Early the next morning.
West of Heaven Dou City, at Goddess Lake.
Green mountains encircled mirrorlike waters, light boats drifted, and Ancient Village lay quiet.
The waterside pavilion jutted out over the lake, its soaring eaves and interlocking brackets bearing old wood grain that silently told of a century of wind and frost.
The damp, chilly morning mist had yet to fully disperse. Thread after thread curled between the shimmering water and carved wooden railings, blurring the boundaries between distant mountains and nearby waters, and between the pavilion's interior and the world outside.
Deep in the mist, a woman reclined against a red-lacquered bench beside the water, her languid posture carrying a fierce dominance that brooked no intrusion.
Her sumptuous ink-black robes were heavy and somber, embroidered subtly in gold thread with the totem of a giant bird poised to spread its wings, blazing with molten-lava radiance. The hem hung down, silently entangling itself with the drifting mist.
She gripped an exquisite little wine jar, tilting its mouth slightly so that a thin stream of clear liquor poured straight into her mouth.
Her neck extended as she swallowed, its lines graceful yet powerful.
Most unnerving were her eyes. Deep within those black pupils glimmered the muted glow of molten gold, as though they held the core of an undying sun, lending her exquisitely beautiful face an even colder majesty.
"Tch." She swallowed the last mouthful and casually set the empty jar on the railing, shattering the pavilion's quiet with a voice rough as though from a hangover.
"This place is fucking perfect for retirement, morning or evening, rain or shine. No wonder you refuse to leave, tossing that glittering bird's nest of Ling Xiao Hall clean out of your mind."
At the center of the pavilion, beside a plain stone