Ye Lingfeng’s motive was apparent. He knew that he couldn’t defeat Dongyang Fengxiao head-on, so he chose to drag the battle out. The entire battle lasted until the elders of the Theocracy felt greatly humiliated. Before Autarch Yun even spoke, Meng Tingyu tactfully pulled out Dongyang Fengxiao, who was on the brink of losing his rationality, along with his dying lifebound beast.

“F-father, I’m not finished! I can win!” Dongyang Fengxiao resentfully glared at Ye Lingfeng, who was coming out of the Cyclic Mirror Lake. His face alternated between blue and purple, and he was gasping for breath. He knew that he had fallen for Ye Lingfeng’s scheme, which made him feel greatly humiliated.

“Get lost,” Autarch Yun muttered. 

Dongyang Fengxiao immediately collapsed on the ground, and a few people came out to bring him and his lifebound beast away.

At that moment, the atmosphere in the banquet had dropped past the zero point. It wouldn’t be so humiliating, if Dongyang Fengxiao had simply surrendered. But Dongyang Fengxiao was anxiously chasing after Ye Lingfeng with no concern for proper demeanor. The key was that he had failed to get Ye Lingfeng, and his performance was ridiculous. But no one dared to laugh.

With fireworks still blooming in the sky, the Theocrats felt greatly humiliated that their descendants had all been overwhelmed. When the officials sensed the atmosphere, they immediately tried changing the topic. Meng Tingyu also arranged the remaining two battles, which eased the atmosphere.

What had just happened seemed to be a trivial episode. But everyone knew that two disciples from the Decimo Dao Palace had greatly humiliated the Theocrats in this banquet. To make things worse, they had even been personally invited by the crown prince. Amidst the waves of laughter in the banquet, groups of youths gathered in many corners of the palace. All of them had anger pent up in them.

“Jiang Fengyue and Dongyang Fengxiao, those two pieces of trash! Especially Dongyang Fengxiao, he’s simply a humiliation!”

“If news of this spreads out, doesn’t it mean that Li Muyang’s son is riding on our heads?!”

“It doesn’t make sense. Why is the Decimo Dao Palace so powerful? And why can’t we, the Ancient Theocrats, kill a sinner’s son?”

“The Theocracy has existed for tens of thousands of years, and we’ve never been so humiliated!”

But in the end, they could only swallow their anger.

……

After the sparring ended, the banquet resumed with performances. At this moment, Autarch Yun turned to the crown prince and said, “Fengchen.”

“Father!” Dongyang Fengchen’s face had been ugly for a long time, but he tried his best to calm himself down.

“The frustration you feel today is a precious experience. Remember it well,” said Autarch Yun.

“Yes. I didn’t expect that I’d be frustrated by two brats,” replied Dongyang Fengchen.

“Remember what you feel right now. It’ll remind you of what to do next. Do you know what I mean?” asked Autarch Yun.

“I understand. We can’t be too full of ourselves. We have to treat our opponent as someone on the same level as us. We might’ve been humiliated today, but there are plenty of opportunities for us in the Tomb of the Ancients. I have to be honest—I’m uncomfortable with the two of them. I’ve personally witnessed the pentabane, and he’s no joke. So I have to deal with him before he surpasses me,” Dongyang Fengchen said with his head lowered. He had already adjusted his mindset after watching the defeat of his younger siblings.

“The Tomb of the Ancients is your only opportunity. If you fail, the Decimo Dao Palace will surely hide him and let him cultivate peacefully for a few years. The next time you see him, you’ll only be able to look up to him,” said Autarch Yun.

Dongyang Fengchen felt a little uncomfortable when his father gave such a high evaluation to Tianming.

“In the history of the Theocracy of the Ancients, only the Pentabanes of the Li Saint Clan could be compared to the nine-headed talents of our clan. I never imagined that an almost annihilated clan would suddenly shine so brilliantly, and even allow the Decimo Dao Palace to seize this opportunity.” Autarch Yun’s gaze was dark, and no one could tell what was going through his mind.

“Don’t worry about it, father. If he dares to enter the Tomb of the Ancients, I’ll surely get rid of this threat,” said Dongyang Fengchen. He was confident that Tianming would enter the Tomb of the Ancients. After all, the Hall Kings wouldn’t have brought him here otherwise. The fact that Tianming participated in the banquet was itself a signal.

“What if you’re unable to deal with him?” Autarch Yun asked.

“Then I—”

“Then your elder brother will take over your position as the crown prince. You’re talented, and no one can match up to you. But the Theocrats have always spoken with merit. It’s great merit if you deal with the remnants of the Li Saint Clan. But if you’re unable to do it, you have to abdicate,” said Autarch Yun.

