The night sky above Chang'an was thick with leaden clouds, creating an atmosphere so oppressive that it was difficult to breathe. While the warmth of the Grand General's birthday banquet still lingered, a chilling coldness had spread from the desolate tombs in the southern suburbs to the depths of the Weiyang Palace. In the Xuan Shi Hall, Liu Bingyi stood with his hands behind his back; a ghostly blue light flashed on the system panel in his mind.
[Ding! Virtual military token successfully activated.]
Current control of the Chang'an patrol battalion: 51% (continuously fluctuating).
All Jinyiwei personnel had entered 'stealth' mode and reached key nodes of eight drainage ditches.
'The Grand General thought he was drinking longevity noodles at home, but in reality, he was drinking the death knell for the entire Huo family,' said Liu Bingyi coldly. As he issued the order, the patrol soldiers, who had been standing dazed at the city gate, suddenly felt the mother-child tokens in their arms warm slightly. They didn't know that the person issuing the order was no longer the old man from the Grand General's mansion, but rather the true master of the imperial city.
Meanwhile, Chi Lian secretly delivered the bloodstained garment unearthed in the southern suburbs to the Empress Dowager's Chang Le Palace. The Empress Dowager, her hands trembling, stroked the blackened writing on the garment. It wasn't a forged document, but a final note written in blood by Crown Prince Liu Ju before his death. Each stroke was a tearful accusation against Huo Guang for his betrayal and fabricating charges against him.
'Grandfather... did you really deceive me for ten years?' The Empress Dowager's tears dripped onto the bloodstained garment. Her heart, which had previously wavered between the Huo family and the Emperor, was completely broken at that moment.
[System Feedback: Empress Dowager Shangguan has officially defected!]
[Gained the sole right to interpret the laws of the Han Dynasty: 100%]
At midnight, the once tranquil streets of Chang'an were suddenly filled with the sound of light footsteps — the Imperial Guards had dispersed. They no longer carried heavy longswords; instead, each guard carried a crossbow tipped with deadly poison and a piece of steel wire as thin as a cow's hair.
'His Majesty has decreed that only the ringleaders will be executed tonight; the common people will be spared,' whispered Lei Zhen in the shadows.
Thirty-six of the Huo family's trusted generals, embedded within the city's defence system, were slaughtered in their sleep. There were no battle cries, only the muffled thuds of blades piercing flesh and the scraping of corpses across the grass.
Huo Guang was awakened by a nightmare in the general's mansion. He jumped out of bed abruptly, determined to find the mother-child talisman that could mobilise all of Chang'an's military power. However, when he touched the talisman in his robes, he was horrified to find that it had turned icy cold and was emitting a wisp of eerie blue smoke — a self-destruct reaction that occurred once the system's 'logic theft' was complete.
'No… impossible! This was bestowed upon me by the late Emperor!' Huo Guang roared, pushing open the window. He saw a golden, dragon-shaped aura soaring into the sky from the direction of the distant Weiyang Palace. This was the manifestation of Liu Bingyi's [1000% Imperial Majesty] in the night sky.
He pushed open the highest eaves of the Weiyang Palace. The evening breeze tousled his dragon-like hair, but could not move his eyes, which were now completely golden. Below him lay the lights of countless homes; ahead lay the downfall of a powerful minister. He surveyed the chaotic Grand General's mansion in the darkness.
The iron sword in his hand, transformed, trembled deeply as if thirsting for the blood of his enemy.
'Grand General, I gave you the chance to escape unscathed, but you chose to die in that bowl of noodles.' Liu Bingyi slowly raised his head. His eyes were no longer dazed or patient; they were cold and seemed to have seen through the desolation of ages. 'Huo Guang, I'll play along to the very end.'
[Ding! Main Quest [Slaying the Rebels]: 90% Final Battle Module – Activated'.
