Beneath the Starry Sky, a curtain wall stood tall.
Upon the wall, that mass of pitch-black shadow seemed to rule the entire Stellar Sea, towering above the bowed head of the middle-aged man.
The atmosphere gradually turned mysterious, and Xie Sen's expression grew increasingly solemn as he continued chanting his prayer.
"Formless and shapeless, without beginning and without end."
"Your will is the path upon which Your servant walks."
"Your whispers are the only sacred voice heard by Your believers."
"With this humble body, graced by Your favor, I offer only the faith of my entire life, to become but a faint ripple within the torrent of Your mighty power..."
Every word weighed a thousand pounds, and every prayer was like a meteor streaking across the Starry Sky, stirring little ripples throughout the endless Stellar Sea...
Suddenly,
"You're worshipping Li Qingshan?"
A faint cry of surprise shattered the mysterious atmosphere of worship.
"Who dares address my lord by name!"
Xie Sen instinctively snapped back in rebuke. He turned with furious eyes, and then...
An utterly ordinary figure entered his sight. His entire body immediately trembled, and he froze where he stood.
"Lord... Lord Destiny?!"
At that moment, Heaven's Mandate's usually wooden face had taken on a rare, strange expression. His gaze shifted repeatedly between Xie Sen and the mass of pitch-black shadow at the center of the curtain wall.
"Does Li Qingshan know you're worshipping him? Can he receive your... faith?"
"Of course he can!"
Xie Sen spoke as though triggered by instinct, but when his gaze swept over the Iron Hook at Heaven's Mandate's waist, his voice still weakened.
"My lord is formless and shapeless, without beginning and without end..."
"Even if he cannot sense it now, one day he will lower his gaze and see his most devout