The moment they entered the Military Command and Council hall, Zugo threw himself onto the flame-carved Luohan bed, its raging patterns etched in twisting fire—symbols of war, destruction, and absolute dominance. It was a throne befitting the one who held the security of the entire country in his hands. Everyone feared provoking him, so no one dared speak. They sat silently along the sides, waiting for him to break the silence.
After what felt like half an hour, he finally rose, flicked open his fan, and began fanning himself lazily. As he paced the hall, his eyes scanned the gathered crowd, counting each person with a slow, deliberate gaze.
"Everyone is here. Now we can start," he said, stopping a few steps away from the doorway. He then spun around, quickened his pace toward the Luohan bed, and sat down. "Lǐ Xùyáng, can you elaborate on the empire's hierarchy for us? And don't forget to include the clans," he said quietly, pointing at the map spread out on the war table.
The poor Lǐ Xùyáng was caught off guard, unsure of what to do. He glanced nervously at everyone around him before finally managing to regain control of the situation.
"Oh, right, the hierarchy," he said, stretching out his hands to remove the counters from the map. "The Lí Shēng Guó Empire is divided into six realms. Each realm has one king, two dukes, three marquises, and four earls—except for Xiāng Jīng, which is where the emperor lives. That realm's structure is very different. It has no king, only three dukes, one marquis, and two earls.
A lot of people find that confusing. Why would the imperial realm have only one marquis, three dukes, and two earls? It's because no demons or night creatures would dare attack it. As for the earls, there are only two because the empire is made up of cities, and earls manage the small towns. Since Xiāng Jīng has no towns, only two earls are needed—to help lighten the load for the dukes."
"Now, the question is—which clans are part of the hierarchy?" he asked, folding his arms as he paced slowly around the war table.
"The Lí Shēng Guó Empire is made up of six realms," he said, pointing at the map on the war table. "Each realm is ruled by a strong clan, and the names of these realms come from the dragons and spiritual powers people there learn to use."
"Most of the spiritual energy is found in five of the realms, which is why those places have many dragons and strong powers. But in Móyù, the Jade Spirit Realm, and Shénmì zhī dì, the Silverwing Celestial Realm, the spiritual energy is less. That's why they each have the power of only one dragon."
He moved his hand to the center of the map. "Xiānjìng, the Celestial Earth-Thunder Realm, is special. It has the spiritual power of the purple and brown dragons because of the Ghost Predator — a Life Sword said to bring either great luck or disaster depending on who holds it. Most energy is found in the other realms, but this one is important because of that sword."
He pointed to the other realms. "Because these five realms have so much spiritual energy, demons often attack them. The demons use this energy to grow stronger and break through their cultivation levels. That's why they try to take over those places."
He paused and looked around the room. "But the realms with less energy, like Móyù and Shénmì zhī dì, don't get attacked as much because they don't have enough energy to help the demons grow."
Zugo stepped forward, a lazy smirk on his face. "Wow, that was quite the history lesson. Sounds like you've got the whole empire figured out—kings, dukes, clans, and all the dragons and spiritual mumbo jumbo." He chuckled, shaking his head. "Honestly, sounds more like a bedtime story for ambitious kids than a real threat."
Zugo flicked open his fan and gave the map a cold glance. "What you call weak is what we demons see as the strongest. Out there, it's survival of the fittest. The hierarchy is earned in blood and death fights. No position is permanent—except for the emperor, of course. Not every demon can become emperor... but there is one who did."
He closed his fan slowly, eyes narrowing. "Remember that. While you're busy memorizing clans and titles, the real power plays are happening where you least expect."
With that, he turned and walked away, leaving the room thick with unanswered questions.