AN: Part II should be up in about five more minutes... I want to wrap up the intro and quickly move on to... more intros?? No, no - the actual action is arriving soon. 😉🤗
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The Incense Forest turned out to be an actual forest within the Palace.
Gu Daisheng guided them away from the residential halls and into quieter quarters of the complex, where the polished corridors narrowed and twisted through a maze of turns. The sounds of the Palace gradually grew louder around them – the distant murmur of servants, the clang of bells, the rustle of silk – the further they walked, their footsteps falling into rhythm with the faint beat of distant conversations. At last, they stopped before a pair of towering bronze gates darkened with age.
Each door bore the engraving of half a tree. When the gates stood closed, the two halves joined seamlessly into a single ancient image, as though the tree itself were guarding whatever lay beyond.
With a low groan of metal, Gu Daisheng pushed the gates open.
A different world waited on the other side. The air changed first. It became cool and damp, carrying the scent of earth after rain, layered with something sweeter; sandalwood, amber resin, and burnt cedar. Before them stretched a forest so vast it seemed impossible for it to exist within palace walls. Tall trees rose in dense clusters, their trunks thick and dark, their roots vanishing into real soil instead of lacquered floors or stone paving. Fallen leaves carpeted the ground in copper and gold, muffling every footstep.
Above, a pale canopy of smoke drifted through the branches like low clouds. Through gaps in the haze, glimpses of the sky could still be seen, dim and ghostly, as though viewed through frosted glass. The smoke curled from every part of the forest, from bark, from leaves, even from the exposed roots winding across the earth. It streamed upward in thin silver ribbons, exactly like incense burning in a shrine.
Yet no flame could be found anywhere. The trees stood untouched, cool to the eye and whole in form, but they breathed out fragrant smoke endlessly, perfuming the entire forest with a rich, intoxicating aroma. Some trees exhaled a sharp spice like clove and cinnamon, while others carried softer notes of jasmine, pine resin, or old temple incense lingering in forgotten halls. The scents intertwined until the forest itself seemed alive, inhaling and exhaling in slow, sacred breaths.
It was immediately clear how the place had earned its name.
"The Incense Forest is a valuable posting," Gu Daisheng said, his voice settling into the hush of the trees. "The sap collected from these trees is used to produce meditative incense suitable for cultivation. We sell it throughout the empire, and half the northwestern swamps would be miserable to inhabit without the smoke from these trees to ward off the spiritual insects that infest them. The fragrance also benefits cultivators directly; it accelerates cultivation and eases breakthroughs. The effects diminish for Core Formation cultivators and above, but even then, the aroma remains harmonious and pleasing to the senses."
Mo Jian nodded, still watching the smoke curl lazily through the canopy, feeling as though he had wandered into a living temple. Beside him, a faint smile tugged at Bai Ning's lips as she gazed upward, that familiar delight in new and wondrous things surfacing quietly across her face.
Even as Mo Jian watched, a streak of light descended from among the branches, resolving into a clean-faced young man in white robes. A green armband circled his sleeve, embroidered with three sticks of incense. The moment he recognized Gu Daisheng, he folded into a deep bow.
"Lords, this junior humbly welcomes you to the Incense Forest. Is there anything I can do for you?"
Gu Daisheng waved a sleeve through the air. “How is the work progressing? Have you encountered any issues? Any signs of an ash beast forming within the canopy?”
The young man straightened from his bow, his expression earnest. “The work is proceeding well, lord. We have extracted two thousand tons of camphor incense and one thousand tons of sandalwood incense in the last month. Agarwood and frankincense are lower in quantity, but still more than sufficient to meet our quotas. As for ash beasts, the smoke in the canopy has been thickening over the last few weeks, so it is possible one may be forming, but there are no definitive signs yet.”
Gu Daisheng nodded, satisfied. "Good work, Xiang'an. Come and greet these two properly." He gestured between them. "This is Fellow Daoist Mo Jian, who will be taking charge of the Incense Forest from today onward. And this is Fairy Bai Ning, who will be working alongside him. As their junior, I will be counting on you to assist them to the best of your abilities."
Xiang'an took one look at Mo Jian and Bai Ning before bowing deeply. "Junior Xiang'an greets Lord Mo Jian and Senior Bai Ning. I will do my utmost to meet your expectations."
Mo Jian nodded and gestured for the young man to rise, all while subtly sweeping him with his spiritual sense. Mid-stage Foundation Establishment – respectable, though it still surprised him slightly. Gu Daisheng seemed to notice his reaction.
