The Divide Between Two Worlds

By the shores of the South Sea.

The weather was fair and bright that day, sunlight spilling across the sky.

At first light, fisherman Li Er had taken his boat out to sea. His luck was good today; by noon, he had already hauled in half a boatload of fish.

When he looked up, clouds seemed to be gathering and rolling across the sky,

carrying the air of an approaching storm.

Li Er's heart stirred. By the look of the weather, it was time to head back.

Yet seeing how fortunate he had been today, he decided to cast the net one more time. It should not delay him for long.

The net scattered across the sea.

What should have taken only a few breaths—in that once-calm sea, waves suddenly surged up, rocking his small boat back and forth.

A sense of foreboding rose in Li Er's heart.

He immediately pulled with both hands,

deciding at once to haul in the net and return.

Li Er was an experienced fisherman. Though he had never trained in martial arts, the skills tempered through wind and sun upon the sea gave him confidence that he could handle all manner of sudden mishaps.

His feet seemed rooted to the deck, his stance as steady as a boulder standing on the earth. Gripping the fishing net tightly, he slowly drew it in.

Yet Li Er had not expected a fierce struggling force to suddenly come from the other end of the net. This catch was no small one.

Even his fishing boat was dragged along by the school of fish, drifting with the current. Li Er knew that there had to be a giant beast in this net.

Under ordinary circumstances, Li Er would have been overjoyed. Even if the fish dragged him along,