Chapter 507 The Celestial Zodiac Instrument

In the second month of the seventh year of the Zhenguan era, the Grand Astrologer Li Chunfeng cast the celestial globe.

On the day the ceremony was completed, the giant bronze instrument suddenly burst forth with golden light, and the patterns of the twenty-eight constellations moved as if they were alive, causing thunder and clouds to surge in the nine heavens.

The bright sun, which was originally high in the sky, appeared at the same time as the silver moon. The Purple Star shone brightly, and the Big Dipper turned into streams of light and fell down, weaving a mysterious star map in the sky above Chang'an.

The six-character prophecy, "When the heavens open, calamity will be revealed," circulated throughout Chang'an.

——

As dusk began to fall, the Xuanjia Imperial Guards surrounded the Imperial Observatory like an iron wall. Their swords and spears gleamed in the setting sun, and even the flight of birds made the soldiers feel as if they were facing a formidable enemy.

The disturbance caused by the strange phenomena within the Imperial Observatory has been quelled, but the source of the phenomena is now heavily guarded.

At this moment, the hall was brightly lit and filled with many people.

From Li Shimin, Li Yuan, and Li Chengqian to Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji, and then to civil and military officials, everyone who could come and enter did.

The scale of the operation looked even more grand than when they fought battles in the past.

"It's you..."

Therefore, upon hearing Wei King Li Tai's remark, Li Chunfeng stiffly raised the corners of his mouth.

To be honest, being the center of attention again, especially from the entire core leadership team of the Tang Dynasty, Li Chunfeng couldn't possibly be without pressure.

He just wanted to research an instrument, he never expected it to become this big! Really!

But looking at the Hun Tian Huang Dao Yi in the center of the room, where the strange phenomenon had been gathered within a ten-foot radius of the instrument and the star map was flashing, Li Chunfeng really didn't know why this was happening!

He's good at divination and astronomy, so how did he become a weapon refiner? He doesn't even understand it himself, so how can he explain it?

Just as he was at a loss, Li Chengqian stepped forward and said with a gentle smile, "This extraordinary sight today must be related to the masterpiece of the Grand Astrologer. Why don't you ask the Grand Astrologer to give Father Emperor and all the officials a detailed explanation?"

It's time for his chosen underlings to show their worth!

Li Chengqian cast a reassuring and trusting look at Li Chunfeng.

Li Chunfeng felt a warmth in his heart and bowed deeply to Li Chengqian.

After receiving Li Shimin's tacit nod of approval, he composed himself and pointed to the celestial ecliptic instrument, saying, "This instrument is divided into three layers: the six directions, the three celestial bodies, and the four celestial spheres. It can measure the ecliptic longitude and latitude, the equatorial longitude and latitude, and the horizontal longitude and latitude. It is truly an instrument that simulates the movement of the sun, moon, and stars..."

At this point, Li Chunfeng paused, then had to emphasize: "Today's unusual phenomenon was purely accidental. I have been studying it day and night, just to deduce the celestial phenomena. The celestial globe was also made to simulate celestial phenomena."

"The simulation is so loud? The entire city of Chang'an can see it."

Li Yuanji blurted out, and Li Chunfeng's vision went black. He said in a daze, "I really don't know why this is so."

"Chirp, chirp, let Lord Fire Phoenix take a look!"

A streak of crimson light burst through the window, and the fire phoenix was surrounded by leaping golden flames, its tail feathers leaving a trail of afterimages over ten feet long.

Li Shimin raised an eyebrow slightly. "Is the covenant ceremony over?"

"Of course," Fire Phoenix proudly puffed out her chest, "I am the responsible Fire Phoenix, would I come if it wasn't finished?"

Although the rest of the matter was left to Baihu and Xuanwu, there's no need to go into that.

Looking around, Fire Phoenix raised its neck, spread its wings, and strolled slowly. "So, it seems that such important matters still need to be handled by Lord Fire Phoenix."

"Then it's up to you, Lord Fire Phoenix."

Li Shimin indicated that if Huo Feng could figure things out for them, he would be overjoyed and would only offer a few words of praise; it wouldn't be a big problem for him to become a beast.

"No problem, no problem, just wait and see, Erfeng."

Fire Phoenix, its voice rising with joy, charged proudly toward the Celestial Zodiac Instrument. Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, it resembled a burning flame, circling around the Celestial Zodiac Instrument.

It went around and around... and around and around...

