Douluo Continent: Starting from Tianshui Academy

Chapter 240 Full of Gunpowder

The commotion Qian Renxue caused in the Heaven Dou Imperial Palace quickly spread, especially the scene where Xue Qinghe publicly announced his joining the Spirit Hall, which left countless onlookers in the Heaven Dou Empire in disbelief.

"The Crown Prince of the Heaven Dou Empire has actually joined the Spirit Hall?"

"Does this mean the Heaven Dou Empire is going to submit to the Spirit Hall?"

When Emperor Dai Tianfeng of the Star Luo Empire received the news from his scouts, he was extremely worried. He feared that the Spirit Hall and the Heaven Dou Empire would unite and launch a war against the Star Luo Empire, which would then be the end for the Star Luo Empire.

Even the two elders of the Haotian Sect who had just been appointed as royal retainers of the Star Luo Empire were completely dumbfounded. Tang Xiao had personally gone to the Heaven Dou Empire to discuss cooperation, but now that the Crown Prince of the other side had joined the Spirit Hall, what was the point of all this?

Qian Renxue's manipulation of Crown Prince Xue Qinghe to stage this drama also caused other kingdoms and duchies in the Heaven Dou Empire with ambiguous relationships with the Spirit Hall to side with the Spirit Hall, such as the Barak Kingdom and the Häagen-Dazs Kingdom.

The Spirit Hall also took the opportunity to infiltrate the ruling classes of these kingdoms and duchies to facilitate its future actions.

"Father, we must announce to the world that Xue Qinghe is an imposter, not the real Crown Prince. The original Crown Prince was killed by the Spirit Hall."

In the imperial palace of the Heaven Dou Empire, Xue Beng proposed to Emperor Xue Ye that in this way, he would become the crown prince of the Heaven Dou Empire.

These past few days, Emperor Xueye has been fantasizing about Xue Qinghe and has been delaying in making him the crown prince, which has made Xue Beng very anxious.

"Brother, stop having any illusions about Xue Qinghe. The whole of Tiandou City is talking about it. We need to announce that Xue Qinghe is an imposter so as to appease the people."

Prince Xuexing also advised Emperor Xueye that the most urgent task was to establish Prince Xuebeng as the crown prince.

"Alright! Beng'er, you go and handle this matter! You are now my only son."

After listening to the two men, Emperor Xueye finally made up his mind and sent Xue Beng to deal with the rumors, which was also a test for his youngest son.

"Father, don't worry! Your son will handle everything." Xue Beng was very excited to see his father finally speak.

Upon returning to the Crown Prince's residence, Xue Beng immediately assumed the identity of the Crown Prince and ordered a public announcement to be made, stating that Crown Prince Xue Qinghe was an imposter from the Spirit Hall, and that the entire affair was a conspiracy by the Spirit Hall, portraying the Spirit Hall as an utterly wicked organization.

Qian Renxue abandoned her undercover plan, and Xue Beng immediately took over everything in the Crown Prince's residence, regardless of whether the old man Xue Ye agreed. In any case, he was now the only heir left in the Tian Dou royal family, and the position of Crown Prince could only be his.

"Wow! I see."

"I feel that the way the Heaven Dou Empire's royal family competes is more exciting than that of the Star Luo Empire."

When Xue Beng announced this in his capacity as crown prince, the general public thought it was just a power struggle between the two princes of the Heavenly Dou Empire.

"I never expected that the spoiled brat Xue Beng would win in the end. The Heaven Dou Empire is doomed now."

"That ruthless and depraved abductor, he's become emperor. Who knows what kind of mess he'll make of the empire?"

"Emperor Xueye must be getting old and blind, actually choosing a spoiled brat like Xue Beng as his successor. No wonder His Highness the Crown Prince joined the Spirit Hall."

In people's minds, Crown Prince Xue Qinghe was a refined and gentle gentleman, unlike Xue Beng, who was a wicked and dissolute playboy. Now that Xue Beng had become the Crown Prince, many people in the Tiandou Empire were very unhappy and were cursing Xue Beng behind his back.

"Damn it, Xue Qinghe, you're really ruthless."

Xue Beng never expected that his attempt to quell the rumors as the crown prince would not only fail to garner praise but would instead be met with a barrage of criticism.

