Chapter 1146: Cards on the Table (Part 1)

The Emperor's movement shocked all the ministers in the hall.

The Emperor had always followed the previous emperor's footsteps—he was diligent, attentive, and had always adhered to the rules and customs without the slightest bit of discomposure. The only fault people could find about him was that he was too accommodating toward Lin Xitang, to the point of diminishing his imperial might. However, Lin Xitang was a minister who had been assigned by the previous Emperor and even granted the title of national guardian, so the inspectors only complained about it verbally.

This movement could be considered a loss in composure. A number of old ministers frowned, and some even wanted to criticize the Emperor.

However, a suppressive might akin to raging tides erupted from the throne, and those who wanted to move realized that it was coming right at them. When they looked up hurriedly, they saw the Emperor's stern gaze as the cold, tangible pressure slammed into their chests.

The Emperor's figure vanished from the hall before everyone could catch their breath, leaving only the attendant standing submissively beside the throne. The man called out in a drawn-out tone, "Court dismissed!"

The entire hall fell into an eerie silence.

The ministers all reacted differently. The civil ministers at the back were mostly puzzled, while the nobility and powerful ministers wore subtle expressions. There was no lack of divine champion level experts among them, and they had naturally sensed the suppressive might from just now. The problem was that its harshness and power caused even them to feel apprehensive. That wasn't how everyone remembered it.

The Imperial family was the clan among clans, with most Emperors being powerful and unyielding. To be blunt, the current Radiant Emperor was inferior in birth, talent, and ability. Fortunately, he was extremely demanding on himself regarding national affairs, and that won him a basic level of respect among the major clans.

But the highest-ranking nobles understood that the heavenly monarchs of the Imperial clan considered this Emperor to be mediocre at best. It was easy to imagine that the Emperor didn't have much of a position in his own family, either. Then, what exactly was that just now? Many major characters thought of the same question: "Does the Longevity Monarch know the Emperor's true strength?"

What everyone was concerned about right now was the Emperor's whereabouts. He had vanished under countless eyes, yet no one knew where he had gone.

Zhang Boqian stepped into the ground floor hall and, after observing the surroundings, went straight up to the seventh stratum.

The white-clothed man was sleeping on a couch near the southern window, just like in the projection.

Zhang Boqian walked over.

Lin Xitang was actually awake, but he only noticed Zhang Boqian when he touched the couch. The marshal was stunned when he realized that it was Zhang Boqian—he opened his mouth slightly but didn't know what to say. His entire body, and even his hands, never moved during this entire process.

Zhang Boqian's gaze was as deep and dark as the ocean abyss. He bent down and grabbed Lin Xitang's hand, only to find that it was like a piece of thin ice that would shatter when squeezed.

Without a word, Zhang Boqian placed an arm around Lin Xitang's shoulder and picked him up.

"Boqian..."

Lin Xitang hadn't finished speaking when the sky outside the windows turned dark for a moment. A powerful and ancient aura descended from the void and engulfed the entire mountaintop. It was a domain! A major domain that had been released within a void-origin power array!

Zhang Boqian looked up at the Radiant Emperor, flames of anger burning within his eyes.

The Emperor of Great Qin stood hovering in the air, black mist surging beneath his feet. The domain on the hilltop had taken shape—the leaden clouds hung so low that one could almost reach out to touch them, almost like the sky before a storm.

The Emperor's voice was gentle yet reserved.

"Monarch Zhang, this is a forbidden area."

"So what?"

"Monarch Zhang, are you planning to fight me?"

"Why not?"

Lin Xitang moved with great difficulty, hoping to grab Zhang Boqian's hand. However, the latter didn't even look at him, merely moving the marshal's finger away as he flickered out the window and walked up to the void.

The Radiant Emperor looked dignified in court attire. He flew upward as well, his hands clasped in front of his chest and his sleeves hanging below. Cities, in general, did not have the capacity to withstand a fight between two heavenly monarchs, or even between divine champions. The Imperial Capital had stood for a thousand years, with countless arrays woven into the city, but they were but pieces of metal and stone before the might of a heavenly monarch.

Zhang Boqian moved with his hand behind his back, taking step after step as though he were climbing an invisible ladder. With this domain, the Emperor had proven that he had the power to knock on the doors of the heavenly monarch realm. This surprised Zhang Boqian a bit, but he quickly tossed the thought away.

Looking at the Imperial Capital from above, the massive city was like a pond of boiling jade. Countless streams of black mist were gushing out from the earth and spiraling into the skies. The odd thing was that the people and cars traveling through the streets were completely ignorant of what was happening.

Ordinary people could not see these phenomena.

Only those at the divine champion level and above could "see" that the origin power of the entire city was shifting. They recognized the secret art of the Imperial clan, the Emperor Domain! Moreover, it was a supreme Emperor Domain that had activated the entire Imperial Capital!

The ordinary nobles and officials began to leave the Lingyun Palace after the court was dismissed. Those who had stayed behind were mostly clan lords and high-ranking nobility, people who could see such phenomena. What exactly had happened? That was everyone's question, a question that had almost turned into panic. They subconsciously approached their friends and family, exchanging looks of dismay.

