Chapter 2276 - Rain (2/2)
1
——
The clouds were slowly gathering toward the center of the sky, like a painter putting colors on their work.
A huge waterway called the Scorched River served as a clear boundary line across the vast land. On one side were wilted old trees, dusty roads, and little factories filled with trash.
On the other side were green rainforests with railways and highways weaving through them, leading straight to Banlo City.
The clouds were growing thicker. A man who looked like a tramp stood on the shore overlooking the strong current in the river. He was staring at the flowery world on the other side.
A huge hole appeared in the clouds above him.
The clouds had shrouded the sky above the entire Scorched River. The clear white sky had turned gray.
The gray clouds and haze had driven away the sunlight. Even the river turned dark and cloudy, as if a truck had poured a tank of oil into it.
The hole was now right above the man’s head. The oval hole was the only gap between the sky and the ground, as if a pair of eyes was watching whatever was going to happen soon.
Today was the day of the open tournament in the Americas being held by the Aorus Sacred Institute!
———
The tournament was taking place in Banlo City. The bustling city was a little gloomy and icy because of the sudden change in the weather.
People had gathered outside the arena to enjoy the spectacular magic duels. In addition to people from all over the Andes Federation, people from other cities and countries had come too.
A public Magic Tournament with participants above the Advanced Level. Its scale was almost comparable to the World Cup!
People were rushing into Banlo City excitedly, yet not only did Banlo City fail to welcome these visitors warmly, they were greeted by terrible weather.
Strong winds were blowing in the city, sweeping dust and trash into the air. Many trees and billboards were shaking vigorously.
An empty can hit a sedan that was parked by the road and triggered its alarm. The owner came rushing out yelling angrily, as he thought someone was trying to steal his car.
Meanwhile, a group of high-school students from Brazil was heading for the arena in an orderly fashion under their teacher’s lead.
They were one of the schools invited by the Aorus Sacred Institute as spectators. The strong winds kept blowing up the girls’ skirts. The boys kept turning their heads around in laughter while the girls tried to hold their skirts with their legs while walking on the street.
Someone stuck their head out of a newspaper stand by the road and remarked, “It’s about to rain. I bet it’s coming from the Pacific Ocean. I can’t believe it had made its way through the Andes Mountains.”
“It’ll be troublesome if it rains. People will be looking for shelter while the vehicles keep honking as they make their way to the venue in the middle of a traffic jam.”
——
Cloudy raindrops started falling densely across the sky.
When the first wave of raindrops fell, the sky looked like a kaleidoscope, followed by the rapid taps on the ground, like the sizzling of something being deep-fried.
The smell of moisture spread and lingered in the air.
—
In the arena…
Mo Fan, Zhao Manyan, and Mu Bai were leading the nine students who were representing their faction onto the stage. Boleyn, wearing a grand dress, was first in the line with a smile. She was waving a Chinese flag, too.
The heavy rain was knocking on the awnings with reinforced glass like arrows.
The crowd was overwhelmed with excitement. After all, they were watching a public Magic Tournament live, something that recording devices could not capture effectively.
Watching a Magic Tournament on the television or the Internet was no different from watching a bunch of idiots in a sci-fi film without special effects.
Mo Fan had a stern look on his face. He could feel his soul shivering in the rain.
He had the same feeling twice in the past. Every raindrop was equal to a human life!