Chapter 301: Western Celestial Anomaly

The dim morning light shone on the glazed tiles of the Purple Harmony Hall, flowing with golden radiance.

Chen Wen sat upright on the dragon throne, his crown beads hanging low, his gaze calm as he swept over the civil and military officials in the hall.

The fervent excitement he felt yesterday while climbing high to gaze afar had been deeply suppressed by him, transformed into focus for handling daily affairs.

Zhang Cheng held a tablet, reporting the initial results of the new policy for reclaiming wasteland in Hebei Circuit; Wang Ru, meanwhile, presented her views on recent personnel evaluation matters in the Ministry of Personnel in orderly detail.

Everything appeared orderly, as if yesterday's boundless enthusiasm had quietly merged into the gears of the empire's smooth operation.

However, a sudden burst of hurried footsteps shattered the hall's original rhythm.

A courier clad in travel-worn military uniform, with three red plumes on his back signifying 'ten-thousand-fold urgency,' was led by the hall's guards and practically tumbled, crawled, and fell his way into the main hall.

Report—!

The courier fell to his knees, his voice hoarse and distorted from thirst due to the long journey and extreme panic.

Your Majesty! The western border… an urgent report from the western border!

The entire hall fell silent at once.

All eyes focused on this courier.

Zhang Cheng stopped his report, Wang Ru furrowed her brows, Qian Gui narrowed his eyes, and Shi Dun instinctively straightened his back.

Chen Wen's brow twitched imperceptibly; his voice was steady, yet carried an undeniable authority.

Speak.

The courier drew a deep breath, striving to make his voice clearer, but the trembling within could not be fully suppressed.

Five days ago, west of Tao Prefecture in Longyou Circuit, the horizon… the horizon suddenly underwent an anomalous change!

A… a colossal light curtain appeared out of nowhere!

It was semi-transparent, like rippling water, stretching north to south with no end in sight!

He gestured with both hands, trying to describe a sight beyond ordinary comprehension.

On both sides of the light curtain… the mountains, rivers, even the clouds were… exactly like mirror images, identical down to the slightest detail!

A suppressed intake of breath rose in the hall.

Several senior officials unconsciously twirled their beards, their faces filled with disbelief.

"A mirror image?" Chen Wen's voice remained even, but his fingertips had already tightened slightly on the armrests of the dragon throne.

"Has anyone been sent to investigate?"

"Your Majesty, the stationed Commander Liu immediately dispatched a scout squad!"

The courier's voice carried lingering fear.

"That light curtain is visible, yet… its edge cannot be grasped!"

"The scouts tried to approach, but it was as if they struck an invisible wall and could not cross!"

He swallowed, the color draining from his face.

"What's worse… on the other side of the light curtain, vague shadows showed moving figures wearing armor… armor utterly unlike our dynasty's uniforms!"

"It seems… they too are scouting our side!"

"Nonsense to confuse the masses!" a white-bearded old censor stepped forward, pointing at the courier and rebuking him.

"Your Majesty! Such absurd talk must be the cowardice of border commanders fabricating lies to shirk their duty of defending the land! Or this man's jolting journey has addled his mind!"

"A light curtain spanning the sky? A mirror of mountains and rivers? Unheard of! This is an omen of a disturbed heart, surely there are treacherous officials…"

"Li Censor," Chen Wen interrupted him lightly, his gaze never leaving that courier.

"Let him finish."

That calm gaze, however, gave the old censor a sense of invisible pressure, swallowing his subsequent words.

Having received the emperor's assent, the courier gathered courage and continued.

"Your Majesty, every word I speak is true! Commander Liu and his several thousand soldiers can bear witness!"

"That light curtain still exists and has not dissipated!"

"Commander Liu dared not act on his own, especially ordering me to rush eight hundred li day and night to report to Your Majesty for your supreme decision!"

Chen Wen fell silent.

Yet the discussion in the hall grew louder.

"Heaven portends an anomaly; could it be a warning from above?"

"Or perhaps an omen of the earth dragon turning over?"

"Could it be… a mirage? Only its scale is too enormous."

"How could a mirage block passage? How could it have figures on both sides?"

