The Imperial Preceptor’s Wife also arrived at the Heaven Altar, looking ahead. Quinn Shepherd sheathed his sword, while Emperor Evan gazed at his back. The young woman watched them both, her face tinged with worry.
The bloody battle quickly subsided. The monks and Daoists of Great Thunderclap Temple and Dao Gate either died or fled—most of them perished here, staining the Heaven Altar with blood.
Blood flowed in streams down the steps, from the nine hundred and ninety-ninth all the way to the first, pooling at the feet of envoys, sect leaders, and clan chiefs gathered below the altar.
The Heaven Altar, this place of sacrifice to Heaven, was stained a deep, bloody red.
“Long live the Emperor! Long live! Long live!” Suddenly, someone knelt and shouted.
Crash—
On and below the Heaven Altar, officials, envoys, sect and clan leaders alike fell to one knee, all voices joining in: “Long live the Emperor! Long live! Long live!”
Emperor Evan turned, standing atop the highest step. He spread his arms wide, facing the kneeling subjects. After a moment, he raised his hands slightly: “Rise.”
The Imperial Preceptor’s Wife looked at Emperor Evan. Behind him, Quinn Shepherd and the eight Overseer Envoys of the Cult of the Heavenly Demon stood on the altar, not kneeling.
"Husband, Cult Master Quinn’s sharpness is showing. That may not be a good thing." She murmured quietly to the Imperial Preceptor.
The Imperial Preceptor glanced at Quinn Shepherd and shook his head. "To him, Everpeace is just a place for training. Killing the Crown Prince was simply another trial. He doesn’t have so many concerns—and truthfully, the emperor has come to rely on him quite a lot, inside and out."
The Imperial Preceptor’s Wife was surprised. “Training?”
The Imperial Preceptor nodded. “Training.”
This time, the Crown Prince rebelled, joining forces with Dao Gate and Great Thunderclap Temple to plot treason, assassinate the emperor, and seize the throne. The impact and destruction were extraordinary.
In the historian’s records, it might be reduced to a simple line: “On the eighteenth of the second month, Crown Prince Yuxia plotted rebellion; on the sixth of the third month, he was executed.”
Just that simple. The details are never spoken to outsiders; most stories only appear in unofficial histories, but they’re usually distorted and unreliable.
Yet after the rebellion came a bloody purge. The Crown Prince’s officials were executed and their clans wiped out. Monks and Daoists from Great Thunderclap Temple and Dao Gate were also marched to the execution ground.
Heads rolled at the Vegetable Market, from the seventh day of the third month until almost the fourth month—only then was the work done.
There was a mishap during this time: the Crown Prince’s head was never found.
The Crown Prince’s head vanished without a trace. Even after searching all around the Heaven Altar, it was never found, and Emperor Evan didn’t order a thorough investigation.
Then the emperor issued a decree: stripping Yuxia Ling of his name, erasing him from the royal genealogy and ancestral temple, and demoting his mother—the late former empress—to mere consort.
Emperor Evan then reshuffled the bureaucracy, promoting young scholars from the Imperial Academy and selecting capable people from the armies and ministries to fill the vacant posts.
Within days, the emperor summoned his second son, Luther Ling, back from the frontier to report for duty. Soon after, citing ill health, he named Luther Crown Prince and appointed him regent to oversee state affairs.
“Luther, now that you are overseeing the realm, what will you do first?” Emperor Evan summoned Crown Prince Luther Ling and asked.
He did not have high hopes for this second son. Among all his children, Luther Ling was not the most ambitious or talented. In fact, he’d admired Yuxia Ling—bold, decisive, and gifted—though perhaps too much so.
The other elder sons had died young—he’d outlasted them all.
Luther Ling paused to think. He had just returned from the frontier battlefield, and months of hardship had sharpened his bearing and made him more decisive.
This time, Yuxia Ling colluded with Great Thunderclap Temple and Dao Gate to rebel. Because Luther was away from the capital, he escaped disaster.
Luther Ling said in a low voice, "I would abolish my elder brother..."
Emperor Evan’s face darkened. “You are the eldest now. I have no son like him.”
Luther Ling paused, then said, "I would abolish the treaties my elder brother made with foreign powers, reclaim the ceded lands, and take back territory that sects seized in the chaos. Dao Gate and Great Thunderclap Temple have suffered heavy losses—over half their top experts are gone. I plan to recover most of their sect lands while they’re weakened."
Emperor Evan’s expression eased slightly. "And then?"
"I would provide disaster relief for you, Father. But before that, I would issue a self-blaming edict..."
Emperor Evan erupted in fury. "Say that again!"
Luther Ling bowed deeply and said solemnly, "I would first issue a self-blaming edict, taking the blame for Heaven’s wrath upon myself, praying that Heaven would cease sending disasters and thus calm the people’s hearts."
Emperor Evan’s face remained dark. Coldly, he asked, "Who taught you that?"
Luther Ling hesitated. "I..."
"I asked you—who taught you that!"
Emperor Evan stood up, furious, pacing back and forth. Suddenly he shouted, "You are my son—I know you inside and out. You couldn’t have come up with this! This isn’t something a second prince would consider; only an emperor would see things so clearly and think so deeply! Tell me, who taught you?"
Cold sweat broke out on Luther Ling’s forehead. He gritted his teeth and confessed, "After returning to the capital, I went to visit the Imperial Preceptor. The Mid-Palace Gentleman happened to be treating the Preceptor’s wounds, and I spoke with them about how you might test me on state affairs and asked them for advice..."
