Mythology Handbook
Mythical tales have been passed down through the ages, interwoven with both truth and falsehood, leaving it to later generations to judge their authenticity. By chance, Chen Jin came into possession of a black-bound tome, and through its guidance, he traversed the ancient and modern worlds. He witnessed Wu Song atop Jingyang Ridge, unleashing a sonic boom and uttering words that reduced the tiger demon to dust; on Gaoping Mountain, he saw Ge Hong gathering herbs and refining elixirs to subdue plague demons and restore clarity to the world; in Fengdu City, he observed the entanglements of humans, demons, ghosts, and gods within the realms of the living and the dead; at the foot of Mount Hua, he watched Chen Xiang split the mountain to rescue his mother; on Flower-Fruit Mountain, he beheld the Monkey King battling the assembled deities; before the Boundary Pass, he witnessed the Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation forging earth, wind, water, fire, and the primordial chaos of yin and yang... So many affairs throughout the ages—one can only truly know by venturing forth to see them for oneself.
Mythology Handbook
“…At 9:15 a.m. on January 1st, outside a breakfast shop on Xiangshan Street in Rongcheng, a sudden bolt of lightning struck a young man. Fortunately, there were no casualties. For details, see the video report…”
In a pitch-dark room, a computer screen was playing the video.
On the screen, a young man was struck by lightning, convulsing on the ground for a moment as passersby watched from a distance, none daring to approach.
Yet after a brief spasm, the young man rose to his feet as if nothing had happened, dusted himself off, and walked away.
The video was shot from a nearby surveillance camera, so the face of the fallen man was unclear.
Before the computer sat another young man, who watched the video with a peculiar expression.
“Did I just see something?” he muttered, then rewound the video.
The clip paused at the moment the lightning struck the young man.
“That white smoke… Is it just the camera’s low resolution?” he wondered aloud.
Ding…
His phone chimed suddenly.
He picked it up and checked.
A text message, from his sister.
“Chen Jin, come pick me up. I’m at the school gate.”
“This brat, can’t she just call a ride home? Why does she need me? Ugh, in the dead of winter, it’s exhausting.” Though he complained, Chen Jin swiftly put on his coat and headed out.
“Dad, why doesn’t that brat call you instead of texting me?” As he stepped out, he ran into his father, whose face was square and stern, and he grumbled noisily.
“I scolded her good and hard—she’s much better behaved now
