The ink on the official Conclave parchment was still wet when Elder Wu dropped it onto the cellar table.
It was midnight. The city sirens had finally quieted. That left only the steady, depressing rumble of distant smelting crucibles and the intermittent patter of acidic sleet against the high cellar grate.
On the cot in the corner, Lu Feng was sleeping heavily. His bandaged thigh was bound with splints, his breathing shallow but steady under Apothecary He’s willow-bark healing wraps.
Elder Wu slumped onto a wooden bench, his gray head buried in his hands, trembling so wildly that the bench legs rattled against the flat stone slabs.
“It’s over,” Wu groaned, his voice muffled by his sleeves. “They rigged the seed pairings. Scholarch Bao and Zhao Wuji filed a ‘Special Merit Re-Seeding Petition’ under Article 8. Look at the board.”
Lin Ke picked up the printed schedule.
Country CONCLAVE: QUARTER-FINAL CHAMPIONSHIP ROSTER - Ring One: Mu Chen (Violet Mist Academy, Mid Foundation Layer 5) vs. Lin Ke (Azure Cloud Sect, Early Foundation Layer 2) - Ring Two: Meng Shan (Azure Cloud Sect, Early Foundation Layer 1) vs. Unit Iron-Nine (Heavenly Hammer Academy Siege Iron-puppet, Heavy Grade)
Lin Ke’s eyes stayed on the matchup for Ring One.
