Chapter 1375: The Calm Traitor
At this moment, a million raging curses stormed through Luo Yao's mind. His intense fury made his expression so hideous it was beyond description.
Before the Tongzhou Great Emperor had even appeared, Luo Yao had subtly sensed something amiss, feeling that the Tongzhou Great Emperor's issuance of the Great Emperor's Call to Assembly was no simple matter; perhaps there was another conspiracy involved, one that might even be targeting him. Now, it seemed his guess was not only correct, but he had also gravely underestimated the Tongzhou Great Emperor's machinations.
"The previous Jingling Great Emperor fell in battle, and Luo Yao, following our Yin Division's long-standing rules, cut through thorns and thistles, passing through numerous trials, to finally become the new Jingling Great Emperor. How can you say he's unqualified?"
The Qing Shan Great Emperor frowned deeply, his face grim as he questioned the Tongzhou Great Emperor. Though the other two Great Emperors remained silent, their gazes also rested on the Tongzhou Great Emperor, seemingly awaiting his explanation. However, before the Tongzhou Great Emperor could explain, Luo Yao, his heart brimming with fury, spoke up, cutting him off. His target for retort was none other than the Tongzhou Great Emperor, who sought to impeach him.
"Whether I am qualified or not is not for you alone to decide; it is for the rules of our Yin Division to decide. Since I was able to clear all obstacles and ascend to the position of Great Emperor, then it proves that I, Luo Yao, possess that qualification!"
Luo Yao spoke coldly, staring at the Tongzhou Great Emperor. Though he tried his utmost to suppress the intense killing intent he harbored towards the Tongzhou Great Emperor, the sheer force of it still manifested in his words and expression.
Hearing this, the Tongzhou Great Emperor first glanced at the Qing Shan Great Emperor, and only then did his gaze fall upon Luo Yao.
"You're qualified? Heh, while you did pass through numerous trials, from what I know, the methods you employed back then were hardly honorable."
"If you hadn't borrowed the special ability of one of your Emissaries of Death's Soul Armaments back then, do you think you could have passed the trials?"
As these words left his lips, the Tongzhou Great Emperor gave Luo Yao no chance to speak.
"You don't need to answer me, because even if you don't, I know the outcome. The answer is no. If you hadn't borrowed the special ability of that Emissary of Death's Soul Armament under you that day, you simply couldn't have passed the trials, and your actions were no different from cheating. Furthermore, to successfully pass the trials, you also resorted to many despicable methods back then, leading to the tragic deaths of almost all your trusted confidants."
By the time the Tongzhou Great Emperor reached this point, Luo Yao's expression had already become extremely grim. Anyone who knew Luo Yao had never seen his face look so utterly unsightly, and Luo Yao's current reaction was exactly what the Tongzhou Great Emperor desired.
"To achieve your goals, you not only murdered your colleagues but even used the lives and souls of your trusted confidants as a price to secure your final success. Someone like you, do you even have the audacity to claim you're qualified to sit on the Great Emperor's throne?"
The Tongzhou Great Emperor coldly sneered and berated him, every word, every nuance of his expression and gaze, steeped in mockery.
The Tongzhou Great Emperor's words not only sent the Guardians present into an uproar, but even the other three Great Emperors listened, their brows furrowed and their expressions grim. Because if the Tongzhou Great Emperor's words were neither lies nor exaggerations, then the nature of the matter was indeed vile, and the negative impact caused would be immense.
"Nonsense! You're spouting utter nonsense! " Luo Yao retorted angrily. "I did employ some methods when competing for the position of Jingling Great Emperor, but they were nowhere near as despicable as you claim! " At this moment, the killing intent in his heart intensified even further; however, it was no longer directed solely at the Tongzhou Great Emperor!
The Tongzhou Great Emperor seemed to have anticipated Luo Yao's response, so he was not surprised in the slightest by Luo Yao's answer. Moreover, he acted unhurriedly, as if he had long since planned how to verbally counterattack.
