This was Emperor Yu's first outburst of rage. His words carried immense authority, yet in the face of the tide now sweeping Tai Yu, they drew countless jeers. Even the weakest children of the Primordial Chaos Clan mocked him for losing the loyalty of his people, for coming close to losing his wife and children too...
"Congratulations, Your Highness..."
Beside the Seventeenth Prince, the consorts, princes, and princesses all turned to him. There was little joy in their congratulations. They knew full well that Tai Yu's common people and lower ranks had turned against the empire, with even the Eldest Prince leading the way. The only ones who might still support Emperor Yu were his wives and children.
"Me? The crown prince..."
The Seventeenth Prince, who had already lost the Divine Oracle Furnace, stood under every eye, bewildered. The Eldest Prince's declaration that the empire had fallen and Emperor Yu's hysteria tore at his thoughts. He found himself remembering the days he had spent adventuring with Li Tianming during the Yu Ruins Trial. Those days had been miserable, but they had also been exhilarating. Now his heart felt torn in two.
He was the crown prince?
He had never dared dream of it before.
Yet now that the dream had come true, he felt no wild joy. Only pain. He stared at Emperor Yu, then at the radiant Li Tianming emerging from the protective barrier. In his former friend, he saw the fury of tens of millions, including countless members of the Primordial Chaos Clan.
Amid that fury, he could almost see the billion members of the Primordial Chaos Clan who had been refined in the Blood Sacrifice Furnace. They had welcomed Emperor Yu with open arms, only to become fuel for the furnace. Their agony and despair as they