Wuji Holy Sect, Taixu Hall.
Seventy-two Profound Iron Coiling Dragon Pillars stood in silence, holding up a vaulted ceiling shrouded in swirling mist.
The dim yellow glow of Everlasting Lamps flowed over the dark stones of the hall, casting long, silent shadows from the three figures standing within.
Qi Yun sat upon the cloud seat atop the Nine Level Black Jade Tier, wearing a deep blue Daoist Robe beneath a great cloak of black trimmed in gold. The Sect Leader's Badge glinted with a cold luster in the light.
His hands rested lightly on the armrests, his calm gaze sweeping over the three people below.
The tea had grown cold, and the attending disciples had long since been dismissed.
In the hall, only the smoke from the incense burner remained, rising in a straight plume before slowly dispersing about ten feet up, like some kind of silent timer.
The gray mist surrounding Nether Bone Master suddenly billowed.
