Meanwhile, in the distant city of Yin, this city truly lived up to its title as the capital of Yi Ti. Its sheer scale was enough to leave even the most worldly merchants in awe. If King's Landing was cramped and squalid, then Yin was resplendent and majestic.
The streets ran straight and orderly, like a vast chessboard, dividing the city into hundreds of districts, each comparable in size to King's Landing itself. Towering walls rose in successive layers, from the outermost earthen ramparts to the palace walls of the Imperial City, enclosing and protecting the very heart of the Golden Celestial Dynasty.
Yin's architectural style was both exquisite and distinctive. Every building was roofed with multicolored glazed tiles that shimmered under the sun, flowing with hues of gold, blue, and green. Massive wooden brackets supported broad halls, their beams and pillars carved with dragons, phoenixes, auspicious clouds, and mythical beasts. The lacquer remained vivid despite years of wind and rain.
Canals and artificial lakes threaded through the city, while countless stone bridges arched overhead, each crowned with pavilions and towers. The streets were a constant surge of people and traffic. Citizens, officials, merchants, priests, and soldiers in silken garments of every color wove together into a scene of overwhelming prosperity. The density of the population far exceeded that of any city in Essos.
Yet beneath this peak of splendor, danger lay hidden.
The imperial palace stood at the very center of the city, raised upon a colossal gemstone base. Its halls stretched on without end, dazzling with gold and brilliance. At this moment, within the grandest of those halls, the air felt heavy and still.
God-Emperor Bu Gai sat high upon the dragon throne, clad in ceremonial robes and wearing a tall imperial crown. His face was pale, his eyes dull as they stared up at the beams overhead.
Bu Gai had grown up deep within the palace. He had ascended the throne largely by chance, relying on the influence of his mother's house and surviving a sudden court epidemic that carried off the other heirs. As a result, he knew little of political maneuvering or military affairs.
Below the dais, the civil and military officials stood arrayed on either side. Most of the civil officials kept their heads lowered, their eyes flickering as they calculated their own interests. Among the military ranks, a single towering general stood at the forefront.
He was the nephew of Bu Gai's late mother, and through sheer nepotism had taken control of Yin's last remaining force that answered directly to the royal family: ten thousand Imperial Guards.
Bu Gai's voice trembled as he spoke.
"Lords, the rebel who rides a dragon has already reached Asabhad and will soon march east to invade Yin. What counsel do you offer?"
The hall fell into silence.
After a long while, an elderly minister stepped forward, his body shaking as he spoke.
"Your Majesty, we could issue another edict, harshly rebuking the ministers and generals of the realm, commanding them to bring their troops to Yin with all haste..."
"Hmph!"
The Grand General cut him off with a cold snort.
"Those cursed parasites. Every one of them hoards his own troops and would be delighted to see Yin fall. Depending on them is like expecting a sow to climb a tree!"
He turned toward Bu Gai.
"Your Majesty, allow me to lead the elite Imperial Guards to meet the enemy. I will personally place the head of that accursed Yi Ti traitor before you!"
Bu Gai looked at his cousin, but instead of relief, his worry only deepened. Unlike those officials who completely dismissed the existence of dragons, he knew better.
In the imperial archives, among ancient records dating back to the era of the Yellow Emperors, he had seen accounts of dragons with his own eyes. They spoke of dragonfire melting stone fortresses, of dragons tearing entire armies apart.
That was power capable of destroying the world itself.
"Your Majesty… I've heard that Lo Quen commands several enormous dragons, creatures that can breathe raging fire. You—"
"Your Majesty, those are nothing but lies!" the Grand General cut in, his face full of scorn.
He simply did not believe such creatures existed, dismissing it all as bluster and theatrics from western barbarians.
"These are nothing more than cheap tricks meant to frighten people. I need only ten thousand soldiers—no, five thousand! Five thousand men will be enough to trample the enemy camp flat. Grant me the military funds, Your Majesty, and I will depart at once. I swear to defend the dignity of the God-Emperor with my life!"
At that moment, another adviser stepped forward and spoke.
"Your Majesty, the Grand General's loyalty is plain for all to see. However, the treasury is nearly empty, and it would be difficult to gather the funds needed for a large army to march. Moreover, I have just received word that the rebel Pol Qo is preparing to ally with the Juesnai people and march south to suppress Lo Quen."
"Pol Qo?!"
Bu Gai jolted in alarm.
"He intends to march south to suppress the rebels? I don't believe for a moment that he means to help Yin. He's merely taking advantage of this excuse to move south openly. Once Lo Quen is destroyed, I fear we will be next!"
The minister smiled faintly, looking utterly confident.
"Your Majesty worries too much. Though Pol Qo has rebelled against Yin, he understands the truth of lips and teeth sharing the same fate. Lo Quen's power is growing rapidly. If he swallows up the southeast, his next target will certainly be the northwest. Pol Qo's actions are, in truth, an act of self-preservation.
