Border City, in front of the Marquis of the North's Residence.
The common folk had gathered, crowding around nearby.
The Imperial Court's envoy stopped before the gates.
The main gates stood wide open. Clad in armor, the Marquis of the North strode out with three old servants and a little girl.
In the guest courtyard, Xuanming had no intention of going out.
He merely sent the Three Little Ones to represent him.
He had paid some attention to the Marquis of the North's investigations over the past few days. Besides, Bai Suying had also sent him word.
This holy maiden of the Willow Teaching harbored dissatisfaction with the Imperial Court as well.
Because of that, he already knew part of the truth.
The old emperor no longer lived up to the wisdom and valor of his early reign. He had grown muddleheaded and ruthless, exploiting to the utmost the Marquis of the North, with whom he had enjoyed two hundred years of harmony between sovereign and subject. How could that not be disappointing?
Xuanming did not want to meet anyone from the central government.
He was outside the secular world anyway; he had no shortage of excuses.
Moreover, he was a Spirit Refining cultivator, so the Imperial Court dared not force him.
Xuanming had stayed until today because he wanted to see the final outcome.
At the gates, the common folk reacted differently upon seeing the Marquis of the North's drastically changed appearance. Some sucked in cold breaths, some stared slack-jawed, and some could not resist pinching their companions. A clamor of discussion soon followed.
"How did the marquis end up looking like this after just two days?"
"What else could have happened? His whole family died in battle. Who could bear that?"
"Which family in our Border City hasn't