Meanwhile, construction of the Great Bridge over the Black Water River proceeded on a grand scale.
Everyone attended to their own duties, doing their utmost to play their part in the project.
During this time, many people inevitably came to see it after hearing of its fame.
Many people even made special journeys by carriage or on horseback from other regions, hoping to glimpse an immortal.
After all, although most people had heard of the Dragon King, they had never actually seen what he looked like.
Ao Tu did not object to people coming to watch.
And so, the Great Bridge took shape day by day, its span already more than halfway grown.
Some men of letters recorded this story in writing, lavishing every flourish of language on praises of its merits.
Some painters depicted the Dragon God, the Great Bridge, the tigers and wolves, the divine maiden, the giant turtle, the holy monk, the monkey, the pig, and the other figures, so their images could be passed down.
Some storytellers composed and recounted the tale of this miracle in teahouses and taverns.
There were even theatrical troupes preparing to turn it into an opera.
Of course, among all things in the world, where there was good, there was bad; where there was yang, there had to be yin.
While many people praised and gazed in reverence upon this miracle, spies also leaked news of the Great Bridge.
The Fadi Kingdom, upstream along the Black Water River, received the news.
The Fadi Kingdom stretched over five hundred li from east to west and over four hundred li from north to south. Its soil was stony and barren, its hills linked in unbroken succession. Few flowers or fruits grew there, but beans and wheat were plentiful. Its people ran rampant with