Your Majesty, you're alright!" Two guards rushed in, only to find broken tiles scattered all over the ground, burning curtains, billowing smoke, and the illusory figure of Xue Ye slumped on the bed.

The Xue Ye had now been turned into a sea of fire.

"Fire! The Emperor has been murdered!"

Before long, hundreds of Imperial Guards clad in iron armor stormed into the palace. Snake Lance Douluo calmly commanded, "Seal off the palace immediately! No one is allowed to enter or leave. The thieves are definitely still at the crime scene. Thoroughly investigate Heaven Dou City!"

By the time the fire was extinguished, it was already dawn.

Xue Qinghe led hundreds of guards into the ruins and stopped beside the body of Xue Ye.

The sky was overcast, and the morning breeze carried the smell of burning.

A muffled bell tolled in the distance, one after another—the death knell of the Xue Ye.

"His Majesty has passed away!"

The eunuch's high-pitched voice came from the direction of the palace gate, passing through layers of palace walls and spreading throughout the entire Imperial City.