"Avalanche, stay calm. What can rumors do? What can the people do if they're dissatisfied? In the end, they'll still have to accept your rule. Don't pay attention to the words of those ants."

Prince Xuexing looked at the furious avalanche and reassured him not to panic.

"Uncle, I understand."

Xue Beng said calmly, but he was very anxious. If he couldn't take power, he couldn't mobilize the army and couldn't avenge himself against Ye Liangchen. It was infuriating.

Although his father was old, he was still a Soul Master. If he had to wait another twenty or thirty years, Ye Liangchen would definitely have grown into an unparalleled powerhouse. Even if he became emperor, he would not be able to repay him.

Thinking of this, Xue Beng felt incredibly frustrated.

"Hey! I've got it!"

At this moment, Xue Beng suddenly had a flash of inspiration. Since his father would not abdicate, he could use some means to unite with the concubines and make the old man die faster.

Avalanche secretly had affairs with several of Emperor Xueye's concubines. Coincidentally, those concubines were also dissatisfied with Emperor Xueye's declining abilities and wanted to secretly take action against him. It shouldn't be a big problem.

"Hehehe...! I'm so talented." Xue Beng laughed inwardly, thinking that the throne was not far away.

Emperor Xueye is also having a headache. What heinous things has his youngest son done in the past that has made the people hate him so much?

"Compared to Qinghe, Beng'er is far inferior and utterly incapable of shouldering great responsibilities! Alas!"

Emperor Xueye sighed. It seemed that he would have to steer the great ship of the Heavenly Dou Empire himself. He could only let go when his youngest son, Xue Beng, satisfied him.

Emperor Xueye was also a power-hungry emperor. He could never get enough of the life of having three thousand concubines in his harem, and he would never easily let Xuebeng inherit the throne.

"Father, why did my eldest brother join the Spirit Hall?"

Just then, Princess Xue Ke ran to Emperor Xue Ye's residence to inquire about Xue Qinghe.

Although Qian Renxue killed three princes of the Tiandou Empire, she treated Princess Xue Ke very well, like a younger sister. Xue Qinghe's betrayal of the empire broke Princess Xue Ke's heart, and she has been spending many days in her room weeping, missing her elder brother.

"Ke'er, I don't know either. Your uncle told Fourth Brother that Qinghe is an imposter. I'm completely confused now."

Seeing Xue Ke's tearful face, Emperor Xue Ye knew that the little girl must have been very sad during this time.

"Why would our elder brother do this? Haven't we treated him well? The future throne is his, what more could he possibly want?"

Xueke tearfully recounted how her older brother's departure from home had deeply saddened her.

Princess Xueke is a brother-obsessed girl who is very attached to Xue Qinghe. She feels very uncomfortable without her older brother's doting affection.

"No, I need to find out."

Emperor Xueye immediately returned to the palace, summoned thousands of soldiers, and rushed to the Spirit Hall of Heaven Dou City to question Salas.

"Tap tap tap..."

When Emperor Xueye led thousands of soldiers to the Spirit Hall of Heaven Dou City, the Platinum Bishop Salas and his party were immediately shocked.

"May I ask what brings Your Majesty to our Spirit Hall?"

Salas walked out of the Spirit Hall and calmly asked Emperor Xueye a question. As the highest-ranking official of the Spirit Hall in Heaven Dou City, he could not back down at this moment.

These past few days, the commotion caused by Qian Renxue has made Salas very nervous, worried that Emperor Xueye will wipe out the Spirit Hall garrison in Tiandou City.

"Salas, I want to know, why would His Highness the Crown Prince of my Heaven Dou Empire collude with the Spirit Hall?"

Emperor Xueye sat in his carriage, looking down at Salas and questioning him.

"Your Majesty, I am not aware of this matter."

Salas shrugged, indicating that he didn't know.

Salas thought that Emperor Xueye had brought his army to attack the Spirit Hall, but he didn't expect that the other party had only come to inquire about Xue Qinghe. So Salas immediately started arguing with Emperor Xueye and refused to admit anything.

"Salas, don't play dumb with me."

Emperor Xueye was furious when he saw that Salas was arguing with him.

"Your Majesty, the Crown Prince joining the Spirit Hall is a confidential matter."

"I am merely a lowly Platinum Bishop. Does Your Majesty deem me qualified to know such confidential matters?"

