novelraw Chapter 792 - 296: The Empress Leaves the Palace! Such a Massive Ziwei Star! (Part 2)
Chapter 792 - 296: The Empress Leaves the Palace! Such a Massive Ziwei Star! (Part 2)
Chen Mo was seeing it in person for the first time, pondering that only within the scope of the Observatory’s influence could one witness such phenomena.
At that moment, he seemed to sense something, his mind sinking into the Sea of Consciousness, where the Seven Dragon Constellations lit up with a radiance, as if stirred by some force.
"What’s happening?"
...
...
Qi Chengze stood at the edge of the high platform, a silver line at his brow slowly cracked open, gazing at the myriad stars.
Among them was a particularly striking purple star, positioned at the galaxy’s center, making the surrounding stars appear dimmer.
"The rise and fall of mountains and rivers foretold by the brightness of the Emperor Star."
"Ziwei bright, the people at peace; Ziwei dim, the bones cold..."
Gazing at the shining Emperor Star, Qi Chengze grinned, loudly proclaiming, "The Emperor Star alone shines; this is the omen of a prosperous era! Great fortune! Great fortune indeed!"
The sound echoed in the night sky, reaching everyone’s ears.
With a swish—
The Imperial Army kneeled on one knee, their right hand pounding their chest, shouting:
"Our king is wise! Heaven bless Great Yuan!"
"Our king is wise! Heaven bless Great Yuan!"
Seeing the exceedingly excited crowd, Chu Yanli smirked, sharply criticizing, "The Emperor barely has any breath left, and they’re chanting slogans here. It’s not Heaven preserving Great Yuan, it’s the warriors fighting bloodily... The Astronomical Observatory has no real skills, just good at disguising peace."
Listening to Lu Shuangge broke out in a cold sweat, wishing he could cover the mouth spewing fragrant words.
"Hold on, something’s really not right, Your Highness look..."
"What’s there to look at..."
Chu Yanli was somewhat impatient, looking up in the direction Lu Shuangge pointed, his expression stiffening on his face.
The starry sky dragged light tails endlessly rotating, with the star in the center becoming increasingly bright, gradually growing from a speck of dust to fist-sized, and the distance was still shortening!
"This is..."
Everyone was frozen in place.
Within a breath, the Emperor Star was already hanging overhead.
The sky seemed to hang with two moons, silver and deep purple intertwined, exuding an unseeable overwhelming pressure!
?
Qi Chengze was a bit dumbfounded too.
As the Director of the Astronomical Observatory, Tiandu City’s most knowledgeable man in divination, he had never seen such a scene.
Could the Crown Prince truly be the True Dragon ordained by destiny, causing such phenomena on his first festival participation?
Detecting the commotion below, Qi Chengze snapped back, realizing it was vital to stabilize hearts at this moment.
He cleared his throat, saying, "It is... uh, the celestial phenomenon of Seven Stars facing the palace, purple aura coming from the east, truly an auspicious sign, great fortune... great fortune... right?!"
Halfway through speaking, noticing something in the corner of his eye, his throat felt choked, his face flaring red.
Seeing below among the crowd, that man named Chen Mo was gazing at the starry sky, seemingly no different from others, but in his celestial eyes, he could clearly see the man surrounded by purple light, linking him and the gigantic Emperor Star with a light beam across the sky!
The Emperor Star, had come for Chen Mo!
"You must be joking..."
"The Emperor Star suddenly descended, and it had nothing to do with the Crown Prince but was because of a military officer?!"
Qi Chengze swallowed hard.
Soon, he realized what this meant.
If this got out, who knows how many heads would roll, even he would be implicated!
"Damn Ling Yishan, I knew something was amiss, that old bastard was indeed setting me up!"
"No, if this continues, there might be major trouble!"
He retreated, came to the Heavenly Observation Mirror, wiped away the blood characters above it.
The mirror surface suddenly darkened, covered by black paint again, and the opening in the night sky closed, the purple Jade Plate vanished.
The world returned to tranquility, as if nothing had happened.
"Finally, it’s over..."
Chen Mo’s tense body relaxed a bit, his back soaked in sweat.
When the purple star revealed itself, Dragon Qi started raging, rampaging through his body, he barely suppressed it, almost got exposed...
Chu Yanli seemed to sense something, frowning at Chen Mo, contemplating.
Lv Huaiyu squinting slightly, lips subtly curling, voice loud like a bell: "Ziwei descends, state fortunate, Heaven bless my Great Yuan! Soldiers heed the order, proceed to the southern outskirts to offer sacrifices!"
"Yes!"
The Imperial Army responded thunderously, a golden melon clearing the way, escorting the Royal Palanquin towards the South City Gate.
