Chapter 583
Chapter 583
As the third stage of the Sacrifice to Heaven Ceremony concluded, Ning You cried out.
“Proceed with the fourth stage of the Sacrifice to Heaven Ceremony, the First Libation: the reading of the prayer!”
At these words, the officials grew excited, their eyes wide and their ears pricked. The time had come for the Prayer to Heaven to be recited.
‘Ning Zheng and the King are about to be humiliated.’
Ning Zheng was trembling from head to toe, and everyone could see how nervous he was. They were certain that when he recited the prayer, he would stutter and make a complete fool of himself. Moreover, the thunder in the sky was deafening, and dark clouds hung low, threatening a downpour at any moment. If Ning Zheng stumbled through the prayer, the gods would surely unleash their fury in a torrent of rain, turning the ceremony into a disaster. His bid for the throne would be utterly ruined. The Crown Prince intended to use the might of the heavens to crush the monarch's wayward ambitions. After today, the King would learn his place and abandon his foolish schemes.
The fourth stage of the ceremony began. The King approached the divine altar, knelt to offer a cup of wine, and then returned to his position. The musicians played the “Chapter of Reverent Peace,” and dancers performed the “Shield and Axe Dance.”
Finally, it was Ning Zheng’s moment. He had to recite the Prayer to Heaven. From his sleeve, he swiftly drank the special potion. The movement was so subtle that no one noticed. In an instant, all his tension vanished, and he entered a state of extreme self-awareness. His spirit seemed to leave his insignificant body, looking down upon the entire world. The countless gazes that had unnerved him moments before were now invisible. The tens of thousands of people before him were like weeds, like insignificant ants.
‘In the heavens above and the earth below, I alone am the honored one.’
Ning Zheng stood majestically upon the altar. Everyone immediately noticed the change in his demeanor. The anxiety and worry that had plagued him were gone. Though short in stature, his every step radiated the aura of a future king. His expression, his gaze, seemed to look down upon the world. All eyes were fixed on him as he stood on the altar, and a single thought crossed their minds.
‘Stutter. Go on, stutter. Make a fool of yourself. Let the lightning strike, let the rain fall! The King will soon be writing an edict confessing his sins.’
Just then, a terrifying clap of thunder roared from the heavens. It was sudden and deafeningly loud, enough to make one’s ears ring. Many officials flinched, trembling in shock. Some performers dropped their instruments in fright. A few elderly ministers, startled by the thunder, collapsed to the ground. Yet, in the face of this fearsome roar, Ning Zheng remained completely unfazed. He opened his mouth and began to recite the Prayer to Heaven.
“In the beginning, when chaos reigned, the four corners were a swirling tide. The five elements had not yet begun their cycle, nor had the sun and moon yet brightened. The world was without sound, without form. Then came the Divine Sovereign to govern the cosmos. The heavy sank and the light rose; the heavens were established, the earth was formed, humanity emerged, and all of creation came into being.”
As his voice flowed out, everyone was stunned.
‘Is… is that a stutterer? His cadence is flawless, his enunciation is clear, and his words are filled with power.’
His recitation was nothing short of magnificent. The accompanying chimes, bells, and gongs began to play. For a moment, the thunder ceased, as if the gods themselves had paused to listen. Ning Zheng continued, his voice suddenly rising in volume. Grand Master Ye Mu had unleashed his Heavenly Demon’s Resonant Note, blending his own voice with Ning Zheng’s until they were one. In an instant, Ning Zheng’s voice, though not deafeningly loud, struck the audience with a powerful impact, a resonance that made them tremble. A chill ran down their spines. As his recitation grew more impassioned, their blood began to boil. The hair on their arms stood on end.
‘Who… who wrote this prayer? How can it be so majestic, so magnificent? And who arranged this music? It is so elegant, so profound!’
Though Ning Zheng was simply reading the prayer, Shen Lang felt as if he were a modern man attending a concert by a classical master. In a golden hall, a world-class tenor might sing, and even if you couldn't understand the words, your soul would resonate, your very skull seeming to split from the sheer emotional force. Everyone present at the ceremony felt the same. Grand Master Ye Mu's Heavenly Demon’s Resonant Note was so powerful that his voice carried for miles, a truly electrifying experience. It was a recitation that could make the deaf hear, so incredible that Ning Zheng seemed to radiate a brilliant light. The entire crowd was utterly captivated.