"Well, you can become better acquainted later. I still have a great deal to show our two new colleagues, so you may return to your duties for now."
Xiang'an did not hesitate. He summoned his magical tool – an elegantly carved branch, which swelled in mid-air until it was large enough to ride – and leapt atop it with both arms spread wide. The branch carried him skyward until he vanished in another streak of light.
"The Incense Forest, and most postings like it within the Palace, have dedicated groups of cultivators assigned to handle day-to-day operations," Gu Daisheng explained as they watched him disappear. "You are only required to supervise and step in when these juniors encounter something beyond their capabilities. Most of the cultivators stationed here are Qi Condensation disciples who distinguished themselves in the Keju examinations five years ago. This environment has greatly benefited their cultivation since then. As I said, it is a valuable posting, though the nature of that value differs considerably for those of us in the higher realms."
Mo Jian turned toward Gu Daisheng. "My eyes have truly been opened. The palace really is without equal in this world. I never would have imagined that such a place could exist within its walls, and from what you have been saying, Fellow Daoist, this is only one among many."
Gu Daisheng chuckled warmly. "Indeed it is. But come, let us continue. I still have much to show you."
They left the Incense Forest behind and made their way back into the corridors. Here, Gu Daisheng took to the air instead of walking, and explained as they traveled.
"In some parts of the Palace, walking is sufficient. But the second level is vast, and certain areas are so distant that reaching them on foot could take years. It is better to fly where speed is of the essence, particularly once you have grown familiar with the shifting layout."
Mo Jian kept pace easily behind him. Bai Ning, however, seemed more captivated by the corridors than by their destination. These passageways were broader, grander, and far more heavily traveled than those they had passed through before. Mo Jian's gaze lingered briefly on a servant in black-and-gold robes hurrying past below, carrying a talisman upon a silver tray as though it were the most fragile thing in the world.
"The closer you draw to the center of the level, the wider the corridors become," Gu Daisheng remarked. "Ah, here we are."
He came to a halt before an intersection of three immense passageways. Above them, a vast curtain of light rippled across a towering entrance, and even from a distance, Mo Jian could feel the immense strength of the formation woven around it pressing gently against his spiritual sense.
"This is the Scripture Library," Gu Daisheng said, gesturing toward the veil of light and the halls beyond. "The scriptures stored within the open alcoves are free for any cultivator to study, provided they meet the required cultivation realm. The ones sealed within jade boxes, however, require merit to unlock. You can find nearly any spell that exists in the world here, along with powerful techniques, comprehensive treatises on cultivation, records of the various realms, and countless works concerning the nature and application of qi. The Scripture Library is extraordinarily thorough. And every level of the Palace possesses its own collection."
Mo Jian's eyes lit up.
This-this was exactly what he needed. Now that he had entered the Nascent Soul realm, he urgently required a deeper understanding of it. The original Mo Jian's memories had been frustratingly shallow regarding the higher stages of cultivation, and the book itself had only skimmed over much of the world beyond what its protagonist had personally encountered. There were countless things he still did not understand: the relationship between xian and the Nascent Soul realm, how to inscribe talismans beyond the Seventh Rank, the materials he had harvested from the Netherworld Domain, the nature of ancient spirit beasts, the principles behind advanced formations, pill concoction at the highest tiers, the mechanics of heavenly tribulation-
And all of it might exist here.
The realization sent a faint thrill through him. In the cultivation world, knowledge was often more valuable than spirit stones or treasures. A single insight could save decades of wandering down the wrong path.
Beside him, Bai Ning looked equally captivated. She had never been able to resist the lure of knowledge, especially when it concerned something she was interested in.
“Senior,” she asked, “you mentioned merit. How does one accumulate enough to access the restricted scriptures?”
Gu Daisheng grinned. “Already eager to scour the jade slips, Fairy Bai?”
Bai Ning offered no denial whatsoever.
"Merit is earned primarily through service," he continued. "Perform well in your posting, complete assignments issued by the Palace, and attract the attention of the chief cultivator overseeing the second level. Each level of the palace, or at least each of the twenty-four levels comprising the Inner and Outer Courts, has a designated overseer responsible for managing all affairs within their domain."
He folded his hands behind his back as they drifted before the great entrance. "That person will supervise your work in the Incense Forest, though mostly from a distance. They can reassign postings, approve requests, and put forward recommendations within the actual Imperial Court. In many ways, they determine whether one merely survives within the Palace, or rises within it."
Gu Daisheng lifted a hand before either of them could interrupt. "And yes, before you ask, I will take you to meet them once this tour concludes. You will need to make that acquaintance regardless."
