Chunso had no words.

The Sun Emperor looked at him and asked: "How many Saints do we still have left in my Empire?"

Chunso answered: "The Ninth Hour, The Fifteenth Hour and the Sixteenth Hour have remained without ascending, My Emperor."

The Emperor sighed: "So, all the other hours have already left..."

There was a silence before the Emperor told Chunso: "Get them to come here, we have much to discuss."

Chunso acknowledged the order: "Yes, My Emperor"

...

A few hours later, in the same hall, three more people were kneeling.

The Sun Emperor smiled: "There is no longer a need for you to kneel to me, my dear friends"

The burly man on the left answered rigidly: "We do not dare, Your Majesty."

The Sun Emperor sighed: "Rise, my dear hours"

The three got up while Chunso remained kneeling.

A burly man, a thin man and a rotund lady all looked back at the Emperor.

He asked them: "What do you think of our recent implication with the Righteous faction?"

The rotund lady laughed: "It was merely a win-win deal, Your Majesty."

The Emperor nodded.

True, they made a deal with the Righteous Saints in order to join their little game to get the greatest treasures but that was it. They had no other relationship with them. The true righteous saints were long gone. They were not even all remembered.

Only a few old monsters who were there still remember.

The Emperor and The Hours were there.

At the time, only the Emperor had gone beyond the 70th stage though. Only he had the honor of participating in the Great War.

And as such, he remained in this world as a Neutral entity.

For the sole reason as to protect the people he ruled over.

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The Emperor told them: "I believe that the birth of a new Throne is a danger to the world. I would like to hear your opinions"

The burly man spoke: "We shall do as per your orders, Your Majesty"

The other two nodded.

The Emperor asked Chunso: "Chunso, tell me, how long do you believe we have before the new Throne emerges?"

Chunso, still bowed, began to sweat. The answer he would give could change the fate of millions if not billions of beings. He thought about it for a few minutes before he decided to open his mouth and he said: "I dare not try to predict the future, My Emperor. However, I can affirm that nothing has happened yet as the 'Princes' have yet to all be named"

The Emperor taped on the armrest of his throne before asking: "Do we know any of them?"

Chunso stated: "Yes, My Emperor. Three have been confirmed at this moment. Clown nominated Seahorse "Stallion" Gaelic, Seagull nominated Pirate King Claw and Nightmare nominated Jin The Corrupted."

The Emperor became curious: "Mhm...I heard of the "Stallion" but the other two... Who are they?"

The thin man chuckled: "Claw is a ghost-ship monster that roams around the seas. While strong, he only attacks the weak, he is unlikely to become the next throne."

The Emperor nodded and turned back towards Chunso, expecting information on the remaining candidate.

Chunso began to sweat.

He spoke: "Jin The Corrupted is the disciple of Hae-Hyuk who managed to escape the tournament, My Emperor. He is known to be in possession of Cao Lei's relics and the corruption element. Considering that he was named by the Nightmare, we can consider that he also became that being's disciple."

The Emperor frowned: "Hae-Hyuk's disciple... Is he not the new Righteous Saint? This is quite difficult...Chunso, why are you trembling and sweating so much?"

Chunso was sweating a lot indeed. And that was because a small mistake was now becoming a huge trouble.

Karma was such.

Chunso swallowed his saliva before he admitted: "Jin has one of the 22 rings, My Emperor."

The marble stones covering the floor melted all at once as the temperature rose to a tremendous degree within the hall.

The Emperor and the Three Saints glared at Chunso. Even he, a mighty 69th stage cultivator, began to feel the heat. A very dangerous heat.

The Emperor calmed down as the temperature reduced. While it still was extremely hot within, it was something Chunso could endure without receiving burns.

The Emperor asked him: "Are you certain?"

Chunso confirmed it: "He has it, Your Majesty"

The Emperor got up violently completely burning his throne to ashes. His eyes turned red within as he told Chunso: "Do you understand the meaning behind this, Chunso?!"

Chunso cowered.

It was not his fault... Or, well, it was but he had no choice back then...He could not have fought Hae-Hyuk...

If only that mischevious princess had not tried to eliminate her brothers and sisters... It was far too late for that now anyways.

The thin man raised his hand and asked: "Is it not better this way, Your Majesty? We could make use of him"

The Emperor calmed down and turned to him: "What do you have in mind, 15th?"

The 15th Hour spoke: "He is one of us for as long as he owns the ring which means that if we were to claim him as one of ours and help him...Wouldn't we end up with another Saint on our side?"

The Emperor pondered before he said: "Chunsu, does the kid know the meaning behind the ring?"

Chunso quickly answered: "I believe that he is unaware, My Emperor"

The Emperor chuckled: "Go fetch him. I shall name him one of the Hours."

The rotund lady frowned: "Your Majesty, that would be difficult I believe"

The Emperor turned to her: "And why so, 16th?"

The rotund lady: "My niece, Hyo-Ju, still has her ring too"

They all stayed silent for a while.

According to their ancient rules, only a single Hour could be nominated per generation. And that would be the last one to retain a ring. No exceptions had ever been made.

The thin man laughed: "Let's just unite them as one then"