VII

Hollow

The blue cloth hanging from the ceiling made for a ladder towards the heavens, providing the departed with a safe journey into the afterlife. It alone remained as a stark contrast to the radiant hall of gold. The carvings of lizards climbing around every pillar, every wall of the manor, depicted their struggles of conquering the tribulations laid before them.

The beasts shed themselves off the earth, and the judgement of heaven fell. Its lightning forged the scales of those who refused to return back to the ground. Fire rained as an answer to their defiance, only to be tamed by the beasts long before man. The mighty tempests came too late in the heavens' arrogance, unable to reach the growing dragon's newfound heights. A life of challenges overcome. Where the phoenix projected the eternity of the mind and soul, the immortality of the body belonged to the dragon that paved its own path by crawling upwards.

The irony of it to be found in his estate. Similar to the dragon spawn, the Luo hadn't managed it unscathed through the culling of the times.

A red carpet stretched across the hall, leading to the center where a lonely throne stood empty. The hall was filled with the quiet murmurs of its guests, who barely paid attention to the dancers in the back. Musicians plucked their melodies, yet the deaf would have made for a better audience. The food had grown cold while the men and women present were too busy glancing at each other with insecure gazes.

Luo Zheng had draped his manor in an exhibition of mortal wealth. Gold and silver covered the stones and tables like a thin layer of snow, but there were nothing of worth to be found. No splendor of Qi-fueled artifacts. There were but a few pellets embedded into the empty throne clustered with jewels. It was the hoard of a dying dragon, desperately ringing for air, though no one would criticize that openly.

"What now?" I tore my gaze away from the ceiling.

"We wait for the ceremony," Nysha said, eating from the plate in her hands. Her eyes scanned the room; she fit right in this guessing game of deceit and pretend-alliances. I thought I'd left those things behind. Why was I back among them again? I already regretted agreeing to come here.

Our first goal was the gift everyone present would receive. It was a crystal that carried traces of the decree left behind by the late emperor, last of his lineage, Luo Tian. His First Decree was inherited by his ancestor, Luo Ming, as per tradition - Equality.

Luo Ming had proclaimed the equality of his people ever since his reign began. On the day of his coronation, he gave away half of his Qi to his people, forsaking his second chance at immortality. That day would be remembered by history, and honored by his blood. Every year, the emperor of their time would live up to that promise of their ancestor, following in his footsteps by sharing their Qi with the common people. They still upheld a twisted version of the tradition, even after their decline. It was no longer anything as grand as its original intention, but an attempt to garner supporters. The Luo Family was only split by Emperor Wang Jen, not eradicated. Their wind has yet to calm, Nysha would say.

I was surprised about how much she knew about it. I'd learned some history at the sect whereas the public began forgetting the old ways, not in the least due to Emperor Wang Jen's supporters who proclaimed the superiority of the Guild.

"Excuse me," one of the attendants came closer. She carried a tray with two spheres seated on small cushions. I rolled my eyes. They were a manifold larger than needed to contain the Qi swirling within them. Nysha grabbed hers before forcing the other into my hands. The Qi contained within would be enough for a person to build their foundation. She held onto her sphere, her eyes still darting about, frowning. What was she looking for?

"My ancestor, the First Great Emperor of Shuanhuang, Luo Ming, once said that to live is to seek improvement," I was about to ask her when the duke's voice echoed throughout the hall. He walked along the red carpet, Huo Lan two steps behind him. They swam through the sea of gazes while the servants lit more of the torches on the walls. He deliberately slowed his steps, waiting until every head was turned towards him.

"And as all have the right to live, they must have the right to seek that very improvement of their selves," his voice bellowed, strengthened by his Qi. "And what is cultivation, if not the nature of improvement itself? Thus, my ancestor declared his First Decree, and my family has lived up to their promise for every generation."

Luo Zheng stood next to the empty throne where a servant handed him a cup. He clasped it carefully between his fingers, raising it above his head to meet the banner of his family's name.