Then his smile widened. "Come. Let me introduce you to the head of the library first."
With that, he transformed into a streak of brilliant light and shot through the curtain guarding the entrance, leaving Mo Jian and Bai Ning to quickly follow in his wake.
Inside, the library was carved entirely from stone that had been shaped to resemble a vast natural cavern. The floor beneath their feet was smooth and cool, polished by either ancient craftsmanship or the tread of countless generations. Massive pillars rose like the trunks of primordial trees, thick enough that ten men linking arms could not have encircled one. Their tops vanished into darkness far above, swallowed by a ceiling hidden in shadow.
Soft green light glowed throughout the cavern. It came from bioluminescent vines spiraling around the pillars and creeping across the walls in tangled clusters. Moss carpeted the stone in deep emerald patches, and thin streams of water trickled somewhere in the distance, their faint echoes threading through the immense chamber. The air smelled of jade, damp stone, and faint incense; a scent ancient enough that it seemed to have seeped permanently into the rock itself.
The entire library formed a colossal hollow column stretching upward beyond sight.
And everywhere, absolutely everywhere, were shelves. They had been carved directly from the stone itself, emerging seamlessly from walls and pillars alike. Narrow pathways twisted between them like trails through a dense forest. Every shelf contained hundreds of small alcoves, and within each alcove rested a jade slip beneath a tiny engraved plaque describing its contents. Techniques, spells, sword arts, alchemy manuals, treatises on formations, records of spirit beasts, methods of soul refinement; the sheer scale of it made Mo Jian’s scalp tingle.
There were not merely tens of thousands of jade slips here – there were hundreds of thousands. Perhaps millions.
He slowly turned in place, trying to absorb the enormity of it all. His spiritual sense swept outward instinctively, only to slam into an invisible restriction almost immediately. A powerful suppression formation confined his perception to barely ten feet around his body. Mo Jian clicked his tongue inwardly. Even a Nascent Soul cultivator was restrained here without apparent effort.
The library was also not empty. Cultivators moved silently through the towering aisles, each marked by a small floating light above their heads, with different colors denoting their realm and access permissions. Some walked slowly while reading jade slips in complete concentration. Others sat cross-legged atop in mid-air, surrounded by drifting slips that orbited them like planets around a star. Many more flew through the cavern itself. The shelves extended far more vertically than horizontally, climbing endlessly upward into darkness. Streams of cultivators drifted between them on flying swords, gourds, fans, or spiritual clouds, weaving through the pillars in near silence. Occasionally, a streak of light flashed overhead as someone moved rapidly between distant sections.
Gu Daisheng headed directly toward the center of the vast hall. Mo Jian expected to find something there; a grand desk, perhaps, or a secluded chamber reserved for the master of the library, but the center held nothing at all. Only a broad expanse of smooth stone lay beneath the towering pillars and drifting lights. Gu Daisheng did not slow. Without warning, he used an earth-tunneling spell, sinking into the ground as smoothly as a diver slipping beneath the surface of a lake. The stone swallowed him without resistance.
There was a brief moment of silence. Not a single person in the library looked up.
Then the stone burst open again. Gu Daisheng emerged from below holding a squirming… child. Mo Jian blinked. Yes, it was definitely a child, or at least someone who appeared to be one. The boy looked no older than eight years old, with pale cheeks, bright eyes, and soft features untouched by age. Yet he was dressed in absurdly luxurious robes of gold-threaded silk and dark crimson brocade, layered so elaborately that he resembled a miniature emperor. A tasseled ceremonial hat sat crookedly atop his head, threatening to tumble off entirely as he struggled.
He was also kicking and shouting at the top of his lungs. “Who dares-! Put me down this instant! Do you know who I-oh.” The outrage vanished instantly. “It’s you.” His entire body went limp in resignation, dangling from Gu Daisheng’s grip by the back of his robes like an offended cat.
Mo Jian’s spiritual sense swept over him reflexively. Early-stage Nascent Soul. He inhaled sharply. The child noticed immediately.
“What are you staring at?” he demanded, folding his tiny arms across his chest while still hanging in midair. “Never seen a genius before?”
Gu Daisheng calmly rotated the boy around until he faced Mo Jian and Bai Ning properly. “Fellow Daoist Nei,” he said patiently, “we have a new Fellow Daoist joining the second level today. This is Mo Jian, and this is Fairy Bai Ning. I am showing them around the Palace. You should introduce yourself properly.”
