Xuanwumen Incident

Tang San's sudden report made the Skyscreen, which had been about to send them back, pause.

[Upon review, Xu Feng's Martial Soul was originally of the summoning type. Pulling people in was normal summoning behavior and did not constitute a violation. Tang San's malicious report will be punished.]

"I—" Tang San's voice had barely left his throat when it was completely swallowed by a deafening clap of thunder.

Before he could defend himself, a dense thundercloud abruptly gathered directly above the arena. Immediately afterward, a bolt of lightning as thick as an arm struck down without warning, landing squarely on Tang San's head.

Electricity exploded across his body. His hair instantly stood on end, and his entire face was scorched black by lightning and fire. Only his wide, round eyes stood out starkly against his darkened face, while a wisp of smoke rose from his mouth.

Xu Feng and Tang Wulin stood where they were. Seeing Tang San in such a miserable state, they exchanged a glance.

Then, a gentle golden light descended from the sky and enveloped them both. As the light flowed around them, they were sent back to their respective spacetimes.

As for Tang San, even after being teleported back to his own era, he still could not escape the thundercloud's pursuit.

The moment Tang San landed, before he could even catch his breath, another bolt of lightning struck down, hitting his equally charred head with pinpoint accuracy.

He fled in panic, clutching his head as he ran and cursed. But every time he opened his mouth, the next bolt of lightning made him swallow his words back down.

"Little San!" Tang Hao charged forward with the Clear Sky Hammer, trying to disperse the thundercloud. What greeted him, however, was another bolt of lightning. Beneath lightning, all beings were equal; Tang Hao too was roasted inside and out.

Yu Xiaogang, who had originally wanted to say something, decisively chose to keep his mouth shut, silently cursing in his heart.

"Little San really was too foolish. It had been stated from the very beginning that Xu Feng's Martial Soul was a summoning type. Summoning, summoning—it obviously meant pulling people in."

Douluo II Spacetime

"Good! We'll do it this way!"

Xu Feng had just stepped through the gates of Prince of Qin's Estate when Meng Hongchen came forward. Before he could even catch his breath, she explained every detail of the entire plan, every step of the deductions, and every possible variable exactly as they had been laid out.

Xu Feng did not hesitate in the slightest after hearing it. He agreed to the plan on the spot. "Since Xu Tianran cannot tolerate his younger brother, then he cannot blame me for refusing to tolerate him as my elder brother!"

Everyone's spirits rose at once, and they were just about to get moving when Meng Hongchen suddenly reached out and blocked Xu Feng's path.

"Brother Feng, now that we've made up our minds, there is still one person we need to watch out for."

"Who?"

"His Majesty. Brother Feng, if you harm His Majesty, how will you silence the mouths of the realm?"

The room immediately fell several degrees quieter. Everyone present was intelligent and naturally understood the weight of those words.

On the Douluo Continent, the royal family had never known familial affection. Elder brothers killing younger brothers and younger brothers killing elder brothers had long ceased to be anything unusual.

Brothers turning on each other, undercurrents surging through the court—under a historian's brush, it would be no more than a lightly written line about brothers at odds.

But patricide had never happened. Even Xue Qinghe from ten thousand years ago had merely been Xue Qinghe impersonated by Qian Renxue, who had no blood relation whatsoever to Xue Ye.

Once the words "patricide" became attached to someone, they would bear eternal infamy. Even if they secured the throne, future histories would nail them to the pillar of moral shame.

At that moment, Liao Mengkai stepped forward. "Then let me be the villain! Let Your Highness be the good man! Whatever wrong there is, put it all on my head. Even if I must bear eternal infamy today, I will not so much as furrow my brow!"

"Good!" Xu Feng abruptly turned around and reached up to take down the treasured sword that had hung on the wall for years.

He gripped the sword with both hands and held it across his chest, his gaze sweeping over every general present. The generals exchanged looks, then stepped forward without hesitation, placing their rough palms one atop another on the blade.

From this moment on, they were bound together, sharing life and death, honor and disgrace.

Once everything was ready, Xu Feng turned back for one final look at Prince of Qin's Estate.

He knew that after tonight, he would either return in glory, or this estate would become his final memory.

He took a deep breath, did not look back again, and led his generals and their mere eight hundred men in a charge toward the imperial palace.

Inside Prince of Qin's Estate, Meng Hongchen and Jiang Nannan stood quietly by the window, watching that force disappear into the night.

Neither spoke, yet both understood. Meng Hongchen slowly drew a dagger from her sleeve, while Jiang Nannan silently pulled another from her waist.

