It Was All Xiao Zhan's Arrangement

After passing through the halo and entering the space where Heaven Hall was located, they found themselves in a forest. At the end of the woods was a vast clearing carpeted with flowers and grass, butterflies fluttering about while birds rose and fell.

At the center of the clearing stood an enormous plaza, lined with towering Black Iron pillars. Each was as thick as an ancient tree, its surface covered in dark-red patterns. Heavy chains crisscrossed between the pillars, swaying faintly in the wind and producing a teeth-grating scrape of metal.

At the far end of the plaza stood a majestic great hall. Its entire structure was black as ink, as though it had been carved from a single block of Black Iron. It rose more than a hundred zhang high, with tier upon tier of soaring eaves and interlocking brackets. Every edge was as sharp as a blade, gleaming with a cold light in the dimness.

The walls of the hall were covered in intricate dark patterns, resembling both runes and totems. Dim red streams of light flowed through them like blood coursing slowly through veins.

It lacked the sinister chill of Human Hall, which he had visited before. Instead, it carried solemn majesty and the weight of countless years.

Passing through the bronze gates and down a long corridor, they arrived in a grand hall.

Xiao Yu and the others had parted from them at a fork in the path. Only Xiao Zhan and Xiao Yan remained. Father and son looked at each other, and a sense of distance and unfamiliarity arose between them.

Looking at his grown son, whose eyes still held vigilance and suspicion, Xiao Zhan felt both gratified and saddened. He broke the silence and said softly,

"Ask whatever you want. Whatever you wish to