Though Li Zhai had been secretly shackled at the shoulder blades and stripped of his cultivation, the ferocity and murderous aura about him were even stronger than before. Like a sick tiger that had never seen daylight, he sneered coldly. "Hate you? Of course I do. I'd love to skin you alive, break every bone in your body, and hang you from the city gate after I've beaten you to death."
The emperor paced over and looked down at his son, who sat on the ground with limp muscles and bones. "Just like me, as expected."
"But, Li Zhai."
"I fathered you and raised you."
"And you believe my authority was built entirely on the blood of the people."
"Then everything you've received since childhood was provided by me. Wasn't it all stained with the people's blood, just as filthy?"
A flicker of pain crossed Li Zhai's eyes.
The emperor spoke calmly. His sleeve swept across the air, and he sat down on the luxurious couch in front of Li Zhai. Looking at his son, whose aura was as vicious as a sick tiger's, he said:
"Since you were a child, I gave you silks and satins, countless treasures, fine clothes, and delicacies. I had people teach you martial arts, and I even found the Leader of the School of Military from the previous generation to teach you the art of war, bit by bit. Li Zhai, even if I have failed the world, I can say that I never wronged you. Isn't that so?"
"You are my son. I raised you to be a success, and now you've turned around and killed me."
"You and I really are a sovereign who is no sovereign, a subject who is no subject, a father who is no father, and a son