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Chapter 528 Advancing by a single step each day

After passing through the fifth level, Xu Yuan obtained a new destiny!
This fate is called "the sun arches over a single soldier".

Its function is very simple: daily improvement!
Whether it's cultivating life force, alchemy, or magic, or the "Dragon Transformation Method" or "Battle General Method," one makes a little progress every day.

It may seem like a trivial matter, but in reality, this destiny is very precious and is also a "divine mandate"!
The higher the level, the more precious this destiny is.

Imagine if Xu Yuan reached the upper third rank in the future, but his cultivation became difficult and he encountered a bottleneck, making it impossible for him to advance any further.

So, if you completely ignore all obstacles and improve a little bit every day, you can eventually reach the top as long as you live long enough!

Xu Yuan also possesses the destiny of "Ghost Doctor's Predestined Fate," meaning his lifespan will certainly be very long.

Xu Yuan's face lit up with joy.

This is my first destiny related to spiritual practice!
Because he had guided Yuan Muping and helped her advance to the fifth rank, Xu Yuan developed a good impression of her. If Yuan Muping's negotiations with that fate cultivator in Beidu did not go smoothly, Lord Xu was even willing to personally help Yuan Muping by using those two fates to exchange for a fate suitable for combat!
……

That evening, His Highness sent someone to summon Xu Yuan to have dinner with her.

Today's meal was quite to Xu Yuan's liking—it must have been made by Liu Hu.

The imperial chefs Your Highness brought couldn't recreate this home-style flavor.

After the meal, His Highness kept Xu Yuan for a chat for a while longer.

Her Highness asked Xu Yuan to tell her the story of solving a mysterious case in Jiaozhi.

Xu Yuan recounted two cases he had handled, while Mr. Cao coughed incessantly outside the door.

It's getting late, Your Highness should be mindful of your reputation.

Xu Yuan got up, said goodbye, and went back to rest.

……

Under the cover of night, only a few places in Champa, such as Xieliu Lane, were brightly lit, while the rest of the city was dark and deserted.

The streets were deserted, with evil spirits scurrying about in the shadows, their bloodshot eyes searching for delicious prey!
Suddenly, a series of dragging footsteps came from a street.

A figure staggered over, looking lost and disoriented.

The evil spirits' eyes gleamed—but suddenly, as if they had discovered something, they bristled like startled cats.

They darted quickly into the sewers and holes in the walls.

It was as if some great terror had descended upon the outside world.

The man muttered to himself, "Wu Tianfang, Young Master Wu, you've really screwed me over!"

"Three hundred thousand taels! A whole three hundred thousand taels! Even if I were to be cut up and sold off, it still wouldn't be enough to fill this hole..."

No sooner had he finished speaking than a voice suddenly came from the darkness: "Cut you up and sell the whole thing for twenty taels of silver."

"Huh?!" The money exchange manager was taken aback and looked around to find the source of the sound.

But it was pitch black all around, how could I see anything clearly?
Immediately afterwards, he felt himself being lifted up by a terrifying force that was completely irresistible.

In the darkness, it was as if two giant hands were deftly sweeping my hair back and pulling my head and neck backward to their limit.

Then something brushed against my neck!

Blood spurted out.

But then a wooden bucket appeared out of nowhere and caught the blood perfectly.

Then that invisible giant hand grabbed his body and hair, and lifted him upside down.

The wound on his neck faced the wooden tub below.

Fresh blood gushed into the bucket, not a single drop was wasted.

The shopkeeper couldn't help but think back to when he was a child, his mother would only kill a chicken and stew it for the whole family during the New Year.

How similar I am to the chicken my mother killed back then!
The blood vessels in his neck and his throat were cut, and the shopkeeper couldn't make a sound.

As he bled more and more, his consciousness gradually blurred, and he thought sadly: I was just saying that, I didn't really mean to sell myself...

Then, his consciousness sank into darkness.

After an unknown amount of time, the shopkeeper suddenly woke up again.

I looked up and found myself still standing on that street.

Before me was a huge, indistinct black shadow.

A forelimb emerged from the shadows.

Some look like human arms, some like bird claws, and many more are simply indescribable!

These forelimbs are dismantling a corpse.

The skin was peeled off, the meat was removed from the bones, and the internal organs, brain, etc., were cut up and placed on the cutting board in front of us.

