This Taoist priest is so unprofessional!

Wang Xiaoer clutched the piece of gold tightly in his hand.

Its weight is so unreal.

"Walk."

Zhang Chen didn't give him any time to process or react before turning around and walking out of the courtyard.

"Where to?"

Wang Xiaoer followed instinctively.

"The back hill is your family's ancestral cemetery."

Zhang Chen walked quickly, without turning his head.

The rain has stopped, but the mountain road is still slippery and muddy.

The moon peeked out from the gaps in the dark clouds, casting a cool, clear light that was just enough to illuminate the path beneath our feet.

Wang Xiaoer followed behind, his feet sinking deep into the mud, his heart pounding like a drum.

He didn't know why he was following this mad Taoist priest.

Perhaps it was because of that piece of gold.

Perhaps it's because of his words, "Take back what rightfully belongs to you."

For twenty years, he had never owned anything.

The mountain behind Kaoshan Village is not high, and the two soon arrived at a sparse woodland.

Scattered here are countless grave mounds, all of which are the ancestral graves of various families in the village.

The Wang family's ancestral graves are in the most remote corner, where weeds grow taller than a person.

As soon as Zhang Chen stepped into this area, his pace slowed down.

He didn't rush to find the Wang family's graves, but instead strolled slowly through the cemetery like a general inspecting his territory.

His expression was more solemn than ever before.

"Goodness..."

He circled back and stood in front of Wang Xiaoer, letting out a heartfelt sigh.

"Your ancestor was a ruthless person."

Respect shone in Zhang Chen's eyes.

"I originally thought that 'Ten Generations of Poverty' was just a feng shui arrangement that locked away your family's fortune, but now it seems that I underestimated it."

He pointed to the seemingly chaotic grave mounds around him.

"This isn't just one setup; it's a complex, interconnected scheme!"

Wang Xiaoer looked in the direction he was pointing.

Under the moonlight, he could see nothing about those lonely earthen graves except that they looked even more eerie.

"What do you mean?"

"What I mean is that your ancestor not only foresaw the fate of several generations of descendants, but also the fate of nine generations of descendants who defied fate, even calculating exactly where they would be buried after they died!"

Zhang Chen walked to the nearest grave, where the grass on the grave mound had withered and turned yellow.

"This is your great-grandfather's grave, right? Oh, that's your great-great-grandfather's grave. Look, it's buried in the windward side of the mountain valley, where any good fortune will be blown away by the wind."

He then walked toward another grave that was a little further away.

"That belongs to your grandfather. There's a willow tree growing in front of his grave, which is considered yin and never sees the sun, so his descendants naturally can't hold their heads high."

With each step he took, he pointed out a grave.

"Your great-grandfather's grave faces the outlet of a mountain stream, which is an omen of financial loss."

……

Zhang Chen pointed out all nine of the Wang family's graves here in one breath.

The location of each grave precisely corresponds to a feng shui sign of decay.

What seemed like an unintentional act by the descendants during the burial was interpreted by Zhang Chen as being guided by an invisible hand, ultimately ending up in the worst possible position.

Wang Xiaoer felt a chill run down his spine upon hearing this.

He realized for the first time that there were so many secrets about his family's ancestral graves.

Zhang Chen finally walked to the two new graves in the far corner.

This is the grave of his father and uncle.

"Up to your uncle's grave, this should be the ninth one."

Zhang Chen's tone became incredibly excited.

"Nine is the ultimate number. These nine dilapidated graves, seemingly fighting independently, are actually interconnected, firmly pinning all possible fortune of your family to this desolate land!"

He suddenly spread his arms wide, as if measuring the world around him.

"The Nine Stars Suppress Evil, locking down the nine energy gates of the 'Extinction Formation'!"

After a long while, a glint flashed in Zhang Chen's eyes, and he turned to look at the grave of Wang Xiaoer's father.

"And this tenth grave, your father's grave, is the stroke of genius from the entire Serial Bureau!"

Wang Xiaoer's mind went completely blank.

He stared blankly at his father's grave, feeling as if he were listening to a myth.

"Is my father's grave... any different?"

He spoke with difficulty.

"Starting from your ancestors, there were only one son in eight generations. How come it was only in your uncle's generation that your father was born?"

Instead of answering directly, Zhang Chen asked a question that Wang Xiaoer had never cared about before.

Before Wang Xiaoer could speak, Zhang Chen continued, "Because he is the death gate of the entire game, yet also the only gate of life!"

"Or rather, he's the variable that was created for you!"

He walked to Wang Xiaoer's father's grave and took out a palm-sized compass from his pocket.

The compass needle trembled slightly in the moonlight.

Zhang Chen muttered to himself as his fingers flew across the keyboard, calculating rapidly.

A moment later, he drew a mark with his toe three steps away from the grave.

That location was less than two meters away from the original grave.

"This is it!"

Zhang Chen raised his head, his eyes shining frighteningly.

"The entire 'Ten-Star Dragon Locking Formation' is intricately linked, making it impregnable. Its only weakness lies in your father's grave!"

"Your father was the ninth generation, yet he is the tenth grave. He is the key to connecting the past and the future! His death heralded the end of the suffering of the previous nine generations, and his burial place is the key to unlocking the fortune for you, the tenth generation!"

He pointed to the mark at his feet.