Liu Bingyi remained on top of the palace roof with his eyes slightly closed. A semi-transparent 3D map of Chang'an City appeared in his mind. System 2.0's 'Main Brain Mode' connected all the imperial guards and the turned patrol battalions, forming an impenetrable net.
[System Command]: The Third and Fifth Groups of Imperial Guards were to cut off the water supply north of the Huo residence, while the Seventh Group was to seize the Yong'an Gate tower and set up armour-piercing crossbows.
[Synchronous Transmission]: Send 'Emperor's Sword Intent – Afterimage' to Lei Zhen.
Lei Zhen, who was repairing a tomb outside the city, suddenly opened his eyes. An extremely domineering sword aura instantly surged into his limbs and bones. He drew his Embroidered Spring Blade, and golden flames ignited on its blade.
'Brothers! His Majesty is watching us! Kill!" Inside the General's Mansion, Huo Guang had gone completely mad. He pushed aside the servants who tried to support him and rushed towards the ancestral temple, his hair dishevelled. 'I, Huo Guang, have served three dynasties! Who dares to rebel against me? Who can rebel against me?" He activated the Huo family's final trump card: the 'Earth-Heaven Harmony Dark Thunder Array'. This was a Mohist mechanical technique that he had kept secret during the 'Witchcraft Persecution'. As he activated it, the floor tiles around the General's Mansion flipped and hundreds of armoured puppets with pitch-black bodies and giant axes slowly rose from the ground. These puppets felt no pain and were impervious to blades and spears. They were the Huo family's final line of defence.
'Mechanical puppets?' Liu Bingyi opened his eyes on the palace roof, a disdainful smile on his face. He slowly raised his right hand and pressed it gently against the void. 'Skill activated — Imperial Power Suppression — Void Tremor!' An invisible gravitational wave spread outwards from the centre of the Weiyang Palace, forming a huge ring. The armoured golems that had just emerged from the ground were crushed back into the earth by the terrifying gravity before they had even had a chance to take their first step.
The sound of shattering metal filled the air. The Huo family's prized trump card was rendered useless by the brute force of System 2.0, reduced to a pile of outdated scrap metal. Just as Huo Guang was overcome with despair, his beloved daughter, Huo Chengjun, staggered towards him, carrying a long sword.
'Chengjun! Quick, go to the secret passage and beg the Empress Dowager! The Empress Dowager is your niece!' Huo Guang cried, grasping at straws. But Huo Chengjun smiled, a cold and resolute smile. Instead of the key to escape, she pulled a blood-soaked 'Crown Prince's Blood Letter' from her bosom.
'Father, don't you understand?' Huo Chengjun threw the bloodstained letter at Huo Guang's face. 'The Empress Dowager has issued an edict: "The Huo clan colluded with witchcraft and murdered our ancestors; according to the law, they should be executed."'
'You... you rebellious daughter!' Huo Guang spat out a mouthful of blood, staining the letter on the ground further. "Report!" A Jinyiwei (Imperial Guard) leapt onto the roof of Weiyang Palace and knelt: 'Your Majesty, Lord Lei Zhen has entered the front courtyard of the General's Mansion. All the Huo family members have been captured. Huo Guang has retreated to the ancestral temple, saying he wants to see you one last time.'
Liu Bingyi withdrew his gaze from the distance. The golden aura around him slowly receded, transforming into a profound yet simple state. 'One last time?' He gently flicked the blade of his iron sword, producing a clear, ringing sound. 'I will not only see him, but I will also ask him in the ancestral temple what the true name of the Han dynasty is.'
The torrential rain washed away the dark red bloodstains on the floor tiles of the general's mansion. Meanwhile, Lei Zhen and his Imperial Guards had completely surrounded the Huo family's ancestral temple. Torches flickered in the rain but could not dispel the sombre atmosphere of the ancient building.
