Douluo Continent: This Soul Master is Too Bizarre and Unpredictable

After gazing at Xue Xing and Dugu Bo for a moment, a glint of light flashed in Emperor Xue Ye's eyes. He waved his hand, dismissing the palace maids who were waiting in the palace.

It's good that Dugu Bo didn't figure anything out. But if he did, the news absolutely must not be leaked, otherwise the Heavenly Dou Empire might very well fall into turmoil.

"Poison Douluo, thank you for your trouble."

Emperor Xueye nodded to Dugu Bo.

"As a guest of the imperial family, this is my duty."

After offering a humble remark, Dugu Bo closed his eyes, released his spiritual power, and carefully examined Emperor Xueye's physical condition.

If possible, Dugu Bo does not want to change his boss.

Putting aside other aspects, Emperor Xueye was quite adept at handling interpersonal relationships.

Of course, in Dugu Bo's opinion, Crown Prince Xue Qinghe was also a good person.

However, Xue Qinghe is still a young man, and although they knew each other before, they weren't particularly close. What will happen after he takes over is anyone's guess.

Soon, Dugu Bo, who was examining Emperor Xueye's physical condition, frowned and his expression became extremely solemn.

"Poison Douluo, how is my elder brother?"

Seeing Dugu Bo frown, Xue Xing had a bad feeling and quickly asked.

Dugu Bo did not answer immediately, but continued to investigate.

After a long while, Dugu Bo finally opened his eyes, looked at Xue Xing, then at Xue Ye, and said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, you have been poisoned by a very subtle and unknown mixed toxin."

This toxin is not particularly potent, but its strength is very high. Most common antidotes are ineffective, and the poisoning is already deep-seated; I'm afraid I can't help you now.

As a master of poisons, Dugu Bo could naturally tell whether Emperor Xueye had been poisoned.

However, he had never seen this mixture of toxins before, and his detoxification skills were not particularly good, so Dugu Bo was helpless against it.

"How dare you! You're unworthy of being a son!"

No sooner had she finished speaking than Xuexing burst into a tirade of angry curses.

Upon hearing this, Dugu Bo's pupils suddenly contracted.

How unworthy of being a son?

Wow~, that's a bombshell!

Emperor Xue Ye had three children: Crown Prince Xue Qinghe, Fourth Prince Xue Beng, and Princess Xue Ke.

Xue Ke is a princess, while Xue Beng is a notorious good-for-nothing. Judging from Xue Xing's expression, she suspects, or rather, is certain that the mastermind behind the poisoning is Crown Prince Xue Qinghe.

That shouldn't be that bad, right?

It should be noted that Xue Qinghe's position as crown prince is very secure, and with the support of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School, once the elderly Xue Ye passes away, Xue Qinghe will be able to ascend to the throne of the Heavenly Dou Emperor without any obstacles. Is it necessary for him to do such a rebellious thing?

At this moment, Emperor Xueye raised his right hand with a grim expression, stopping Xuexing's curses: "Don't jump to conclusions, investigate first."

Just like Dugu Bo thought, Emperor Xue Ye also didn't believe that his eldest son, Xue Qinghe, would poison him.

Even if the mastermind behind the murders of the Second and Third Princes pointed to Xue Qinghe, Emperor Xue Ye still believed it.

There's no other reason than that it's unnecessary.

The murder of the second and third princes can be interpreted as the eldest son, Xue Qinghe, eliminating his rivals.

After all, being born into royalty, kinship, especially brotherhood, is nonexistent for them.

But he was already old, and Xue Qinghe had long been designated as the crown prince. Even without resorting to underhanded tactics, he could ascend the throne naturally in about ten years.

Xue Qinghe is only in his mid-twenties, so he is obviously not so short-sighted as to not be able to wait even ten years, let alone that once the matter is exposed, the Heavenly Dou Emperor's throne will definitely be out of his reach.

The gains and risks were disproportionate, and given the intelligence shown by the eldest son, Xue Qinghe, he would never do something so foolish.

Emperor Xueye asked Dugu Bo, "Poison Douluo, can you discern the source of the toxins within my body?"

Dugu Bo shook his head: "I can't say for sure either. His Majesty has been poisoned by a mixture of toxins. The source may be food or other objects that His Majesty has come into contact with."

"Xue Xing, I order you to secretly investigate Qinghe's every move and report back immediately, but do not act on your own."

After a moment of contemplation, Emperor Xueye spoke sternly to Xuexing.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Xue Xing's expression turned serious, and she quickly replied.

Go ahead~

Emperor Xueye waved his hand.

"Your Majesty, I shall take my leave now."

Dugu Bo said something.

Xueye nodded: "Yes, Poison Douluo, take care."

After Xue Xing and Dugu Bo left, Emperor Xue Ye called out in a low voice to the seemingly empty palace, "Where are the Shadow Guards?"

The Shadow Guards are a secret force formed by the royal family. Their members are all young orphans, and there are no other ways to join. They are loyal to His Majesty the Emperor alone.

Perhaps the Shadow Guards are not strong overall, and cannot compare to the Royal Guest Group, which recruits experts or genius soul masters who are willing to serve the Empire. However, they are a force that the current Emperor Xueye can trust completely.

"His Majesty."

Soon, a dark figure appeared in front of Emperor Xueye's bed.

Emperor Xueye instructed: "Investigate the relationships between the guest advisors of the Imperial Family, high-ranking officials of various departments of the court and provinces, military generals and the Crown Prince. Focus on the experts who have joined the guest advisor group in the last ten years and the high-ranking officials and generals who have been promoted."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The shadowy figure accepted the order and then disappeared into the palace.

Three days later, the intelligence gathered by the Shadow Guards was presented to Emperor Xueye.

The more he looked through the pages, the more shocked Emperor Xueye became.

For no other reason than that in recent years, the promotion frequency of high-ranking officials in the imperial court and various provinces, as well as military generals, has been too frequent, and there are also many more experts joining the royal guest advisor group than before.

It has been confirmed that many high-ranking officials and generals were promoted rapidly through their connections with Crown Prince Xue Qinghe and his faction.

If you don't pay much attention, it doesn't seem particularly eye-catching at first glance.

Because these high-ranking officials and generals who were promoted in unusual ways were all deputies of various departments, regions, and armies, and none of them were top leaders or commanders of the army.

However, if these high-ranking officials and generals who have been promoted abnormally are indeed Xue Qinghe's people, then if Xue Qinghe were to plot a rebellion, he could simply remove the top leader and the generals of each army and put his deputies in power, thus gaining complete control of the empire's court, local areas, and army without causing too much turmoil.

Of course, if that were all, it wouldn't have been enough to terrify Emperor Xueye.

After all, from the perspective of the emperor, Xue Qinghe's treason did indeed enrage him.

But from a father's perspective, he would be pleased to have a good son with such skill, for the empire would surely welcome a wise and powerful emperor.

However, Emperor Xueye discovered something amiss in the intelligence gathered by his shadow guards, and the problem was quite serious; if not handled carefully, the Xue family's throne could be lost. (End of Chapter)