*Click!*
A bolt of lightning streaked across the sky, casting a stark, pale light over the pitch-black world, illuminating the torrential rain.
In that flash of light, Duan Fei, clad in a raincoat and clutching a flashlight, trudged unsteadily up the hillside.
He had come to inspect the slope—such heavy rain could trigger a landslide, which would bury the village below alive. So even though it was the middle of the night, he had ventured out into the storm and gale winds.
The rain showed no sign of letting up. He scanned his surroundings warily but saw no immediate signs of a landslide. Still, since he was already here, he decided to investigate further and pressed deeper into the hills.
*Click!*
Another blinding bolt of lightning split the sky, illuminating the world in a ghastly white light.
And in that stark radiance, Duan Fei saw something that made his hair stand on end—
A white figure!
Not far ahead of him, a pale shadow was writhing!
*Thud!*
Terrified, Duan Fei dropped his flashlight. It hit the ground and flickered out, plunging everything back into darkness.
A ghost?
The thought flashed through his mind.
Another bolt of lightning struck, and this time, he saw clearly—the white figure wasn't a zombie or a monster, but a white fox!
Even stranger, a long black snake was coiled around the fox, the two locked in a life-and-death struggle!
A white fox and a black snake!
Duan Fei's mind buzzed again. He remembered some of the village elders mentioning that these were spiritual creatures—ones that had gained sentience!
*Run!*
Now, landslides were the last thing on his mind. He just wanted to get away, as far as possible.
But descending the mountain without a flashlight was impossible. One wrong step in the dark, and he could easily tumble all the way down.
So Duan Fei began groping around on the ground, searching for the flashlight.
"This is a rock… a branch… a plastic water bottle? Damn, who litters like this… *Ouch!*"
In his frantic search, his hand scraped against something sharp, slicing open a wound. Blood welled up, but he ignored it and kept feeling around.
Suddenly, his fingers brushed against something flat, and he grabbed it.
In the intermittent flashes of lightning, he saw the object in his hand glimmering with an eerie purple hue.
What was this?
At the same time, he spotted the flashlight on the ground and snatched it up.
Switching it on, the beam illuminated the purple object—a rectangular stone, smooth and flat.
Before Duan Fei could examine it further, he noticed the white fox and black snake, still entwined, suddenly raise their heads in unison.
Four eyes—one pair emerald green, the other blood-red—locked onto him with a vicious, icy glare, as if they wanted to tear him apart!
Terror-stricken, Duan Fei turned and bolted down the mountain, stumbling and scrambling in his panic.
After about ten minutes, the outline of the village appeared ahead, and his heart finally settled. He glanced back but saw no sign of the black and white figures.
Just as he was about to head home, he spotted a flashlight beam flickering on the roof of a house at the village entrance. A slender figure was struggling to work in the storm.
It was Tang Xiaoyan's house, and the figure looked like her!
Duan Fei rushed over and shone his flashlight up at her, shouting, "What are you doing?"
In the beam of light, Tang Xiaoyan's pale face was drenched with rain. Recognizing him, she called back, "The roof's leaking! I'm laying down plastic sheeting."
Tang Xiaoyan's family was the poorest in the village, and their house was dilapidated. A leak in this kind of storm was no surprise.
Without another word, Duan Fei dashed into her yard—which didn't even have a proper fence—and climbed the ladder propped against the roof.
With Tang Xiaoyan holding the flashlight, he swiftly secured the plastic sheeting.
"Let's get down!"
In the howling wind and rain, Duan Fei had to lean close to Tang Xiaoyan's face to be heard.
Another flash of lightning illuminated her delicate features, so close that he could see her thin lips trembling slightly, like petals in the gale.
She nodded and moved toward the ladder, but the rain had made the roof slick. Just as she reached the edge, her foot slipped—
Duan Fei lunged forward and caught her by the waist!
Lightning split the sky again, and in that white light, the two stood frozen, pressed together, eyes locked.
Duan Fei could feel the softness of her slender frame, her slightly parted lips, and her wide, startled eyes.
He couldn't bear to look.
"Thank you," Tang Xiaoyan whispered, her pale cheeks suddenly flushing pink as she gently pulled away from his grasp.
Reluctantly, Duan Fei let her go. "Be careful," he said.
Then he helped her down the ladder before climbing down himself.
Declining Tang Xiaoyan's offer to come inside for hot water, Duan Fei braved the rain and returned home.
The moment he stepped inside, he let out a long exhale.
What a night.
The storm had knocked out the power, so his mother, Yang Mei, emerged with a candle when she heard him come in. Seeing him soaked to the bone, she fretted, "Go take a hot shower and get to bed!"
Duan Fei nodded and retreated to his room.
Using his phone as a flashlight, he pulled out the purple rectangular stone. It was covered in intricate, cryptic patterns that made his head spin just looking at them.
He didn't notice that his injured hand had smeared blood onto the stone.
"Weird. What is this thing?"
After staring at it for a while with no clue, he lost interest and tossed it onto the table. Then he washed up with hot water, and as drowsiness overtook him, he collapsed onto his bed and fell into a deep sleep.
That night, he had a strange dream—
In the dream, he wandered across a vast wilderness dotted with glowing orbs. In the distance stood a towering pagoda that pierced the heavens.
What was this?
Curious, Duan Fei reached out and touched the nearest orb.
*Boom!*
His body shuddered violently as a flood of information surged into his mind, overwhelming him—
"Ahhh!"
The terrifying sensation made him cry out.
"Xiao Fei!"
A voice snapped him awake.
His mother's voice.
Duan Fei jolted upright. Outside, dawn had broken.
He quickly dressed and went out to find his mother watching him with concern.
"Mom, I had a weird dream," he said with a weak smile.
"As long as you're okay," Yang Mei replied, reassured, and went to make breakfast.
Once she was gone, Duan Fei exhaled and began sorting through the strange knowledge now lodged in his mind.