Deep within the Dragon Hall, inside a quiet room.
The furnishings were antique and simple, the light somewhat dim.
Behind a broad rosewood desk sat an old man.
The old man was lean, his robe sleeves wide. His hands rested clasped atop his knees, the skin on their backs loose and marked with faint brown age spots.
His hair was sparse and nearly white, tied behind his head with the simplest of wooden hairpins.
He was Bai Yue, the current Hall Master of the Dragon Hall.
A resounding name throughout the Eight Paths Region, and even across the whole southwestern Yan Kingdom.
Decades ago, he had already been one of the Lingxiao Supreme Sect's foremost experts. Since taking command of the Dragon Hall, he had acted with ruthless efficiency and masterful skill, forcibly turning around a situation where the Tiger Hall had once held the upper hand. He had built the Dragon Hall into a thriving force, crushing the Tiger Hall until it could scarcely breathe.
"Disciple Zhou Xiang requests an audience with Hall Master."
At that moment, a deep voice sounded outside the door.
"Come in."
Bai Yue spoke.
The door to the quiet room opened soundlessly.
A figure straight as a pine strode inside. It was Zhou Xiang.
He looked to be just over thirty, though his actual age had already passed fifty. He stood over eight feet tall, broad-shouldered and thick-backed, dressed in a dark blue-green tight-fitting outfit.
"This disciple greets Hall Master." Zhou Xiang stopped three paces before the rosewood desk and cupped his fists in a bow.
"Mm." Bai Yue nodded slightly, a trace of a smile appearing on his face. "No need for ceremony. Sit."
He pointed to a cattail mat before the desk.
"Thank you, Hall Master."
Zhou Xiang sat as instructed, his