Spirit energy flowed through its walls in intricate patterns, feeding into a golden lotus that bloomed above the main gate.
Fang Yuan slowed the descent to a near crawl. His fingers brushed the edge of the void, drawing it open like silk.
For a moment, the world beneath them wavered and then reality folded aside, allowing them to emerge within the shadowed courtyard of the treasury itself.
The air was heavy with the scent of spirit stones, gold, and perhaps, rare herbs.
Du Juan's eyes widened, awe and fear battling in her gaze.
"We… we're really inside?" she whispered.
Fang Yuan smirked faintly.
"Welcome to the heart of Qin's greed," he said, stepping off the boat as his boots touched the marble floor with no sound.
"Now, let's take what we came for."
Behind him, the jade vessel dissolved into motes of light, folding neatly back into his spatial ring, leaving only silence and the faint hum of treasure-filled air.
