In the pouring rain, the bells rang faster and faster. A figure emerged from the downpour and walked toward the jutting rocks of the canyon.
Li Qing's breath caught. His body, already chilled by the rain, shivered faintly.
An inexplicable fear rose from the depths of his heart.
"Don't come any closer!"
"Please don't come any closer!"
He muttered to himself, his gaze wandering as the corners of his eyes kept darting toward the figure approaching through the rain.
It was an old man with salt-and-pepper hair, dressed in a green robe. A small golden bell hung at his waist.
By then, he had crossed through the downpour and reached the sheltered spot beneath the jutting rocks, where the canyon wall dipped inward.
He stopped not far from Li Qing.
Li Qing stared at the tip of his nose, ready to bolt into the downpour at any moment.
He kept the old man in the corner of his eye. If he made any move, Li Qing would run at once.
The air seemed unbearably heavy. Even the rain, which had quenched the summer heat, couldn't dispel the strange oppressive gloom.
The old man's white hair and beard were bone-dry. Not a drop of rain touched him, and even his boots were free of mud. His straight white hair and flowing beard gave him the air of an immortal.
One furtive glance was enough for Li Qing to mark him as extremely dangerous.
In a downpour this heavy, staying completely dry was suspicious no matter how you looked at it.
After a while, the old man murmured, almost to himself.
"This rain will kill quite a few people."
Hearing that, Li Qing immediately went on guard. He said nothing, pretending he hadn't heard.
He was ready to run. The old man looked strange.
"They've come knocking at my door. Should I answer them or not?"
The old man's low voice sounded again. He seemed to be asking himself, though perhaps he was asking Li Qing.
Li Qing's heart thudded wildly. He cursed inwardly.
Damn it, what does it matter to me whether you answer them or not? Don't come looking for me, don't come looking for me!
Boss, I can't handle this!
Li Qing stayed silent, eyes fixed on the tip of his nose as if a flower had bloomed there.
As though he had noticed that Li Qing didn't want to talk, the old man said nothing more.
He simply gazed up at the sky, strange glimmers seeming to flicker in his eyes.
No one knew how much time passed. The rain showed no sign of stopping, and Li Qing had begun to realize something was wrong.
A downpour this heavy was usually a thunderstorm, and those lasted no more than half an hour.
This one had already been going on for at least two hours.
The rain didn't let up. If anything, it seemed to be getting heavier.
Li Qing grew more and more worried. He had a feeling this was going to be a huge problem.
Could this rain have something to do with the old man?
"They've come knocking at my door"? Had someone come looking for trouble with him?
So if he went to deal with them, the rain might stop?
Thinking of the old man's two earlier remarks, Li Qing grew increasingly anxious.
An inexplicable sense of danger weighed on him. He had a feeling that if this went on, he'd get himself into terrible trouble.
Damn it, in this Cthulhu Cultivation World, everything happens for no apparent reason.
He let out a long breath. "This old man suddenly shows up, and of all the people he could find, he picks me."
Maybe he needs me to help him make a decision?
Or maybe he just needs someone to make the decision for him?
His thoughts raced. A glimmer of determination appeared in Li Qing's eyes. I'll give it a try. If anything goes wrong, I'll run at once.
He glanced at the darkening sky and swallowed nervously.
"Ahem."
"This rain's coming down pretty hard, huh?"
Li Qing gave an awkward laugh and spoke to the white-haired old man.
The old man slowly turned his head and looked at him placidly. His eyes held no emotion whatsoever.
"It'll get heavier."
Those eyes were utterly devoid of feeling, as if he were facing a heartless machine rather than a person.
A chill ran through Li Qing, but he pressed on. "How do you know, Elder, that the rain will keep getting heavier?"
The white-haired old man looked up at the sky. "Let me ask you something."
The old man didn't answer Li Qing directly, but Li Qing felt relieved.
Here it comes.
"What would you like to ask, Elder?" Li Qing replied cautiously.
"Suppose there's something in your household that's of no use to you, but would be useful to your descendants."
"Someone comes to your home demanding it. They're powerful, and if you fought them, you might not win."
"What would you do?"
Li Qing's heart stirred as he listened. He had a rough idea of what the old man wanted to ask.
He thought for a moment. "There are only three choices."
"The first choice: if you know you can't win, hand it over. As for your descendants, they can rely on their own luck. People say every child has their own fortune, but that's just a scrap of cloth a useless elder hangs out to hide their shame."
"The second choice: fight them to a draw. That way, you keep the thing and preserve your descendants' future, while forcing the other party to withdraw."
"But if they're truly determined to get it, they'll keep coming up with ways to make trouble. You might protect them for a time, but you can't protect them forever."
"It all depends on whether your descendants can grow strong before the other party delivers a fatal blow."
"If they can, then there's nothing to fear. If they can't, they'll just have to accept their bad luck and face utter ruin."
"The third choice: defeat the other party outright, then wipe them out to the last."
"They say that without enemies abroad, a nation perishes. But no matter how rotten things get, at least the thing remains in your hands. With the enemy gone, your descendants will at least be safe."
"Every choice, really, rests with the elder."
"It depends on whether the elder knows their own limits. Only absolute rationality can lead to the right choice."
"But as the saying goes, take one step back, then another, and sooner or later you'll have nowhere left to retreat."
"Today they set their sights on a treasure. Tomorrow, they might set their sights on your whole family's lives."
"After all, greed knows no bounds. As long as you have something that attracts others, you'll never escape the pursuit of the greedy."
"That's all there is to it: all things beneath the frosted heavens vie for freedom."
As the old man listened to Li Qing's calm words, a glint of light suddenly appeared in his eyes. His whole presence transformed with a thunderous force.
"'All things beneath the frosted heavens vie for freedom'—well said. Since time immemorial, it all comes down to one word: struggle."
"Your words have truly opened my eyes, young friend."
"Meeting is fate. I'll give this to you."
With that, the old man in the green robe produced a green jade token and casually tossed it to him.
Li Qing scrambled to catch it with both hands. The white-haired old man took one step and vanished into the rain.
In an instant, the sky turned dark, and the entire world was shrouded in endless black clouds.
Rumble.
Terrifying lightning flashed in the sky. In the distance, two enormous shapes seemed to twist and roll.
By the light of the lightning, Li Qing caught a fleeting glimpse of the colossal shapes passing overhead.
"Holy crap, was that a dragon? There are dragons in this world?"