Early the next morning, the red silk on Cangming Peak was finally removed.
The gilt-gold characters for "Azure Abyss Marquis's Manor" emerged in the morning light. They had not been written by an ordinary artisan; the Imperial Household Department had invited a court calligraphy attendant to inscribe them personally, then outlined them with Scarlet Gold Spirit Liquid.
Seen from afar, a faint golden dragon seemed to coil within the plaque, appearing and disappearing in an extraordinarily mystical display.
Qing Chen stood before the manor gates for a long time, an indescribable mixture of feelings stirring within him.
From an Outer Sect disciple of the Condensed Jade Sect in the Azure Wave Archipelago, through the deadly trap in Qiongzhou, to making his name in a single battle on Golden Scale Island, he had finally gained a first-rate manor in the heart of Great Jin's Capital City.
The hardships along the way were not something he could explain to outsiders.
Shortly after the hour of the Snake began, the Iron Household's carriage arrived at Cangming Peak.
This time, there was none of the earth-shaking Dragon Carriage pomp of a few days earlier. A hundred Iron-Clad Guards lined either side, all elites of the Iron Household who had fought their way through mountains of corpses and seas of blood on the Northern Border, their killing intent dense and settled.
Two men led them.
One was tall, with resolute features: Tie Zhan.
The other wore a purple Qilin Rank Badge Robe, with the Divine Capital Garrison Office's command token at his waist. Steady and composed, he was Tie Ce, Commandant of the Divine Capital Garrison Office.
Qing Chen personally came to the manor gates to greet them.
When Tie Ce saw him emerge, his gaze lingered on him for a moment, a trace