Now, let's turn to Acheron.
On a nameless, barren planet where life had only just begun to sprout—a world still mostly ocean, with little land in sight—Acheron drifted among the stars as always, wandering wherever her steps took her.
Then, out of nowhere, a sudden intuition stirred within her. An inspiration that seemed to spring from nothing drew her gaze toward the direction of the Luofu.
"Hmm? How strange… This feeling—it's like it appeared out of thin air."
Acheron's left hand lifted gently to her chest.
That flash of insight, that kind of spontaneous knowing—it had been more years than she could count since she'd last felt anything like it.
So long, in fact, that it took her a moment to even recognize what it was.
"The Luofu… Is Sylvia planning to do something dangerous there?"
The Luofu had its general standing guard, along with the Cloud Knights. Sylvia had only managed to provoke the Disciples of Sanctus Medicus—enough to draw the attention of that mysterious Emanator.
With the blade Acheron had left behind, it should have been more than enough to ensure Sylvia's safety.
Besides, a certain degree of risk was always part of the plan from the beginning.
So why now, of all times, was she struck by this kind of premonition?
Frowning slightly, Acheron found herself murmuring under her breath almost without thinking:
"Maybe I should go back and ask her."
It didn't even cross her mind that for days now, she might have been traveling in entirely the wrong direction.
Nor did she stop to consider whether turning back now would contradict her original plans.
All because of a sudden, baseless feeling—that Sylvia was about to stir up something seriously dangerous aboard the Luofu.
And just like that, she decided then and there to return to the starship, to stand before Sylvia again and ask her plainly—if only to ease her own mind.
Acheron pulled out her phone and glanced at the contacts list—empty, save for that one name.
She thought about it for a moment, then decided against sending a message.
Instead, she simply turned around and set off, retracing her path back toward the Luofu.
--+--
The next day.
Early in the morning, Sylvia received a message from Qingque.
It said to meet at the starskiff dock in Exalting Sanctum—she'd already handed both her and Sylvia's passes to the guards. Once Sylvia arrived, they could head straight to the Seat of Divine Foresight.
The message had been sent about half a system hour before Sylvia woke up.
By the time Sylvia reached the spot, Qingque was crouched by the roadside, idly shuffling a set of Celestial Jade tiles while eating her breakfast.
The port leading to the Seat of Divine Foresight saw little starskiff traffic, making it much quieter compared to other docks.
Qingque was squatting off to the side by herself, not far from a posted Cloud Knight on guard duty.
When she spotted Sylvia approaching, she quickly waved her over.
"You're here already? I thought you usually slept in later than this."
As she greeted her, Qingque smiled and passed over a breakfast bundle—a local Xianzhou specialty.
Sylvia didn't stand on ceremony. She took the food and crouched down beside Qingque.
"We're going to see the General of Divine Foresight today. Gotta have a little sense of occasion, you know?"
"I'd believe that if you'd used any other excuse."
Qingque glanced over at Sylvia, who was now holding a paper bag and squatting beside her without a care for her appearance. It was a little hard to call that "a sense of occasion."
"How is getting up early for breakfast not a sense of occasion?" Sylvia mumbled around a mouthful of food, too muffled to make out clearly.
But Qingque could guess what she was saying. Being stubborn was just part of Sylvia's nature.
Heck, Qingque half-believed that even if Sylvia were six feet under, she'd still complain that the dirt over her wasn't packed tight enough.
"Hurry up and eat. Once you're done, we're off to the Seat of Divine Foresight. Ugh… The Master Diviner didn't even give us a specific time. Seriously…"
Sylvia watched Qingque's practiced hands shuffling the tiles, then teased:
"Speaking of which, you're going to see the General today too, Qingque. Once you've caught the Luofu General's eye, your rise to glory is just around the corner~"
"Ah, don't jinx it! Shut your mouth, quick!"
Qingque shot Sylvia an annoyed glare. If she really did get noticed by the General today, she was blaming Sylvia for this!
Sylvia shut up, grinning to herself.
She quickly finished her breakfast, and then the two approached the messenger from the Seat of Divine Foresight.
After their identities were confirmed, the messenger summoned a starskiff reserved for travel to the Seat.
Inside the cabin sat a Cloud Knight, armed and clearly part of the security detail—precautions were still very much in place.
With an outsider present, Qingque and Sylvia didn't feel comfortable chatting.
They both leaned back lazily in their seats, closed their eyes, and took a short rest.
--+--
The Seat of Divine Foresight was grand and imposing. Just past the entrance, a vibrant crimson carpet ran between two majestic stone lions standing guard on either side.
Cloud Knights were posted throughout, ensuring the compound's security.
Walking through the main hall, they were met with a massive projected starchess board set right in front of the General's seat—positioned as though one could look down over the entire game from there.
It was hard to tell whether the board was purely decorative, or if someone actually played here.
Upon entering, Sylvia didn't react much, but Qingque cleverly fell half a step behind, tucking herself partly out of sight behind Sylvia.
With a quick glance around, she immediately spotted the Luofu General, Jing Yuan, standing at the head of the room.
Beside him stood Yanqing and Qingzu.
Of course, Qingque wasn't particularly intimidated by these people—high-ranking as they were, they weren't her direct supervisors.
What made her want to shrink back was the pink-haired Master Diviner standing before the desk, arms crossed, watching them approach.
"Miss Sylvia. We meet at last. I am Jing Yuan, General of the Cloud Knights of the Luofu. You are a guest from afar—there's no need to stand on ceremony. Please, call me Jing Yuan."
As soon as Sylvia drew near, Jing Yuan—standing at the center—invited her directly up to the raised platform where he and the others stood.
Jing Yuan wore a light smile. Like Acheron, his long, somewhat unruly hair covered one of his eyes, lending him an air of mystery.
But compared to Acheron, Jing Yuan seemed more approachable. If not for the light armor and martial attire, Sylvia might have taken him for a scholar or strategist rather than a military general.
"A pleasure to meet you, General Jing Yuan."
Sylvia responded politely, then strode up the steps without hesitation.
Qingque, who had been following behind her, was visibly startled.
She scanned the room—spotted a foxian wearing the Sky-Faring Commission's uniform, a Vidyadhara in the Alchemy Commission's attire—but didn't see any other diviners from her own Divination Commission.
Then again, with Master Diviner Fu here in person today, if there were any urgent documents, she'd probably just slap them right on the General's desk herself.
Who'd wait around for seals and signatures?
Left with little choice—a diviner from the Master Diviner Commission couldn't very well go mingle with the Sky-Faring Commission staff—Qingque had no option but to steel herself and follow Sylvia, keeping her head down and doing her best impression of a 'retainer' to stay unnoticed.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.