A thousand years of Tang territory, a gilded scroll; Chang'an's twin towers blaze red, while purple clouds from Luoyi pierce the rainbow. Recall the flames of war at Jinyang, swallowing the eight wildernesses, the red dragon's scales gleaming in the sun. The High Ancestor's dark armor split the Sui banners; a hundred thousand iron cavalry trampled the moon over Jiangdu, and the frost of Yanmen hardened into the imperial seal that founded the dynasty. Thunder rolled before Hulao Pass; the Qin Prince's silver lance pierced the dawn. Alone, he charged into the enemy ranks and turned the tide, while Dou Jiande's banners burned to ash and smoke. The pact on the Wei River was tempered beneath cold stars; the Six Steeds roared into the wind, shaking the heavens. Before Xuanwu Gate, purple lightning tore across the sky, and blood splattered the palace walls, staining the willows of Weiyang red. Glazed light filled the Zhenguan Hall; Persian treasure ships carried foreign dancers, and Kucha music and dance stirred the celestial pivots. The golden roof of the Great Ci'en Temple pagoda gleamed, while Xuanzang's Sanskrit chants shattered the snow on Mount Sumeru.
At the Kaiyuan night banquet, the guests grew drunk beside the Jade Pool. Taizhen's rainbow robes swept through the starry river; Jie drums shook jade from Penglai, and tribute envoys knelt like ants before the Qinzheng Tower. Then the war drums of Yuyang struck down the pillars of heaven. An Lushan's golden crown split, revealing wolfish eyes, while Fanyang's iron cavalry crushed the bones of Tong Pass. Beneath Mawei Slope, a dragon's silk scarf tightened; the grief of the three armies shook the paired roof tiles of the Palace of Eternal Life. Guo Ziyi charged alone through the Uyghur ranks, and the teeth of Suiyang still bore a defiant spirit. The Sweet Dew Incident drenched the vermilion steps in blood; ministers' skulls rolled through Hanyuan Hall, while the Divine Strategy Army's blades reflected the eunuchs' feral smiles. The pillars of Zichen Hall were carved all over with curses from wronged souls.
Huang Chao's golden armor blazed like the sun; his heaven-reaching ranks of fragrant blossoms swept through Chang'an. Before Hanyuan Hall, chrysanthemum blades churned the blood-soaked wind, and the Hanlin Academy's ink pool turned to a sea of slaughter. Zhu Wen poisoned Emperor Zhaozong; waves of blood surged before Baima Station, and the heads of thirty court officials hung from willows by the Bian River. At this moment, with heaven and earth turned upside down, a mysterious site appeared in the Xuan Pavilion of Zhongnan Mountain. A gigantic bronze gate opened on a night of falling stars, and a descendant of Xihe took charge of the Hetu-Luoshu diagram. Twelve golden chests concealed the Wude-era imperial edict; an octagonal bronze mirror revealed Wu Zetian's secret, and a tear from the Yonghui era was locked inside a white jade box. There was also a tortoiseshell engraved with the Qin Prince's oath.
