Chapter 142: Jin Chuhong’s Eve of Enthronement

Chapter 142: Chapter 142: Jin Chuhong’s Eve of Enthronement

"Heaven and Earth are balanced, spanning the four corners of the world and the Five Domains. The Central Domain Hua Xu is a land unified. Imperial edicts are strictly followed, government decrees flow smoothly, and the laws are one. All within its borders—from the highest nobles to the common people, from the mightiest Cultivation Sects to the richest thousand-year-old Noble Families—abide by the law. In Hua Xu, no one locks their doors at night; nothing lost on the road is taken. The people live in peace and prosperity."

"Now look at our Eastern Domain in its entirety. There are thirteen Vassal States, each with different laws and principles. Trade routes are obstructed, and miscellaneous taxes are levied without reason. The sovereigns of these states are incompetent, and the people suffer under harsh taxes to the point of desperation. Furthermore, Cultivators are unrestrained by law, bringing disaster upon the world. The nations are in constant conflict, and human life is treated as worthless as grass... How is this Eastern Domain any different from the lands of the Barbarians?"

"Now, I, the Shuoyue Monarch, intend to unify the Eastern Domain, to extend our laws throughout the land, and to govern all Sects, Noble Families, aristocrats, merchants, and commoners within the Eastern Domain’s borders. On the eighteenth day of the eleventh month, I will ascend the throne as Emperor in the Shuoyue National Capital to rule over all people. All who receive this edict must arrive at the Shuoyue National Capital on the eighteenth of the eleventh month to witness the ceremony and await their investiture."

"Wherever this edict arrives, any who dare to defy or disobey shall be deemed guilty of treason. When our grand army arrives, they shall be beheaded as a warning to the world. This edict is hereby proclaimed to the world, so that all may know."

On the morning of the eighth day of the eleventh month, this edict appeared on the desks of all the Sovereigns of the Thirteen Eastern Kingdoms.

When the other twelve Sovereigns saw this edict, they all thought Jin Chuhong must have lost her mind. How dare a mere woman issue such an edict? She actually had the audacity to claim she would unify the Eastern Domain and even enact laws to govern the Cultivation Sects.

’Does this Jin Chuhong have a death wish?’

It wasn’t just the Sovereigns; all the Sects in the Eastern Domain also received the edict. Most of them scoffed at it and tossed it into the wastebasket after reading.

Only some of the common people, who were starving and freezing, were filled with hope after hearing of the edict.

Within a single day of the edict’s issuance, the matter was being discussed on every street corner and in every alley throughout the Eastern Domain, with the exception of the Shuoyue Kingdom itself.

The vast majority of the talk was mockery, aimed at the Shuoyue Kingdom and Jin Chuhong. They believed she was overestimating her own abilities.

On the ninth of the eleventh month, several Sovereigns issued statements denouncing Jin Chuhong, accusing her of disregarding the lives of the Eastern Domain’s people and intending to incite war. They demanded that she abdicate the throne of the Shuoyue Kingdom and issue an imperial apology admitting her mistakes.

Jin Chuhong gave no response. Instead, she continued with the intense preparations for the enthronement ceremony on the eighteenth.

At that time, many Civil and Military Officials and distinguished nobles within the Shuoyue Kingdom also submitted memorials, imploring Jin Chuhong not to risk universal condemnation.

Jin Chuhong once again shelved their memorials without response. Moreover, she sent messengers to question them: "Do you intend to be a traitor to the Shuoyue Kingdom?"

Faced with Jin Chuhong’s practically bloody warning, all opposition within the Shuoyue Kingdom fell silent.

On the tenth of the eleventh month, the Sovereign of the Bei Chen Kingdom submitted a memorial to Jin Chuhong, expressing his willingness to submit and swear fealty to the Empress. He promised to personally lead all of the Bei Chen Kingdom’s Civil and Military Officials to the Shuoyue National Capital on the eighteenth of the eleventh month to attend the ceremony and have an audience with Her Majesty the Empress.

The Sovereign of the Bei Chen Kingdom was the first to submit a memorial of surrender, a move that shocked the entire Eastern Domain.

But that was far from the end of it. On the eleventh of the eleventh month, the Sovereign of the Upper Wu Kingdom passed away. That very afternoon, the former Sovereign’s younger brother ascended the throne and promptly submitted a petition of surrender to the Shuoyue Kingdom, honoring Jin Chuhong as the Empress of the Eastern Domain.

On the twelfth of the eleventh month, the Regent King of the Huaiyang Kingdom submitted a memorial of surrender to the Empress on behalf of the young sovereign.

