Water Escape, A Bell's Ring in the Rain

The sounds from the bank had already carried into the water. Li Qing gripped the iron grating with both hands, quickly feeling his way along beneath the surface.

He knew he could not remain here any longer.

Fortunately, he found a damaged section within seconds and carefully squeezed through amidst the rushing current.

Behind him, the sound of bodies hitting the water echoed incessantly.

Nimbly slipping through the broken grating, Li Qing quickly surfaced, then climbed along the iron bars to the riverbank outside the city.

He did not let himself drift with the current; no one knew what lurked in the water at night, and one wrong move could easily mean death.

The bone-chilling river water made his entire body tremble slightly.

He gripped the various protrusions on the riverbank firmly, moving forward.

The sounds behind him had faded, and the torchlight on the city walls grew increasingly dim.

After at least an hour, shivering from the cold, Li Qing finally reached a gentle stretch of the riverbank.

The bank was covered in dirt and pebbles, their outlines vaguely visible under the dim moonlight.

He stripped off his clothes and wrung them out with all his might.

Gasping for air, Li Qing walked up toward the higher ground.

He needed to find a place, at least to start a fire and drive the cold from his body.

A faint, cold wind blew through the night, making Li Qing shiver uncontrollably. He breathed heavily, scanning his surroundings by the moonlight.

He had come ashore beside a field of crops, which appeared to be cucumbers.

Suddenly, Li Qing's eyes lit up; he spotted a shed beside the field.

It was a place where farmers rested during the summer.

He hurried over to find a wooden cot inside, covered with a straw mat.

Li Qing hung his clothes on a protrusion in the shed and sat down heavily on the mat.

He let out a long, ragged breath, glancing left and right before exhaling again as he spotted a small pile of harvested cucumbers nearby.

His eyes brightened, and he quickly walked over, picked one up, and smashed it against the ground.

The cucumber shattered; he picked up the pieces, broke them open, and began to eat.

The sweet, crisp cucumber allowed him to let out a deep sigh of relief.

This night had been harrowing: the Blood Curse Body Refining, being hunted by Mr. Huayue, practicing his arts to heal, and diving to escape.

He felt as though his physical strength had been completely exhausted.

He finished the cucumbers in no time. Li Qing's eyelids fluttered; he could no longer hold on, and as his head swam, he collapsed onto the straw mat and fell asleep.

He slept deeply, completely unconscious of his surroundings.

It was unclear how much time had passed when the sound of a rooster crowing echoed from outside.

Cock-a-doodle-doo!

The crowing startled Li Qing awake. He bolted upright, gasping for air.

A flicker of terror crossed his face.

He had just had a nightmare, dreaming that Mr. Huayue was chasing him.

Just as he was about to be caught, the rooster's cry had jolted him from the dream.

Li Qing stood up from the mat, his stomach growling loudly.

He felt his clothes; they were already dry.

He stood up, took his clothes down, and draped them over his shoulders, leaving his back exposed.

He shrugged helplessly, grabbed two more cucumbers from the pile, and scanned his surroundings, spotting a main road.

He took a deep breath. "I'll leave this place first."

He looked back at the shed and shook his head. "My apologies. I took three of your cucumbers; I owe your family a favor and will repay it in the future."

In Qingshi County, the County Magistrate sat with a gloomy expression, while a man clad in armor sat below him.

Several yamen runners stood to the side, their faces ashen and eyes rimmed with dark circles, looking as if they hadn't slept all night.

"Captain Li, the events of last night have been clarified."

"That Mr. Huayue of the Huayue Study somehow obtained the Blood Demon Sect's Blood Refining Art."

"He suffered a qi deviation and turned into an Anomaly."

"There was a shop assistant in his store named Li Qing, whose whereabouts are currently unknown."

"It is highly probable that he has already escaped Qingshi County."

"I have already issued a wanted poster; if there is any news, I will notify the Demon Extermination Hall immediately."

Captain Li was the very man who had struck the night before.

His expression remained grim. "The Blood Refining Art is a technique the Blood Demon Sect deliberately lets circulate."

"If they have appeared in Qingshi County, it means there must be members of the Blood Demon Sect here."

"That Li Qing is likely just a minor character. I now require everyone in the Government Office to cooperate with me and immediately search the entirety of Qingshi County."

"Every outsider must be investigated thoroughly."

The Magistrate of Qingshi County looked rather grim, but he still nodded. "Very well."

"Chief Constable Wang, mobilize the personnel of Squad 3. Everyone is to follow Captain Li's orders."

A middle-aged man with a full beard stood up hurriedly. "Yes, My Lord."

Captain Li nodded and offered a slight bow. "My thanks for your cooperation, Magistrate."

The Magistrate of Qingshi County gave a slight nod. "It is only right."

After speaking, he turned and walked back to the inner hall with a gloomy expression.

Captain Li appeared to be no more than twenty years old, with a remarkably heroic appearance.

He looked at Chief Constable Wang. "Call the men; have them all follow me out!"

Chief Constable Wang's expression turned solemn. "Yes!"

Clatter, clatter.

Summer rain always arrives so suddenly.

Rumble, rumble.

Dark clouds gathered in the sky, accompanied by thunder and lightning.

Green Mountain Ridge was a stretch of continuous mountain paths, featuring a small, fifty-meter-long valley that served as the essential passage connecting Qingshi County to the outside world.

All cargo transport had to pass through here.

At this moment, the rain was pouring down in torrents, leaving the ground a muddy mess.

Soaked to the bone, Li Qing arrived under a protruding rock to take shelter from the rain.

The canyon was almost submerged by the downpour; the sound of raindrops filled his ears, and visibility was less than ten meters in the torrential rain.

Li Qing looked at his drenched body, his face full of frustration.

How unlucky. I was soaked in the river last night, and now I'm soaked by the rain again. Is this meant to keep me wet until the end?

Sighing helplessly, Li Qing took off his clothes and hung them on the protruding rock nearby.

Bare-chested, he watched the water pouring down frantically, a look of shock appearing on his face.

"For such a violent rain to fall in the Border Wilderness, isn't that just too terrifying?"

"I never saw such a terrifying rainstorm back on Earth."

"I hope there isn't a mudslide; that would be a huge problem."

A faint sense of unease stirred in Li Qing's heart.

Jingle, jingle.

A strange, crisp sound of a bell suddenly rang out.

The sound was so clear that it even pierced through the heavy rain.

Upon hearing this, Li Qing's face turned deathly pale. Ever since he learned that this world was suspected to be a Cthulhu-style cultivation world, he had been extremely on edge.

In such worlds, one usually encounters some indescribable things, and a single misstep could lead to massive trouble.

The sudden ringing was clearly abnormal.

Damn it, I can't be that unlucky, can I?

I've only been exposed to cultivation for two days; why is everything crawling out now?

Did I step in dog shit? Why am I so unlucky?

With a face drained of color, Li Qing was filled with resentment, feeling as if he had offended some great deity.