Chu Jiubian could feel eyes on him from all directions.

Those looking at him were not only the civil and military officials below the long staircase, but also the Imperial Guards on duty or hiding in various locations inside the palace, as well as Qin Xiao’s personal soldiers.

These people were all top martial arts masters. If they sensed that Qin Xiao was in danger, they would immediately step in to solve the problem.

The reason they hadn’t taken action yet must be because Chu Jiubian was too weak to pose a threat to Qin Xiao.

They didn’t notice any danger, but when Chu Jiubian saw Qin Xiao “smile,” he felt that he was not far from death.

As the original text stated, the more obvious Qin Xiao’s smile was, the more miserable the death of the one who had provoked him would be.

Wasn’t this pure derangement?!

Chiu Jiubian’s heart collapsed and screamed, but his face remained smiling. He even moved his hands to lightly pat the man’s chest muscles, saying: “Let me down, there are so many people watching.”

These words and actions were tantamount to pulling the fangs from a tiger’s mouth.

Qin Xiao had completely regained control of his body. His gaze slowly roved across Chu Jiubian’s face, ice-cold, almost as if it had physical substance.

The places his eyes passed over felt numb. Chu Jiubian felt a sudden sense of weightlessness, followed by a dull pain as he fell onto the white jade platform.

The person holding him had loosened his grip and let him fall directly to the ground.

The impact on his spine was not light. Before Chu Jiubian could breathe a sigh of relief, he watched as the Regent in front of him leaned down and stretched out his arms. Then, slender, calloused hands with distinct joints wrapped tightly around his fragile neck.

Chu Jiubian’s breath cut off, and he instinctively reached up to grasp the man’s strong arms.

The man forced him to stand up, and he stumbled to his feet.

Looking up, Chu Jiubian found the man in front of looking at him with interest.

Heaven and earth were silent.

None of the officials uttered a word. The nearby young emperor seemed frightened as well, helplessly clenching his hands.

In such a situation, his heartbeat became particularly clear.

Chu Jiubian felt like he was suffocating. He bit the tip of his tongue hard to keep himself conscious and used both hands to try to pry away the grip on his neck.

He didn’t want to die now!

His brain, on the edge of death, leapt into fast, agile motion.

He had appeared abruptly, and during the coronation ceremony when the young emperor had yet to sit firmly on the throne. Thus, Qin Xiao might regard him as an assassin sent by a certain force or party.

Given Qin Xiao’s ruthless, decisive character, the other party should have killed him without hesitation the moment he appeared.

But the System chose the other party as his landing site and controlled him to catch Chu Jiubian.

The ability to control someone’s body sounded like a supernatural power. Even someone like Qin Xiao would definitely have some misgivings.

At present, Qin Xiao did not directly break his neck, but instead gave him a chance to breathe. It could be that he had doubts and wanted to discover his secrets.

That was enough.

As long as Qin Xiao harbored even the slightest curiosity about him, he still had a glimmer of hope.

And what he’d just said about being a god who had come to earth to overcome a love tribulation should further arouse Qin Xiao’s curiosity and desire to investigate. With this being the case, the other party wouldn’t kill him easily.

What’s more, this was a coronation ceremony, and the sight of blood was inauspicious.

Chu Jiubian looked directly at Qin Xiao. His glistening peach blossom eyes had been forced to release some moisture, and the corners of his eyes turned red as if he had suffered a great injustice.

But his pale, soft lips curved into a pleasant arc, and his expression contained a tender yearning.

Two completely different emotions merged and intertwined strangely, just like the identity he had given himself — both human and god.

“You don’t believe me?” Chu Jiubian spoke again.

His voice was hoarse, not as pleasant to the ear as it had been before.

Chu Jiubian’s tone was relaxed as he said with a bewitching look: “How about a wager? If I win, you’ll provide me with good food and drink and help me get through my love tribulation. If I lose, you can do whatever you want with me.”

Qin Xiao had met many people, but not one of them had the ability to remain calm when faced with such murderous intent as his.

But the person in front of him hadn’t shown a trace of fear from beginning to end. He was perpetually calm and at ease, as if his own life or death meant nothing to him.

But the fact was, the person in front of him was still trying to survive.

How strange. How contradictory.

This person seemed extremely contradictory from the inside out.

But Qin Xiao had to admit that he was very interested in such a person, especially one so strangely-dressed, who had appeared out of nowhere and claimed to be a “god.”

