Chapter 36: The Empyrean Board
The week-long journey to the Empyrean Capital was a period of profound calm. The Azure Dragon Sky-Ark sailed through a sea of clouds, a silent, graceful embassy moving towards the heart of the realm. On the deck, Jian Feng would often sit across from Jian Liwei, a Go board between them. They would play in silence, Liwei's straightforward, aggressive moves always being enveloped and rendered useless by Jian Feng's subtle, far-reaching strategy. It was a lesson in philosophy as much as a game.
On the seventh day, they emerged from the cloud cover, and the sight that greeted them silenced the entire crew.
The Empyrean Capital was not a city; it was a living testament to the apex of human cultivation and ingenuity. It spread across a vast plain, larger than any metropolis they had ever imagined, its perimeter protected by a shimmering, golden barrier that pulsed with unimaginable power. Great rivers of pure, flowing spiritual energy, wide as highways, crisscrossed the city, with elegant barges ferrying cultivators along their currents. Towers of white jade and black obsidian pierced the sky, some so tall that their peaks were home to floating palaces wreathed in their own personal cloud systems.
At the very center of it all stood the Imperial Palace, a colossal, nine-tiered ziggurat that seemed to be the nail fastening the sky to the earth, radiating an aura of ancient, absolute authority.
Their Sky-Ark was guided towards a massive docking port floating high in the air—the Jade Port of Nations. Dozens of other grand vessels were already moored there, each bearing the proud sigil of a great clan or royal family. The fiery emblem of the Phoenix Empress's delegation burned brightly on one ship, while the banner of a coiled, black serpent marked the vessel of the Void Serpent Temple. The air was thick not with hostility, but with the tense, charged energy of a thousand coiled springs, a place of immense power and colliding ambitions.
As the Azure Dragon delegation disembarked, their azure and silver robes marking them clearly, a wave of whispers followed their steps. All eyes, however, were on the slender, silver-haired youth walking at the front. The rumors of the "Ghost of the Azure Dragon" who had single-handedly crushed the Tri-Clan Trial had spread like wildfire among the great powers. They looked upon Jian Feng with a mixture of intense curiosity, skepticism, and strategic assessment.
An arrogant-looking youth from the Raging Tiger Clan's delegation, likely a cousin of Hu Jin, stepped forward to block their path. "So, this is the legendary 'Ghost'," he said with a smirk, his eyes raking over Jian Feng's controlled aura. "The Azure Dragon Clan certainly knows how to hide its treasures. I trust his miraculous performance wasn't simply a fluke that only works in the uncivilized wilderness?"
Before Jian Feng could respond, Jian Liwei took a half-step forward, his own powerful aura flaring protectively. "You will address the Young Lord of the Azure Dragon Clan with the respect he is due," he said, his voice a low growl. His new role as Jian Feng's shield was one he took with absolute seriousness.
The Tiger disciple bristled, ready to escalate. But Jian Feng gently placed a hand on Liwei's shoulder, calming him instantly. He looked at the rival with his placid, unreadable eyes.
"The wilderness and the court are but two sides of the same board," Jian Feng said, his voice calm and even. "The principles of the game remain the same."
His serene, philosophical response left the Tiger disciple momentarily confused, unable to find purchase for another insult. Defeated without a single hostile move, he could only scowl and step aside.
The Azure Dragon delegation proceeded from the port, making their way to their permanent residence in the capital. As they traveled through the bustling streets in elegant carriages, Jian Qiao, now acting as Jian Feng's aide, quietly pointed out significant details.
"Young Lord, that crest on the passing building belongs to the Imperial Alchemist's Guild," she whispered. "The family standard on that carriage is of the Marquis of the Western Winds, a key military power. And the woman entering that teahouse… her robes mark her as a priestess of the Fate-Weaver's Temple."
She was his eyes and ears on the ground, feeding him a constant stream of tactical information that he assimilated into his mental map of the city's power structures.
They soon arrived at the Azure Dragon Residence, a magnificent, sprawling compound of serene courtyards and elegant jade-roofed buildings—an embassy worthy of their clan's status. As Jian Feng stepped over the threshold, officially marking his arrival in the capital, the head steward approached him with a deep bow, presenting a tall stack of exquisitely crafted invitation scrolls on a lacquer tray.
"Young Lord," the steward said respectfully. "These have been arriving all morning."
Jian Feng glanced at the scrolls. They bore the seals of imperial princes, duchies, young masters and maidens from other great clans, and influential guilds. Each was an invitation to a banquet, a private tea, or a social gathering to be held in the days leading up to the Celestial Selection.
He knew what they were. They were probes, feelers, challenges, and traps, all disguised as polite society. The Celestial Selection had not yet begun, but the intricate, deadly game of the Empyrean Capital had already started.