Chapter 87: Movement In The Dark
In an unknown location, a middle-aged man sat on his throne and regarded the three figures standing before him.
They wore black and red robes; deep hoods shadowed their faces.
Each radiated a cold, intimidating aura that seemed to press against the chamber walls.
The man on the throne watched them with small, sharp eyes—patient, calculating, and unquickened by surprise.
"Have you discovered anything?" the middle-aged man asked in a low, frightening voice.
Those below him trembled.
One stepped forward and answered, voice steady but deferential.
"We tracked their movements and reached a conclusion. The array plates are manufactured behind the pavilion."
"And the blacksmith?" the lord demanded. "Have you found his home or any of his family?"
"No," the speaker replied, bowing without lifting his head. "We discovered five female attendants who work in the pavilion. Our men have located their residences and await your orders."
The man on the throne fell silent, as if turning possibilities over in his mind.
He tapped the armrest with slow, practiced fingers—a measured rhythm like a metronome.
"Kidnap them all," he said finally. "Extract whatever they know. Do not delay." He let the words hang a moment before adding,
"We are not the only ones hunting the secret of the array plates. Be careful not to be discovered by others."
"Remember—failure is not an option."
The three bowed deeply and withdrew.
Once the chamber emptied, the middle-aged man sat alone with the soft echo of their footsteps.
He murmured to himself, a cold whisper: "The world is changing. We must possess that secret if we are to survive."
His mind turned over maps, alliances, and debts; the plates were not merely tools, they were leverage—currency in a time when ruins sprouted like rot and the ground itself became a hazard.
...
Inside the Xie clan mansion, the clan master sat on the main seat and faced the assembled elders.
The great hall smelled faintly of incense and iron; banners hung like watchful sentinels, and the elders’ faces were lined with age, worry, and a practical hunger.
"We need the secret of the array plates now more than ever," declared an elder, his voice resonant throughout the hall.
"Ruins are appearing in every corner of the region. Possessing array plates would give our people extra security—an edge we cannot afford to lack."
Heads nodded in agreement. Everyone present understood the plates’ value: compact, portable, and quick to set up, they required no array master to operate once properly forged.
To possess the technique was to control safety in a world that had lately grown dangerous.
For any clan in the Soaring Cloud Region, such an advantage could mean the difference between survival and catastrophe.
Purchasing plates from the Blazing Sun Pavilion was not a realistic option. Demand had outstripped supply.
Greed would prevent them from freely buying from the pavilion. Each clan preferred to hoard the secret, to keep the balance of power skewed in their favor.
"So we must take the secret by other means," the Xie master concluded.
"I suggest we kidnap the pavilion’s manager," a female elder proposed crisply. "That is our easiest link."
"Jun Wu rarely leaves his mansion," she continued. "If we capture his manager, he will be forced to hand the secret to us."
At the mention of Jun Wu’s name, a hush fell over the hall. Jun Wu’s reputation had spread in whispers: his array plates crafts of uncommon ability.
He preferred solitude, and his work spoke for him—so much so that others had begun to measure the balance of power by his inventions.
To confront Jun Wu directly would be risky; to take those closest to him offered a quieter, more pragmatic route.
"All right," the Xie clan master decided. "Send our men to capture them without leaving a trace."
"Let us see if he can retain his arrogance when his beloved manager is in our hands."
There was a personal edge to his command. The Xie master still burned with humiliation—an expectation of deference had been rebuked, and he tasted the keen flavor of being dismissed.
His earlier attempt to use Elder Kai had collapsed; the old man had proved useless against the new, intricately woven plates.
Not only Elder Kai, but many of the region’s supposed masters found themselves confused by designs that did not follow tradition.
"Jun Wu will pay a heavy price for looking down on me," the Xie master murmured through clenched teeth.
...
At the Gong aristocratic clan, the elders sat with solemn expressions. They were recovering from a recent defeat at the hands of the Jun aristocrat clan’s experts.
"How long are you going to sit in silence?" the Gong Matriarch snapped. The victory had slipped from their hands and her temper had not cooled.
"Matriach," one elder began, voice controlled but strained, "we must not allow this to continue. We underestimated Jun Wu. We have to stop him."
"Then propose a solution!" the Matriarch demanded. "Idle talk gets us nowhere."
One elder swallowed and continued in a trembling voice. "I propose we pressure him through an elder from the Frostwind Academy. If an authoritative figure confronts him, the strain might force him to reveal the secret behind the array plates."
The Matriarch’s frosty gaze did not ease. "How would that be possible? Have you forgotten that Mystic City is under the jurisdiction of the Mystic Path Academy?"
"It is simple," the elder replied, gaining confidence. "We stage an array challenge under the pretense of tradition. In a public contest, he may be compelled—or tempted—to demonstrate his method."
"Do you think he’s foolish enough to expose such a deep secret in a contest?" another elder countered.
"We do not rely on his foolishness," the first elder said. "We rely on opportunity. If we present something of equal value, we create temptation."
"And if he refuses?" an old female elder asked. "Do we simply let him continue growing unchecked?"
"Then we snuff out his advantages," suggested another elder. "Without access to iron ore, he cannot forge plates."
"Then, what about his clan? They also controlled a large iron mine far greater than us." An elder asked.
"His clan will not support him. Right now, they’re planning to take him out before his father returns." The Matriarch announced.