All kinds of speculation came pouring in.

Yet no one could offer a convincing explanation.

Chen Wen's heart, amidst this clamor, gradually sank.

The fragments of information—'node,' 'deviation,' 'clearing agreement'—like icy serpents, once again burrowed into his mind, gnawing at his reason.

He could almost certainly say this was no natural phenomenon.

This seemed more like… some kind of force intervening in this world in a way he could not comprehend.

Is this the beginning of the 'Apocalypse' threat from the master of the Iron Crow Army?

Or perhaps another revision of that cold 'Rule'?

An unprecedented sense of urgency seized him.

He must not throw his own ranks into chaos.

He slowly raised his hand.

The hall instantly fell silent.

All the officials held their breath and focused, awaiting the emperor's decision.

"This matter is indeed a 'heavenly change' unheard of in a thousand years."

Chen Wen's voice rang clearly in the hall, carrying a power that steadied the people's hearts.

"Yet, the heavenly change is nothing to fear."

"To speak of fortune or misfortune before understanding its form, or to throw one's own ranks into disarray, is the way to invite disaster."

His gaze swept over the officials and finally rested on an elderly minister with white hair and a gaunt face.

"Minister of Rites Sun Qing."

The elderly minister Sun Chengyou immediately stepped forward and bowed.

"The elderly minister is here."

"You have always been steady, versed in rites and ceremonies, and well versed in geography."

Chen Wen ordered.

"You shall serve as Chief Envoy, taking three experts from the Imperial Observatory versed in astronomy and investigation, two artisans from the Ministry of Works familiar with mountains, rivers, and hydraulics, and two hundred elite cavalry dispatched from the Palace Front Command; set out immediately for the western border."

"I grant you full authority; you must personally go to the light curtain to examine its details."

"Measure its extent, record its form, and probe its nature."

"Above all, clarify what lies beyond the light curtain—what kind of scene it is, and who those people in strange armor are, and what force they belong to."

"Report everything you see and hear, great and small, with diagrams and tables, without delay!"

Sun Chengyou drew a deep breath, feeling the weight of the responsibility on his shoulders, and bowed solemnly.

"The elderly minister receives the order! I will not fail the emperor's great trust!"

Chen Wen then turned his gaze to the Grand Councilor.

"Convey my order: command the military governors of Longyou and Hexi circuits to immediately strengthen border defenses."

"At all passes, heighten vigilance and strictly guard against any movement."

"Before Minister Sun Qing returns with his findings, the border troops must not cross the border to provoke; but if attacked, they may act at their discretion and counterattack resolutely!"

"I obey your command!" the Grand Councilor said, bowing to receive the order.

One after another, the orders were clear and precise, swiftly channeling the potential chaos from the sudden anomaly into an orderly response.

The court audience dispersed.

The officials, each with complicated feelings hard to express, discussed noisily as they left the Hall of Purple Majesty.

Chen Wen sat alone in the vast hall, his fingers lightly tapping the armrest of the dragon throne.

That cold sensation kept him absolutely clear-headed.

Sunlight streamed through the lofty palace doors, casting long shadows on the ground.

Light and darkness were clearly distinct.

Just as he now faces this situation.

Known enemies, whether Northern Han, Khitan, or remnants of the Iron Crow Army, have traces to follow and ways to counter.

But this light curtain stretching across the western sky surpasses all his knowledge.

It is like a silent proclamation, a huge and cold question mark hanging over his dynasty.

What lies behind it—opportunity or destruction?

He recalled the cold phrase from the information fragments—"Clearing Agreement."

Could this light curtain be the beginning of the "Clearing"?

An inexplicable chill crept up his spine.

Yet the light in his eyes did not dim because of it; instead, it grew sharper.

No matter what it is, he will not sit and wait for death.

The dynasty he built, the people he protects, will never become sacrifices under any "agreement."

He rose, walked to the palace gate, and with his hands behind his back gazed westward.

His gaze seemed to cross thousands of mountains and rivers, to penetrate that half‑transparent light curtain and see the truth beyond.

"A mirror image...?"

He murmured to himself, the corner of his mouth curling into a cold arc.

"Then let me see what it is!"