3: The emperor faked his death, and everyone was convinced.

"What? My dear sixth brother isn't dead yet?"

"And he even ordered us to enter the palace to have an audience?"

The news quickly reached the ears of the First Prince.

A slender young man wearing a yellow dragon-patterned jacket sat in a chair, his expression gloomy.

"Your Highness, there is more news. Xiao Chun and Xiao Xia have been captured by The Sixth Prince and thrown into the Heavenly Prison, scheduled for Execution by a Thousand Cuts."

"Should we strike first, just in case?"

Beside him, a confidant bowed slightly, his face showing a hint of gravity.

But King Gu Ji waved his hand, not caring much.

"I was disguised when I met those two. I doubt Old Sixth knows it was my doing."

"If we act rashly, I'm afraid we'll fall into Old Sixth's trap."

"Your Highness, you mean...?" The confidant was somewhat puzzled.

King Gu Ji sneered, "If I'm not mistaken, Old Sixth likely plans to use those two as bait to draw us out."

"Otherwise, he would have executed Xiao Chun and Xiao Xia immediately instead of throwing them into the Heavenly Prison for a slow execution."

"Your Highness is wise," the confidant quickly flattered while standing to the side.

"Fine, let's go into the palace and see what kind of waves my dear sixth brother intends to stir up."

King Gu Ji stood up, swept his large sleeves, and headed toward the Imperial Hall.

The other seven princes also received the news, their faces looking somewhat unsightly.

It was common knowledge that The Sixth Prince was the weakest among the nine princes; he had only luckily received the late Emperor's imperial decree to succeed the throne.

However, none of the other eight princes were convinced. They were all thinking of ways to deal with Gu Jixiao so they could become the Imperial Lord themselves.

They were extremely confident that with the powerful figures behind them and the networks they controlled, they could definitely compete for the position of Imperial Lord once Gu Jixiao was dead.

What they didn't know was that there was a hidden world beneath the Imperial Hall.

Beneath the Imperial Hall existed another realm, isolated by a massive array of formations. Thus, even someone as strong as a Saint could not detect anything unusual beneath the hall.

Beneath the Imperial Hall, a middle-aged man in dragon robes slowly opened his eyes. His gaze was sharp, and his aura commanded respect without anger. If Gu Jixiao saw him, he would recognize him as the late Emperor who was supposedly dead, Gu Daotian.

"Uncle Chen, how is the situation outside?"

Gu Daotian asked calmly, looking at the servant beside him.

"Replying to Your Majesty, it is currently calm and tranquil."

"Calm and tranquil? It's only on the surface. Uncle Chen, go out and assist Old Sixth to help him secure his position as Imperial Lord."

"The day I emerge from seclusion will be the day I reclaim my seat as the Imperial Lord."

As he spoke, Gu Daotian's face was full of ambition.

Indeed, his death was merely a smokescreen he had released.

His true purpose was to go into seclusion beneath the Imperial Hall to break through to the Saint King Realm in one go.

Highly ambitious, he had secretly set up a grand formation beneath the Imperial Hall to borrow the power of the entire Ancient Heavenly Dynasty's Dragon Veins for his cultivation. This would yield twice the result with half the effort, and with his talent, reaching the Peak Saint King Realm within a hundred years would be no problem.

As for why he faked his death to enter seclusion, it was to avoid his enemies' knowledge. After all, the Ancient Heavenly Dynasty had no shortage of enemies; if they knew Gu Daotian was breaking through to the Saint King Realm, they would certainly intervene.

He handed the throne to Gu Jixiao because he was the most easily controlled among his nine children. Once he emerged from seclusion, he could more easily take back the throne from Gu Jixiao.

Of course, Gu Daotian had also considered Gu Jixiao's lack of power, so he sent his servant, Uncle Chen.

Uncle Chen was a powerful expert at the Early Saint stage. With his help, he should be able to stabilize the current situation of the Ancient Heavenly Dynasty.

After Uncle Chen left, Gu Daotian waved his hand, and the surrounding restrictions rose up.

He then closed his eyes and began to cultivate with all his strength.

"So that's how it is?"

"Then I'm very sorry, Father. I'm afraid I'll be sitting on your throne for a long time."

