Chapter 1540: Fengshan Ceremony

The imperial court was not a place to discuss right or wrong, and indeed, absolute rights and wrongs were rare in this world. King Qi knew that Zu An's attempt to escape with such an argument was nothing but wishful thinking.

As expected, Yi Chun immediately retorted, "What utter nonsense! I know my son's character better than anyone. How could he possibly do such a thing?"

Yi Chun's rage value increased by 258, 258, 258...

Clearly, this modest increase in rage also revealed his slight apprehension.

Zu An sneered, "As his father, of course you believe your son is perfect. However, as for Yi Zhibing's true character, I'm sure the officials and common people of the capital have known it for years. This time, while Master Sang, as an imperial envoy, had not even had his charges confirmed, Yi Zhibing went to his residence to frame him, fabricating false evidence to incriminate an imperial official. And that's not all; he was even audacious enough to attempt improper acts against Miss Sang and her sister-in-law. Your Majesty, I request that the Sang family be brought in. The truth of what his son did will become evident with a single question."

Yi Chun angrily retorted, "You are spewing baseless accusations! Now that my son is dead, of course you can freely twist the truth. After all, dead men tell no tales."

Yi Chun's rage value increased by 400, 400, 400...

"How can you say there's no evidence?" Zu An said calmly. "There were still many yamen runners and constables present. Wouldn't it be enough to bring them here and question them?"

"Very well, let's ask them what they saw," Yi Chun sneered inwardly. They were all his subordinates, trained by him for years. How could they possibly give testimony unfavorable to him?

Zu An, naturally no fool, countered, "I suggest these individuals be questioned by the Grand Imperial Instructor or someone from the Imperial Academy, to ensure they speak the truth."

"The Grand Imperial Instructor holds such a high position; how can he be disturbed by such trivial matters?" Yi Chun immediately refused. "What? Are you implying that yamen runners and constables, who receive imperial salaries, would lie?"

Many officials in the court secretly mused that the rumors of Zu An's good relationship with the Imperial Academy were indeed true, seeing it play out today.

"Your son is dead, and you still consider it a trivial matter? Then I have nothing more to say." Zu An shrugged, his demeanor suggesting that it wasn't his son who had died anyway, infuriating Yi Chun almost to the point of spitting blood.

At this point, Duke Linhai, Attendant-in-Chief Pei Zheng, spoke up: "Leaving other matters aside for now, the imperial court has its own laws and regulations; how can private acts of violence be allowed? Whether Yi Zhibing was disrespectful to the Sang family women can be investigated slowly later, but Zu An's unauthorized killing of an imperial official is an undeniable fact."

King Qi nodded inwardly. That fellow Yi Chun was so consumed by rage over his son's death that he nearly got led astray by the opponent.

Often, it was not convenient for him to express his stance personally, but Pei Zheng's words resonated deeply with him.

No matter how eloquently Zu An argued, others could completely ignore it. They just needed to seize on the fact that he had killed an imperial official to make their case.

As expected, as soon as this was said, the expressions of many officials in the court who regarded Zu An as being on their side changed. They knew that even if Zu An's words were true, it did not justify him killing an imperial official.

Compared to the grievances of one or two individuals, the Emperor valued the laws of the entire nation more. If such an incident were tacitly approved, wouldn't it encourage the common people to resist the authorities?

As expected, the Emperor's face was as calm as still water. "Zu An, do you have anything more to say?"

"Yes," Zu An replied, his face calm. His composed attitude made King Qi and the others sneer inwardly, thinking that at this point, nothing more he said would matter.

Bi Linglong also felt anxious, wondering what possible way there was to save him.

"Speak!" The Emperor also felt a little annoyed. How could this young man be so calm? Had his imperial authority lost its deterrent effect?

Zu An swept his gaze across the entire hall, taking in everyone's reactions, and then slowly declared, "The Demon Emperor is dead."

The distance between the demon race and the human race was too vast for information to travel so quickly. Zu An had flown back directly on his Wind-Fire Wheels, surpassing the speed of the human spies embedded within the demon race.

"What?!" The imperial court truly erupted now, the commotion far surpassing the previous few times.

After all, Yi Chun's son was dead, and he was, in the end, an insignificant nobody. But the Demon Emperor's fate concerned the overall situation of the world.

"Is this true?" The Emperor instantly leaned forward. Looking across the world, the Demon Emperor was the only opponent who could rival him. They had been each other's imaginary enemies for so many years, and to suddenly learn of his death, even with the Emperor's profound composure, he was utterly shocked.