The two exchanged a glance, and there was no fear in their eyes. If Xu Feng failed, they would go with him, following him in life and death, never living on alone.

The horses' hooves had been wrapped in thick strips of cloth. The eight hundred men passed through the silent streets, bypassed the patrolling Imperial Guards, and soon arrived before the final gate of the palace: Xuanwu Gate.

With a wave of Xu Feng's hand, everyone quickly scattered, hiding inside the surrounding shops. They held their breath and watched the movements behind the gate.

Suddenly, a faint sound came from Xuanwu Gate. Then large amounts of thick oil flowed through the gaps in the gate and onto the ground.

Immediately afterward, the sound of "cuckoo, cuckoo" came from within the gate.

"The cuckoo has called." Jing Hongchen was about to step forward to investigate when Xu Feng grabbed him and stopped him.

He said nothing. Instead, he directly summoned his Martial Soul. As his fifth Spirit Ring lit up, his clothing transformed as well.

His original armor became a red-and-black combat outfit. This was the companion within his fifth Spirit Ring—Archer, also known as Red A.

"Projection, begin!" Xu Feng clenched his right hand in the air, and a pitch-black longbow condensed within it.

Then Hrunting was projected as well. He drew the bow and nocked the arrow, its tip aimed directly at Xuanwu Gate. His gaze remained locked on the movements within, preventing any unforeseen incident.

Then the heavy Xuanwu Gate slowly opened to both sides, revealing a face in the gap. It was their inside man, Zhang He.

Liao Mengkai strode forward, swept his gaze over Zhang He's face, then peered into the gate several times. Only after confirming that everything was normal—no ambush, no trap, and everything proceeding according to plan—did he turn back and nod at Xu Feng.

Everyone immediately entered Xuanwu Gate. Once the last man stepped inside, Xu Feng gave the order to leave seven hundred men concealed in the shadows on both sides of the gate, waiting for Xu Tianran, who would soon arrive for court.

He himself led the remaining hundred men through the long palace corridors, heading straight for his father's bedchamber.

Inside the bedchamber, Xu Yuan had just finished dressing and was about to have the eunuchs serve breakfast when he heard hurried yet orderly footsteps outside.

He raised his head and saw the doors shoved open. Xu Feng stood in the doorway, with soldiers holding blades behind him.

Xu Yuan's gaze rested on Xu Feng's face for three seconds. In only three seconds, he understood what was about to happen.

Yet, to everyone's surprise, Xu Yuan did not panic, did not grow angry, and did not call for guards.

"Second Son! Just kill Eldest Son. Your father has never opposed you becoming the next emperor."

Xu Feng had prepared a whole stomachful of words—things like "Father has been deceived by treacherous men," "Your son has been left with no other choice," and "Please abdicate, Father, to bring peace to the realm"—but all of them caught in his throat at that instant.

He opened his mouth, but not a single word came out. He had never expected his father to accept it so easily, even more calmly than Xu Feng himself.

Seeing Xu Feng standing there in a daze, Xu Yuan assumed he had not understood. He took another two steps forward and patted Xu Feng on the shoulder.

"Second Son, look, your name has two characters, my name has two characters, and your mother's name also has two characters. We're the same side."

Xu Feng froze on the spot as though struck by lightning, his mind utterly blank.

He had never imagined that his father's thought process could be so peculiar.

He had prepared swords and blades, prepared strategies, prepared the resolve to fight to the death—but he had not prepared for a situation like this. For a moment, he did not know whether he should laugh or cry.

Xu Yuan had been so decisive for one reason because the Skyscreen had long revealed Second Son's future achievements.

The other reason was that Xu Tianran would never be able to have children in his lifetime. What was the point of giving him the throne? In the end, it would all go to Second Son anyway, so Second Son could take it however he wished.

Although his father's attitude was somewhat absurd, Xu Feng had at least gained support. He became even more confident about what came next.

At the same time, Xu Tianran, as usual, finished arranging his clothes and prepared to head to court for the morning audience.

However, he stood before Xuanwu Gate for a long time without seeing it open, yet he did not grow overly suspicious.

Finally, Xuanwu Gate slowly opened. Xu Tianran pushed his wheelchair forward, but after taking only a few steps, he stopped.

Ahead of him, Liao Mengkai and Xu Tianhe stood side by side. Behind them stood several hundred heavily armored soldiers, blocking his path.

"What are you trying to do?! Are you planning to rebel?! I am the Crown Prince of the Sun Moon Empire!" He tried to use his status to intimidate those before him.

Liao Mengkai merely sneered. He turned his head and shouted loudly in another direction, "Your Highness!"

