Douluo Continent II: The Peerless Tang Sect: I, Huo Yuhao, join the Sun Moon Sect

He looked resentful.

......

The Spirit Empire, Spirit City.

In the Douling Palace, the Douling Emperor sat upright in his chair, looking at his cabinet members, and sighed, "Currently, there is a lot of dissatisfaction within the empire regarding Shrek Academy. Some feel that Shrek Academy is completely humiliating Douling. Some people are even opposing the empire's continued cooperation with Shrek Academy. You are all pillars of my Douling Empire, so let's discuss how to suppress this wave of opposition."

According to Emperor Douling, although Xuanzi made a mistake, the Douling Empire would have no way to fight against the Sun Moon Empire without the assistance of Shrek Academy. Therefore, it is necessary to maintain a good relationship with Shrek Academy as much as possible.

He understood the principle of "if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold" very well.

Admittedly, after the Sun Moon Empire takes over the Douling Empire, it may not do anything to the people, but instead absorb them as Sun Moon citizens. However, the Douling royal family will likely lose power.

"Your Majesty!" The Prime Minister rose and bowed. "I believe that we should dispatch the most elite Fighting Spirit Air Transport Force to deliver a heavy blow to those who oppose us!"

Chapter 717 You wouldn't want people to know that the Duke of Tianhe is your illegitimate son, would you?

"That is not true! If the Empire's air force were to launch a heavy attack on the opponents and cause a tragic incident, I'm afraid all of you here would be condemned by those with ulterior motives and branded as treacherous officials."

"At that time, there might be rebels who, under the pretext of 'purging the court of corrupt officials,' directly launch an attack on Lingdou City, and then disaster will befall us!" the Finance Minister said in a deep voice, clearly disagreeing with the Prime Minister's opinion.

"Hmph!" The Minister of the Interior glanced at the Minister of Finance and said coldly, "Since our Emperor Shizu established the Douling Empire, he has vigorously weakened local forces, and local forces are not as powerful as before."

The most elite troops are the army directly under the royal family. Even if the locals want to rebel in the name of "purging the emperor's inner circle", with their strength, how could they possibly sweep all the way to Lingdou City?

These opponents actually attempted to sever the cooperation between the Empire and Shrek Academy; they are traitors and deserve to be beheaded as a warning to others!

The so-called Emperor Shizu refers to Ling Shizu, the first emperor of the Douling Empire.

Many years ago, he was the ninth prince of Tiandou. Because he was still young, he lived in Tiandou City and was originally unable to inherit the throne.

However, rebellions broke out in various places, and the rebel army attacked Tiandou City, killing a large number of Tiandou royal family members, including Ling Shizu's father, mother, brothers and sisters, ultimately leaving only the Ninth Prince as the direct descendant of the royal family.

The Ninth Prince was led away in a hasty retreat by powerful figures loyal to the royal family. They traveled north and eventually arrived at Lingdou City, where, with the support of the loyalist army and a host of powerful figures, he ascended the throne as emperor.

His posthumous temple name was Ling Shizu. During his lifetime, Ling Shizu claimed to be the legitimate successor of Tiandou and devoted his life to recovering lost territory and restoring Tiandou.

Therefore, after his death, he would naturally not be given the temple name Taizu, but rather Shizu.

Unfortunately, the Heavenly Soul Thief was too powerful, and he was unable to return to Heavenly Dou City until his death.

Of course, in the process of governing the Douling Empire, Ling Shizu deeply felt that the chaos in Tiandou was mainly due to the weakness of the royal family and the growing power of local forces. Therefore, he adopted a series of measures to strengthen the royal family's control over the local areas.

During his reign, he also granted fiefdoms to some members of the royal family to protect the royal household.

Of course, nowadays, there are very few members of the royal family who possess real power, and their strength is not great enough. They are more than capable of suppressing local rebellions, but if they choose to rebel, it is almost impossible for them to succeed.

"As the war situation deteriorates further, the empire will have to divert more elite troops to the front lines to resist the Sun and Moon Army, which will leave the empire vulnerable. In this situation, what if the Sun and Moon Empire supports some disloyal local forces? The royal family will be in grave danger!" The finance minister's gaze swept over the cabinet members.

Upon hearing this, everyone's expression changed drastically.

The Sun and Moon Empire is indeed a formidable enemy, so powerful that it requires the combined efforts of multiple forces to deal with it.

Even so, the allied forces suffered repeated defeats and were unable to stop the advance of the Sun and Moon Army.

If such a terrible situation were to occur, it would undoubtedly put the Douling royal family in danger of collapse.

