Boarding the Flying Boat

The back courtyard of the City Lord’s Manor was cold and damp. Shen Qingyun was only a mortal, after all, and after a whole day of being tossed around, he was exhausted in both body and mind.

He wrapped the bedding more tightly around himself to ward off the faint chill of the late night, then sank into a deep sleep amid the surrounding cacophony of snores.

He had no idea how much time passed before a sudden commotion startled him awake.

The entrance to the back courtyard was brightly lit. An arrogant-looking young man walked in, and following behind him was the sharp-tongued steward with the goatee.

The steward quietly made his way to the center of the courtyard, took a small ledger from his robes, and began recording the number of people present.

“Ninety-eight... ninety-nine... one hundred!”

When he softly uttered the final number, a smile immediately blossomed across the steward’s face. He then turned and left without looking back.

The steward’s strange behavior made Shen Qingyun’s heart skip a beat.

He had a feeling that something was about to happen.

Sure enough, not long after the steward left, a streak of blood-red light descended from the sky and landed precisely in the center of the courtyard...