Since all these rules and superstitions are outdated, what's wrong with me indulging in some me

Emily scoffed softly, leaned against the wall, and mumbled:

"Anfeiyu and I went to the north, where there is a shrine."

"An ancestral hall?" Lu Changsheng's spirits lifted. "What's inside?"

An Zhiyu and Emily exchanged a glance. Emily continued, her tone filled with obvious confusion and a hint of unease:

"The gate wasn't locked, so we went straight in. Inside... it was empty."

"All empty?" Cheng Caijun asked, puzzled. "Wasn't it supposed to be an ancestral hall? There are no memorial tablets? No offering table?"

“There’s an altar, a very large one, lacquered black, placed at the very back.” Emily glanced at him, shrugged her left shoulder, and described, “But there’s not a single memorial tablet on the altar.”

Ancestral hall without ancestral tablets? That's unheard of!

The purpose of an ancestral hall is to enshrine the tablets of ancestors or deities. Without tablets, is it still an ancestral hall?

"We went to the cemetery to the south."

Lu Changsheng spoke, drawing everyone's attention.

He briefly described the dilapidated state of the tombs and the striking patterns he discovered.

"...All the identifiable Chen family tombs have a death interval of about eighty years. The most recent one is that of Chen Shouzhou, who died eighty years ago. And the current village chief is named Chen Shan."

"Eighty years... only one person is buried per generation?"

Yamamoto Ichiro gasped.

"What about the others? How has this family continued to exist?"

"have no idea."

Lu Changsheng shook his head. He had a strange feeling that the cemetery and the ancestral hall were concealing a huge secret in the village.

"And what about you?"

Emily turned her gaze to Yamamoto Ichiro and Park Bo-soo.

Yamamoto Ichiro spoke hesitantly, but still spoke first.

"We went to the west, near the ancient locust tree, and there was a courtyard that was different from the other houses. The walls were higher, and there were dried herbs and tattered banners hanging at the entrance, like... the place where a shaman or sorceress lived."

"A shaman?"

Lu Changsheng's gaze sharpened.

"Yes," Park Bo-soo continued, his face still showing lingering fear, "We didn't dare go in directly, we just looked around from the outside. The gate was tightly closed, and no one answered when we called out a few times. But...we felt very uncomfortable. So we left quickly."

"No one is responding from inside?"

Kevin confirmed.

"no."

Yamamoto Ichiro shook his head firmly.

"It was eerily quiet there, but it felt like someone must have lived there; there were still many traces of life."

Lu Changsheng frowned. In such ancient feudal villages, shamans were an extremely mysterious entity, often associated with sacrifices, spiritual communication, divination, and even certain taboo rituals.

Moreover, this instance is called "Destiny".

Whether it was the blind man Chen "determining fate" at the beginning, or the shaman who might know more secrets of "fate", both added a heavy and eerie color to the word "destiny".

"We also found incense ash at the entrance of the yard, as well as some half-burnt incense sticks that had fallen to the ground."

Yamamoto Ichiro took out a small cloth bag from his pocket, opened it, and found a little incense ash and a few half-burnt incense sticks inside.

Lu Changsheng took it, smelled it, and found it to be ordinary incense ash, but it seemed to have some other special smell mixed in.

Several people smelled the incense ash, but none of them found anything.

"Then on our way back, we saw him."

Yamamoto Ichiro pointed to the burly black man on the bed.

A brief silence filled the room.

As the fragments of intelligence were pieced together, the resulting picture became even more unsettling.

"The information is too scattered," Kevin broke the silence, his voice carrying his usual calm analysis, but his brow was furrowed. "We need to prioritize. Right now, the two most urgent things are: Mark's poison and Leo's life."

He looked at An Zhiyu, "Miss An, your technique in treating the wound was very professional. Do you have any further insights into this poison?"

An Zhiyu's gaze fell on the bandage on Mark's arm, where the bluish-black color was still slowly but steadily spreading outwards.

"The toxin is active. If the system's antidotes don't work, we'll have to find a targeted antidote. The longer we wait, the harder it will be to eliminate. It's better to cut the Gordian knot quickly..."

She didn't finish her sentence, but her meaning was clear.

Although the damage taken in the dungeon will be fully restored the moment you return to reality.

But Kevin still had his own considerations. He glanced at the bluish-black lines on Mark's arm, a fleeting look of worry in his eyes, and quickly estimated the speed at which the toxin was spreading.

"Okay, if we don't find a good solution today, I'll amputate his right arm immediately."

Although returning to reality will allow the injuries to heal, losing an arm will inevitably affect the chances of survival.

"You don't need to worry."

Lu Changsheng suddenly said in a deep voice.

"Don't forget Chen the blind man's commentary—'A newborn calf, escaping from the jaws of a tiger.'"

Lu Changsheng repeated Chen Xiazi's comments on Mark.

"These eight words may sound ominous, but the key is 'the rest of my life'."

Kevin looked sharply at Lu Changsheng:

"You mean, betting based on vague and unsubstantiated predictions?"

"It's not gambling."

Lu Changsheng shook his head. "The commentary must be an extremely crucial clue. It is very likely to reveal the type of risks he may face in this instance and the tendency of the final outcome. Of course, it does not mean that you should give up, but just that you should not be too anxious."

"Are you also Chinese?"

Kevin looked at Lu Changsheng with a wary look in his eyes, but no hostility. He hadn't forgotten how Lu Changsheng had easily saved Mark with his runes.

"Yes."

Lu Changsheng did not avoid the question and nodded.

"Are you a wizard from the East?"

Lu Changsheng twitched his lips. He was too lazy to explain what an Eastern wizard was, and simply said:

"Yes."

Lu Changsheng readily admitted, his gaze briefly meeting Kevin's, a hint of sharpness lurking beneath his composure, "Therefore, I understand even more clearly that sometimes these things cannot be fully trusted, but sometimes, one has no choice but to believe them. Especially in this instance called 'Destiny'."

An Zhiyu nodded and stepped forward to testify for Lu Changsheng.

"I've heard about Lu's... short-lived ability," An Zhiyu said without batting an eye when she mentioned Lu Changsheng's alias. "If you want to try it, why don't we go to the village chief's house before it gets dark?"

Rule 3: If you encounter any problems, you can communicate with the village chief.

This proposal is perfectly reasonable.

Kevin thought for a moment and nodded in agreement:

"Yes, but we must be careful. There may be more rules than just those on the surface. Although the village chief said that 'communication' is possible, the outcome of the communication may not be amicable."

Lu Changsheng nodded, but after a moment's thought, he decided to reveal that detail:

"Before I left the cemetery, I thought I caught a glimpse of a white shadow, moving very fast. I cast a talisman, but the talisman and the white shadow vanished together, leaving no trace."