Darkness, thick and fluid like water, shrouded this place.
This was the abyssal fringe of the Ancient Dragon Kingdom, Eberias—the region closest to the Abyss in this world, and even partially fused with it. Besides "abyssal fringe," it had another name: the Sacred Land of Dukain.
A towering grand hall stood in the dark Sacred Land. It was several hundred meters tall, with an interior covering over ten thousand square meters. There were no pillars inside. Darkness spread through the vast hall, while specks of white light drifted through the air like dancing fireflies.
At the center of the hall stood a broad stone table, its surface bearing the weight of countless years. The chief seat was at the innermost end, raised higher and wider than the others. It represented the seat of the Dukain council chairman.
Lower down on both sides of the stone table were four slightly shorter seats. Two of them were identical to the chief seat's, while the one representing the Beast Lord was covered in cracks. Upon closer inspection, those cracks were slowly healing.
The final councilor's seat was grayish-white and ancient, covered in even more cracks. It represented the vacant council seat of the Dukain family.
Becoming a Dukain councilor required not only strength and status, but, more importantly, possession of a Dukain family crest.
There were five Dukain family crests in total. The Beast Lord, the Twin Kings, and Lady Scorpion each held one. Egubaya, the council chairman, held one. The last had originally been in the Ancient Dragon treasury and was now in Su Xiao's hands.
Below the councilors' stone seats were twelve stone chairs of varying sizes. Regardless of their size, none possessed the same aura as the five upper seats. These twelve were the trusted followers of the Dukain councilors,