Chapter 400: Sending You a Bolt of Heavenly Lightning
Chapter 400: Chapter 400: Sending You a Bolt of Heavenly Lightning
The Lotus Pond in her Immortal Realm had actually turned into a lake!
Crystal-clear spring water kept overflowing, soaking the little girl’s clothes.
"The Immortal Realm has grown again!" she exclaimed, her little mouth forming an ’o’ of surprise.
She suddenly remembered that she had casually stored the Bibo Pearl, which her brother Xie Mingxu had brought back from the border, in the Immortal Realm.
She never would have imagined that this jade pearl would be more powerful than all the previous ones, causing the Immortal Realm to grow so much.
And that wasn’t all!
Shen Ningning looked around and realized the Immortal Realm was a full two sizes larger than before.
Originally, besides the Medicine Hall, the granary, and the Weapon Hall, there was only a spirit field.
This time, however, the little girl discovered a new hall next to the spirit field.
The grand hall was bathed in the brilliant light of the Immortal Realm’s sun, its interlocking brackets and flying eaves exquisitely beautiful.
She slowly approached and looked up at it.
On the plaque was writing in the same script as the one her mother had left behind.
"Meteorological... Hall?" Shen Ningning managed to recognize the words with some effort.
If she hadn’t studied the writing primer left by Shen Siyi, it wouldn’t have been easy to make out those three characters at all.
’What does meteorological mean?’ The little girl was very curious.
She toddled into the hall, and her watery eyes immediately widened.
"Wow~" The interior was as spotless as a Heavenly Palace, shimmering with a vast, white light.
There were several consoles that looked like control mechanisms.
In front of each console, a piece of paper was posted, like an instruction manual.
Shen Ningning looked at them one by one. "Wind, rain, thunder, lightning..."
She scratched her little cheek.
’Could these be for controlling the weather in the Immortal Realm?’
Just then, she walked over to the thunder and lightning console and noticed a small, flashing light on it.
"Huh?" Shen Ningning tilted her head, looking at what seemed to be a topographical map on a screen, where a red dot was blinking continuously.
’What in the world is this thing! Is it an Immortal Artifact?’
「Meanwhile.」
In the palace, Princess Consort Qi was accompanying the Emperor, attending to his ink and brushes.
While reviewing his memorials, the Emperor said lightly, "Find an opportunity to invite Ningning to the palace and apologize to her properly."
Princess Consort Qi pressed her lips together and said nothing, but the speed at which she ground the ink slowed slightly.
The Emperor looked up at her, his expression turning cold.
"Don’t think you’re being wronged. When Ningning said you offended a Heavenly God, it’s not that I didn’t believe her. The only reason I allowed you out this time was on account of that Black Raccoon of yours that was of some help."
"I have no desire to sever all ties with you, but you offended Ningning before. Ling Wei refuses to see you, and even the entire Xie family falls silent at the mention of your name."
"I am the Emperor. I need balance, and more importantly, I need to consider their feelings. Besides, you did many things wrong back then. Even Grand Tutor Ye was critical of you. So, swallow your pride and go apologize to Ningning."
Princess Consort Qi’s long lashes lowered, casting a gentle shadow over her porcelain-white cheeks.
"Your Majesty, I am not feeling wronged, but rather anxious on your behalf. The things I did to Shen Ningning before were merely to test if she was truly a blessed girl."
"I know the State Preceptor once said that the true blessed girl can..."
The Emperor’s expression changed drastically, and he immediately cut her off. "Silence!"
Startled, Princess Consort Qi quickly knelt on the ground. "I have spoken out of turn."
The Emperor’s eyes were dark. "No matter what the State Preceptor said, Ningning cannot possibly be the person I am looking for. You are forbidden from ever mentioning this matter again."
The reason he was lenient with Princess Consort Qi was that she also knew what the State Preceptor had said back then.
Only by finding the true blessed girl and sacrificing her to the heavens could they secure a cure for Mo Lingwei’s cold affliction.
The natural disasters had receded recently, and Mo Lingwei hadn’t had another attack, but the Emperor was still afraid.
But that didn’t mean he would allow Princess Consort Qi to casually bring up his secret plan.
Princess Consort Qi lowered her head. "Yes."
She deliberately reminded the Emperor, "But from the looks of it, Princess Funing is the person in Cangyun Country who best fits the State Preceptor’s description of a blessed girl."
