Jade Flow, White Azure Cavern.
Through the lush green woods, a beast walked slowly forward. Its entire body was pure white, its fur like auspicious snow, its body like an elk, and its head like a black fox. It bore dragon horns and a three-pronged tail.
A sacred, auspicious aura spread around it. Many half-transformed snake women received this aura and broke through, immediately taking human form. They bowed in trembling submission, like mortals granted an audience with a sage king.
A woman in a green dress rode the wind out of the cavern. The dusky light of Ren Water shifted around her, only to be entirely dissolved by that auspicious radiance. An innate suppression descended upon her, robbing her divine abilities of most of their power.
The beast withdrew its manifestations, then transformed with a shake of its body into a young woman. She wore a pure white silk robe and had a round face and cloudlike coiffure, her otherworldly bearing touched with holiness.
Qing Ling had an alluring face and an air of wickedness. Though the newcomer firmly suppressed her, she did not panic. Knowing why the visitor had come, she merely smiled and said:
"Greetings, my lady. We at White Azure Cavern have been waiting for some time. The appointed day draws near, so we must make our preparations early."
The young woman merely nodded. An unreadable expression flickered through her eyes as she said softly:
"My name is [Sui Bai]. I have only recently attained my divine abilities. This year, in accordance with the oath sworn with Li Song, I have come to attend to this matter."
"Is Fellow Daoist Bai Xuan here? This occasion is unlike the previous ones. We will need her help to place the imprint of the [White Marsh Diagram] within the