The ritual to send off the gods ended, and the river of clouds spreading down from the Ninth Heaven gradually dispersed beneath everyone's watchful eyes.
Zhang Ziwang looked up at the sky. It was a vivid blue; apart from the cloud river that had spilled down from the Ninth Heaven, there was not a wisp of cloud anywhere else.
Such a strange phenomenon made the already superstitious villagers believe even more deeply. They knelt on the ground one after another, kowtowing toward the sky and muttering prayers.
Once the clouds had completely dispersed, they could conclude their work and rest.
The scattered clouds drifted upward in clumps, as though they were headed somewhere deeper. Some vanished as they floated along, so when one cluster veered off course and lingered strangely in one spot for a while, it stood out conspicuously.
Zhang Ziwang let out a startled "Hm?" and could not help turning to look at Li Wenying.
Li Wenying straightened as well, frowning as he watched.
Pan Yun was looking up at the rolling clouds when she suddenly caught sight of one that neither flew nor dispersed. Her brow twitched.
That night, after all the students had gone to sleep, Zhang Ziwang and Li Wenying left the village and drifted away.
Not long after they left, Pan Yun poked her head out, glanced around, found no one, and whooshed away as well.
Zhang Ziwang and Li Wenying arrived at a village and circled a grand residence again and again. Just as they were about to speak, they heard an unusual sound. The two immediately hid in a large tree and turned to look together.
There was Pan Yun, sneaking about with a black cat perched on her shoulder.
Zhang Ziwang and Li Wenying: ...
The two did not overthink it