Morning sun bathed the Ocean City training fields in golden light.
Birds chirped. Disciples practiced calmly. Masters meditated beneath fluttering banners of their sects.
And then—
"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHH—!!"
A streak of sweat, panic, and regret bolted past a group of startled disciples.
Lin Fan, eyes wide and lips trembling, was mid-sprint, leaving behind a tornado of kicked-up dirt, broken bamboo fences, and one terrified goose.
"Is that guy still running?" a disciple asked, poking his steamed bun with confusion.
Another nodded. "Third lap around the entire mountain. I timed it. Seventeen minutes, forty-three seconds."
In the distance, Lin Fan could be heard shouting between heaves:
"I SWEAR I'M TAKING THIS SERIOUSLY, OLD MAN!"
Elsewhere, at the Bench of Bliss
Hei Long reclined on a shaded bench, sipping spiritual peach tea. Ji Yao stood quietly beside him. Bai Luoluo tinkered with a weapon.