Holding a black umbrella, Liu Bingyi stepped steadily across the threshold. Water droplets dripping from the umbrella fell into the cracks in the door, creating a crisp 'drip, drip' sound that seemed to count down to death. Huo Guang knelt before the ancestral tablets, his back hunched; the once all-powerful man's spine was broken.
'Your Majesty... you've finally arrived.' Huo Guang didn't turn around; his voice was hoarse, like sandpaper scraping against iron. 'I've lost this "deep affection for the old sword" act, but you can't eradicate the poison from the Han dynasty.'
'Poison?' Liu Bingyi folded his black umbrella and tossed it aside. The iron sword in his hand hummed softly, its tip pointing diagonally at the ground and drawing a blinding spark on the stone slab.
Huo Guang suddenly laughed maniacally. Whirling around, his eyes flashing with an almost manic pleasure, he said, "You think you've won? You've exposed the Crown Prince's wrongdoings and my ambition. But do you know that the mother of the imperial grandson who hanged herself in prison all those years ago, your own mother, is still alive!"
Liu Bingyi's heart clenched violently and he experienced a violent fluctuation in his mind at that moment:
[System Warning]: The host's emotions have fluctuated too much and their imperial aura has become unstable and collapsed.
[Deep Scan]: Faint human life signs detected deep within the Huo family's underground palace. DNA compatibility analysis in progress…
"She's been locked up in the Xuanbing Chamber beneath this ancestral hall for eighteen years!" Huo Guang stared intently at Liu Bingyi, waiting for him to break down. 'She's my last lifeline. If you kill me, the ice chamber will collapse instantly and she'll turn to dust with me."
[Ding! Host's extreme rage detected, triggering hidden ultimate mission—[Bloodline Return]! Objective: Violently seize control of the underground palace without triggering any traps.
Reward: Emperor's Will – Stillness of All Things (Duration: 3 Seconds).Liu Bingyi closed his eyes, his breathing ceasing completely at that moment. When he opened them again, his golden pupils had turned a deep purplish-blue. 'Huo Guang, your understanding of power is still stuck in the calculations of mortals.' Instead of rushing directly towards the entrance of the underground palace, he raised his hand and plunged his iron sword into the floor tiles. 'Freeze.'
Time froze completely at that moment. Raindrops hung in mid-air, Huo Guang's ferocious expression was frozen, and even the last spark on the gunpowder fuse, which was about to explode underground, was frozen in the darkness.
In the first second, Liu Bingyi's figure transformed into a streak of light, instantly smashing through the floor tiles and entering the Xuanbing Chamber.
In the second second, he swung his sword, severing the eighteen chains that bound him to the iron chair. He embraced the withered, grass-like figure in his arms tightly.
In the third second, the streak of light turned back and Liu Bingyi, holding the figure, stood before Huo Guang.
Time began to flow again.
With a deafening rumble from deep underground, the trap malfunctioned due to a logical error and began to self-destruct. Huo Guang stared blankly at the empty entrance to the secret chamber and then at the silver-haired woman in Liu Bingyi's arms. Her eyes slowly opened. His last gamble hadn't even lasted a fraction of a second against System 2.0.
'You... you're not human... you're a devil!' Huo Guang collapsed to the ground.
'I am the Emperor of the Han Dynasty.' Liu Bingyi gently entrusted his mother to Chi Lian, who had suddenly appeared, then turned and swung his iron sword fiercely. The Huo family's densely packed ancestral tablets shattered under the sword, turning into countless fragments.
'Lei Zhen, convey my decree.' Liu Bingyi stood amidst the ruins, his voice cold and devoid of warmth. 'The Huo clan has deceived the emperor, oppressed the people, fabricated false charges and murdered imperial relatives. From this day forward, there will be no more Huo families in Chang'an.'
[Ding!] Reputation Points: +200,000 (achieved the 'Complete Reckoning' achievement).
Host status: Evolved into Emperor Wu of Han 2.0
System preview: The mother's awakening will unveil the theological truth behind the bloodline of the Han imperial family.