"Emperor Wang Jen chose to abandon our tradition. I dare be no judge of his decision. Only the heavens know which of us is right. Regardless, today, I will honor my ancestor's will to put the people first. To not forget the mortals from whence all cultivators come from. The root of our foundation."

Nysha nudged me in the ribs a few times before I followed suit with the rest, raising the orb above my head. It was a struggle not to shatter it on the ground.

"It is the people that give us strength," the duke continued. "Their mortal work created the soil that has nourished us long ago; it is why we blossom now. Without them, we'd be nothing. Without them-"

Glass shattered. Nysha turned to me aghast, but my orb was still whole in my hands. The shards rained down from above, clattering on the ground as a few shouts of panic rung throughout the hall. Heads spun in apprehension, searching for the origin as more splinters of glass fell. Thud. Something landed behind us. The sizzles originating from it warned me faster than my eyes ever could. Firebombs.

"Nysha!"

I threw her behind a nearby pillar without care for her comfort, lunging after and pinning her to the ground. The thunder hollered a moment later as the chain of fire swept past our heads. It left a ringing in my ears that was slowly replaced by the screams of agony around us.

"Shin," she pushed me off of her, "are you alright?"

I hissed through my teeth as her hand touched my back, sending a jolt through my spine. The robe had burned off. I directed my attention inwards, confronting the pain, studying it. It could've been worse. I was able to move and the damage was mostly superficial.

"...Thank you," Nysha mumbled under her breath as she used her bands to cover my wound. I grunted each time she wrapped the cloth around my back.

The hall behind us was lit aflame by bodies writhing on the ground. They twitched and moaned, the fire feeding on their last breath. Others were luckier, finding refuge like us behind tables and stones where they escaped with less severe injuries. The cultivators among us stood unbothered in the remnants of the inferno, dusting off the soot on their clothing. Unlike the rest, they didn't need to worry about the flaming cloth that fell from the ceiling it'd adorned.

"Your words ring hollow in your own halls, Luo Zheng!" The entrance flung open and men flocked through. They created a passage for one person. "Nothing has changed since Emperor Wang Jen took control. His promises are lies."

"Khan Sen," Nysha whispered beside me, her eyes widening, "that must be him. I can't believe he is doing this here... What is it with you people, always trying to get yourselves killed on every occasion you can get? Do you not have brains? Can you think, for once, before you do stunts like this? All of you dimwitted imbeciles need to brand the meaning of patience on your forehead! Nyev san Saal, mark my words, one day, I will carve it into your thick, hollow skulls! Better yet, be cursed with infertility, so we can finally be rid of this plague! And if I must do it myself, see if they don't crown me the damn empress for such a virtuous deed!"

Was I included in that? I knew better than to ask. Nysha wasn't particularly fond of having her plans disrupted.

Qi circled around Khan Sen like a whirlpool. It might not be visible to all, but the distortions in the air grew clear even to the untrained eye. His drain on the feral Qi in the world was without restraint as he transformed the energy into a robe of flames he wore around him. His pull reached further towards the kindling left in the hall.

"Long before his vain boastings," he pointed at a furious Luo Zheng who couldn't decide between his shock and anger, "it was your emperor that started it all! When Luo Tian went back on his own decree, he didn't only make a fool of himself, but he made them all worthless! And yet, here you stand, pretending. Sharing what is the people's between yourselves. Have you no shame at all?

"Still you guard the secrets of immortality!" His rage funneled into the surrounding carnage of flames that wavered in the presence of their new master. "You goad the people on, sacrificing the innocent at your own behest as you decree over their lives like false gods!

"How long until the sects herd us like sheep; send us like pigs to slaughter?" Khan Sen stomped on the ground, the echo of his might traveling far beyond the confines of the walls. His flames melted the floor while surrounding his men in a warm blanket. "How long until they turn us into pills for their noble advancements? What more secrets do they hide from us? What more injustices are yet revealed?" His hand clawed Luo Zheng's throat from a distance. "Know that we stand for it no more!"

