The light of dawn in the Xinyue Imperial Palace was a soft glow, yet it was weighted with a silence.
Princess Xinyue Mei perched on a stone bench in the private garden near the inner courtyard of the palace, and her thoughts were as complex as the ivy that crawled up the ancient walls.
She received a message today, one that would stir her heart to responses she was not ready to speak aloud.
In a low voice over a safe talisman, Xian had informed her of the devastating events that had taken place in the secret lab of the Su Clan.
For over two agonizing years, that secret laboratory had been the setting for unlawful experiments—experiments that aimed to distort the very fabric of life and Qi, all in the name of unbridled ambition.
But in its last stage, when the culmination of the experiments promised to unleash uncontrollable power, everything had collapsed.
All the research papers, the evidence of the corrupted ambition of the clan, were gone in flames.
The lab was destroyed, and with it, the illustrious Su Clan was reduced to its knees by the tireless work of their young guide—Su Vaen.
When Princess Xinyue Mei learned, her countenance shifted from initial shock to a layered combination of resignation and apprehension.
This was merely a minor obstacle to the Xinyue Imperial Clan—a single fiber in the vast brocade of their empire's limitless conquests.
To her, however, it was different. The news struck deep, not only because of the inherent cruelty that had been exposed but also because it signified a personal transformation.
The man who had once been merely a silent guardian in the shadows had emerged as a force powerful enough to dismantle his own clan's dark ambitions.
In the quiet solitude of the garden, Mei's mind churned with conflicting emotions. A part of her felt relief that the corruption of the Su Clan was finally severed at its roots.
The illicit research, the cruel sacrifices—all of it was now ashes, destroyed by the one hand they had long discounted.
But a more personal, more vulnerable part of her felt concerned. How was Vaen now?
The weight of what he has done must be holding him back, and the sight of him fighting alone against it stirred something in her that was half pride and half concern.
Her almond eyes, usually so tranquil and authoritative, now flashed with a trace of melancholy.
She exhaled slowly, letting out a sigh that had the density of a thousand unspoken words.
"How are you, Vaen? What has been the price of this reckoning?" she wondered in silence, her heart burdened with the depth of her feelings.
For Mei, losing the laboratory was simply a tactical loss.
In the grand game of the empire, the breakdown of the Su Clan could be written off as a mere blip, a speed bump on the endless parade of progress.
The Xinyue Imperial Clan, its deep history and its relentless ambition, would certainly bounce back and thrive.
But to Mei, who had been taught of honor and the delicate heritage of her forebears, this loss was profoundly personal.
She thought of Vaen—of the way he had taken the road to his own people's downfall.
A part of her was wanting him now, wanting to stretch out and see what quiet pain lay behind the resolve in his eyes.
And yet, she knew, that path was for him to take—the lonely path cut from loss and endless travel to a tomorrow where he might find an end to their histories.
With one final, lingering breath, Princess Xinyue Mei rose up from the bench. The soft rustle of her flowing garments mingled with the whispering wind as she was about to face the day.
Her heart, burdened with worry and hope, was now set on finding answers.
The discovery of the ruined laboratory, the shattered Su Clan heritage, and the resolute Su Vaen.
For the good of the empire and for the people's sake—those who had suffered quietly—she understood that there was to be some accounting.
But now, peering out at the distant horizon where the sun burst over the palace of the emperor, she whispered to herself,
"May your heart remain strong, Vaen. May you cling to the light within this darkness, even when you walk the road of shadows."
And with that, Princess Xinyue Mei departed the peaceful haven of the garden.
Amidst the ruins of corruption and pain of sacrifice, a new moon and sun would dawn on the mortal realm.