Eleven Nights of Lingering Rain

Yingzhou is home to two immortal sanctuaries: Xilu Heavenly Palace and the Cangling Kingdom.

The people of Xilu Heavenly Palace have lived on a sacred mountain for generations. Its disciples all abide by strict precepts and reject worldly desires.

Anyone who develops mortal feelings has their cultivation stripped away and is imprisoned beneath the sacred mountain for life, never to see the sun again.

The Cangling Kingdom is a land of peach-blossom sanctuaries, with open-minded customs and people who are passionate and uninhibited. They indulge in pleasure, live freely without restraint, and seek joy in the present without worrying about tomorrow.

Yuan Chunying drifted from the Cangling Kingdom to Xilu Heavenly Palace.

The palace's strict rules made her miserable. She worked diligently at her post every day, and her only hope for the rest of her life was to save up a hundred thousand spirit stones for a boat ticket home to the Cangling Kingdom, so she would never have to live this awful life again.

But with her monthly salary, it was anyone's guess whether she could save enough spirit stones in her lifetime.

Then one day, an elder of the Heavenly Palace summoned her in secret, hesitating as he said, "Divine Envoy Song has been afflicted by the Love Flower Gu. The only cure is to secretly select a female partner and practice a dual cultivation technique together for ten days..."

Divine Envoy Song Jiling was aloof and otherworldly, with a bearing that could outshine the spring sunlight on the mountain. He strictly observed the precepts and kept himself pure.

From the day Yuan Chunying set foot in Xilu Heavenly Palace, Song Jiling had been the cinnabar mark in her heart. But with the palace's rules so strict, all she could do was sneak a few extra glances at him.

After much hesitation, the elder finally steeled himself and asked her, "If I gave you a hundred thousand spirit stones, could you accept breaking the precepts?"

Yuan Chunying: ?! Something this good can actually happen?!

*

Song Jiling had accidentally been afflicted by the Love Flower Gu, leaving his mind hazy. All he knew was that his junior uncle had secretly found a scroll containing a dual cultivation technique.

He gave a bitter laugh. The Heavenly Palace's rules were strict, and breaking them meant death. He was going to die anyway, so why drag someone else down with him?

On a night of torrential rain on the sacred mountain, she drifted into his dream.

"Go back, quickly." Half awake, he struggled to keep his mind clear. "I can die on my own, but you have a bright future ahead of you. Don't ruin it."

But she paused, then smiled faintly and leaned down, gently stroking his cheek. "But I came here for you."

As rain tapped at the window, they spent a night in a tender embrace.

The rain fell for eleven whole days. They spent ten of them listening to the downpour in the little house.

On the tenth rainy night, he kissed the back of her neck and whispered as they clung close, "Will I see you again tomorrow?"

"Of course," she said with a smile.

A liar.

Song Jiling waited from sunrise until the moon had set.

On the eleventh night of rain on the sacred mountain, she did not come.

Theme: A healthy, rewarding relationship takes effort from both people.