Sitting upon the cold imperial throne, the Immortal Fairy sighed softly.
"This chair is so hard and cold. You've become the master of the Central Continent, yet you haven't even bothered to get a decent chair."
Emperor Xia: "..."
*I used to think sitting on the throne was pretty nice. Why do you make me sound so pitiful the moment you open your mouth?*
"Zhu Tian really knows how to enjoy life after all. The imperial chairs he makes are far more comfortable than this."
Zhu Tian possessed a wide variety of interests, including but not limited to dancing, crafting furniture, and more. Every piece of furniture in the Demon Empire's palace had been personally crafted by Zhu Tian.
From that perspective, the Demon Empire's imperial palace had far more prestige than Great Xia's, having been furnished by a half-immortal.
Even the furniture in the abodes of the Five Ancient Celestials had been made by Zhu Tian.
Jin Caiwei had heard that even her father's coffin had been crafted by Zhu Tian. When it came to craftsmanship in that domain, the Great Elder couldn't hold a candle to Zhu Tian—in fact, he fell far short. That was the unbridgeable gulf between the Body Integration stage and a half-immortal, one that no amount of technique could ever compensate for!
"Where's the imperial seal?" The Immortal Fairy couldn't sit still on the throne, groping all around.
"What are you looking for the imperial seal for?" Lu Yang asked. This certainly wasn't in their plan.
"To see what it looks like. Isn't an emperor supposed to have an imperial seal? As the founding Bean Emperor, this immortal wants to see what Great Xia's imperial seal looks like so I'll know how to forge one myself."
The Immortal Fairy was meticulous in her work; if one was going to be an emperor, one had to look the part.
Lu Yang glanced at the imperial robe the Fairy was wearing—embroidered on the front was the Immortal Fairy's beaming face, while the back bore Eldest Senior Sister's frosty, striking visage. He felt the Immortal Fairy didn't need to be so particular about an imperial seal.
In any case, even if she held an imperial seal, she wouldn't look like an emperor.
This was everyone's first time acting as thieves, so none of them had any experience and were at a loss as to what to do next.
Ao Ling leisurely toured the murals of Daming Hall. The murals depicted how the Jiang family had risen in the late Great Yu era, rapidly growing into one of the major powers contending for the world; how the Jiang family and the Meng family had joined forces in a bitter struggle against the Void Supreme; and how the two families had eventually parted ways, clashing with blades to fight for supreme hegemony over the world.
"The pigments used for these murals are terrible; they're already starting to fade," Ao Ling critiqued.
"Back in our day, our family's murals were all blessed by Immortal Suiyue, untouched by the erosion of time, permanent and eternal."
"And these dharma treasures are quite mediocre too; they just look nice." Jiang Lianyi pointed toward the wall, where a row of decorative dharma treasures was arranged.
"Our family's dharma treasures were all refined by Immortal Ying Tian—every single one was of celestial treasure grade."
Emperor Xia: "..."
*Don't go too far, you people! First Immortal Suiyue, now Immortal Ying Tian... Daming Hall was overseen and built by my ancestor, after all; leave us some face!*
*Ancestor Jiang Ping'an was no expert in artifact refining; where was he supposed to find so many celestial treasures just to put on airs?*
Jin Caiwei was the only one who lacked such worldly exposure, so she didn't go around picking faults everywhere.
Her eyes burned with keen interest as she looked at the throne. "How much could this imperial throne sell for?"
Their Qiongqi Clan happened to be in desperate need of spirit stones. If they could sell the throne, this trip wouldn't be in vain.
The Immortal Fairy kindly answered, dispelling Jin Caiwei's notion. "It's just for show; it isn't worth much."
While stealing the imperial throne, the group casually toured Daming Hall, pointing and making comments all the while.
"How are we going to haul this throne away?" Jiang Lianyi asked. The throne was an item bound to an owner, so it couldn't be placed into a storage ring. Carrying it away out in the open would be far too conspicuous.
