Silence haunted the clan hall. The grey walls formed a box that caged him. Few people had the luxury to be prisoners in their own home. He had won the unlikely gamble.
The Patriarch had not moved since the elders left. In that vein, Mo Lin had not been dismissed either.
Standing tall like a statue humiliated him more than the whips ever would. At least then it was retribution. Now he was a daisy chain or a glass vase.
Movement followed the Patriarch after all the waiting. The man's indispensable breath escaped with an audible whisper. Intentional. In that moment, he had an inkling of what weight pressed against him.
"Your suggestion was commendable. It is rare that public discipline yields such immediate utility," the Patriarch spoke. His voice was steady, lacking the forced softness of a parent and instead carrying the weighted clarity of a commander.
It was a tone that did not seek to comfort. It was the equivalent of looking at the deep navy blanket littered with stars stretching across the horizon and recognizing the cold void between them. Harsh reality. Controlled delivery. Mo Lin would not be lulled by it.
Respect demanded he did not lash out, even if the fiery pits of his heart fumed with choking rage. Stillness encompassed him.
"Thank you for noticing, Patriarch. I am merely trying my best to be useful for the clan," Mo Lin answered, undoubtedly with his grievances lacing each word, even though he fought to keep his tone monotone.
The Patriarch shifted as if to look behind him. Something stopped him, though. A calculated distance, perhaps.
"The Lui Clan will send a distinguished Elder before the clock strikes twelve. We have navigated shared waters in the past, and this situation will require a similar pragmatism," the Patriarch continued. "What is your assessment of their intent? Why do they reach out now, while the Su Clan remains silent?"
Mo Lin chewed the questions with delicate thought. The Lui Clan proved themselves to be pragmatic on most occasions.
Distributing risk in order to gain a quantifiable reward was their most likely approach. The Su lay in bed with the Meng Clan, whose influence rivaled that of the three. Seeking an alliance with the Su Clan would yield little reward for maximum risk.
"Risk management. My fledglings have managed to confirm a few rumors. One, Meng Zhang is courting Su Ying," Mo Lin said. "If I can gain that information, so will the Lui Clan. Two, it is common knowledge that the Lui Clan ancestor reached the Qi Condensation Realm before ours. That momentum served them well initially, but without a further breakthrough, it has become an anchor. They are drifting. Better the devil you know than the god you do not understand."
A light, crisp knock on the vault doors of the clan hall silenced their discussion. Air shifted at the sound of heavy footsteps creaking the wooden floorboards. Mo Clan members never entered with such noise.
"Enter," the Patriarch spoke. The command was quiet, yet it carried an absolute gravity that anchored the room.
The vault doors ground to a noisy open that broke the haunt of the dull grey walls that oppressed more than welcomed. Two clan guards stepped through first, bowed to the Patriarch's dais, and ushered their guest. Mo Lin had one word: flamboyant.
Their guest stepped through with a confidence born of long experience rather than mere bravado. He wore a dark red set of robes that had more in common with clotted blood than the wild red ginseng that grew in the Lui Clan's territory. Every bit of the room's aura bent to him, raising the frigid temperature that clung to everything like frost a few notches.
Unmistakable.
This was Elder Lui Shenghui. He had a bulbous nose, thick freckles below the left eye, a black mole below the left lip corner, and the scent of cured cement bonded like glue to his shriveled frame. Shriveled, yes. Beastly, too.
He moved with the terrifying efficiency of a statesman who understood that rules were the only thing preventing a massacre. In two bounds, his foot pressed the edge of the dais. The long, narrow table had been moved more than an hour ago.
Elder Lui Shenghui bowed with a precision that bordered on a challenge. He was tilted at a forty-degree angle instead of the standard forty-five, molding left hand over right instead of the vice versa. It was a subtle assertion of standing. The Patriarch remained unperturbed. He knew the value of silence in the face of posturing.
The Elder did not waste breath on trivialities. He reached into his sleeve and pulled out a white ornamental box with gold salamander claws clasping it shut. Only the Imperial Clan could use dragon symbols; salamanders were the substitute. Whatever was in the box was of utmost importance.
Presenting it with both hands, he waited. The next occurrence stripped the color from Elder Lui Shenghui's face. The air vibrated. Thick red hardened like blood exposed to oxygen and grabbed the box. The elder's eyes dilated, a deep-seated fear sinking into his chest. Mo Lin's spine crawled, cracking the thick scabs that sewed his back wounds. External Qi solidified; the Dragon Gate was near.
The box levitated into the Patriarch's rough hands. Elder Lui Shenghui stepped back, his movements now careful and deliberate. Both of them understood the significance of the levitation. The Patriarch was one step away from breaking his mortal coils and becoming a full-fledged Qi Condensation expert. The elder seemed to age in the silence, his composure shifting from confidence to the stark realization of a shift in the regional balance. He gulped.
Mo Lin held back a hiss.
"My son suggests your presence tonight is a calculated move to offset the Su. I find myself wondering if your entrance matches the sincerity of your Patriarch's intent," the Patriarch's voice was cold, devoid of the earlier warmth.
"My entrance was merely the haste of a man carrying a heavy burden, Lord Mo," Elder Lui Shenghui said. His voice was gravelly but held a new, forced respect.
Although not a drop of sweat was visible, Mo Lin smelled the sudden tension on the elder's shriveled frame.
"Haste can be mistaken for disrespect. Let us see if the contents justify the intrusion," the Patriarch said as he unclasped the claws.
The light, crisp sound rang like an alarm within the silent hall. Wood creaked and the contents dilated, diverting blood to Mo Lin's cheeks. It was the scroll with the bloody aura Elder Chang had presented earlier.
"What is this?"
"The Patriarch sends a message. Roses, while pretty, hide thorns, but even then they need roots. A rose bed is more resilient than a single bloom. Before winter arrives, we have sent coal to ensure the fires do not go out," Elder Lui Shenghui said, regaining a measure of his diplomatic poise.
"So, a temporary alliance?" Mo Lin spoke. He kept his voice steady, though the question was a sharp probe to confirm the depth of the Lui's fear.
Elder Lui Shenghui turned his gaze toward Mo Lin, acknowledging the boy's place in the room with a brief, sharp nod.
"The Su Clan and the Meng Clan h
ave solidified their goals. The Shrine has provided them a common cause. We have confirmed that the Meng and Su have already dispatched riders to the Meng Clan's seat of power in Onyx-Reach City. They have laid a path that ensures information reaches the Governor's office in thirty-six hours," Elder Lui Shenghui said. "Luck allowed us to intercept the movement. You can expect a surveyor from the Governor's Mansion within two days. At most."
"And you seek the Mo Clan as a bulwark against the coming storm," the Patriarch said. "Inform your Patriarch that I intend to hunt tomorrow. We shall discuss the terms of this 'coal' then."
The two clan guards hovering at the door took that as their cue. They approached and waited for the elder to regain his bearings before ushering him out. Everything returned to what it was, except for the silence that remained taut like a plucked guitar string. Letting go would send a roaring vibration.
"Did the exchange meet your expectations?"
Mo Lin scrambled to find an answer, surprised by the directness of the prompt. He ensured his throat did not betray his fluctuating emotions before saying, "The Lui have realized their ceiling. When the head of a house reaches its limit, the members look for any shade to hide under. It explains why they would part with such an asset."
"You are right about one thing. The situation has changed. The first to breakthrough will redefine the chessboard."l