He slowly loosened his grip, but continued to hold Chu Jiubian captive.

“What is the wager?” he asked with interest.

Chu Jiubian’s smile deepened. Suppressing the itchy dryness of his throat, he said in a hoarse voice: “I wager that there will be heavy rainfall in a quarter of an hour. If not, I lose.”

At present, the sky was clear and the sun was shining brightly. The scorching heat of summer caused one to feel restless and irritable.

In this situation, let alone Qin Xiao, even Chu Jiubian himself wouldn’t believe it would rain if not for the System.

He naturally didn’t trust this strange System, but right now, he needed an opportunity to prove his “divinity” and could only take a gamble.

In this place that was equivalent to the “Warring States Period” in his original world, observing celestial phenomena and accurately predicting them to within a quarter of an hour could definitely be called a “miracle.”

Thus, the “gamble” he spoke of wasn’t entirely certain.

If he lost, he would literally die.

Dancing on the edge of a knife like this utterly stimulated his mind, and the light in his eyes grew brighter.

He didn’t know if it was a coincidence, or if a storm was really on the way.

But after Chu Jiubian finished speaking, a breeze suddenly blew through the still palace, sending the wide sleeves of the officials afflutter. Chu Jiubian’s long silver hair also swayed gently, adding an element of charm to his handsome face.

Qin Xiao stared at the young man in front of him, and after a moment, fully released his grip on him.

Having suddenly regained use of his airway, Chu Jiubian could no longer suppress the itch in his throat. He rubbed his neck and coughed heart-wrenchingly.

The tinnitus and coughing took away most of his hearing, but he still heard Qin Xiao utter three short words: “Take him away.”

As soon as he spoke, two Imperial Guards clad in soft armor appeared on the platform. One on the left and one on the right, they clamped Chu Jiubian’s arms and led him away, following the palace road that led to the inner palace.

There was a sweet, fishy taste in Chu Jiubian’s throat that finally suppressed the dry, itchy sensation.

Perhaps because they knew he was powerless, the two Imperial Guards had released their grips once they were away from the platform, and simply followed behind him.

Chu Jiubian swallowed and glanced back toward the raised platform behind him.

The figure standing there could no longer be seen.

“Don’t look.” A joking voice sounded from the front.

Chu Jiubian turned back around to see a young man in dark armor standing with his arms folded. 

His face was strong and steadfast, with bright and pleasant features, and he wore a half-smile as he looked at Chu Jiubian.

The Imperial Guards on both sides immediately clasped their fists and saluted, saying: “Commander An.”

An Ping, courtesy name Wuji, was the deputy commander of the Qin Family Army. He was now the Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Guard, and also Qin Xiao’s biggest lackey.

Chu Jiubian went over this information in his mind and smiled faintly.

Fortunately, this person had appeared relatively early in the book, saving him from being rudely scrutinized by Chu Jiubian. He looked Chu Jiubian over carefully, from his silver boots, to the gems around his waist, and to the silver fox fur on his shoulders that was obviously worth a fortune.

Finally, he fixed his gaze on Chu Jiubian’s face.

The Imperial capital had no shortage of beauties, but this “god” truly had a face so beautiful that it didn’t seem like that of a mortal.

Of course, An Wuji was more curious about his hairstyle.

It was short and black in front, and long and silver in the back. Truly strange.

In an instant, an idea occurred to him. Could this person really be a god who came to the mortal world to overcome a tribulation?

But a moment later, he put the idea aside.

The man before him spoke strangely, and even wore a fox fur cloak on his shoulders during the hot summer. Perhaps he was a madman, but there was no way he was a “god.”

Stop, stop, no need to think about it anymore.

What their Ning-wang hated most was talk about the supernatural, and he didn’t dare offend him.

An Wuji looked away and, not bothering to say anything more, walked ahead first.

Chu Jiubian was pushed by the guards on either side of him, and raised his feet to follow.

He observed the scenery along the way. This wasn’t the direction out of the palace. Where was he being taken?

Time passed second by second.

The coronation in Fengtian Hall had not been derailed by the incident just now, and continued to the end as if nothing had happened. All of the officials performed the three kneels and nine kowtows, shouting “Long live the emperor.”

The young emperor called in a clear, tender voice: “Stand up!”

“Thanking Your Majesty.”

The officials’ steady voices echoed.

Minister of Rites Wang Zhiyuan read out the imperial edict, announcing the new emperor’s ascension to the throne.

