Of all the Nine Provinces, none surpassed Lizhou in prosperity.

Thirty-six prefectures under its administration, every one of them stable and secure.

At its eastern edge stood an unremarkable little mountain, but the ordinary township at its foot was no less flourishing than Lizhou City itself.

The people passing through all carried formidable presences.

Sellers of rare medicines. Men hauling demon carcasses over their shoulders. It had the unmistakable look of a settlement built by and for martial cultivators.

Lizhou's Implement Sect.

In raw strength, perhaps not the very pinnacle — but when it came to wealth, its name was known across Great Qian.

Supplying treasure artifacts to the War Temple as tribute meant the court's protection, and virtually no one dared pick a quarrel with them.

And yet.

Right now, at the mountain's peak, on the edge of a deliberately carved hollow, a small thatched cottage sat quietly.

Outside it, an old man and a middle-aged man were engaged in a game of chess.

"The Sect Master's mind doesn't seem to be on the board." The middle-aged man had a pale, beardless face with phoenix-shaped eyes. Though he wore a pale blue long robe and carried an almost ethereal air, something faintly off-putting seeped through all the same.

"One always worries a little when a treasure is in the process of advancing in grade. A jest from the Perfected Master." Lin Jingyi forced a somewhat strained smile.

"Oh?"

Perfected Master Hu glanced toward the hollow where pale smoke drifted thickly, and said with an air of amusement, "The treasure is right here, and yet the Sect Master's thoughts are somewhere to the north..."

He drew out the syllables. "That appears to be the direction of Great Qian's imperial capital."

At those words, the tip of Lin Jingyi's finger trembled. The chess piece in his hand clattered down onto the board, spinning in a small circle.

He adjusted his expression quickly. "The Perfected Master is having fun with me."

Perfected Master Hu gave a noncommittal smile. "Well, I'm feeling a touch tired today. Sect Master, you should rest as well."