"Furthermore, with Pol Qo standing in front to absorb Lo Quen's military pressure, no matter who wins or loses, both sides will be weakened. We can sit back and reap the benefits, then reunify Yi Ti. Whether Pol Qo wins and is left exhausted, or Lo Quen achieves a costly victory, Your Majesty can step in under the authority of the God-Emperor and settle the aftermath. Either outcome works in our favor."
These words drew nods of agreement from many of the officials in the hall.
Bu Gai looked over the ministers below the dais, most of whom clearly supported this plan. He opened his mouth as if to speak, then sagged back against the dragon throne, waving his hand weakly.
"Very well… since that is the case, proceed as you suggest."
The court session ended in an atmosphere that appeared harmonious on the surface, while beneath it, every man harbored his own designs.
After the assembly, the minister who had argued for letting Pol Qo clash with Lo Quen first returned to his luxurious mansion in Yin. He dismissed all attendants, quickly wrote a secret letter, slipped it into a slender bamboo tube, and tied it to the leg of a carrier pigeon he had prepared in advance.
Standing by the window, he watched as the pigeon beat its wings and flew off toward the northwest, a cold smile slowly forming at the corner of his mouth.
...
At the border where Yi Ti met the vast Plains of the Jogos Nhai stood a colossal fortress-city known as Trader Town.
Its name came from its original purpose, a trading hub linking Yi Ti with the Jogos Nhai of the north.
Now, however, its military importance far outweighed its commercial role.
Trader Town's walls were not as absurdly towering as those of the Five Forts, yet they still rose to a daunting height of a hundred feet. They were built entirely from massive blue-gray stone blocks, their surfaces smooth and steep, nearly impossible to climb. Arrow towers and watchtowers crowded the ramparts, while enormous ballistae and catapults rested behind the battlements.
A broad, man-made moat diverted water from a nearby river, encircling the immense stronghold.
Like a colossal gate stretched across the north–south passage, it once served as a barrier against Jogos Nhai riders pushing south. Now, it had become Pol Qo's base for his own southern advance.
The Ministers's palace of Trader Town had been remodeled into a royal residence steeped in Yi Ti's lavish style.
Seated on the main throne, draped in a whole bearskin, was a man: Pol Qo.
He was around forty, tall, broad-shouldered, and powerfully built.
Pol Qo had claimed the throne early, founding the "Orange Dynasty" to stand in open rivalry with Yin's "Azure Dynasty."
He had never bothered to hide his ambition.
To swallow all of Yi Ti and reign as the sole God-Emperor.
At this moment, he was listening to a trusted advisor report on a secret letter from Yin and on the situation involving Lo Quen.
"The letter says that as long as we defeat—or even just cripple—Lo Quen, the cowardly nobles of Yin will turn to us completely. That little brat Bu Gai's days on the God-Emperor's throne will be over."
Pol Qo let out a cold laugh. "Those old foxes want to use my hand to get rid of Lo Quen, then have me grind each other down with that useless emperor in Yin. A neat little scheme."
The advisor asked cautiously, "Your Majesty means…?"
"Fight. Of course we fight."
Pol Qo's voice suddenly rose, his eyes flashing with savage light. "But not for those fence-sitters, and not for that worthless Azure Dynasty. We fight for ourselves. This Lo Quen, with his handful of so-called fire-breathing lizards, has come all the way from the west and built up quite a reputation. If he takes the southeast and pulls its resources and people together, we'll be next. We have to smash him on the Jade Sea coast before he can secure his footing."
He stood and strode to the wall where a massive sheepskin map hung, pointing at it as he spoke.
"We'll show everyone who the real master of this land is. It's men on horseback, not barbarians scaring people with a few flying lizards."
"Pass down my orders!"
Pol Qo's voice thundered through the hall. "Gather every warrior fit to fight. Tell those northwestern nobles still sitting on the fence: either bring their men and grain and follow me, Pol Qo, south to make their fortunes, or wait for my iron cavalry to trample their estates. The men will be killed, the women and wealth taken as supplies for the army."
His orders were carried out at once.
In the days that followed, Trader Town and the surrounding lands turned into an enormous camp and marketplace.
Soldiers from Pol Qo's territories poured in, along with the private troops of northwestern nobles who answered his call.
More importantly, reinforcements arrived from the Plains of the Jogos Nhai.
They were the most terrifying force of all.
Tens of thousands of Jogos Nhai light cavalry rode in, mounted on zebras of astonishing endurance, swift as the wind.
...
Half a month later, a vast army set out from Trader Town, surging southward.
Pol Qo rode at its head on an exceptionally powerful black warhorse, clad in heavy armor, a warhammer hanging at his saddle.
He glanced back at his army, banners snapping and voices roaring, and a confident, feral grin spread across his face.
"Lo Quen? A dragon?"
He spat toward the south. "Come on. I'll use this hammer to teach you what war really is."
Iron hooves thundered, kicking up clouds of dust, as the Hammer of the Jogos Nhai swung toward the Southern Dragon.