Chapter 392: Everlasting Firewood

Zijin inner hall.

That palpitation, as if coming from beneath the Nine Underworlds, had just swept past; before the five kneeling ministers could recover from this inexplicable fright, the scene unfolding before them left them utterly unable to think.

Upon the dragon throne, the figure that had been as faint as a wisp of thread, emaciated and bone‑thin, was undergoing a heaven‑shaking, earth‑changing transformation at a speed visible to the naked eye!

The withered, white‑gray hair, starting at the roots, was rapidly replaced by thick, black strands,

The deep wrinkles on his face and hands, as if smoothed by an invisible hand, made his skin tight and lustrous,

His stooped frame straightened again; beneath his withered body, a surging vitality, like spring returning to the earth, burst forth explosively!

In just a few breaths, the elderly emperor, whose life candle was about to gutter out, vanished.

In his place stood a youth of about twenty‑seven or twenty‑eight, with hair black as ink, a resolute countenance, a tall and straight bearing, and eyes that held an inner divine light!

Were it not for the familiar majesty in his brows and the slightly oversized bright‑yellow sleeping robe he wore, Zhang Cheng and the four others would almost have thought some unfathomable anomaly had occurred!

"Your… Majesty?!"

Shi Dun shot to his feet, his tiger eyes wide, instinctively stepping back half a pace, his voice distorted by extreme shock.

The jade tablet in Zhang Cheng's hand clacked to the floor, yet he was oblivious, merely gaping open‑mouthed at the dais.

Wang Ru, Qian Gui, and Zhao Lao Nian were the same—eyes wide, tongues tied, as if beholding the most inconceivable miracle.

What shocked them even more was that their own bodies were undergoing a similar transformation!

Fatigue vanished, their dim old eyes cleared, the ringing in their ears faded, the chronic aches from years of desk work or campaigning disappeared, and a long‑lost vigor of youth surged through their bodies!

They looked at each other and saw the same: black hair regrown, wrinkles smoothed, their colleagues restored to the appearance of men in their thirties or forties!

What… what on earth is happening?!

Just as the five were stunned senseless by this sudden return to youth,

In the outer hall, the crown prince Chen Hong, burning with anxiety, also sensed the strange vibration coming from the inner hall, and the deathly silence that followed the brief palpitation.

He could no longer restrain himself; he flung the hall doors open and rushed inside.

"Father Emperor!"

Then he saw the unfamiliar yet familiar youth, and the five men who had likewise become young—his uncles whom he knew extremely well.

The crown prince froze on the spot, his mind going blank.

Chen Wen slowly sat up from the dais, stretching his long‑unused, power‑filled young body.

He felt within him a vast, ocean‑like new source of life, sufficient to span countless ages.

Yet at the same time he clearly sensed that the tremendous power, once at his command and belonging to Lv. 6 (64×), had vanished without a trace.

In its place was an extremely faint, yet intimately familiar, underlying perception.

【Cow Horse System】

【Level: Lv. 1(2×)】

【Growth Progress Bar: 0%】

【Status: Life essence reconstruction complete; ability tier reset; Fortune Momentum greatly depleted.】

As expected…… we've returned to the starting point.

We need to rebuild accumulation, to level up again.

But this price is worth it.

His gaze swept over the speechless, shocked crown prince and the five old ministers still dazed, unable to grasp what had befallen them—no, now they should be called "young" ministers.

He saw in their eyes bewilderment, fear, and a hidden hint of delight at the unknown.

"I… have glimpsed a thread of heavenly secret, borrowing the state's Fortune Momentum to perform a heaven‑defying act."

Chen Wen spoke, his voice clear and resonant, carrying an indisputable majesty that instantly drew everyone's attention back.

"This matter is of great importance, beyond comprehension."

His gaze settled on Crown Prince Chen Hong.

"Hong'er, from this moment on, announce my demise according to ritual. You, before the spirit tablet, shall inherit the throne and take charge of state affairs."

"Father Emperor!" Chen Hong finally reacted, his voice urgent, "You… you, since… why…"

"I must temporarily withdraw from the court."

Chen Wen cut him off, his tone resolute.

"Though this body has been restored, its strength must be rebuilt from scratch. Moreover, this heaven‑defying act has exhausted the state's Fortune Momentum to an excessive degree, surely inviting heavenly disasters and human calamities. My remaining in the light would bring no benefit to the state, only inviting calamity."

He looked at the five ministers who had regained their youth.

"You five, having obtained this opportunity, shall follow me into the shadows."

"The new emperor needs time to establish authority, and the court must cope with the ensuing turmoil. Your 'dead' identities are perfect for slipping away."

