The skeletal figure hauled itself fully out of the abyss, its bones gleaming like polished jade under the dim light. Its hollow eye sockets burned with twin embers of blue fire, and as it straightened, the very space around it warped, as if struggling to contain its presence.
"You recognize me, little ghost?" The skeleton's voice was dry, like wind scraping across ancient stone. Its gaze flicked to Tang Wei.
Tang Wei's form rippled as he responded. "You are one of the Door Gods of the Central Chamber—a protector of the Grand Palace's innermost sanctum… Are you Lu Xingzhi?"
The skeleton chuckled, the sound like cracking bones. "Correct. I am Lu Xingzhi, the Watcher of the Origin."
A murmur of terror spread through the remaining survivors. Even Jian Kun and Lan Huiqian paled—Lu Xingzhi was a name recorded in the oldest scriptures, a being who had once stood at the apex of the cosmos.
Yet Yun Lintian remained unmoved.
