Chapter 406: Emperor

Chapter 406: The Emperor

“Clang—” The trembling sound of a gong drifted from a distant door, followed by solemn music that approached from afar. The Great Qi Emperor had truly arrived.

Before Li Huo Wang could move, the official beside him, who had been sipping vinegar from a dish, suddenly went pale and leapt to his feet in panic, rushing toward the entrance.

When Li Huo Wang finally stepped out into the courtyard, he saw everyone—including the so-called Elder Qin and Minister Liang—kneeling on the ground.

The music grew closer, accompanied by a rich fragrance. The circular top of the emperor’s carriage slowly revealed itself from behind the towering walls.

As the ceremonial guards approached, four pillars adorned with red clouds and dragons, tied with black satin ribbons, emerged. Between them, black cloud dragon banners tightly enclosed the wooden pavilion.

Li Huo Wang had thought it would end there, but to his surprise, the emperor’s carriage continued growing taller and larger, as if without end. More and more items were stacked upon it—lanterns, dragon banners, round jade ornaments, rings, bells, all densely packed across the entire structure.

With the solemn music echoing, this massive, ornate pavilion, though magnificent, seemed top-heavy and unstable, like a small mountain drawing ever closer. To Li Huo Wang and the others, it loomed larger and larger, radiating an overwhelming sense of oppression.

In the dim light, it resembled a grotesque, bloated corpse, looking down upon everyone in the Liang family’s courtyard from above.

At that moment, the scent drifting from the emperor’s carriage grew so thick it nearly choked one.

Just as Li Huo Wang reached Zhu Ge Yuan, intending to speak, red-robed Jinyi Wei rushed through the door, surrounding the area completely.

Behind them came a row of bald eunuchs holding dustpans, forming a human wall beneath the walls, separating the two groups. Their faces were deathly pale, standing motionless in the night like paper cutouts.

At some point, the music faded away, leaving silence so profound it felt as if even breathing had stopped.

Standing in a corner, Li Huo Wang observed everything like a bystander, his gaze mostly fixed on the enormous wooden pavilion, his mind filled with thoughts he did not voice.

“Master said you were playing here—why didn’t you bring me?” A childish voice suddenly rang from behind the layers of curtains.

Upon hearing this, those kneeling on the ground turned ashen. Some, weak at heart, nearly collapsed.

“What are you playing with? Let me play too!”

With that, a boy wearing an imperial crown and golden-black dragon robes poked his head out from between the folds of the curtains.

This scene was bizarre beyond belief, as if the vast, ornate pavilion was merely the immense body of such a tiny head.

From the moment Li Huo Wang saw him, he knew this was no child. No six-year-old could look at people with such naked intensity.

It was as if he wasn’t seeing a person’s face, but their flesh, their bones.

Looking at this figure, Li Huo Wang felt a flicker of confusion. “Is this really something twisted by Zhu Ge Yuan? It’s far too real…”

Suddenly, the eunuchs noticed the two standing awkwardly in the middle of the room, and they flew into rage. “Bold! The Emperor has arrived—why do you not kneel?”

As Li Huo Wang glanced at Zhu Ge Yuan, the latter returned his gaze.

Without hesitation, Li Huo Wang pulled out two yellow talismans, bit his fingertip, and quickly drew seals upon them.

Once finished, he pressed them against his thighs and immediately drew the Purple-Spikel Sword, leaving behind only a blur as he charged straight for the Great Qi Emperor’s massive carriage.

“You’ve been deceived! This emperor is fake! It’s a fraud by the Way of Forgetfulness!” Li Huo Wang’s shout echoed like thunder within the chamber.

At that very moment, the Jinyi Wei swiftly formed a wall around him.

Zhu Ge Yuan’s expression darkened unusually. He flipped his hand, revealing an old, yellowed almanac the size of his palm. Then, from his sleeve, he pulled out a white wolf-hair brush and raised it, shaking it left and right under the starless sky. The night sky dyed the tip of the brush black.

With a few stars shimmering, the brush descended vertically and inscribed a line on the page of the almanac:

“Year of the Pig, Day of the Rabbit, Auspicious for Building, Inauspicious for Deception and Falsehood, Inauspicious for Disguise.”

As soon as the brush lifted from the paper, the talisman was torn from the almanac.

With the black ink returning to the night sky, the talisman vanished into the darkness.

The little emperor’s expression began to twist, along with that of the accompanying eunuchs. Even the Jinyi Wei looked confused.

“Fine! After waiting so long, you’ve finally come!” Li Huo Wang, seeing this, immediately clamped a pair of pliers hard against his mouth, sending several teeth flying like fallen blossoms.

At that moment, leaves of cards shot up from the ground, piercing directly into his abdomen.

Yet no blood spilled. His body slanted into the earth, disappearing beneath the surface. The Jinyi Wei couldn’t find him anywhere.

When they regained their senses, they saw the red-robed Daoist leap off the eaves, springing toward the emperor’s carriage.

Li Huo Wang’s eyes, bloodshot and fierce, locked onto the approaching child’s face. His hatred and intent to kill nearly consumed him.

He struck his fire striker against his body, and flames instantly engulfed his newly healed skin. The searing pain made him howl in anguish: “What kind of flower are you?!”

Li Huo Wang now resembled a kite ablaze, lighting up the dark sky. The air around him twisted and scorched.

Seeing such a man, the fake Great Qi Emperor, disguised by the Way of Forgetfulness, quickly retreated into the curtains.

But it was already too late. As Li Huo Wang crashed into the curtains, flames instantly enveloped the entire bloated pavilion. Thick black smoke rose into the sky, carrying faint screams.

“Come out! Where have you gone?!” Li Huo Wang shouted amidst the fire.

Then, a shadow flashed past from the distance, darting toward the outside of the pavilion.

“Trying to run?!” Li Huo Wang caught a rib sent by the black appendage, crossed his arms, and stabbed it into his own abdomen. Within dozens of zhang, every living creature felt the same agony.

The shadow let out a scream and fell into the flames.

When the burning Li Huo Wang, gritting his teeth against the pain, reached the figure and turned it over, he found nothing but a burning puppet show inside.