Kunpeng District, Xiuyuan Garden, just after nightfall.
In the backyard, beside the withered lotus pond, inside the Fish-Watching Pavilion, Li Zi held a tea cup in his hands, dazedly watching the rain drops falling from the sky.
“The seasons are disrupted, there must be some monster at work.”
In Gaijing, the climate normally wouldn’t bring the first spring rain until March.
Today was only the fifteenth day of the second lunar month.
Usually at this time of year, there might still be the occasional drifting snowflake, yet this year it was already raining.
“The imperial city is haunted; on top of the early spring rain… tsk, thankfully no thunder. Otherwise, that would really be…”
No sooner had Li Zi spoken when a faint thunderclap rumbled behind the thin clouds overhead.
His hand trembled slightly, eyes narrowing sharply.
“Heh, what kind of big trouble is stirring up now?”
Turning his palm over, Li Zi set the tea cup down on the pavilion’s railing.
He glanced left and right; there was no one nearby.
A slight smile crept onto his face.
His body swayed from side to side, transforming into two afterimages that drifted forward, one to the left and one to the right.
“Eh? Something’s wrong?” Li Zi suddenly exclaimed.
Then, the two afterimages abruptly multiplied into nine.