Meanwhile, in a dark chamber of the underground prison inside the imperial palace walls, three captives have their limbs bounded by heavy metal chains. A huge magical array is activated underneath them. It's the spiritual power nullifier. It blocks the flow of one's spiritual energy as long as the victim is inside its circumference.
The dim glow of the array is the only light that the royal siblings have in the middle of endless darkness. Well, not really, they can only see each other. Nothing else.
This underground prison is like an open space cave. There's literally nothing in here but rocks, dust, and soil. It's half as big as the entire Department of Justice and is located underneath the said department. It's as high as the Lotus Hall so climbing to the top would be difficult. The only possible way to get out is through the bar gate which is heavily guarded.
Ever since the day that they are cornered by the grand empress dowager and Lieutenant General Song, the three of them are thrown into this prison meant for the criminals that committed the most hideous crimes
On the first day, there are still food and water delivered but the following days, there's none.
Emperor Yin Renshu's stomach complains for the nth time, signifying the void inside of it. "Are they planning to let us die here out of hunger and dehydration?"
Prince Yin Wenyan leans his back on the cold stone behind him. "Seems to be the case."
Actually, even the wittiest tactician of the empire, Prince Yin Wenyan, doesn't think they can do anything to escape this prison. This formation underneath them forbids them to use their spiritual powers, which means they are no better than ordinary civilians. Their hands and legs are bound with these chains, and their holy weapons are confiscated too which prevents them to go outside of this array.
It's a checkmate. A dead-end. Certain death awaits them.
Princess Yin Xiulan let out a deep sigh. She lost count of how many times did she do that since they got in here.
"I don't mind dying. I'll be reunited with Liu Chen in the Underworld when I die but... can't I die fighting? I hate this. We're dying without a fight."
The truth is, she can't do much if they're going to fight. She was too tired, weak, hungry, and thirsty. In short, she's not in her best state. Whether it's because of their suppressed spiritual energy, or the helplessness she feels, she finally admits defeat. Too bad she can't avenge his favorite person. Too bad he died in vain.
She can't help but wonder, if he's not as loyal as he is to her, he could still be alive today.
"Wenyan... Xiulan... I see a light." Yin Renshu sounds so weak yet the hope is still evident in his tone.
This made his sister's eyebrows knit. "Already? Hey, don't leave us yet! Don't come into the light!"
It would be too boring to wait for death if the noisiest one dies first, right?
Still, with his tired voice, he continues, "I see... I see Eunuch Xu."
Prince Yin Wenyan can't tolerate what his brother is blabbering so he speaks up. "Stop your nonsense, Renshu. Eunuch Xu is still alive. I left him under shizun's care."
From his aggrieved tone, his voice suddenly changes into a low and pitiful one. Like a lost puppy that can't find its home. "I wish I could see and hold him one last time." Realizing his siblings doesn't take him seriously, his voice got louder and more serious this time. "No, really. Isn't that Eunuch Xu?"
Princess Yin Xiulan and Prince Yin Wenyan look at their brother which is looking above. And so, they also look up, wondering what Emperor Yin Renshu is staring at.
Surprisingly, there's a square-shaped hole enough for a person to go through suddenly appeared that was initially not there. They didn't know when or how is that hole made. In that hole, a person in white is peeping down on them.
It really is Eunuch Xu! He's not in his usual eunuch uniform. Instead, he's wearing the Wan Moli Hua Palace' sect uniform for disciples. His hair is in a high ponytail too instead of the usual low braid; showing off his perfectly chiseled facial features. Although he looks different now, they're quite sure it's him.
"My angel has come to guide my soul to the land of the undead." Prince Yin Wenyan sighs out of relief. He thought that finally, his humiliating agony will soon end. His eyes are becoming wet. Ironically, the feeling of happiness and sadness is mixed up in his heart. "And he resembles my angel on land too, I feel comforted."
Princess Yin Xiulan subconsciously raises her left eyebrow as she looks at her brothers. She thought she's the one who wants to die the most. Turns out, Prince Yin Wenyan and Emperor Yin Renshu want to get their souls taken away by an angel that looks like their beloved eunuch, Xu Zhengming.
"No, it really is just Eunuch Xu but wearing our old uniform. Stop daydreaming about him."
By then, she confirmed her brother, Yin Wenyan is really head over heels for Xu Zhengming.
Without breaking his gaze to his silly eunuch, Emperor Yin Renshu agrees with his brother. "But he really does look like an angel."
"…"
Meanwhile, Xu Zhengming on the top narrows his eyes, trying to look take a look at what's below. It's too dark so he can't see much. He doesn't even have an idea how high is his location from the ground below.