All of a sudden, someone discovered that an old man had appeared in the opening outside of the Lingyun Palace. It was actually one of the Empire's five heavenly monarchs, the Profundity Monarch!

The old man looked up at the skies with a solemn expression. No one dared to disturb him, but the atmosphere of terror calmed down quite a bit.

Everyone felt their vision blur as another old man appeared beside the Profundity Monarch, the Pointer Monarch.

Counting the Longevity Monarch who was in the capital year-round, it had been many years since these three heavenly monarchs were together at the capital. At this point, even the dumbest person would know that some big changes were about to happen.

The smart ministers understood never to interfere in the Imperial family's affairs. The Pointer Monarch and Profundity Monarch had no intention of paying anyone any attention. The nobles didn't disturb them, either. They merely waited in silence, but they themselves had no idea what they were waiting for.

The Pointer Monarch seemed distracted as he landed.

He had left soon after Zhang Boqian's departure. The three great dark monarchs didn't try to stop him at all, even as a formal gesture. On the contrary, they became more cautious about one another.

Especially the demonkin and arachne—the way they looked at the vampires wasn't quite right. Habsburg blocking two of Zhang Boqian's attacks was no small matter, and the power balance between the races would change once they had met up with Nighteye and the special envoy.

The Pointer Monarch was in no mood to observe the Evernight Council's internal conflicts. He didn't even want to respond when the Profundity Monarch contacted him mid-way.

However, the monarch reminded him that Evernight would surely take advantage of the situation if the chaos at the capital reached an undisguisable state. Their supreme experts might even attack the Empire's mainland. The Pointer Monarch was filled with complicated emotions when he thought about Zhang Boqian, but he arrived at Unending Palace before he could figure things out.

Upon landing, the Pointer Monarch sensed that something was wrong. "The Emperor Domain? Who opened it... it's the Emperor?" He had very little dealings with the Radiant Emperor, so what he knew about the man was no different from everyone else.

The Profundity Monarch said in a deep voice, "The Chronicle of Glory—has nearly succeeded."

The Pointer Monarch was stunned. Those who understood the Chronicle of Glory—perhaps due to its excessive profundity or timespan—weren't exactly wearing expressions of joy. Instead, they were overcome by a myriad of emotions.

"Good, good." The Pointer Monarch only spoke these two words.

"I never expected the Emperor to challenge Greensun, but getting everything done in one go isn't a bad thing, either. There's only Northridge keeping watch outside, we should disperse once things are over."

"A heavenly monarch challenge? The Emperor is challenging Zhang Boqian?" The Pointer Monarch didn't know how to think of this matter; he only felt that something was off about it.

A heavenly monarch challenge was a tradition, but things were different between Zhang Boqian and the Radiant Emperor. After all, the two of them were still ruler and subject. Of course, the Radiant Emperor was also different from the previous emperors in that he desperately needed to prove himself.

The Pointer Monarch gazed at the black mist aggregating toward a certain direction. "The Emperor is a bit younger than Greensun, right? What's he in a rush for? I think his chances of success are slim at this point. He should be just about ready after a year."

The Profundity Monarch said, "It's not that the Emperor is in a rush, it's because of that fellow from the Hidden Palace." The Hidden Palace was the Longevity Monarch's residence.

The Pointer Monarch's expression was filled with disgust. "What's he up to again?"

The Profundity Monarch said, "The same thing again, I can't be bothered to even listen. In any case, it's the same old rules... we wait and see."

The Pointer Monarch suddenly realized something. "You called me back because of Greensun?"

"He has just arrived, right? He seemed to have decided at the last minute, there wasn't any prior information at all." The Profundity Monarch found it strange that the Pointer Monarch would misunderstand this. "I called you here because of the rotten business between the Hidden Palace and the Imperial family. I don't have the cheek to drag Northridge into this, and Greensun is too young, too arrogant. His stance is also... hard to say..."

The two heavenly monarchs exchanged glances as they realized what was going on. It would seem the two monarchs were speaking entirely different things, and the disparity in information was too great. The momentum above the capital had been established, and the two parties were about to clash at any moment. This definitely wasn't the time to explain details.

The Profundity Monarch said, "The Emperor's totem has almost reached perfection. The wings are fully formed, the lightning horn has emerged and is only awaiting maturity. He has also claimed full control of the capital's Emperor Domain. Add to that the power of the Unending Palace, he's unlikely to lose too badly against Zhang Boqian."

The Pointer Monarch smiled wryly. "Correct. The Emperor was right to pick Zhang Boqian for a challenge. The next thirty years is his era."

The Empire's youngest geniuses would take another thirty years to break through to the heavenly monarch realm. Even with the natural advantage of daybreak, there was no telling how much this period could be shortened.

The Radiant Emperor challenging Zhang Boqian on his path to the heavenly monarch realm wasn't about winning or losing—it was, instead, a stance. The Imperial family and the major clans must rule together—that was the foundation of the Empire, and the most ancient balance of power.

In the blink of an eye, the two above had completed their first clash and contest of pure power.