So the group continued their heated discussion, and finally, Emperor Douling, after considering the suggestions of his ministers, came up with a plan to suppress the wave of opposition.

The plan is simple: still send out the Douling Air Force to deal a heavy blow to those who oppose it. After all, the cooperation between Shrek Academy and the Douling Empire must continue, otherwise the Douling Empire will have no way to resist the Sun and Moon Army. Of course, this cannot be done openly; it must be done secretly, and the blame must be shifted to the Sun and Moon Empire and the Holy Spirit Cult.

However, there are too many opponents to kill them all, otherwise chaos would surely ensue. The only option is to kill some of the more vocal opponents and redirect the resentment of the remaining opponents toward the Sun Moon Empire and the Holy Spirit Cult. In this way, the conflict can be shifted.

During this period, in order to prevent the Sun Moon Empire from inciting local forces in Douling to rebel and thus causing internal strife.

The empire would also send spies to various parts of the empire to secretly gather intelligence and keep an eye on important personnel, and report any suspicious activity immediately.

.......

a few days later.

The Battle Spirit Empire.

North.

Luoan Province.

The study of the Marquis of Luo'an's mansion.

A pale gold soundproof soul-guiding shield covers this area, isolating it from internal and external sounds.

A middle-aged man who looked to be around forty years old sat in a chair, looking at his confidants standing across the table, and said in a deep voice, "I received news that our Emperor does not trust me, so he has specially arranged a group of spies to enter Luo'an Province to keep an eye on me and prevent me from rebelling."

Upon hearing this, the confidants' expressions changed drastically, and they began to discuss among themselves.

"The Marquis has always been loyal to the emperor and loved his country. His Majesty's suspicion of him is truly disheartening!"

"Your Majesty and the Marquis are both of royal blood, how could they do such a thing?"

"These damned spies, they never come to Luo'an Province without something good!"

The middle-aged man looked at everyone and said, "Alright, His Majesty is doing this for the peace of the empire. As a member of the Xue family, I should understand His Majesty. After all, no emperor can trust a powerful marquis in the current dire situation."

“I, Xue Kui, have always been loyal to the emperor and loved the country. It is only right that I support His Majesty unconditionally at this time. We don’t need to worry about those spies. Anyway, I have no intention of rebelling.”

Upon hearing these grand and righteous words, the confidants began to praise Marquis Xue Kui.

Marquis Xuekui's face gradually broke into a smile, after all, everyone likes to be praised.

Suddenly, a discordant voice rang out: "Xue Kui, is it that you don't want to rebel, or that you're incapable of rebelling? You should know the answer in your heart."

"Who!" Xue Kui's pupils contracted slightly.

"Protect the Marquis!" The confidants immediately surrounded Xue Kui, their spirit rings swirling around him.

The next moment, a figure in black robes appeared by the door. This person wore a mask and had eyes as sharp as lightning.

"Who are you?" Xue Kui asked coldly, a hint of panic in his voice.

"Me? I'm here to help you realize your rebellious ideas, Xue Kui. Since you've long harbored rebellious intentions, why not cooperate with our Sun Moon Empire?" Huo Yuhao said.

In the original novel, Xue Kui chose to rebel and, with Ju Zi's support, stormed into Lingdou City. Since this person had rebellious intentions, Huo Yuhao naturally had to come and help him in advance. Well, it would be best to let this person rebel in advance.

By controlling Xue Kui, he could secretly control the Dou Ling Empire. No matter how strong a fortress is, it is always easier to break through from the inside than from the outside.

"The Sun and Moon Empire?" Xue Kui's face darkened. "Hmph, how could I possibly cooperate with the Sun and Moon Empire? My lineage of Marquis Luo An has always been loyal to His Majesty and would never rebel! Kill me or torture me as you please, even if I die, I will tear a piece of flesh from your body!"

Marquis Xue Kui of Luo'an is still worried that this person is a powerful figure sent by the Douling Emperor to test him. Although he has internal information channels in the court, he cannot obtain all of the Douling Emperor's actions.

"If I remember correctly, you and the former Duchess of Tianhe had a child back then, and that child has now grown up and is the current Duke of Tianhe, Xue Leng. You don't want people to know that the Duke of Tianhe is your illegitimate child, do you?" Huo Yuhao said with a faint smile.

Chapter 718 Let's plot a rebellion, Xue Kui!

Xue Kui was struck dumb, his face showing panic.

Only he, the former Duchess of Tianhe, and the current Duke of Tianhe, Xue Leng, knew about this matter. As for the former Duke of Tianhe, whose grave was slightly green, he knew nothing about it.