On that same day, Mr. Hong’s Auction House issued a public announcement. An auction would be held in the capital of the Shuoyue Kingdom on the twentieth of the eleventh month. Furthermore, all other branches of Mr. Hong’s Auction House would suspend auctions for half a year, effective immediately. Released alongside the announcement was a list of all items to be auctioned and the eligibility requirements for participation.

On this day, the Profound Wind Mercenary Corps and the Yellow Storm Mercenary Corps simultaneously announced to the world that, effective immediately, they would be integrated into the Shuoyue Kingdom’s Expeditionary Army until the Eastern Domain was unified.

The Shuoyue Kingdom went even further, massing a million soldiers on its borders and assuming a posture of being ready to march at any moment.

It was only then that everyone began to realize that the Shuoyue Kingdom truly had some backing. It seemed the winds of change were truly beginning to blow.

Starting from the thirteenth of the eleventh month, Jin Chuhong was subjected to a continuous stream of assassination attempts. Her would-be assassins included killers from the Eastern Domain’s assassin organizations, members of various Sects, and even personal Guards of other Sovereigns.

But all those who came to kill her never returned.

This was because ever since issuing the edict, Jin Chuhong had been living with Yun Xi in the Celestial Heart Hall. The "Jin Chuhong" currently in the Shuoyue Country Palace was actually Chu Fan, transformed using the Illusory Body Technique.

With his current Level 30 Spiritual Power, Chu Fan could sense any disturbance, no matter how slight, within the entire Shuoyue National Capital. Not to mention, his Cultivation was now at the Divine Separation Realm. In this Eastern Domain, how many Divine Separation Realm experts would stoop to assassinating a mere Sovereign?

On the fifteenth of the eleventh month, knowing full well the dangers that lay ahead, all the Sects of the third-tier or higher in the Eastern Domain were spurred into action by the news. They all sent representatives to the Shuoyue National Capital.

They all submitted congratulatory memorials on Jin Chuhong’s ascension to the throne as Emperor.

As for whether these memorials were merely a stepping stone to get into the auction, to be disavowed after the event, or if they were genuinely congratulatory—Chu Fan couldn’t care less.

So long as they submitted these memorials, the documents themselves would become shackles binding them to submission and allegiance.

On the sixteenth of the eleventh month, three of the kingdoms neighboring the Shuoyue Kingdom (excluding Upper Wu, Huaiyang, and Bei Chen) began massing troops near the border, ready to wage war on Shuoyue at any moment.

On the night of the seventeenth of the eleventh month, Chu Fan met with Ji Bufan, Jing’an, and Ying Xiao in Xuanzheng Hall within the Palace City.

Once the four of them were alone in the hall, Ji Bufan was the first to speak. "Just as you predicted, my lord, the Red Blood Mansion has not given up on this auction. They’ve sent three Elders, hidden within a Second-class Sect called the Broken Water Sect, to the Capital City. They are currently staying at an inn near Honglu Temple."

Chu Fan nodded, a hint of surprise in his voice. "So you’re saying you haven’t found any trace of Yan Qi?"

Ji Bufan said, "According to our intelligence, Yan Qi is still on Three Mountains Island. He has not left."

"Have you determined how many people are planning to cause trouble at the enthronement ceremony tomorrow?" Chu Fan asked.

"Yes. I’ve already given the list to Ying Xiao. I guarantee none of them will see tomorrow’s sun."

Chu Fan had no doubt about this. Ying Xiao’s Cultivation was also at the Divine Separation Realm. With his skills, assassinating any Cultivator below Divine Separation Realm Tier Three was a trivial matter.

Chu Fan then turned his gaze to Jing’an and said, "Tomorrow, I will be ascending the throne in Chu Hong’s place. Will she feel regretful about not personally participating in such a momentous, unprecedented occasion?"

"My lord, you worry too much. You are doing this for her safety. She is more grateful than words can say; how could she possibly feel regret?"

"Rest assured," Chu Fan said. "When the Eastern Domain is unified, she can hold another grand ceremony to worship the heavens. That will be the time when she truly reigns as Emperor. Although this is an enthronement ceremony, its real purpose is just to rattle everyone’s nerves."

"My lord, you have no need to explain yourself to your subordinate. Whatever you command, we will obey without fail and without the slightest complaint," Jing’an said.

"You will stay here tonight, Jing’an. The Palace City is bound to be lively this evening. Bufan, you and Ying Xiao coordinate your efforts. A dark and windy night is a perfect night for killing. Don’t let such a fine hour go to waste." A cold glint flashed in Chu Fan’s eyes.

There is always a period of deepest darkness just before the dawn.