At 6:00 a.m. local time on October 8, 832 of the Common Era, Yu Lian woke from a deep sleep with machine-like precision. After letting out a huge yawn, he was wide awake.
He changed into his exercise clothes, opened the door as quietly as he could, and listened for a moment. Once he confirmed his senior apprentice brother wasn't around, he practically skipped out of the room like someone who'd just found a wallet.
There was no helping it. Tantai Jing was the sort who liked to push people until they were exhausted. Ever since he'd confirmed that Yu Lian was a member of the Spiritual Research Society, his favorite thing to do every day had been to commandeer Yu Lian's morning workout for sparring, as if he wanted to cram every technique reserved for the Society's "true disciples" into him in one go.
Yu Lian was more than happy to go along with it; he'd benefited a great deal. Still, having to get into a brawl with a fierce-looking middle-aged man every morning did get a little stale after a while.
Perhaps his senior apprentice brother had noticed how Yu Lian felt. Today, he'd actually let him off the hook.
In high spirits, Yu Lian left the observation post and decided to run a loop along the edge of the 12th Garrison Division's forward defense line nearby. That should be about ten kilometers, probably half an hour there and back.
No sooner thought than done. He set off at a brisk pace, welcoming the last traces of the morning chill.
Yu Lian had been running for less than five minutes when he saw a squad of Imperial soldiers in full combat gear and military power armor ahead of him. They were moving at over thirty kilometers per hour,