A couple of territories away from Shang, the Lightning Manor was fighting a desperate war.
Ever since the war started, over 50 Ancestral Mage Clouds had died, and only 30 new ones had been born during this time.
The number of Ancestral Mage Clouds was declining.
The numbers of Archmages were not that problematic, and the number of High Mages was no problem.
The Land and Sky Empire and the Twilight Dusk Family were playing the long game. They weren't putting a lot of pressure on the Lightning Manor, which meant that the Lightning Manor's forces weren't shrinking by much.
However, the numbers of powerful Mages in the other Empires were not only not shrinking but even growing.