The lake lay tranquil, with two or three small boats moored upon it. Sturdy men in bamboo hats held poles, stirring ripples across the water as they stared motionlessly at the area where the nets had been cast.
Suddenly, a flame like a shooting star streaked across the distant horizon, trailing a long tail and pressing down a white line. With a thunderous boom, it crashed into the placid lake, throwing up waves several yards high. The boats were shoved away, rocking wildly, and the fishermen aboard were scared out of their wits.
"Big Brother, that fireball just fell into the water. I think there was someone inside it."
On one of the wooden boats, a weather-beaten man was still shaken. His gaze drifted uncertainly. How could a person be wrapped inside a fireball and fall from the sky? Could it be an immortal?
"Bullshit. What person? It must be some treasure. Quick, row toward where that fireball fell. Maybe today our luck has turned, and we're about to get rich."
Another man, bearded and ugly-faced, spoke with excitement, his expression feverish as though he had found something extraordinary. He called to the people on the other boats to row toward the center of the lake.
Yet before the others could answer, several blood-red, crystalline sword beams shot through the air with a hiss. The blade qi was razor-sharp, instantly blowing apart their heads. Blood blossomed and flowed down the wooden boats, staining a stretch of lake water red.
Then a crimson figure burst from the surging waters, leaping out of the lake and landing on a wooden boat without a drop of water touching him.
With a sweep of his sleeve, streams of force sprang forth. Without needing a bamboo pole, he drove the boat onward, cutting a water