There was also a wooden bucket under the cutting board.

Why does this wooden bucket look so familiar?

The enormous black figure grabbed a scale from the chopping board and weighed the bones, flesh, and internal organs one by one, while calculating aloud.

Finally, he sighed and said regretfully, "I offered too high a price!"

"This deal will result in a loss."

The shopkeeper's gaze fell on the piece of leather on the cutting board.

The shadowy figure was highly skilled; the skin was peeled off perfectly.

The shopkeeper stared at the face for a while, then suddenly exclaimed in surprise: This... isn't this my face?

He instantly understood that the wooden bucket was the one that had just collected his blood.

The corpse the shadowy figure was dismantling was himself!

"So what am I now...?"

He raised his hands and found only an illusion.

He was dead, only a soul remained.

The shadowy figure suddenly remembered: "Oh, right, there's also this bucket of blood. Sigh, just barely enough to break even."

Then, the shadowy figure seemed to turn around.

But the shopkeeper still couldn't see anything clearly.

The figure in black said, "Fine, I've always been honest and keep my word. Twenty taels it is, take it."

From the shadows, a ghostly claw suddenly extended and handed a silver ingot to the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper accepted the silver in a daze, but didn't know where to go.

Upon closer inspection, the dark figure, the wooden bucket, and the cutting board had all vanished!
Overwhelmed with grief, he wanted to cry his heart out, but found that his soul could not shed tears.

After wandering aimlessly through the city for half the night, he suddenly remembered: "I want to go back and see my wife and children..."

So it drifted towards Hue.

Although he worked as a shopkeeper in Luocheng, his home was in Hue.

……

The next day, the sun rose as usual.

Xu Yuan woke up and checked the almanac; today was a forbidden day.
Slaughtering, starting fires, sowing seeds, traveling at night.

After getting up and washing up, Xu Yuan called out to Lang Xiaoba, "Xiaoba, what's for breakfast this morning?"

But it was Liu Hu who entered from outside.

Liu Hu was holding a tray with several breakfast items that Xu Yuan used to love.

"Hehe, please have some, sir." Liu Hu said with a grin.

Xu Yuanqi asked, "Why did you come back instead of going to serve Mr. Wenqi?"

Liu Hu arranged the breakfast items on the table, put down the tray, knelt on the ground, and kowtowed three times to Xu Yuan.

Xu Yuan suddenly realized: "Did Mr. Wenqi agree to teach you the magic?"

"Exactly," Liu Hu said excitedly. "Without your guidance, I would never have had such an opportunity."

Moreover, Mr. Wenqi said that an elder must be invited to come and bear witness.

"Okay." Xu Yuan readily agreed: "I'll go right away."

"No, no, no, adults, please finish your breakfast first. There's no rush."

Liu Hu has finally made it through the tough times.

During this time serving Mr. Wenqi, the eccentric scholar truly lived up to his reputation for being "eccentric," often coming up with some inexplicable ideas.

For example, you might suddenly crave something you can't eat at all.

Tiles, ox horns, river sand, weights... and so on.

When Liu Hu first heard about it, he was stunned.

I explained to Mr. Wenqi that these things were inedible, but he stubbornly insisted that as long as you could make them flavorful, he could eat them.

River sand is alright, but how do you get the flavor into things like steelyard weights and roof tiles?

If he couldn't cook it to perfection, Mr. Wenqi would berate him as a useless fool.

For example, they often have wild ideas, thinking that certain ingredients would be great when combined.

Tell Liu Hu to do it right away.

Liu Hu told him that this combination must not taste good.

He never listens.

When Liu Hu made it according to his instructions, he felt nauseous after eating it and blamed Liu Hu: Why didn't you tell me sooner?
For example, if he suddenly wakes up in the middle of the night and has an appetite, he will call Liu Hu and want to eat in a very short time.

Otherwise he would fall asleep again.

But if they didn't get to eat it, they would blame Liu Hu the next day.

Liu Hu dared not wake him up after he fell asleep, because he would get slapped for doing so.

During the time Liu Hu served Mr. Wenqi, he almost never slept or rested.

It was only when Mr. Wenqi accompanied His Highness out that he managed to catch up on some sleep.

After having breakfast, Xu Yuan and Liu Hu went to Mr. Wenqi's residence.

Mr. Wenqi nodded to him before pointing at Liu Hu and saying, "I called you here because I'm going to take on a disciple..."

