Within Liu A'dou's microcosmos perception, a surge of strange energy turned into black smoke and slipped through the dense green forest. Smooth as flowing ink, it swept up Ming Wu and carried him away at incredible speed.
So it had begun. Liu A'dou didn't dare relax. He immediately chased after it.
Ming Wu couldn't move on his own. His vision went pitch black. His body felt like it was being ripped into pieces, with something crashing and tearing through him. In truth, he himself had been transformed into black smoke. Tree branches pierced through his body without obstruction as he was carried forward.
"What kind of sorcery… or what the hell is this?" Liu A'dou couldn't tell. But in a world already far from scientific rules, he didn't bother digging into details. The only thing that mattered was not losing track.
Here lay one of nature's last untouched sanctuaries, a paradise far from mortal dust. Ancient towering trees rose skyward, mountains overlapped like waves, clouds drifted lazily, and winds swept gently across the peaks. The land still carried the flavor of antiquity, a sacred place few dared to step upon. Locals called it Longshan. They often recited an old saying: "The ancient sages cultivated the Heavenly Dao, and the faint green light shone across the sky."
This was the borderland between Sichuan and Yunnan, blessed with rich natural beauty. From ancient times countless mystical tales had been passed down here. Many myths and legends traced their roots to these mountains—immortals in the clouds, divine spirits dwelling above, and 3,000 faithful kneeling before the Buddha's lamp. But the most famous story of all was the legend of the Green Light Dragon Emperor.
Liu A'dou had once heard this tale from a local guard at the Academy. It was said to date back to the early reign of Empress Wu Zetian. In those days, there stood a Taoist temple on Longshan, called the Dragon Emperor Daoist Temple. A community of Taoists lived there, devoted to worshipping the true dragon, pursuing an ideal society, and living carefree in seclusion, far removed from worldly strife.
One day, a woman of stunning beauty fled north from a small southern kingdom. She was being hunted by her own king. Desperate, she sought the temple's help. The head Taoist, moved by righteousness, sheltered her. But the southern kingdom's army, eager to cover up their illegal incursion and desperate to recapture her, launched a bloody assault. In a single night, the Dragon Emperor Temple was massacred.
Legend said the woman was the king's most favored concubine. Her escape drove him into a rage, and he commanded her return at all costs. As for the so-called "southern kingdom," the name was likely coined later. It may have been nothing more than a tiny backwater city. In ancient times, remote lands beyond the emperor's reach often birthed petty kings. Even a small settlement dared to call itself a kingdom. Since history never recorded this "southern kingdom," it was probably exactly that.
The temple's disciples were slaughtered, yet not completely wiped out. One young Taoist named Li Jong survived. To avenge his brethren, Li Jong climbed Longshan and prayed to the true dragon for power. How the process unfolded was lost to time, but in the end he succeeded. Empowered, he marched south, rescued the concubine, and toppled the tyrant king.
No one knew what became of him afterward. Some said Li Jong and the woman inherited the throne and that their lineage later became the Kingdom of Dali in the Song Dynasty. Others claimed he abandoned wealth and returned to the mountains, living out his days as a hermit. Still others told of the great poet Li Bai, who, upon hearing Li Jong's story, journeyed to Sichuan in search of the Dragon Emperor Temple. On the way, he composed his immortal verse: "The road to Shu is harder than climbing to the heavens."
But all of this had happened more than 1,400 years ago. The truth had long been swallowed by time. Even so, when Liu A'dou heard this legend, he couldn't shake the feeling that the story wasn't finished yet.
Longshan, also called Wolong Mountain, looked from afar like a giant dragon coiled in slumber. For billions of years it had endured wind and rain, yet its form never changed, as if resting in eternal sleep. Inside the mountain lay countless caves, densely packed and crisscrossed like a vast labyrinth. Legend said that only those acknowledged by the true dragon could pass through these caves and reach the summit.
Now, the black smoke that had captured Liu Su and Ming Wu had entered Longshan. Liu A'dou looked up at the mountain, instantly feeling a pressure that carried majesty and power without anger. Truly worthy of its name as the land of the dragon.
"If the smoke can enter, then so can I." Lifting his leg, Liu A'dou stepped into the cave. Inside it was dark and damp. Yet when he looked closer, he noticed signs it was not entirely natural. Some parts bore marks of human excavation.
Perhaps the cave had once been simple, but someone had shaped it into a maze. Liu A'dou found the situation more and more interesting. This place wasn't far from the interstellar school. Could it really all be fate? Ming Wen's death, Liu Su's disappearance, and now the attack on Ming Wu—were the three of them tied by some hidden thread?
The black smoke was gone without a trace. Liu A'dou realized he couldn't follow it anymore. He had to admit he was lost. "My sensing is being blocked." This was no ordinary cavern. A strange force shielded the place, bouncing his perception back from the cave walls.
He crouched down, pressed his palm to the ground, and released a ripple. The ripple traveled through the earth but soon collided with something and was cut off. He licked his lips. It seemed he had no choice but to walk the maze step by step. Deeper he went.
Thud. Ming Wu landed hard on his backside, sitting so heavily it felt like he'd split into eight pieces. He didn't make a sound, but his body turning into black smoke had left him drained and miserable. He caught his breath, frowning.
Within less than 10 seconds, Ming Wu was already back on his feet, alertly scanning his surroundings. The first thing he saw was Liu Su.
She was pale and shaken. After more than 10 hours trapped here, she was half-asleep when suddenly the black smoke spat Ming Wu out right before her. Then it vanished again.
"Are you okay?" Liu Su didn't dare step closer. She only asked carefully, because she knew Ming Wu disliked her.
"I'm fine!" In truth, he didn't hate her. It was just that she was his brother's girlfriend, which left a knot in his heart. "Where is this place?"
"I don't know!" Liu Su answered. "Looks like a cave, but I can't find an exit."
Ming Wu got to his feet. "No one else here?" He had come searching for his brother's killer. Yet he hadn't even seen the ones who captured him.
He walked around twice. Sure enough, it was just as Liu Su said—no exit at all. The two of them stood facing each other in silence, the air unbearably still.
Liu Su looked at his face, so familiar yet so unfamiliar. Her emotions surged. She had loved Ming Wen—his talent, his gentle nature, his thoughtfulness, everything about him. But Ming Wen was gone. And now, staring at Ming Wu, who looked exactly like him, she kept reminding herself this was not her lover. But she couldn't help it—her heart kept projecting Ming Wen onto Ming Wu, because the resemblance was absolute.
"Your brother…" Liu Su finally broke the silence. She didn't know what to say, so she picked the safest and most dangerous topic. Safest because both of them knew it well, most dangerous because Ming Wu hated talking about it.
"He's dead." Ming Wu cut her off coldly.
Her words had been strangled before they even began. Tears welled in her eyes. Ming Wu's bluntness shattered her fragile memories.
Liu Su longed to talk with someone who had known her beloved, as if that could make Ming Wen feel alive again. She still hadn't accepted his death. But she had chosen the wrong person. Ming Wu would never reminisce endlessly about his brother. There were too many memories, too much to say. He was afraid that if he spoke too much, he would finally admit how much he cared for his brother.
Liu Su refused to accept cruel reality, while Ming Wu refused to see the truth in himself.