The air inside the Azure Cloud Grand Hall was cold enough to see one’s breath.
Eight Soul Formation executioners in golden plate stood along the outer edge of the hall, their four-pronged axe-spears angled forward at thirty degrees. The tips of the sky weapons hummed with a low, invisible current that made the hair on Lin Ke’s forearms stand on end.
At the center of the hall, Envoy Chu Rong sat upon a temporary golden folding throne.
His silver robes cascaded down the dais steps like liquid silver. In his right hand, he balanced a royal seal carved from purple void-jade, casually tossing it two inches into the air and catching it with a soft, rhythmic clack of starmetal knuckles.
“Sunset has arrived, Chancellor Lin,” Chu Rong said, his golden prisms clicking as they locked onto Lin Ke and Elder Wu. “The Ministry of Ascension doesn’t enjoy drafty mountain halls. Present your Sect Master, your Grand Elders, and the signed roster of souls.”
Beside Lin Ke, Elder Wu DeZheng was shaking like a wet sparrow in an autumn gale.
His knees knocked audibly beneath his robes. Sweat poured down his temples, dripping off the tip of his nose onto the thick scroll he held against his ribs.
