Night had fallen deep.
A week had passed since Sea Dragon and Sea Spear left Heaven Dou City.
A stifling atmosphere filled Heaven Dou Palace.
Outside the bedchamber, eunuchs and maids knelt in dense, dark rows.
One could easily imagine what momentous event would unfold tonight.
The bedchamber door stood slightly ajar. Xie Ru approached slowly from the end of the corridor, his steps light.
The palace servants on either side only felt a breeze sweep over their heads. By the time they looked up again, that figure was already standing before the bedchamber door.
The old eunuch guarding the door recognized him. His throat moved slightly, yet he ultimately did not dare make a sound, merely lowering his forehead respectfully to the floor.
After all, if a Title Douluo did not wish to be noticed, then he could only pretend not to know.
Otherwise, he would not even know how he died.
He had no desire to be buried alongside the emperor.
Xie Ru pushed open the door and entered the bedchamber.
Inside, Xue Ye reclined against the dragon bed, his complexion ashen. Only a trace of vitality remained in his eyes.
At this moment, he looked more like an ordinary old man weathered by life's hardships than the ruler of a nation.
Hearing the door open, Xue Ye slowly turned his head, his voice slightly hoarse. "Teacher."
To see his teacher at the final moment of his life meant this life had not been lived in vain.
His sons?
To an emperor, offspring were merely tools of succession. The imperial family might possess a sliver of familial affection, but before something like imperial power, that little affection could be ignored.
So even if all his children were seated before him, to Xue Ye, it would not amount to