Xu Yuan and Liu Hu were both taken aback.

"Taking on apprentices?!"

A third-rate scholar wants to take a cook as his apprentice?

Mr. Wenqi truly lives up to his reputation as a "mad scholar," quite unlike the average scholar.

Even Liu Hu himself couldn't believe it.

Xu Yuan frowned and asked, "Does the master intend for him to inherit his mantle?"

Liu Hu immediately tensed up: If I were really asked to inherit his mantle... I really don't have that ability.

I can't even recognize all the characters!

"That's not necessary," Mr. Wenqi said calmly. "I'd say he's a disciple in name only."

Xu Yuan's brows finally relaxed.

It was already strange that Mr. Wenqi accepted Liu Hu as his disciple, and if he was also the one to inherit his mantle, Xu Yuan really felt that there was some kind of conspiracy.

This isn't a windfall, it's a blunder, it's going to crush Liu Hu.

However, Xu Yuan still opened "Looking at Fate" and glanced at Liu Hu.

His "Noble Bamboo" destiny was still normal, which put my mind at ease.

Mr. Wenqi rolled his eyes and said to the two of them, "What's wrong? You two don't seem too willing. Then let's just forget about it..."

Xu Yuan quickly stepped forward, smiling as he helped the old man to sit down in the armchair: "Look at what you're saying, how could you be unwilling? This is Liu Hu's good fortune!"

Liu Hu quickly nodded, "I'm just too surprised to believe it for a moment."

Without needing Lord Xu to give him a signal, Liu Hu knelt down with a thud, about to kowtow to Mr. Wenqi—but Mr. Wenqi stopped him with a kick.

"Wait a minute," Mr. Wenqi said, "Let's make some things clear first."

Liu Hu remained kneeling, and Xu Yuan said, "Please speak freely, sir."

Mr. Wenqi pointed at Xu Yuan: "Go to the inner room and get the contract from the table."

Xu Yuan went inside in confusion, and sure enough, there was a piece of paper on the table in the inner room.

But the paper was completely blank, without a single word.

Xu Yuan was wondering when he heard Mr. Wenqi's voice from outside: "That's the one, just take it out."

Xu Yuan then took it out, and Mr. Wenqi held the paper up in front of him, saying, "I'm too lazy to write, so this contract is completely blank—let's consider it a gentleman's agreement between the three of us..." Xu Yuan was taken aback: "Me too?"

“I have to have you,” Mr. Wenqi said. “You are both a witness and a guarantor. I took this disciple in so that someone would take care of me in my old age and see me off when I die.”

Xu Yuan asked in confusion, "You want Liu Hu to take care of you in your old age and see you off in your final days?"

Mr. Wenqi sighed, and for the first time, the cynical look on his face completely disappeared, making him appear somewhat old and desolate.

"I have lived a very happy life, but my happiness has made many others unhappy."

I've made too many enemies in my life, and I have no children. Now that I'm getting old, it's time to think about what's to come.

He looked at Liu Hu and said, "Liu Hu, I, Chen Qi, will pass on the 'Ghost Banquet Technique' to you and accept you as my disciple."

If one day I, Chen Qi, am unable to support myself, you will be obliged to take care of me in my old age and see me off in my final days. Would you be willing?

Without hesitation, Liu Hu kowtowed and replied, "I am willing."

“Okay,” Mr. Wenqi then looked at Xu Yuan: “Liu Hu was introduced to me by you, Xu Yuan, and he has already agreed to my request.”

If Liu Hu fails to fulfill his promise today, are you, Xu Yuan, willing to act as a witness and urge him to fulfill his responsibilities?

Xu Yuan frowned and said, "Sir, you are a third-rate scholar. Why don't you just say what you want to do openly and honestly?"
It's rather ungentlemanly of you to try and deceive us two younger people with this so-called 'gentleman's agreement.'

Liu Hu was confused: Were they lying to us?
Xu Yuan continued, "Senior, you clearly stated everyone's real name in every word you said. Was you reporting to some being... or were you deliberately trying to violate some rule?"

Mr. Wenqi snorted and said, "Enough with the talk. Do you agree or not? If you don't agree, then forget about it."

There are plenty of people willing to learn my "Ghost Banquet Method."

Liu Hu immediately tensed up, looking at Xu Yuan with a pleading look in his eyes, hoping that the master would agree.