Behind the Imperial Hall, Gu Yue stood beside Gu Jixiao, speaking to him with a respectful face.

Gu Daotian's disguise might have fooled others, but it was completely exposed under the eyes of a Great Emperor.

With just one look, Gu Yue knew Gu Daotian's purpose.

Since Gu Daotian was being unkind, Gu Jixiao wouldn't feel guilty about being unjust.

Moreover, from the original host's memories, he knew that his relationship with Gu Daotian was terrible. If not for their blood connection, Gu Daotian probably would have kicked Gu Jixiao out long ago.

In that case, Gu Jixiao wouldn't show him any face. He sat on this throne with a clear conscience.

Inside the Imperial Hall, King Gu Ji was the first to enter.

With his arrival, the officials in the hall immediately felt a sense of oppression.

Having struggled in the imperial court for many years, they had once favored the First Prince to become the Imperial Lord, so no one expected The Sixth Prince to beat him to it.

They all knew very well that the First Prince would definitely not let this go, and the entire dynasty was bound to face a storm of blood and gore.

After entering the Imperial Hall and seeing that Old Sixth had not arrived yet, King Gu Ji snorted coldly, his face showing dissatisfaction.

"Old Sixth certainly puts on quite an air, making us wait for him."

"Oh? The Emperor waiting for a Prince? That's completely backwards. Could it be that Big Brother wants to usurp the throne?"

A light chuckle came from behind.

But King Gu Ji did not turn his head, merely snorting, "Old Second, you don't need to frame me. If I really wanted to usurp the throne, Old Sixth wouldn't have lived until now."

King Gu Ji wasn't lying. If Gu Jixiao hadn't transmigrated, he would have already been sitting on the throne by now.

The newcomer was the Second Prince, Gu Jiyuan.

The two had equal power and both coveted the throne, so they were naturally as incompatible as fire and water.

Hearing this, Gu Jiyuan had a meaningful look on his face, "That's not necessarily true."

The news King Gu Ji received, he could naturally obtain as well.

If someone hadn't made a move against Gu Jixiao, how could Gu Jixiao have executed two servant girls for no reason?

"You!"

King Gu Ji's face darkened. Just as he was about to lash out, he saw Gu Jixiao slowly walking out from the left hall. Wearing dragon robes and possessing a Void Refining cultivation, one look at him made people want to bow down and submit.

The officials were all stunned when they saw Gu Jixiao.

He clearly wasn't like this when they saw him a few days ago. How could he seem like a different person in such a short time?

"Noisy behavior is forbidden in the Great Hall. Could it be that my two older brothers do not respect me as the Emperor?"

Gu Jixiao sat on the dragon throne and looked at King Gu Ji and Gu Jiyuan with a calm face. That single glance almost made the two of them drop to their knees.

For a moment, both were filled with shock.

Was this still their trashy sixth brother? Although they were still young, they were exceptionally talented and were already Spirit Infant Realm cultivators, only slightly inferior to the late Emperor back then.

When they looked at Gu Jixiao again, they instinctively tried to probe his cultivation level, only to find they couldn't see through it at all, as if he were an abyss.

"What!"

"Old Sixth was hiding so deeply? He's been playing the fool all these years?"

King Gu Ji and Gu Jiyuan's faces were incredibly unsightly. They didn't expect Gu Jixiao to be so calculating, always showing weakness to others. Had he finally run out of patience and exposed his true talent?

Presumably, it was because Father saw Gu Jixiao's extraordinary nature that he chose to pass the throne to him.

The two of them thought to themselves.

Gu Daotian: I didn't, I'm not, don't talk nonsense.

But from the fact that they couldn't see through Gu Jixiao, didn't that mean Old Sixth was at least in the Void Refining Realm?

The two looked at each other, unable to hide their inner shock.

Old Sixth is only in his twenties, yet he's cultivated to the Void Refining Realm?

Such talent has already far surpassed the ancestors. If led by Old Sixth, perhaps their Ancient Heavenly Dynasty could go a step further?

At this thought, they were both convinced by Gu Jixiao and knelt down before him.

"Your servant pays respects to Your Majesty."