My Sun Moon Empire's Royal Family is Harmonious, Brotherly Love and Filial Piety Abound!

"Your Majesty, Prince Ming requests an audience."

Xu Tianran paused his pen, a smile appearing on his face.

"Let him in."

Soon, Xu Tianyao pushed the door open and entered.

When the two brothers were in private these days, there was no longer any need for excessive formalities.

"Greetings, Imperial Brother."

"Sit."

Xu Tianran set down the memorial in his hand and looked up to ask, "Has the banquet concluded?"

"It has."

Xu Tianyao nodded, then recounted everything that had happened that night in full detail.

This included Xu Jiujiu's questions regarding the Mingdou Mountain Range.

It included the trade cooperation proposed by Wei Na and Xue Lingyue.

It also included Qian Duoduo's request to visit the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy and Mingde Hall.

Xu Tianran listened quietly throughout; only when the report was finished did he slowly lean back into his chair.

"You handled the trade matters very well."

"The future development of the Empire, whether for the livelihood of the people or the expansion of our military, requires vast resources."

"The fact that the three original Douluo nations are taking the initiative to open trade with us is actually a good thing."

"Exchanging our soul guidance industrial products for their minerals and raw materials not only aligns with our strategy but will also allow us to make a massive profit."

"You may continue to follow up on this matter."

Xu Tianyao nodded slightly, not surprised by this outcome.

However, the next moment, Xu Tianran's gaze turned sharp.

"As for Shrek..."

Speaking of the so-called exchange program and the plan to visit Mingde Hall proposed by Shrek, he could not help but feel conflicted.

"Tianyao, what is your take on this?"

He did not rush to a conclusion, wanting instead to hear Tianyao's thoughts first.

Xu Tianyao frowned, his eyes narrowing as he pondered before speaking.

"The exchange student program could be implemented; we only need to grant them access to the ordinary teaching areas."

"To be honest, I am also quite curious to see their so-called 'Number One Academy on the Continent' and see what their 'gods' look like."

Of course, Xu Tianyao wanted to go and see for himself; he was quite interested in poaching some of the talent from the other side.

He did not believe that an academy gathering the top geniuses of the continent would have a student body entirely loyal to the institution.

Regardless of how much could be brought back from there, it would be a huge win for the Sun Moon Empire.

After all, not a single student there possessed a weak martial soul. Bringing them to the Empire and passing on their martial soul lineages would only benefit the Empire, with no downsides.

It even included children from most of the great clans and sects; through them, one could potentially make contact with the forces behind them and stir up some trouble.

Hearing Xu Tianyao's response, Xu Tianran nodded and reached a decision.

"The exchange students are no issue. Let's do this: have both academies send a representative to discuss the specific details."

"If an agreement can be reached, there is no harm in going over to their side to take a look."

"As for Mingde Hall..."

Mentioning Mingde Hall, Xu Tianran inevitably fell silent.

"Mingde Hall is of vital importance and must never be easily shown to outsiders. Just refuse that request!"

Having finished with these external matters, Xu Tianran smiled and took a crown from a drawer at his side.

Xu Tianran placed it at Xu Tianyao's hand.

Xu Tianyao looked at the crown and saw an emblem of the sun and moon fused together engraved upon it, with the character "Ming" inscribed inside.

"Tomorrow is my coronation ceremony. This crown is a soul tool I had the craftsmen at Mingde Hall specially custom-make; it can trigger an absolute defense five times."

"At tomorrow's ceremony, you will wear it and follow behind me."

"I want the world to see that the Sun Moon Imperial family is harmonious, that the brothers are close. With such a royal family and such a prosperous age, the Empire will surely flourish for eternity!"

Watching his brother's expression and listening to the words he had just spoken, Xu Tianyao felt a stir in his heart.

Of all the brothers in the royal family, only the two of us remain, and the royal kinsmen have been almost entirely purged.

Who would have thought that in the end, we would still leave behind a legendary tale of royal harmony and brotherly affection.

History is indeed written by the victors.

The next morning, Ming Capital.

Within the Imperial City, ceremonial music rang out in unison.

As the first rays of dawn rose from the east, ninety-nine ceremonial cannons roared simultaneously.

BOOM!

The deafening thunder echoed across heaven and earth, as if the entire Ming Capital had awakened in that very moment.

Outside the palace perimeter, hundreds of thousands of citizens had long since gathered along the streets, countless heads tilted upward to gaze at the towering, solemn Imperial City.

And upon the plaza before the Imperial Zenith Hall, banners were as vast as a sea.

Civil officials stood on the east side, while military generals stood on the west.

Regional governors, legion commanders, imperial princes, and commanders of the Soul Engineer Legions from all corners of the empire were present in full.

Looking out, the dense crowd stretched for miles.

Everyone was dressed in their most formal attire, their expressions solemn.

Today was the day of the new emperor's ascension.

It was also the day the Sun Moon Empire turned a new page.

At the same time.

Delegations from the Xingluo Empire, Heaven Dou Empire, Douling Empire, and various major powers across the continent all stood in the viewing area.

Xu Jiujiu, Wei Na, Xue Lingyue, Qian Duoduo, and others were prominently among them.

Everyone's gaze converged upon the White Jade Heavenly Stairs leading to the highest point of the Imperial Zenith Hall.

There, it symbolized the most supreme power on the entire continent.

Suddenly, a long, resonant bell toll rang out.

Dong... Dong... Dong...

Exactly nine tolls.

In this moment, heaven and earth seemed to fall silent.

The great doors of the Imperial Zenith Hall slowly opened, and golden sunlight spilled down.

A figure clad in the Nine Dragon Sun Moon Imperial Robe stepped slowly from behind the doors.

Xu Tianran!

At this moment, he wore an imperial crown and was draped in the Twelve Pattern Dragon Robe, his expression majestic and calm.

Every gesture he made exuded the authority of an emperor.

The moment he appeared, hundreds of thousands of eyes in the plaza converged upon him.

Yet, what shocked everyone was this:

Half a step behind Xu Tianran, there was another figure also dressed in princely ceremonial robes.

Xu Tianyao!

The youth wore the Sun Moon Crown, with the Prince Ming Golden Seal hanging at his waist; the crown shimmered brilliantly under the sunlight.

In particular, the emblem of the sun and moon intertwined at the center of the crown appeared exceptionally dazzling.

The two walked one after the other, one emperor and one prince, emerging together from the Imperial Zenith Hall.

Seeing this scene, the pupils of countless officials constricted.

Many were deeply shaken; this was no laughing matter.

This was the new emperor's ascension ceremony, and the new emperor was declaring to the entire world:

The status of Prince Ming, Xu Tianyao, far exceeded that of any other prince! It had even reached the level of co-ruling the world with the emperor!

Below the White Jade Heavenly Stairs, an elderly Minister of Rites shouted aloud: "All officials, pay homage!"

"Bow!"

As these words fell, thousands of civil and military officials knelt simultaneously.

"Long live our Emperor, long live, long live!"

The mountain-shaking, sea-roaring sound surged straight into the clouds.

Following closely, hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians knelt in unison.

"Long live our Emperor, long live, long live!"

The sound rose in wave after wave, shaking the entire Imperial City until it seemed to echo.

Facing all of this, Xu Tianran's expression remained solemn as he stepped, one by one, onto the Heavenly Stairs.

Xu Tianyao followed closely behind him the entire time.

The two of them eventually ascended to the highest platform of the Imperial Zenith Hall.

Two thrones were placed there.

One was situated in the center, crafted entirely from gold and mithril, and carved with nine golden dragons and totems of the sun and moon.

That was the supreme seat of the empire.