Chapter 1512: Widow Maker
When he sensed the Great Elder’s gaze, the Second Prince grew nervous. He quickly explained, “Great Elder is wise. The one who harmed my brothers was not me, but the Crown Prince. After father emperor perished, he was worried that these brothers would threaten his place on the throne, so he sent troops into the night to assassinate us. I was only helplessly acting out of self-defense.
“Third brother and fourth brother were both killed by the Crown Prince’s people. I did not harm a single one of my other brothers. If the Great Elder does not believe me, you may ask everyone here. Many of them can attest to me regarding this,” he concluded. As for the Crown Prince, he had wanted to kill him, so he was naturally left out.
The Great Elder’s gaze landed on the Golden Crow Guard leaders and the other important ministers. Those people immediately felt as if they had been completely seen through. They didn’t dare utter a lie. All of them shuddered, reporting to the Great Elder about what had happened. What they said wasn’t too different from the Second Prince’s story.
“The Fiend Emperor has died…” the Great Elder muttered, seeming a bit absent-minded.
Even though the Fiend King Court was now an absolute mess, for someone of his level, it was still limited in scale. It was instead the Fiend Emperor’s death that was of more severe consequence. An era had come to an end, and the Fiend races had also reached a moment of crisis.
He gathered his thoughts, then looked at the Second Prince and the young prince, asking, “Is that why the only ones left with the Fiend Emperor’s bloodline are the two of you?”
The Second Prince was delighted, saying, “Indeed. I ask the Great Elder to preside over this greater situation.”
There were only two successors left. Compared to his young brother, it was easy to see who was more fit to become the Fiend Emperor.
He had been overwhelmed with hatred to learn that all of his painstaking efforts over the years would be for nothing; he thought that the heavens had no appreciation for those who worked hard. In the end, however, he discovered that the heavens weren’t treating him that poorly. How could those grandmasters who had perished before compare to even a single sentence from the Great Elder?
The Second Empress grew nervous. She also understood that compared to the Second Prince, her own son didn’t stand much of a chance. If they let the Great Elder make the decision, everything would be over.
Fortunately, a smooth and steady voice called out, “The Fiend Emperor passed on his throne to the young prince before he passed away. The Sun Slaying Bow is proof!”
Zu An raised the Sun Slaying Bow in his hands high into the air as he spoke. When they saw it, the elders were all shocked.
“The Fiend Emperor lost his life? What happened?” the Great Elder asked, his eyes shining brightly as he stared at Zu An.
Zu An felt as if a divine will were scanning over him. The light seemed similar to a lie detector. If most people were to have such a light shine on them, they would become badly frightened and confess everything in great detail. If they were questioned closely enough, they would likely even admit to peeping on the woman next door in the bath when they were younger.
However, Zu An wasn’t like everyone else. He had already met many powerful beings, and he had even joked around with those at the Fiend Emperor or Human Emperor’s level. He had even witnessed the power of multiple Celestial Emperors before. Even though the Great Elder was formidable, he wasn’t even worth mentioning compared to those people.
As such, he calmly received the elder’s gaze, then repeated everything he had previously said again. The Great Elder was surprised. After all, any normal person would tremble in fear beneath his gaze. When had they ever responded so confidently? It even made him become uncertain whether his skill was of any use.
However, he quickly dismissed that thought. This youngster’s cultivation rank is still so low; how could he hide things from me?
“The Crown Prince is quite daring!” the Great Elder exclaimed, criticizing the Crown Prince harshly out of formality. He then turned to Zu An. There seemed to be a strange light burning in his eyes as he asked, “Is there still any more of that immortal medicine you mentioned earlier?”
Zu An sneered inwardly. Sure enough, these old monsters who already had one foot in the grave all had a special desire for things that could prolong their lives.
He shook his head and replied, “The Fiend Emperor didn’t obtain it either. Furthermore, the secret dungeon has already closed. I fear it will have to wait until the next time the dungeon opens again.
Disappointed looks quickly spread across the elders’ faces. The Great Elder knew that the next time such a secret dungeon opened again would definitely be a long time away. Who knew, it could take hundreds of years, or even more than a thousand years. He couldn't even wait for another few decades.
He gave Zu An a doubtful look, wondering whether this youngster was hiding anything from him. Alright, I’ll have to find a chance to ask him in private. He obviously won’t speak the truth in front of so many people.
When he saw that the elders were slowly being swayed, the Second Prince immediately panicked and called out, “I am opposed to this. The succeeding Fiend Emperor has always been the one publicly acknowledged to be the strongest. Only then can he lead the Fiend races in defeating our enemies and bring us to prosperity. How could the Fiend Emperor pass on his position to a child? Isn’t this just putting the entire Fiend Races in danger? I suspect that Zu An has lied about the imperial edict!”
