The fake prince was exposed at the beginning, and I took office as emperor on the spot

Chapter 206 I Can Love Qingman Too (Part 2)

Gu Fangchen paused abruptly, her scalp tingling instantly, a chill running down her spine.

"Tick-tock! Tick-tock!..."

The head rolled down the steps and landed in front of Gu Fangchen. It was clearly the likeness of Emperor Yong'an, with unfocused pupils and a vacant look in his eyes, indicating that he was dead.

Fresh blood kept dripping and quickly spread.

The curtain above fluttered, and one could vaguely see Emperor Yong'an slumped on the dragon throne. His body, clad in a dragon robe, now had only a bloody, mangled section of flesh on his neck!

Emperor Yong'an is dead!
How did he die? Who killed him? Why did he die?
These three crucial questions instantly popped into Gu Fangchen's mind.

Although Emperor Yong'an, Xiao Ding, was only an incarnation of the "Master of Hengchang Dao", he was still an incarnation of the "Master of Hengchang Dao"!

In the game, if players want to kill Emperor Yong'an, they have to wait until they or their forces have developed. In higher playthroughs, they can only do so in the mid-to-late game.

Otherwise, the [Emperor] class wouldn't be so effective.

Even if the "Master of Hengchang Dao" wants to play this role-playing game to the end, it is almost impossible to kill him in advance!
Within this Imperial City, there are the Blood-Clad Guards, and even more so, the Grand Preceptor.

To kill Emperor Yong'an and escape unscathed, one must at least get past Xu Fu...

Either the opponent's strength surpasses Xu Fu's, or they have somehow managed to deceive Xu Fu.

Gu Fangchen could at least be certain that the "Six Star Lords" no longer possessed such abilities.

So, the "second group" or "third group" he had speculated about finally showed up after Gu Fangchen's interference.

As for the question in Gu Fangchen's mind, the image of the monk who had just brushed past him flashed through his mind, the moment his hands were clasped together, and the smile on the monk's face.

"Shenxiu!"

Once Gu Fangchen calmed down, she immediately realized that when he thanked her, he wasn't thanking her for the 100,000 taels of gold, but rather for the blame she was about to take on for him!
This guy himself is problematic within the game's storyline.

Shenxiu is a key character in the Garan Temple side quest. As players explore the story, as long as he doesn't come into contact with a small village near Tianmen Mountain, the "World Origin" debate that led to the destruction of Futu City will not be triggered.

but……

Gu Fangchen now understands that the biggest problem in this world is not the "Heavenly Gate," but the "Dao."

In other words, contact with the "Heavenly Gate" may be one way to be possessed by the "Tao," but it is not the only way.

After all, there is currently no information about the "Heavenly Gate" in the ancient "Great Furnace Era".

In other words, at other times that Gu Fangchen was unaware of, Shenxiu may have already become a "preacher" or an being controlled by the "Dao".

The triggering of the annihilation of the entire city of Futu might simply be because that small village changed Shenxiu's mind, rather than changing the fact that he was possessed.

So, perhaps he already had a problem long before Gu Fangchen and Shenxiu came into contact!
Unfortunately, Gu Fangchen only realized this now; otherwise, he would never have spared Shenxiu, thus giving him an opportunity to take advantage of the situation.

Looking at Emperor Yong'an's head before her, Gu Fangchen took a deep breath, knowing in her heart that from the moment he stepped into the Ziji Palace, she was destined to take the blame!

His eyes flashed, and he immediately raised his head to look at the dragon throne.

Since that's the case... we can't let others benefit from it.

Sure enough, he soon heard the footsteps of the Imperial Guards behind him, the clatter of their armor as numerous soldiers rushed into the hall.

The person in charge was none other than Crown Prince Xiao Sheng!
The 150-year-old crown prince, his hands behind his back, walked slowly along with the imperial guards who lined up on both sides, swords drawn and clattering, towards Gu Fangchen. His wrinkled face was expressionless, still as sinister as ever.

The person supporting Xiao Sheng was Xiao Qiu, the chief eunuch who had just greeted Gu Fangchen at the door. He was bowing slightly and following closely behind with a respectful attitude.

Xiao Sheng glanced at Gu Fangchen, then at the head and corpse on the ground, shook his head and sighed before speaking with great regret:

"I never expected that the new Prince Zhenbei, whom Father Emperor had high hopes for, would so eagerly reveal his ambition and commit regicide after just achieving great merit and quelling the rebellion."

"This truly breaks my heart!"

