A thousand miles away, in a realm without a sun, the sky was a perpetual twilight of deep violet and crimson. Great, jagged mountains of obsidian pierced the sky, and rivers of liquid starlight flowed silently through valleys of black sand. This was the Underworld, the domain of the Asura Blood Emperor.
And it was in chaos.
In the great hall of the obsidian palace, a throne carved from a single, massive black diamond sat empty. On it, intricate carvings of battles and conquests seemed to twist and writhe in the dim light. Below the throne, two figures were locked in a heated argument.
One was a woman, tall and lithe, with hair the color of fresh blood and eyes like burning coals. She wore armor of polished bone and leather, and at her hip was a whip made of shadow and fire. This was Lady Xue, the Flame Viper General, Di Jun's most feared commander.
The other was a man, slender and elegant, dressed in robes of dark green silk. His face was pale and clever, his eyes always moving, calculating. He was Lord Gu, the Whispering Shadow, the palace's spymaster.
"He has been gone for ten cycles!" Xue's voice was a sharp crack, like a whip. "The celestial dogs must have him. Or worse."
"Do not be a fool, General," Gu said, his voice a smooth, silken hiss. "If the Celestial Realm had captured him, they would be parading his head through the golden streets. Their victory would be silent. No, something else has happened."
"Something else?" Xue snarled, her hand tightening on her whip. "Our lord is missing! The lesser lords are already whispering, testing the borders of their lands. They smell weakness. We must do something."
"And what would you have us do?" Gu asked, a faint, mocking smile on his lips. "Ride out with the armies and search the Six Realms? And leave the throne empty for the first ambitious snake to slither into it? No. We must be patient. We must be smart."
"Patient?" Xue laughed, a harsh, ugly sound. "Patience is for scholars and spies. I am a warrior. I am loyal. I will not sit here while our lord languishes in some celestial dungeon."
She turned and stormed out of the great hall, her fiery hair a stark contrast to the cold, dark stone. Gu watched her go, his smile fading. He was not patient. He was terrified. But he knew that panic was a luxury they could not afford. He walked to the foot of the empty throne and looked up at it.
"Where are you, my lord?" he whispered to the silent hall. "The Underworld cannot hold without its king."
In the heart of Hua Qian's village, life was trying to return to normal. The attack from the celestial soldiers was being explained away as a raid by bandits from the mountains, a story most people were willing to believe. But the fear lingered.
In the village square, a young man was setting up his stall. His name was Lin Bo, and he was the woodcarver's son. He was strong and kind, with a ready smile and hands that could turn a block of wood into anything you could imagine. He was also hopelessly in love with Hua Qian.
He had seen her that morning, walking with the retired general, Xiao Longwei. He had seen the worried look on her face, and it had made his own heart ache. He had wanted to go to her, to ask what was wrong, to offer to protect her. But he was just a simple woodcarver. What could he offer her that a celestial general could not?
He was just arranging a small row of carved birds when he saw her. She was walking towards the well, a bucket in her hand. She looked tired, her face pale. But she was still the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.
He took a deep breath and picked up the small object he had been working on for weeks. It was a crane, its wings spread as if ready for flight. He had carved it from the whitest, most fragrant sandalwood, and polished it until it shone. It was his masterpiece.
He hurried over to her, his heart pounding in his chest. "Qian'er," he said, his voice a little too loud.
She looked up, a small, tired smile on her face. "Lin Bo. Good morning."
"I… I saw you this morning," he stammered, his face turning red. "With General Xiao. I was… I was worried about you. After the… bandits."
"I am fine, Lin Bo. Thank you for asking," she said, her voice kind but distant.
He held out the carved crane. "I… I made this for you."
Hua Qian looked at the beautiful bird in his hand. It was a gift of pure, simple affection. A gift from a world she used to belong to, a world of simple kindnesses and quiet, predictable love. A world that now felt a million miles away.
She reached out to take it, her fingers brushing against his.
And in that moment, a wave of pure, unadulterated rage, cold and sharp as an icicle, slammed into her.
It was so sudden and so powerful it made her gasp and stumble back. She dropped the bucket, the water spilling onto the dusty ground. The carved crane fell from Lin Bo's hand and landed in the puddle.
"Qian'er! What is it? Are you alright?" Lin Bo asked, his face full of concern.
But she couldn't answer. She was clutching her chest, her breath coming in short, sharp gasps. It wasn't her anger. It was his. It was Di Jun. He was watching her from the window of the clinic, and he had seen her with Lin Bo. He had seen her accept the other man's gift, and a primal, possessive fury had erupted in his soul, a fury so cold it burned.
She could feel his every thought. Mine.
"Qian'er?" Lin Bo asked again, reaching out to steady her.
"Don't touch me!" she cried, pulling away from him as if his touch were poison.
She saw the hurt and confusion on his kind, simple face. But she couldn't explain. She couldn't tell him that her soul was bound to a monster, a monster who was jealous of a carved bird.
She turned and ran, leaving Lin Bo standing there, his heart broken, staring at the beautiful, ruined crane lying in the mud.
Hua Qian ran back to the clinic, her own heart a chaos of guilt and fear. She burst through the door to find Di Jun standing by the window, his hands clenched into fists, his golden eye blazing with a fire that could consume worlds.
He had felt her with another man. And the king had just marked his territory.