Chapter 279: I Am Not Louis XVI

Faced with the rapidly approaching royal powerhouse, Lu Yan’s lips curved upward slightly, a flicker of surprise flashing through his eyes.

From the moment Marquis White secretly decided to make a move on the union and plotted to ambush Lu Yan with Saint-rank powerhouses, an invisible thread of karma had quietly formed between Lu Yan and the White Family.

With his extraordinary status, Lu Yan naturally sensed such subtle ripples immediately.

Using the Probability Cloud to trace karma, he descended upon this heavily guarded manor through the medium of moonlight, killing both the White Family’s petty schemes and their three Saint-rank elites in the cradle.

As the capital of the Victoria Kingdom, any Saint-level supernatural fluctuation in Oranke would be like a blazing fire in the dark, bound to attract the scrutiny of powerful figures.

Lu Yan had originally expected a replay of the banquet event—church powerhouses intervening with mysterious sealing items to observe and interfere from afar.

Yet tonight, the Steam Church remained as silent as a slumbering beast, while it was the royal faction that arrived swiftly the moment Lu Yan counterattacked, unleashing undisguised pressure.

Under the moonlight, Lu Yan narrowed his eyes slightly. Within mere moments, he saw through the deeper threads of the matter.

The White Family’s actions weren’t taken alone—they were secretly authorized by the royal family.

Tonight’s meeting was no more than a premeditated purge aimed squarely at the workers’ union.

Three Saints had set a trap to hunt down Lu Yan. The ensuing supernatural clash was bound to shake the whole of Oranke. Such a brazen move must have been cleared with the Steam Church in advance, receiving tacit approval from its upper echelons.

That was why, when Lu Yan executed the White Family’s three Saints, the Church’s temples still stood silently in the background. Only the royal powerhouse had no choice but to intervene, lest the situation spiral out of control.

Realizing this intricate sequence of interlocking schemes, Lu Yan looked up at the towering figure in the sky. A trace of ridicule flickered in his gaze.

Back when the union began its rapid expansion, Lu Yan already knew the day would come when it would directly confront the entrenched nobles—and even the royal family—of the Victoria Kingdom.

Those nobles had hesitated out of caution and only now resolved to act, but by then, the union had already grown far too powerful.

Tonight was merely the moment when what had been lurking in the shadows was finally dragged into the light. So long as the Steam Church stayed out of it, Lu Yan considered this a good thing.

As his thoughts flowed, the royal demigod descended above the manor.

Moonlight bathed the demigod’s form, washing away all worldly dust. Yet it only made the blood-red royal robes upon him appear even more regal and awe-inspiring.

Inside the parliamentary hall, the scene was a wreck. Cracks webbed across the marble floor, and shards of crystal chandeliers lay scattered everywhere.

Lu Yan had crushed the three Saints with overwhelming force, and although the aftershocks of their clash hadn’t spread too far, many of the great nobles inside still survived.

Upon seeing the royal demigod arrive, the nobles’ faces showed astonishment, and then rekindled hope. They scrambled to praise him:

“Greetings, Prince Rhine!”

“It’s Prince Rhine—we’re saved!”

“Prince Rhine made his name over seven centuries ago. He’s not shown himself in hundreds of years. He must have stepped into the demigod realm by now!”

“Your Highness Prince Rhine, please slay this traitor!”

The man known as Prince Rhine descended step by step from the void. A formless pressure spread like a tidal wave in all directions.

Yet he did not act immediately. His gaze instead locked onto Lu Yan, heavy with scrutiny, like a chess master evaluating an unexpected variable on the board.

A complex mix of emotions stirred in Prince Rhine’s eyes—surprise, doubt, vigilance, and a faint, imperceptible sense of unease.

As one of the top powerhouses within the royal family, Prince Rhine had watched over Oranke for thirty years. His authority rivaled that of the current monarch.

He was not just the guardian of the royal family, but also its overseer.

The White Family’s plan to purge the union had been reported to him and received his permission. They had even informed the Church beforehand.

It had seemed a simple matter—a one-sided slaughter. Never had he imagined the White Family had failed to investigate Lu Yan’s background.

