Zhou Qiyun's face shifted through shades of shock and calculation. "Why would His Majesty come to Yongzhou now? Using ghost-children to gather yang? Could it be..."
His expression turned strange. "The wound I gave him still hasn't healed?"
He sighed, looking skyward. *The Supreme Emperor favored me. I never wanted to usurp the throne. But Your Majesty, arriving at this moment... you make things difficult.*
Su Yan studied their surroundings. They stood on a cliff overlooking a jade-green lake. The Cangwu Sect disciples had been fished from the water by golden-armored guards using fishing lines.
Yet they'd been in the Abyss, not a lake. And the Abyss should have two shores—this cliff was only one.
"Where is the other shore?" Su Yan wondered.
Veyon touched his arm. "That capital lord is wrong. Look at the guards—their uniforms are Imperial Golden Guards."
Su Yan saw them now: armored figures at every strategic peak, sword-lights circling above them like guardian angels, diving periodically into sheaths at their feet.
Yuan Qi whispered from Su Yan's collar: "The Great Tang was founded on martial strength. In the golden age, capital nobles cultivated sword-qi in special sheaths, invisible blades that could kill from miles away. Only palace ceremonial guards still practice it."
Su Yan frowned at the great hall. Incense smoke billowed from it, forming auspicious clouds—the same scale he'd seen only on underworld god-statues.
"Imperial authority collects the faith of millions," Veyon said. "The Emperor is the greatest god in the mortal realm. Someone supreme sits in that hall."
"The Emperor?" Su Yan's voice shook.
"Most likely."
A purple-robed man emerged from the hall, voice sharp: "The underworld is in turmoil. Harvesting is suspended. Rest today, resume tomorrow!"
The Cangwu disciples relaxed, some removing masks, laughing freely.
"So the ones forcing the sect to harvest yang are from the palace," Su Yan murmured. He studied the purple-robed man. "Is that... a eunuch?"
The eunuch scanned the crowd, frowning. "So many dead? General Yingyang, capture more Nuo masters from nearby sects."
A burly warrior stepped forward. "These minor sect Nuo masters are untrained, inferior to noble house disciples in every way. Why not use proper talent?"
"The Emperor's excursion must remain secret. Alerting noble houses alerts the world. Minor sects are disposable—use them, eliminate them, no one cares. Noble houses are... difficult to remove."
General Yingyang nodded. "His Majesty has tried reducing noble house influence for years. If they learned he came to Yongzhou seeking life extension..." He spat. "Two hundred commoners died harvesting yang from the living world. The noble houses raised a fuss. They kill commoners daily, yet His Majesty extends his life and they scream bloody murder."
"The world watches the Emperor," the eunuch sighed. "Every eye seeks his flaws. Those two hundred were blamed on demon infestation, a few sects executed. But the living world became too hot. Fortunately, Yongzhou's underworld invasion provided cover."
He smiled. "The people of Yongzhou will simply have to endure."
General Yingyang left. The eunuch returned to the hall, muttering, "His Majesty grows more violent daily. That cultivation art... can it truly be safe?"
Veyon nudged Su Yan. Zhou Qiyun had vanished.
"Escape?" she whispered.
Su Yan shook his head. No chance. Zhou Qiyun was too powerful.
Su Yan removed his mask. The true Mount Jiuyi surrounded them—towering, majestic, utterly transformed from the modest hills he remembered. These peaks pierced clouds, magnificent beyond anything in the known world.
This was the Mount Jiuyi from the jade tablet in Qinyan Cave.
"South of the Xiao River, the Abyss of Cangwu. Beneath Mount Jiuyi, immortals never age." Su Yan whispered the ancient rhyme. "I've seen the Abyss. Where is the immortal?"
Two young women in palace dress walked past, green skirts swaying. "A tiny sect like Cangwu occupying such a mountain—is that fortune or misfortune?"
"Misfortune, certainly. After they're used up, not even dust will remain."
Su Yan watched them pass. Veyon elbowed him. "Eyes forward, Su Yan."
"I was looking at the scenery."
"You were looking at scenery?"
Su Yan shrugged. They continued uphill. Then Veyon gasped. "Another Mount Jiuyi?"
Su Yan followed her gaze. Another identical mountain floated in the sea of clouds. Then a third. Then more—nine peaks, each a mirror of the others, rising through mist like islands in heaven.
"The character 'Jiuyi' means nine similar mountains," Yuan Qi said from Su Yan's collar. "The books say all nine are Mount Jiuyi."
"Do the books say they're this massive?" the bell asked.
Yuan Qi fell silent.
A cry echoed through the clouds. A magnificent bird soared past, seven-colored tail feathers trailing glory. Lesser divine birds accompanied it—Bi Fang, Great Peng, peacocks, and three massive azure luan birds carrying orbs that blazed like suns.
"A phoenix!" Veyon cried. "Let's observe its Dao-form!"
Su Yan's heart raced. He ran with her toward the summit, where the phoenix circled a single colossal paulownia tree—a tree so vast it was like a mountain growing from a mountain.
Su Yan reached the summit, breathless. Below, ten thousand mountains stretched like jade and obsidian through an ocean of clouds.
Then he saw it. Every single mountain leaned toward Jiuyi. Every peak bowed in the same direction.
Ten thousand mountains, worshipping one.