Salas continued to act as if he were a dead pig unafraid of boiling water, refusing to admit anything.

"Salas, do you really think I wouldn't dare to annihilate you?"

"All of you, listen to my command! Today, we will raze the Spirit Hall of Heaven Dou City to the ground!"

Emperor Xueye was so enraged by Salas that he immediately ordered an attack on the Spirit Hall.

"Everyone, activate your Martial Souls and prepare for battle."

Seeing that Emperor Xueye was anxious, Salas immediately ordered all the dozens of Golden Knights stationed at the Spirit Hall in Tiandou City to prepare for battle.

"Yes, Your Excellency."

"Buzzing..."

The Spirit Masters of the Spirit Hall revealed their Spirits, preparing to fight.

The Golden Knights, stationed at the Spirit Hall in Heaven Dou City, consist of 60 members, all of whom are at the Soul King level, along with three Soul Saints at level 70 and above. Salas's strength is as high as level 89. In a real fight, they might not all be wiped out.

"Tap tap tap..."

"Your Majesty, please calm down and don't act impulsively."

Just then, Prince Snowstar and Avalanche arrived quickly on horseback and stopped the conflict between the two sides.

"Your Majesty, I've heard that a Title Douluo from the Hall of Worship was involved in the Crown Prince's affairs. I truly didn't know about such a confidential matter. If you want to know, you might as well go directly to Spirit City and ask His Holiness the Pope for clarification."

Salas then shifted the blame to the higher-ups of the Spirit Hall, specifically mentioning the Title Douluo of the Hall of Offerings.

"Your Majesty, please calm down. If we take action, the Spirit Hall will definitely retaliate, and we cannot afford the consequences," Xue Xing advised from the side.

"Salas, the Heaven Dou Empire has a million soldiers. Don't think I'm afraid of those Title Douluos from your Spirit Hall."

"We're retreating."

After making a harsh statement to Salas, Emperor Xueye led his army to retreat.

"Prince Xuexing, thankfully you arrived in time, averting a war and saving the people of Tiandou City."

Salas, in a dramatic display, showered Prince Snowstar with compliments with a beaming smile.

"Salas, don't think that just because the Spirit Hall has a large number of Title Douluos, it can control everything." Prince Xuexing coldly addressed Salas, his tone full of hostility.

"Prince Xuexing, that's an overstatement. Although our Spirit Hall has a large number of Title Douluos, we don't have absolute power. I'm just a minor Platinum Bishop. What's the point of you getting angry at me?"

"The Heaven Dou Empire and the Star Luo Empire are frequently at war. If it weren't for our Spirit Hall mediating, does Your Highness think the Heaven Dou Empire could withstand the Star Luo Empire's iron cavalry?"

"Your Highness, our Spirit Hall has always upheld peace. You shouldn't harbor such resentment towards our Spirit Hall."

Salas completely disregarded the threat posed by Prince Xuexing, and instead brought up the idea of ​​the Spirit Hall mediating the conflict between the two empires.

"Salas, your Spirit Hall's Title Douluo killed hundreds of our Imperial Guards this time. We will avenge this blood debt."

"Your Highness, a Title Douluo has appeared, and you still send those soldiers to surround and attack him? Aren't you just sending them to their deaths?"

"Salas, you're just making excuses."

"Your Highness, I am telling the truth. In fact, it is not a bad thing for His Highness the Crown Prince to join the Spirit Hall. It is you who insisted on making a fuss and sending troops to besiege a Title Douluo. You could say that the ones who killed those soldiers were yourselves."

"I have no intention of arguing with you. You'd better watch yourselves!"

Prince Snowstar was so enraged by Salas that he stormed off.

"Your Excellency, what should we do now? Should we ask His Holiness the Pope for permission to evacuate from Heaven Dou City?"

Upon seeing that the Heavenly Dou royal family had retreated, a Soul Saint sought instructions from Salas.

"Tors, return to Wuhun City immediately and report to His Holiness the Pope."

Salas realized the seriousness of the situation. If a real fight broke out today, he would not be able to protect his subordinates. So he immediately sent the Soul Saint with the ability to fly back to Wuhun City.

"Yes, Your Excellency." Thors accepted the order and rushed to Wuhun City.

(End of this chapter)