The golden morning sun cast a brilliant, fiery glow over the temporary encampment, illuminating the manicured profound-stone courtyards and the heavily warded silk pavilions. The air was crisp, carrying the faint, lingering scent of the distant wilderness, but the atmosphere within the camp was one of solemn, inevitable departure. The diverging paths of the Celestial Dragon Empire's most prominent figures had finally manifested into physical reality.
At the center of the encampment, standing before a sleek, heavily armored flying carriage, was Gu Ling. The Heiress of the Ancient Gu Clan was dressed in her pristine, signature pale lavender silks, her dark hair cascading perfectly down her back in an intricate, elegant braid. Outwardly, she was the absolute epitome of aristocratic grace and untouchable dignity.
