Chapter 687: Astronomical Bureau

Chapter 687: The Astronomical Bureau

Before Li Huowang stood a man whose mask was so large it nearly covered his entire upper body, revealing only two legs clad in green trousers beneath—something altogether discordant and unsettling.

“This is the Grand Master of the Heavenly Observing Office from Later Shu. You may call him the Ritual Master. Since you’ve come to lend your aid, naturally you must meet someone familiar with local affairs.”

After introducing this man, Xuan Pin pointed at Li Huowang. “This is the one I told you about.”

Li Huowang appraised him thoroughly, offering a respectful Daoist bow tinged with curiosity and confusion. “I am Li Huowang of Qingfeng Monastery. Greetings, elder. Might I ask which sect or school you belong to?”

Only one word emerged from behind that mask. “Nuo.”

“Nuo? Nuo opera?” Li Huowang couldn’t help but be surprised. As far as he knew, the Great Nuo referred to the madness of this world itself?

If even the Great Nuo had gone mad, how could anyone still worship him? And if they did worship him, how could they possibly hold such a position as Astronomical Bureau Director? Could it be that even the deranged Great Nuo could grant others access to his power?

Was the Great Nuo the Lord of Fate? Or perhaps the legendary Great Fate Lord? Or maybe, like Qingqiu’s Eternal Sky, it was merely a god imagined by their people?

After pondering for a while, Li Huowang asked again, turning toward the masked figure before him: “Can the Great Nuo still be given away now?”

But the Ritual Master with the massive mask did not answer him, merely shaking his head slightly.

At that moment, Xuan Pin's voice whispered in Li Huowang’s ear: “You’d do well not to ask that. No matter what realm you’re in, asking someone directly whether they can give away something like that is considered extremely impolite, especially when meeting for the first time.”

Li Huowang fell silent upon hearing this. He had only meant to ask casually—he had come to Later Shu to deal with serious matters. “How is the situation in Later Shu? How is the cult’s offensive progressing?”

“Not well,” Xuan Pin replied. “The dragon vein of Later Shu has been seized. What you saw on your journey were the results.”

“In truth, the loss of the dragon vein also affects fate and fortune. Today’s string of defeats means that if you had arrived even a little later, Later Shu would have fallen.”

Hearing this, Li Huowang furrowed his brow deeply. He had already thought the situation was dire, but he hadn’t expected it to be this bad.

“Then why wait? We must reclaim the dragon vein of Later Shu immediately! Where is it now?”

Xuan Pin exchanged glances with the Ritual Master beside him before speaking once more: “Perhaps earlier, yes. But now, it seems rather difficult.”

“What do you mean?” Li Huowang frowned, sensing that things had changed during his journey.

“On the battlefield, moments shift rapidly; you cannot expect enemies to wait for you. Last month, during the yang day and yang hour, the cult gathered the dragon veins of Nanping, Siqi, and Later Shu—using some unknown method—into one single strand. They claim that Great Li Kingdom also now possesses a dragon vein.”

As he spoke, a chilling image formed in Li Huowang’s mind—a triple dragon vein twisted together like a rope.

One dragon vein was already hard enough to handle. Now there were three, and such precious treasures would surely be heavily guarded by the cult.

Suddenly, Li Huowang felt immense pressure. His Qi Zai was useless here. To face such a challenge alone might mean death in an instant.

After a moment of contemplation, he turned to Xuan Pin and the Ritual Master: “I’ve just arrived. You’ve been here longer and know more about the situation. In light of this predicament, what are the plans of the Astronomical Bureau and the court of Later Shu?”

Xuan Pin paused, then said, “All other strategies were tried before your arrival. Though they caused some trouble for the cult, none succeeded in recovering the dragon vein. Thus, the royal family of Later Shu intends to abandon the kingdom and retreat to Qingqiu.”

“What?! So they’re giving up Later Shu?!” Li Huowang found it unbelievable that someone so reckless could ever rule an empire.

“The dragon vein is lost, fortune gone. It’s natural for him to think thus. Don’t worry, we haven’t reached that point yet.”

“But we currently have no other way to deal with the dragon vein. Moving to Qingqiu is another move, and it’s closer to Daliang, making it easier for the emperor to launch troops.”

Li Huowang frowned, hesitating. His face showed deep reluctance. He had come here specifically to recover the dragon vein—he didn’t want to return to Qingqiu just as he’d arrived.

“Wait! There might still be hope!” Li Huowang suddenly recalled something, raising his eyes to Xuan Pin. “How much of the original primordial energy you gave me remains? Give me whatever you have left—I need it.”

There was no reason not to try at this point. If he had enough primordial energy, he could match strength against the dragon vein!

“It’s all gone,” Xuan Pin answered bluntly.

“All gone? How could it be gone?”

“Because I’ve drained every heart essence that could be found. Finding new heart essences now would be very difficult.”

“What did you say? That primordial energy was taken from living heart essences?” Upon hearing this, Li Huowang’s pupils contracted sharply.

“That goes without saying. This primordial energy, rootless and boundless, can only be found within heart essences.”

“Ordinary people think heart essences are valuable because of the five viscera and six bowels, because of the inner turmoil in the heart. But they don’t realize that these are external. Heart essences are truly valuable for their qi.”

For a moment, Li Huowang struggled to accept this. He never imagined that the very thing that made him so powerful would come from living heart essences.

Just after speaking, a plump man floated down from the ceiling above, approaching Xuan Pin and whispering something low.

This fat man was likely one of Xuan Pin’s illusions. Once finished, Xuan Pin spoke again: “There is always a way out. Perhaps we can try once more.”

“How?” The Ritual Master, who had remained silent since the beginning, finally spoke.

“The Khan of Qingqiu himself will lead the charge. He doesn’t intend to wait for the cult to attack—he plans to strike first.”

But as soon as those words left his lips, the three present all changed expression, looking up simultaneously at the ceiling.

With Xuan Pin’s long fingers extending from his robe, he touched the ceiling, which gradually became transparent, revealing a gloomy sky. Thunder rumbled, and raindrops began to fall from above.

The Astronomical Bureau seemed to sense something. Sharp nails quickly calculated the stars. “Strange—the time doesn’t align. Half an hour is missing.”

“What did you say?” Li Huowang asked in shock.

“In one day, there should be eleven hours. Now, half an hour is missing.”

“Half an hour?” A chill ran through Li Huowang’s heart as realization struck him.

“Xuan Pin, tell me... Is it possible the cult never wanted the dragon vein at all? Did they steal it simply to destroy it?”

His words sent tremors through the ground—the earth dragon stirred.

(End of Chapter)