The elders exchanged a look. They felt the what the Second Prince said made some sense. Throughout the history of the Fiend Races, there had never been a young child who became the Fiend Emperor.
The Second Empress became dejected. This was her son’s greatest weakness! She had initially thought that she could rely on Zu An’s powerful assistance to take the throne, but now that the Committee of Elders had appeared, the plan was probably going to fail.
Just then, Zu An replied in a loud and clear voice, “If such simple reasoning was something even a blockhead like you could think of, do you think the Fiend Emperor wouldn’t have thought of it? Let me ask all of you, who’s the greatest enemy of the Fiend races?”
“The Human Emperor Zhao Han, of course!” the Second Prince blurted out. That was also what everyone else present thought.
Throughout the years, that name had weighed down on the Fiend races like a mountain. That was especially the case for older people, as they had personally witnessed Zhao Han’s terror. For example, the elders’ expressions were all unpleasant.
“Right? For someone like the Human Emperor Zhao Han, regardless of whether it is the youngest prince or you, the Second Prince, you’re both kids who aren’t worth mentioning at all. So is there any difference at all whether you take the position or the young prince does?” Zu An continued.
“I…” the Second Prince wanted to retort, but no matter how confident he was in himself, he didn’t dare claim that there would be any difference in front of Zhao Han. He would be crushed by a single finger all the same. Like hell Zhao Han would care if his opponent was a weaker or stronger ant; it was still an ant either way.
A cold and clear voice rang out, saying, “I feel that what Zu An says makes some sense. As it makes no difference who becomes the Fiend Emperor for the Humans, seeing as how much turmoil and bloodshed the Fiend races have experienced in this time, what we need more at this time is someone kind-hearted to lead everyone in our recovery. We cannot allow our people to continue this bloodshed.”
A beautiful figure dressed in an ocean blue wide-sleeved dress appeared; her curves flowed naturally like moonlight. Beautiful pearls and coral were embedded in her dress, making her easily recognizable by all.
“Mermaid Princess!”
The ordinary soldiers were merely shocked by this Mermaid Princess’ beauty, but the higher-level figures of the Fiend King Court knew just how much influence she had in the Ocean races. If she said something like that, it clearly represented the will of the Ocean races.
The Ocean races support the young prince!
Zu An sighed in relief. Shang Liuyu had always been hiding in the shadows, but now, just like the Great Elf King, even though she had said she wouldn’t join to leave a way out for her clan, she still stepped forward when it mattered.
With the Elf race and Ocean races taking the lead, the Demon races and other representatives came forward to support the young prince.
Hu Qianxiao almost smacked his thigh until it was swollen from regret. These fellas were normally so proud of themselves, and yet they were all so good at bootlicking when it mattered!
I was just distracted for a moment and ended up falling behind…
Thus, he also quickly expressed his loyalty with great fervor and passion. It was to the point that the other powers cast sidelong looks. Is this guy really the Tiger race’s leader? He’s not the Dog race leader doing an impersonation, right?
The Second Prince’s face became extremely pale when he saw so many of the Fiend races’ great powers support the young prince. He knew everything was over, and that he was finished.
Suddenly, a rainbow light suddenly descended from the sky, and a voice called out “Our Peacock King Race also supports the young prince. Furthermore…” The one who arrived paused for a moment. He turned to look at the Second Prince and continued, “the Second Prince killed the Crown Prince, and he has even caused the entire King Court to be covered in rivers of blood. He must be punished properly.”
“Peacock King Race!”
The onlookers cried out in alarm when they saw the one who had arrived. Two of the three great king races were here, and both of them supported the young prince.
After all, the Peacock King, the Great Elf King, and the Great Golden Peng King all had extraordinary status. They were practically only second to the Fiend Emperor among the Fiend races. Their words, to a certain extent, could represent the will of the Fiend races.
The Peacock Wise King had now antagonized the Second Prince in such a manner. Things probably couldn't be settled peacefully between them.
In truth, the Peacock Wise King was also furious at the moment. He hadn’t approved of the Crown Prince’s actions today, nor had he joined in.
But how could he have thought that that piece of trash would be killed instead despite having the initiative? The crown prince’s death normally wouldn’t have much to do with him either, but what really made him go crazy was that the Fiend Emperor had determined the Crown Prince’s wife not too long ago. The Crown Princess was none other than his own daughter, Kong Nanwu!
He had actually been a bit hesitant about the marriage, but even before it went through, his precious daughter had become a widow. How could he not be furious?