Chapter 697: A New Story (Part 2) (1/2)

The rain stopped suddenly. Just when everyone in the world thought that the rain would never stop, the incessant heavy rain came to an abrupt end on a bland autumn day.

No one believed it at first. People walked out of the palace, and from farmhouses. They stopped under roofs and walked into their courtyards, looking up at the sky in confusion. It wasn't until they realized that there was no more water falling from the clouds when the situation dawned on them. Cheers filled every corner of the fields and cities.

However, the world had been soaked in this heavy rain for too long. Both clothes and moods seemed to have grown moldy. After the excitement and surprise pa.s.sed, exhaustion took over speedily. Relief efforts continued, and those who watched the world dazedly continued so, and those who slept did so. Everything seemed so numb.

The clouds dissipated after the rain stopped. Everyone gathered around their dining tables to discuss the rain. After they finished their ch.o.r.es, they returned to their rooms and slept, entering their first peaceful dream since the rain ended.

The clouds that had covered the sky for many days gradually dispersed.

A dog howled in the street, seeming extremely frightened and uneasy. Another dog howled in the farmlands. The skinny yellow dog seemed confused and afraid.

That was followed by more and more dogs barking. All the dogs in the world seemed to have received some kind of instruction and all howled at the same time. Their barking echoed throughout the countryside of the city, rousing countless people from their dreams.

They rubbed their sleepy eyes and went outside their doors. Some took out wooden sticks meant for fending off thieves and some complained that their daughters-in-law had forgotten to feed the dog again today, taking a food bowl to find their own dogs.

Then, they discovered that it wasn't just their respective dogs that were barking. Every single dog was.

Every dog was howling crazily at the night sky.

They all followed the gazes of the dogs and looked at the night sky. The wooden sticks in their hands slipped to the ground and the food bowls fell from their hands, smas.h.i.+ng their feet. However, they seemed not to feel the pain at all.

Everyone was stunned. Their attention was fully on the object in the night sky. It didn't matter that their feet got smashed. They would find it hard to be distracted even if their homes caught fire.

The clouds had finally dispersed after many days, revealing the night skies. However, they did not see the stars in the sky today, but only saw a white rounded object.

What was that?

Something had changed in the skies. There was a moon in the night sky.

This strange and shocking picture shocked everyone, and they all felt fearful and uneasy. Many were so shocked they fainted, and there were even more who knelt in their courtyards or in front of their windows wors.h.i.+pping.

The royal families of various countries burned incense and prayed to Haotian, asking for forgiveness for the disrespect humans have shown it. Various Taoist and Buddhist temples burned a large amount of incense. Rumors began to spread that this was a foreshadowing of the Underworld Invasion, triggering a catastrophe more serious than the torrential rain and floods. Many foolish people even chose to commit suicide.

The West-Hill Divine Palace quickly announced that the object in the night sky was called the moon. It was the divine light that Haotian had bestowed upon the people because it pitied mankind who had suffered long nights.

With the spread of the Divine Hall's edict and the strong suppression by the royal families of various countries, the commotion caused by the object called the moon calmed down slightly. As time pa.s.sed, the common people on earth began to get used to its existence.

People discovered that the moon was different from the stars in the night sky in the past years. it was not absolutely quiet and solemn, but it moved and changed according to a certain order. It waxed and waned, and changed in shape. The changes occurred in an order and were suitable to calculate time and arrange agricultural works around it.

Some people began to use the moon's wax and wane to calculate time and referred to it as a month.

Of course, that all happened in the future.

There was a Purple Gold Mountain in the southeast of Chang'an city of the Tang Empire. The terrain here was relatively high and instances of rain and cloudy days were limited. It was the perfect place to watch the skies and was where the Imperial Observatory was located.

Even though the year had been Tianqi for the past decades, the Tangs were famous for not believing in the Heavens and in fate. Therefore, the Imperial Observatory became one of the least important sectors in the imperial court and also became the most silent. There were rarely any visitors on weekdays other than the young couples who came to the Purple Gold Mountain to enjoy the scenery.

However, it was very noisy outside the Imperial Observatory today. There were dozens of Yulin Royal Guards who guarded several officials. They stood below the stone steps, forming a barrier. The occasional pa.s.serby was not shocked by this scene and did not think that it was odd either. A moon had appeared in the night skies, so the imperial court naturally had to consult the Imperial Observatory.

The officials from the Ministry of Rites and the Yulin Royal Guards did not enter the Imperial Observatory. A chief eunuch and a few strong servant eunuchs entered. However, it was odd that no one went up to welcome them.

The chief eunuch leader glowered at the closed main hall. He said frostily, ”His Majesty awaits your reply, and the imperial court awaits your annotations. You have to provide a reply today.”