The Emperor’s face darkened. "You may leave. You are no longer needed here."
Princess Consort Qi bowed respectfully and withdrew. Only when she reached the door did a vicious, cold glint flash in her eyes.
’The Emperor loves his son so much, so what if he likes Shen Ningning?’
’Sooner or later, she will still be sent to the sacrificial altar by the Emperor.’
The mere thought of this scene filled Princess Consort Qi’s heart with immense satisfaction.
Suddenly!
A violent "CRACK" echoed across the clear sky.
A dry thunderclap had struck from out of nowhere!
The very ground seemed to tremble.
Princess Consort Qi and the imperial guards looked up at the sky.
The next second, a bolt of lightning came crashing straight down on her head.
"AHHH—!"
The Emperor first heard a clap of thunder, a sound so powerful it seemed to want to split the heavens and the earth.
Then, he heard shouts and screams from outside as the scene devolved into chaos.
"What’s going on? What’s all this ruckus? Have you never heard thunder before?" the Emperor snapped, displeased.
A eunuch scrambled in and fell to his knees, his hat knocked askew in his fright.
"Y-Your Majesty! This is terrible! Princess Consort Qi was struck by lightning from the sky and knocked unconscious!"
"What?!"
「At that moment.」
Shen Ningning’s small hand was pressing on the red dot.
The red dot stopped flashing.
She slowly pulled her little hand back.
She looked quizzically at her palm, then at the screen of the lightning console.
"Nothing happened at all," the little girl mumbled, even glancing up at the sky in her Immortal Realm.
It was the same as ever—cloudless, with a clear blue sky.
There was no change at all.
She studied it for a long time but still couldn’t figure out what these things were for.
"Oh well, maybe I’ll figure out how to use it next time." She rubbed her hungry little tummy and ran out of the Immortal Realm, ready to ask her grandma for something to eat.
However, just as she stepped out of her room, she saw the Black Wolf King sitting in the courtyard with a pack of wolves, howling at the sky.
The howls rose and fell, as if they were wailing at the heavens.
Shen Ningning covered her ears. "What’s wrong! What is it! Why are you all howling?"
Grandma Qin ran out of the kitchen, wiping her hands.
"Ningning, hurry and hide inside! The Duke of Thunder just got angry and let out a huge clap of thunder. As the old saying goes, ’When the Duke of Thunder rages, the earth quakes; little children, go home, lest you get struck.’"
Saying this, Grandma Qin came over and grabbed Shen Ningning’s little hand.
The little girl’s big, dark eyes went wide. "The Duke of Thunder? Grandma, was there a really loud clap of thunder just now?"
Grandma Qin nodded, looking frightened herself.
She patted her chest. "Grandma has lived a long time and has never heard thunder that loud. Goodness me, could some monster in the mountains be undergoing a heavenly tribulation?"
Grandma Qin peered out the window. The sky was azure blue, with white clouds drifting lazily by.
It was as if that bolt from the blue had just been everyone’s imagination.
But after howling at the sky, the Black Wolf King and his pack had all scattered to find places to hide.
It was an animal’s instinct.
It seemed the thunder just now really had been incredibly loud.
Shen Ningning scratched her cheek as a possibility occurred to her.
"Grandma, I think... I was the one who made that thunder," she said, pursing her lips shyly.
Grandma Qin was astonished. "You? How did you do that?"
It was a long story...
Shen Ningning thought for a moment and said, "I did it in the Immortal Realm. I wanted to see how powerful it was."
’How was I supposed to know the lightning wouldn’t strike inside the Immortal Realm, but outside it instead?’
’Does that mean the new Meteorological Hall can control the wind and rain in the outside world?!’
’Then what’s the difference between me and an immortal!’
Shen Ningning’s heart surged with excitement.
Even Grandma Qin, after her initial shock, grew worried.
"Ningning, you must never tell anyone else about this. Grandma is worried it will attract people with ill intentions."
After all, if you could control thunder, one careless slip and people might call you a monster. What would they do then?
Their Ningning was too powerful; her abilities were gradually exceeding what an ordinary person should possess.
The next day, news of the earth-shattering thunderclap spread throughout the Capital City.
"Did you guys hear? Princess Consort Qi got struck by lightning!" During a break between classes, Lu Shaoyuan sat in a pavilion with Shen Ningning and Ye Shangyi, excitedly sharing the news.