In the continent of Fong Tan, where no one is born entirely innocent, and none die wholly guilty,light itself splits into swords, and the earth cracks beneath the footsteps of those who never smile.
Its history is not written in ink, but in blood spilled on snow,in dreams that were beheaded in temples before they ever grew wings.
In this world, where courts erect their balances on the silence of the dead,where sects pray to weak gods forged from their own pride,and empires rule in the name of justice—but inscribe their laws in ash—he stepped out from behind the wall for the very first time.
A boy who knew sunlight only through a stone window.Who had never known love, or hate, or joy, or even sorrow.
He was no legend.No chosen one.He was... the Supreme Judge.
And though he had never seen the world,the world itself feared the moment he would open his eyes to it.
The wind already whispered his name,and the walls that had taken the rain of twenty years now trembled in silence.
Spring of the year 1872 Nan.In the warm morning air of the southern-central plains, deep in the continent's heart,a towering fortress rises — the Supreme Court of Fong Tan.Its walls so high, they split the clouds; no end in sight, no neighbors in reach.
Inside the fortress, at the highest tower, lies the chamber of the current Supreme Judge.Its walls adorned with ancient weapons and lost paintings of forgotten dynasties —the kind of treasures only an emperor or a demonic lord might possess.
Through a wide window, soft golden light filters in, bathing a small lake below where geese glide and vibrant fish dart in silence.
Sitting there, still as stone, is a man dressed in a long black robe threaded with strands of silver-gray.A white mask covers his face, marked only by a single golden line stretching from the top of the left eye down to the chin.He is gazing at a cup of tea — now cold — as if it holds all the answers.
This is Fan, the current Supreme Judge.
As he contemplates the untouched tea, a knock breaks the stillness.
A humble servant in gray-black garb bows,"My lord, the grand judges await you for today's routine debrief."
Without turning, Fan replies,"Enter."
The servant obeys and kneels upon the floor, reciting the sacred creed of the Court:"May the trees, seas, and sky submit to the justice of the gods, and may birds sing in the voice of balance."
He rises."The grand judges await you in the inner sanctum."
Fan plucks a drifting plum blossom leaf from the air and inspects it in silence."You may leave."
The servant departs.
Fan sighs, squeezes the leaf in his palm... then opens his hand —the leaf is gone.
He murmurs,"Why... am I like this?"
He stands. His black robe sways with solemn grace.The hallway doors open before him, revealing a corridor adorned with priceless relics: paintings, scrolls, armaments of past ages.
A golden ribbon runs along the corridor walls, while the floor beneath his feet is made of white jade from the empire's northern mountains.
Descending the black stone stairs, he emerges onto a balcony overlooking the same lake.Servants below are feeding the geese and trimming grass with precise care.
Fan continues, walking across a great white plaza — the White Courtyard — paved with Dragonstone,a rare material mined only from imperial cliffs.
At its center stands the great black gate of the Inner Sanctum,adorned with golden banners bearing the Court's emblem:A sword split by a quill, encircled by a silver dragon.
The gate has no handle. No hinges. No visible means of opening.
It opens by itself.
Within lies a grand, circular chamber surrounded by three elevated towers,each holding a throne fashioned from black goose feathers and framed in the same rare metal used in legendary swords.
Fan steps forward and sits upon the Chair of the Successor, placed at the center of the three.
Before him sit the Court's titans:
Judge Shin Jion — the First Elder, known as The Ancient Balance,with long white hair tied back, robes of white and gold, and eyes worn from centuries of watching.
Judge Lin Hui — the Second Elder, called The Court's Blade,silent, sword across his lap, dressed in white and crimson, his ring bearing a spider insignia.
Judge Wang Chao — the Third Elder, Jade Dragon,the youngest, draped in white and green, with a warm smile and eyes too perceptive for comfort.
Fan offers a bow."This Judge greets the Court's Pillars."
One by one, they respond in unison:"This Court greets its Judge."
Judge Shin Jion speaks, voice steady:"There are no pressing updates from the outside… but tensions rise between the Empire and the reawakened Lion Tower."
He lifts a report."Also, from our Sixth Judge stationed near the Valley of Sin — the Murim Alliance keeps pressing Lady Desire to reduce her operations in the central plains. Their requests are becoming… increasingly insistent."
Wang Chao chuckles."The youth are always too eager... heh heh."
Shin Jion counters with calm:"Or perhaps Murim is merely laying the groundwork for an excuse. A pretext for war."
Lin Hui, usually quiet, now asks:"Judge Fan... what say you?"
Fan answers,"We are the Court.We do not believe. We do not doubt.We act when balance is broken,and only when justice ceases to weigh true."
Shin Jion nods."Wise words. Still — discussions here remain thoughts, not judgments. Unless proven otherwise, they remain in this chamber."
The topic is closed.
They rise.
Fan speaks once more."One moment, Elders…"
They pause.
Shin Jion asks,"Is there more, young Judge?"
Fan breathes in deeply."How much time remains… until I am given full authority?"
"One year," says the elder. "No more."
Fan looks at them — truly looks.
"Since I opened my eyes, I have known only servants… walls… this cold white courtyard.I am expected to rule over titans and factions… but I have never walked a village.Never touched wild grass.I do not know who I am. Nor where I come from. Nor if I even have a family.
I ask permission to leave the Court for a year —to see what justice truly looks like… before I become its hand."
To be continued...