"I witnessed it myself..." Zu An then repeated his account of how the Demon Emperor was killed in the secret realm, concealing the fact that he died by Zu An's hand. After all, it was a coincidence of timing, geography, and human factors, and his true cultivation was still far inferior to the Demon Emperor's. If others became wary of him, things would become troublesome.

Even so, hearing the entire process, the civil and military officials in the court were already exclaiming in wonder, having never imagined that the legendary unknown land truly existed.

Only Bi Linglong's eyes sparkled. She had fought alongside Zu An in the secret realm—and, more importantly, her leg had been on his shoulder.

She was probably the only one present who suspected Zu An wasn't telling the whole truth, for she had personally witnessed the fighting power this man could unleash in the secret realm.

"To think the Demon Emperor died like this," the Emperor murmured, somewhat lost in thought.

At this point, Zu An spoke again: "Your Majesty, I also have the new Demon Emperor's state letter here. The demon race wishes to cease hostilities with us. Furthermore, the new Demon Emperor is willing to acknowledge himself as your nephew and pay annual tribute."

This was not his personal wish, but the unified decision of the entire demon race's high command.

The old Demon Emperor was dead, and the entire demon race no longer possessed the power to resist Zhao Hao. If they did not negotiate for peace now, and Zhao Hao were to personally intervene later, it would likely lead to the complete annihilation of the demon race.

Although the demon race was temperamental, they were not foolish either. Now that they were at a disadvantage, a temporary concession and annual tribute were not a big deal. They could discuss future matters once the new Demon Emperor grew up and the demon race accumulated sufficient strength.

"How is this possible?!" Although King Qi had always maintained a calm demeanor, he couldn't help but exclaim in surprise at this moment.

The human and demon races had been in conflict for so many years. Although the demon race had been driven to the cold, bitter lands in the north, they had been notoriously stubborn and unyielding, never having conceded for so many years. If this was true, the consequences would be unbearable for him.

Not to mention him, even the Emperor didn't believe it. Fortunately, he didn't need to speak, as many ministers below were already accusing Zu An of speaking nonsense.

Zu An then unhurriedly took out a finely bound booklet from his robes. "Here is the new Demon Emperor's state letter. Your Majesty, please examine it."

Everyone in the hall was stunned. Many even felt a little annoyed, thinking, "You had this thing, why didn't you take it out earlier? Did you have to wait until we'd jumped through hoops before you decided to reveal it and make us look foolish?"

The Emperor could no longer wait for a eunuch to retrieve it. With a casual flick of his hand, he drew the state letter to him and opened it to read. This document could not be faked, especially since the imperial seal and the Demon Emperor's personal seal were both on it.

After quickly scanning everything, he couldn't help but burst into laughter. His laughter even echoed through the skies of the entire capital, leaving many common people bewildered.

How could the multitude of ministers in the hall not know what was going on? They all bowed, shouting, "Long live our Emperor, long live, long live and live forever!"

At this moment, Bi Qi, who had seemed almost asleep, stepped forward to speak: "Your Majesty has swept across all lands and realms in these past years, and now has even brought the demon race to submission. Such magnificent achievements are unprecedented and unrivaled. It can be said that Heaven has ordained you as Emperor, to bring order to all beings, to declare peace to Heaven, and to acknowledge the merits of all deities!"

Other ministers were practically slapping their thighs in regret, lamenting that they hadn't thought of such flattery themselves. They all seized the opportunity to request the Emperor hold the Fengshan Sacrifices.

Since the great rise of the human race, the Fengshan Sacrifices were extremely sacred. Through the long ages, countless emperors had reigned, but only a handful—two or three at most—had dared to hold the Fengshan Sacrifices. Each one had accomplished earth-shattering deeds. Thus, with such illustrious precedents, later emperors knew they could not compare, and no one dared to risk universal condemnation by holding the Fengshan Sacrifices casually.

Even Zhao Hao, who had achieved unrivaled power in the world, had not dared to even consider this matter in previous years.

But now, all of this seemed to have become possible.

Zhao Hao was overjoyed inwardly, but outwardly pretended to decline. All the ministers below were shrewd individuals, and they all began to urge him to hold the Fengshan Sacrifices.

Although the Emperor had not yet agreed, everyone knew he was already swayed.

Watching the bustling and joyful atmosphere in the court, Yi Chun was completely dumbfounded. Everyone was so happy; who would remember that his son had died?