Reincarnated as the daughter of my mortal enemy, all I want is to ascend the throne.

Li Yan's words made the retired emperor stop in his tracks as he walked out.

"What do you mean by that?"

The retired emperor frowned slightly, somewhat puzzled by Li Yan's words.

Seeing his expression, Li Yan curled his lips into a mocking smile, took a step forward, and just as the red-armored guards beside him were about to stop him, several black-clad assassins descended from the sky and confronted the red-armored guards.

They had all trained together, and some even shared the same mentor.

Both sides drew their swords, creating a tense atmosphere, but they would not easily start a battle without their master's orders.

Li Yan's snow-white feet stepped onto the gold and black floor tiles as she approached the Emperor Emeritus step by step.

His loose hair made him appear less sharp and more gentle, but the mockery and murderous intent in his eyes completely erased that gentleness.

Li Yan stopped when he was still a step away from the retired emperor.

"Father, do you remember what happened two years before the Suzaku Gate Incident?"

The word "father" made the Emperor Emeritus slightly lose his composure. He hadn't heard this title in a long time, especially since Li Yan hadn't even used the unfamiliar title "Father Emperor" much in recent years.

The retired emperor pondered for a moment, then suddenly raised his head...

It was an ambush at Jade Canyon.

Li Yan led the White Tiger Army in a fierce battle against the western enemy for more than half a year and finally won. He then led the army back.

However, they were ambushed in the Jade Canyon, a crucial passage.

The 20,000 soldiers who returned first all died in Jade Valley. Among them were Li Yan's teacher, his childhood friends, and even Yan Xu's parents.

Originally, Li Yan and Yan Xu should have died there together, but unfortunately...

"It's a pity that Yan Xu and I both fell into the water the night before and got sick, so we have to stay for two more days before heading back."

"That's how the two of us survived."

"Does Father not know who did it?"

"That assassination letter that revealed our route was leaked from the Zhou family."

"Wasn't the Empress Dowager involved behind this?"

"Or are you saying you know nothing, Father? Back then, you had spies all over the capital."

"When I returned from the brink of death, your eyes and the Empress Dowager's eyes were telling me that you felt only shock, not joy."

Li Yan exposed the Emperor Emeritus's feigned ignorance and claims of "not knowing" and "not understanding."

Without his tacit approval, the assassination letter from back then would never have been sent out.

Li Yan and Yan Xu suppressed their hatred and did not make the matter public, simply because once the truth was exposed, the old nobles would use it to suppress the new nobles, and the capital, which had finally stabilized, would fall again.

The retired emperor staggered back several steps, lost his footing, and sat down on the ground.

He thought Li Yan didn't know about that past event. He had clearly killed everyone involved, so how could this be...?

Seeing his discomposure, Li Yan looked down at him from her high position.

"Father, you should have died in the Vermilion Bird Gate Incident. I regret saving you."

Li Yan, filled with gritted teeth and hatred, uttered treasonous words. These words were like a knife deeply piercing the heart of the retired emperor.

His only remaining children were Li Yan and Xiao Liu, who lived far away in Pingyang. One child hated him so much he wanted to kill him, while the other acted as if he didn't exist as a father.

The retired emperor covered his face, "Hahahaha..."

He once hoped that his children would grow up peacefully, happily, and healthily, and that he would have many children and grandchildren. When did things turn out like this?

The throne truly corrupts people's hearts, turning them into unrecognizable beings.

"Li Yan, Li Yan, how long do you think you can hold out? When your children grow up, they will do the same."

"Do you think you can ascend this throne without shedding blood?"

"Li Yan, whose side will you take then?"

"Hahaha……"

The retired emperor walked out laughing, but a closer look revealed that his steps were unsteady.

He lost.

He lost the moment Li Yan exposed him; the guilt and remorse were killing him.

The reason he believed in Taoism was simply to find an outlet, an outlet to forgive his own conscience.

Li Yan's eyes seemed to be sealed by wind and frost. Not only did the Red Armor Guards not leave, but they also increased by ten.

He narrowed his eyes, his gaze instantly clearing. If it weren't for provoking the Emperor Emeritus, he wouldn't have called him "father" those times; that man didn't deserve that title.

"You've already collapsed?" A barely perceptible smile played on Li Yan's lips. "To kill someone is to destroy their spirit. Countless truths await to destroy you and the Empress Dowager."

Li Yan glanced at the red-armored guards beside him.

The person who had been so dejected and frantic just moments before seemed not to be him at all; in the blink of an eye, the aura of an emperor filled the bedchamber.

"Red Armor Guards?"

His words, spoken slowly and deliberately, sent chills down the spines of the Red Armor Guards. They had only been away from Li Yan's command for a little over ten years, yet they had all fought alongside him on the battlefield, and they were all too familiar with this murderous aura.

The red-armored guard instinctively sheathed his sword.

"Hongyu, go check on how the young prince is doing."

Having received the order, Hongyu disappeared from the bedchamber in the blink of an eye.

Li Yan lifted his robe and sat on the bed, coldly looking at the red-armored guards. "If you delay my business, you might as well lose your heads."

This means they are allowed to follow him, but they must never interfere with the affairs of those around him, or they will die.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The Red Armor Guards wisely withdrew.

"A bunch of lapdogs. It's time to deal with them. The retired emperor can only live like a Taoist priest. His excessive greed for power will make his life worse than death."

Li Yan took a sip of tea, wondering how his little brat was doing.

[Host, host, wake up, wake up.]

The electronic voice of the flying fork conveyed despair, and no matter how much it shouted, there was no response.

A butterfly slipped through a crack in the window and fluttered to the ground. Several beams of white light appeared, and the butterfly transformed into a human figure.

"This little thing has really had a lot of bad luck." Master Qingshan took a few steps closer and felt Li Qingyan's pulse at the neck. "Dead."

He calmly stated his conclusion.

"You should keep your promise."

Master Qingshan said something in Li Qingyan's direction.

Save her, but don't forget the condition I gave you: she has to live a smooth and successful life.

The flying fork's voice was filled with anger, and the system's emotions would become richer and richer as the time of its creation and the worlds it experienced increased.

It is a defective product and will grow much, much slower than other systems.

How many worlds have they experienced so far? They've already developed emotions. Master Qingshan was somewhat shocked.

"She still has decades to live."

Master Qingshan didn't have that much patience.

Decades may seem like a blink of an eye to you.

Feicha has always been timid, but now he speaks with unusual force.

Master Qingshan lowered his eyes to look at the dead Li Qingyan. There were some things he could not take by force. With a flick of his whisk, golden light fell on Li Qingyan.

"I can only protect her heart meridian to keep her alive for now; she can only rely on herself to overcome this crisis."

'Bang bang bang'

Fei Cha clearly heard Li Qingyan's heartbeat, regardless of when Master Qingshan left.

He transformed into the image of a little boy and entered the system space in Li Qingyan's mind.

[Host, you must survive. We can't lose.]

We won't lose.

Absolutely not.