In the imperial prison at Nanxuan Kingdom.
The vice commander of the Royal guards led hundreds of elite soldiers to the imperial prison. He was holding an Emperor's edict in his hand as he walked smoothly without any obstructions.
In the depths of the prison, there was an independent cell, it was made of dark steel, which was extremely solid.
"Open the door."
The vice commander did not know who the person was in the cell but he only knew to obey the Emperor's orders.
The superior, who guarded the prison, confirmed that the Emperor's edict was genuine. It took him a lot of effort to open the cell door.
"Boom..."
The door of the cell was tens of thousands of pounds and it made a loud rumbling sound.
When the cell was opened, they saw a man lying on the cold iron surface.
The man's hair was messy and his white prison uniform was torn. Most importantly, all of his limbs were tightly chained with black iron to limit his mobility.
The man noticed the door suddenly being open, he slowly sat up from the ground and looked up with a pair of deep eyes.
Everyone looked at his eyes, it was as if they had fallen into an endless abyss, and they could feel chills going down their spine.
"The Emperor has ordered me to escort you to the Imperial Palace."
The vice commander raised the Emperor's edict and kept calm.
The man's name was Qin Zimo. When he heard the word 'Emperor', his eyes were furious.
Seeing Qin Zimo's sharp gaze, everyone's hair stood on end and their bodies trembled with fear.
"Take him!"
The vice commander took a deep breath and ordered.
Qin Zimo did not resist, but instead, he allowed the imperial guards to pull the black iron chain that was attached to his body and walked out of the cold and dark cell step by step.
Soon after, Qin Zimo was secretly escorted into the Imperial Palace.
In the Imperial Study Room at the Imperial Palace.
"Go in!"
Qin Zimo's limbs were chained to the black iron chain as the guards pushed him into the Imperial Study Room.
When Qin Zimo stepped into the Imperial Study Room, he saw someone sitting on the Emperor's seat. It was Gu Xingchen. Qin Zimo instantly had an adrenaline rush and he had a strong intention of killing Gu Xingchen. He roared like a beast, "Gu Xingchen!"
The Emperor's name was Gu Xingchen and he was the one Qin Zimo was shouting at.
"How dare you! Kneel before the Emperor instantly."
The imperial guards drew out their swords as they waited for the Emperor's order to kill Qin Zimo.
"Hahaha..."
Qin Zimo suddenly raised his head and laughed loudly. He was thinking about the past where he used to be so high-spirited and respected by others, but now he ended up being in this situation. How ridiculous!
"Remove the chains on him."
When he saw Qin Zimo, Gu Xingchen's gaze changed. He had mixed feelings of excitement and joy.
After hearing Gu Xingchen's orders, someone immediately removed the chains on Qin Zimo's body.
After removing them, it was Qin Zimo's first time being so relaxed after 8 years.
Qin Zimo stared at Gu Xingchen with his furious eyes, he clenched his fists and seemed like he was ready to rush forward at any time.
The imperial guards surrounded Qin Zimo, fearing that he would attack Gu Xingchen.
"All of you can leave now! No matter what happens, no one is allowed to come in unless I give orders."
Gu Xingchen's gaze never left Qin Zimo as if he was trying his best to suppress his emotions.
"Emperor Xingchen, this..."
All the soldiers looked at each other. They were worried about Gu Xingchen's safety and hesitated to leave.
"Leave now!"
Gu Xingchen waved his hand, hinting the guards to leave at once. No one was allowed to question the Emperor's words or power.
"Yes, Emperor Xingchen." The soldiers didn't dare to disobey and retreated from the Imperial Study Room.
Only the furious Qin Zimo and Gu Xingchen were left in the Imperial Study Room.
Who was Qin Zimo?
In the past, he was the Defender General of the Nanxuan Kingdom and a legendary figure. But now, he became a prisoner and no one in the Imperial Court recognized him.
"Gu Xingchen, aren't you afraid that I'll kill you?"
