The Overbearing Snow Empress

This incident spread like wildfire through every corner of the Heaven Dou imperial palace, its speed even surpassing the Xue Beng affair. That wasn't surprising—after all, the deceased was a count's son, brutally murdered in a Heaven Dou Royal Academy classroom, right in front of numerous noble children, by a commoner.

More importantly, Lang Lei had taken no measures to silence or threaten the witnesses into keeping secrets. Amid the chaos and panic, the news spread like wildfire, quickly engulfing the entire academy. From the students, it raced through Heaven Dou City and eventually reached Xue Ye's ears.

As for the Xue Beng matter... Xue Xing himself found it deeply shameful, and coupled with his fear, he deliberately sent people to suppress the news, hoping to buy some time before Xue Ye came to settle accounts with him.

The three academic committee members of Heaven Dou Royal Academy, faced with this situation, dared not act on their own. They understood the gravity of the matter and, without a moment's hesitation, decided to send Lang Lei directly to the Heaven Dou imperial palace, letting Xue Ye handle this thorny problem.

"Oh, Crown Prince, we meet again!"

Qian Renxue's lips twitched slightly as she inwardly sighed. In less than twenty-four hours, Lang Lei had already stirred up such a massive mess for her.

Still, despite this, Qian Renxue felt no urge to distance herself from Lang Lei. After all, he was a divine heir—how could she let something so trivial drive a wedge between them?

Moreover, the two powerhouses backing Lang Lei were well worth Qian Renxue's efforts to win over. So, no matter what, she wouldn't easily abandon her connection with him.

Under normal circumstances, Qian Renxue might have feigned neutrality, but right now, she made no effort to hide her intent to protect Lang Lei.

As the saying goes, "It's easy to add flowers to brocade, but hard to send charcoal in the snow." People rarely remember those who flatter them in good times, but they never forget those who help them in adversity.

"Little brother Lang Lei, you've really landed me in a big mess this time!" Qian Renxue deliberately put on a troubled expression.

"Haha, Crown Prince, rest assured—I won't make things difficult for you!" Lang Lei quickly thumped his chest, swearing confidently, "I'll take full responsibility for this!"

He already had a rough plan for this matter. With luck, he might even profit a bit more.

"What are you saying, little brother Lang Lei? Don't worry—I'll always be your strongest support."

No, you're not.

Lang Lei wanted to say that, but now wasn't the time to spoil the mood, so he held back.

"Alright, then thank you for your support, Crown Prince."

In this lively scene, the surrounding nobles stared in shock at Crown Prince Xue Qinghe, hardly believing their eyes. Xue Qinghe was openly making such a reckless move, and he was the Crown Prince of Heaven Dou Empire!

All eyes fell on Xue Qinghe, who showed not a trace of anger toward the murderer but instead defended the criminal. This baffled everyone present, especially Fleke's father, Count Iskart.

Count Iskart's face had turned an ugly shade, dark enough to change his ethnicity. The slain Fleke was his legitimate eldest son, his only son! He had placed all his hopes on this child, his pride and joy.

To that end, Count Iskart had even arranged for Fleke to associate with Prince Xue Beng, hoping to elevate his family's standing. But now, this tragedy had struck—Fleke was brutally murdered, and Crown Prince Xue Qinghe was laughing and chatting with the killer. How could he not be furious to the extreme?

Lang Lei naturally sensed the intense malice radiating from nearby, but he paid it no mind. After all, too many people bore him ill will—so many that he couldn't be bothered to care. If he tried to retaliate against everyone on that long list, even as a Sea Ranger, he'd be exhausted.

Finally, after a long wait, a guard hurried over to inform Lang Lei that he could enter the palace. Lang Lei's lips curled into a relaxed smile as he strode lightly toward the palace.

He took in the surroundings with interest, even ignoring Xue Ye on the throne and the ministers around him, as if they were nothing but irrelevant backdrop.

To be honest, Lang Lei didn't hate the existence of leaders. On the contrary, he believed most people needed guidance and direction. But he deeply loathed emperors as a specific type of leader. In his view, emperors weren't true leaders—they were dictators.

A good leader should listen to the people's voices, care for their needs, and work for their welfare. But emperors only cared about their own power and interests, treating the people as tools to be used at will. Lang Lei knew well the evils such tyranny could bring, especially when the emperor was a fool—the harm went far beyond a few deaths.

From the rampant arrogance of the noble brats at Heaven Dou Royal Academy and the nobles' casual oppression of commoners, Lang Lei could see that Xue Ye was far from a good emperor, let alone a wise one. He couldn't help but wonder how, in a world like Douluo Continent where strength reigned supreme, an empire like Heaven Dou had managed to survive this long.

Lang Lei had also heard that the emperor of Star Luo Empire was a Titled Douluo, and when using the Martial Soul Fusion Skill with Empress Zhu, his combat power approached that of a Super Douluo. But what about Heaven Dou Empire? The entire royal family couldn't produce a single Titled Douluo, and even Soul Douluos were rare.

Was the imperial ideology of Heaven Dou Empire so deeply ingrained that no one had ever cried out, "The heavens are dead; the yellow heaven shall rise"?

"How dare you! In the presence of His Majesty, why do you not kneel?"

Seeing Lang Lei's behavior, Count Iskart seized the opportunity and bellowed.

Lang Lei glanced at him but ignored him.

"Lang Lei, do you know your crime?"

"Old emperor, you're direct enough. But what crime have I committed?"

"How dare you!"

Hearing Lang Lei's disrespectful address, Xue Ye slammed his hand on the dragon throne. The two Soul Douluos guarding him immediately lunged at Lang Lei.

But before they could even touch him, they were frozen into ice sculptures.

A chill spread through the hall as two figures, one large and one small, walked into the palace.

"Try touching him," they said, "and see what happens."