In western Skywater City stood a secluded cultivation courtyard, its walls built from heavy bluestone. Its gate was tightly shut, and a wooden plaque bearing the words "Quiet Cultivation" hung above it.
This courtyard was City Lord Zhuge Yuan's private cultivation retreat. Every year, he set aside several months to cultivate here in seclusion, and no one was permitted to disturb him.
That evening, the gate was pushed open from within.
When Zhuge Yuan emerged from the courtyard, he still carried the deep, settled aura characteristic of someone who had just finished cultivating in seclusion. His dark blue robe was somewhat loose, swaying gently with his steps.
He was in his early forties, with handsome features, but a deep vertical crease marked the space between his brows, left by years of frowning.
Tall and straight-backed, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist, he walked with the natural authority of someone long accustomed to high office.
A city lord's token and an earl's badge hung at his waist. An earl formally ennobled by the Tiandou Empire, the lord of Skywater City, and a Seven-Ring Soul Sage-with all those identities combined, he counted as a notable figure even across the entire Northern Border.
Standing at the courtyard gate, he stretched his shoulders and back, his joints giving several crisp cracks, then beckoned to the attendant waiting outside.
The attendant hurried over and bowed.
"Has anything happened in the city lately?" Zhuge Yuan asked casually, taking the damp cloth the attendant offered and wiping his hands.
The attendant hesitated, opening his mouth only to close it again.
Zhuge Yuan frowned at him. "Speak."
"My lord, regarding Headmistress Shui..." The attendant chose his words carefully. "A few days ago, she brought a young man back from outside the city. He followed her all the