"Zhang Cheng, Wang Ru, you two are versed in governance; secretly aid the new emperor, stabilize the court, and respond to calamities;"

"Shi Dun, you are versed in military affairs; secretly monitor the borders, suppress any internal unrest that might arise from heavenly disasters;"

"Qian Gui, your Jing'an Si network must be kept more covert, monitoring inside and out, especially watching the movements of the Iron Crow Army and the False Song;"

"Zhao Lao Nian, the Ministry of Works' technical lineage must not be broken; you shall continue to oversee research and development in secret, to meet future changes."

His words set the tone for this sudden upheaval.

This is a meticulously planned "golden cicada shedding its shell."

Using the emperor's demise as a cover, the new sovereign ascends smoothly, while the true pioneers and core cadre retreat into the shadows, accumulating strength to face deeper crises.

The five ministers finally began to sort their thoughts, though their hearts were still in turmoil; their long‑standing loyalty and obedience prompted them to accept the orders at once.

"We… obey the edict!"

Chen Hong watched his father, now decades younger, saw the indisputable resolve in his eyes, and knew this could not be changed.

He knelt, knocked his head hard against the floor, his voice choking.

"Subject child… I will faithfully obey Father Emperor's command! I will exert my utmost to steady the realm, not failing Father Emperor… the grace of his rebirth!"

Chen Wen stepped forward, helped the crown prince up, and firmly patted his shoulder.

"This realm, I entrust to you. Remember, you are the legitimate emperor of Great Chen. I…… will watch from the side."

……

Just as Chen Wen's life essence reconstruction completed and the system reset.

In that dark dimension.

The master of the Iron Crow Army, whose will had just regained a hint of activity due to the "Peaceful Prosperity" node, suddenly felt that violent, unimaginable Fortune Momentum fluctuation originating from the core of the Chen dynasty!

That feeling was as if a large chunk of the foundation supporting the opponent's existence had been instantly hollowed out!

【Alert: Detected target "Chen Wen" associated Fortune Momentum sharply declining…… decline magnitude…… exceeds threshold!】

【Target life signals…… chaotic…… reconstructing…… stabilizing…… intensity…… abnormally rising？！】

The cold logic core, for the first time, showed a fluctuation akin to "bewilderment."

It could not understand what had happened.

According to its calculations, Chen Wen's life should have ended here; all it needed to do was patiently wait for this biggest "variable" to naturally die out, after which it could more easily guide the "script" and repair the deviation.

However, reality dealt it a heavy blow.

Chen Wen not only did not die, but his life force, in a way it could not comprehend, became…… more enduring, more tenacious! As if breaking through some inherent life limit!

"How is it possible…… he used that breakthrough power…… to prolong himself?!"

A fury of being deceived and having its plans disrupted, mixed with a hint of hidden apprehension, roiled within its consciousness.

It immediately realized that its strategy of "outlasting" the opponent had completely failed.

This variable had gained, beyond its expectations, a terrifyingly long span of time!

But shortly after, it also detected the violent turmoil and decline of the Chen dynasty's national fortune brought about by the massive consumption of Fortune Momentum.

【Target force "Chen dynasty" Fortune Momentum greatly weakened…… meets correction conditions…… permission restoration accelerating……】

【Energy injection increased…… available resources increased……】

This might be…… the only "good news".

Chen Wen paid a tremendous price that shook the foundations of the state, in exchange for his own "longevity".

And it, consequently, gained the power to recover more quickly.

This contest seems to have entered a new, even more bizarre stage.

……

The real Bian Liang, the sky had at some point turned gloomy as ink.

Not long after Chen Wen finished his final instructions to the crown prince and the five ministers.

The whole earth suddenly shook violently!

The palace beams and pillars groaned under the weight, and the glazed tiles clattered down and shattered!

The ground moved!

Almost simultaneously, an ominous red light rose on the southern horizon, a sign of river breaches and raging mountain fires; the north sent an urgent eight-hundred-li report—a blizzard unseen in a century struck the grasslands, countless livestock froze to death!

At the cost of using 128 times and consuming massive Fortune Momentum, it descended in the most direct and fierce manner!

Chen Wen stood in the slightly trembling hall, feeling the might of heaven and earth, his eyes cold and resolute.

He glanced at the panicked yet forcibly composed crown prince, and the five ministers who swiftly entered readiness to assist the new emperor.

"Let's begin."

He spoke softly, his form flickered, and he vanished like a ghost into the shadows within the hall.

The era of the founding emperor Chen Wen, in the eyes of the world, on this day, accompanied by heaven‑shattering, earth‑splitting disaster, officially came to an end.

And another "guardianship" era, hidden behind the historical curtain and spanning vast stretches of time, quietly began.

System level: Lv. 1(2x).

The road ahead remains long.