That day, the weather was no different from the days before. Thick clouds hung somewhat gloomily overhead, yet light remained plentiful between the mountains, sea, earth, and sky, and visibility stretched far. Such weather, together with the rain of an earlier day, seemed to be Fallen Dragon Shoal's usual autumn climate.
Except that ordinarily nobody observed the climate in this wretched place, so there was no knowing whether it was usual.
Returning to the present, the Exorcising the Dragon Army had marched out in force, forming ranks to head westward home. To remain ready for battle at any moment, most of the vanguard had already donned armor, and the central army had strapped on iron lamellar armor as well. As light and shadow shifted overhead, their armor and weapons glittered in overlapping layers like scales and horns, while their banners stirred gently in the wind like wings, lending them an imposing air... In fact, morale among the middle and lower ranks really was very high. Everyone knew they were going home, and reckoning the distance, it was only a little over a hundred li. How could they not know a road they had traveled themselves? Even the news that they might be intercepted today had not shaken the soldiers. Some were positively itching for a fight, because the battle that afternoon, when they had held their own only for it to end abruptly, had left them not merely confident but even somewhat regretful.
What these soldiers did not know, however, was that compared with their eagerness, their commander and some of their senior leaders wore their lofty resolve only on the surface, while their hearts were plainly troubled.
"Black clouds pressed upon the city, threatening to crush its walls; armor shone toward the sun, golden scales unfurled." Astride his yellow-brown