"Success! We have pleased the Lord God."
Li Xiao and his ministers heard the voice of the god, and their hearts surged with joy. The sacrifice had been made, and now it was time to receive their reward. They knew well that the first time they had offered their devotion, the god had granted them a wish, which led to the destruction of their enemies, Chen, and the growth of their kingdom. Now, they had once again made a sacrifice. What would the god grant this time?
"My Lord," one of the ministers asked, his voice heavy with concern, "What wishes shall we make?"
Li Xiao stood solemnly before the altar. "We must be wise. Greed will bring the gods' displeasure. Let us request only what we need, nothing more."
There was silence as the ministers pondered. What could they ask for that would satisfy the god yet not stir up his ire?
"The natural disasters that have ravaged our land... the drought has left us without crops," one minister spoke up. "What if we ask the god to bring rain, to end the drought?"
"No," Li Xiao replied firmly, shaking his head. "While a drought is indeed devastating, it is not the rain we need most. It is the food that will sustain us through the coming trials. A lack of food is the true danger. The famine will claim far more lives than the drought ever could. If we can solve the famine, we can survive anything else."
The ministers nodded in agreement, realizing the truth in Li Xiao's words. The god had granted them a wish once before, and it had turned the tide in their favor. Now, they needed to ask for something that would secure their survival.
Li Xiao raised his voice, addressing the heavens. "Great Lord God, we seek your aid. Grant us the food to survive the famine that follows the drought."
In the otherworldly realm of Xia Chuan...
Xia Chuan, who had been quietly observing the unfolding events, heard the wish. The voice of his follower, Li Xiao, echoed in his mind, requesting food to sustain their people.
"Food?" Xia Chuan murmured to himself. "A trivial request."
He smiled, knowing that such a wish was easily within his power. A mere matter of food was nothing for one with the strength of a god. After all, in this miniature world, even the smallest amount of food could sustain its tiny inhabitants for ages.
Xia Chuan waved his hand casually, and from his personal abode, he summoned a bag of rice. A simple sack, weighing fifty catties—enough to feed millions of these miniature humans.
"Ah, the Bronze Gate," Xia Chuan mused, "That should do the trick."
The mysterious Bronze Gate, a powerful artifact, could open portals to any space it had previously encountered. No matter the distance or the objects, the gate could transport them instantly. With a gesture, he sent the rice through the portal, ready to deliver it to his followers.
Back in Chang'an...
Li Xiao and his ministers waited anxiously, their eyes scanning the skies. Then, without warning, a great flash of light pierced the heavens. A massive bronze gate appeared above the city, glowing with golden radiance, its presence awe-inspiring and majestic. The very air seemed to tremble beneath its power, and the people, sensing something divine, fell to their knees in reverence.
The gate opened with a resounding boom, and to the astonishment of all, a torrential downpour of rice began to fall from the sky. The grains poured down like meteors, tumbling from the heavens in a cascade of golden bounty.
"Move! Move!" cried the panicked voices of the crowd. "The rice, it's falling from the sky!"
For the people of Chang'an, this was a scene beyond their wildest dreams—rice falling from the heavens, the very gift of the gods. Some wept with joy, others with awe, but all were filled with a profound sense of gratitude.
The rice, though seemingly a gift of abundance, was massive in scale for the miniature humans of this world. Fifty catties of rice amounted to over 1.25 million individual grains, each the size of a meteorite to them. As they fell, the rice created a spectacle unlike any other—a cosmic rain of sustenance, both terrifying and wondrous.
The rice landed outside the city of Chang'an, sparing the citizens from harm. But for those who witnessed it, the sight of such a gift, so vast and overwhelming, would be etched into their memories forever.
"Such is the grace of the gods," Li Xiao whispered, his heart swelling with gratitude. He knew that with this divine bounty, Tang could survive the trials ahead. The famine would be averted, and the people of his kingdom would thrive once more.