Once this matter gets out, the Douling Emperor will surely be furious, and the three of them will definitely suffer the consequences.

Logically speaking, this matter should never have reached outsiders' ears, since the three of them kept it a secret.

How did this masked man in black robes know about this?

He stared intently at Huo Yuhao, trying his best to hide his panic, and asked sharply, "Who exactly are you! How do you know about this?"

"I've already said that I'm here representing the Sun Moon Empire to help you realize your idea of ​​rebellion. As for how I know about this, you don't need to care," Huo Yuhao said calmly.

The confidants nearby were all in shock.

After all, this news was too explosive. Who would have thought that the current Duke of Tianhe was actually the Marquis's own son?

Doesn't that mean the former Duke Tianhe was raising the Marquis's son?

Thinking of this, the confidants couldn't help but feel a pang of pity for the former Duke Tianhe.

Of course, this feeling of pity came and went quickly. As confidants of Marquis Xue Kui of Luo'an, they would naturally stand firmly on Xue Kui's side.

Xue Kui's expression shifted between light and dark.

In fact, he did have thoughts of rebellion.

However, the strength of the people under the command of Emperor Douling is too great. With just a small marquis like him, even if we take into account the power of Tianhe and Duke Xue Leng, there is no way he can succeed in rebelling now.

We can only wait for the right opportunity.

"Are you really here representing the Sun Moon Empire?" Xue Kui asked tentatively, somewhat intrigued.

In fact, the right time he was waiting for was for the Sun Moon Army to invade the Douling Empire, for him to surrender to the Sun Moon Army with his son, and then, with the help of the Sun Moon Army, to support his son Xue Leng to ascend the throne.

Yes, he himself did not actually covet the throne; he only wanted to support his son to ascend to the throne.

The neighboring Heavenly Soul Empire—no, it should now be called the Heavenly Soul Kingdom—is a good example. Although it was occupied by the Sun Moon Empire, the current Heavenly Soul King is still living a good life and has not been subjected to any war.

After all, the Sun Moon Empire still needs the Heavenly Soul King to assist in ruling.

If possible, he hoped that his son Xue Leng would ascend the throne and become the Dou Ling Emperor, even if he was later demoted to Dou Ling King, it would still be a huge profit.

Huo Yuhao remained silent, releasing his mental pressure.

In an instant, a chilling sensation swept over everyone, causing their teeth to chatter and their faces to turn pale. After all, the strongest person present was only a Soul Douluo!

"Please stop, senior!" Xue Kui bowed and looked panicked. As a Soul Saint, he naturally could not resist Huo Yuhao's mental pressure. If Huo Yuhao hadn't shown no killing intent, Xue Kui and his confidants would have been dead long ago.

"Do you believe me now?" Huo Yuhao still didn't stop. He couldn't just believe whatever Xue Kui said, after all, he was the one in charge.

"Senior, I believe in you. I am willing to cooperate with the Sun Moon Empire and rebel together." Xue Kui nodded repeatedly, like a chicken pecking at rice.

He was secretly alarmed. This person's mental pressure was too strong. In terms of strength alone, he was probably no less than a Super Douluo. Killing him and his group would be extremely easy for him.

The fact that this person is still willing to discuss cooperation with him now undoubtedly shows that the other party is not sent by the Douling Emperor, but by the Sun Moon Empire. Therefore, he should naturally show a good attitude.

"Starting today, Xue Kui, you will lead your trusted confidants to prepare for the rebellion. As for your son, you will be responsible for persuading him," Huo Yuhao said in a deep voice.

Xue Kui hesitated, "Senior, it's not that we can't prepare for a rebellion, it's just that our strength is too weak. Even if we were to prepare for a rebellion, we're afraid we wouldn't be able to succeed. Our deaths are a small matter, but if the rebellion fails, it will ruin your life..."

Upon hearing this, Huo Yuhao understood Xue Kui's intentions; the other party simply wanted to ask for assistance.

To be honest, if we only rely on the two territories of Luo'an Province and Tianhe Province, without external assistance, even if we try our best to prepare for a rebellion, we will not be able to succeed.

"I will provide you with support, so you can focus on preparing for the rebellion. I will inform you of the specific time of the uprising. Once the rebellion is successful, I promise that your son, Xue Leng, can ascend the throne," Huo Yuhao said.

In fact, according to the original work, Xue Kui rebelled in order to put his son Xue Leng on the throne.

Xue Kui even led his men to burn, kill, plunder, and slaughter the city's inhabitants, while instructing his son Xue Leng not to harm the people along the way, all to use his own infamy to highlight Xue Leng's benevolence.