"Leave it to me," Jin Caiwei volunteered. Channeling her rudimentary Plane Dao fruit, she stretched out both palms—one above and one below—sandwiching the imperial throne right between them.
She lightly clapped her hands together. The throne suddenly vanished, replaced by a single sheet of paper.
"Done."
Jin Caiwei flattened the throne into two dimensions, rolled it into a scroll, and held it in her arms. This made their target vastly smaller.
"Your rudimentary Dao fruit is quite handy."
"Of course! Let alone a mere throne, I could flatten the entire imperial palace into two dimensions." Jin Caiwei beamed with pride, flaunting her ability.
"Alright, alright, let's get going," the Immortal Fairy called out to the group.
Jin Caiwei flattened everyone into two dimensions, and using their previous trick, they slipped out of the Imperial Palace.
The following morning, upon arriving for the court assembly, Jiang Qun looked at the empty spot where the throne should have been, completely dumbfounded.
"Where's the chair?"
*I know I said the chair was uncomfortable, but did someone really have to haul it away?!*
***
Recently, two shocking events had rocked the Imperial City.
First, the Fifth Prince's crimes were exposed, and his partisans were arrested one after another, sending tremors through the court and resulting in numerous officials being stripped of their posts.
When the Second Prince heard the news, tempestuous waves surged in his heart.
It had only been a few days since the Fourth Prince fell from grace, and of the four contenders for the throne, only he and his eldest brother remained.
Considering the crucial role Lu Yang had played in the process, leaking his involvement could easily invite retaliation from the Fifth Prince's remnants; therefore, the Ministry of Justice did not publicize Lu Yang's contribution.
Second, an audacious master thief had stolen the imperial throne.
Rumor had it that on that day, Emperor Xia stood through the morning court assembly just like his ministers, earning widespread praise from the officials.
The imperial throne had stood in Daming Hall for a hundred thousand years without ever moving an inch. People had no idea what formidable figure dared to commit such an outrageous, treasonous act.
Some suspected the long-vanished Thief Ancestor, some suspected the reclusive Thief King, and others claimed their disciples had descended from the mountains to make a name for themselves.
There were all kinds of speculations, but none could settle on a definitive conclusion.
Xu Xin arrived at the palace with a gloomy face, his steps heavy as if weighed down by lead. He couldn't care less about what the world was gossiping about—they were all baseless rumors anyway, so people could say whatever they pleased.
He, however, had no such luxury. His Majesty had given him a strict order: he had to uncover the whereabouts of the imperial throne at all costs.
In truth, the best method would have been to directly ask the owner of the throne where it was. But the throne was Jiang Ping'an's personal item, and the Eldest Prince wouldn't dare disturb the old ancestor in the Forbidden Grounds over a matter like this.
That left no choice but to make Minister Xu suffer.
"How is the investigation proceeding?" Xu Xin led a group of crack subordinates into Daming Hall. These men were all renowned master detectives in the Ministry of Justice, from whose piercing gaze not the slightest clue could escape.
Yet on this case, they were about to stumble.
"Reporting to Your Excellency, the perpetrator was extraordinarily cunning and left behind no evidence whatsoever." From the palace perimeter all the way to Daming Hall, the subordinates had searched multiple times without finding a single useful lead.
"Was the crime committed by someone with concealment abilities?" Xu Xin asked with a frown. He had been a master detective himself, though since becoming minister, he hadn't cracked cases in a very long time.
The Vice Minister of Justice shook his head and unrolled a map that covered the entire table—an exceptionally detailed layout of the Imperial Palace. "Please look, Your Excellency. The Imperial Palace has multiple detection arrays and patrols by the Imperial Guards. Unless an immortal took action, something would inevitably be left behind."
"Yet an immortal couldn't possibly steal such a pointless object."
Immortals had reached the absolute pinnacle of cultivation; even if they got dead drunk, they wouldn't run into the Imperial Palace just to steal a chair.
Xu Xin let out a sigh and voiced another possibility: "The perpetrator is intimately familiar with the layout of the palace. It was an inside job."
Chapter 938