An Unexpectedly Decisive Move! Let the Prince Ascend the Throne!

Xu Chengjin slumped on the dragon throne, watching Xu Chengjing below him stand at ease as though victory was already in his grasp. A nameless rage suddenly surged in his heart.

Why?

Why did he get to be so smug? Why did he have the support of so many people?

I am the Emperor. I am the lofty sun of the Sun Moon Empire, guiding it forward!

"Xu Chengjing, do you think you've already won? Don't forget about Elder Kong. Elder Kong will never stand by and watch you shake the foundations of the empire!"

After hearing Xu Chengjin's words, Xu Chengjing looked at him as if he were an idiot. The looks in the eyes of the people behind Xu Chengjing were even more obvious.

"Don't you know that Elder Kong is also part of the pro-war faction? I never hid today's operation from Elder Kong."

Upon hearing that, Xu Chengjin's eyes went completely blank. He had never expected even Kong Deming, known as the protector of the imperial family, to support Xu Chengjing's actions. Despair instantly engulfed his heart, only to be swiftly replaced by a fierce resolve.

He remembered the ultimate weapon stored within his Soul Tool!

"Heh heh, Xu Chengjing, if I can't have this throne, then don't even think about sitting on it!"

With that, Xu Chengjin took out a Rank-8 Fixed-Mounted Soul Guidance Bomb radiating a terrifying aura of destruction from his Soul Tool. He decisively poured his soul power into it, activating it.

"BOOM~~~!!!"

A flash of white light accompanied the explosion, and the violent blast razed the entire hall to the ground. Rubble flew everywhere, while dust and smoke billowed into the air.

A moment later, the smoke gradually dispersed.

The palace that had once been magnificent, with golden tiles gleaming beneath the sun, was now nothing but ruins. A crater had even formed at the center of the explosion. Stone pillars had collapsed, leaving only broken halves pointing crookedly toward the sky. The dragon-carved beams and painted rafters had crumbled into rubble, their colorful fragments mixed with ashes across the ground until even their colors could no longer be distinguished.

Xu Chengjing had fused with his Purple Radiance Annihilating Heaven Dragon martial soul, eight Spirit Rings—yellow, yellow, purple, purple, black, black, black, and black—circling his body. Calmly, he withdrew his martial soul and put away the Rank-9 Defensive Soul Tool he had activated in front of him.

Xu Chengjin had been disappointed. Not only was Xu Chengjing still alive, he was completely unharmed. Even the soldiers behind him had suffered very few deaths, mostly injuries, because Xu Chengjing and the Rank-9 Soul Engineers at the front had blocked most of the blast wave.

Chen Songting and Wang Yiheng, who had not initially stood with them, had also joined Xu Chengjing's side at the very instant before the explosion.

However, the dignitaries, nobles, and members of the royal family nearby had not been so fortunate. They had been closer to the center of the blast, and no one had stood before them to block most of its force. Aside from a few highly cultivated Soul Engineers, the rest were either dead or severely injured. Severed limbs littered the ground, and cries of agony filled the air.

Xu Chengjin had not died either. He lay miserably amid the ruins, covered in blood. More than half of his lower body had been blown away, and only half a leg still dangled from him.

"I never expected you to have already reached the realm of an Eight-Ring Soul Douluo. Otherwise, even a Rank-9 Soul Tool couldn't have left you completely unscathed beneath a Rank-8 Fixed-Mounted Soul Guidance Bomb."

Xu Chengjin watched Xu Chengjing walk toward him step by step and spoke weakly.

Xu Chengjing came to the dying Xu Chengjin's side. Looking at the Emperor, now filthy and disheveled, he said,

"I didn't expect you to have such nerve, actually daring to directly detonate a Rank-8 Fixed-Mounted Soul Guidance Bomb. If not for my high cultivation, and for the fact that your Seven-Ring cultivation couldn't unleash its full power, I might have died here today."

"Heh heh, what a pity it didn't kill you."

Xu Chengjin glared viciously at Xu Chengjing. The only thing that still gave him some comfort was that he had not kept his barely hundred-day-old Crown Prince, Xu He, by his side. By now, he had probably already been escorted away.

"If you had shown such resolve toward outsiders, perhaps I would never have done this. You would certainly have met a different end. And I should thank you as well. That unexpectedly explosive move of yours saved me a great deal of trouble."

Xu Chengjing stared into his eyes and said,

"Cough, cough... Do you think... you are right? Shrek Academy... will not let this go... The three great empires will certainly unite... to resist you."

"Then let them come. I will trample them beneath my feet. I will plant the flags of the Sun Moon Empire atop every city wall on the Douluo Continent. And you, my dear imperial brother, will become the stepping stone upon which I forge a new era."

Xu Chengjing bent down and leaned close to Xu Chengjin's ear. To Xu Chengjin, his words sounded like the whisper of a demon, sending a chill through him.

"You..."

Xu Chengjin's eyes widened. He had wanted to say something more, but before the words could leave his mouth, the final glimmer in his eyes went out completely.

An emperor of his generation had fallen!

Xu Chengjing stared fixedly at Xu Chengjin's face for a long time. Only after confirming that he had truly stopped breathing did he raise his head and look around at the soldiers of the two great Soul Engineer legions standing not far behind him.

Seeing this, Chen Songting, who stood nearby, immediately knelt amid the ruins and shouted loudly,

"Your Highness, Xu Chengjin refused to accept the late Emperor's final edict. Instead, he recklessly attempted to destroy the future wise ruler of our Sun Moon Empire, causing many of the empire's most vital ministers to perish. Your Highness, please obey the late Emperor's final edict, ascend the throne, and restore a bright and clear order to the empire!"

After Chen Songting finished speaking, Liao Mengkai and Xu Tianyuan, who had been standing nearby, immediately led the soldiers of the two great Soul Engineer legions to kneel on one knee. They hastily declared,

"Your Highness, please ascend the throne and restore a bright and clear order to the empire!"

"Your Highness, please ascend the throne and restore a bright and clear order to the empire!"

Their voices were so thunderous that they seemed ready to resound through heaven and earth. The few people around them who had survived the explosion were also deeply disappointed in Xu Chengjin. They immediately followed the soldiers in shouting toward Xu Chengjing,

"Your Highness, please ascend the throne and restore a bright and clear order to the empire!"

Seeing this scene, Xu Chengjing reined in the smile that had nearly broken through and waved his hand at the kneeling crowd.

"Rise. Since I am the successor appointed by the late Emperor, I shall set things right and restore a bright and clear order to the empire!"

"Your Majesty is wise!"

"Good! Convey my decree: three days from now, an enthronement ceremony shall be held outside the Hall of Supreme Harmony. Let it be proclaimed to all under heaven that the era name shall be changed to 'Jinghe,' signifying the return of flourishing mountains and rivers, and peace and prosperity throughout the realm."

"Your subjects obey the decree."

The soldiers and surviving ministers bowed again, their voices shaking the heavens.

And beneath the will of the new sovereign, this palace scorched by war was quietly shedding its old garb as it welcomed a different dawn.

On this very night, not only was the history of the Sun Moon Empire rewritten, but the entire balance of power across the Douluo Continent was changed.

Xu Chengjing watched the rising morning sun, his heart filled with grand ambitions for the future, for expanding his influence and unifying the continent.

What he did not know was that one day, he would surrender the throne he had won through such hardship that night in an ending he could never have imagined.