Master Yuan had grown old.
His hair and beard had turned gray, and knowing his end was near, Master Yuan leaned on his cane as he slowly walked into Daming Palace, into the palace he had rescued at all costs, the symbol of the Imperial Dynasty's highest rule.
Perhaps because he had divulged too many Heavenly Secrets, one of his legs had become unreliable, and he needed a young attendant to support him as he walked.
The Emperor had prepared a carriage for him, but Master Yuan insisted on walking himself. The path of counsel had been walked step by step by his own feet; even in old age, he had to walk it himself.
Daming Palace had regained its vitality long ago. There were many people now, hardly worse than it had been in its heyday.
He passed one palace after another and slowly made his way to the imperial garden.
From afar, he looked at True Dragon Hall, which he had personally overseen the construction of, unsure what he should feel. Had exhausting all the knowledge of his life to build such a heaven-defying, fate-altering structure been right or wrong? At least for now, the realm was peaceful and the people lived and worked in contentment, so it could be considered the right choice. If he returned to that time, he would still do the same.
Only, had it been right to suppress a snake demon atop the Li Tang dynasty's fortune...
Back then, he had traveled the world in search of something that could suppress National Fortune and regulate the dragon veins, yet found nothing. Then he heard rumors of a white dragon appearing in the world, mysterious and unfathomable. In the end, after spending countless efforts, he had located that snake demon through divination. Even if