“Yes, father!” Dongyang Fengchen felt enormous pressure on his shoulders. He knew it was because he’d messed up the banquet. The heavier the pressure, the stronger the murderous intent grew in his heart. Fortunately, killing him is equivalent to squishing an ant for me right now. Dongyang Fengchen had never imagined that someone younger than him would be the one to decide his fate. But since Tianming had become a threat, he could only get rid of him before he could grow.

When the fireworks finally ended, the banquet also came to an end. Aside from some trivial matters, the banquet went smoothly, and the masters were all harmoniously talking and laughing.

But just as everyone was about to leave, a group of black-clad men charged into the banquet, regardless of the obstruction and reported, “Reporting! Bad news, Your Majesty!”

Judging from their outfits, they were likely intelligence personnel of the Theocracy. Their appearance instantly left everyone shocked, and their expressions turned grave. After all, this was an eventful time.

Almost everyone stood up from their seats, Bai Mo’s group included. They subconsciously surrounded Tianming and the rest, protecting them in the middle.

“Your Majesty, the traitor, Jiang Ling, has appeared! He’s united the sects from nine realms to launch an attack on Saint Martial Manor. Relying on the fireworks as cover, they infiltrated through the drainage system. Their sudden attack caused Saint Martial Manor to suffer a huge loss and many casualties.”

This news left everyone shocked. Today was a solemn reunion festival in the Theocracy of the Ancients, and it was also the period when everyone was most relaxed. Saint Martial Manor was the residence of the Theocracy’s officials. The reason why Autarch Yun could ascend to the throne was all thanks to the support of the Saint Martial Manor, and it was the foundation of his throne. But due to the festival today, he had invited over two hundred masters from Saint Martial Manor to the palace. Thus the Saint Martial Manor was essentially empty. 

Jiang Ling was naturally Dongyang Ling, the ninth prince under the previous autarch. Not even Autarch Yun had expected Jiang Ling would launch an attack during the festival, or target Saint Martial Manor instead of the Imperial City. Back when the previous autarch had passed away, Jiang Ling disappeared with his trusted aides and descendants and went into hiding. Autarch Yun hadn’t been able to find him since.

“The traitor finally showed up? Good!” Autarch Yun smiled. Would Jiang Ling, who attacked the Saint Martial Manor, still come for the Imperial City? Autarch Yun was already excited just thinking about it.

But right at that moment, his face suddenly changed. Over three hundred people in the banquet suddenly made their move, attacking those around them. The scene was chaotic, with many top-tiered lifebound beasts being summoned. The commotion created by them even caused the ground to tremble.

“Protect His Majesty!”

“It’s the Ancient Clans! Damn it!”

“Outrageous! Ancient Greedwolf Clan, Ancient Taotie Clan, Ancient Bifang Clan, and the Ancient Qilin Clan. How dare you people commit treason against the Theocracy!”

But the Ancient Clans weren’t the only ones involved in this coup d'état. Many members of the Theocrats with Jiang surnames acted out as well.

With the banquet plunged into chaos, no one knew who had joined Jiang Ling. At that moment, it was clear that Jiang Ling had been staying in the Divine Capital, and had just been waiting for this moment.

Autarch Yun might not be fond of the Ancient Clans, but he had already investigated them and they had sworn allegiance to him. He knew that there would still be some stubborn people, but he had never expected that there would be so many of them!

“Dongyang Yun murdered the previous autarch and usurped the throne! His sins are monstrous and unforgivable! He teamed up with Lord Virtuous to force the autarch beast to fake the imperial decree!”

Tianming was amazed by what was unfolding before his eyes. There were many things that he didn’t know, including Jiang Ling’s hiding spot. He also didn’t know why most of the Ancient Clans and Theocrats supported Jiang Ling.

He only saw that Jiang Ling had taken advantage of the festival to launch a coup d'état, first launching an attack on the Saint Martial Manor to weaken Autarch Yun’s influence and capture key personnel of the Saint Martial Manor to restrain the masters who supported Autarch Yun.

He even worked with the Ancient Clans and a portion of the Theocrats, preventing the formation from activating in the Imperial City. Tianming wanted to watch the show, but this scene was too chaotic and he would be injured if he was careless. As the battle continued, the palace, that had existed for tens of thousands of years, collapsed, crushing maids and eunuchs to death. The entire place was soon left in ruins.

“Let’s go!” Bai Mo grabbed Tianming and Ye Lingfeng. The other three Hall Kings were responsible for bringing Chen Jinghong, Situ Yiyi, and Bai Xiaozhu. They sped off, and soon left the Imperial City. 

When they looked back, Jiang Ling’s army had already entered the defenseless Imperial City. The blazing fire illuminated the sky, with screams and roars polluting their ears. The Divine Capital had only enjoyed a brief moment of peace after the fireworks ended before turning into a battlefield. This was a contest for power between the Divine Capital’s powerhouses.

The battle soon spread from the Imperial City to the Divine Capital. Countless beastmasters were heading toward the Imperial City, throwing the whole capital into chaos.