"Should we say that this great Wei Dynasty has not a single loyal minister, or is it that... the Prince of Zhenbei's lineage, though not related by blood, are birds of a feather?"

Gu Fangchen narrowed her eyes, staring intently at the Crown Prince before her.

In the original storyline, the crown prince was not exactly an easy character to deal with. Although he didn't have a strong presence, he was still one of the important characters in the Confucian storyline.

Without Xiao Sheng's help, the Confucian school wouldn't have been able to find those five dragon veins so quickly.

Previously, the dragon vein beneath Jian Ge was only able to be successfully infiltrated by the Confucian scholars by Xiao Sheng, representing the imperial court, in order to achieve complete control over Jian Ge.

Because Xiao Sheng had been the crown prince for a full 150 years, he was truly on the verge of madness.

But unexpectedly, he was not only insane, but also possibly one of the "second group".

Gu Fangchen didn't know if this was a butterfly effect caused by himself, just as he couldn't be sure when the monk Shenxiu was infected by the "Tao".

"Indeed, even I didn't expect that I would have such a complicated persona."

Gu Fangchen sighed, opened her hand, and with a clench of her right hand, she took out "Azure Tide".

"However, since the Crown Prince has said so, I don't mind."

"There's just one thing you should know: the Imperial Preceptor and I recently collaborated to break the 'Six Star Lords' causal spell, right? Now, the Imperial Preceptor is quite fond of me."

"You dared to kill the emperor and frame me in the palace? Aren't you afraid of being struck by lightning by the Grand Preceptor?"

Xiao Sheng chuckled:
“Our Grand Preceptor of the Great Wei is indeed very strong, especially after the ‘Six Star Lords’ are no longer restraining her. It is difficult to block her senses, but... it is not impossible.”

"With just a misaligned timeframe, you could become the sole culprit in the murder of Emperor Yong'an. Even if it were Xu Fu, how could she defy the world and exonerate a regicide?"

As soon as he said this, Gu Fangchen understood. The monk Shenxiu who had appeared here earlier was probably now safely back at the Garan Temple in Futu City.

Last time, Gu Fangchen also used this trick to create an alibi for herself.

Now, however, it has become a way for others to frame him...

However, the reason Gu Fangchen did that before was entirely because she was not strong enough. She had to use that method to legitimately get rid of Gu Yuye temporarily and give herself a chance to develop.

Only if Gu Yuye is deterred from openly attacking him due to his reputation will he have a chance to continue dealing with the other party.

Until he is strong enough, he can accumulate power and kill Gu Yuye.

Now, he no longer needs fame.

Since Gu Yuye is dead and the highest authority of the Great Wei is also separated from his body, he has no choice but to take the blame in his current situation, and there is no point in trying to improve the reputation of the Great Wei.

For most people, this is indeed a dead end.

If the charge of regicide is established, it would be far more shocking than colluding with a demonic cult!
The charge of colluding with the demonic sect can be covered up by one's identity. For example, Gu Yuandao had irrefutable evidence, but in the end, he was only sent to reflect on his mistakes.

After all, this was just a momentary lapse in judgment, not a complete misjudgment of one's stance. But regicide, on the other hand, makes one a true enemy of the Great Wei, an enemy that cannot be erased.

If this were a game, the reputation of Gu Fangchen among all normal people in the Great Wei would probably be negative at this moment.

but……

Clearly, Gu Fangchen is no ordinary person, and this principle does not apply to him.

Who says there are only downsides to being blamed for this?
As Gu Fangchen drew back the jade bow in her hand, she slowly retreated, grinning as she spoke:
"Is that so? Well, it seems we can only rely on our own abilities now. You lot, try and see if you can stop me..."

With him saying this, Xiao Sheng, who remained vigilant, naturally dared not relax his guard at all.

After all, Gu Fangchen's achievements are already evident to all. She not only defeated Gu Yuye, but also hunted down his true form and eliminated him completely.

Both his methods and his abilities have gone from being vague and questioned to being clearly ranked second on the Little Heaven Ranking.

In fact, in the past few days, some people have even ranked him and Xiao Yinghao together as number one.

No one will ever again believe that Gu Fangchen only managed to do those unbelievable things by relying on a moment of luck, using petty tricks, or taking advantage of others.

Moreover, this is only something that others know on the surface.

For them, there was also the "God of War" who vanished without a trace...

Xiao Sheng overestimated, never underestimated, Gu Fangchen's abilities.

Therefore, today, he has gathered almost all of his men's strength, determined to leave Gu Fangchen's head in this palace!

