97: The Eight Months of Preparation

The careful preceding small private eight months of preparation passed by the small careful preceding small private hour of the household's preceding standing rhythm, accelerated.

By the close of the first month, Su Yan reached *Sovereign Origin Stage Nine* in undisplayed cultivation. By the second, *Sovereign Domain Early*. By the fourth, *Sovereign Domain Mid*. By the sixth, *Sovereign Domain Late*. By the eighth — exactly the careful preceding small private month before the executable date — *Sovereign Throne Early*.

He held, by his preceding preference, his outside display at *Foundation Establishment Late*. The kingdom's preceding small private public read, by the careful preceding small private hour of the careful preceding small private quiet decade's first year of marriage, had — by the careful preceding small private public-read inertia of one wedding's preceding small private close — *settled* into the careful preceding small private rhythm of one royal son-in-law conducting his preceding small private private cultivation at the careful preceding small private rate the kingdom's preceding small private senior cultivators had been preceding-time expecting.

The careful preceding small private undisplayed cultivation — at *Sovereign Throne Early* — was, by the kingdom's preceding small private public reading, *eleven full sub-stages above the displayed reading*.

The careful preceding small private undisplayed cultivation was, by every careful preceding small private bookkeeping of the kingdom of Beicang's preceding standing record, *the careful preceding small private most powerful undisplayed cultivation any clansman of the kingdom had carried since the kingdom's preceding small private founding*.

Lin Wanyue, by her preceding preference, conducted the careful preceding small private *substrate-suppression neutralization device's preceding small private forging* across the careful preceding small private hour of the eight months. The device was — by her preceding read — *one careful preceding small private small private bronze plate the size of a man's palm*, with seven careful preceding small private inscribed Aleph glyphs on its preceding small private inner face, calibrated by her preceding small private mathematics to *neutralize* the careful preceding small private central facility's preceding small private third-tier substrate-suppression lattice for the careful preceding small private hour of perhaps *thirty seconds* on activation.

Thirty seconds — by Lin Wanyue's preceding read — *would be enough*.

The plate was forged in the foundation platform's preceding small private interior workshop, by the careful preceding small private hour of forty inside-days of preceding small private patient preceding small private private work, by the careful preceding small private hour of the eighth month.

By the close of the eighth month, Master Qing — by his preceding small private private courtesy at the careful preceding small private hour of the seventh of his preceding small private quarterly meals at the teahouse on the western edge of the royal city — *delivered* the careful preceding small private *seventh of the second seven substrate-anchor stones*. The careful preceding small private full *fourteen-stone* substrate-anchor pair was, by the careful preceding small private hour of the close, *complete*.

By the close of the eighth month, the careful preceding small private *interior cooperation* of Wen Bingyu, Lao Hou, and Yu Mei had — by Cousin Su Lin's preceding small private quiet courier exchange — *confirmed* their preceding small private readiness for the careful preceding small private hour of the executable date.

By the close of the eighth month, Hua Lin's combat branch had — by the careful preceding small private hour of eight months of preceding small private intensive preceding small private private training — reached the careful preceding small private *forty-operative* readiness Madam Hollow's testimony had calibrated for. The forty included Hua Lin himself, Master Mu, the careful preceding small private three Northern Iron Sovereign Origin Stage Three operatives, eight further Sovereign Origin Stage Two operatives drawn from the careful preceding small private alliance's preceding small private quiet courier exchange, and twenty-seven careful preceding small private Foundation Late operatives drilled by the careful preceding small private hour of one year and eight months of careful preceding small private patient preceding small private training.

By the close of the eighth month, by every careful preceding small private bookkeeping of every careful preceding small private alliance member's preceding small private private read, the careful preceding small private *second extraction* was — *fully prepared*.

The careful preceding small private executable date — by the careful preceding small private hour of the eighth month's preceding close — was *seven days away*.

