The towering gates of the imperial audience hall creaked open, spilling light across the polished floor.

When the summons had come, Princess Sun Yaoqing had expected a routine council, perhaps a handful of ministers, her father the Emperor, and a few key generals.

But as she stepped inside and lifted her gaze, even she was taken aback.

Almost every pillar of the Falling Star Empire stood gathered beneath the vast dome of the hall-ministers in their ceremonial robes, generals clad in gleaming armor, scholars with scrolls tucked under their sleeves.

The air itself hummed with anticipation, heavy with whispered speculation.

(So many… for just an heir?)

Well, it wasn’t just an heir, but the heir of the strongest Clan in the strongest Empire, so it was understandable.

Sun Yaoqing thought that Father Emperor just wanted to know the reason for Bai Zihan’s visit, but it looked like there was more to it than she had thought.

Well, seeing that every princess was present, along with the daughters of almost all the nobles, it wasn’t difficult to guess what the Emperor was thinking.

(Indeed, if a girl from our Empire manages to marry the heir of the strongest Clan in the region, the Desolate Heaven Empire might not attack us.)

Even if that wasn’t the case, if there was a strong diplomatic relationship between the Bai Clan and the Falling Star Empire, it could be a great help to them.

After all, it isn’t unknown that the Bai Clan is said to rival-or perhaps even surpass the Imperial Family of the Desolate Heaven Empire.

(Father Emperor is making such a big deal out of a simple visit.)

Whether that could be achieved or not, they would soon see.

Sun Yaoqing moved gracefully to her seat among the royal family, her attendants taking their place behind her.

The gaze from her brother and sister wasn’t kind at all with hostility hiding behind their graze.

Sun Yaoqing was used to it and didn’t care much.

Her gaze drifted toward the throne where her father, the Emperor, sat in

solemn majesty, his expression calm yet unreadable.

Around her, voices whispered like a restless tide.

“Why would the Bai Clan send their young master here?”

“Diplomatic maneuvering?”

“Anyway, if you can manage to get your daughter married to him, your status will reach the top.”

Sun Yaoqing lowered her lashes, hiding the flicker of curiosity in her eyes.

Truth be told, she had not given Bai Zihan’s arrival much thought when she first heard of it.

A young master from a foreign empire, even one as prominent as the Desolate Heaven Empire, was still a foreigner.

It wouldn’t solve any of the fundamental problems the Falling Star Empire was facing, even if they managed to establish a good relationship with him.

But it seemed like it wasn’t the same for others, who thought of this as an opportunity to climb the ranks and instantly reach the top.

After all, even the Emperor wouldn’t want to offend the in-laws of the Bai Clan, right?

(What is his true purpose for coming here?)

Sun Yaoqing’s thoughts were interrupted as the herald’s voice boomed through the chamber, clear and sonorous:

“Announcing the arrival of the Bai Clan’s Young Master-Bai Zihan of the Desolate Heaven Empire!”

The vast doors parted once more, and the hall stilled as a figure in flowing robes stepped inside, his presence calm yet unyielding.

Princess Sun’s gaze sharpened slightly.

Around her, the whispers quieted into a collective breath, waiting to see what kind of man this Bai Zihan truly was.

The great doors groaned open, and from the light of the threshold stepped a young man whose very presence drew all eyes toward him.

His hair was black as midnight, flowing down in a glossy cascade, while his eyes -red, deep, and unyielding-burned like embers beneath the heavens.

That crimson gaze alone was enough to silence whispers, as though it could pierce through pride, pretense, and spirit alike.

Gasps rippled quietly through the gathered nobles.

A few of the younger daughters of great houses clutched at their sleeves, their faces flushing as though bewitched.

Handsome, yes-but not in the delicate way poets would sing.

His features held a sharper beauty, a dangerous elegance that seemed to blur the line between immortal grace and demonic allure.

And it was not just his appearance.

The way he carried himself-calm, self-assured, every step measured yet unhurried-radiated a natural dominance.

He did not bow, nor lower his eyes, but neither did he act in reckless

arrogance.

He walked forward as though the hall itself were his, as though emperors and

generals alike were merely witnesses to his stride.

Sun Yaoqing felt her breath catch in spite of herself.

(Eighteen years old…)

Her gaze flicked toward her brothers, princes twice his age who still carried themselves with unease before their father’s throne.

Compared to them, this foreign youth radiated a maturity that defied his years.

For the first time, she felt a flicker of understanding for the whispers that had

been spreading even before his arrival.

This Bai Zihan was no ordinary heir.

(So… this is the Bai Clan’s young master.)

All around her, she could feel the court react-the stir of dresses as noble daughters leaned forward, the narrowed eyes of ministers weighing him, the tense silence of generals measuring his presence like steel against steel.

The silence in the hall was almost reverent, though beneath it ran an undercurrent of unease.

Every step Bai Zihan took across the floor echoed like a drumbeat, steady and unhurried.

He was young-undeniably so-but the way he carried himself bent perception.

The Emperor remained motionless upon the throne, his sharp eyes betraying neither approval nor disapproval.

But Sun Yaoqing had been his daughter long enough to recognize when his

interest was piqued.

He was measuring Bai Zihan carefully-no different from how one would weigh

the sharpness of a blade fresh from the forge.

Around her, whispers had stilled into breaths held too long.

Bai Zihan stopped several paces short of the Emperor’s dais.

His red eyes swept once across the hall, brushing over generals, ministers, scholars, and princesses alike, and in that single glance it felt as though each one of them had been weighed, measured, and quietly dismissed.

(Arrogant? Or simply… too strong to care?)

Sun Yaoqing couldn’t decide. Perhaps it was both.

(Weak!)

He thought as he stood still.

Bai Zihan waited for quite some time, but still no one spoke or said anything,

which caused irritation to rise within him.

(You call for me, and now you keep quiet? Do they think I am easy to toy with?)

Normally, Bai Zihan would have ignored such a summons. If someone wanted to meet him, he would demand that they come to him.

But considering he was in another empire, and not wishing to cause unnecessary trouble if possible, he had come to the palace.

And yet this was the result. Silence, as though his presence was of no importance, even though he had been generous enough to come here himself.

“Tsk!”

He clicked his tongue, showcasing his displeasure, which did not go unnoticed.

Finally, he spoke, his voice cold and steady:

“Why have you called me?”