Emperor Qian Yuan's gaze was ice-cold.
He knew clearly—some of these officials might be genuinely worried about calming the people, but most of them had no such intentions.
The crown prince's title had always involved huge political interest.
His consorts all came from powerful aristocratic families.
Among them, the Zhuang clan behind the sixth prince was even more influential than the Yun clan.
Although the crown prince had the Yun clan behind him, the Yun clan hadn't shown much real support for years—for reasons unknown.
"Who dares try to remove the Yang clan's crown prince?"
Just then, a group appeared outside the imperial study.
Leading them was Prince Duan.
Behind him were numerous royal clan members.
It was obvious the empress had informed them right away. In the entire palace, only she had the means to act that fast aside from the emperor himself.
The royal clan members looked at the officials with fury in their eyes.
They were satisfied with Yang Cheng. None of them wanted the crown prince replaced.
"Your Majesty, the crown prince was born with divine strength and comprehended Sword Intent at just one year old. He's a heaven-sent talent."
Prince Duan said, "Wanting to abolish him over a few rumors? The problem isn't the rumors—it's certain people's ambition."
"What do you mean by that, Prince Duan?"
Yan Chonggu snapped.
"Stop pretending," Prince Duan said sharply. "Everyone knows your teacher is the Zhuang clan's old patriarch. You're pushing to depose the crown prince for one reason—so the sixth prince, Yang Xiu, can rise. Remove the crown prince, and he's the next in line, isn't he?"
"Slander! Utter slander!"
Yan Chonggu was furious. "It's true I studied under the Zhuang patriarch, but that was purely a student-teacher relationship. There's no hidden agenda. And didn't His Majesty also receive guidance from the same Zhuang patriarch? Does that mean the emperor himself is biased?"
"Your Majesty, we must impeach Prince Duan!"
"Prince Duan has openly slandered court officials. We can't let this go unpunished!"
Several officials cried out.
"Fine, impeach me! Who's afraid?"
"We'll impeach you too—every one of you is full of scheming ambition!"
The royal clan immediately fired back, hurling accusations.
"Silence!"
Xu Yan, the Grand Secretariat Head, spoke again.
His authority was undeniable. At the sound of his voice, both sides quieted down.
After all, Xu Yan wasn't just the top official—he was also the emperor's teacher.
Before Emperor Qian Yuan formally took power, it was Xu Yan who assisted Empress Dowager Meng in stabilizing the Great Zhou.
"The crown prince's matter will be discussed later."
Xu Yan said, "What matters now is the disaster relief. And with the Truth Sect showing up in Qingzhou, we might have to suppress rebellion too."
In the end, a compromise was reached.
The officials sent Yan Chonggu as the main envoy, while the royal clan sent Prince Rui as the deputy envoy.
But no one realized—the situation wasn't about to calm down.
One wave hadn't even settled, and another was already rising.
Two days later.
At the hour of the rabbit.
The sun rose in the east.
To the people of the imperial capital, it seemed like just another ordinary day.
But then, the sky suddenly dimmed.
At first, no one paid it any attention.
But soon after, many people noticed a faint shadow creeping over the lower-right edge of the sun.
The shadow quickly spread, visible to the naked eye as it devoured the sun.
In the streets, countless people looked up, fear spreading across their faces.
"It's a solar eclipse!"
"A solar eclipse means disaster is coming!"
Panic broke out in the streets. People scattered in all directions.
Many left their stalls behind without a second thought.
Within half a cup of tea's time, the shadow completely covered the sun.
Day turned to darkness in an instant.
Even when light returned and the sun reappeared, the shock of the eclipse didn't fade. Instead, the fear only grew stronger.
The rumors that had just been calmed around the crown prince suddenly surged again.
And now that the river collapse and the eclipse had both happened, the situation exploded completely.
With hidden hands pushing things behind the scenes, memorials demanding the crown prince's removal flooded the imperial study like snowflakes.
Even the royal clan fell silent.
Now, even they started to wonder—could the crown prince really be inauspicious?
Several royal clan members gathered around Prince Duan.
"Come to think of it, the crown prince is kind of... too monstrous…"
One of them was about to speak—
"Shut your mouth."
Prince Duan cut him off coldly. "We don't discuss this. Everything is up to His Majesty's judgment."
At Radiant Sunlight Hall.
Noble Consort Zhuang was in high spirits, more relaxed than ever.
"Empress, let's see how you deal with this."
Victory was already in her grasp.
Yang Xiu, on the other hand, was much calmer. "Mother, in this world, there's never a shortage of surprises. Until success is truly secured, there's no need to get excited."
"My son is truly wise beyond his years."
Noble Consort Zhuang smiled. "But this time, you don't need to worry. With both the Sui River breach and the solar eclipse stacked together, the crown prince's label of inauspiciousness is now set in stone."
"No country would ever let someone considered a curse inherit the crown prince's title."
"Actually, Mother, even without all these schemes, I still have the confidence to defeat the crown prince."
Yang Xiu's tone was full of self-assurance.
