Ningyan had kept the feather close for months, tracing the faint fluctuations within it for any sign of movement.
Jun Haoxuan and the others had done the same, quietly extending their awareness across the realms but nothing had surfaced. Until now.
The moment the feather stirred, Ningyan moved. A shadow slipping through the night.
He landed lightly atop the manor roof, already cloaked in his illusion mask as a tiger beastman. Without hesitation, he leapt down and vanished into the bustling streets below.
Fire City was alive as ever.
Lanterns swayed in the warm night air, music spilled from every corner, and fireworks bloomed endlessly across the sky.
Ningyan kept his pace, his senses honing to a point. His world narrowed to a single thread, the faint pull guiding him forward.
He pressed a thread of qi into the feather hidden within his robes, letting it resonate as he moved through the crowd.
Step by step, the pull grew clearer, until he stopped.
