People worship their ancestors: I'm just burning some paper money, how did I become a Taoist ma

"That night, I had a dream." Liu Laogen's voice was very low, as if he were talking about some shameful secret. "I dreamt of a pitch-black place, full of fog. There were many people standing in the fog, men and women, old and young, all looking at me without saying a word. I woke up in fright and didn't dare to sleep again all night."

Li Mu's heart skipped a beat.

"And then?"

"Later I sold that thing to that antique dealer. After that, I never had that dream again." Liu Laogen took another puff of his cigarette and exhaled a long breath.

"Could you take me to see the place where you dug that thing up?"

Liu Laogen hesitated for a moment, then stood up.

"Let's go. It's not far anyway."

The back mountain is not far from the village; it's a 20-minute walk.

Liu Laogen's contracted land is located halfway up the mountain. It is a small terraced field, next to a dense grove of mixed trees.

"It's right here." Liu Laogen stood on the edge of the field, pointing to a spot slightly east of the center of the field. "It was dug out right there. I dug a hole, about this deep."

He gestured with his hand, indicating it was about forty centimeters.

Li Mu walked to that spot, squatted down, and touched the soil on the ground with his hand.

The soil was loose and different from the surrounding soil, indicating that it had been disturbed.

He took out three incense sticks from his bag, lit them, and stuck them in the ground.

The smoke from the three incense sticks neither rose nor sank, but swirled in place, as if hesitating about where to go.

Li Mu frowned.

This is "bewitching incense," indicating that the atmosphere in this place is chaotic, a mixture of yin and yang, and unpredictable.

He took out a spirit-detecting talisman from his bag, folded it into a paper figure, placed it on the ground, and then gently touched it with a peach wood twig.

The paper figure seemed to come alive, slowly moving towards the grove of trees by the field.

"What's that place over there?" Li Mu asked, pointing to the thicket of trees.

Liu Laogen looked in the direction he was pointing, and his expression turned rather unpleasant.

"That grove is called Mass Burial Gully. Long ago, people from the village were buried there when they died. Later, they stopped allowing burials, so it became deserted. Now nobody goes there; it's eerie."

Li Mu stood up.

"Uncle Liu, you go back first. I'll go take a look."

"Don't go there, that place is dirty." Liu Laogen's voice changed. "A few years ago, a shepherd went in there, and he went crazy after he came out. He's still not better."

"It's okay, I'm not afraid."

Liu Laogen opened his mouth, but seeing Li Mu's resolute attitude, he ultimately didn't try to persuade him any further. He sighed, turned around, and walked back into the village.

Li Mu crossed the field ridges and entered the grove of mixed trees.

The trees were so dense that sunlight could barely penetrate, and the ground was covered with a thick layer of fallen leaves that felt soft and spongy underfoot, like walking on cotton.

The deeper you go, the heavier the yin energy becomes.

Li Mu took out a golden light talisman from his bag, stuck it to his chest, and recited the golden light mantra.

A thin layer of golden light covered his body, keeping the biting cold out.

After walking for about ten minutes, a clearing appeared ahead. The clearing was overgrown with weeds, which were taller than a person.

In the center of the open space was a large rock, its surface covered with moss, but you could vaguely see something carved on it.

Li Mu pushed aside the weeds and walked over, squatted down, and used his peach wood sword to scrape off the moss from the surface of the stone.

The carvings on the stone were revealed.

It is a rune.

The runes he saw on the wall of Qingxi Ancient Town, in the jar of Lao Jun Temple, and on the bronze tree were the same.

But this rune was larger and more complex than any of the ones we had seen before.

Li Mu took a few photos with his phone, then walked around the stone.

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On the back of the stone, three lines of small characters are engraved.

The handwriting is very blurry, but it is still legible.

"...The Zhou family of Tianhai...in the 30th year of the Guangxu Emperor's reign...to govern..."

The last few words are completely illegible.

Li Mu stood in front of that stone and remained silent for a long time.

The 30th year of the Guangxu Emperor's reign. 1904.

More than 120 years ago.

According to Chief Zhao, the case file of the Tianhai City God Bureau from 120 years ago records a major case involving the Bronze Soul Bell Tree—which perfectly matches the time recorded on this stone.

The Zhou family.

Manager Zhao said that the person who raised the ghost was named Zhou Yan, a member of the Zhou family of Tianhai.

The words on the stone read "Tianhai Zhou Clan".

Li Mu took a deep breath, put his phone away, took out a small bronze mirror from his bag, and aimed it at the stone.

The image reflected in the bronze mirror made his pupils shrink sharply.

Countless dark red lines were wrapped around the stone, densely packed like a spider web, covering the entire surface of the stone, then extending outwards and spreading in all directions before disappearing into the depths of the forest.

The lines follow the same direction as the lines on the bronze tree.

The bronze tree is the core, and this stone is the source.

The souls on the bronze tree were taken away from here.

Li Mu put away the bronze mirror, set up a simple Bagua formation around the stone, and then planted three soul-suppressing flags in the center of the formation.

Then he took out yellow paper and a brush from his bag and wrote a letter.

The petition was simple: "Respectfully submitted by the City God of Tianhai, the source of an evil artifact has been discovered in Dongshan. Please send underworld officials to guard it and prevent the souls of the dead from scattering."

Li Mu stood in front of the stone, took one last look at the rune, and then turned and walked out of the thicket.

Once out of the woods, the sunlight shone on him again, and he realized that the back of his clothes was soaked with sweat.

……

It was already evening when we got back to the city.

Li Mu didn't go home; he went directly to Shen Yi's villa.

The bronze tree is still in the study, the seven small flags are intact, and the cinnabar on the Tai Chi diagram is still bright red.

everything is normal.

He checked the talisman pasted on the door again; it was intact and the golden light was still there.

Li Mu went downstairs, sat on the sofa in the living room, and took out his phone to browse through it.

Zheng Hongyuan sent a message!

"We've found the list of attendees at the Chamber of Commerce gathering. It's the Dongcheng District Chamber of Commerce. The organizer of that ancient town inspection trip last October was named Sun Zhiming. Keep an eye on him."

The photo attached was of a man in his fifties with a square face and thick eyebrows; he looked quite ordinary.

In addition, there is a brief document about Sun Zhiming!

Sun Zhiming, male, 52 years old, a native of Dongcheng District, Tianhai City, is the vice president of the Dongcheng District Chamber of Commerce and the chairman of Tianhai Zhiyuan Group. His business scope covers multiple fields such as real estate, building materials, and logistics.

Sun Zhiming has a strong interest in antiques and is also a member of the Dongcheng District Collectors Association.

Billions

His wife died early, and he has a son and a daughter, both of whom are studying abroad.

Li Mu looked at Sun Zhiming's photo on his phone screen, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrest.

Vice President of the Dongcheng District Chamber of Commerce. Antique collector. Net worth in the billions.

The man's profile somewhat matched his previous guesses about the "mastermind"—he was rich, powerful, had access to wealthy families, and had a hobby of collecting antiques that allowed him to both conceal his identity and access the objects.