"Hahaha, hahaha," Zhou Hong roared with laughter.
The Emperor's gaze snapped towards Zhou Hong, and he asked furiously, "What in the world is going on?"
"Esteemed sirs, you thought I wouldn't know your plan? In truth, I've known your plan all along. It was merely a trap I set, waiting for you to walk right into it," Zhou Hong said with a smile.
"How could you possibly know? It's impossible, absolutely impossible." The Emperor frantically shook his head, seemingly unable to fathom where things had gone wrong.
"You'll have to ask Eunuch Chen, who stands beside you."
The Emperor immediately turned to the Eunuch Chen by his side and asked angrily, "Did you betray me?"
"Your Majesty, I did not, I truly did not. My loyalty to you is as clear as the heavens and earth."
The Emperor pondered for a moment; indeed, he had confidence in Eunuch Chen's loyalty.
"Zhou Hong, you will not sow discord between us."
Zhou Hong curled his lip. "Who cares about sowing discord between you? You'd best worry about how much longer you can live."
"Even if we are to die, you will die first!" With a command from the Emperor, the remaining twenty-odd powerful individuals who had not yet fallen simultaneously lunged at Zhou Hong.
However, the outcome was the same. The moment they exerted their strength, everyone collapsed, including the Emperor himself.
In an instant, all forty to fifty powerful figures in the grand hall were lying on the ground, moaning in agony.
"Hahaha, hahaha," Zhou Hong guffawed.
"Why is this happening? What did you do to us?" the Emperor asked, filled with unwillingness.
"Don't ask. The answer is: I don't know."
"You little devil, you are too despicable!" The Emperor wept upon seeing the royal powerhouses groaning on the floor. Even their Grand Supreme Emperor was among them, also lying on the ground. The others were unaware, however, because the Emperor, aiming for a surprise, had not told anyone that the Grand Supreme Emperor was participating in this operation. Thus, the Grand Supreme Emperor had been posing as a junior, standing at the back of the crowd, unnoticed.
It could truly be called catching them all in one net. All the capable individuals of their Liuli Royal Family were incapacitated. At this moment, the Emperor's heart was beyond description. Zhou Hong had wiped them all out, and they had personally delivered themselves to him.
"Your Majesty, quickly, quickly notify the Grand Supreme Emperor!" a royal powerhouse beside the Emperor urgently shouted.
"Yes, Your Majesty, with the Grand Supreme Emperor's strength, he can reach here in mere seconds. We can still be saved," Eunuch Chen also urged. The Emperor possessed an urgent notification artifact, a standard item for every emperor.
Alas, they had no idea that the Grand Supreme Emperor was currently posing as a junior and was also lying among the crowd.
"Your Majesty, hurry! What are you waiting for? Quickly summon the Grand Supreme Emperor!" a man wailed, seemingly unable to bear the pain any longer.
"Summon whom? No one can save us. Our royal family is utterly finished this time," the Emperor said, crying.
"Your Majesty, why do you say that? Isn't the Grand Supreme Emperor still here?" Everyone looked confused. The Grand Supreme Emperor was their greatest safeguard. As long as he was alive, they would be safe. For the Grand Supreme Emperor was a cultivator at the Integration Mid-stage, the most powerful individual in the entire Liuli Empire.
"Wuwuwu!" However, the Emperor began to sob uncontrollably, filled with immense regret. He truly felt like an absolute fool.
"Your Majesty, quickly call the Grand Supreme Emperor! Do you truly want our royal family to perish at the hands of this scoundrel like this?" Everyone grew angry, no longer caring if he was the Emperor.
"Stop shouting, I'm here." Just then, a hoary voice echoed from a deserted corner at the back.
Everyone turned their heads and was stunned. It was none other than their last hope, the Grand Supreme Emperor.
"Grand Supreme Emperor, how are you here?" Everyone was dumbfounded. The air was terrifyingly silent. Zhou Hong was in no rush to kill them, letting them slowly succumb to the poison as he watched quietly. Su Dan Novel Network.
The Grand Supreme Emperor's complexion was also quite grim. Although his condition was slightly better than the others, he was still weak all over, and it was gradually worsening.
The Grand Supreme Emperor glared fiercely at the Emperor, gritting his teeth and saying, "This was your brilliant idea?"
"Father Emperor, I am sorry. I never expected this scoundrel Zhou Hong to be so insidious," the Emperor said, weeping.
The Grand Supreme Emperor closed his eyes in despair. He seemed to know that he would not escape death today, his face filled with resentment. Although his time was not far off, every extra day of life offered a glimmer of hope. No one wished to die.
"You dog emperor, what is going on? Why is the Grand Supreme Emperor here?" one of the middle-aged royal men asked angrily. He even directly called him a dog emperor, demonstrating the depth of his fury.
"I have harmed the Grand Supreme Emperor, and everyone else. For safety's sake, to ensure absolutely no mistakes, I asked the Grand Supreme Emperor to impersonate a junior member of the royal family and blend into the crowd to achieve a surprise effect. But I never expected... I never expected it at all..." the Emperor sobbed, finally understanding why that scoundrel Zhou Hong could kill two late-stage Spirit Severing cultivators.
Everyone closed their eyes in despair. With the Grand Supreme Emperor already incapacitated, their Liuli Royal Family was truly on the verge of collapse.
Just then, Du Gu Shuang rushed in from outside.
"Zhou Hong, how's it going?"
However, upon entering, Du Gu Shuang saw the ground covered with people.
"What?" Du Gu Shuang looked at Zhou Hong with confusion.
"Heh heh, they are all certainly doomed now, merely waiting for the poison to take effect. Du Gu Shuang, go and summon all the powerhouses from your family. Tell them the Emperor and the Grand Supreme Emperor are about to die here. The dynasty is changing, you must hurry."
"Ah, the dynasty is changing...!" Du Gu Shuang trembled violently.
"Hurry!"
"Oh, oh." Du Gu Shuang hastily ran out.
After about half an incense stick's time, all the strong individuals from the Du Gu family arrived in the hall of the villa.
When they saw the forty to fifty royal powerhouses lying on the ground, everyone was dumbfounded. Moreover, half of them were already dead.
Zhou Hong stated plainly, "Everyone, you have seen it. All the capable powerhouses of the entire royal family have died here. Even those who are not dead will not last much longer. Henceforth, the Liuli Empire will experience a change in dynasty. Whether you seize this opportunity is up to you."
The patriarch of the Du Gu family looked at Zhou Hong and said, "But it's not that simple. There are other families in the Liuli Empire."
"Then let's do this. First, take me to the immortal mansion you discovered. Let's see if there are any good things inside. Perhaps afterwards, your strength will increase significantly, and controlling the empire will be a trivial matter."