Chapter 16: Thunder Comes

The orange-red glow of the setting sun spilled over Lin Nan.

As Lin Nan recited the incantation, his robe fluttered up and down, moving without a breeze.

Immediately after, he pointed his two fingers—which had been directed at the formation—toward the sky, then quickly pulled them back.

He crossed his hands, his fingers intertwining.

In the span of just a few seconds, his fingers nimbly shifted through several different forms.

Lin Nan’s expression was solemn, and the way he performed the hand seals created an instant illusion for those around him. They actually felt as if the person before them had truly stepped out of a painting of an immortal.

This caused the students watching on the scene to subconsciously look up toward the sky.

However, when they looked up, the sky they saw was still the orange-red of the sunset; nothing had changed at all.

Only then did everyone suddenly snap back to reality.

"What are we looking at? It’s just a performance of rain-seeking; how could it actually rain?"

"Cough, cough, true. But looking at the whole act Lin Nan put on, it really did look quite convincing."

"Yeah, no wonder he’s popular. Just for this professional and studious attitude, it’s no wonder netizens are willing to buy into his act."

Meanwhile, the netizens in Lin Nan’s livestream also sent a screen full of praise once he finished the rain-seeking procedure.

【Handsome! So handsome!】

【The streamer really recreated the scene of the Thunder Ancestor casting spells exactly as I imagined it.】

【That line, "Thunder God, assist me," was just too awesome. I could feel the intense sense of conviction in the streamer when he said it! It was as if he truly believed that rain would fall the next second!】

【It’s not just me saying this, the streamer really put in the effort. The Bagua within this formation diagram is drawn exactly like the ones drawn by the Taoist priests at the temple. Just for this level of seriousness, it’s worth me sending the streamer a gift!】

【Received "Rocket x1" from "All the Way South"】

【Received...】

【Hey, look, why is the streamer still looking at the sky?】

【Yeah, the formation is drawn and the spell is finished. Is he checking to see if it’s going to rain?】

【Are you kidding? How could it actually rain?】

The students also noticed Lin Nan’s actions and jokingly said

"Lin Nan, looking at how serious you are, are you checking the situation in the sky?"

"The formation you just drew and those fancy hand seals really looked the part."

"Yeah, what’s the situation now? Is it actually going to rain in a bit? Hahaha."

Hearing the students' teasing, Lin Nan finally withdrew his gaze.

Although it wasn't raining yet, he could already feel a trace of a damp, cool breeze flowing through the air.

Lin Nan knew that he had indeed succeeded!

This made it hard to hide the excitement in his heart. Suppressing his emotions, he saw the students around him looking at him with smiles. Lin Nan straightened his back and said with a serious and solemn expression

"How could that be? Just think about it, this is just a performance."

"Comrades, we are all college students; we must believe in science."

Seeing Lin Nan’s straight-faced look, everyone laughed even louder.

It wasn't that Lin Nan was being weird, but he couldn't just blurt out that it would rain later; otherwise, it would be hard to explain, and there was no need for him to deliberately show off.

It would do more harm than good.

"Hahaha, I don't know who it was that was just drawing formations and chanting spells, and now they're telling us to believe in science."

"Lin Nan, don't be such a hypocrite, hahahaha."

A cool breeze blew across the playground, ruffling young faces and carrying sounds of joy across the entire field.

Zhang Yong also looked at the joking students with a smile and said

"Lin Nan’s talent show has concluded. It was very novel, like watching a mysterious folk ritual. It actually reminded me of the Yingge dance from the south; it was quite an eye-opener for me too."

"Alright, let’s return to our original positions and move on to the next person!"

"Yes!"

After the unified, serious response, there was the sound of students running happily.

Although Lin Nan’s performance had made everyone feel it was fresh and brought a certain level of surprise, as Lin Nan said, it was just a performance after all—a performance with artistic merit. No one took the matter of Lin Nan seeking rain to heart.

Soon, the group from Class 3 formed a circle again, continuing with self-introductions and talent shows.

And Lin Nan, with no one paying attention to him anymore, frequently looked up at the sky.

Compared to the calm, twinkling night sky from earlier, only the two largest stars were visible now.

From this, it was clear that clouds were gathering, and the rain was coming soon!

Noticing this, Lin Nan’s expression became serious.

He had to find an excuse to leave!

Otherwise, if he really waited for the rain to come, wouldn't he turn into a drowned rat?

He wouldn't be able to use this outfit anymore.

So, Lin Nan stared at his phone, lost in thought.

"Report!"

After the current student finished their talent show, Lin Nan suddenly spoke up.

Not only were the surrounding students startled, but even Zhang Yong hadn't expected someone to make a report at this moment.

But on second thought, this showed that the students had taken the military training rules to heart, which was no small improvement. So, Zhang Yong said gently

"Lin Nan, what is it?"

Lin Nan stood up and then said

"Instructor, may I return to the dormitory to livestream?"

"The lighting here isn't very good, and the captured footage isn't very clear."

Zhang Yong was stunned and subconsciously looked around.

Although the playground had lights, they were only enough for everyone to see the track and some fitness equipment; they certainly couldn't compare to the heavy lighting required for a livestream.

However, the purpose of this activity was for the freshmen to get to know each other.

If he let Lin Nan go back early, it was inevitable that others might have opinions. So, Zhang Yong thought of a compromise and asked all the students

"What do you all think?"

Wang Chengyu and Jiang Tao looked at each other.

They didn't think much of it, assuming Lin Nan just wanted to livestream, so they were the first to shout

"We both agree."

With the two of them speaking up, the other students didn't feel it was a problem and nodded in agreement with the request.

So, Zhang Yong said to Lin Nan

"Since the students all agree, I won't keep you. Go back to the dorm and stream."

"Thank you, Instructor and classmates."

He then walked toward the dormitory and soon arrived back.

When he set up his phone and carefully watched the livestream, he discovered that the gifts and the number of viewers had hit a new high.

Lin Nan quickly thanked them

"Thank you all for your support of the streamer. There were no conditions earlier, so I couldn't thank every immortal who sent gifts one by one. I’ll scroll back now and guarantee that I’ll read everyone’s name!"

"Thanks to Xiao Guozi for sending..."

Seeing that the streamer could interact, the comment section started scrolling rapidly again.

【That scene of seeking rain outdoors earlier was truly amazing!】

【You even knew to use cinnabar; I’m starting to suspect you’ve been a Taoist priest before.】

Lin Nan laughed and replied: "Haha, I’ve definitely never been a Taoist priest. I just searched for cinnabar on Baidu; my main strategy is being diligent and loving to search."

【But you drew that Bagua, right? It was awesome, exactly the same as the ones I’ve seen. Did the streamer study painting?】

"I didn't study painting, but I did learn some sketch—"

However, before Lin Nan could finish his sentence, a blinding white light suddenly flashed across the pitch-black night.

It illuminated the ink-black night as if it had turned into broad daylight!

*Rumble!—*

Immediately following, a loud crash came from outside the window, echoing throughout the entire livestream.