"Clang, clang, clang..."
The bell chimes came rapid and dense, mingling with lightning that thundered between heaven and earth. One bronze bell after another rang out, carrying the alarm to every corner of Green Pattern Valley.
The valley's twenty-seven stockades erupted in alarm. People rushed from their rooms half-dressed, asking what had happened.
Noisy shouts and curses rang without end.
Li Xianghan's expression abruptly changed, and she blew a whistle.
Large and small rats inside the room received their orders. They sprang and scurried about, driving snakes and insects into jars, biting ropes as they leaped in tandem, securing the dazzling insect jars in the bug room before tossing them onto a cart.
A yellow rat flew up and kicked open the door bolt. Two black rats clawed at it from above and below, while the last white rat squatted atop the latch and raised a paw to beckon the guards inside to haul the cart.
"Click, click, click." Awei opened and closed his mouthpiece.
"That's the Evacuation Bronze Bell..." Li Xianghan spoke at great speed, her hands never stopping as she stuffed her most precious clothes, pills, and trinkets into a small rhinoceros-hide case. "When the Evacuation Bronze Bell rings, it means something major is about to happen in the stockade.
"Every clansman has to follow the rules and take shelter in the ritual caves. But we needn't worry—it's all preparation for a rainy day, in case there are accidental casualties. The Old Ancestor is overseeing the valley, so there won't be any danger. Maybe nothing will even happen. Just stay close to me."
Li Xianghan comforted Awei aloud, but her heart was in turmoil. She could not imagine what major event could have occurred.
Could something have gone wrong at the front lines? But Green Pattern Valley lay