Chapter Fifty-Four: A Sudden Meteor Shower

On the way back, a thunderous drumbeat echoed through the air—“Boom... Boom... Boom!”—and when they looked ahead, they saw dazzling golden light blazing, a magnificent spectacle of grandeur. Rainbows swirled across the sky like auroras, dancing with the wind. The ceremonial procession was led by two teams of celestial horses and divine figures, followed by over a hundred immortal lords who cast handfuls of stone dust into the sky, which fell and formed fleeting beams of light, beautiful as fireworks. Behind them, a hundred immortal maidens scattered flower petals, filling the air with exotic fragrance. Then came nine golden dragons pulling a golden carriage encrusted with gemstones of every color, gliding atop clouds of seven hues. Musicians played behind the carriage, their melodies lingering in the air, solemn, majestic, and utterly entrancing. The procession was guarded before and behind by tens of thousands of armored celestial soldiers.

“Qian Mubai, what sort of procession is this?”

“This is the Imperial procession of the Heavenly Emperor. It seems he has urgent matters to attend to—possibly something quite significant,” Qian Mubai replied softly.

“And... what are those immortal lords scattering?”

“That’s Xuanjin Stone.”

“Xuanjin Stone? Does it have any special purpose?” Qin Xiaomo knew of Xuanjin Stone—an exceptionally spiritual stone. She recalled the serpent bracelet on her wrist, made of Xuanjin Stone, gazed at it, and muttered to herself: “Who would have thought it would look so beautiful when cast upon the earth? I should try tossing you one day, just to see.”

The Xuanjin Serpent Bracelet seemed embarrassed and continued to play dead.

“When Xuanjin Stone scatters, its light warns surrounding immortals to clear the way for the Heavenly Emperor’s travels. Moreover, the places it passes through can dispel evil spirits,” Qian Mubai explained, watching the procession recede into the distance.

“Oh, so it’s much like the way our ancient emperors traveled—everyone shut their doors and stayed inside, so as not to disturb the sovereign,” said Qin Xiaomo. As she finished, a familiar voice faintly reached her ears from afar: “Qin Xiaomo, Qin Xiaomo? Wake up! Master Liu, why isn’t she awake yet...”

“I performed a ritual just now. The Immortal Master said the Jade Emperor is out searching today, with all the immortals following, so he cannot help me continue searching for people at the moment. He only said there are no traces of her in the mortal realm,” Liu Banshen said anxiously.

“If she’s not in the mortal world, could she be in heaven or the underworld?” Jidou was skeptical. Entering heaven or the underworld couldn’t be so simple. Even Bai Suzhen in ‘Legend of the White Snake’ had to pass seven or eight trials to reach the Celestial Court.

“Qian Mubai, I...” Qin Xiaomo began, but before she could finish, her vision brightened, and two large faces and the head of a crane appeared before her, blurry at first. She blinked several times until her eyes focused, looking at Jidou and Liu Banshen, who were both anxious.

“What’s wrong?” she asked.

“Qingfeng, turn the TV down,” Liu Banshen said, pointing the remote at the crane. Qingfeng quickly strode over on his slender legs and jabbed the volume button with his beak.

“You know, you almost didn’t come back?” Jidou said nervously, and Qingfeng the crane nodded vigorously.

“That’s impossible. Don’t worry,” Qin Xiaomo said, forcing a smile as she propped herself up on the bed.

“Master Liu said so. Ask him yourself.”

---

Qin Xiaomo looked at Liu Banshen, who nodded and said, “Jidou said you woke up this morning—your eyes half-open, moving around—but you couldn’t really wake up, so they called us. I tried many methods, all to no avail, and when there was nothing else to do, I tried summoning your soul. Strangely, it was as if your soul wasn’t in this world at all—I couldn’t sense it.”

“What time is it now?”

“It’s already evening!” Liu Banshen glanced out the window.

“So long... It used to work just by turning on the computer. Has that method failed?” Qin Xiaomo couldn’t help but recall the scene she saw in the Cave of the Thousand-Eyed Immortal Spring when she lost control—she did catch a glimpse of Jidou for a moment, and saw her own body. Was it then?

“I don’t know. It seems so,” Jidou said.

“If I told you that I haven’t been... in the mortal world this whole time, would you think I’m crazy?” Qin Xiaomo asked cautiously.

“So where did you go?” Jidou pressed.

Qin Xiaomo pointed upwards.

“The sky? You went to heaven?” Jidou asked, curious.

“I think so. I walked among clouds, saw strange trees and animals,” Qin Xiaomo said. Liu Banshen furrowed his brow and asked, “You truly went? Which heaven?”

“I don’t know. I didn’t hear them say which heaven.”

“Did you see anyone? Or anything unusual?” Liu Banshen kept asking.

“Master Liu, is there a reason you’re being so detailed?” Jidou inquired.

“Do you really want to hear?” Liu Banshen hesitated, which only piqued their interest.

Qin Xiaomo nodded.

“Today, when I was trying to summon your soul, the Immortal Master not only checked where your soul was, but also revealed something important. Their sudden procession was because many Earth Gods reported that strange beasts, not belonging to the mortal world, have recently appeared among mortals. The immortals have been dispatched to inspect various regions,” Liu Banshen’s tone was grave, though the others didn’t feel the weight of it, not understanding its significance.

---

“No wonder the Heavenly Emperor went out so suddenly,” Qin Xiaomo murmured.

But Liu Banshen caught onto something vital and asked, “The Heavenly Emperor went out? You saw him?”

Qin Xiaomo nodded blankly, “He sat in a carriage drawn by nine dragons, accompanied by many immortal lords and maidens, with celestial soldiers at the rear. As they marched, they scattered glittering stone dust into the sky, radiant as can be!”

Jidou suddenly looked at Qin Xiaomo in shock. “Are you saying it looked like a meteor shower—glittering and bright?”

“Yes, exactly like a meteor shower! You’re so clever.”

Jidou shook her head and, almost mechanically, pointed at the television.

“This sudden, early eruption of the Lyra meteor shower has attracted the attention of many astronomers. In today’s advanced aerospace era, the unexpected meteor shower has unsettled some, as astronomical monitoring data remained stable until this afternoon, when values began to surge, with an average of 170 meteors per hour crossing the atmosphere. For most, this is a rare astronomical spectacle. Scientists speculate it was caused by a sudden collision of an asteroid with a planet, but the exact cause remains under investigation...”

“The Jade Emperor, it must be the Jade Emperor. So it’s true,” Liu Banshen muttered to himself.

“So it’s also true that strange beasts not belonging to the mortal world are appearing among us? Like the Earth Fish King?” Qin Xiaomo pondered.

Liu Banshen nodded.

Qin Xiaomo thought for a moment and asked, “If we can’t see these things, does that mean they can’t really harm us? After all, things from different realms shouldn’t coexist.”

“You’re only half right. Not seeing them doesn’t mean they don’t exist, and their destructive power remains. For example, if they damage buildings, many will simply blame it on poor construction, or disasters.”

“So what does it have to do with us? If we really encounter them, we can only accept our fate,” said Jidou, her words tinged with resignation.

“Saving all living beings is the mission of us Taoist disciples. We must not stand idly by,” Qingfeng finally couldn’t help but open his beak—no, his crane’s beak—and declared.