Following Qian Wu's words, the bronze gate was finally opened. A giant figure then appeared from within.
Boom! A loud bang could be heard.
A huge footprint immediately appeared on the ground of the throne room.
The night was supposed to be peaceful.
However, it was not a peaceful night. Flame Capital City was illuminated by lights as countless citizens stood watching on the streets.
In addition, there were countless soldiers clad in shining armor running towards the four different entrances of the palace, each of them holding a spear in their hands.
"What exactly happened?"
"Why are the city guards heading towards the palace?"
"Did something really happen in the palace?"
The citizens stared at the unsettling scene and descended into a flurry of discussion, their eyes flickered with suspicion and fear.
Everything happened too suddenly. After a pillar of light appeared from the palace, the atmosphere in Flame Capital City also became inexplicably tense.
At the entrance of the palace, two rows of royals guards clad in golden armor stared at the city guards infiltrating their grounds with cold gazes.
"How dare you trespass into the palace!" The royal guards raised their spears in response to the city guard surrounding the palace gates.
"This…" The city guards were startled upon seeing this scene. They all hesitated and none of them dared to step forward.
After all, this was the palace.
Even if they were acting on the orders of King Duan, they were still fearful of charging straight into the palace.
At that moment, a figure appeared from afar. He dismounted from a tall, white, boisterous horse as his silver armor glistened under the moonlight. A ferocious beast was carved right in front of his chest.
"It's King Duan!"
"Your Highness is here!"
The moment the city guards saw King Duan Lin Xinjue, they subconsciously retreated for a few steps, leaving a passage that was wide enough to fit three people.
Quickly. King Duan passed through the city guards and arrived in front of the royal guards.
The royal guards stared at King Duan as the expression on their faces changed ever so slightly. They clinched the spears in their hands tightly.
"What is the meaning of this, King Duan? This is the palace…" A royal guard stepped out from the group and blocked King Duan's way.
However, he did not manage to complete his sentence.
This was because he saw a cold blinding flash in front of him the moment he started speaking.
Following which, he felt a chilling sensation on his neck. He looked down and his eyes widened in shock. He saw a sword.
A sword that was thrust right into his throat.
"Ah… argh.." The royal guard's mouth was wide opened. He wished to speak but blood kept pouring out of his mouth, preventing him from finishing what he wanted to say.
Thump!
The royal guard then fell onto the floor with an expression of disbelief on his face.
He would never understand why King Duan would dare to kill him. Furthermore, he did not seem to hesitate when doing so. There was not even as to a word of warning.
It was all too sudden.
It only took a short moment from the time King Duan made his move to the royal guard collapsing onto the floor. The royal guards were unable to react to this situation.
The city guards behind King Duan were also dumbfounded. They stared at the fallen royal guard with their mouth agape and an incredulous expression.
"King Duan killed someone?"
"And it's a royal guard!"
"What is going on?"
Not a single city guard understood the situation. Although they acted on orders, the scene right before them reeked of a revolution.
Could it be…
King Duan was leading his army of city guards for a revolt?
Against the ten thousand strong royal guard army?
How could this be?
They could not believe their eyes. However, they could not voice out their concerns as well. They were merely ordinary city guards whose role was to listen to any and all military orders.
How then, would they dare to ask such questions?
"Kill them!" King Duan's voice rang echoed through the area. At the same time, he raised he blood-stained sword up in the air.
Drops of blood rolled down from the blade onto his silver armor, tainting the pristine armor with the wrath of fresh blood.
The two rows of royal guards at the entrance of the palace also finally recollected themselves.
This was clearly a war.
A war that needed no explanations.
The moment the city guards rushed into the palace and assumed their roles as infiltrators, they would have to assume their roles as the palace guards. There was no need for words.
They only had to do one thing.
That was to eradicate them all!
"Kill!"
War cries escaped the mouths of the city guards as they raised their spears in response. The clanging sound of their armor reverberated through the area as they moved forward.
One step at a time towards the royal guards standing in front of the palace.
King Duan stared at the two rows of royal guards standing in front of the palace with cold eyes. This was because he had no time to waste around here.
However…
At that moment, a voice rang from behind him.
"Oh my god, King Duan is murdering people! And... oh my, are those the royal guards! Might it be that King Duan is trying to start a revolution?"
"Revolution?"
The city guards stopped in their tracks upon hearing that word. Revolution, together with treason and other serious crimes, was heavily punished in the Great Xia Dynasty, one that was punishable with the death sentence of your entire family.
Even if they were merely acting on orders.
Therefore, this did not mean that people taking part in the revolution would always end up winning.
The royal guards stared at the city guards who had stopped advancing and heaved a sigh of relief. However, they did not intend to put down the spears in their hands just yet.
Stand guard and be ready for any surprise attacks was the only thought in their mind now.
"Who dares to say that I am holding a revolution?" King Duan looked at his city guards and frowned. He then subconsciously looked behind him.
He saw three figures.
Three extremely familiar figures.
However, the only difference was that the figure in the middle was wearing a brand-new court attire. There was even the word "imperial" sewn from golden threads in the middle of that attire.
It was the attire specifically made for the Chief Imperial Messenger of the Imperial Academy.
"Fang Zhengzhi?" King Duan gritted his teeth as he stared at the court attire. He had the impulse to tear down that attire and even kill this person in the midst of all this chaos.
However, he knew that he could not do that.
This was because Ping Yang and Yan Xiu stood beside him. How then, could he order for Fang Zhengzhi to be killed?
"King Duan, are you planning to revolt?" Fang Zhengzhi stared at the fallen royal guard before looking at the blood-stained sword in his hands. He wore a horrified expression.