"Huo Lan," the duke grit his teeth, "what are your guards doing?"

"We're here, my lord." A row formed at the front of Khan Sen's followers, the men saluting with the emblem of the golden dragon on their armor. Huo Lan frowned, closing his eyes.

"Huo Lan, brother, you must see it more than any of us!" One of the men pleaded with open arms. "Don't avert your eyes to the truth!"

The rest of the room still reeled from the unexpected assault. Whether mortal or cultivator, their faces were blank. They watched as if a play was unfolding before them. Distanced, as if it wasn't real.

"We must remember the valor of the Red Maiden!" Khan Sen's cultivation carried his voice deep into the city. "Her courage, her life, showed us to fight for what we know is right. You may think you have duped us once again, but we know. You have killed her! You judged her; bent her with your power! And yet, even with all the strength you possess, you could not break her iron-clad will! She has resisted you until the end, and so must we! How else could any of us dare to show our faces to the world?"

"May her soul fly freely!" His men shouted in prayers. The Red Maiden? He can't possibly mean... Her image flashed through my mind as the banners rose. With grieve-stricken faces, they carried the flags depicting a woman. She soared with a red gown and a phoenix perched on her shoulder, holding a fan out as if ordering her army. They overlapped. Years older, but the resemblance was there. Nysha tugged on my sleeve for my attention without success.

What are they talking about? What does Mei have to do with any of this?

"You are mad," one of the survivors spoke up. "What do you hope to achieve here? By doing this, your path is already fated to end in a meaningless death."

"That's what you want us to believe, Mo Lin from the Scarlet Flame Sect," Khan Sen glared at him with burning eyes. "That there is no contest to your strength. That there is no other way to learn that bastardization of your truth other than to join your rotten people."

"Foolishness," Mo Lin shook his head, pointing at Khan Sen's men. "Isn't it you who goads them? They cling to your prowess as a practitioner and you lead them to their demise."

"We are all prepared and we are not alone. Our men and women in Guangen and Hanzhen stand with us, many more will follow," Khan Sen responded, crouching on the floor like a tiger ready to pounce. As the warning bells went off in my mind, I noticed Nysha's tugging, and I let her lead me away. "Death may await us all, but after today we will have shown the continent. There are those who can't stand it any longer. We fly the banner of the Red Maiden, seeking our truth and justice in this world. It is our duty to tell others to dare, and if this is the only way they might listen, so be it. Our lives are a cheap price to convey the truth. The Empire is a lie! The Guild is a lie! All of this," he pointed at the cultivators around him, his words shaking the foundation of the walls. His finger lingered on the altar of prayer to the Luo Family, "...is but build on lies!"

Khan Sen exploded with ferocity, shattering the ground beneath his feet. Nysha and I fell to the floor, hiding from the shock wave that swept through the hall, dwarfing the previous firebombs. The heat washed over us like a wave, sending us almost flying into the air.

"Enough," Huo Lan stood with sword in hand between Khan Sen and Mo Lin, confronting the fangs forged from flames. "You have trespassed on my lord's domain, laying waste to his home. Surrender, and my judgement will show both restraint and mercy."

"Huo Lan!" The former guards among Khan Sen's followers cried, but he didn't waste them a glance. His focus was directed at the man clad in the ignited fur of a tiger.

"Care telling me what is going on, Nysha!?" I snapped at her. I couldn't help myself.

"How would I know!?" She shouted back at me as the blazes grew between the two fighting cultivators. A storm between fire and wind waged a war for dominance. We reached the other room before the flames engulfed us. Confusion took hold of her face as we caught a breather, and an intelligent glimmer lit up her eyes. "Is that why he didn't come?"

"Nysha!" I grabbed her shoulder, trying to calm myself through the act, "what do we do now?"

Explanations would have to wait until later. We'd come with one intention, and there was an open question. Escape, or take advantage of the situation? She closed her eyes, hesitating, her thoughts running. When she opened them again they shone with determination.

I followed her down the spiraling staircase.