Emperor Evan’s anger subsided, and he asked calmly, "Who suggested the self-blaming edict?"
Luther Ling replied, "Both the Imperial Preceptor and the Mid-Palace Gentleman mentioned it. They said this calamity is Heaven’s punishment, and it’s best to comply and act slowly. If we force things, we’ll only fail. It’s better for me, as Crown Prince, to issue the self-blaming edict rather than you, Father. If you do it, it would mean denying reform; but as Crown Prince, I can be more flexible."
Emperor Evan’s face softened further as he sat down. "I know that with your current ability and courage, you wouldn’t say these things unless taught. That’s why I pretended to be angry. When I ask about state affairs, don’t just repeat what you’ve been told—share your own views, too."
Luther Ling agreed.
Emperor Evan sighed. "I don’t worry about the Imperial Preceptor—I worry about the Mid-Palace Gentleman. If one day I and the Preceptor are gone, I fear you won’t be able to match him. I’ve lost all my cultivation and my Divine Treasuries are broken. It’ll be hard to recover, so I’ve made you regent. You must work diligently. If I can’t regain my strength, I’ll only live another thirty to fifty years. When that time comes, you’ll be emperor. Broaden your perspective and your heart, and think for yourself more often."
Meanwhile, atop Sacred Descent Mountain, Quinn Shepherd led the Hall Masters, elders, and others of the Cult to the graves of Heavenly King Qian and Heavenly King Lu. Only Lu’s ashes remained; Qian’s body was never found, so his grave held only his clothes.
Quinn Shepherd stepped forward and placed Crown Prince Yuxia Ling’s severed head before the grave, and everyone offered incense and paid their respects.
"With the two Heavenly Kings watching from above, they can finally rest in peace."
Heavenly King Yu prayed, "Disaster has struck, and these are troubled times. Even our Holy Cult faces calamity. Brothers, please continue to protect our Cult."
After the ritual, everyone dispersed.
Heavenly King Yu came to Quinn Shepherd’s side and hesitated. "Will you return to Everpeace, Cult Master?"
Quinn Shepherd nodded.
Heavenly King Yu was puzzled. "Our Holy Cult entered the imperial city, slew the false emperor, and eliminated so many strong Dao Gate and Great Thunderclap Temple experts. Won’t the emperor be wary of us now? Aren’t you worried about returning?"
Quinn Shepherd looked at the two Heavenly Kings’ tombstones, his expression calm. "Dao Gate and Great Thunderclap Temple are still standing. The emperor’s first priority is to destroy those two sacred lands. He won’t move against our Heavenly Saint Cult until then. If those two are wiped out, that’s when we should be careful. For now, there’s no need to worry."
Heavenly King Yu thought it over and realized it made sense.
Quinn Shepherd walked to the Sacred Tree, gently touching its ancient bark. Looking up at the crown, he asked, "The way of the sage is found in the daily lives of the people. Heavenly King Yu, do you think it’s truly possible to change the great Dao of Heaven and Earth?"
Heavenly King Yu stepped forward. "I am dull-witted, Cult Master; your question is too profound for me. But I know that in the past, there were no roads in the world—only when many people walked did paths appear. Later, people disliked muddy roads in the rain, so they laid stone slabs, and the roads became easier. Then, wanting to travel faster, they invented wheels and carriages, and horses and carts ran along the roads. I think, before there were carriages, that Dao didn’t exist, but once people invented them, it became part of the world’s Dao."
Quinn Shepherd was stunned.
Heavenly King Yu continued, "Later, people found carriages too slow and invented ships that could fly in the sky. There was no ready-made black copper or gold, so they refined it from ore. When distances made communication difficult, they invented flying letters. I think, as people create, the great Dao of Heaven and Earth gradually multiplies."
Quinn Shepherd stared in a daze at the Sacred Tree. It had only one trunk, but its branches kept dividing and spreading, and he couldn’t help but smile.
"Once, in the north, it was hard to get fresh fruits and vegetables in winter. Now, with airships, southern produce can reach the north in just a few days. Once, wild mountains and rivers were plagued by monsters, but now we can use magic to reshape the land, making barren places beautiful. Once, the soil was poor and yielded little grain—now we can turn barren ground into fertile fields."
Heavenly King Yu said, "Once, wind, rain, thunder, and lightning were natural phenomena. Now, people can control them. Cult Master, have we changed the great Dao of Heaven and Earth?"
Quinn Shepherd nodded and smiled. "We must have changed it."
Heavenly King Yu said, "Cult Master, I am dull-witted by nature..."
"You’re not dull at all!"
Quinn Shepherd interrupted, smiling. "Heavenly King Yu, you’re a capable man. No need to keep belittling yourself. What were you about to ask?"
Heavenly King Yu said, "Cult Master, just now you said that if the two sacred lands are destroyed, the emperor might target our Heavenly Saint Cult. Do you have a plan? Or perhaps you could become emperor yourself..."
Quinn Shepherd shook his head. "No. As long as the emperor’s actions align with our Heavenly Saint Cult, it doesn’t matter whether I’m emperor or not. Besides, the Imperial Preceptor is our Cult’s Fourth Heavenly King. As long as he lives, the emperor won’t move against us. And destroying Dao Gate and Great Thunderclap Temple will be difficult. Don’t worry too much—I came to Everpeace just to train."
[Irrelevant passage skipped: Book recommendation and author note.]