The Heavenly Pillar stood at an unknowable height, multicolored divine chains crisscrossing around it. Ji Zhao had never felt so exhilarated.
He now understood what state this world was in, and what role he played within it.
He still remembered that, during the first millennium, something discordant had appeared in this world when Xiong Dun of Chu State fought King Li of Zhou.
But during the second millennium, nothing like that had happened again.
What did this mean?
Just as Heaven continually drove historical events forward, this was the will of the world.
Union with the Dao.
This meant replacing Heaven's heart with his own. From then on, such a thing as the Mandate of Heaven would disappear.
The Mandate of Heaven left upon the Grasslands would be this world's last.
Ji Zhao's consciousness was hazy, as though he were living the legendary dream spanning eternity, immersed in the world of the Dao and unable to pull himself free.
The Celestial Observatory Platform and Heaven and Man rose and fell alongside his spirit, Mandate of Heaven Purple Qi swirling around him.
These two Divine Artifacts could help him achieve complete union with the Dao faster. Otherwise, it might take a thousand years at the slowest, or several hundred at the fastest.
The moon was hidden and the winds were high. Fierce gusts swept past, scattering dust into corners along the city walls. Both the inner and outer cities had extinguished their lights and fallen silent.
The night watchman made his rounds, his calls carrying through the stillness: "The air is dry; beware of fire."
Together with the chirping cicadas and insects, they lent a trace of life.
Pinpricks of candlelight glowed in Zhao City's Ancestral Temple. Wind slipped in now and then, making the flames sway.
One Spirit Seat after