After a few laps, the fire phoenix suddenly folded its wings and landed lightly on Li Shimin's shoulder. "The equipment is good." The fire phoenix tilted its head, its obsidian-like eyes darting around, and its tone was somewhat elusive.

"..." Li Shimin tilted his head to look at it, "Didn't you see anything?"

The fire phoenix patted Li Shimin's hair ornament with its wings and said earnestly, "Second Phoenix, give the other beasts a chance to shine."

However, everyone could tell he was guilty. The crowd lowered their heads and suppressed their laughter. Li Shimin was speechless, and his smile vanished instantly.

"You're not allowed to sit on my shoulders anymore, that's disrespectful."

Li Shimin picked up the phoenix by the downy feathers behind its neck and lifted it off the mountain.

"Erfeng, you're so heartless!"

The phoenix flapped its wings and struggled, feeling a little embarrassed when it met Li Shimin's questioning gaze. Then it retorted confidently, "Everyone has their strengths, and so do beasts. Whoever started these mystical things, go find them!"

Trying to make amends, the fire phoenix broke free from Li Shimin's grasp and pounced on Li Chunfeng, "Where is Bai Ze? This instrument must be related to its abilities, why doesn't it come out to explain?"

Li Chunfeng was startled by the sudden attack of the fire phoenix. He leaned back slightly and said with a wry smile, "It is related to Bai Ze. After the instrument was made, Bai Ze fell into a deep sleep and went into hibernation."

The hall fell silent, with only the gears of the armillary sphere still turning slowly.

Just then, the jade screen beside Li Yuan suddenly rippled like water, and the massive tortoise shell of Xuanwu emerged from the shadows, its snake tail coiling around the shell and making a rustling sound.

It slowly poked its head out, its murky eyes sweeping over the instruments: "Let me take a look."

"I almost forgot about you!" The fire phoenix pounced as if granted a pardon, its tail feathers brushing against the Xuanwu's back, stirring up a cloud of dust. "With the old tortoise on the case, there's definitely no problem!"

A white light shone beside Li Chengqian, and Wu Mo stepped out from within, looking at Huo Feng with a cold snort, "With a memory like yours, what can you remember? All you know is how to sneak away..."

"Hey, hey, hey," the fire phoenix interrupted, flapping its wings haphazardly. "We're on serious business, no idle chatter."

Wu Mo rolled its eyes dismissively, ignored it, and leaned against Li Chengqian's feet, wagging its tail contentedly.

Turning their gaze back to Xuanwu, watching its massive body slowly walk to the side of the Hun Tian Huang Dao Yi, everyone held their breath once again.

Observing the slowly rotating star map around the instrument, Xuanwu stretched out its front claws and touched the base of the instrument. The relief of the Twenty-Eight Mansions began to rotate counterclockwise, emitting a humming sound like metal striking stone.

After observing carefully for a long time, a wave-like blue light emanated from the cracks in the tortoise shell, like moonlight soaking into seawater, enveloping the entire instrument. Xuanwu slowly closed its eyes.

Inside the hall, you could hear a pin drop; the only sounds were the clatter of the celestial globe's gears turning and the long, drawn-out breathing of Xuanwu.

"Huh?" Xuanwu's neck suddenly trembled violently, the blue light dissipated, and it abruptly opened its eyes. "Strange."

Li Yuan leaned forward instinctively, eagerly asking, "What happened?"

Xuanwu slowly turned its massive body, "I sensed the power of the Great Dao."

Facing the puzzled looks of the crowd, it calmly explained, "This is indeed an instrument for observing celestial phenomena, but it has been imbued with a trace of Daoist principles during its creation, giving it a more profound ability."

"What ability?" Li Yuan pressed.

"The ability to foresee future celestial phenomena."

"Huh?" Li Yuanji's confusion was tinged with disappointment. That's it?

Such a commotion, the whole of Chang'an saw it, and that's it? What's the use of observing future celestial phenomena? Maybe to see if you need to bring an umbrella the next day?

Although the others remained silent, they shared similar emotions with him.

Only Li Chengqian keenly pressed on, asking, "What's so strange about that?"

Xuanwu gave Li Chengqian an approving look and continued, "The strange thing is that the rotating star map we are seeing now is a future star map. But in the future, it won't be the stars that are moving, it will be us who are moving."

"In other words, the world we live in, the Tang Dynasty, is moving in an unknown direction."