The Celestial Seat stood atop a mountain of jade and obsidian, piercing the sky like a blade turned toward the heavens. Its towers gleamed with divine light, and floating citadels hovered around it like moons to a tyrant star. For centuries, it had been the unshakable heart of power—where the Council ruled, judged, and rewrote the truth.Now, it was their target.A cloak of illusion shimmered around Jin and his companions as they emerged from the Skyforge Gate in a shadowed alley at the city’s edge. The streets of the Seat bustled with pilgrims, soldiers, and scholars, all unaware that the two vessels of the Kirin Flame walked among them.Fei adjusted the jade pin holding her illusion spell in place. “The enchantment won’t hold under scrutiny. We have hours, not days.”Lu Yun peered around a corner. “The archives tower is due east. We can access the inner sanctum through the memory wells below it.”Mei nodded, already scouting rooftop paths. “We move fast and silent. The moment they d

The Whispering Provinces had always stood at the edge of the empire’s reach—clusters of mountain cities, river towns, and forest enclaves that bowed to the Celestial Council in name only. Their loyalty lay with legends, not law.As dawn crept over the snow-covered roofs of Wuyun, the largest of the hill cities, Jin Longwei stood before the Pillar of Memory—a ruined shrine once dedicated to the Flame’s First Light.Fei stood beside him, golden light flickering faintly from her hands.> “They’ll listen here,” she said. “The people still remember what the Council tried to erase.”> “Then we give them the truth,” Jin replied.Behind them, Shuye and Mei scouted the rooftops, watching for soldiers, scouts, or worse.Lu Yun adjusted the illusion runes surrounding the shrine, making it shimmer with subtle firelight. “This will amplify your voices. Not just sound, but feeling. If even one soul remembers what was lost, the Flame will spread through them.”Lianhua emerged from the temple ruins,

The road to the Eternal Mirror was one few dared to walk.Nestled in the high ravines of the Ghostveil Mountains, the mirror was not a pool or glass—but a labyrinth of silver stone, once used by the gods to reflect the fates of mortals. It had been sealed after the Divine Collapse. Now, it stirred once more—because Lady Moyin had returned to it.Jin Longwei stood at the precipice of the canyon, wind slicing past his cloak. Below, the labyrinth shimmered faintly, its mirrored corridors whispering with echoes of countless lives.Fei stepped beside him. “This place distorts everything. Time, memory, identity. Are you sure this is where she is?”Lu Yun nodded grimly. “The shard Yue gave us pointed here. Moyin is inside. But she won’t be alone.”Mei checked the tension on her crossbow. “I hate mirrors. They show too much and hide too well.”Lianhua stared at the maze entrance. “She always loved this place. Said it was the only place gods feared—because it showed them what they could become

They left the Eternal Mirror behind as dawn broke across the Ghostveil peaks.Lady Moyin lay bound in enchanted chains, her power suppressed by Lu Yun’s sealing scripts. She no longer spoke—only stared into the distance, as if even now she could hear something no one else could.Jin walked a few paces behind her, his thoughts tangled. The duel with Xun hadn’t just tested his strength—it had shaken his certainty. How many others like Xun had been scattered across the empire?Fei walked beside Jin in silence, her hand brushing against his briefly. The simple touch grounded him.> “He chose not to kill,” she said softly. “That means something.”Jin nodded. “But what if Moyin had more like him? What if Xun was just her prototype?”Lianhua approached from the rear. “You’re not wrong.”Everyone turned.She held up a crimson scroll sealed with wax—the emblem of a dragon swallowing its tail scorched into the center.> “I found this in Moyin’s satchel,” she said. “It’s a directive. Not to Xun—

The message arrived on wings of jade.A courier hawk, eyes aglow with sealing glyphs, landed beside Fei as they camped near the River of Shards. She untied the scroll, unrolling it carefully beneath the firelight.Jin read the elegant strokes of imperial calligraphy aloud.> “By decree of the Celestial Council, Flamebearer Jin Longwei is summoned to a Grand Summit at Daiyuan Citadel, where peace may be negotiated and final truths revealed.”Fei narrowed her eyes. “Peace?”Mei spat into the fire. “That smells like a trap dipped in honey.”Lu Yun studied the glyphs. “It’s authentic. High Council seal, third authority tier. They sent it knowing we’d come.”Xun, arms folded, glanced at Jin. “So what’s the play?”Jin’s eyes glowed faintly in the dark. “We go.”Fei straightened. “Are you serious?”> “They want to control the narrative,” Jin said. “But we don’t have to let them. We walk in as truthbearers—not pawns.”Lianhua added quietly, “They won’t just want your surrender. They’ll want y