Time/Date: TC1853.01.20 – Evening
Location: Imperial Palace, Throne Room (sealed)
"Twenty-five thousand?" Tianrong's eyebrows rose. He hadn't realized so many people in the lower districts had such strong talents.
"Yes." Patriarch Lin seized the opportunity to explain, to turn vulnerability into value. "We initially didn't understand it, but about fifty years ago, we noticed an increase in bloodline activity in the lower districts. It wasn't until the first anomaly was discovered, and the secluded Sanctum sects informed us of the Sundering, that we realized spiritual energy had been gradually increasing for years—maybe even decades—before the so-called first anomaly was detected."
His voice carried the weight of revelation.
"The increase was so gradual that no one noticed. We should've realized something when our younger generations found cultivating much easier, but this was always put down to bloodlines strengthening."
