1 year ago
Jin Yue stepped into the bustling heart of the city for the first time.
Voices. Colors. Smells.
Too loud.
Too bright.
Too fast.
People pushed past him, merchants shouted over one another, and lively children weaved between the crowds like fish in a river. Compared to the quiet forests and gentle rivers he was used to, the city felt like an ocean storm waiting to swallow him whole.
He clutched his fishing rod close, instinctively grounding himself.
Just get through the market… find a quiet place… breathe…
But then—
"Young man! You there!"
Jin Yue looked up, startled.
A merchant stood behind a cluttered wooden stand piled with strange trinkets, stones, talismans, and tools. His voice was loud, but not unfriendly… more like someone used to calling out to fishermen from across a riverbank.
"You!" The seller pointed directly at Jin Yue's rod. "You fish, don't you? You'll want to see this."
Normally, Jin Yue would walk away.
But something on the table flickered
soft, blue, like the reflection of moonlight on water.
His steps slowed.
"That caught your eye, huh?" the seller said, noticing immediately. "Good taste. Not many people stop for that one."
Jin Yue approached cautiously.The item was a small, smooth stone, carved with faint spiral patterns. A soft glow pulsed through it, like breathing.
"…What is this?" Jin Yue asked quietly.
The seller lowered his voice, leaning in slightly… not intimately, but seriously."A Flowstone. Rare. Found only in rivers that once touched the sky."
Jin Yue blinked. "…Touched the sky?"
"That's what old fishermen say," the merchant chuckled. "Stones like this absorb the river's memory… calm, flow, rhythm. Folks claim they help steady your hands, improve your catch…"Then he gave a knowing nod."…or strengthen the tool you bind them to."
Jin Yue felt a faint tingle in his chest.As if something deep inside him reacted to the stone's glow.
His hand hovered above it."It… feels familiar."
"Ha!" The merchant grinned. "Then it's meant for you. You won't find another like this in the whole market."He tapped the stone gently."Bind it to your rod with thread or spirit cord. It'll help the rod channel energy better. Even a simple wooden one."
Jin Yue looked down at his fishing rod, smooth, worn from years, carved by Grandpa.
He whispered almost to himself, "…Channel… energy?"
The seller shrugged. "That's what wandering cultivators say. I just sell the thing."
But Jin Yue wasn't thinking about cultivation.He was thinking about how the stone's faint glow felt like the river of his childhood quiet, steady, safe.
A place he missed.
"…I'll take it," he said softly.
The seller blinked, surprised at the sudden decision, then smiled warmly.
"Good choice, fisherman. Tie it tight. And don't drop it in the water unless you want the fish laughing at you."
Jin Yue nodded once.
He wasn't sure why, but something told him this stone…would matter later.
As he walked away, Flowstone wrapped carefully in cloth, his fishing rod seemed to hum ever so faintly…
as if it recognized a missing piece being returned.