The heartland of the Eastern Region.
Jagged peaks rose from the earth, piercing the highest reaches of the sky.
A sea of clouds churned day and night, the clear cries of immortal cranes cutting through cloud and mist.
Jade Capital Heaven.
An ancient, austere hall stood majestically atop the highest peak. Cast entirely from purple-gold bronze, it had weathered the ages without a trace of verdigris, instead glowing with a lustrous, jewel-like radiance.
No plaque hung before the hall. Only two enormous, obscure talismans were engraved upon the stout pillars flanking it, anchoring the earth veins and fortune for ten thousand miles around.
The hall was vast and desolate.
There were no meditation cushions, no gods or Buddhas enshrined.
Only an old man in red robes sat cross-legged in midair.
His face was lean, his hair crane-white but his complexion youthful. His scarlet ritual robes stirred within the hall despite the absence of wind.
He slowly opened his eyes.
The lingering gloom inside the hall was instantly illuminated.
The old man raised his withered fingers and tapped the empty air twice.
The crisp sound pierced the heavy doors and traveled outside.
Before long.
A man wearing moon-white robes and straw sandals entered the hall.
His features were handsome, his aura restrained and profound. As he walked, not a trace of the mortal world's dust clung to him.
The white-robed man stopped thirty feet before the elder and bowed deeply.
"True Lord."
Xuan Yang did not lower his head, his gaze remaining fixed on the empty air. "Go tell Zhuge Qing that Wang Canglan is dead."
The white-robed man's body stiffened almost imperceptibly.
Though he ordinarily cultivated his mind and temperament, remaining unruffled even if Mount Tai collapsed before him, his breathing still faltered at such news.
Jade Capital Tower's foremost