A figure shrouded in black hurried through the Imperial Palaces. In their arms lay a small newborn. The baby was deathly quiet, as if under a spell, and laid still in the person's arms. The person ran frantically, afraid of being captured. Already the news had spread; someone had stolen a child of Imperial blood. News spread quickly and the citizens were in a panic. If someone had stolen a child from the most secure place in the Empire, what about the safety of their children? But before the news could create waves and incite chaos amongst the people, a new piece of gossip had spread. The Empress was able to conceive. It was no secret that the Empress had become infertile from an incident that occurred in her childhood. Now she was capable of conceiving and the Empire would receive a legitimate heir to the throne. Another less insignificant piece of news had also spread. Consort Yan had quietly passed away in her courtyard, shortly after giving birth to her child. While people were sympathetic and lamented her so-called fate, no one really cared about this unpopular Consort with no influence or power whatsoever.
The prince had left shortly after he came, apparently eager to return home and inform his mother of the newly established alliance between the Tian Empire and Western Empire. He had even taken a fancy to the daughter of a merchant and whisked her away. Many girls gossiped about the pair, finding it a pity that a girl of an ignoble background had become the prince's future wife. They both resented and envied the unknown girl. It was known far and wide that Western men were typically loyal and only married one woman in their lifetime. How could a girl of a lowly background become the one and only future empress of the Western Empire? But the prince was known to be stubborn; he wouldn't easily give into reason once he set his heart on something, but in this case, someone.
After hearing the news, the cloaked person began moving at a somewhat more leisurely pace. The borders were volatile and dangerous, but the person had no trouble moving through quickly. While problems such as banditary had plagued many others, it did not seem to be a problem for the person in the cloak. Even with a child, they were able to move leisurely and steadily. At times, they would encounter guards who were patrolling around the Empire, but they managed to slip by unnoticed, to the frustration of a certain prince. Baby in arm, the cloaked person finally arrived in a secluded town close to Flame Forest. Bordering two major empires, Flame Forest was known for its dangerous caliber of monsters. Even the most seasoned of warriors and cultivators would have trouble when faced with some of the higher ranked monsters. It was popular for its rare materials and herbs and some even risked their lives just to catch a glimpse of the Flame Forest's natural treasures. Despite being secluded, the town was quite popular. Many adventurers and herb collectors who specialized in combat would travel to the town and restock before venturing in the forest. In this way, the town's economy was long past its developmental stage. But since it was secluded, while news traveled in, news seldom traveled out. Due to this, it was the perfect place to hide. In particular, it was the perfect place for wanted criminals.
Criminals often fled to this place and made a livelihood for themselves here, therefore, the majority of the townspeople were either criminals or descendants of criminals. Previously, crime had run rampant until a powerful cultivator had taken over. Under her, the town became more orderly and crime decreased. It was rumored amongst the townsfolk that she was wanted by a powerful empire in the east and was very powerful herself. Somehow, she had managed to escape that empire's clutches for years. The depth of her power was unfathomable, and many had long submitted to her rule.
The baby stirred in the cloaked person's arms. Her eyelids were still glued shut, but her breathing was faster than before. The baby had finally awoken. The cloaked person stood at the outskirts of town; their eyes shone with malicious intent as their eyes raked over the baby's body. As if aware of the cloaked person's intentions, the baby began crying violently. Unsympathetic to the small child, the cloaked person lifted the baby by its neck, with no regard for the fact that it had been born just a few weeks ago. The killing intent of the person prickled the baby's skin, but the baby was far more preoccupied with trying to breathe. Its arms weakly clawed at the hand around its neck, but it was of no use. The cloaked person quite enjoyed strangling the baby; its struggle only brought them joy. It was like the joy one would get in killing a small and defenseless creature. The feeling of having power over them and having the power to decide their life or death. The baby's tanned face became increasingly blue, and its legs weakly dangled in the air. In its last struggle as the prey, it began to wail despite the lack of air in its lungs. Annoyed, the cloaked person tightly slapped the baby on the cheek. Drip. Drop. Blood began to flow down the baby's nose and coated the black necklace around its neck.
Suddenly, the necklace turned a shade of purple. A shield quickly formed out of thin air and surrounded the baby. Anything the shield touched would burn. The cloaked person was no exception. Caught off guard, the shield touched the cloaked person and burned through their skin. In a panic, the cloaked person dropped the baby on the ground roughly and screamed in agony. The pain was excruciating. Despite letting go of the baby, the shield continued to burn through the cloaked person's flesh and bone. It was like a silent fire, slowly reaping the life of the cloaked person. They remained in perpetual agony until it burnt through everything, and all that was left was a pile of ashes. It was like the cloaked person had never existed.
The baby fell to the ground and weakly moaned in pain. She was weak and helpless and against all odds. If the cloaked person didn't kill her, the monsters in the forest surely would. Suddenly, a rustle came from the bushes at the periphery of the forest. They continued to violently rustle until the sound of footsteps came in the baby's direction. Finally, a pair of white paws came into view. It was a fox. Despite being quite harmless, the fox was detrimental to the safety of the newly born child. While foxes tend to be mischievous in nature; once they mark their prey, it would have disastrous consequences, especially for creatures deemed as weak. Foxes mainly hunted rabbits, but if the fox's hunger was great enough, it would surely prey on the newborn child. The baby weakly shifted her body; her head was too heavy to even crawl away. Despite its eyes being closed, it could sense the imminent danger. But the baby was helpless in the fox's presence. The fox itself curiously looked upon the newborn child flailing weakly and its eyes creased in confusion. Upon closer inspection, the fox seemed to have quite a bit of intelligence. It was very small and was most likely a few weeks old. Its blue eyes gleamed as it happily approached the battered and bruised baby. The baby began to frantically wail in despair, but the fox simply paid the baby's cries no heed and continued to come closer.
