The airship's deck vibrated with restrained power, qi formations humming like a distant storm as Elder Feng Lianhua led us aboard.
Her presence was a wall of ice, but the disciples scattered across the platform—young cultivators in pristine sect robes, their faces etched with arrogance—didn't share her composure.
Whispers erupted the moment we stepped on, a ripple of confusion turning into outright protest.
A burly disciple with a scarred cheek was the first to speak up, bowing shallowly to Feng but glaring at me like I'd spat in his soup. "Elder, this is madness! These intruders—one's a withered old fool claiming to be the dead emperor, and the others look like common rabble. Our ship is sacred sect property. Why sully it with them?"
Another joined in, a wiry woman with twin swords at her hips, her voice sharp as her blades. "Agreed! We've got protocols. If word gets back to the inner elders, we'll all face punishment. Let us handle them—throw them off now!"
