The Court's Plans

The assembly was held at Shangqing Hall.

The original Shangqing Hall had been cramped. When the Shu Sword Immortal Cheng JianXin was in charge, Qingcheng's prestige had steadily risen, so the hall had been expanded.

Now, its roof soared high and its halls stretched wide. Inside the enormous caisson ceiling above, star charts and the Taiji Eight Trigrams had been painted. Three divine statues were enshrined against the wall at the central position.

Lord Lao stood in the center, with Sanfeng Ancestor and Lü Chunyang flanking him. The statues towered overhead, and the hall was vast. Combined with the gloomy, chilly weather, the place remained dark and mysterious despite the many large butter candles that had been lit.

Outside the hall, frost condensed on the pines and cypresses. The cold wind howled, carrying damp, chilly mist with it, while the bronze bells at the eaves rang out with a clear, ringing note.

Inside, heads filled the hall, and everything was solemn and reverent.

Green smoke rose from the Red Sandalwood Censer, coiling around the pillars like a roaming dragon. Interwoven with the light filtering through the windows, it made the divine statues enshrined in the hall flicker between brightness and shadow.

After being guided by the young Daoists, everyone had taken their seats.

Chen Kongzi of the Qingcheng Sect presided, sitting upright on the left beneath the altar.

Once the ritual had ended, he had changed into a black crane cloak, donned a Five Mountains Crown, and taken up an Azure Jade Dusting Whisk.

Two young Daoists stood silently behind him, holding a Treasure Sword and a dusting whisk.

The bearing of a sect master was immediately apparent.

Vice Minister of Rites Pei Zongti, meanwhile, sat at the head of the right side.

He wore a scarlet official robe that