At this moment, as Emperor Xue Ye's voice fell, the gazes of everyone in the grand hall converged on Xue Qinghe.
Even Emperor Xue Ye himself felt that this matter was somewhat inappropriate.
Originally, he would never have believed that Xue Qinghe, who had been serving by his side all this time, could be a spy sent by the Spirit Hall.
But as this rumor spread wider and wider, and more and more people spoke of it, even Emperor Xue Ye began to waver in his conviction during private moments.
It was like someone constantly whispering in your ear that your girlfriend has cheated on you. If only a few people say it, you might not care, but when enough people say it, you'll start to doubt it yourself.
Moreover, as the ministers had said, the rumor that Xue Qinghe was a female spy from the Spirit Hall had now spread throughout the Heaven Dou Empire.
At this point, even the imperial family's explanations seemed feeble. The only way to clear his name was for Xue Qinghe to prove his innocence himself.
If Xue Qinghe was truly a man, then disrobing in front of the court officials wouldn't be such a big deal, and few would remember it afterward.
But if the rumors were true…
Xue Qinghe's breathing grew heavier under the weight of everyone's stares, his chest rising and falling rapidly. His hands hovered near his collar but refused to move further.
Just as Fang Chang had said, a woman's body was fundamentally different from a man's. When she was younger, she could still disguise herself, but as she grew older, she had to tightly bind her figure with cloth to maintain the appearance of a man.
If she were to disrobe in front of everyone today, everything would be exposed. All the years of hardship she had endured would be for nothing.
Furthermore, as the young master of the Spirit Hall and the future ruler of the continent, her pride would never allow her to do such a thing.
After hesitating for a long moment, Xue Qinghe slowly lowered his hands and shot a fierce glare at Fang Chang, who was sitting nearby.
He took half a step forward, his soul power surging as his aura locked onto Emperor Xue Ye, who sat upon the dragon throne.
"Q-Qinghe… what are you doing?" Emperor Xue Ye exclaimed in panic.
At this moment, Xue Qinghe's aura had far surpassed his own. Under his oppressive presence, Emperor Xue Ye felt a chill run down his spine, unable to muster even the slightest resistance.
Behind Xue Qinghe, the two Titled Douluo also summoned their martial souls, standing guard behind him—one wielding a snake spear, the other with the phantom of a porcupinefish behind him.
At the same time, the dozen or so high-level soul masters responsible for guarding the hall, as well as the imperial guards outside, suddenly turned traitor. They swiftly closed the doors of the grand hall and surrounded everyone inside.
Even these guards were Xue Qinghe's people! Emperor Xue Ye now truly began to believe that the rumors might be true—this Xue Qinghe was not his son at all!
"Old fool, if you had just quietly waited for death, everything would have been fine. But you had to believe this man's nonsense. Now, you'll have to suffer for it." Xue Qinghe pointed at Fang Chang, who remained motionless, his voice icy and devoid of emotion.
Now that her identity had been exposed, she refused to give up. She planned to make one last gamble—to take Emperor Xue Ye hostage and rule the empire in his name. After a year or two, she could simply have him "die of illness."
Emperor Xue Ye, after all, was a wise ruler. Even at this moment, he did not panic too much. His eyes fixed firmly on Xue Qinghe, while his peripheral vision glanced at Fang Chang, who stood not far from her.
Right now, the only person he could rely on was this so-called Emissary of the Spider God.
The court officials, realizing something was wrong, scattered in all directions, only to be blocked by the guards. Some had even been killed, plunging the hall into further chaos.
As the instigator of all this, Xue Qinghe—no, she should now be called Qian Renxue—still did not act rashly. Instead, she and the two Titled Douluo behind her kept their eyes firmly locked on Fang Chang.
This man had caused her exposure, and now, he was the only threat left in the hall. If she did not eliminate him, she would never feel at ease.
But as for whether the forces at her disposal could defeat him, Qian Renxue had no confidence.
Fang Chang, however, was in no hurry. He didn't even glance at the two Titled Douluo behind Qian Renxue, instead looking at her with great interest.
"I did say that excessive binding would hinder development, Miss Qian Renxue. Could it be that you refused to undress because you're… underdeveloped?"
"You—!" Qian Renxue's face flushed red, a mix of embarrassment and fury. But after her anger subsided, she was struck by another shock.
He knew her real name! Was it because of the rumors? Or had he been the one spreading those rumors all along, with the goal of sabotaging the Spirit Hall's plans?
The more Qian Renxue thought about it, the more alarmed she became, and the stronger her killing intent grew. If her suspicions were correct, then all the recent news about the Spirit Hall had been fabricated by this man.
He wanted to force the Spirit Hall into an early war with the other major powers! And his Spider God Cult could take advantage of the chaos to achieve some hidden agenda.
"Kill him." With this thought, she dared not delay any further. No matter what, this so-called Emissary of the Spider God could not be allowed to leave alive today.
Upon hearing Qian Renxue's order, the Snake Spear Douluo and the Porcupinefish Douluo charged at the seemingly frail young man, both activating their Martial Soul True Body forms from the outset.
They had heard the rumors about the Emissary of the Spider God—how he had publicly killed one of the Spirit Hall's Titled Douluos in Harbor City. Thus, they did not hold back in the slightest.
Facing their assault, Fang Chang merely raised his left hand and conjured a wall of ice about five or six meters wide and a foot thick in front of him.
Boom!
The collision sent cracks spiderwebbing across the ice wall, and shards of ice filled the hall. Yet, the attacks of the two Titled Douluo still failed to penetrate it.
The two exchanged a glance and retreated several steps. At that moment, Fang Chang's figure flickered like a ghost, appearing behind the Snake Spear Douluo in an instant. He raised his right hand and pressed it down onto the man's shoulder.
This wasn't some advanced movement technique—just pure speed. With 500,000 years of soul power, Fang Chang's attributes now far surpassed those of an ordinary Titled Douluo.
The Snake Spear Douluo felt a sharp pain in his shoulder. When he looked down, he saw that most of his body was engulfed in flames, and the fire was still spreading.
Meanwhile, Fang Chang's outstretched hand had already found a thin seam where Qian Renxue's hair met her skin—the edge of a special mask.
With a firm tug, he ripped the disguise from her face, revealing the delicate, feminine features beneath.