Douluo Continent: The Ice Dragon King Martial Soul, Ma Xiaotao is Addicted

Deep within the imperial palace of the Sun and Moon Empire.

The night was so thick that even the usually dazzling Soul Guiding Palace Lanterns emitted a dim and yellowish light.

Inside the main hall, the air was so thick it was suffocating.

The hall was brightly lit, and the towering murals on the dome cast distorted shadows in the swaying light.

In the center of the spacious hall, a throne was held high, upon which sat Xu Tianran, draped in a dragon robe.

The jade beads hanging from the crown obscured most of his face, with only his jawline appearing cold and hard in the light and shadow.

Half a step behind him, Ju Zi stood in a magnificent palace dress, her posture still upright, but her hands, hidden in the wide sleeves of her robe, were trembling slightly.

Ju Zi's face appeared somewhat pale under the palace lanterns. Deep in her eyes, she tried her best to maintain composure, but she could not completely hide the tension forced out by the powerful pressure.

In the center of the palace, opposite the throne, stood two dark figures.

The wide black robes covered them from head to toe, leaving only their eyes visible as they stared intently at the half of the body on the throne.

A chilling aura emanated from them without restraint.

These two are the messengers sent by the Holy Spirit Cult—two elders at the Title Douluo level.

"His Majesty."

The man in black robes on the left spoke first, his voice hoarse and unpleasant, "We agreed that the Holy Church would do everything in its power to help you ascend to the throne, and in return, you would establish the Holy Church as the state religion and enjoy the honor of being revered by the sun and moon. Now that you have been sitting on the dragon throne for over a month, where is the imperial edict?"

The man in black robes took a step forward, and the invisible pressure suddenly intensified.

"Does His Majesty perhaps think we are mere lackeys, summoned and dismissed at will?"

The black-robed man on the right let out a sinister chuckle, like the hooting of an owl, and added, "The sect leader's patience is limited. We have come here today to ask His Majesty for a definite answer. Empty words without evidence cannot fool us."

Xu Tianran sat motionless on the throne, his fingers resting on the gilded armrests, appearing rather indifferent.

The main reason is that he is just a puppet and is almost immune to pressure.

As long as the other party doesn't make a move, it's fine.

Because Ye Chen had said that one must never reveal one's cultivation level.

The real reason is to avoid fighting, so as not to give away the secret.

"Elders, please calm down."

The puppet Xu Tianran's calm voice echoed in the empty hall.

“Establishing a state religion would shake the very foundation of the nation, and it cannot be taken lightly. It requires utmost caution and long-term consideration.”

He paused slightly, as if carefully choosing his words, the jade beads swaying gently. "Furthermore," he changed his tone, adding a subtle, chilling undertone, "the late emperor's sudden death was truly ordained by Heaven. Even without the Holy Church's assistance, I am the one destined to succeed him."

Although the puppet Xu Tianran spoke euphemistically, his meaning was actually quite clear.

Xu Tianran's ascension to the throne was mainly due to good luck; he happened to arrive just in time for the old emperor's death.

The Holy Spirit Church played almost no role in this.

Even if he had a dog on a leash, he could have easily ascended to the throne; the Holy Spirit Cult really didn't contribute anything.

"you!"

The black-robed man on the left was so angry that his robes suddenly swelled up, and a faint poisonous mist emanated from his body, emitting a hissing sound. A strong, fishy stench instantly filled the hall.

"Xu Tianran! How dare you cross the river and burn the bridge? Are you trying to completely break ties with us?!"

The man in black robes on the left coldly rebuked.

If it weren't for the fact that this place was the imperial palace, heavily guarded, and that the other party was, after all, the emperor, he would have pounced on him immediately and torn this arrogant fool to pieces!

"Excellent! What a brilliant 'divinely ordained succession'!"

The masked Douluo on the right also let out a sharp, owl-like laugh: "Does Your Majesty mean you're determined to toy with my Holy Spirit Cult?"

His cloudy eyes were fixed on the throne, and his imposing aura blazed down on Xu Tianran, trying to force him to submit.

Orange felt an overwhelming pressure suddenly press down on her heart, her chest felt tight, and her vision blurred. Cold sweat instantly soaked through her inner clothes, and her fingertips were icy cold.

She was the only person in the hall who knew the secret.

Once these two ferocious titled Douluo lose their patience and launch an attack, she and this iron lump will be reduced to dust in an instant.

"Your Majesty, please be careful with your words!"

Orange suppressed her surging fear, her voice trembling slightly as she stepped forward to try and smooth things over.

She has to buy time.

The fingers hidden in her sleeve repeatedly sent out distress signals, hoping Ye Chen would receive the message soon.

In addition to sending messages to Ye Chen, she also sent messages to the Sun Moon Empire's intelligence system, which were then transmitted through hundreds of relay systems to the bases of each intelligence system before finally being distributed to Ye Chen's communicator.

As long as Ye Chen is within the communication range of the Sun Moon Empire's intelligence system, he will definitely receive her message within ten minutes.

Ju Zi then looked at the two men in black robes, suppressing her fear, and said in a deep voice, "Your Excellencies, please calm your anger. Establishing a state religion is no small matter; it involves etiquette, court affairs, and the will of the people. It cannot be accomplished in a day. Hasty action will only create chaos. Please, Elders, give us some time..."

Orange believed that as long as Ye Chen came, everything could be resolved.

I just hope Ye Chen will receive the news soon...

"Shut up!"

Nangong Wan rudely interrupted Ju Zi, his cold gaze like a venomous snake sweeping over Ju Zi's exquisite face, but his eyes were filled with intense killing intent. "You have no right to interrupt here. A mere woman, how dare you discuss the affairs of the Holy Sect?"

He turned back to the throne, his black robes billowing without wind, his aura growing ever stronger. "Xu Tianran, we'll give you a maximum of one more month!"

"If we don't see an imperial edict proclaiming this to the world a month from now, then we wouldn't mind changing the emperor again!" Masked Douluo chimed in coldly.

Of course, the reason they conceded was because they were not qualified to kill Xu Tianran.

After all, this matter concerns Xu Tianran and their leader, and their visit was merely to issue a warning.

If this matter is not resolved, then the next people to talk to Xu Tianran will be their leader and deputy leader.

Those two aren't as easy to talk to as they are.

After they finished speaking, they both let out a cold snort, and the overwhelming evil aura receded like a tide.

They were clearly unwilling to waste any more words; they tossed their black robes aside, turned, and prepared to leave.

That attitude showed that the palace was nothing and the emperor was nothing.

Seeing this, Ju Zi also breathed a huge sigh of relief.

But I still have some worries.

Hopefully Ye Chen doesn't go too far, otherwise he really won't be able to receive her messages.

A month is neither short nor long.

Orange clenched her fists tightly, a hint of helplessness flashing through her mind.

Ultimately, this world is about strength.

No amount of power is as effective as strength.

Xu Tianran was clearly the emperor, but the other party used his own cultivation level to humiliate Xu Tianran.

If Ye Chen were here, how could he allow those two to bark like dogs?

Just as Nangong Wan and the Masked Douluo were about to disappear into the shadows of the palace gate—

"Did I let you go?"

A cold voice rang out without warning at the entrance of the main hall.

The voice wasn't loud, but it was like an invisible icicle, clearly piercing deep into everyone's eardrums.

(End of this chapter)