"Heh, in front of so many people, you yourself admitted to employing some methods when vying for the Great Emperor's position. This proves it actually happened, and no amount of explanation will suffice. As for whether those methods you used back then were as despicable as I've claimed, though I cannot prove it myself, someone else can. As the individual who risked his life to help you secure the Great Emperor's position back then, I believe he absolutely has the right to speak, and his words will be entirely credible and true."
After these words fell, the Tongzhou Great Emperor, wearing a cold sneer, looked towards the area where the Guardians were located below. However, he wasn't looking at the area of his own Tong Continent Yin Division; he was looking at the area of the Jingling Continent Yin Division's Guardians, and finally, his gaze locked onto one of them.
Luo Yao, seething with anger, followed the Tongzhou Great Emperor's gaze. His eyes fell upon the person the Tongzhou Great Emperor had targeted. This person was none other than the Guardian he, Luo Yao, had personally promoted: Huo Laoban!
Huo Laoban was not only a Guardian personally promoted by Luo Yao, but he had also participated in the bloody struggle between Luo Yao and other Guardians for the Great Emperor's position back then. At that time, Luo Yao's trusted confidants fell one after another, leaving only Huo Laoban, the latecomer, remaining. Furthermore, Luo Yao had made promises to Huo Laoban beforehand, so after Luo Yao successfully ascended to the Jingling Great Emperor's throne, he immediately promoted Huo Laoban, who was a meritorious servant, to Guardian. He did so without undergoing any selection process, overriding all objections, and using his status and position to forcibly promote Huo Laoban to Guardian, regardless of the consequences.
This willful action, while Luo Yao was well aware it would bring him immense negative repercussions at the time, was something he had reasons that compelled him to do.
The Tongzhou Great Emperor's words had just now made Luo Yao think of Huo Laoban, because as things stood now, almost everyone who had participated in that bloody contest was dead, and even their souls had been dealt with — either directly dispersed or forcibly sent into the cycle of reincarnation. Thus, there were very few people left who knew the details of that bloody struggle.
The reason Luo Yao thought of Huo Laoban immediately was precisely because Huo Laoban was a direct participant in that bloody contest; Huo Laoban knew just how cruel the process of that bloody struggle had been. Furthermore, Luo Yao had never dared to fully trust Huo Laoban—this was also one of the reasons why he valued Yang Haoran, the newcomer, more than Huo Laoban, the great meritorious servant. Therefore, when the Tongzhou Great Emperor's words left his lips, the first person that came to his mind was Huo Laoban, rather than Ye Xianglan, who also knew many details about the matter.
And the intense killing intent he had just unleashed was partly directed at the Tongzhou Great Emperor, and partly at Huo Laoban!
Sure enough, as he followed the Tongzhou Great Emperor's gaze and saw that the person his gaze was currently fixed on was indeed Huo Laoban, this scene confirmed that his inner conjecture had not been mistaken.
Although he had already guessed this outcome, he was still extremely furious. This kind of betrayal was unacceptable to him. His intense anger even made him instinctively clench his fists, and the gaze he directed at Huo Laoban was filled with killing intent as palpable as a physical entity. If it weren't for the inappropriate setting, he would absolutely strike out and slap this traitor to death right then and there!
At this moment, it wasn't just Luo Yao and the Tongzhou Great Emperor whose gazes fell upon Huo Laoban; everyone else present, including the three Great Emperors, all fixed their gazes upon him. Even Xu Meijing, who had been extremely indifferent to everything today, was no exception, directing an icy gaze towards Huo Laoban.
Seeing everyone's gaze directed at him, Huo Laoban's expression didn't change in the slightest; there was no hint of tension. With a faint smile on his face, he slowly rose from his seat under the collective gaze of everyone present.
As Huo Laoban rose, largely similar conjectures arose in everyone's minds. Some privately muttered, "This is bad! " because it seemed the situation was growing increasingly complex, and the trouble would escalate. But others secretly gloated, knowing that the real show was about to begin, and felt excited for the upcoming spectacle.
The latter accounted for the majority, the former for the minority!
Moonlit Night God
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