438: Chapter 438 Surely you can't lie about your innocence?

"Snake Lance Elder... I hope you of Spirit Hall... will not interfere in the affairs of our Empire, nor will you bewitch Qinghe... *cough cough*, please leave. Our Empire and your Spirit Hall remain on friendly terms..."

Listening to Emperor Xue Ye's words, Snake Lance Douluo subconsciously glanced at Xue Qinghe. Seeing him nod, he then exited the room.

As the surroundings returned to silence, Emperor Xue Ye could no longer hold on. A mouthful of blood sprayed from his mouth, and he immediately lay on the bed, on the verge of death.

"Father?" Xue Qinghe wore an expression of great alarm.

He hadn't even fed him the medicine yet, and Emperor Xue Ye was already failing? It seemed he had been angered quite severely just now.

"I will go find the imperial physician immediately..."

"No... Qinghe... listen to me... remember what I just said... Do not cooperate with Spirit Hall... Cooperating with them is like seeking skin from a tiger; you could be devoured at any moment... As an emperor, you must understand the art of emperors... Cooperate with the Star Luo Empire, have Sea God Island step forward completely, and maintain a balance with the forces of Spirit Hall. Only then can our Heaven Dou imperial family be preserved. You must never let them dominate alone... Until we possess our own Titled Douluo... our Empire will not need to look at others' faces..."

Emperor Xue Ye stared at Xue Qinghe: "Promise me, you will ensure the imperial Legacy continues..."

"Father... I..." Xue Qinghe's face was filled with a painful expression. He wiped away non-existent tears, and the expression on his face suddenly changed: "I'm afraid I cannot promise you that..."

"You..." Emperor Xue Ye was furious: "You unfilial son, *cough cough*... Do you want to ruin our imperial family? You, you, Qinghe, you... You are not Qinghe..."

Emperor Xue Ye gazed into his eyes; there was not a trace of respect or affection in that gaze.

It did not look like his son's expression at all.

"You've been discovered."

Xue Qinghe smiled. The care was gone from his face, and he didn't even bother to justify himself. He simply removed his disguise: "I originally intended to let you die just like that, but since it has come to this."

Xue Qinghe picked up the medicine on the table again. This old fellow had only one breath left, yet he refused to die, which had already made him somewhat impatient.

"Your good son, Xue Qinghe, died long ago. I killed him."

Xue Qinghe grabbed the bewildered and shocked Emperor Xue Ye and poured the medicine directly into his mouth.

As the medicine flowed into his stomach, Emperor Xue Ye quickly felt pain, but at this moment, it was mostly confusion and disbelief: "What did you say... Qinghe... Qing..."

Emperor Xue Ye wanted to reach out and grab him to ask the question in his heart, but the severe pain had already struck. Emperor Xue Ye's raised hand instantly sank down, and he lay on the bed, motionless. Yet, his face was filled with unwillingness; he died with eyes wide open.

Xue Qinghe turned and walked out of the room. Prince Xue Xing was pacing back and forth. At this time, he was very afraid that Emperor Xue Ye would write an edict of succession. Once Xue Qinghe ascended the throne, there would be no place for him in the Heaven Dou Empire.

Seeing Xue Qinghe come out, Prince Xue Xing walked up quickly: "Xue Qinghe, where is His Majesty?"

"Father has already gone to sleep. Uncle, you should return."

Xue Qinghe glanced at Sea Demon Spear Douluo and Sea Ghost Douluo: "Father asked me to warn you not to get too close to the people of Sea God Island. Spirit Hall will target us because of this..."

"You..." Prince Xue Xing glanced at Snake Lance Douluo and sneered at Xue Qinghe: "Xue Qinghe, what about you? As a prince, have you already become a Puppet of Spirit Hall?"

"Uncle, please watch your language, and please obey His Majesty's decree. Today's events must not be spread, otherwise, Uncle will be defying a decree."

