The rain fell in an endless curtain, and it seemed colder and more sinister than usual. Disorderly winds swept between the buildings, tangling the rain into a chaotic mess. In the distant haze, neon lights blurred into vast swaths of indistinct color, shimmering with an illusory glow that made reality and illusion impossible to tell apart.
The black-canopied boats and mechanical flower boats floating among the pavilions and towers had received a navigation warning from the Control Bureau. They had all moored beside the nearest buildings to avoid the weather, which was about to worsen further. An alert claimed that a mass of cold air was moving south from the wilderness and would transform into a cyclone near the Refining Tower, bringing a storm to the entire city.
Even through the broad windows, Xuan Che could sense the restlessness brewing in the air outside.
Something had noticed... noticed the presence of a discordant "gaze" in the city.
Xuan Che gathered his thoughts, kept his expression calm, and looked at the city lord, Mo Ran, seated across from him.
Mo Ran wore a smile as she reported on the renovation and repurposing projects the Mo City had carried out on the surrounding Refining Towers in recent years. Every so often, she turned her head and conversed with the invisible "Star Guardian Elder Dao Heng" in the air.
Ten minutes ago, another attendant had entered the room and paid his respects to "Elder Dao Heng."
Xuan Che showed no sign that anything was amiss.
His divine sense swept through the room once more, then through the entire city lord's residence.
Mo Ran harbored no hostility. No one here harbored any hostility. They were not that group of "black-robed cultivators." Even if Mo Ran had malicious intentions, she would never use an "invisible