Noon was always the hottest time in the Golden City.
The wind swept up scorching sand and lashed it against the palm leaves. The broad green fronds drooped listlessly, and even the fine down along their edges seemed to curl in the heat.
At the cemetery, the golden sunlight suddenly dimmed, and the wind picked up. Several thick black clouds drifted from behind the northern mountains, blotting out the crimson sun. "Whoosh."
A hint of coolness entered the scorching wind. Hot sand swirled through the air, while some of the dust suspended above the ground settled instead. Caravans hauling vast quantities of supplies along the main road slowly came to a halt. The man at their head narrowed his eyes and looked up at the sky.
First came a violet flash, followed by a rumble like the roar of a giant dragon.
Boom!
Thunder!
Threads of rain fell from the dark clouds, accelerating under the force of wind and gravity until they struck at full speed. Raindrops the size of beans pattered against the caravans, drawing startled cries from the people below.
It was raining in the desert!
"Drip, drip."
Several drops rolled off the edge of a turning wheel and splashed onto the scorching ground, instantly rising as mist. But a few wisps of moisture, invisible to the naked eye, seeped beneath the surface.
The noise faded. The moisture continued downward, and the sound of running water grew louder.
Roots dangled from the cavern ceiling, and dreamlike clouds of spores filled the air. This was Wengyu Road beneath the Golden City. The moisture sank farther, soon joining the cool, murmuring current. Though rain was falling above, the underground river still rushed along its course. It surged onward until it plunged over a waterfall into a vast, blue-green lake.
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