Chapter 2 – An Auspicious Birth

  The Radiant Empress, a Grand Elder of the Radiant Heaven Sect, was pregnant.

  The news struck the Radiant Heaven Sect like a bolt of divine lightning. At first, it was only a whisper that passed between two disciples at dawn while they were training in the southern courtyard. It was a rumour too fantastical to believe, and neither gave it any weight.

  The Radiant Empress was a legendary figure in the Dao Seeking Realm. How could such a powerful cultivator have a child?

  But by midday, the whisper had become a storm. Word swept like wildfire through the mountain peaks, from the glittering Jade Hall of Disciples to the scroll-laden Pavilion of Heavenly Decrees. Elders paused their cultivation sessions, Peak Masters gathered together with furrowed brows, and Outer Disciples abandoned their chores mid-task to repeat what they had heard.

  Every courtyard, every hall, every floating pagoda or palace buzzed with speculation, reverence and disbelief.

  The Radiant Empress was known to be peerless in beauty and terrifying in power. She was untouched by mortal attachments, and her life had been one of service to the Dao and the sect. That she, of all cultivators, would carry a child was not just surprising, it was earth-shaking.

  What kind of infant, what heaven-blessed Dao Child, would be born by such a person?

  If there was any doubt about the child’s impeccable pedigree, they were put to rest as the world itself seemed to recognize the coming of a baby that was not merely born of mortal cultivators but woven from destiny and divinity.

  At first, the signs were subtle. A gentle golden glow began to suffuse the skies above the Radiant Heaven Sect, like sunlight filtered through sacred jade. Flowers bloomed along the mountain paths overnight, as did celestial Lotuses, Sun Orchids, and Spirit Lilies, all of which pulsed strongly with Qi.

  But as the weeks passed, the signs grew stronger. The sky began to shimmer with strange and wonderous phenomena.

  At midday, when the sun hung high, the horizon flushed a deep and regal violet. The Elders declared it a hue of Emperors and divined the coming of cosmic change. It cast a haunting, majestic light across the entire world, and even the most seasoned cultivators paused to take notice.

  Then came the golden shapes in the sky above the sect.

  They were vast, shimmering outlines that loomed over the sect’s highest peaks and were visible to cultivators across the continent. Sacred palaces formed towering silhouettes of divine architecture, their angles too perfect and too ethereal to be mortal constructs.

  The sound of celestial bells could be heard echoing in the wind, announcing the coming of birth.

  Divine beasts began to appear in the skies, their outlines sculpted from light and Qi. Golden Qilini galloped through the clouds, a Vermillion Pheonix wheeled overhead, an Azure Dragon curled itself above the sect’s Fathomless Lake, breathing mist that turned the waters luminous for days.

  Cultivators meditating during this time found their Qi flowing more smoothly, their breakthroughs coming faster. The dreams of Elders were filled with prophecy, and children born during the Radiant Empress’s pregnancy bore natural affinities for cultivation and would go on to be talented individuals unlike any seen in generations.

  The Sect Elders said very little about the pregnancy, but the reverence in their eyes was unmistakable. These were not mere omens; they were proclamations from the heavens.

  Other Sects made the trek to the Radiant Heaven Sect to pay their respects and witness the signs firsthand. Connections made now with this new Dao Child would be important for their futures, and no one was willing to miss the opportunity.

  Gifts were brought to the foot of the mountain that belonged to the Radiant Empress, and celebrations were held each day.

  However, not everyone was happy with the impending birth and the almost certain hegemony of the Radiant Heaven Sect and the Orthodox cultivators.

  Deep within a corrupted mountain range, far from the reach of sunlight and righteousness, a gathering of demonic cultivators met in secret. They convened in the Cavern of Withered Tongues, a hollowed-out, cursed wound in the earth where the stone walls bled black ichor and the air stank of decay and sulphur.

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  This mountain range was home to many demonic cultivators, and none wished to see the birth of a Dao Child. The demonic sects met to discuss the coming crisis and how to best extinguish this new threat.

  Page Break

  The Radiant Empress sat alone in her cultivation chamber on the highest peak of the Radiant Heaven Sect. Her palace, the Jade Aurora Pavilion, was carved from luminous white stone veined with gold and had floating rings of starlight that turned slowly in the air like celestial halos.

  She sat cross-legged on a jade cultivation mat, her long robes were pure white and luminous blue that flowed around her like a waterfall of moonlight. A soft, golden aura emanated from her skin, a result of the child growing in her belly.