He gave up his position as a county official and served Mr. Wenqi diligently and conscientiously for so long, all for this "ghost banquet method"?

He was willing to take care of Mr. Wenqi in his old age and see him to his death.

Xu Yuan showed no intention of backing down, waving his hand to Liu Hu and saying, "You can go out for a bit."

Liu Hu hesitated, but finally gritted his teeth, got up, turned around, and left.

Xu Daren was his true benefactor.

The person who introduced him to the school back then only had a fleeting interest and quickly forgot about this insignificant person.

Mr. Wenqi was willing to wear his "ghost banquet ritual" only because he wanted him to take care of him in his old age and see him off in his final days.

Only Lord Xu was truly helping him.

Liu Hu closed the door behind him as he left.

Xu Yuan then cut to the chase and asked, "Senior, it wasn't easy for you to find a suitable disciple..."

Mr. Wenqi glared at him: "He's just a nominal disciple, do you really think he's someone important?"

Xu Yuan sighed: "If you don't want to talk about it, then so be it. I will take the liberty of this matter on behalf of Liu Hu and let it go."

Xu Yuan turned and left. He didn't hesitate at all when he reached the door. He pushed the door open and went out.

"Liu Hu, come back with me."

"grown ups……"

Are you coming with me or not?

"Let's go!" Liu Hu replied through gritted teeth.

Inside the room, Mr. Wenqi, his face grim, muttered under his breath, "Xu Huanyang, you unfilial son, you're really hard to deal with!"

A calligraphy scroll flew up and landed in front of Xu Yuan, bearing four large characters:

The beginning and end are indistinguishable.

Xu Yuan was clearly walking out, but he ended up walking back into the house.

Xu Yuan spread his hands, displeased, and said, "What do you mean by this, senior?"

"close the door."

Xu Yuan waved his hand, and a gust of wind closed the door.

Liu Hu was locked outside again, looking completely bewildered.

Mr. Wenqi waved the piece of white paper in his hand at him.

The imperial edict and the image of the deity flashed by.

Then Mr. Wenqi rolled up the paper and put it away, saying, "You're so young, yet you're too wary!"
I'm still a little reluctant to use this thing.

Xu Yuan remained silent. If I hadn't been so wary, I would have been tricked by you just now.

The edict and the statue flashed by, and Xu Yuan didn't get a clear look at them, but they seemed to point to a powerful being in the underworld!
Mr. Wenqi added, “Since you are protecting him, then you really have to guarantee that if one day I am crooked in the mouth and eyes and bedridden, he will take care of me.”

“Of course!” Xu Yuan readily agreed.

"Alright, call him in and let him become your apprentice."

Mr. Wenqi still refused to explain why he had made that "gentleman's agreement" earlier.

Xu Yuan guessed correctly: Liu Hu needed the "Ghost Banquet Method," and Mr. Wen Qi also needed Liu Hu as his disciple.

After this period of testing, Mr. Wenqi realized that Liu Hu was the most suitable candidate he had met in the past ten years.

So Xu Yuan went to call Liu Hu in, and Liu Hu kowtowed to become Xu Yuan's disciple, and then offered tea to Xu Yuan, who was the witness.

This time, Mr. Wenqi kicked Xu Yuan out and closed the door to teach Liu Hu the "Ghost Banquet Technique".

He obtained this method by chance in his early years.

But unexpectedly, it was just right for Liu Hu.

Xu Yuan waited outside for a long time before Liu Hu finally came out. It was obvious that his energy and spirit had improved significantly!

Xu Yuan smiled and patted him on the shoulder: "Not bad!"

Liu Hu said gratefully, "Thank you, sir!"

Mr. Wenqi's slightly tired voice came from inside the house: "I'm tired, you can all go now."

After Xu Yuan and Liu Hu left, Mr. Wenqi's expression changed several times inside the house, eventually settling into a strong sense of unease.

"Xu Huanyang..."

"You, Gou Ride, must succeed!"

"I've staked everything."

"If you lose, the best outcome would be for me to be crooked in the mouth, paralyzed in bed, and unable to move!"

"The old toad is finished. Are you really sure you can win?"

He went to Ghost Mountain again later, but he could no longer find the Grand Master Chan Jinye!
……

Xu Yuan didn't understand why Mr. Wenqi was so sure that he would be "unable to support himself in his old age."