Even though he'd been shaken during his last visit to Autumn Water Courtyard, when Yang Cheng crushed his confidence, he had since submerged his mind into his sea of consciousness and received a great opportunity from Lin Xinglan.
Lin Xinglan had passed on a sword technique to him called Burning Heaven Sword Art. It was a divine-grade sword technique.
With this kind of sword technique, he believed he could surpass Yang Cheng.
In Splendid Radiance Hall—
Crack!
The cup in Yun Liyue's hand shattered uncontrollably.
She realized now—this situation was truly serious.
And what came next only proved her right.
The number of ministers submitting memorials to remove the crown prince far exceeded the last time.
Many of those who were once neutral had now joined in.
The royal clan had gone completely silent—no one dared speak up anymore.
The pressure on Emperor Qian Yuan kept mounting.
"Empress, you'd better be prepared."
At dinner, Emperor Qian Yuan briefly spoke with Yun Liyue and left in a hurry after dropping that sentence.
He was already overwhelmed by the Sui River collapse, and now a solar eclipse too?
He was swamped with problems.
After the emperor left, a resolute glint flashed in Yun Liyue's eyes.
As long as she was alive, she wouldn't let anyone harm Yang Cheng.
She was already planning to write a letter to her brother.
Only if her brother achieved a legendary military feat could it shift the tide in Yang Cheng's favor.
Not far away, Yang Cheng saw all of this.
Naturally, he wouldn't let Yun Liyue send that letter.
"It's time."
Yang Cheng silently triggered the system. 'Dark Bird Descends from Heaven , redeem.'
He had been holding off on redeeming this reward—waiting specifically for today.
In the capital, violent winds erupted.
The calm sky above the capital changed in an instant.
Dark clouds, as black as ink, surged together like a tidal wave, threatening to devour the entire city.
In a blink, streaks of lightning began flashing inside the clouds, writhing like dragons. It was truly terrifying.
"What's going on now?"
"Another omen? This really is an unlucky day."
Panic spread among the citizens.
The guards on the city wall tightened their grips on their weapons, cold sweat trickling from their brows.
They all sensed an overwhelming pressure descending upon them.
Suddenly, the clouds tore open.
A high-pitched, resonant cry echoed through the sky.
Amid the booming thunder, a massive figure shot down toward the palace.
On the street outside the palace, an oil vendor's pole dropped from his shoulders. His basket rolled into the gutter, but he didn't even glance at it.
He just stared at the sky above the palace, a choking sound stuck in his throat.
All the noise in the capital suddenly vanished as if someone had silenced the city.
Every person in every alley and street froze, staring up.
What was that?
A colossal bird, nearly 100 zhang long, with feathers as black as ink, appeared in the sky.
In just moments, the massive bird landed at the center of the palace.
A violent storm surged through the palace, sending trees whipping in all directions.
Everyone inside the palace was frozen with shock.
The imperial guards drew their blades three inches from their sheaths—but dared not move further.
Palace maids and eunuchs collapsed to the ground in fear.
Emperor Qian Yuan had been reviewing memorials in the imperial study. Hearing the noise, he rushed out. But the moment he saw the giant bird, he stopped in his tracks, stunned.
"A dark bird…"
Someone suddenly shouted.
That cry was like a boulder thrown into a still lake—it caused an unprecedented ripple.
"A dark bird!"
"It really is a dark bird!"
"This is an auspicious omen from legend—a symbol of the Mandate of Heaven!"
The previously terrified consorts calmed down upon hearing the murmurs. They swallowed hard, awe slowly replacing fear.
The eunuchs, maids, and guards regained their composure and all fell to their knees, shouting "auspicious sign" and "Mandate of Heaven."
The spectacle quickly shocked the entire capital.
Citizens dropped whatever they were doing and surged toward the palace like a flood.
They crowded the streets outside, looking up at the sacred dark bird in awe.
Some gaped in disbelief.
Some knelt and bowed, faces filled with reverence, murmuring prayers for protection.
Then, under countless watching eyes, the dark bird slowly descended and shrank in size as it did.
After 30 breaths, it had transformed into a swallow-sized bird and landed on the eaves of Splendid Radiance Hall.
Emperor Qian Yuan and a group of elite palace experts followed closely but could only stop 100 steps away from Splendid Radiance Hall.
Because the dark bird was radiating a terrifyingly divine pressure.
Wherever that pressure extended was the bird's domain. No one—including the emperor—could step within it.
Emperor Qian Yuan was already a Martial Emperor.
But even he was stunned by the pressure rolling off the bird.
He could clearly feel that the power from the bird surpassed even his own.
There was no doubt—this dark bird possessed the strength of a god.
That alone was proof enough. This was the true dark bird, not some demonic beast in disguise.
What surprised him even more was that the dark bird had chosen to descend upon Splendid Radiance Hall.
Not just him—everyone there turned to stare at Splendid Radiance Hall with complicated expressions.
They were all thinking the same thing.
Why had the dark bird landed… there?