The moon hung high in the sky, casting a silver glow upon the city that now lay in his grasp. From the highest balcony of the Jade Pavilion, Shao Xian stood, gazing down upon the streets below. The people scurried about like ants, oblivious to the shift in power that had just taken place. They still lived under the illusion that their world was governed by the same rules, that their lives were still dictated by the same forces.
They would learn soon enough.
Behind him, Bai Ren knelt, his once-arrogant demeanor gone. The others who had once ruled this city in the shadows were either dead, unconscious, or too frightened to move. They had played their games of wealth and influence for years, believing themselves untouchable.
Now, they understood.
Power was not gold. Power was not influence.
Power was absolute.
And Shao Xian was power incarnate.
Bai Ren finally gathered the courage to speak. His voice, though steady, carried a weight of caution. "This city has followed its own rules for decades. If you seek to rule, you must establish order. Without it, chaos will consume everything."
Shao Xian turned his gaze slightly, his expression unreadable. "You speak as if your version of order was anything more than a carefully balanced illusion. The weak suffer. The strong thrive. You simply chose to ensure that your strength remained dominant."
Bai Ren did not deny it. "That is the way of the world."
Shao Xian stepped forward, the sound of his footfalls barely audible, yet carrying an undeniable presence. "Then you will understand why I have no interest in maintaining the old ways."
Bai Ren's hands clenched. He knew resistance was futile, yet his mind raced, trying to calculate his position in this new order. "What do you intend to do?"
Shao Xian's gaze drifted over the city once more. "There will be no council of merchants, no hidden rulers, no invisible strings controlling the fate of the people. Those who obey will prosper. Those who resist will perish."
The simplicity of his words was terrifying.
There was no room for negotiation. No room for hidden deals or backroom agreements.
Only submission. Or death.
Bai Ren took a slow breath. His instincts screamed at him to flee, but there was nowhere to run. "And how do you intend to enforce such an order?"
Shao Xian turned to face him fully, his eyes like an abyss. "You will enforce it."
Bai Ren froze. "…What?"
Shao Xian took another step, until he stood directly before the man. "You understand the mechanisms of this city. You know its factions, its undercurrents, its hidden flows of wealth and power. You will use that knowledge to implement my will."
The words were absolute. There was no request, only command.
Bai Ren's mind spun. This was not simply a demand—it was a declaration of ownership. Shao Xian did not just claim the city. He claimed Bai Ren himself.
A chill ran down his spine.
Shao Xian reached out, his fingers resting lightly upon Bai Ren's forehead. The moment they touched, Bai Ren's entire body seized. His soul felt as though it were being pulled into an abyss, drowning in an ocean of unimaginable power.
Then, just as suddenly, it was over.
Bai Ren collapsed, gasping for air. His body trembled uncontrollably.
Shao Xian withdrew his hand. "Now, you will obey. Not because you fear me, but because your soul knows that resistance is meaningless."
Bai Ren's breathing steadied, but the fear in his eyes did not fade.
Because he knew it was true.
The thought of betrayal no longer existed in his mind—not because he had chosen loyalty, but because something far deeper, far more primal, had been altered within him.
He belonged to Shao Xian now.
Without another word, Shao Xian turned, walking away. "Begin the preparations. By sunrise, this city will know its new ruler."
Bai Ren bowed his head. "As you command."
---
The night passed swiftly.
By dawn, the city awoke to a world that had changed.
The banners of the Jade Pavilion had been removed, replaced with a single sigil—an unfamiliar mark, foreign yet undeniable in its authority. Word spread quickly. The Iron Fang Sect was gone. The merchant lords had vanished from public view. The enforcers of the old system had either sworn allegiance to the new rule or had been removed.
There was no announcement, no decree.
And yet, every soul in the city knew.
A new power had taken hold.
At the center of it all, in the grand hall of the Jade Pavilion, Shao Xian sat upon a throne that had not existed the night before.
The rulers of the past had preferred to govern from the shadows, hiding their influence behind wealth and diplomacy.
Shao Xian had no such need.
He ruled openly.
And none dared to challenge him.
Figures entered the hall, their heads bowed in submission. Sect representatives, influential merchants, rogue cultivators—those who once played their games of power in secret now stood before him, awaiting judgment.
Shao Xian's gaze swept over them. He could see their thoughts as clearly as if they had spoken them aloud. Some hoped to manipulate him, believing him to be another warlord who could be controlled with the right words. Others trembled, knowing that their past crimes would not be forgiven.
He leaned forward slightly. "You all understand why you are here."
A silence followed. No one dared to answer.
Shao Xian's voice remained calm. "The rules of the past are meaningless now. There is only one truth in this city."
His presence expanded.
The air thickened, pressing down upon them with an invisible weight.
"The weak do not deserve power."
The words struck deeper than any sword.
One of the sect representatives swallowed hard. "Then… what do you demand of us, my lord?"
Shao Xian's gaze did not waver. "Swear your loyalty. Not in words, but in action. Abandon the games of the past. Serve me, or be erased."
A choice was given.
But in reality, there was no choice at all.
One by one, they knelt. Some did so willingly, eager to align themselves with the new order. Others did so reluctantly, their minds calculating ways to survive.
Shao Xian watched them. He did not need their sincerity. He only needed their obedience.
For now.
The city was his. But this was merely the beginning.
His ambition did not end here.
This world had long forgotten him.
It was time for them to remember.