Time slipped quickly into the next day. At sunrise, ten thousand beams of dawn light bathed the majestic imperial palace.
Inside the grand hall.
Civil and military officials filled the chamber, arrayed neatly in their morning court robes—civil officials on the east, military officials on the west. Each expression varied, but all held their breath in tense silence. Every gaze was fixed on the lofty dragon throne above.
Seated upon it was Xu Jing, wearing a bright yellow dragon robe. His face was stern, his gaze deep and awe-inspiring, making all tremble beneath it.
At his side, an attendant held a yellow imperial decree.
Xu Jing's voice was low, powerful, and commanding:
"Crown Prince Xu Tiannan, intelligent and gifted… yet fate is ever unpredictable. In an assassination attempt, he was gravely wounded. Now crippled and unable to move freely, he can no longer fulfill the responsibilities of the Crown Prince."
At this, the attendant stepped forward, unfurled the decree, and read aloud in a resounding voice:
"By the mandate of Heaven, His Majesty decrees: Crown Prince Xu Tiannan, due to physical disability, is incapable of performing the duties of the heir apparent. After deep consideration, we have decided to abolish his position as Crown Prince. Thus is Our decree."
The court fell into silence.
None of the ministers or nobles was surprised. Coupled with the recent rumors, everyone now understood why Xu Tiannan was being removed.
Clearly, the outrageous gossip was true—Xu Tiannan was no longer a man. Otherwise, with only crippled legs, it would not have led to his downfall this swiftly.
Those who had belonged to the Crown Prince's faction wore expressions like grieving widows. They had believed Xu Tiannan would ascend the throne within a few years, and they would reap vast rewards.
But less than a month had passed since his investiture, and already Xu Tiannan had suffered an assassination attempt, lost the use of three legs, and been stripped of the heirship.
In the long history of the Sun Moon Empire, never before had a Crown Prince lasted less than a month.
What sealed his fate was the loss of his manhood—unable to produce heirs, he was forever severed from the imperial succession.
Many officials and nobles who were not deeply tied to Xu Tiannan began plotting to cut all ties and realign themselves. They prepared tribute and pledges of loyalty to curry favor with other princes, as if they had never known Xu Tiannan at all.
Those bound too tightly to him, who had offended other princes irreparably, could only pray for mercy from the next emperor. But considering that Xu Jing himself had once massacred the palace and annihilated his brother's entire family, mercy seemed unlikely.
While the Crown Prince's faction mourned like orphans, the supporters of the Second Prince and Third Prince rejoiced silently.
Wang Yan, grinning ear to ear, looked every bit the shriveled orange peel that he resembled.
At present, the Second Prince's faction held the most power—his chances of seizing the throne exceeded fifty percent.
The Second Prince, Xu Tianyu, hearing of his elder brother's disgrace, smirked.
Xu Tiannan was crippled by my hand, and now he's abolished. Among the remaining princes, I am the strongest. Who else but me deserves the Crown Prince's title?
The Third Prince, Xu Tianshi, clenched his fists in excitement, eager to compete with his brother for the throne.
For princes, ambition was inevitable. Even knowing the risks, who could resist striving for the highest seat?
Especially after coming this far, Xu Tianshi could no longer stop. Even if he wished to, the countless powerful hands behind him would push him forward.
Failure meant death—death not only for himself, but for his women, his allies, his faction. None would escape the purge.
In the struggle for the throne, there was only triumph or destruction. At best, defeat meant lifelong imprisonment and loss of freedom.
At the front of the hall, Xu Tiannan sat silently in his wheelchair. His head was lowered, hiding the burning hatred deep in his eyes. Loudly, he declared,
"Your son accepts the decree. Thank you, Father, for your grace."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
He knew clearly that in his current state, he could never again become Crown Prince, nor emperor.
Even his former backers—the nobles and ministers—would abandon him. They had only supported him for future rewards once he ascended. Now, he was cut off from the throne forever.
Once either Xu Tianyu or Xu Tianshi became emperor, his death was inevitable.
The blood feud between them had already run too deep, with countless plots, murders, and betrayals exchanged. No apology, surrender, or kneeling repentance could erase such enmity.
The imperial struggle was not child's play. It was forged from rivers of blood and mountains of corpses.
Only by killing one's enemies could one find peace.
But Xu Tiannan was not a man to sit still and await slaughter.
After a day of bitter thought, he resolved to support a weaker prince—to raise him as emperor.
The Sun Moon Emperor's harem was vast, and so were his sons. But among them, only a few had strong talent, cultivation, influence, and backers.
The majority were weak, talentless, powerless, and had long since given up on fighting for the throne. They lay low, waiting for the succession to be decided, destined either for barren fiefdoms or quiet captivity in Mingdu.
These overlooked princes bore him no grudges. Any one of them, if given Xu Tiannan's support, could rise swiftly to contender status.
Moreover, because he was crippled and incapable of producing heirs, he would not arouse their fear or jealousy.
If he could help one such prince ascend the throne, Xu Tiannan would gain control of the two blades only the emperor wielded: the Palace Worship Hall and the Guardian Hand Soul Engineer Legion. With those, he could slaughter both Xu Tianyu and Xu Tianshi and have his revenge.
And if he chose a prince who was indecisive, incompetent, pleasure-seeking, and weak-willed, Xu Tiannan might even seize full control as Regent, holding the empire's power in his hands.
He knew the difficulty was immense. With his position abolished, his strength diminished, and many supporters ready to defect, his chances were slim.
But even a rotten ship still had three nails left; even a dying camel was bigger than a horse. He still had some chance.
If he could even lure the Holy Spirit Cult to his side, his odds would rise sharply.
Sitting silently in his wheelchair, Xu Tiannan lowered his gaze, secretly studying the surrounding princes, searching for the most suitable pawn to support…