When Ping Yang and Yan Xiu stared at the fallen royal guard, they similarly turned their glance towards King Duan, their expression filled with confusion and fear.
"What nonsense, how can I be planning a revolt?" King Duan immediately answered without hesitation. Furthermore, he thought that Fang Zhengzhi was extremely childish for asking such a question.
Revolution?
Putting the truth of this incident aside, even if he had the intention to hold a revolution, how could he have admitted to it at that moment?
"Then why did you kill the royal guards?" Fang Zhengzhi seemed to not believe Lin Xinjue's words. He then pressed him further.
"What has that got to do with you?" King Duan said in a chilling tone.
"As an official courtier of the Great Xia Dynasty, I have the responsibility to advice King Duan against such actions, shouldn't I?" Fang Zhengzhi pointed at his attire and said with a righteous expression on his face.
"Sixth brother, why did you kill the royal guards? Are you even bringing the city guards into the palace? This is clearly an act of revolution!" Ping Yang shouted with a horrified expression on her face.
"No, don't listen to the nonsense Fang Zhengzhi is spouting. The royal guards you see in front of you are fakes. Sixth brother made the city guards seal off the palace entrance in order to save father!" King Duan answered Fang Zhengzhi's question bitterly after listening to Ping Yang's words.
"Fake?" Ping Yang was obviously startled.
"King Duan is saying that the royal guards are fakes? I don't believe it, do you have proof?" Fang Zhengzhi asked quizzically.
"I have no time for your nonsense. I am going to save father right now, the city guards are following my command. Those who dare to stop me…"
"King Duan is revolting! King Duan is revolting!"
Before he could say the harsh words, Fang Zhengzhi's voice once again echoed through the area, this time even louder than the previous one.
King Duan Lin Xinjue then had no choice but to swallow his words.
Although his eyes still glowed with a chilling presence.
As he stared at Fang Zhengzhi who was still rattling away, he clenched his sword tightly. He could not wait to kill him off in a single stab.
"How dare you accuse me of holding a revolution!" King Duan felt that he was totally misunderstood. However, he also could not find a way to stop Fang Zhengzhi from talking.
"Are you saying I am wrong?" Fang Zhengzhi stared at the burning anger in King Duan's eyes while giving him an accusing look.
King Duan felt like swearing.
However, he still managed to control his anger as he stared at the two rows of royal guards at the palace entrance. His eyes glimmered with resolve yet again.
He truly did not have time to waste around here.
Tonight, was his chance to shine. A chance that he could not have given up no matter the circumstances. As long as he barged into the palace, his position in court would never be shaken ever again.
"Fang Zhengzhi, I have already mentioned that these people are fakes!" King Duan sounded unusually infuriated.
"How can you prove it?" Fang Zhengzhi blinked as he said.
"I do not wish to waste my time on you. If you do not believe me, follow me into the palace!" King Duan did not wish to waste time explaining to Fang Zhengzhi.
Most importantly, he could not explain it.
How did he know that these royal guards were fake? How did he then, knew that something was about to happen in the palace? All of these could not be explained in a short period of time.
"Alright then, King Duan please proceed!" Fang Zhengzhi nodded upon hearing those words. Following which, he pointed at the two rows of royal guards in front of the palace entrance.
The royals guards trembled in fear upon seeing Fang Zhengzhi's accusing finger. Their facial expressions were unusual.
"Proceed?" King Duan listened to Fang Zhengzhi and was stunned for a moment. This was indeed strange, and extremely peculiar.
Fang Zhengzhi's changed his attitude way too fast!
Just a moment ago, he was accusing King Duan of holding a revolution. The next moment, he was telling King Duan to bring him into the palace, even giving him permission to massacre the royal guards.
What was going on?
King Duan felt that something was amiss. However, he had no time to think about such issues. He had to get into the palace as fast as possible.
"Kill them all!" King Duan pointed at the royal guards with his sword.
The city guards once again heard the command from King Duan. Although they still had doubts about his actions, no one dared to go against his wishes.
"Kill!"
"Kill them all!"
War cries echoed through the area once again.
Following which, the city guards made their move again, charging towards the royal guards in neat and compact formation. Their spears pointed mercilessly forward as they ran.
"Onward!"
As the royal guards looked at the city guards, they gritted their teeth and braced themselves for the impact.
A bloody battle was about to begin.
Fang Zhengzhi, Ping Yang, and Yan Xiu stood silently at the side and stared at the ongoing battle, just like passers-by that just happened to walk past.
"The royal guard has strong individual combat abilities. However, they cannot fend off these many city guards. I am guessing this battle will end swiftly." Fang Zhengzhi seriously commented on the result of this battle.
"That's right, my exact sentiments." Ping Yang nodded upon hearing Fang Zhengzhi's words, showing her approval of his views.
"It should be done in 15 minutes." Yan Xiu nodded as he said.
King Duan, who was riding his majestic white horse and holding his long sword listened intently to their conversation. His lips subconsciously twitched upon hearing those words.
The city guards and royal guards were in an unusual heated battle.
However, there were three "passers-by" who seemed to be keeping their distance from this incident, but getting somehow involved in it.
Furthermore, they had a nonchalant expression on their faces. It made King Duan felt extremely uncomfortable.
"This is not right! Why did Fang Zhengzhi appear? Is it coincidence? He simply saw the bright light in the palace and came here to watch a show. Or, could he have some other motives?" King Duan felt a shiver down his spine and stared at Fang Zhengzhi, who was in a discussion with Ping Yang and Yan Xiu. A bladed resolve shone through his eyes.