Chapter Four: The Toad That Ate Money

The day after the black invitation arrived, every clock in Donglan Airport lost thirteen seconds. The Gate Administration blamed a power fluctuation. Han Jiuzhang crawled beneath Carousel Four and pulled a soaked hundred-yuan note from a maintenance seam. The portrait had no face. In the watermark, a swollen eye blinked. “The gate is tasting,” Han said. “Its next bite won't be just money.” Before Lu Chen could ask more, the carousel reversed. A dozen unclaimed suitcases burst open. Coins, watches, and gold chains rolled toward the rubber curtain as if pulled by a magnet. A bronze toad the size of a basketball tumbled out, foreign coins embedded across its back. Whenever it hopped, a digit vanished from every nearby cash register.