Ji Yuan had tried sleeping, but the more he wanted to sleep, the less he could. Time stretched on endlessly, and even Ji Yuan, who had always been optimistic, was tortured by loneliness until he was nearly driven to despair.
"Rumble..."
A tremendous clap of startling thunder suddenly rang out, making Ji Yuan jump.
Hearing thunder in this state gave Ji Yuan a sensation unlike anything he had ever known, as though he were standing in the heavens themselves, feeling lightning dance.
That mysterious feeling pierced into his heart like a flash of lightning, sweeping away the fear, anxiety, oppression, and confusion within him one by one, leaving his heart at peace.
"Patter, patter, patter..."
Not long after, dense raindrops began to fall.
Ji Yuan's eyelids trembled. In his ears, he heard every raindrop falling, clearly hearing them strike the ground, the rocks, the flowers, and the grass.
It was as though time itself had slowed at that moment.
"Pitter..."
"Patter..."
"Drip..."
Raindrops fell upon leaves, the ground, and everywhere else, carrying their sounds outward.
The falling rain stirred ripples through the darkness in Ji Yuan's heart. Every ripple outlined information about a source of sound, and countless ripples formed a painting. Leaves, tree canopies, the ground, mountain rocks, houses, rubble, flowers, grass, and animals fleeing through the rain—the outlines of all things transformed within his mind alongside the sound of rain...
There were no colors, yet it was vivid and three-dimensional, as though Ji Yuan were touching everything upon the earth through every drop of rain.
Rainfall Listens to All Things, and a painting unfurled from the heart!
It was an indescribably wondrous experience. Ji Yuan forgot all his agitation, even forgot to breathe, and quietly immersed himself in it. The closer something was, the clearer it became; the farther away it was, the more it gradually blurred.
So I really am still in the mountains. I'm lying in an old, ruined building among the hills. Is it a ruined temple...? The downpour came so suddenly. So many little animals are fleeing in panic... How beautiful!
Though he still could not move or open his eyes, a faint smile appeared at the corner of Ji Yuan's mouth.
The agitation in his heart had been eased, and this extraordinary hearing made Ji Yuan wonder whether he had gained some benefit from that game of Go.
A little while later, Ji Yuan's heart jolted. At last, he heard the sound he had been waiting for most eagerly.
Amid the mountain rain, a group of people carrying large covered baskets on their backs hurried forward. These baskets somewhat resembled the book chests ancient scholars carried when traveling to study or sit for examinations, with cloth covers draped over them, but they were clearly much larger.
Ji Yuan could not make out their full appearances. He could only discern the area where the raindrops fell, so what he sensed in his mind were human bodies and limbs, baskets, and coverings, while their faces remained blurred.
What puzzled Ji Yuan was not only the large baskets. Some of these people wore rain gear resembling straw raincoats, while others wore none at all. In any case, they looked nothing like any modern rain gear.
"Quick, quick! Keep up, everyone! The Mountain God Temple is right ahead!"
"Watch beneath your feet! The mountain path is slippery in the rain!"
"Those in the back, keep up! We'll take shelter in the Mountain God Temple and start a fire. Hurry, hurry!"
People in the crowd kept warning everyone to be careful, urging them to pick up their pace, and stopping to check whether those behind had kept up.
After turning past several big trees and circling around a standing mountain rock, the man in front finally saw the Mountain God Temple close at hand.
"Come on, everyone, put some strength into it! We're at the Mountain God Temple. Check whether anyone fell behind."
"We're all here."
"Get inside the temple, quick! This mountain rain is freezing!"
As they spoke, the group quickened their pace and rushed into the Mountain God Temple from front to back.
"Whew, this rain came on so damned strangely. It nearly soaked me to death!"
The man leading them was a man with short whiskers. Like everyone else, water dripped steadily from him. He first set down his heavy basket, then took off his dripping straw raincoat.
After stretching his limbs, he looked behind him and counted them one by one. There were twelve people in all, not one missing.
"Everyone, put the goods over there. Liu Quan and Li Gui, take out our firewood and charcoal. Let's start a fire and warm ourselves."
"Got it."
"It's drier over there. Come on, put them there."
"My clothes need drying. Ah, I didn't have time to put on my straw raincoat."
Some carried the baskets, some took out firewood to start a fire, and others briefly swept a dry patch of ground.
They were a group of traveling merchants. Crossing mountains and ridges was small talk to them, and bad weather was a common occurrence, so they always kept dry firewood and charcoal in their baskets to deal with all sorts of situations.
The leader was named Zhang Shilin. His father had originally hoped that he would diligently study the sages' books, earn scholarly honors in the future, step into the world of scholars, and bring glory to the Zhang family. But he was not born to be a scholar. Later, after his family declined, he became a hardworking traveling merchant to earn money.
As the leader, he bore great responsibility and had to consider the safety of the entire group. Naturally, he also received certain privileges. For example, while everyone else was busy now, Zhang Shilin could rub his shoulders and relax. No one resented this. Everyone had seen Zhang Shilin's worth with their own eyes—he was a qualified, capable leader.
The Mountain God Temple was not large, only several zhang in length and width. Its three walls were still fairly solid. Apart from the damaged eaves at the entrance outside, the interior did not leak rain. However, the two great doors had long since collapsed and vanished without a trace, allowing cold wind to blow in from time to time.
The inside of the Mountain God Temple was even more dilapidated. Cobwebs and wild beast droppings were everywhere. The incense burner and candleholders atop the altar table had been overturned, there were naturally no offerings, and even the clay statue of the Mountain God had been damaged so badly that its head was gone.
"Ah, good thing this Mountain God Temple is still standing. If it ever collapses someday, there'll be one less place to rest in Niu Kui Mountain!"
Ji Yuan heard every footstep and every word these people spoke.
So I'm in a Mountain God Temple in the mountains. Niu Kui Mountain? Was that a slip of the tongue for Ox Head Mountain, or perhaps a local dialect?
In that case, these people might be hikers, carrying camping equipment or something. At the very least, they definitely were not kidnappers.
But the sounds were clearly so close, and the temple was not large. He was probably tucked away in some corner of the temple, otherwise they could not possibly have failed to see him.
"Ah, Brother Shilin, there's someone over here!"
Hearing the cry from close range, Ji Yuan let out a fierce sigh of relief in his heart. They finally found me! Next, they should call the police for help and send me to the hospital. My little life should be saved.
Hearing this, Zhang Shilin quickly went around the Deity Statue and indeed saw someone lying behind it. The traveling merchants also gathered over in twos and threes.
The person behind the Deity Statue had his eyes tightly shut and lay utterly motionless. His hair was unkempt, his face grimy, and his clothes ragged. It was impossible to tell whether he was dead or alive.
The young man who had first discovered this beggar stepped closer, crouched down, checked his breathing, and felt his forehead.
"Brother Shilin, this beggar is still breathing, but his forehead is burning hot. What should we do?"
What do you mean, what should you do? Is your brain fried? Call the police!
If he could speak now, Ji Yuan would dearly have loved to roar it aloud. He had not even noticed that these people were calling him a beggar.
Zhang Shilin frowned, then sighed.
"In this barren mountain wilderness, it looks like this beggar won't last much longer. Give him some hot water later and see if he can swallow it. Ah, this damned world!"
"Ah..."
"Come on, come on, start the fire..."
The traveling merchants shook their heads and sighed, then all walked away.
Wait, wait! What are you doing? Why are you leaving? Call the police, hey!
No way? No way!
These people's reactions were completely different from what Ji Yuan had expected, leaving him both bewildered and panicked...