I don't understand why Mr. Wenqi is in such a hurry to accept disciples.
The next day, His Highness changed into casual clothes and insisted on spending the whole day with Xu Yuan.

Let's go to a famous teahouse in the city, have breakfast, drink tea, and listen to storytelling.

I visited all the few attractions inside and outside Champa.

Then, standing on the city tower of the west gate of Champa, we drove away all the soldiers, stood shoulder to shoulder, and watched an ordinary sunset.

What kind of scenery doesn't the Northern Capital have? What appeal could the scenery of Jiaozhi in the South possibly have for Your Highness?

With each inch the dark red sun dipped below the horizon, His Highness moved a little closer to Xu Yuan.

The two figures finally came together.

Xu Yuan also realized something, and moved his body slightly, but did not dodge.

His Highness tilted his head slightly and rested it on his shoulder.

"I have to go back tomorrow..."

……

His Highness finally returned.

She has been in southern Vietnam for far too long.

Many people are urging her to go back.

But what ultimately forced her to set off was an order from the Imperial Clan Court.

If the Imperial Clan Court's orders don't work, then the next one will be an imperial edict.

His Highness was reluctant to part, and Xu Yuan also felt a little melancholy.

Your Highness is like the lanterns of the Lantern Festival—bright, dazzling, and fiery.

They easily let their emotions affect those around them.

Xu Yuan didn't know when or how he had been infected by her.

……

Wei Jinyuan and the others also followed His Highness's fleet back to Beidu.

Uncle Xi and the other two asked in surprise, "Young Master, aren't we going to wait for Luo Bei?"

"Waiting for what?" Wei Jinyuan snorted. "If he wants to scheme against Xu Yuan, isn't he just courting death?"

Look, the Luo family has arrived, but Luo Bei is still missing.

The Luo family not only didn't cause trouble for Xu Yuan, but I heard they even gave him a garden. Don't you understand?

Wei Jinyuan concluded: "Offending Xu Yuan means certain death!"

There was a second conclusion that Young Master Wei kept to himself: "I can't afford to offend them, but I can avoid them!"

I will never set foot in Jiaozhi again in my life!
……

On the day His Highness was seen off, surprisingly, neither Zhu Zhanmei nor Xu Miaozhi showed up.

Xu Yuan hid in the yamen and spent another day processing official documents.

In the past, these official documents were always given to Fu Jingyu.

But recently, Fu Jingyu noticed that the number of documents sent from the government office had decreased significantly. He found this strange and decided to ask Xu Yuan what was going on.

But Song Lu stopped him by tugging at his sleeve: "You're such a fool!"

……

Two days later, early in the morning, a scholar, accompanied by several constables, rushed into the Exorcism Department in a panic.

"Lord Xu! Lord Xu!"

Ignoring the officers' attempts to stop them, these men rushed all the way to Xu Yuan's residence.

When Xu Yuan came out, he saw that these constables were from the government office.

"What happened?"

Wenxiu's face turned ashen: "The Prefect has disappeared!"

Xu Yuan couldn't help but say, "What nonsense are you talking about?"

"It's true!" Wenxiu cried, his face contorted with grief. "The prefect has been missing for two days!"

On the first day of their disappearance, they searched in secret, not daring to make a sound.

But after two days, the truth could not be hidden any longer, so they had no choice but to seek help from the Exorcism Bureau.

"What on earth is going on!?"

With a pained expression, Wen Xiu bowed to Xu Yuan and said, "My lord, may we go inside to talk?"

Xu Yuan turned and went inside: "Come in!"

Wenxiu went inside and closed the door before telling Xu Yuan everything.

The day before yesterday, after finishing his shift in the evening, the prefect went to the outer room.

The outer chamber, of course, refers to the animal kept outside.

However, the prefect spends half of the thirty days of the month sleeping with his mistress.

The people in the prefectural government office were used to it.

The prefect did not return the next day.

Wenxiu, his advisor, led a group to search for his mistress's home.

But they found the main gate wide open, and the inside was empty; there wasn't a single person inside.

Nothing was stolen from the house, but everyone was gone.

There were no signs of a struggle in the outer room of the house!
The entire prefectural government searched diligently for two days, but found no clues whatsoever.

I had no choice but to seek help from the Exorcism Bureau.

(End of this chapter)