Shenwu Hall was magnificent and imposing, its interlocking brackets crisscrossed beneath a roof of yellow tiles. Ten stone pillars were carved with dragons and phoenixes. Directly in the center beyond the entrance stood a vermilion-lacquered square platform about two meters high. On either side of it stood three towering golden pillars entwined with coiling dragons, each wrapped around by a vigorous golden dragon.
In the central caisson of the hall's ceiling was an even larger carved coiling dragon. A huge silver-white orb hung from its mouth, surrounded by six smaller pearls. Both the dragon's head and the precious orb faced the Shenwu throne below.
The Shenwu Emperor sat imperiously upon the dragon throne atop the platform. The carved dragon screen behind him bore two golden dragons, their scales and claws spread wide, their whiskers flying as though they were about to soar into the sky. He was powerfully built, dressed in a light crimson robe embroidered with nine golden dragons, and wore a high crown. With his broad forehead and wide face, he naturally exuded the commanding majesty of a king.
Before him, where civil and military officials would normally attend court, Jiang Dali and Nie Renwang sat as honored guests, speaking freely as they met the Shenwu Emperor's gaze.
Both could sense the Shenwu Guards surrounding Shenwu Hall outside. A large number of palace experts and eunuchs stood guard on either side. Should the two of them show even the slightest disrespect toward the Shenwu Emperor, those experts would rush inside immediately.
Yet even the Shenwu Emperor himself understood clearly that once one's strength reached the True Return Realm, numbers meant nothing unless one faced an expert of the same level, or a supreme master who had condensed the Three Flowers and wielded a divine weapon. These guards merely