Xue Qinghe ordered the guards beside him: "Escort Uncle back..."

"It seems there is the smell of a dead person. Something might have happened to Emperor Xue Ye." Sea Ghost Douluo suddenly sniffed his nose and said uncertainly. He was relatively sensitive to toxins and life, but he couldn't be completely sure. After all, Emperor Xue Ye's dying state was almost indistinguishable from being dead.

"What... Xue Qinghe, I want to see His Majesty." Prince Xue Xing's heart stirred, and he couldn't wait to pin a crime on Xue Qinghe: "Xue Qinghe, do you dare to harm His Majesty?"

"Uncle, if you dare to slander me again, don't blame me for putting righteousness before family." Xue Qinghe's face changed slightly, and the guards in the palace immediately gathered here.

Prince Xue Xing scanned the surroundings. In a short while, hundreds of guards had already surrounded the area.

"Qinghe, do you intend to rebel?" Prince Xue Xing was not afraid. He had two Titled Douluo beside him; he did not fear these people at all. He had already reached an agreement with Sea God Island. The two would fully assist him in ascending the throne. Sea God Island had only one request: that once he ascended the imperial throne, he would make the subjects of the Empire believe in the Sea God.

Prince Xue Xing was looking at Xue Qinghe now, wanting to pin a crime on him whenever he had the chance.

"Rebel?"

"Uncle, I am the Crown Prince."

"I think you are the one rebelling."

Xue Qinghe was truly angry. Prince Xue Xing had been quite honest recently, but today he had suddenly jumped out. If it weren't for the two Titled Douluo beside him, he would have already ordered the guards to take action.

"Your Highness Crown Prince, it is bad, a major incident has occurred." Just then, a guard ran over in a hurry. He was stunned by the atmosphere in front of him; it seemed he had come at a bad time.

"What is the matter?" Xue Qinghe asked.

"Shrek, Shrek Academy seems to have been massacred. The corpses of those teachers and students have been hung at the entrance of Shrek Academy."

Both Xue Qinghe and Prince Xue Xing were shocked. Shrek Academy had achieved good results in the competition. Although their reputation was a bit poor, they had become a top academy in Heaven Dou City, and their prestige was about to surpass the Heaven Dou Royal Academy. Emperor Xue Ye also intended to cultivate them, hoping that a Titled Douluo would be born within them.

"Crown Prince, the murderer left a few large characters... It says: The killer is Tang San." The guard added cautiously.

"This..." Prince Xue Xing and Xue Qinghe were stunned. Tang San was from Shrek, and his teachers were inside. How could he be the murderer?

The guard explained: "Crown Prince, the matter is true. Vice Dean Liu of Shrek Academy has testified, and the surviving Xiao Wu and that Zhu Zhuqing have both identified that it was Tang San who did it. They said that Tang San seems to have become a Fallen Spirit Master, his strength has skyrocketed, and he even wanted to force them. The three of them joined forces desperately to drive Tang San away. Now the three of them want to defect to Spirit Hall to avenge the people of Shrek."

Xue Qinghe's mouth twitched; it felt very fake, but he couldn't find any points to refute. Liu Erlong was the Vice Dean of Shrek Academy, Xiao Wu was the person Tang San liked, and Zhu Zhuqing was also one of the Shrek Seven Devils. They surely couldn't lie about their own chastity, right?

"This... this... What a Tang San, he actually became a Fallen Spirit Master. What a pity, such a Genius."

Prince Xue Xing was shocked. A Fallen Spirit Master was no small matter; that was an existence that everyone on the continent shouted to beat. Where there were Fallen Spirit Masters, there must be the presence of Spirit Hall. They had zero tolerance for Fallen Spirit Masters. With a Fallen Spirit Master appearing in Heaven Dou City, Spirit Hall would inevitably send a large number of Spirit Masters into the city to arrest him, and they would not stop until they caught this person.