The only thing he can see is a faint glow of light forming a strange symbol.
"Are they in there, Ming'er?" Zhao Yangguang looks a little anxious. He really is worried about their whereabouts. He's not having a good feeling since the moment he heard the news from Elder Ling Chyou.
Xu Zhengming stares into the darkness for a little while and then shakes his head. "I'm not really sure. I don't think there's someone down there. Let's look at other places, Sect Leader Zhao."
"What the--- heyyy! We're here!" Princess Yin Xiulan yells.
Only by then did they noticed her presence. Zhao Yangguang finally felt like a huge needle got pulled out from his chest. He could only hope that her brothers are with her too.
Unfortunately, it's not only them who heard her voice. "What's that noise? Shut up! Don't cause a fuzz." One of the soldiers guarding the underground prison asked in a loud yet deep voice.
"Shhh!" Prince Yin Wenyan and Emperor Yin Renshu immediately hushed at her.
"Right. Sorry." Princess Yin Xiulan said in a low voice.
Good thing, the guards on duty at that time are not very dedicated to their job. They didn't bother to take a look at what happened inside.
"I'm coming in."
Xu Zhengming hops into the hole like a veteran action star. Yes, he's feeling his stance and even put a proud smirk on his lips. He's a "cultivator" now after all. He can't wait for his majesty to call him Daoist Xu instead of Eunuch Xu.
Everything was perfect until Wang Junjie got a hold of his collar. Now, he's not much different from a paralyzed white kitten being carried by its mother.
"It's too deep. You can't just jump in." Sect Elder Wang pulled him back to the top and dropped him on the wooden floor.
"Ouch!" 'Daoist' Xu rubs his butt. That drop hurts!
Wang Junjie continues, "Judging from Xiulan's voice, it seems the height is too deep for you to jump into. You'd be lucky if you only acquire a broken bone or two."
Sect Leader Zhao also speaks. "Please wait here, Ming'er. We'll go take them up here."
With that, Zhao Yangguang and Wang Junjie jump in the hole instead.
Since they've been cultivating since their early teenage years up until now, jumping from a height like this isn't much of a big deal. In fact, it would be a piece of cake for them to get back up again.
"Shizun! Shifu!"
Since Sect Leader Zhao's main spiritual root element is metal, he easily manipulated the chains that bound the three for a few days. Finally, they can get out of this array that the empress dowager set up. Their spiritual energy circulated in their entire body once again.
They didn't waste any more time and quickly go up through that small hole. At last, they're out from the complete darkness. Right above the prison they're in is the ministry's main hall, where Princess Yin Xiulan stays whenever she has something she needs to do here.
Memories start flooding in her mind. She can't remember a moment where she enters this hall without Liu Chen following her like a tail. Guess, this is the first time she sets her feet in here without him.
Good thing, their vision didn't have to adjust too much since it's already night-time. Darkness is still surrounding them. The only light they have now is the gentle moonlight coming through the huge circular window. But what shines the most is this beau in white robes. He just looks so perfect. Who would have thought that a good-looking person can look even more handsome?
If Prince Yin Wenyan and Emperor Yin Renshu got stuck staring at this beau in a state of awe, Xu Zhengming, on the other hand, is never been confused in his whole life.
"Why are there two emperors?"
"Oh!"
"Well…"
"That…"
"Umm.."
"…"
Everyone, except for Xu Zhengming, is looking at each other with suspicious expressions on their faces. They forgot about Xu Zhengming!
Prince Yin Wenyan was the first one who broke the silence. "Why is Eunuch Xu here, shizun? He should have stayed in Wan Moli Hua Palace."
Zhao Yanggunag tried to explain. "I told him that too but he wanted to come. I can't resist Ming'er!"
He knows this is a very critical situation and it's dangerous for someone like Xu Zhengming who doesn't even practice cultivation. But what can he do against the eunuch's charms?
"Ming'er?" The three can't hide their surprise. It's definitely evident in their faces.
So their shizun and Eunuch Xu has a father-child relationship now? He didn't even call them like Lan'er, Yan'er, and Shu'er!
"Ming'er, do you still remember the two moods of the emperor?" Sect Leader Zhao asked in a soothing voice. Like a parent that tried to explain something to his toddler.
Xu Zhengming nods like a clueless child.
He added, "For some reason, he split up into two. So, we have two emperors now."
"Mn."
"Yes."
"That's right."
The three immediately backed up the sect leader's lie.
Good thing, the silly eunuch, Xu Zhengming seems to buy it. Sometimes, his dumbness puts them to an advantage. Well, of all the unbelievable things he already encounter, the emperor got split into two bodies is something that's not hard to believe for our eununch.
