Li Rong cautiously opened his eyes, the brightness of the early sunlight piercing through his eyelids like a thousand needles, his head throbbing horribly. He groaned and twisted in bed as bits and pieces of the night before slowly returned to him.
He hazily remembered his indulgence at the restaurant, the laughter he shared with Lin Fang, and the copious amounts of wine. But after that, all he remembered was a hazy mist, an enormous blank in his memory that left him feeling uneasy and disoriented.
Li Rong struggled to get out of bed and staggered over to the outdoor bath, where the warm water relieved his sore muscles and helped him recover from his hangover. He headed back to his room once he felt more human, where a steaming bowl of hangover soup awaited him.
Li Rong sighed gratefully as he ate the soup, the warm broth doing wonders to calm the pounding headache and settle his stomach. Once his headache was gone, Li Rong dug out the bronze disc he had won at the auction from his storage and gave it a thorough inspection, his fingers tracing the disc's worn surface. He bit down on his finger without hesitation, letting a drop of blood come up and then pressing it to the disc's surface.
A subtle sheen appeared around the disc as the blood touched it, and Li Rong gazed at it in wonder as it started to float in midair, rotating gradually as though propelled by an invisible force. With nervous tension, he held his breath, waiting to see what would come next.
Suddenly, the disc stopped spinning abruptly, and Li Rong felt a strange sensation wash over him, as if he were being pulled into the very fabric of reality itself. Before he could react, the world around him seemed to blur and distort, and then, in the blink of an eye, he found himself no longer in his room.
Instead, he stood in the midst of a breathtaking landscape—a world unlike anything he had ever seen before. Towering mountains loomed in the distance, their peaks disappearing into the clouds, while crystal-clear rivers wound their way through lush green valleys below.
But what truly captivated Li Rong's attention was the lake that lay before him—a vast expanse of shimmering water that seemed to glow with an otherworldly light. Intrigued, he stepped closer, his eyes widening in wonder as he realized that the lake was not merely water, but pure, concentrated spiritual qi.
Unable to resist the allure of the mystical lake, Li Rong knelt down at its edge, dipping his fingers into the cool, ethereal liquid. He could feel its power coursing through him, revitalizing his weary body and invigorating his spirit.
Despite the serenity of his surroundings, an inexplicable sense of unease nagged at him, like a whispering voice in the back of his mind.
He glanced around, searching for the source of his unease, but the landscape remained still and silent, bathed in the soft glow of the morning light. Yet, the feeling persisted, growing stronger with each passing moment until it felt as though a pair of unseen eyes were boring into his very soul.
Li Rong shivered, a chill running down his spine as he scanned the horizon once more. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, and yet he couldn't shake the feeling that he was not alone—that there was something lurking just beyond the edge of his perception.
With a deep breath, Li Rong tried to calm his racing thoughts, telling himself that it was just his imagination playing tricks on him. But even as he tried to push the feeling aside, a flicker of movement caught his eye, drawing his attention to the far side of the lake.
There, amidst the swaying grass and whispering trees, he thought he saw a shadow—a fleeting glimpse of something dark and indistinct. His pulse quickened, his instincts screaming at him to flee, but curiosity held him rooted to the spot, his gaze fixed on the mysterious figure.
For a moment, the shadow seemed to waver, as if uncertain whether to reveal itself or retreat back into the shadows. And then, with a suddenness that took Li Rong by surprise, it vanished, leaving nothing behind but a lingering sense of foreboding.
Li Rong stood there for a long moment, his mind racing with questions and uncertainties. Who—or what—had been watching him? And what did they want? With a sense of trepidation, he realized that he would need to tread carefully if he hoped to uncover the truth behind the mysterious presence in the pocket dimension.