In an exceedingly mysterious place, mist drifted wantonly between heaven and earth, as though everything were veiled beneath a thin gauze.
A flawless white palace stood silently within it. Covering roughly a hundred zhang, it was grand in scale, with soaring eaves, bracket sets, carved beams, and painted rafters; every detail was exquisitely crafted.
It seemed to have been formed by nature itself, emanating a sacred, inviolable majesty without the slightest flaw.
Surrounding the immense palace was a boundless lake.
The lake's surface was smooth as a mirror. Its clear waters reflected the palace's majestic form, along with the hazy, ethereal clouds and mist.
A breeze blowing from nowhere sent ripples spreading across the lake.
Amid the shimmering waves, the lake clearly revealed the scene beyond the palace gates: densely packed, countless human figures.
Without exception, they wore strange pure-white robes.
The long hoods of those white robes concealed their faces completely, leaving only deep, shadowy darkness.
Yet their movements were perfectly uniform, carrying a stiff, mechanical quality, like puppets controlled by invisible strings.
Outside the palace, they slowly knelt in unison. Then, at the same rhythm, they bent down and prostrated themselves.
Their foreheads slammed heavily against the white jade floor tiles, producing dull, rhythmic thuds.
Before the vast, empty palace, the sight was especially jarring. Apart from the distinct sound of kowtowing, there was no other noise.
That indescribable sense of eeriness grew ever stronger, sending chills down one's spine and making one's hair stand on end.
Yet in the next instant, this strange and horrifying scene was utterly shattered.
A furious roar, carrying towering rage and resembling ten thousand bolts of thunder, boomed from deep within the palace.
"Damn Blackbird Guard!"
"You brat!"
"I will tear you into ten thousand pieces!"
The roar carried extreme hatred and