The heavy sound of hooves approached from afar.
Supervisor Yuan Feng and Yan Jiuling hurriedly tidied their garments. Together with all the students of the academy's two disciplines, Ge-wu and Mystical Craft, they gathered in droves before the academy's freshly painted vermilion gate symbolizing "investigation of things leads to knowledge."
Sunlight pierced through the clouds, landing precisely on the newly laid red carpet in front of the gate.
Yuan Feng wore a brand-new fifth rank green round-collared robe with a crane patch, while Yan Jiuling surprisingly donned a dark blue silk Confucian Scholar's outfit.
Everyone held their breath, eyes focused on the carriage gradually approaching from the distance.
It was not the imperial gift of bright yellow but a low-key yet finely crafted rosewood four-man sedan chair, surrounded by over a dozen personal attendants clad in brown shirts, exuding calm and toughness.