  The Radiant Empress was unspeakably beautiful; her features were refined to divine perfection, and her eyes were polished onyx, her lips were bright red, and her long, black hair cascaded down her shoulders and back in silken waves.

  But the most striking feature was her pregnancy. A rounded belly was visible beneath her flowing robes, radiant with a soft inner light. Her unborn child carried within it a spark that the heavens had acknowledged. It was fate-woven and destiny-born.

  This late in her pregnancy, golden clouds continuously circled overhead, and the sky shimmered with divine light. Her cultivation was calm and untroubled, her progression through the Dao Seeking realm was smooth, and she knew that it was the result of her child’s blessings.

  For months, she was unmoved, until at the very end of her pregnancy, she suddenly stood up from her cultivation mat and disappeared in a flash of light.

  The Radiant Heaven Sect trembled as a cataclysmic force descended upon it. The sky, once serene, darkened with ominous clouds as a horde of demonic cultivators surged out of a rift created by their Sect leaders.

  Their numbers blotted out the horizon, and at their forefront stood a figure of dread and power. Ancestor Blood Moon, a Dao Seeking realm expert whose very presence exuded Malevolence.

  Blood Moon was a towering figure and his form was draped in robes woven from shadows. His eyes glowed with crimson light, and his skin bore the markings of countless forbidden and unorthodox cultivation techniques. A crown of twisted horns adorned his head, and wings of dark flames spread behind him.

  With a single gesture, Ancestor Blood Moon unleashed a torrent of dark energy upon the sect’s protective formation. The ground shook, and the air seemed to scream in agony. Disciples of the Radiant Heaven Sect stumbled and their hearts were gripped by an unfamiliar fear. The once-impenetrable barriers shimmered under the assault, their light flickering as they strained to hold back the onslaught.

  High above the Radiant Heaven Sect, the sky was ablaze with golden light as the Radiant Empress descended from her palace, her presence exuding serenity and overwhelming power. Her flowing robes shimmered with celestial energy, and her eyes held calm determination.

  “Radiant Empress, your child’s birth threatens the balance of power on our continent. I cannot allow this to happen. The Unorthodox sects will never be destroyed!” Blood Moon shouted, and his voice shook the world around them.

  “You overestimate your abilities, Blood Moon. My child is destined to bring harmony to this world, and you demonic cultivators will be the first to fall.” The Radiant Empress responded, her voice cold and self-assured.

  They were both Dao Seeking realm experts, but Blood Moon was still in the initial stages while Radiant Empress was on the cusp of entering the late stage.

  “Harmony? The heavens themselves tremble at the power growing within you. I will end this before it begins.” Blood Moon stated.

  “You mistake your fear for foresight. I will protect my child and this realm. Prepare yourself.”

  With a wave of her hand, the Empress summoned a radiant sword of light, its brilliance easily able to pierce the darkness. Blood Moon responded by unleashing a torrent of shadowy energy, and the two forces collided in a spectacle of light and dark.

  The heavens roared as their battle commenced, and the disciples below watched as the two Dao Seeking realm experts fought to determine the fate of their world.

  After exchanging a dozen blows, Ancestor Blood Moon suddenly pulled back. A sinister grin spread across his face.

  “You fight valiantly, Radiant Empress. But you fail to see the bigger picture. I don’t need to kill you, I only need to end your pregnancy.”

  The Radiant Empress’s eyes narrowed as she sensed a shift in the surrounding energy. A formation, previously hidden, began to materialize around her. Its lines were etched with dark and evil Qi. It began to pulse as the blood of ten thousand demonic cultivators was consumed to fuel it.

  The entire attacking force of cultivators perished in an instant, their agony and hatred at the sudden betrayal by their Ancestor added even more power to the formation. A surge of demonic Qi cast a blood-red light across the sky, and an image of a bloody moon appeared.

  The dark Qi rushed toward the Empress, targeting the life growing inside her. Normally, she would be too powerful for such trickery, and indeed, she was in no real danger. But the child she carried was susceptible to attack at the moment.

  “Your child will never see the light of day. Farewell, Empress.”

  With a final, mocking laugh, Ancestor Blood Moon vanished into the shadows, leaving the Radiant Empress alone within the malevolent formation.

  And, above them all, the Warden of the Loom watched unseen and waited for his opportunity to intercede.

  It took weeks for the Empress to break free, and when she returned to her palace to recover, the sect found that the golden lights in the sky had faded. The fantastical images that spoke of the impending birth of a Dao Child had ceased.

  The rumours buzzed through the sect once again, speaking of a stillbirth, of a child born without a soul.

  Seeing that his time had come, the Warden of the Loom finally acted.