A gathering of twelve... and the burden of legacy.
---
Within the sacred inner hall of the Academy,
a space designed with the utmost care...
soft white and pale pink drapes veiled the tall stone walls,
draping like moonlight over sacred scrolls and ancient weapon mounts.
A massive stone table dominated the center of the hall.
Four sealed windows.....covered with divine incantations.....
kept even the wind from eavesdropping.
This was a place where fate would be rewritten.
Inside were only twelve people.
The most trusted, the most wise.....
those few elders from the Linyan Clan,
Fuzi Xion Clan,
and the broken yet surviving Xuemo Sect.
Among them were the two newly appointed Grandmasters:
Bao Fang and Yun Zhi.
Their presence alone was enough to still the room.
Why wouldn't it be?
They were among the twenty personal disciples of the late Supreme King Mo Yan....
not just loyal to him, but venerated across the region
as paragons of virtue and strength.
---
Today, under this heavily protected sanctum,
decisions were to be made.
Decisions that would shape the path forward.
Decisions cloaked in both fire and frost.
Grandmaster Bao Fang stepped forward.
In his arms, wrapped in a silken black cloth,
was something most sacred....
The living crown of King Yu Sui.....
the Black Heaven King.
He placed it on the table with reverence.
It pulsed faintly.....quiet, but very much alive.
Today's meeting included representatives from the noble Longxin family.
Bao Fang spoke, his voice low, calm, but heavy with burden:
"His age may have been young,
but thay passed through a trial
that could make even stone weep.
He was the strongest.....not just in body,
but in heart."
A pause.
He glanced at the crown.
"We cannot deny that within this crown....
lies a cursed, living soul.
We do not possess enough spiritual force
to guard it properly anymore."
A silence swept the room.
Eyes turned toward the crown....some with awe, others with fear.
Bao Fang continued:
"And thus, today, with full honor and respect,
we entrust this sacred artifact
to the Hei Lin San Sect.....
the Sect of Cold Wind and Dangerous Beauty."
There was a slight movement in the shadows.
Two figures stepped forward.....
Master San Zee Wei and Master Huzi Ziang.....
long-time leaders of the Hei Lin San Sect
and respected heads of the Longxin bloodline.
Bao Fang bowed deeply.
Then, with his own hands, he passed the crown to them.
A crown that once graced a ruler's brow.....
now sealed under the guardianship of ice and shadow.
---
But the gathering was far from over.
Grandmaster Yun Zhi rose to speak next.
He bowed, the motion elegant and filled with sorrow.
Then he said:
"Today… we also mark a beginning.
One of preservation.
One of protection."
He looked at everyone present.
"We are going to divide the sacred Golden Scripture...
into five parts."
Gasps broke the silence.
The Golden Scripture,
the single most sacred relic
containing the teachings, techniques, and spiritual prophecy
of the Xuemo Sect.
To divide it....
was an act of both trust and desperation.
---
But Yun Zhi was not done.
He would explain.
He would justify.
And he would protect it.
Because legacies weren't meant to be buried.....
They were meant to rise again.