The next morning, Yao Shen received word from Meili Zhu that the estimates he had requested had arrived, along with ten guardians from the Heavenly Sky Sect that would be assisting in the ‘auditing process’.

He had two major concerns that he hoped to address on his second day in the Sacred Flame Palace, though it would only be the first step in what would likely be a long, challenging journey.

The first concern was a question of ideology and a part of the answer that he sought lay in the memories he had inherited from his previous life— for the humans of Earth had evolved their own conflicting jurisprudence across their long and bloody history that clashed together to form cohesive systems of governance. However, the major distinction between Earth and Eliria meant that Yao Shen could not directly implement those systems, for the two worlds had very different conceptualizations of ‘power’.

Eliria, or more specifically Cultivators, would never embrace an elected ruler that did not have the martial strength to support his claim. Yao Shen could, of course, try and enforce such systems, but the only outcome that would lead to would be the creation of an empire that would be founded on the basis of his strength and consequentially, collapse not long after his demise.

No, he could not directly implement such a system… but, he could borrow doctrines from it.

Yao Shen did not need to create different institutions or branches to achieve a cohesive system of governance, for the three factions of the Modern Sect were united only in name. The Sky, Earth and Flame divisions would unwittingly achieve a system of checks and balances, for they could be trusted to keep a close eye on the other divisions and ensure that resources were being directed to their intended purposes instead of being consumed by a smog of corruption, nepotism and greed, as had been the case with Yanyue.

After all, they had done so for centuries without requiring any additional incentives; and Yao Shen did not expect that to change overnight.

As for his second concern, that he would address in a joint conclave with the other two Patriarchs and the Elders present.

An hour after daybreak Yao Shen, along with Meili Zhu and the ten guardians, were lead to a new section of the Inner Sect. Special bridges constructed out of some variant of fire-resistant timber served to facilitate transport over the blazing canals, atleast for those who yet lacked the ability to take flight.

Yao Shen found the Inner Sect, or more specifically, the Formation Spirit rather fascinating as he made his way across the bridge; part of him wondering if there was anyway to reorient the Spirit’s core directives to, say, cover a larger territory. Neither the Sky Division nor the Earth Division had a Formation Spirit of their own, making Yao Shen’s knowledge on the topic painfully incomplete.

His musings were interrupted as the administrative district came into view. The first thing Yao Shen noticed, or rather sensed, were the furtive glances that landed upon his person the moment he stepped inside the territory.

There were far fewer buildings in the administrative district, though conversely each of them were characterized by unique architectural choices and some structures even seemed to be designed with specialized purposes in mind. An expansive, stepped ziggurat-like structure particularly caught Yao Shen’s attention, a thick plume of smoke rising from a chimney on topmost layer— The Sacred Forge made a particularly impressive first impression, situated at the eastern end of the district.

Every few minutes a patrol of Sect Guardians would pass by them, and Yao Shen could tell that their progress through the city was being tracked. The streets were clean, immaculately so, while the district itself seemed to be sparsely populated— besides a few disciples that avoided his group like a plague and the patrolling guardians, there seemed to be no one.

They were first guided to a broad-set ivory tower, where a pinprick of their blood and a small fragment of their divine sense was taken; to mark them as a member of the Sacred Flame Palace in the eyes of the Formation Spirit. All in all, the entire process took an hour, and they now had access to both the outer sect and the inner sect; having been given a clearance at the Elder level.

Having fulfilled the prerequisites, they were finally escorted to their intended destination.

The Solaris Keep was a building that seemed to defy the architectural norms of both Earth and Eliria, if it could even be called such; A perfect cube nestled in the heart of the administrative district, the lack of any window openings or apertures to allow fresh air in giving it a rather disconcerting first impression. Lines upon lines of runic inscriptions were inscribed upon every inch of the Solaris Keep’s exterior, and Yao Shen could clearly sense the Fire Qi that pulsated through them and he knew the purpose they served.

Immediately after the Era of Turmoil, the objectives of every major sect, atleast among those that had survived, had shifted to rebuilding their defenses and more importantly, finding measures to deter conflict. The Solaris Keep was merely a remnant of those measures, a deterrence true to its name— Yao Shen could, with some difficulty, breach the defenses of the Flame Division, but recovering resources from the Keep would be an impossibility.

Not because the defenses of the Keep were impenetrable, no; for their existed a far simpler solution. True to its name, the Solaris Keep would burn with the brilliance of the sun at the drop of a hat— a Nascent Soul resource did not necessarily had the resilience of a cultivator at the Nascent Soul level. In fact, most high-level resources did not have particularly strong defenses.

The philosophy of the Flame Division was a simple, yet domineering one— if they could not have the resources accumulated across generations then no one could.

Patriarch Lei Weiyuan waited for them at the entrance of the Solaris Keep, his hands clasped behind his back as he pondered upon the odd fractals engraved upon the surface of two staggeringly large double-doors that covered an entire face of the perfect cube that the Keep was.

The two Patriarchs exchanged cordial greetings, though Yao Shen could tell that Lei Weiyuan’s expression was a little strained.

Nevertheless, there was no trouble as Lei Weiyuan gave a verbal command to open the gates.

A loud rumble echoed out, the ground beneath them beginning to lightly quake as the double doors parted open slightly, just enough to allow a grown man to pass through.

There was nothing but darkness on the other side, but Patriarch Lei Weiyuan didn’t hesitate as he stepped inside, disappearing from sight the moment he was completely through.

After activating his Human Dao Domain, Yao Shen followed, stepping into territory that was completely unknown to the Heavenly Sky Sect— for only Elders were allowed inside the Solaris Keep, its secrets, privy to only them.

It was indeed a risk, but Yao Shen did not believe that the Solaris Keep had the ability to subvert his Human Dao Domain. For if it had, then it also had the ability to subdue the entire Heavenly Sky Sect decades, or even centuries ago.

So he went, into the darkness.