Without any chains holding on to him, Qin Zimo could kill Gu Xingchen easily.
Qin Zimo was locked in a dark cell for eight years. Who could understand his pain?
He had sacrificed so much for the Nanxuan Kingdom, yet he was convicted of treason. How could Qin Zimo not feel upset about this?
"If I'm afraid, I wouldn't have let you out."
Gu Xingchen's eyes looked bright but there was a sense of helplessness.
"I put in so much effort and I have sacrificed so much for the Nanxuan Kingdom, why do you charge me with the crime of treason?"
Back in those days, Qin Zimo was so successful that no one in the surrounding countries dared to disrespect him. But now things had changed and no one knew about him nor recognized him. Even if there was, they would only remember him as the one who had committed treason and was disloyal to the Emperor.
"Do you still remember the man who you had asked me to investigate for you eight years ago?"
Gu Xingchen didn't answer Qin Zimo but asked.
Qin Zimo had been suppressing his anger, and he needed an explanation.
"Of course I do." Eight years before, Qin Zimo had indeed asked Gu Xingchen to investigate a woman.
Back then, Qin Zimo was a hero. At that time, a woman came to the Nanxuan Kingdom and met Qin Zimo by chance. They got along very well and became good friends.
After getting to know Qin Zimo for half a year, the woman left a letter and left without saying goodbye. Even after knowing each other for that long, they still kept a friendly distance from each other and tried not to get too close.
Perhaps, the woman had some concerns in her heart and did not want to have too much to do with Qin Zimo. She was like a fairy who came to the mortal world to play, so most probably she had never taken Qin Zimo seriously.
But for Qin Zimo, the woman's existence was deeply engraved in his heart. Therefore, he wanted to know her background and where she came from, so he asked Gu Xingchen to investigate the woman's whereabouts.
Qin Zimo speculated that the woman came from a shady background. She was definitely not from the Nanxuan Kingdom or any of the surrounding kingdoms.
Looking at her speech, vision and temperament, she was excellent in these areas and ordinary women from imperial palaces could not even be compared with her. She was extraordinary and refined, just like a fairy from a painting.
"I managed to find out where she came from," Gu Xingchen slowly closed his eyes and said in a deep voice, "Her real name is Mo Yuanzhi, she was a core disciple of the Skyward Sword Sect."
"Skyward Sword Sect!"
Qin Zimo was shocked.
The Skyward Sword Sect was a truly powerful association. One disciple from the Skyward Sword Sect would be enough to turn the Nanxuan Kingdom upside down.
The Skyward Sword Sect ruled over a thousand imperial kingdoms. It was so powerful and unimaginably great.
"I've also found out about something. The Skyward Sword Sect was arranging a marriage with the Myriad Palace and Mo Yuanzhi was the bride. Even though nothing had happened between you and Mo Yuanzhi eight years ago, it had made the people at the Myriad Palace unhappy."
The Myriad Palace and the Skyward Sword Sect had similar strength and power, so forming an alliance with each other was a great blessing for them. Of course, nothing should go wrong throughout their marriage, so many disciples were willing to get rid of the obstacle who was getting in their way, and that was Qin Zimo.
Qin Zimo parted his cracked lips slightly and looked at Gu Xingchen quietly without saying a word.
"Throughout the investigation, I found that some disciples of the Myriad Palace had secretly sneaked into the Nanxuan Kingdom. I had no choice but to use this strategy and charged you with treason."
"You were becoming so successful and I was afraid that my throne would be threatened, so I had to convict you of treason and kill you in front of everyone. Then I could be more comfortable and continue being the Emperor."
Gu Xingchen's eyes started to well up with tears and he was choking as he spoke. "From that day onwards, everyone perceived me as a foolish Emperor. Only this way I can ascertain the fact that you were killed."
Qin Zimo's body trembled slightly. He was thinking if this was the real reason why he had been secretly locked up for the past eight years? Was this really the truth of what had happened?
