[VOLUME 14: THE SHATTERED HEAVENS][ARC 4: THE HEAVENLY COURT & THE CONVERGENCE]
The silence in the Grand Hall was no longer reverent. It was suffocating.
Elara's words hung in the pristine air, a violet blade pressing against the throat of the Heavenly Expanse's flawless illusion. The platinum-sashed noble—Lord Valerius—stared at her, his lips parted in genuine, unscripted shock.
For a mortal to speak to a High Celestial was heresy. For a mortal to threaten one within the Emperor's own hall was supposed to be a death sentence.
Valerius looked past Elara, his icy blue eyes pleading with his Emperor to strike this arrogant creature down.
Instead, Li moved.
He bypassed Valerius entirely, not even gracing the High Celestial with a glance. Li's hand slid from Elara's lower back to entwine his long, elegant fingers with hers. He led her up the final steps of the dais.
At the pinnacle sat a single, towering throne of blinding, forged sunlight. It was a seat meant for one.
