"By royal decree, all ministers are to assemble at the Celestial Hall!!"
A resounding command echoed across the void.
DONG—DONG—DONG!
Resonant bell chimes rang out from the Sacred King Palace. One after another, ministers emerged and ascended the cloud stairway, heading toward the Celestial Hall. Their expressions were grave, and few spoke. The events that had just transpired remained vivid in their minds—they all understood what this meant for Great Yi: the greatest crisis in its history was upon them.
Before long, civil and military officials stood in their respective positions inside the grand Celestial Hall, its atmosphere heavy with oppressive silence. It was the calm before the storm.
At an unknown moment, a figure silently appeared upon the dragon throne. On either side of him, slightly lower than the throne, sat two phoenix chairs. Seated upon them were none other than Cai Yan and the Queen Mother of the West—one on the left, one on the right, equal in stature.
Their joint appearance in the Celestial Hall was a formal declaration: the coexistence of the Eastern and Western Palaces within Great Yi was now official.
"Greetings to the Sacred King—may Your Majesty's life be as eternal as the heavens!"
"Greetings to Her Majesty of the Eastern Palace—may Your Majesty enjoy boundless longevity and eternal beauty!"
"Greetings to Her Majesty of the Western Palace—may Your Majesty enjoy boundless longevity and eternal beauty!"
The assembled officials all bowed deeply in unison. The matter of the Queen Mother of the West had long been known, and the dual-palace system had become a celebrated hallmark of Great Yi. None found it strange—in fact, it only increased their admiration. Only their Sacred King could achieve such harmony.
Of course, none dared raise their eyes to look directly at the queens, lest they offend them.
"All loyal subjects, you may rise."
Yi Tianxing nodded and made a lifting gesture with his hand.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
The ministers expressed their gratitude.
"You have all witnessed what just transpired. The Nine Heavens Dao Sovereign has not abandoned his desire to destroy Great Yi. The Blood Heaven Dao Sovereign's visit was meant to instill terror in our people—to crush their will and force them to kneel before the Nine Heavens Dao Sovereign, to offer worship in exchange for survival, to become mere dogs under their command. They aim to break our spine and erase our spirit. Furthermore, he issued a decree forbidding rainfall within Great Yi for the next century. This is a declaration of war—either they die, or we perish. I ask all of you to discuss how we shall respond."
Yi Tianxing spoke solemnly. His tone was calm, but in truth, he could have stopped the decree the moment it was issued. Even now, if he so chose, the Blood Heaven Dao Sovereign's command could be nullified through sheer force—Great Yi could collapse his decree with the weight of its national destiny. After all, Great Yi was no ordinary Destiny Dynasty—it was a Grand Dao Dynasty.
Such decrees, powerful against ordinary Destiny Dynasties, were ineffective against Great Yi. Great Yi stood on par with the Heavenly Dao itself. Even if the Nine Heavens Dao Sovereign issued decrees as Heaven's representative, Great Yi could reject or ignore them.
But Yi Tianxing had chosen not to.
Doing so would expose Great Yi's greatest secret: its status as a Grand Dao Dynasty. Once revealed, it would attract attention from powerful races and countless hidden threats. The Nine Heavens Dao Sovereign had clearly calculated that Great Yi would endure silently to avoid exposing its true foundation—unless absolutely necessary.
He had struck a weakness with chilling precision.
Still, this was merely a constraint, not a shackle that could bind Great Yi. They had more than enough means to solve this.
"Your Majesty," Liu Bowen stepped forward. "Our first priority must be the coming drought. Since Heaven refuses to bring rain, then Great Yi shall act in its stead. I propose summoning the five innate deities of wind, rain, thunder, lightning, and snow. With their command of the meteorological Grand Dao, the drought will be easily resolved."
This was no empty boast—Great Yi was not an ordinary worldly empire. It housed numerous cultivators capable of weather manipulation.
"Indeed," Xun Yu nodded. "We have many cultivators skilled in weather arts. The Nine Heavens Dao Sovereign's decree may halt natural rainfall, but not artificial rain. At most, it's an inconvenience."
"Your Majesty, the five elemental deities are awaiting outside," reported Cao Zhengchun.
"Summon them!" Yi Tianxing commanded.
"Greetings, Sacred King."
The Ice Queen, Thunder God, and others entered, their divine auras subdued but still potent. They bowed respectfully before Yi Tianxing.
"Rise."
Yi Tianxing nodded. "You have all witnessed what transpired. For the next century, rainfall and snowfall within Great Yi must be governed by your powers. Are you able to manage it?"
"Your Majesty," Rain God responded, "without dispersing the Nine Heavens Dao Sovereign's decree, forcibly generating weather through divine power will cause conflict with that decree—it will suppress our efforts. Large-scale rainfall will become more difficult, but not impossible."
The decree not only prevented natural rain—it suppressed artificial means too. Techniques that would normally drench an entire realm might now only affect a third of it. The difficulty, labor, and energy consumption would all spike.
Still, the deities had been officially enfeoffed by Great Yi. It was their duty to maintain favorable weather. Even with difficulty, they did not shirk from responsibility.
"Be at ease. While it's not time to fully dispel that decree, I shall suppress it with Great Yi's national destiny. Its effects on you will be limited—act freely."
Yi Tianxing's tone was calm but confident. Suppression, rather than confrontation, was enough. At most, their efforts would suffer 20–30% reduction in efficiency.
Great Yi had the strength to back this.
"Your Majesty, I believe there is another race in the world most gifted in cloud-summoning and rainfall," said Jia Xu, stepping forward.
"You speak of… the dragon race," Yi Tianxing's eyes gleamed.
"Your Majesty is wise," Jia Xu smiled. "The dragon race possesses an innate talent for cloud-summoning and rainfall. Though they've largely withdrawn into the Divine-Demon Battlefield and forsaken the Eternal World's destiny war, remnants still remain. Their bloodline and physical power remain formidable. If we can persuade them to join Great Yi, we could resolve our drought problems and slowly incorporate them into our system. It's a strategic opportunity."
Great Yi had supreme control over land, but their grasp on the seas was relatively weak. Though a navy was being developed, undersea dominion was still limited. If the dragons were integrated, their natural status as rulers of the ocean would instantly bring the seas under Great Yi's influence. This would cause an immense surge in maritime destiny.
"But is it wise?" Su Shi objected. "The dragons were protagonists of the last great era. They've not truly declined. If they grow under our care, and the Ancestral Dragon recalls them, wouldn't they abandon us in an instant? That would be feeding wolves with our own grain."
"That view is too narrow," Huang Chengyan interjected. "The dragons rule the seas and possess unmatched prestige. Yes, they've withdrawn from destiny struggles, but they haven't vanished. If we can use this opportunity to incorporate them—even if they remain loyal only on the surface—it would expand our reach into the oceans. The resources of the sea far exceed those of the land. This is a chance for mutual gain."
Previously, Great Yi avoided incorporating the dragons for fear they would overtake them. But now, with the dynasty's vast strength, it could afford to do so.
Times had changed.
Strategies must evolve accordingly.