"Squeak."

A bird's cry sounded like a signal to assemble.

In a matter of seconds, countless tiny shadows appeared in the sky, connecting into a dense mass of brown birds, which then swarmed towards the lake.

Zhang Shi had fallen asleep at the time. Awakened by the noise, he looked out at the lake. At a glance, fire fish leaped on the surface, a vibrant red mass filling the entire lake, as if they had no place to stay unless they jumped out of the water, or as if the boiling water was trying to cook them alive.

Furthermore, as the water receded, many fire fish remained on the muddy surface, having not yet jumped into the water.

Swarms of brown birds flew by, leaving no more fish to leap in their wake. The red earth was covered with dense fish bones, as if this were a complete massacre.