Lv Huaiyu, riding a tall horse, came before Chen Mo, asking, "Mr. Chen, care to join us?"
"Hmm?"
Chen Mo was stunned hearing this, shook his head saying, "I still have to patrol near the Imperial Palace..."
Lv Huaiyu waved, stating, "What issue could the Imperial Palace have? Instead, the altar’s side, with the Empress and Crown Prince present, tolerates no mishaps... I’ve said my piece, decide for yourself."
With these words, he didn’t wait for a response and rode off by himself.
Chen Mo frowned. Though these words seemed a little nonsensical, they made the unease in his heart grow stronger.
Watching the gradually departing royal palanquin, he hesitated slightly, then mounted his horse and said to Li Yuan, "Yuan’er, stay here and don’t move. I’ll be back shortly."
"Alright."
Li Yuan asked no further questions and nodded, saying, "Take care, sir."
"Giddy-up!"
Chen Mo lifted his hand, whipped the reins, and chased after the departing procession.
Chu Yanli saw the scene, looked at Lv Huaiyu with confusion, "Why is Chen Mo here? What did you tell him?"
Lv Huaiyu replied calmly, "I just did what needed to be done. As for the outcome, we’ll leave that to destiny."
"Old fool, speak plainly. Why are you beating around the bush with me?" Chu Yanli said impatiently.
Lv Huaiyu’s eyelid twitched, "Please, Your Highness, mind your demeanor. Don’t let others see a joke."
Chu Yanli stretched her limbs, her joints crackling, and coldly said, "When my fist lands on your face, you’ll know who’s really the joke."
"..."
Lv Huaiyu took a deep breath, trying hard to control his emotions.
Even with his ability to maintain composure, he sometimes found it hard to contain himself when facing this woman.
Lu Shuangge tugged on Chu Yanli’s sleeve and whispered, "Your Highness, that’s my father."
"So what? Considering all the mess your father has created, a beating is light punishment," Chu Yanli said coldly. "If you’re unhappy, you can go beat my father; I don’t mind."
"..."
Lu Shuangge silently lowered his head.
Forget it, better to continue pretending to be dead...
...
...
Inside a tavern in the city.
The room was dimly lit, and a young monk was sleeping soundly, hugging his pillow.
Hui Neng sat cross-legged on the floor, his eyes slightly closed, his thumb moving the Buddha beads, chanting scriptures softly.
Suddenly, his chanting stopped.
Hui Neng’s eyes opened, a flash of intensity passing through them.
He got up and moved to the window, gently pushed it open a crack, and saw dragon flags flying on the distant street, accompanied by the sound of orderly footsteps.
"The hour has come..."
"Shi Yi, it’s time to get up and attend to business."
...
...
The Imperial Army traversed the Capital City, exiting from Anyang Gate, heading towards the southern suburbs.
The surrounding houses gradually thinned, the view widened, and a majestic palace became faintly visible ahead, with towering red walls and an awe-inspiring palace gate, where civil and military officials had long been waiting.
The temple was divided into two parts: the altar and the fasting palace.
Before the ceremonial sacrifice, the Emperor first had to enter the fasting palace to cleanse.
After a brief rest, under the witness of ministers, he ascended the altar to offer burnt sacrifices to heaven.
The Imperial Army parted into formation, and the ceremonial vehicle slowly came to a halt. The Crown Prince lifted the bead curtain and stepped down.
"Greetings to the Crown Prince!"
The ministers knelt and bowed.
"You may rise," the Crown Prince said.
"Thank you, Your Highness." The ministers stood up one after another.
The Crown Prince, with a serious face and a childish voice, said, "By the order of the royal father, I temporarily represent Heaven in this ceremony. I dare not overstep, but will only revere Heaven and follow ancestral laws to uphold the Earth God."
With that, he turned his head to look at the royal palanquin and asked aloud, "Mother, do you have any further instructions?"
The Empress did not step forward, speaking faintly through the curtain of the palanquin, "The Emperor is not yet in power. As the Crown Prince, acting as Monarch, you must be treated with national ceremonies, so we can honor this grand event together."
"We follow your command."
The ministers bowed with clasped hands.
"The hour is late, let’s enter the palace so as not to delay the main event."
"Yes."
The Crown Prince, surrounded by palace attendants, entered the fasting palace.
The Empress’s royal palanquin followed suit.
As they passed by Chen Mo, Eunuch Jin paused and whispered, "Mr. Chen, His Highness requests you to enter as well."
...
...
ps: Feeling extremely unwell, vomited until there’s nothing left in my stomach. I think I need to visit the hospital, posting early in case I can’t make it tonight.