At that call, a figure slowly emerged from the shadows. Xu Feng wore battle armor, followed by a full hundred elite soldiers, making an imposing entrance.

Only upon seeing this did Xu Tianran finally understand that his second brother had rebelled.

Xu Feng simply looked at Xu Tianran. "Big Brother! There can only be one Crown Prince here today!"

Xu Tianran was so furious that he laughed instead. "Second Brother! Do not think that because I am crippled, you can keep me here! No matter what, I am still a Titled Douluo!"

Before his words had even faded, Xu Tianran abruptly raised his hand. His aura surged, and a violet-gold radiance shot into the sky as his Martial Soul, the Purple Desolate Exterminating Heaven Dragon, appeared.

However, Xu Tianhe, Liao Mengkai, Jing Hongchen, Luan Feng, and Wang Yiheng refused to be outdone. They each summoned their Martial Souls.

In an instant, several powerful waves of Soul Power collided within Xuanwu Gate, the auras of six Titled Douluo intertwining.

The five of them sneered. If five Titled Douluo working together still allowed Xu Tianran to escape, then the five of them might as well slit their own throats and die!

"Big Brother, don't forget. It isn't as though I've never killed a Titled Douluo before!" Xu Feng sneered and snapped his fingers.

Three figures appeared out of thin air—Tingyun, Huohuo, and Dan Heng. They stood behind Xu Feng, and the Xianzhou bond was instantly fulfilled. A golden Lightning-Wielding Thunder-Claping Spirit, carrying supreme majesty, appeared behind Xu Feng.

Xu Tianran knew that he had no way out. Every trump card had been exposed, every path of retreat severed. In this battle, he would either win or die—and if he died, he would have nothing.

"Seventh Soul Skills! Purple Desolate True Body!" Blinding violet light suddenly erupted around Xu Tianran. In the blink of an eye, he had transformed into a Purple Desolate Exterminating Heaven Dragon.

Destructive lightning and flames coiled around his entire body. He opened his enormous jaws and roared out his second Soul Skills, "Ninth Soul Skills! Destruction Storm!"

A fierce gale erupted, thunder roared, and countless violet-black energy storms poured from the dragon's mouth. They wove together into a net of destruction that swept toward Xu Feng from all directions.

This was Xu Tianran's ultimate move, a desperate gamble in which he wagered everything. It was his strongest strike, bought by burning his life and soul. He no longer thought about victory or defeat, nor life or death. He thought only that, even if there was but the faintest hope, he would drag the man before him into the abyss.

Yet faced with that world-destroying attack, Xu Feng merely lifted his eyelids slightly. "Though General Jing Yuan is not here, with the Lightning-Wielding Thunder-Claping Spirit present, it does not stop me from saying this: Radiant spirit of might, heed my command."

As Xu Feng's words fell, the Lightning-Wielding Thunder-Claping Spirit slowly raised the great blade in his hand. Countless bolts of lightning wound around its edge as he aimed it at the Purple Desolate Exterminating Heaven Dragon.

"Strike without mercy!"

The Lightning-Wielding Thunder-Claping Spirit's great blade slashed down. The Destruction Storm was split apart with a single stroke, lightning and flames collapsing like paper as the attack struck the Purple Desolate Exterminating Heaven Dragon with perfect accuracy.

The Purple Desolate Exterminating Heaven Dragon's enormous body split down the middle and transformed into countless tiny motes of light, drifting away in the wind. Those motes flickered with their final violet glow, like Xu Tianran's unwilling sighs, like his final struggle. Yet they gradually dimmed and returned to nothingness.

Xu Feng slowly lowered his hand and looked toward the empty sky. After a moment of silence, he softly sighed. "Big Brother, travel safely."

And so, with the death of the original Crown Prince Xu Tianran, this great upheaval finally came to an end. Xu Feng naturally became the new Crown Prince of the Sun Moon Empire.

Meng Hongchen became the Crown Princess, while Jiang Nannan became a secondary consort.

Everyone who had taken part in the entire Xuanwumen Incident was promoted by one rank. Liao Mengkai, in particular, became the first member of Xu Feng's List of Gods because of those words.

Everyone revealed envious expressions. After all, the Skyscreen had already explained it clearly: anyone whose name entered the List of Gods would become a god in the future. And Liao Mengkai was the very first one—he would certainly become the closest of Xu Feng's trusted confidants.

As the Xuanwumen Incident came to an end, the Skyscreen lit up once more. Clearly, a new round of competition was about to begin. The people of the three spacetimes focused their attention again, wanting to see what they would compete in this time.