Frowning slightly, Prince Rhine’s gaze turned sharp, attempting to pierce through Lu Yan’s essence.

“His aura shifts… one moment it resembles an ordinary Sequence Five mortal, the next it resembles a demigod as vast as the sea. Could such a person truly be a mere Saint?”

As time passed, Prince Rhine felt increasingly troubled.

His own supernatural path was known as the Royal Authority Path—an extraordinary sequence established through the power of the seven kingdoms. Its potency nearly rivaled that of the True God Churches.

It was a rare path of dominion, which—at its peak—allowed one to control the fate of a nation.

Royal Authority Path, Sequence Three: Regent’s Throne.
It bore the foundation of royal law, the mouthpiece of heaven’s mandate. No subject of the kingdom could escape its judgment.

Every decree Prince Rhine issued would descend like divine law, unopposable by any citizen of the kingdom.

When Lu Yan was about to execute the White Family’s Saints, Prince Rhine had already attempted to halt him using a Throne Edict. The law-bound voice of that decree had shaken the whole of Oranke.

But to his shock, the edict had no effect on Lu Yan at all. The Saints were slain without resistance.

The Royal Throne Edict was rooted in legal principles. One could not simply renounce their nationality to avoid it.

As long as someone lived, interacted, and existed within the kingdom, they were considered its subject—and subject to the Edict’s suppression. Yet Lu Yan had completely ignored this, as if he stood beyond the law itself.

A nameless dread began to spread in Prince Rhine’s heart. He sensed an immeasurable danger.

If possible, Prince Rhine even considered retreating to avoid unnecessary conflict.

But he had already used the Edict in public. Its shockwaves were vast. He could sense the hidden gazes of other noble family supernaturals, even secret organizations moving in the shadows.

Even the high-above Steam Church had begun watching.

If this couldn’t be resolved smoothly, the royal family’s prestige would suffer. Prince Rhine was riding a tiger and could no longer dismount.

After a moment of silence, Prince Rhine finally spoke:

“Disband the union, and I will let bygones be bygones.”

Then he waited for Lu Yan’s response.

In Prince Rhine’s eyes, this was already offering Lu Yan an out.

After all, Lu Yan had killed three royal Saints. The union, by comparison, was insignificant.

So long as they made a private deal—perhaps rebuilt the organization under a new name—it was still acceptable. This was royal clemency. It was political compromise.

“I refuse.”

Three simple words, like thunder on a clear day. An unexpected answer from Lu Yan’s lips.

Prince Rhine was stunned.

A flash of disbelief flickered in those weathered eyes. Then his expression darkened like a storm gathering at sea.

“I admit you have strength. But that does not mean you have the right to defy the Victoria royal family!”

As his words fell, supernatural power surged across the sky. A massive illusory throne materialized, dimming the stars with its radiance.

Prince Rhine’s soul ascended into mythic form—a blood-clad sovereign seated atop the throne, ancient and regal, surveying all beneath him.

“Rebels shall be burned by sacred fire!”

In an instant, formless Lawfire rained from the heavens, transforming the manor into a sea of flames. Everything in its path was incinerated.

Not only that—within Lu Yan’s heart, nameless flames began to stir. This was divine punishment from legal decree, meant to consume him from the inside out, down to his very soul.

But Lu Yan’s expression remained calm.

The power of Reversal and Creation flowed through his fingertips. He invoked the command of the Great Dao:

“Water.“

A single word, carrying divine authority.

From the earth surged torrents of water—the Water of Life and the Waters of the Heart.

The Lawfire was extinguished where water met flame. Even the soul-burning heartfire was quietly quelled.

“To strike without retaliation would be discourteous!”

Lu Yan’s right hand formed a sword seal. His dustless fingers shimmered with power that could sever all laws. Sword light ripped through the night sky, slashing toward the blood-colored figure atop the throne. The air rang with celestial sword cries.

Atop the throne, the blood-cloaked figure slowly raised a hand.

The earth trembled. The entirety of Oranke stirred like a waking spider-beast, weaving an infinite net of legal restraints around Lu Yan.