The careful preceding small private final week passed by the small careful preceding small private hour of one extraction party's preceding small private final logistical preparation. Cousin Su Wenfu had — by his preceding standing arrangement — established the careful preceding small private southern logistics line for the careful preceding small private return through the City of the Voiceless's preceding small private preceding small private cell. The line was, by every careful preceding small private bookkeeping, *adequate*.

Cousin Su Lin's preceding small private intelligence-line had — by her preceding standing arrangement — confirmed that the careful preceding small private central facility's preceding small private third tier's preceding small private security had *not*, in the careful preceding small private hour of one year and eight months since Madam Hollow's preceding small private absence, *substantially upgraded* beyond the original protocol. The careful preceding small private substrate-suppression neutralization device's preceding small private thirty-second window would, by Lin Wanyue's preceding read, *suffice*.

By the careful preceding small private hour of the seventh day of the final week, the extraction party — *Su Yan, Lin Wanyue, Linglong, Hua Lin, Master Mu, the three Northern Iron Sovereign Origin Stage Three operatives, eight Sovereign Origin Stage Two operatives, and twenty-seven Foundation Late operatives*, total *forty-two* — assembled at the careful preceding small private *training compound in the foothills two days' ride south-east of Cloud Sky City*.

Cang Xueyi attended the careful preceding small private compound, by her own preceding preference, on the careful preceding small private morning of the executable date. She had — by her preceding preference, by Su Yan's preceding preference at the careful preceding small private wedding's preceding small private close eighteen months earlier — agreed to *not* attend the second extraction itself.

She had, however, by her preceding preference, come to *see her husband off*.

She arrived at the careful preceding small private compound at the second hour past dawn. She wore her ordinary plain pale-blue under-robe with no embroidery. Her hair was tied in a single plain knot. Mingxue accompanied her at the polite three paces.

She inclined her head — small, formal — to Su Yan at the compound's preceding small private central yard.

He inclined his head — small, formal — in return.

She did not, by her preceding preference, kiss him in front of the assembled party.

She did, by her preceding preference, *embrace* him, briefly, for the count of perhaps three breaths.

She inclined her head — small, formal.

"Su Yan."

"Cang Xueyi."

"By my own preceding preference, *come back*."

"Cang Xueyi. *I will*."

She turned, at her unhurried pace, and walked back to her preceding small private waiting carriage.

She did not, by her preceding preference, look back.

The careful preceding small private extraction party — by Hua Lin's preceding small private signal — *moved* to the careful preceding small private compound's preceding small private central platform.

Su Yan laid the careful preceding small private *fourteen-stone* substrate-anchor pair, in the careful preceding small private *second-tier teleport pattern* Master Qing's preceding small private final teaching had calibrated for, on the small clean stone of the platform.

He inhaled.

He let the silver-gold lattice in his chest — at *Sovereign Throne Early*, undisplayed, with the careful preceding small private full sub-meridian foundation of one mother's preceding small private cellar's preceding small private seven-book curriculum and one Heavenly Immortal's preceding small private seven careful preceding small private private teachings — *open*, very gently, into the fourteen stones' preceding small private resonance pattern.

The fourteen stones — by the careful preceding small private hour of the second-tier teleport pattern, by Master Qing's preceding small private final teaching, by Lin Wanyue's preceding small private private mathematics, and by the careful preceding small private hour of one year and eight months of careful preceding small private patient preceding small private private preparation — *responded*.

They glowed.

The careful preceding small private *teleport corridor's preceding small private second-tier endpoint* — by the careful preceding small private hour of the resonance pattern's preceding small private opening, by the careful preceding small private hour of Wen Bingyu's preceding small private interior preparation at the central archive's preceding small private third tier's preceding small private alcove three of the western wing — *opened*.

Su Yan stepped — at his unhurried pace — into the corridor.

Lin Wanyue stepped behind him.

Linglong stepped behind her.

Hua Lin and Master Mu and the careful preceding small private forty operatives, by the careful preceding small private hour of the careful preceding small private extraction formation, *stepped through after*.

The careful preceding small private *second extraction* — by the careful preceding small private hour of one fourteen-stone substrate-anchor pair's preceding small private successful opening — *began*.