The weather in coastal cities was changeable.
At dusk, there had been only a sparse drizzle. In the blink of an eye, fierce winds swept in with a torrential downpour, its clattering din continuing for a long time.
In the latter half of the night, the driving rain gradually eased, only stopping completely when dawn broke.
The wall lamp cast a soft glow over the broad, comfortable bed in the bedroom. Hong Yuan rested his head on two mounds of cotton, a delicate body sprawled like an octopus across his chest and belly.
Apart from faint snoring, the room was exceptionally quiet. Amid that stillness, Hong Yuan abruptly opened his eyes and looked toward the window.
"Finally come knocking, have you? You moved much slower than I expected. Even the Pacification and Suppression Bureau has grown lax!"
The window opened without a sound. With a hiss, a speck of dark light shot straight toward Hong Yuan on the bed.
Without even looking, Hong Yuan recognized the sound of a crossbow bolt. He raised one hand and flicked a finger.
Clink!
Amid the crisp ring, the short bolt flew back faster than it had come. A muffled thump of piercing flesh sounded, followed by the dull noise of someone falling outside the window.
Hong Yuan had already risen lightly from the bed. A surge of force swept the robe off a chair and wrapped it around him, before he became a streak of clear light and shot out through the window.
He had barely landed in the courtyard when the air tore behind him. Two brocade-clad men, one on either side, shouted and swung their sabers at him.
Hong Yuan did not even turn his head. He stamped the ground, sending two thumb-sized pebbles springing upward to strike their foreheads like