The main hall of the Feilun Sect was a towering chamber of polished jade and carved spiritwood, its ceiling painted with constellations and great celestial beasts.
The light filtering through spirit lanterns shimmered like moonlight, casting the assembled elders in shifting hues of silver and green.
Feng Yin and Tian Shen stood quietly near the center, flanked by Elder Su and a figure clad in the signature robes of the Azure Phoenix Sect.
Lian Hua.
Her robes were cloud-white and pale blue, embroidered with the image of a rising phoenix.
Her hair was bound in a single, elegant braid that fell over one shoulder. She was calm, poised, but there was something strained in the corners of her eyes.
Sect Master of the Feilun Sect sat on the elevated dais, framed by his elders. He was a man of immense spiritual presence, his beard finely trimmed, and his eyes like still lakes—deep and unshaken.
"I appreciate your visit, Lian Hua," he said with a faint smile.
