After leaving the alternate dimension, Liu Qing headed back the way he had come, turning things over in his mind. He had not gone far when he suddenly started. He twisted around, bent slightly at the waist, and tensed every muscle in an instant, his gaze falling directly beneath the cherry tree in full bloom behind him to his right.
There, amid the drifting shower of cherry blossoms, stood a man who looked about twenty-three or twenty-four, tall and straight-backed. He had close-cropped black hair and a handsome face with gentle contours, as though every line had been painstakingly sculpted. His brows were sharp, his eyes bright, and his gaze calm and natural. His nose was straight and finely shaped, his lips a rich red. The snug black tank top he wore casually outlined his physique perfectly: a narrow waist, broad shoulders, and the faint contours of muscle. Coupled with his handsome face, he positively radiated masculine vigor. A man like that should have drawn attention effortlessly and inspired goodwill, leaving women gathering around him and men ashamed by comparison. And yet...
As he stood there, no one but Liu Qing looked at him. The passing gardeners, servants, and even the elite guards on patrol seemed oblivious to his existence. Liu Qing had to admit that, when he passed earlier, he had caught sight of the man out of the corner of his eye, only to instinctively overlook him. It was as though he were one with the cherry tree behind him, the earth beneath his feet, the ornamental grass around him, and the breeze stirring the air-as though he simply belonged there, without the slightest incongruity! Had the man's gaze on his back not triggered a response from the Aura within him, Liu Qing would never have stopped.
Liu