“Is that so?” The Celestial Empress Liz Li said coldly. “Then why is my Thunder-Heaven Void-Breaking Chain here? I keep it locked in the Celestial Palace’s inner vault.”
“I do not know, Your Majesty,” Sean Shaw replied.
“Sean Shaw, how can you not know? You stole the Thunder-Heaven Void-Breaking Chain! You killed the man! And you say you know nothing?” Third Prince Asher Xiao shouted.
Lucia Lu glanced at the speaker—it was Third Prince Asher Xiao.
Because of the Lady Hundred Blossoms affair, he’d been suspended from his military post and was under investigation.
“What’s going on?” Emperor Evan asked with a frown.
“It was one of his palace attendants who befriended the Warden guarding the inner vault, drugged his wine, and stole out the Thunder-Heaven Void-Breaking Chain,” Prince Asher Xiao said.
Sean Shaw shot Asher Xiao a glare, cold as a blade.
“Where is he?” Emperor Evan asked.
“He’s already killed himself out of guilt!” Prince Asher Xiao said. “But at least, when he confessed, it was all recorded on a Clarity Charm.”
He handed the Clarity Charm to Emperor Evan.
Emperor Evan activated the charm and watched—just as expected.
The Divine Attendant confessed: Sean Shaw ordered him to do it, and handed him the Slumber Draught personally.
And then the guy just 'killed himself.'
He never even got a chance to take it back.
...
They really covered both bases.
Marcus Xuanchen was doomed either way.
Maybe he just knew too much.
And now he’s exposed.
He was already a discarded pawn.
And Sean Shaw? They wanted him dead too.
If Marcus Xuanchen killed him, that would be perfect.
If not, there’s still the whole ‘stealing the Thunder-Heaven Void-Breaking Chain and killing Marcus Xuanchen’ mess to pin on him.
“Doesn’t this seem weird?” Divine Lord Tanya Quinn said. “Marcus Xuanchen is just God Tier, Fifth Highness is High God Rank. If Fifth Highness wanted Marcus dead, he wouldn’t even need a sword. So why steal a chain from the Empress’s vault?”
She grinned, glancing at the broken Thunder-Heaven Void-Breaking Chain in the Empress’s hand: “He even chopped it in half?”
“Exactly!” Liz Li looked genuinely puzzled. “Asher, Sean Shaw had no reason to kill Marcus Xuanchen—and why would he steal my Thunder-Heaven Void-Breaking Chain just to do it?”
Lucia Lu couldn’t help but admire the Empress’s acting skills.
She figured there were even more twists hiding in all this.
Yep, called it.
But Asher Xiao sneered, "Isn't it obvious? He's trying to frame my mother, the Empress!"
"Frame her? Now I’m really lost," Divine Lord Tanya Quinn said. "Soren, do you get it?"
Soren Lann shook his head. "Third Prince Xiao’s accusation is just too far-fetched."
If Fifth Highness really wanted to frame Liz Li, he could’ve just killed someone who had a grudge against her and pinned it on her—why kill Marcus Xuanchen?
Marcus Xuanchen is the Empress’s own cousin, and they’ve always been close.
"You two Divine Lords don’t know the half of it! There’s more going on here." Asher Xiao put on his best 'tragic hero' face and said, "Since this involves my mother, I don’t care about losing face—let’s lay it all out!"
He looked a little embarrassed. "Honestly, it’s all my fault! I got obsessed and fell for my grandmother’s maid, Lana Bloom."
He glanced at Sean Shaw. "Somehow, Sean Shaw caught me and reported it to my grandmother."
"My grandmother’s always strict—she doesn’t allow any private affairs like that, so she kicked Lana Bloom out," Asher Xiao said. "Sean Shaw, for whatever reason, used a Divine Crimson Pill on Lana Bloom and got her to confess that she handed over Hundred Blossoms Paradise to Marcus Xuanchen. Then Marcus recommended her to Liz Li, and through me, got her placed with my grandmother."