The Imperial Feather Guards
The Imperial Feather Guards were the emperor's personal troops and were actually stationed within the city. Looking closely, Wei Hai saw soldiers standing ramrod straight at the encampment, their eyes fixed ahead. At the entrance, however, there were surprisingly few soldiers, and the people streaming in all lined up.
Wei Hai had no choice but to turn and join the queue, feeling a little impatient.
"Have you heard? Capital City hasn't been peaceful lately. Strange things keep happening. It's enough to make a man uneasy." As he approached the crowd, he heard a middle-aged man discussing this in a lowered voice, his expression carrying both fear and a peculiar excitement.
Someone beside him asked, "Oh? What's happened? Hurry up and tell me."
"It's the Ghost Chariot Bird!" The middle-aged man deliberately made his voice hoarse and mysterious. Normally, trying to frighten people in broad daylight would have little effect, but bringing up something like the "Ghost Chariot Bird" instantly doubled the terror.
"I heard a Ghost Chariot Bird has settled at Capital City's Astronomical Observatory and cries mournfully day and night. It's a truly ill omen!"
"Yes, yes!" Several people nodded in agreement.
In this world, the Ghost Chariot Bird was a legendary bird tainted with evil energy. Its feathers were multicolored, it came and went with incredible speed, and its movements were mysterious. Every appearance seemed to bring calamity, giving rise to the folk belief that great disaster would follow whenever a Ghost Chariot Bird appeared.
The Ghost Chariot Bird's call was hardly pleasant. This was probably one reason its sinister reputation had endured through both the previous dynasty and the present one.
Thinking of the Ghost Chariot Bird's terrifying legendary cry, especially its dreadful mournful wailing, everyone who heard this involuntarily shuddered.
"If that's