Prince Yin Wenyan steps in closer to the sect leader. "Shizun, thank you for finding us. But how did you know that we're in there?"
Zhao Yangguang replies casually. "It's just a haunch, actually." He turns his head in Xu Zhengming's direction and smiles at the eunuch. "Turns out Ming'er guessed it right."
Having the spotlight again, Xu Zhengming laughed proudly. "Small thing. Not a big deal at all."
A few hours before they left the Wan Moli Hua Palace, Sect Leader Zhao, Elder Wang, and Eunuch Xu, tries to analyze the situation.
There are only two possible things that they're considering. It's either Prince Yin Wenyan is still searching for his siblings, or the prince already found them but got trapped somewhere by the grand empress dowager. There's a possibility that he's dead too but they don't want to consider it.
Zhao Yangguang spreads an old map on the table. The map is showing the entire territory of the empire.
"Alright. First, we will look for them in this part of the forest." He points at a certain part of the map. "The emperor said that grand empress dowager's allies led them somewhere here. If we can't sense any signs of them in that place, there's a big chance that he already found the princess and already left the woods. But after how many days... I really think he already found her."
"And if they're not on the way back here in Wan Moli Hua Palace, I'm afraid they went back to the imperial palace. And since the imperial palace has announced the coronation of a new emperor, it could only mean two things. It's either they're held captive by the grand empress dowager or..."
Wang Junjie didn't dare to continue what he's thinking. There's a possibility. No one of them can deny that. They just don't want to consider it.
"But where could have the grand empress dowager put them in captive?"
"If I am the grand empress dowager, I think I would..." Xu Zhengming flips his hair backward, chin up, and his hands crossed on his chest.
He's trying to imitate some of the evident mannerisms of the old empress as if doing so would make him think as she does. "If I am a bad grandma and my grandkids annoyed me, I'll put them in a place where they hate the most. Probably at the basement."
"That's it!" Zhao Yangguang snaps his fingers like he finally grasps the answer to the biggest question. "The underground prison!"
Princess Yin Xiulan once told them about this dark and distressing prison in the imperial palace. It was when they brought the bloodthirsty captives to the imperial palace. They kept those creatures in this prison to avoid them causing more harm to the civilians.
Everyone in the imperial palace refers to this as 'the underground prison', and sometimes just 'dungeon'.
There are actually two chambers of it. One looks like an ordinary prison, and one looks like a natural cave with no way out. No natural light coming through, making the prisoner feel blind. The first chamber is where the ordinary offenders are kept while the second one is where the most wanted persons are imprisoned, bound by heavy metal chains.
This underground prison is located right below the Department of Justice, in which the current Minister is no other than General Yin Xiulan. Who would have thought that the boss will end up trapped in this prison?
"Eunuch Xu..." Princess Yin Xiulan calls out with a straight face. "I hope you'll treat your grandchildren well."
Xu Zhengming bashfully smiles at the princess saying, "I won't lock them up in the basement, your highness. I promise."
"Since we didn't get any signs that you're still in that forest when we got in there, we decided to sneak here." Zhao Yangguang continues his story. "It was very hard getting inside than usual though. There's a lot of guards! I think the whole imperial army is on duty for patrolling around."
Wang Junjie added, "We remembered you said something like a prison is underneath this building so we looked in here. I hope you don't mind us invading your office, Xiulan."
"Not at all, Wang-shifu!" She waves his hand, saying there's no problem about it. "But how did you know that there's actually a trapdoor hidden in here?"
It was actually Xu Zhengming that discovered the trapdoor. "I saw something like this in the Lotus Hall that headed towards the underground so I thought there might be something similar here."
Xu Zhengming was staying in the Lotus Hall for days after all. So discovering something as strange as a hidden trapdoor won't surprise him. The truth is, he actually went down through that trapdoor inside the Lotus Hall. However, he didn't dare to go further. The underground tunnel that's connected to it has several turns. He's afraid of what he might meet on the way and that he might not make it back to the Lotus Hall.
They're already taking too much time talking here. Wang Junjie thought that they should leave now. "We need to go now before we got caught in here."
"That's right." Prince Yin Wenyan got his energy somehow recovered. He's unusually more like emotionally driven now. The urge of dragging the grand empress dowager down kills him. "We need to get the grand empress dowager off-guard as soon as possible."
"Don't!" Emperor Yin Renshu stopped him, tapping his shoulder. "Let's eat first. We're hungry for goodness' sake!"
After he said that, the prince, even the princess, felt hungry. Their angry stomachs groan, demanding something to eat. They can't even remember when was the last time they ate a proper meal. 
"Right."