Two nights later, the midnight sky above the imperial palace was as dark as spilled ink.
A cold drizzle fell over the capital, pattering softly against the bronze eaves of the outer pavilions.
In the center of the Royal Tea Garden, Kaelen’s woven hemp hammock swayed gently in the quiet draft.
He slept beneath a thick white wool blanket, his arms folded comfortably across his stomach. The black silk blindfold covered his eyes, while the lavender beeswax sealed his ears in perfect, unbroken tranquility.
The sound of rain on willow leaves is remarkably soothing, Kaelen thought, drifting through a pleasant haze of twilight rest. As long as nobody starts beating drums again, I can stay right here until the first snowfall.
Deep within his sea of consciousness, the Fallow Slate hummed with steady, golden luminescence.
Tracks Three and Four crossed one thousand eight hundred hours without a single flicker of disturbance.
[Track 3: Alchemy & Medicine — 1,800h 00m (18,010x SEALED)] [Track 4: Fortress & Formation Rewriting — 1,800h 00m (18,010x SEALED)] [Track 1: Cultivation Vessel — 120h 00m (121x)] [Track 2: Martial Combat — 120h 00m (121x)]
