Central Plains, Kaifeng Prefecture.
A middle-aged man dressed in cool autumn clothes and wearing a baseball cap bought a ticket at the scenic area's ticket window, then passed through the towering city gate and entered this ancient city steeped in history.
In Kaifeng, there was an old saying: Kaifeng City, cities piled atop cities, with several cities buried underground.
Because of silt deposited by that mother river of the nation, the riverbed downstream had risen higher and higher. In many places, the riverbed was even higher than the cities themselves. Thus, whenever the river flooded, mud and sand would swallow entire cities.
Later generations rebuilt cities atop the ruins, creating the phenomenon of cities piled atop cities.
The cities of ancient times had long since been buried deep underground, becoming part of a long history. The present-day Kaifeng City had been newly built by later generations and did not actually possess much of an ancient atmosphere.
The sun shone brightly, and a breeze brushed his face as the middle-aged man strolled through the unfamiliar ancient city. Eventually, he stopped beside a secluded pool lined with willow trees and crossed by a covered bridge.
"Revisiting an old place—how do you feel?"
A figure rose from the water. Its body was formed from flowing currents, its face blurred, while everything below its waist remained submerged.
There were not many tourists passing nearby, only a scattered few. Yet they turned a blind eye to the person in the pool, as though they saw nothing.
The middle-aged man in the baseball cap stared at the person in the pool, madness flickering in his eyes. He gave a sinister laugh and said:
"If the imperial court had helped me master that divine art back then, I could have extended my life by two hundred years.