The Overseer of the Imperial Observatory held the national seal in his hands and presented it to the emperor.

Bai Lihong had long practiced this, and accepted the national seal steadily. All of the officials knelt and kowtowed again, shouting “Long live the emperor.”

At this point, the coronation ceremony finally came to an end.

Qin Xiao went to the young emperor’s side and said: “Your Majesty, please enter the palace.”

Bai Lihong nodded obediently and took two steps forward.

Noticing that his uncle didn’t immediately catch up with him, he turned around in confusion.

Qin Xiao gave him a nod.

Although he didn’t understand why his uncle didn’t want to walk at his side, Bai Lihong obediently turned back and walked, panting, toward Fengtian Hall on his short legs.

The chief eunuch in attendance, Hong Fu, had already taken the national seal and was holding it with great care. He walked behind and to the side of the emperor, his footsteps light and silent.

After the young emperor had walked a distance away, Qin Xiao followed him.

And as soon as he moved, all of the officials standing at the bottom of the long staircase moved as well. Climbing the steps in an orderly manner, they walked together toward Fengtian Hall.

They were well-mannered and dignified, and no one whispered to each other throughout the whole process.

When they reached the hall, everyone lined up on both sides according to their ranks, then looked straight ahead.

There were nine levels of white marble steps, with a spacious platform every three levels.

The dragon throne, where the young emperor was sitting, was located atop the highest platform.

The second-level platform below should have been empty, but there was now a wide ebony chair on the right side. The Regent, wearing the black and gold python robes, sat upon it while gazing down at the officials below.

At this moment, the officials had a new understanding of the prestige and influence the “Regent” should possess.

This was the true definition of “below one, and above ten thousand.”

On the palace road, Chu Jiubian had been escorted by An Wuji for more than ten minutes. The heavy rain predicted by the System was about to arrive.

“Commander An.” When Chu Jiubian spoke, his voice was still hoarse.

An Wuji glanced at him and said nothing.

When he didn’t respond, rather than feeling awkward, Chu Jiubian continued to speak: “I wonder where you’re taking me? It’s about to rain. I’m not afraid of getting wet, but I don’t want you to get wet too.”

When Chu Jiubian spoke his mysterious words just now, his voice wasn’t loud, but during that scene, one could hear a pin drop. So his words were not only heard by An Wuji, but probably by the officials standing below the stone staircase as well.

But nobody took his words seriously.

What god, what tribulation? Had he read too many storybooks?

When Chu Jiubian brought up the matter again now, An Wuji scoffed and said sarcastically: “Immortal, your quarter of an hour is almost up. Take a look at the sun, is there any sign of the weather changing?”

Chu Jiubian looked up.

There were only tens of seconds left before the System said it would rain.

The sun blazed fiercely, and he squinted his eyes.

Was the System so unreliable?

Wouldn’t that mean he was going to lose the bet?

[Dear Host, weather forecasting is the most basic function of this System. It is never wrong.]

The sound of the System came unexpectedly, and Chu Jiubian paused.

An Wuji noticed his sudden abnormality, and he instinctively tensed up, fixing sharp eyes on Chu Jiubian.

The other two Imperial Guards grasped the longswords at their waists, their eyes sharp and vigilant.

As if to prove that it hadn’t made a mistake, the System had already started a countdown in Chu Jiubian’s mind: 

[Ten, nine…..]

Chu Jiubian looked toward An Wuji and smiled. 

At almost the same time, the sky suddenly changed.

A cold wind howled, blowing through his long silver-white hair and rustling his cloak. Chu Jiubian’s handsome face also exuded an indescribable sense of distance, and even the smile on his lips seemed mysterious and unsettling.

An Wuji’s pupils suddenly shrank, and there was an unconcealable fear in his eyes as he stared at Chu Jiubian.

The strong wind, carrying moist air, passed through the palace and blew through the doors of Fengtian Hall.

The curtains swayed, and the long sleeves of the officials made a muffled sound. The expressions on many faces changed at once, and without a care for manners or etiquette, they turned their heads in shock to look outside.

And Qin Xiao, sitting on his wide chair, also raised his eyes to look outside the hall.

After almost two breaths, raindrops began to fall one after another.

After a few more, the scorching sun completely lost its ability to illuminate the earth and vanished behind inky clouds. The entire capital city was shrouded in sheets of rain.

A rainstorm had really come.

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Chapter 1 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 3