The child immediately straightened. The moment Gu Daisheng released him, he floated upright in the air with surprising dignity, smoothing out his rumpled robes before turning toward Mo Jian with open interest. He ignored Bai Ning completely. “Hoh. Another Nascent Soul cultivator.” His eyes brightened. “Good. Very good. With you here, we’re only one short of twenty now. Those bastards on the third level won’t be able to push us around much longer.”
He snorted angrily. “Do you know they denied me – them denying me! – permission to access the Scripture Library on the third level? Claimed I didn’t have enough merit.” His voice rose with every word. “As if merit matters when discussing matters of scholarship! I ought to have challenged every one of them to a duel on the spot if not for-”
Gu Daisheng cleared his throat loudly. The sound echoed through the cavern like distant thunder. The child froze mid-rant. A faint flush spread across his face. He coughed awkwardly into his sleeve, suddenly remembering himself.
“Ah. Right.” He floated down to the ground and folded his hands with surprising formality. “Well met, Fellow Daoist Mo. My name is Nei Pan, and I serve as the keeper of the Scripture Library on the second level. Should you require assistance locating techniques, manuals, or specialized records, you may come to me directly.”
Mo Jian and Bai Ning hurriedly returned the greeting.
The moment formalities were complete, Nei Pan immediately turned back toward Gu Daisheng. “Now then, as I was saying-”
Mo Jian barely heard the rest. His thoughts had snagged on a single sentence. One short of twenty. That meant that with his arrival, the second level of the Imperial Palace now housed nineteen Nascent Soul cultivators. The number was staggering. He had known the Imperial Palace was powerful, everyone knew it, but hearing the figure spoken aloud made the scale of it feel suddenly, undeniably real.
The Palace had thirty-three levels in total. Even assuming an uneven distribution, the implied concentration of power was terrifying. And the third level clearly housed more Nascent Soul cultivators than the second. Beyond that waited the divisions of the inner court, and then the upper nine levels, which even rumor rarely touched.
The common wisdom throughout the empire was that the Imperial Capital contained roughly a thousand Nascent Soul cultivators, and that the Palace itself harbored a similar number hidden somewhere within its walls. Mo Jian had believed that, once. Now, standing beneath the shadowed heights of the Scripture Library, he was beginning to think those estimates were laughably conservative.
He lifted his gaze upward. The library stretched endlessly into darkness, layer upon layer of carved stone shelves disappearing beyond sight. Cultivators drifted through the air like scattered stars, their spiritual lights flickering quietly among the ancient pillars. How many Nascent Soul cultivators truly lived within this place? Two thousand? More? The thought should have been reassuring. Instead, it felt faintly suffocating. He had entered the Nascent Soul realm thinking himself a major figure in the cultivation world. Yet within the Palace, he was merely another newcomer among countless monsters hidden beneath years of imperial accumulation.
It’s an empire that has stood for four millennia, he reminded himself silently. Of course it possesses depths beyond imagination.
“Quite,” Gu Daisheng was saying, openly amused by whatever grievance Nei Pan had resumed voicing while Mo Jian was distracted. “Unfortunately, I still need to show Mo Jian and Bai Ning the auction platform and the chief overseer’s residence, so we shall continue this discussion another time.”
Then he added casually, “You will be attending the trade meeting next month, I assume?”
Nei Pan, who had developed an odd expression at the mention of the remaining tour destinations, immediately nodded. “Like I would miss it.”
“Good.” Gu Daisheng smiled faintly. “Then we can speak further there, and Fellow Daoist Mo Jian can make the acquaintance of the other Daoists on this level. Until then, Brother Nei.”
Nei Pan gave them a proper salute this time, sleeves fluttering dramatically despite his childlike appearance. “Until then.”
They exchanged farewells and departed. The three of them soared back out through the curtain of light and into the vast palace corridors beyond. The moment they were clear of the library entrance, Gu Daisheng spoke again, his tone noticeably softer than before. “Do not judge Nei Pan too harshly, Fellows. He is a good man.”
He paused briefly, as though choosing his words with care. "When he was young, he accidentally consumed a Youthful Face Pill. It fixed his appearance permanently at that age. His cultivation journey afterward was… difficult, in ways that most cultivators are never made to endure."
A second pause. “Even now, though he possesses the power and skill to alter his appearance effortlessly, he chooses to remain as he is. He says it reminds him of his tribulations and keeps his heart steady.”
Mo Jian glanced back once toward the distant veil of light hiding the library. For a moment, he imagined the childlike Nascent Soul cultivator wandering endlessly through those ancient stone halls, buried beneath oceans of knowledge while carrying the weight of centuries behind an eight-year-old face. The image felt unexpectedly lonely.
