As soon as Xinzi entered, all eyes fell on him. Great Gods occupied the lowest positions of the Celestial Assembly. Sovereign Gods had the most politically dominant seats, with Primevals having the highest titles but mostly ceremonial power—in the court's direct running that is. Needless to say, since the majority of officials served Yongye or Yanglong, they didn't need official duties to influence the running of the court.
Xinzi's eyes looked past all these gazes, sweeping the five golden thrones that hovered above the officials. Mystical clouds covered the seats, preventing the onlooker from seeing who occupied them. But as the Celestial Paradise only had five individuals that could occupy thrones before the emperor, all recognized them at a glance: the Primevals.
Four of the five thrones stood at the same altitude. But one towered above them all, shrouded by a veil of darkness that deadened the emotions and desires of those that dared to glance its way. Xinzi's attention lingered on that throne, and from behind the veil, a pair of eyes glanced at him—a brief glance, then the owner of these eyes shifted their attention back to the assembly's highest seat.
Perched on a tall pyramid-shaped altar, a large ivory throne lay, overlaid with gold, and flanked by white dove stone statues. Sky-blue stairs led to the pyramid's top, with a spacious platform that gave enough room for the throne and multiple vassals.
Just like the other Primevals, the man that sat on this throne had his appearance covered by mystical clouds—silver clouds in his case. Xinzi didn't let the mystique fool him, for he knew that the figure behind those clouds had long turned into an empty husk—a puppet controlled by the woman whose seat's dominated her fellow Primevals.
"Zhen'er, is that you, Zhen'er? Please step closer." A weak, feverish voice echoed from the emperor's seat.
Xinzi's heart didn't warm up to that voice, a foreign and unreliable sound that was of no importance to him. Still, he obeyed, walking up to the pyramid and stopping by the stair.
"Your Divine Majesty, Your Subject greets you," Xinzi clasped his hands and, following imperial protocol, kneeled at the emperor's seat.
"No...no. For you, it is...Son and Subject. Zhen'er, My Divine Self...didn't summon this assembly solely to celebrate your breakthrough. No...My Divine Self wishes to use this opportunity...to acknowledge you...once and for all...as my flesh and blood," Emperor Shenzhuo said, causing the faces of thousands of Heavenly Officials to twist immediately.
All the deities on the scene knew that Xinzi was Shenzhuo's son. But it was one thing to know, another to acknowledge it. Let's not mention the fact that Shenzhuao had his empress' position to consider, by acknowledging Xinzi as his son, he de facto gave him rights that many in the Celestial Paradise didn't want him to own.
But determined to make the officials fall from their seats, Shenzhuo didn't stop there.
"Zhen'er...you are my son, and by right of birth and blood...shall inherit my throne. On this day, I will abolish Yun Canghai's title and make you...the next Crown Prince of Heaven." Once these words echoed, from the lowest of officials to the august Sovereign Gods. The three Heavenly Dukes and even the Primevals, all rose from their seats, staring at Shenzhuo with wide, incredulous eyes.
Silence ruled for a second, a second after which the room erupted in the largest uproar that the Celestial Assembly ever presided over. Even Xinzi couldn't believe his ears, and as his brows furrowed at Shenzhuo's words, his eyes shifted to Yongye's throne, wondering what the hell was going on in his mother's head.
"Yongye, is this a coup? Do you think you're ready to overthrow the Heavens?!" One voice boomed from behind a golden cloud. Like the roar of a primordial beast, this voice shook the officials to the core of their souls—with most having to clench on their seats to avoid a disgraceful fall.
"I don't know what you're talking about. His Divine Majesty is appointing a new Crown Prince. What does that have to do with me?" Like the frigid shadows of the netherworld, the coldest, most suffocating voice that one would ever confront. Anyone that heard this voice would come to the same conclusion, as if the darkness of Yongye's soul rippled through her voice, sucking the listeners into the eternal night.
"Rubbish! Yongye, patience was never my strong suit. If you don't make your puppet withdraw his statement, then today, my Solar Flames will set fire...to the Celestial Paradise!" The Solar Dragon God, Yanglong made his position clear.
One could wonder why Shenzhuo's announcement met such a strong pushback. After all, there was nothing more natural than an emperor appointing his flesh and blood as heir to his throne. But in the Celestial Paradise, things worked a bit differently. The Crown Prince...was never supposed to inherit the throne.
In the past, Shenzhuo was the invincible representant of Heaven's Will, a peerless force matched only by the Absolute Saint in the Pure Lands. Across the various wars between Heaven and Hell, Demon Monarchs came and went, but Shenzhuo remained. The Crown Prince of Heaven mainly existed to handle political tasks while Shenzhuo focused on cultivation and Heaven's secret tasks.
The Crown Prince couldn't hold that position for over one million years, but during those years, they'd have access to substantial political power and resources unique to that position.
The Divine Dao Spirits used that position to balance the interests of the various pantheons. The current Crown Prince, for example, was the youngest nephew of Shenzhuo's empress, and the future clan master of the Cloud Spirits. He held the position for 160,000 years, and would likely give it up to a prodigious young scion of the Taiyang clan.
But with Xinzi, the Crown Prince rotation system was doomed to collapse. Shenzhuo wasn't the Shenzhuo of old, who was to say that Yongye wouldn't make him have an "accident" to put her son on the throne of heaven? Hell, the man already talked about Xinzi inheriting his seat.
It was bad enough that the highest-ranked deities of the Celestial Paradise assembled to bestow gifts upon Yongye's son. How could the opposition allow him to enjoy Crown Prince resources and later replace Shenzhuo as the Heavenly Emperor? Was that not equal to proclaiming Yongye as the overlord of Heaven?
"Set fire to the Celestial Paradise? By relying on what? Your petty sparks? Yanglong, don't overestimate yourself. If I, Yongye, want to overthrow the Heavens, who can stop me?" Formless pressure erupted alongside these calm words, forcing all officials and Primevals to tumble to the ground.
Rank and cultivation didn't matter, faced with Yongye's might, these entities that dominated the Celestial Paradise for countless eons all fell on their knees!
"Damn...you!" Yanglong's cloud dispersed, revealing a three-meters tall golden-haired man with an impossibly long beard that almost brushed the ground. A pair of radiant horns stuck out of his forehead, sandwiching a white blazing sun.
"A father is giving his son his lawful inheritance, but here you are, attempting to derail the natural order.
Don't mistake my courtesy for weakness. I tolerate your trivial schemes simply because they amuse me. You...are not my equals."