"Haha." A woman's laughter echoed through the forest. It was deep and hollow and interrupted the fox's train of thought. At the voice, the baby suddenly calmed down. Where did the voice come from? At the top of a tree, near the edge of the entrance to the forest, sat a beautiful woman clad in the clothes of the east. Her skin was a dark shade of bronze and she had the facial features of those from the west; in her hands, she held an intricately designed western flute. She must have been quite wealthy because around her neck hung a spatial ring. Widely yearned for throughout the seven empires and seven seas for its convenience, spatial rings were quite rare and were capable of storing almost an infinite amount of belongings. Only one in a hundred thousand could afford to buy this ring, but to normal people, spatial rings were merely a myth. They could never even hope to attain one for all their lives. Even catching a glimpse of one was a momentous occasion to many. The woman wore glimmering pearl earrings and bore the countenance of someone highly esteemed, but even so, she still dangled her legs from the tree in an unsightly manner. Her eyes were wide with playfulness and she eyed the baby and fox in interest. She looked to be in her early twenties, but in a world of immortals, she could be far older. Her blonde hair cascaded down her back in waves and shined as the sun reflected off its surface. She was devastatingly beautiful.
Pursing her lips, she tucked her flute inside the ring and jumped off the tree. Not a single speck of hair flowed, it was like time itself had stopped. Her dress stood stiffly as she landed and walked in the baby's direction. The fox, now fully aware of her presence, hurriedly scurried away, but the woman merely reached her hand out and and the fox was flung backwards, straight into her clutches. She held the fox loosely, but no matter how much the fox struggled, it was unable to get away. It slightly pouted and went limp in her hand, trying to play dead. The woman laughed aloud at the fox's antics. It was quite funny, she thought. She walked forwards, eyed the baby, and slightly bent down. In amusement, she pinched the baby's cheek. She saw a flash of black around the baby's neck as it moved and caught sight of the necklace. Her eyes slightly squinted in understanding. The baby had a family. But where were they? She had come across the scene of a fox walking towards a baby shortly after she exited the forest, but hadn't spotted the person who had abandoned the baby here. She subtly tilted her head in confusion and sighed slightly; anyway, the baby certainly wasn't from "that place." It should be safe for her to bring the baby back to Melody's Pavillion.
She scooped the baby up with her free arm and tucked it into her chest; understanding that this unfamiliar woman wouldn't hurt her, the baby snuggled into her arm and slightly relaxed. The fox's eyes slightly opened and glanced towards the baby. Pouting silently, it obediently closed its eyes and allowed itself to be held by the strange woman. As the woman walked away from the forest, she failed to take notice of the ashes beneath her feet. And as she stepped over the ashes, they disintegrated and disappeared into nothingness. The cloaked person was gone for good; even their remains could not be found. Their identity? No one would ever know. At least not for now. The woman continued to walk at a leisurely but somewhat careless pace with the baby in one arm and the fox in the other. Weak against the woman, the fox had submitted to its fate and had long rested limply in her arm, occasionally it would look in the baby's direction. Fatigued from dealing with the cloaked person, the baby had long drifted into a deep slumber. It was unknown if the baby was perceptive towards strangers or was merely born with no survival instincts, but it had deemed the woman with the flute as a good person. Its guard had long come down and it enjoyed the embrace of the woman. This judgment had turned out to be true rather than false. Throughout the journey, despite being somewhat languid in her movements, the woman paid attention to the baby and treated it with care; it was similar to the care of a mother.
A few minutes later, the woman stopped in front of a gate. The gate was tall and imposing, it served to ward off those who had less than good intentions. It was also used against the rare monster swarms that occurred every few years. Many monsters yearned for the taste of human flesh; they were the ultimate bane of all of humanity's existence. In a forest full of such powerful monsters, which one wouldn't be tempted by the allure of a human town full of those humans that they so desired? But humans weren't to be underestimated either. While only the strongest of warriors and cultivators could brave the dangers of the Flame Forest, each townsperson was quite formidable themselves, and what human would be opposed to attaining precious resources from fallen monsters? Each claw and scale on a monster was sold for an astronomical price due to its rarity in the market. Many cultivators and warriors liked to keep their spoils, but if they were to sell a mere scale, they would become a millionaire overnight. In addition, the higher the rank of the monster, the higher the price of its materials. In the Immortal world, one's power was divided into ranks. It was the same for all species, including monsters and humans. While monsters possessed an innate advantage in physical strength; humans held an advantage in cultivation and swordsmanship. As for the monsters, what use did they have for swordsmanship? Even the monsters who had attained enlightenment and began to cultivate a humanoid form found things like weapon arts to be tedious and useless. In total, there were ten ranks, with three sub ranks per rank, but the highest rank achieved by a person of the seven empires and seven seas was merely rank five. Rank six was an illusion while rank ten was unattainable. It was rumored that those who could reach rank ten were on par with the gods themselves, but not much was known about the gods and the heavens. The only indication that the gods and heavens existed were the lightning tribulations one faced when achieving rank five. Whether something laid beyond the seven empires and seven seas, no one knew.