The Shadow Hall.
A name whispered in the deepest, darkest corners of the Tian Yuan Empire, a place where the sun never shines and mercy is a concept long since rendered extinct.
It was a realm of shadows within shadows, a hidden pocket dimension where the laws of the empire held no sway.
Here, in a chamber that seemed to exist at the very edge of the void, Fairy Liu Ruyan was suspended in mid-air.
The sight was horrific.
She was crucified upon a pillar of obsidian that glowed with a pulsating, malevolent red light, with the heat radiating from the pillar was enough to melt common steel, designed to slowly char the spiritual essence of a cultivator until only a husk remained.
Yet, as the heat licked at her translucent skin, Liu Ruyan seemed strangely detached.
Her head hung low, her eyes glazed and staring blankly into the empty space beneath her, her breathing shallow but steady.
