The first to be brought into the sacred hall was an empty scroll.
It lay on the table like a quiet challenge, awaiting the will of those gathered.
After hours of whispered counsel and sharp debate, a single ceremony was inscribed upon it
its steps precise, its intent unshakable.
This was the Great Rite of the Spirit Beast's Meeting.
---
According to the rite:
1. Confiscation of weapons.... To have deep respect for the spirit beast and build a trusting relationship with them.
2. The Peach Blossom Meditation .....performed within the Peach Blossom Academy to still both mind and soul.
3. The Elemental Awakening .... the identification of one's most active element among the Five.
4. The Spirit Choice .....the summoning of the sacred beast aligned to that element, chosen through the five divided fragments of the Golden Scripture.
5. Deep meditation with your spirit beast in the grassy meadows nestled among the sandalwood forests
When the last word was written, the meeting was dissolved.
What remained… was the work itself.
---
In the sealed sacred library of Peach Blossom Academy, the ritual began.
For 180 days, the chants did not stop.
Day and night, the five beasts and their elemental affinities were called and bound.
Each fragment of the Golden Scripture was sealed with spells only the pure of blood could awaken.
The scripture itself was no dead relic....it was a living soul.
It could see what surrounded it.
It could hear the whispers of the heart.
And it would burn any dark spirit that dared to approach.
The rite was made public.....
a shield against treachery.
A wicked soul could not hide from the scripture's cleansing flame.
---
At last, the division was done.
Five golden tomes now glowed within the library, each alive with its element.
Breaths were released.
Shoulders eased.
Sorrow still coiled in their hearts,
but for the first time since the tragedy,
a sliver of hope shone.
The tomes' light turned the library into a hall of heaven,
while the sinking sun outside bathed the world in molten gold.
The wind was cool.
Leaves fell in lazy spirals.
It was, for a fleeting moment, peace.
---
But peace does not last.
The tomes were taken to the Five Elemental Caves.....
each a masterpiece of nature and spirit:
Water .... silver waterfalls, swan-filled pools, and sacred rivers that murmured eternal prayers.
Fire ..... volcanic soil blooming with heat-born fruits and herbs, steaming springs, and fields warm with life.
Air ... wildflower plains under clear skies, peaks crowned with pure winds carrying the scent of souls.
Earth .... a paradise of every form of life: rivers, mountains, rainforests, and meadows in perfect harmony.
Sky .... a cave lit by night's splendor, where fireflies danced with starlight and moonlit flowers glowed in colors beyond mortal naming.
Each tome was enthroned within its element.
Each was safe.
Or so it seemed.
---
For beauty and safety ended at the edge of the sacred valleys.
Beyond them, the old weight returned.
The faces that had moments ago basked in wonder were once again clouded in grief.
The wound was fresh...
the two great Kings murdered,
countless innocents lost.
And now, the latest reports cut even deeper:
The Liuguang Sect Academy…
wiped out.
Every student dead.
The streets of the market lay carpeted with corpses.
Homes stood silent, emptied of life.
The Ming Jing Men Sect had struck in secret,
slaughtering while the armies were away at war.
The common folk had no chance to defend themselves.
And so…
steps marched toward Liuguang Sect lands.
Unstoppable.
Inevitable.
Yet what waited ahead…
was worse than any tragedy they had known.