The ash of the Sacred Lotus Sect had barely cooled when the skies rippled.
A single ray of golden light pierced the clouds, descending like the blade of judgment.
Where it touched earth, the ground cracked, and flowers wilted in silence.
> "Heaven's response has come," Liu Shen murmured, standing atop Blackglass Ravine's highest peak.
"Faster than expected."
---
He Who Wears Chains
The ray of light coalesced into a man.
Clad in radiant armor forged from oathsteel and divine marrow, he wore no helmet—only a silver blindfold across his eyes. Chains hung from his wrists, each inscribed with Laws of Karma, Causality, and Silence.
His voice echoed across the land.
> "I am Judge Tianzhao, Arbiter of Order, Executor of Heaven's Law."
> "By decree of the Celestial Tribunal, the one named Liu Shen, known as the Demon Sovereign, is summoned to divine trial."
He raised a hand. A scroll unraveled, glowing with holy decree.
> "Resisting this summons is a declaration of war."
---
Shadows Whisper
Inside the Sect, panic flickered. New disciples whispered of divine wrath. Some looked at Liu Shen, fear rising in their hearts.
> "Can we even fight such power?"
"He's bound by law—unchallenged by sects for centuries."
"They'll erase us all."
Liu Shen didn't move.
> "Let them try."
Yu Meixing placed a hand on his shoulder.
> "We'll stand with you."
He looked down at his Sect—the lost, the cast out, the broken made whole.
> "Then let the heavens see what defiance looks like."
---
Court of Flame and Shadow
That night, Liu Shen summoned the inner circle.
A mirror of flames hovered above the ravine, showing Tianzhao's movements.
> "He hasn't stepped inside," Lei Qing noted. "He waits for me to answer."
> "Because he's bound," Liu Shen replied. "The Laws say he must summon first. If I respond, the trial is his. If I deny, he's permitted to judge by force."
> "Then what's the plan?" Yu Meixing asked.
Liu Shen smiled.
> "We force the trial on our terms."
---
Forging the Demon's Decree
Using the blood of the Shadow Sect's founding vows, Liu Shen crafted a response—twisted through karmic fire, soul-forged ink, and divine loopholes he learned in his previous life.
He sent it into the sky.
> "The accused accepts the Celestial Trial," it read.
"But only on neutral grounds, under sovereign witness, with equal judgment and evidence."
The decree sealed with one final line:
> "I am no longer heaven's slave. Let your Judge walk among us—and bleed."
---
Tianzhao's First Step
As the scroll vanished into light, Tianzhao took one step forward.
The earth trembled.
Somewhere above the sky, the celestial tribunal paused.
For the first time in centuries, a mortal had answered their summons…
on his own terms.