“Making his acquaintance will make your lives within the Palace considerably easier,” Gu Daisheng finished.
Mo Jian cupped his hands respectfully as they flew. “Fellow Nei Pan strikes me as a sincere and steadfast person. I am honored to have met him. Many thanks for the introduction, Fellow Gu.”
Gu Daisheng nodded with quiet approval. The three of them continued onward through the Palace's immense corridors.
………………………………………………..
The next corridor they entered was once again filled with moving paintings. Mountains breathed mist. Rivers flowed endlessly through ink-painted valleys. Armies marched across silk banners beneath fluttering standards while distant thunder rolled from stormscapes trapped within golden frames. A painted scholar paused midway through writing a poem and glanced irritably at the three of them as they passed.
“Too noisy,” he muttered before returning to his calligraphy.
The corridor itself gradually widened. At first, it merely became broad enough for several carriages to travel side by side. Then it widened further, enough for entire processions. Then wider still, until Mo Jian began wondering whether some species of giants lived deeper within this section of the Palace.
Finally, the corridor ended. Or rather, the floor did.
The space beyond opened so abruptly that Mo Jian instinctively halted in midair. It looked as though someone had carved a colossal hollow directly out of the Palace’s interior. An immense void stretched in every direction, so vast that the opposite walls faded into bluish haze. Corridors emerged into it from every conceivable angle, not merely from the surrounding walls, but from above, below, and even diagonally through space itself. Mo Jian looked downward and blinked. Far beneath him, another corridor extended through what should have been the floor. Cultivators walked calmly through it as though gravity itself had changed direction for them alone. Elsewhere, entire passageways spiraled upside down along distant walls, their travelers utterly unconcerned.
The place felt less like architecture and more like reality had been folded into impossible shapes. Within the enormous open chamber floated hundreds upon hundreds of platforms. No two were alike. Some were made from drifting clouds condensed into solid form, with pavilions resting atop them like heavenly islands. Others were flying carpets embroidered with glowing runes, carrying merchants and customers through the air. Elegant spirit boats drifted lazily between platforms with lanterns swaying from their rails, while market stalls balanced impossibly atop the backs of gigantic white cranes gliding through the void with slow, powerful wingbeats.
There were floating gardens, tea houses suspended upside down, and entire miniature courtyards rotating gently through space. The platforms occupied every available layer of the chamber, scattered so densely and irregularly that they resembled stars strewn across a night sky, except the stars surrounded him from every direction, above and below alike.
Streams of cultivators moved constantly between them. Sword lights streaked through the air. Spirit beasts carried riders between floating stalls. Voices rose from every direction: bargaining, laughing, arguing over prices, discussing pills, treasures, talismans, or cultivation techniques. Bells chimed somewhere in the distance. Spiritual beasts cried overhead. The entire chamber buzzed with a strange, vibrant life unlike the solemn atmosphere of the library.
At the center of it all floated a massive stone platform.
It was far larger than the others, broad enough to contain an entire city square. In its center rose a towering rectangular pillar of black stone, extending hundreds of feet upward.
Every inch of the pillar was covered in dense golden script.
The characters shimmered like molten metal, flowing slowly across the surface as though alive. New lines appeared every few breaths while old ones faded and vanished. The amount of information displayed upon it was staggering: requests, announcements, transactions, missions, bounties, exchanges, recruitment notices, duels, auctions-
It was a living sea of information.
Even from a distance, Mo Jian could feel countless spiritual senses brushing against the pillar as cultivators scanned its contents.
“This,” Gu Daisheng said with visible satisfaction, “is the Exchange Platform of the second level.”
His sleeve swept outward toward the sprawling floating market. “Anything that can be bought, sold, traded, commissioned, or exchanged among cultivators of this level eventually passes through here.”
Mo Jian stared out across the immense chamber.
A floating pavilion drifted past carrying cages full of spirit beasts no larger than a hand, each radiating strange elemental qi. Nearby, two cultivators argued loudly over the price of a crimson furnace while a third calmly drank tea beside them as though such disputes were everyday entertainment. Farther away, a woman in silver robes sat cross-legged atop a flying carpet with dozens of talismans orbiting her body like leaves in a storm, advertising custom work to passing cultivators.
The entire place pulsed with movement and energy.
Mo Jian exhaled slowly.
He had thought himself prepared for the Palace. He had read the book, heard the rumors, and carried the faint arrogance of a newly ascended Nascent Soul cultivator who believed he understood what power looked like.
He was beginning to revise that opinion considerably.