Starlight filters through the streaks of grey clouds, highlighting the mountain's peak with the quiet shine of Late Hour.
Union Settlement's peak...
A monastery of dark blue and brown aesthetics sits atop the peak, and a sagely, old man stands alone in the front courtyard.
His blue robes fluttered lightly in the wind, as did his white, straw-like hair.
"Forgive me for making you wait so long, Exalted Union."
Descending before the old man was a woman of equal status to his own.
Her black and crimson robes were striking and questionable, but their unnatural stillness would make her presence very peculiar.
While this woman's skin was fair and her appearance modestly beautiful, there were black marks streaked across her right arm, up her collarbone, and across her neck.
"That must be from the battle..."
There was a solemn look in the old man's—Immortal Union's—eyes.
"It is fine. These wounds will heal in due time. You are not injured, are you?"
"No, no... I seemed to have gotten off quite easily."
As she touched down, the monastery's ground seemed to tremble faintly, but it was not for long.
"This is the first time I've set foot in another Immortal's Monastery. This is quite a rare occurrence, isn't it?"
"Indeed. Normally, one might say that this is a valuable experience, but due to the situation at hand, I can not show you around."
"I understand. I would not hold it against you."
"Let me serve you some tea, at the very least. The night is fairly late, so let us not waste too much time."
Immortal Union led this woman—the illustrious Immortal Adamant—towards the inner court of his monastery, and towards a pavilion of blue and brown aesthetic.
"I must thank you for answering such an abrupt call to action, and for aiding in the repelling of those Demons."
"It is fine. At the call of a senior, Union himself, no less, anyone would be moved."
"I, myself, feel moved to hear that." Chuckling lightly, Union recalled the ruination of Star Gazing Settlement, "I regret that I was not able to reach Friend Defiance in time... It is a great failure on my behalf."
"That is true, but do not let yourself fall to your knees, for we can always avenge Defiance another night."
"Indeed... that, and the survivors of his fallen Settlement are now in my protection... protecting them is the least that I can do for him." He sighed lightly.
Under the dim starlight, the atmosphere was especially melancholic. Immortal Adamant tried steering the mood with an inquiry,
"How has the annexing process been so far? I hear Defiance had a daughter. Is she a Cultivator, an Immortal Seed, perhaps...?
"Have you taken her under your arm?"
"The annexing process is going smoothly, and the people seem to have recovered quite quickly. As for Liming Zi... She is an Immortal Seed, two steps into the 2nd Realm, but I have not taken her under my arm."
"2nd Realm... pardon my words, but that is still quite the treasure to have earned. Are you sure you don't want to take her into your Settlement?"
"You could say so... She takes a lot from her Father. Surely you are not coveting her, right? Did you not take one of the survivors for yourself? A girl, no?"
"Ah, I have. She's but a mortal, at the moment, but I think she will make for a fine Immortal Seed. Her demeanour seems more in my favour, too."
"Demeanour, huh..."
"Indeed. There was another reason why I had chosen her; other than that, I believe she'd be my most compatible candidate for an Immortal Seed.
"In other words, I do not intend to take this Liming Zi for my own."
"Is that so? I've heard whispers of the situation at your Settlement. I hope the situation at Great River Bank Settlement can pass over smoothly."
"I appreciate your kind words, Senior. Setting aside my Settlement's affairs, therein lies the concern of every Immortal in the Western Region."
Immortal Union nodded as Immortal Adamant continued.
With a wave of her hand, wisps of white light were conjured and coalesced into two figures.
One faded to a charred black and violent crimson, while the other was dyed a pale blue-grey.
"My encounter with the Demons was my first, but their strength was truly beyond my expectations."
Gesturing to the two figures, Adamant recalled the two's disastrous power,
"One can flood entire mountains with fog, and the other wields flames as intense as the Fire of Yin; that, and their cruelty is second to none. They are truly worthy of their title, 'Demons'."
"To put a name to them... By my experience with the fog, Confusion befits this one...," Immortal Union spoke as he pointed to the figure of blue-grey skin,
"The other is no less than even the fiercest of calamities, so Calamity will do," Immortal Adamant gave her opinion while looking at the Demon of charred skin.
"Demon of Confusion and Demon of Calamity... truly fitting. While the latter seems to have fled and gone missing, the former remains within the area that was once Defiance's territory."
Immortal Union remarked, waving her hands and dispelling the figure representing the Demon of Calamity.
"However, while the Demon of Confusion shows no movement, it would be a rash idea to charge in without a plan."
Conveying so, Immortal Adamant quietly dispelled the remaining figure's visage with a wave of her hand.
The table between them, the Demon's conjured figures were gone, but the idea of them still weighed heavily on the two Immortals' minds.
"What do you suggest we do, Senior Union? As the oldest and one of the more experienced of the West, your words will not go unheard..."
She inquired expectantly, Adamant's gaze was reciprocated with a soft sigh,
"We will not make a move until more Immortals are capable and active; however, we will keep a watchful eye on the Demon of Confusion's... newly usurped territory. As for the missing Demon of Calamity..."
"It fled to the southern direction from the initial site, Star Gazing Settlement. I had already notified the Immortals in the area."
"Then we can only wait..."
...