Chapter 441 - An Yaluoshan!

Astrology had occupied an extremely important role in every dynasty.

And the star observation platform, as the place where astrology was performed, had a transcendent status and was highly regarded by every sovereign. Let alone the princes and princesses, not even the consorts and concubines of the harem could approach this place.

In the entirety of the Imperial Palace, the Star Observation Platform was the only place that was allowed to be north of the Emperor’s living chambers.

It was no easy task to construct a star observation platform. It required the right time, geography, and the unity of the people.

Only those places where man interacted with the heavens, where the laws and principles of the world could be felt, were suitable for a star observation platform. Only astrologers could construct a star observation platform. And only in a year when the energies of the world were most favorable for carrying out projects would one be able to construct a star observation platform.

And it was a one in ten thousand chance to fulfill all three conditions at once.

Thus, a thousand years ago, even though Shi Huangdi was known as a supreme sovereign who began the tradition of Emperors in the Central Plains, and though his empire and army were unprecedentedly powerful, a hundred astrologers had still failed to build a star observation platform, even though they had used several decades.

The Great Han had only managed to construct their own star observation platform by using the foundation established by the Qin.

When the Great Tang was occupying the capital of the Sui, the first place they occupied and put under their protection was this star observation platform.

The will of the heavens was vast and difficult to fathom.

But one could observe the heavenly phenomena. One could recognize a leopard from seeing its spot through a tube, and a single leaf was enough to know that autumn was coming!

True astrologers using the star observation platform might not be able to see the entirety of the will of the heavens, but they could glimpse a corner of fate.

“A star is falling to the west, an incredibly inauspicious sign! The heavens are changing over the Great Tang!”

As the winds howled, the white-haired elder sat on the star observation platform, a great agitation on his chest.

As the chief of the palace astrologers, he had seen all sorts of inauspicious signs, but he had never seen one so inauspicious as a star falling to the west.

Amongst the imperial astrologers, one had to look back at least three hundred years for any similar records, when the Sui was in its final days!

The elder hurriedly stood up, his concern growing. Finally, he rushed off into the depths of the Imperial Palace.

This matter could not be underestimated. It concerned the fate of the empire, so he had to report it to the Sage Emperor as quickly as possible.

……

The capital, the Huang Clan.

“I’m full. The rest of you can continue eating!”

Huang Qian-er was seated at the table, a large silver sword at her back. The moment she received Wang Chong’s message, she pushed away from the table, stood up, and, under the confused gazes of the rest of the Huang Clan, swiftly left through the main gate.

No one knew what had happened, but Huang Qian-er clearly remembered the agreement she had come to with Wang Chong before leaving. She had been allowed to return to the Huang Clan for one month, during which Wang Chong would not summon her beforehand.

Huang Qian-er didn’t know what had happened, but she knew that something must have happened to Wang Chong!

Gallop!

Mounting a warhorse, Huang Qian-er needed only a few moments to vanish from the sight of the Huang Clan.

And at this same moment, in a place extremely far from the capital, a carrier pigeon flapped across the sky. On the official road, a one-armed expert riding a horse raised his hand to receive the carrier pigeon.

“This… What in the world happened in the capital?”

Steel Arms gawked at the urgent missive in his hand, an astonished look on his face.

It had been a very long time since he had left the capital to carry out Wang Chong’s secret mission. Wang Chong should have known he basically had no spare time.

Moreover, this order wasn’t like the one sent out during the Dragon Bandits suppression. The order that time had said that if he could help, he should, but if he couldn’t, that was fine.

But this time, Steel Arms could sense the resolve in those words, one that would brook no questions. Steel Arms almost instinctively felt uneasy.

This was no ordinary mobilization. His young master knew his mission. Unless there were unique circumstances, he would never request that he return to the capital.

His eyes shifting, Steel Arms thought for a few moments before suddenly turning his horse around and riding toward the capital.

“Hyah!”

No matter the situation, his young master’s orders could not be defied.

Miyasame Ayaka, Wei Anfang, Old Eagle, Zhao Jingdian, Sun Zhiming… all these people by Wang Chong’s side were thinking the same thing.

Such a large-scale mobilization had never happened before, and Wang Chong had never issued such an order. Although everyone had their doubts, they all chose to follow Wang Chong’s order.

Countless people and horses began to move according to Wang Chong’s order, stunning countless great clans within the capital.

……

Boom!

Another giant bolt of lightning seared down from the sky, its booming like a massive axe brushing over a scalp. The winds howled and trees swayed like a mighty wave was pushing through them. And then rain began to drop from the dark clouds.

The rain began as a drizzle, and then drops quickly connected into lines and strings. They struck the leaves, the tender grass, the hills, and the roads, letting out satisfying smacks.

The word was quickly shrouded in mist!

Beneath the lightning, on a long slope, Wang Chong was galloping through the rain.

The entire capital was startled by his order and perplexed at his actions. Only Wang Chong was aware of the whole story.

Wang Chong had never imagined that he would receive news of this person through this method, his old enemy from his past life, and that this person would be so close.

An Yaluoshan1!

Perhaps Old Eagle would never know just how stunned Wang Chong had been when he had said this name.

He would also never know what this name meant for the Central Plains, for the entire world.

Though he was still obscure in this world, in another world, there was no one who did not know his name.

Because it was this person that brought calamity on the Great Tang, made the massive empire splinter apart and begin its descent into extinction.

And it was him that brought over the foreign invaders, stirring up that catastrophe and destroying the entire world.

This was the true enemy of the Great Tang, and also the public enemy of the world!

A newborn tiger cub could barely roar and a just-hatched eagle chick could not yet flap its wings!

Whether it was Deflecting Blade Manor or the spirit vein, these were things that Wang Chong had used an enormous amount of time and energy to develop. These forces, these members of his party, were not easy to come by.

He would have never used them before they had truly matured.

But if he could destroy that person, Wang Chong was willing to pay everything in exchange!

Wang Chong had never known where those foreign invaders had come from, but there was one thing he did know. If he could destroy that person, everything would undergo massive changes.

Without this traitor of the Great Tang, perhaps none of that future would ever happen!

“An Yaluoshan, I’ll definitely kill you!”

Wang Chong’s eyes were red and his hands were tightly clenched into fists. A thick killing intent surged out of his body and into the heavens. “Hyah!” Horse hooves kicked up wave after wave of mud as Wang Chong charged forward…

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1. An Yaluoshan, also known as Kang Yaluoshan, but more commonly known as An Lushan, was historically a regional military commander, a ‘jiedushi’, of the Tang Dynasty. He was greatly favored by both Emperor Xuanzong and Consort Yang and was thus able to mass significant military power in the northeast. In the year 755, he began the An Lushan Rebellion, a conflict which would devastate the Tang Dynasty for eight years and start the slow decline of the dynasty.