A second Throne Edict descended:

“Regicide shall be punished by hanging!”

Phantasmal ropes fell like chains of law, binding Lu Yan from all sides.

In that moment, Lu Yan felt the full pressure of the Victoria Kingdom. His spiritual power was sealed, his supernatural might suppressed to the limit.

This was the suppression of royal law. The Regent’s Throne borrowed the entire kingdom’s order and rules to crush any who defied it.

“Royal law? And how does it compare to the Great Dao?”

Lu Yan’s eyes gleamed with divine contempt. Both hands formed a mysterious seal. Creation and reversal stirred the very heavens and earth.

Above the sky, the void shattered.

The Gate of Mystery Womb descended—suppressor of all paths and laws.

This gate, empowered by the Reversal and Creation Authority, was even stronger than its version from the immortal realm. Under its immense weight, all laws and edicts were obliterated.

On the throne, the blood-colored projection trembled. The royal aura dimmed. Prince Rhine’s pupils contracted, overtaken by unprecedented dread.

Just then, a stream of light shot from the royal palace.

It ignored the suppression of the Gate of Mystery Womb, carrying a force that transcended all reason, arriving before Prince Rhine.

“Your Highness, slay the traitor!”

A whisper echoed in his ear.

As the golden light faded, it revealed a scepter seemingly carved from pure gold:

“The Royal Scepter of Victoria?”

Elsewhere in Oranke, a noble supernatural gasped with reverence.

“Legend says the Royal Authority Path’s embodiment—the Royal Scepter—was once a zero-level sealed artifact, later split into seven pieces!”

“Even in fragments, it still holds True God essence!”

“Looks like the battle’s decided.”

Prince Rhine gripped the Royal Scepter. The moment his hand touched it, he glimpsed the entire Royal Authority Path unfurling before him.

The veil of confusion vanished. A clear path stretched to the very source of kingly power.

His once-collapsing throne regained stability. His vague form grew sharper until Prince Rhine’s own face appeared on the figure.

Back in the manor, Lu Yan watched the Royal Scepter with a trace of solemnity.

“A fragmented zero-level sealed item? The power of a True God?”

Lu Yan could feel that the scepter was incomplete. Its power might surpass even Divine-Transformation Spirit Treasures, but not by much.

However, it possessed something far more terrifying—a sliver of This World’s Sole Existence. A rank above all living things.

Though faint—barely stronger than Jiang Zhiwei’s complete iron sword—within the secretive world of mysticism, such a sliver of divinity meant everything.

Even that faint trace was enough to crush anything below its level.

Prince Rhine, bolstered by the scepter, swept away his former gloom. He now stood like a worldly monarch—divine and inviolable.

Beneath the night sky, countless beings across Victoria bowed instinctively. Under the Royal Authority Path, all were but subjects.

Raising the scepter high, Prince Rhine bellowed:

“Traitors to the crown shall be beheaded!”

Laws formed in an instant. Empowered by the This World’s Sole Existence, not even the Gate of Mystery Womb could stop it.

The edict materialized as a colossal guillotine—its ancient blade slick with the blood and wails of the dead.

Even before it fell, it had already locked onto Lu Yan through fate and karma.

Once it descended, his body, soul, and divine essence would be obliterated under the sole divinity of this world.

All held their breath. Even hidden demigods dared not look directly at the blade.

Such was the power of the royal family’s deepest legacy. Even the Church had to back away.

It seemed the battle was already lost.

Until Lu Yan’s mocking voice broke through the frozen moment:

“Sorry. I’m not Louis XVI.”

As he spoke, the space behind him warped.

A phantom of another world descended—towering mountains forming divine palaces. Shadows of black-cloaked gods sat in judgment, their presence echoing through the heavens.

It was a power above kingdoms and crowns. The order of the Celestial Court made manifest.

The Celestial Court and Netherworld appear!

As their projection blanketed the land, divine authority overwhelmed the world. Everything bowed before its might.

The sliver of This World’s Sole Existence in the Royal Scepter… quietly dimmed.

In the face of a higher divine rank, it was like a star losing its shine before the sun.

(End of Chapter)