"Just move him here, three feet and three inches!"

"The whole situation has come alive!"

"The Ten Stars Locking the Dragon will instantly reverse into Nine Dragons Chasing the Sun! The immense fortune that was locked away will pour into you like a flood bursting its banks!"

Wang Xiaoer's heart was pounding wildly.

Moving the grave?

In the countryside, this is a huge deal!

Disturbing the rest of one's ancestors is a great act of filial impiety.

He looked at his father's grave, his legs feeling like lead.

Zhang Chen noticed his hesitation.

He stopped talking about those mysterious and profound principles of feng shui.

He simply walked up to Wang Xiaoer, patted him on the shoulder, looked into his eyes, and asked, word by word.

"Wang Xiaoer, do you want to live like a human being?"

"Do you want people in the village to greet you politely instead of avoiding you when they see you in the future?"

"Wouldn't you like to eat meat every day, have a car to ride in, and have endless money in your pocket?"

"Your father, your grandfather, your ancestors for eighteen generations—what was the point of all that suffering and hardship?"

"It's all for you!"

"Now, the key is in your hand. Whether you open the door or not is the choice!"

Every word Zhang Chen uttered was like a heavy hammer, striking Wang Xiaoer's heart.

he thinks.

He dreams of it!

He didn't want to eat spoiled food anymore, didn't want to wear tattered clothes anymore, and didn't want to be called a jinx by people anymore!

A surge of blood energy rushed from the soles of my feet to the top of my head.

"Dry!"

Wang Xiaoer squeezed out a word through gritted teeth, turned around and ran down the mountain. Soon, he found two shovels in his dilapidated house.

night, deeper.

In the mountains and forests, only the chirping of insects and the heavy breathing of the two people could be heard.

"dig!"

Zhang Chen gave the order.

Two shovels were simultaneously driven into the soil in front of Wang Xiaoer's father's grave.

The soil was very wet and heavy.

Every shovel stroke requires the full strength of one's body.

Sweat quickly beaded on Wang Xiaoer's forehead.

He didn't think about anything; he just mechanically dug down, shovel by shovel.

What he was digging up seemed to be more than just a grave.

Instead, it was the mountain called "fate" that had been weighing on him for twenty years!

I don't know how long they dug.

"Thump!"

A muffled thud.

Wang Xiaoer's shovel struck something hard.

It's a coffin.

A cheap coffin made of thin-skinned pine wood.

The two exchanged a glance and quickened their pace.

They cleared away the soil around the coffin, and Zhang Chen jumped into the pit, gesturing for Wang Xiaoer to pull it up from above.

"rise!"

Zhang Chen carried it on his shoulder from below, while Wang Xiaoer gritted his teeth and pulled it up with all his might from above.

The two men worked together to lift the simple coffin out of the grave, bit by bit.

The moonlight shone on the dark coffin.

Looking at the coffin, Wang Xiaoer felt a mix of emotions.

Lying inside is his closest relative in the world.

"Dad, your son is unfilial."

He knelt on the ground, facing the coffin, and kowtowed three times earnestly.

"When our son makes something of himself, we'll definitely get you a new tomb made of Phoebe zhennan wood, and build you the most magnificent tomb for miles around!"

Zhang Chen watched quietly from the side, without urging him.

After Wang Xiaoer finished kowtowing, he pointed to the newly drawn spot next to him.

"Come on, the final step."

The two of them worked together again to lift the coffin and carefully move it to its new location.

step.

Two steps.

Three steps.

Just as the front of the coffin crossed the line drawn by Zhang Chen.

Wang Xiaoer's body jolted violently.

He felt something indescribable being drawn out of his body.

It was a heavy, gloomy, and sticky feeling.

It was like an invisible shackle, binding his limbs and imprisoning his soul from the moment he was born.

For twenty years, he had grown accustomed to the existence of these shackles.

And right at this moment.

"Snap!"

A faint, almost inaudible crackling sound seemed to resonate deep within his soul.

That shackle has been broken.

An unprecedented feeling of relaxation instantly spread throughout my body!

He felt as if his body was so light it was about to float away.

The world before my eyes seems to have become clearer and brighter than before.

The mountain night breeze on my face was no longer cold and damp, but rather a refreshing and invigorating feeling.

at the same time.

In Kyoto, a thousand miles away, there is a luxurious villa nestled against the mountains and by the water.

The study was filled with the gentle fragrance of sandalwood incense.

An elderly man dressed in Tang suit, with white hair and a youthful face, was sitting cross-legged on a futon, closing his eyes to rest.

On the table in front of him was an exquisite purple clay compass.

The compass needle was quietly pointing northeast.

The moment the shackles on Wang Xiaoer's body broke.

Without warning, the pointer began to tremble violently!

It's buzzing!

It was as if some invisible force was pulling it frantically.

The old man suddenly opened his eyes.

His eyes were no longer calm and still, but filled with extreme shock and disbelief.

He stared intently at the wildly spinning pointer, his lips trembling.

"This...how is this possible?"

The pointer eventually stopped.

It no longer points northeast, but rather, at a strange angle, it points directly south.

The old man suddenly stood up, rushed to the window, pushed it open, and looked at the southern night sky with surprise and uncertainty.

That direction leads directly to the location of Kaoshan Village.