"Tell the emperor to come out and see me!"
The summons rang through the imperial palace, striking terror into the soldiers guarding it!
Earlier, they had seen a scarlet meteor fall into the palace and thought the earth would shake and the mountains would tremble. Never had they imagined that the meteor was a person!
"An immortal!"
Cries of alarm rose on every side. Squad after squad of soldiers rushed toward the open square where Huang Tian and the others stood. Once they saw the "immortal" for themselves, some dropped to their knees, some looked on in doubt and swallowed nervously, while others quietly backed away to watch from afar.
In the inner palace, the consorts and palace maids had all been awakened. Still bewildered, the consorts sent their servants to find out what had happened.
Meanwhile, the sovereign of Great Qi, the Son of Heaven revered by countless subjects, was being shaken awake by the empress beside him.
"Your Majesty? Your Majesty!" The empress shook his shoulder and gently patted his arm.
The emperor of Great Qi, a man in his forties, opened his eyes with difficulty and slowly sat up. "What's happened?" he asked, somewhat displeased. "Why wake me at this hour?"
"I heard a voice just now, loud as thunder. It said—it said it wanted to see Your Majesty." Frowning, the empress pointed outside the hall. "Listen. There are footsteps everywhere. Something has clearly happened. I expect that shout startled them all."
The emperor listened closely. Sure enough, he heard a jumble of footsteps and voices, and even the faint scrape of armor in the distance. Cold sweat broke out across his back!
"Could someone be rebelling?!" His expression changed, and he sprang from the bed, shouting, "Someone! Come—"
Clang~
Before he could finish, the hall doors