Free Web NovelChapter 114: Chapter 114: Your Majesty, Why Are You Rebelling?
"B-but... we really didn’t kill the Fifth Princess..."
The Ninth Princess lowered her head and bit her lip, unsure of what to say.
Shen Daoxing suddenly laughed. "Sixth Prince, do you really think I’m that stupid? Even if I were the one who killed the Fifth Princess, why would I let you know about it? And why would I leave her body in such an obvious place?"
Then, Shen Daoxing stared coldly at the Sixth Prince, a dangerous glint in his eyes. "If I had killed the Fifth Princess, I would have done it without a trace. Not a single one of you would have ever found out."
"You..."
The Sixth Prince was taken aback and shivered involuntarily.
"Enough! This isn’t the time to argue. Let’s get our fifth sister down from there."
Just then, the Second Prince stepped forward with a solemn expression. With a gentle wave of his hand, he brought the Fifth Princess’s body down from the tree. He went to examine her, and finally shook his head in regret.
The Second Prince then walked over to the Ninth Princess and sighed. "Ninth Sister."
"Second Brother, you have to believe me. We didn’t kill her. You know me best—I’m the most timid of all. How could I possibly kill our fifth sister?"
the Ninth Princess pleaded.
The Second Prince closed his eyes and sighed heavily again. "Ninth Sister, I know you’ve always been timid and would never harm our fifth sister. But just because you wouldn’t, doesn’t mean *he* wouldn’t!"
As he spoke, the Second Prince pointed at Shen Daoxing.
"Second Brother, no! Shen would never harm our fifth sister! You have to believe me!"
the Ninth Princess insisted.
The Second Prince turned his gaze from the Ninth Princess and slowly walked over to Shen Daoxing.
Shen Daoxing’s heart sank. He instinctively gripped the Great Ming Demon Sparrow at his waist. ’He who has a mind to beat his dog will easily find a stick,’ he thought. ’It seems the Second Prince isn’t going to let this go easily.’
Shen Daoxing prepared to fight to the death.
But in the next moment, the Second Prince suddenly reached out and patted Shen Daoxing’s shoulder. "Relax. I never said you definitely did this. If you didn’t kill my sister, I will not wrongly accuse you."
Then, the Second Prince’s expression shifted, becoming stern once more.
"But if I find out you really *did* kill her, I will never forgive you!"
Finally, with a wave of his hand, he stored the Fifth Princess’s body in his Spatial Magical Artifact.
"Xia, I’ll trouble you to keep a close eye on him."
The Second Prince said to Xia Junze, gesturing toward Shen Daoxing.
"With pleasure!"
Xia Junze’s eyes lit up, and he sidled up to Shen Daoxing with a meaningful look.
"Second Brother, are we just going to let the matter of our fifth sister go?"
The Sixth Prince stepped forward, looking confused.
"We’ll deal with what happened to our sister after we leave this place. Right now, the Dragon Vein Trial is what’s most important,"
the Second Prince said flatly, his tone leaving no room for argument.
The Sixth Prince had always feared the Second Prince, so he didn’t say anything more, merely shooting Shen Daoxing a vicious glare.
Afterward, the group returned to the Mountain of Trial.
But now, a heavy atmosphere hung over the group. No one spoke.
It was just as Shen Daoxing had said: if he had really been the killer, he wouldn’t have been so brazen as to hang the body by the path.
It was highly likely that someone else was trying to frame him.
The Fifth Princess had been the strongest contender for the position of Crown Prince. Her death benefited every single prince present.
Therefore, everyone present was a suspect.
Inevitably, all the princes grew wary. They eyed everyone around them cautiously, subtly creating distance between themselves and the others.
Even the Eldest Prince and the Seventh Prince, who had a temporary alliance, exchanged wary glances.
Soon, the group arrived once again in the valley.
The bizarre red mist in the valley was still churning violently. A terrifying, cold sound emanated from within, as if some dreadful entity lurked inside, ready to mercilessly devour anyone who entered.
But they had already been in the Trial Land for some time, and their time here wasn’t unlimited. The group stopped waiting and began to walk into the mist one after another.
Shen Daoxing and the Ninth Princess walked at the rear. From the outside, the valley had seemed terrifying, but inside, it was eerily quiet. The surroundings were barren, with nothing but black soil and thick fog that severely limited their vision.
Shen Daoxing and the Ninth Princess walked for a long time, but nothing happened. It seemed it wasn’t dangerous inside after all.
The two of them continued walking forward through the fog-filled valley. After walking for some time, Shen Daoxing realized he had somehow walked out, and the Ninth Princess was no longer by his side.
Shen Daoxing looked up and saw a majestic, resplendent palace hall standing before him.
Shen Daoxing walked closer out of curiosity. He pushed open the grand doors, only to find himself inside the imperial palace. This was Jinluan Hall.
In the blink of an eye, he was inside the main hall, standing before the dragon throne.
"We invite Your Majesty to ascend the throne!"
A eunuch’s shrill voice rang out. Shen Daoxing looked around and saw the entire imperial court of civil and military officials bowing and kneeling before him.
Among them were the former emperor of the Martial Kingdom, Gu Yan; the head of Celestial City Academy, Ren Changfeng; Chen Guanggu; and Bai Bo. Even the Ninth Princess and Ling Shuanghua were kneeling respectfully, their eyes filled with adoration.
Shen Daoxing looked down at himself and discovered that he was somehow already wearing the Dragon Robe.
"We invite Your Majesty to ascend the throne!"
The eunuch’s voice rang out again. Shen Daoxing looked up to see an old, white-haired eunuch holding a Crown aloft with both hands, taking small steps toward him.
The Crown shimmered with a brilliant, golden light. It was as if all Shen Daoxing had to do was reach out, put it on, and he would truly become the ruler of a kingdom.
"We invite Your Majesty to ascend the throne!"
The old eunuch respectfully presented the Crown to Shen Daoxing.
But just then, with a sharp SHING, Shen Daoxing drew the Great Ming Demon Sparrow and split the Crown in two with a single strike.
"Your Majesty?"
The old eunuch stared at Shen Daoxing in stunned disbelief. "Your Majesty... why are you committing treason?"
But he had barely finished speaking before the Great Ming Demon Sparrow pierced through his chest.
The entire court of officials was stunned.
The Emperor of the Martial Kingdom, Ren Changfeng, and the others kneeling below the dragon throne were also stunned.
But Shen Daoxing’s hands did not stop.
SHLICK! SHLICK! The sounds echoed one after another.
The body of Ren Changfeng, head of the Sword Institute, was run through. Then came the vice head, Chen Guanggu, and then Bai Bo. One by one, they died at Shen Daoxing’s blade, their eyes wide with shock.
Even the Ninth Princess and Ling Shuanghua, who rushed forward to stop him, were mercilessly run through by his sword.
In an instant, everyone in the great hall had fallen, leaving only a blood-soaked Shen Daoxing standing alone in the center.
Seeing this, Shen Daoxing merely gave a faint smile.
CRACK!
The sound of a mirror shattering rang out. The scene before Shen Daoxing’s eyes suddenly fractured with cracks like a spiderweb, and then, with a loud POP, it shattered completely.
The dark red mist billowed around him.
He was back in the valley on the Mountain of Trial.
Everything that had just happened was an illusion.