Xiao Sheng raised his hand and waved it. The Imperial Guards immediately raised their swords, and several third-rank experts stood in the air above the palace, all staring coldly at the Purple Extreme Hall, ready to make a move at any moment.

Gu Fangchen retreated step by step to the location of Emperor Yong'an's head, and instantly released the jade bow in her hand.

"Whoosh-"

Three arrows, condensed from the jade bow, were fired in quick succession, forming countless raindrops in front of them. Three formations were hidden within them and instantly unfolded.

The toxins spread instantly, transforming into mist and illusions.

But these imperial guards were all daredevils; without batting an eye, some of them stepped forward to block the poison and then used magic to dispel it.

The rest of the people immediately gave chase.

But they were immediately stopped by the "Thousand Tribulations Silk" that Gu Fangchen had just set up.

This "Thousand Tribulation Silk" is made by extracting the power of "Heavenly Tribulation," and its power is also enhanced by the power of "Uncle Tribulation."

Gu Fangchen had just survived a calamity involving weapons that required the intervention of a first-rank "military immortal," and the power of this "calamity" on her body was ridiculously strong.

The "Thousand Calamity Silk" was also affected, and its power increased to a higher level.

"Sizzle—!!!"

The purple lightning bolts raged wildly within the Purple Extreme Palace, instantly transforming into a spiderweb that charred several imperial guards.

Even without the Imperial Advisor's intervention, Gu Fangchen could summon lightning to strike these people dead.

And it was in this gap.

Gu Fangchen retreated swiftly, and immediately bent down to pick up Emperor Yong'an's head from the ground.

Then, in a flash, he appeared on the dragon throne, pointed a finger at a pearl held in the mouth of the dragon head carved on the throne.

With his other hand, he made a hand seal, silently chanted an incantation, and then gave a low shout:
"break!"

"Om-"

An invisible wave spread from the pearl, and in an instant, the entire pearl turned into dust.

A beam of emerald light flew out and landed in Gu Fangchen's hand, transforming into a square jade seal!

Xiao Sheng was stunned for a moment, then took a shock and roared angrily:

"The Imperial Seal that Protects the Nation!!!"

His pupils constricted, not expecting that Gu Fangchen would know exactly where the Imperial Seal of the State was.

Not only did he know, but he was also very familiar with how to break the formation protecting the imperial seal, and he was extremely skilled at it!

In theory, the location of the Imperial Seal of the State and the method to break the protective formation should only be known to Emperor Yong'an himself.

Even he, the crown prince, was completely unaware!

Why would Gu Fangchen know?
Could it be that the old man actually intends to pass the throne to Gu Fangchen?

Xiao Sheng was both shocked and furious, and pointed his finger:
"How dare you, you brat?! Stop him right now!!!"

Gu Fangchen turned her head, raised an eyebrow, and grinned:
"Oh dear, what are you saying, Your Highness? I dare to kill the emperor, so what's there to be afraid of in taking the imperial seal?"

"Or rather, isn't this the proper supporting procedure?"

"Your Highness is so eager to pin the label of regicide and traitor on me, so why are you unhappy now that I've actually done it?"

Gu Fangchen shook her head and clicked her tongue twice.

He had previously stated that in the ending "Demons Descend to Earth," the Grand Preceptor used the Imperial Seal and the Emperor's head as the core of the formation, and with the help of the nation's fortune, he forged the "Heaven and Earth Furnace," a super-grade formation covering the entire Great Wei, thus enhancing the strength of the Great Wei's cultivators.

Then they held on for thirty years before finally being defeated.

Among them, the "National Guardian Jade Seal" and the "Emperor's Head" are two indispensable materials.

And now, Gu Fangchen has obtained it ahead of schedule.

These two items are key tools for truly taking back the nation's destiny from "incense offerings" to the state.

In other words, before a dynasty changes and before a new emperor goes to Yaoshan to worship and gain the people's approval, the fate of the nation still rests on these two things.

Especially now, the news of Emperor Yong'an's death has not yet spread.

In other words, unlike the national destiny that Gu Fangchen initially stole using his profession as "Emperor," this time, he has truly obtained the destiny of a nation!
The next moment, Gu Fangchen took a deep breath, raised the severed head in her hand, and shouted:

"The fate of the Great Wei Kingdom is in my hands, with the help of the Great Heavenly Emperor!"

I can love Qingman too!
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

P.S.: It seems I still owe 7 chapters...orz
(End of this chapter)