Then, a great wind suddenly swept through, scattering the clouds. “How can a creature with golden scales be content in a small pond? Once it encounters the wind and clouds, it will transform into a dragon.” Ning Zheng stood firm, his recitation unaffected. His voice overpowered the howling wind, carrying clearly even to the soldiers standing farthest away. Ning Zheng's voice continued to rise, the power of Grand Master Ye Mu's Heavenly Demon’s Resonant Note growing ever more astonishing, causing everyone to tremble in body and soul amidst the gale.
At that moment, the dark clouds in the sky were swept away by the fierce wind. A ray of golden sunlight pierced through the cloud layer, shining directly upon Ning Zheng. In the blink of an eye, his body was bathed in golden light. Everyone stared, dumbfounded. Shen Lang, too, was completely stunned. He had never imagined such a scene.
‘The heavens themselves are helping. Can this truly be the will of heaven?’
In a quarter of an hour, Ning Zheng finished reciting the Prayer to Heaven. Everyone was left in profound shock by his brilliant and magnificent performance. At the same time, the dark clouds in the sky completely dispersed, and sunlight bathed the land. The sky cleared, as if the gods themselves were smiling. It was, frankly, a goddamn miracle. The crowd fell into a stunned silence. Ning Zheng's first public appearance before the world had been utterly perfect. Even the gods seemed moved to smile upon his recitation. The twenty thousand soldiers present, overcome with powerful emotion, could no longer contain themselves.
‘This is a heavenly omen! First, the gloomy weather and thunder, then the dark clouds scattering to reveal the sun. This is a sign that we will achieve a great victory in this war!’
In an instant, the twenty thousand soldiers raised their arms and roared.
“Long live! Long live! Long live! Long live the State of Yue! All hail the might of Yue! Your Highness, long live! Long live!”
The voices of twenty thousand men erupted like thunder, soaring to the heavens, a deafening cheer. Having finished his performance, Ning Zheng descended from the altar, immediately ceding the stage back to King Ning Yuanxian. The delirious joy Ning Yuanxian felt at that moment was beyond words.
‘Brilliant! Absolutely perfect! This time, it wasn’t my doing. The heavens themselves have delivered a resounding slap to the faces of these officials.’
Seeing the ashen faces of the ministers below the altar, King Ning Yuanxian felt an immense sense of satisfaction.
‘Hahahaha! Even the heavens are on my side. It is the will of heaven, the will of heaven! Continue the ceremony!’
The King, in exceptionally high spirits, continued the performance, so elated he felt as if his feet weren't touching the ground. He performed the fifth stage, the Second Libation, and the sixth, the Final Libation. After the seventh stage, the Clearing of the Sacrificial Table, the eighth, the Ceremony of Sending Off the Deities, and the ninth, the Burning of the Prayer, the Sacrifice to Heaven Ceremony was successfully concluded.
The officials present were in a daze, utterly shocked by what they had just witnessed. A seed of doubt had been planted in their minds.
‘Could this truly be the will of heaven? Is the Fifth Prince, Ning Zheng, truly protected by the gods? Could he be the rightful ruler of Yue, chosen by heaven? How else could one explain the strange phenomena we just saw? It was too incredible.’
It wasn't just the officials. King Ning Yuanxian was also completely stunned, wondering to himself.
‘Was that truly a sign from the heavens? Is it telling me to establish Ning Zheng as the young lord?’
Thus, the Sacrifice to Heaven Ceremony came to an end. It had been an unprecedentedly perfect and magnificent ritual, one that would likely never be matched. After the ceremony, the King once again chose to walk back to the palace instead of riding in his carriage. On the way here, the King's steps had been heavy, his heart somber, while the officials had walked with light steps and cheerful hearts. On the return journey, however, the King’s steps were majestic, his demeanor triumphant, while the officials’ steps were heavy, their expressions grim as the shock of what they had just witnessed continued to grow. Their minds were in turmoil, but none were more conflicted than Crown Prince Ning Yi.
Today, the Crown Prince had suffered the greatest blow. Ning Zheng's brilliant display was akin to him climbing atop the Crown Prince's head, and his position had been shaken. Though his power remained solid, his reputation had taken a severe hit. And what did the Crown Prince need most right now? Reputation. He feared the notion of the will of heaven more than anything. The events of this day would quickly spread throughout the realm, and soon, rumors would circulate that the will of heaven did not lie with Crown Prince Ning Yi, but with the Fifth Prince, Ning Zheng.
After returning to the capital, Ning Zheng did not follow the King into the palace but went straight to the Tianyue Admiralty. He had no time to celebrate his victory. He had not returned merely to show off. He had been away from his duties for three days preparing for the ceremony, and an untold amount of work had piled up. For the next few days, Ning Zheng would likely have no time to sleep, working around the clock to catch up.