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

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Just then, the sound of a car came from outside!

Li Mu then went downstairs and arrived at the door!

Shen Xiao, wearing a dark coat, got out of a black car, carrying a briefcase.

"Sorry, the traffic was terrible." Shen Xiao walked over quickly, his face apologetic.

Li Mu didn't say anything, but stepped aside to let him in.

The two went upstairs and into the study.

Shen Xiao paused for a moment when he saw the huge array diagram on the ground.

"What is this?"

"The Spirit Crossing Array," Li Mu said, "is used to dispel the resentment of the dead souls on the bronze tree."

Shen Xiao squatted down at the edge of the array diagram, carefully examining the complex patterns and runes.

"My great-grandfather mentioned this formation in his notes," he said, "but he didn't record the specific way to draw it."

"Did you bring your great-grandfather's notes?"

Shen Xiao stood up, took out the old cloth bag from his briefcase, and handed it to Li Mu.

Li Mu took the cloth bag, opened it, and took out the yellowed handwritten book.

Instead of turning to the earlier pages, he went straight to the last few pages—the parts he hadn't looked at carefully.

On the third-to-last page of the manuscript, there was a folded piece of paper.

Li Mu unfolded the paper.

It is a map.

The paper was yellowed and brittle, with some broken edges, but the lines and markings on it were still legible.

The map depicts a mountainous area, labeled "East Mountain." In the center of the mountain range, a circle is drawn, inside which is written a single character:

"source".

In the bottom right corner of the map, there is a line of small text:

"The Zhou Clan Ancestral Hall is located atop Dongshan Mountain. It is the source of evil artifacts and the core of all souls."

Li Mu stared at the line of small print for a few seconds, then handed the map to Shen Xiao.

Shen Xiao took the map, and his expression changed.

"Is the Zhou family ancestral hall in Dongshan? Which Dongshan in Dongshan Village?"

"Yes," Li Mu said. "Your great-grandfather discovered this place 120 years ago."

"But why didn't he go?"

Li Mu did not speak, but continued to flip through the handwritten copy.

The second to last page contains a passage of text:

"In the autumn of the thirty-second year of the Guangxu reign, I went to Dongshan with Zhao, the head of the City God Bureau, intending to break down the Zhou family ancestral temple. When we reached the mountainside, we encountered Zhou Yan. We fought with magic for half a day without a clear winner. Zhou Yan fled into the ancestral temple, and I chased after him. When we arrived at the temple, we found the stone gate tightly closed, with the four characters 'Zhou Family Ancestral Temple' written on it. I tried to break the gate with talismans, but to no avail. Zhao said that this gate could not be broken by human power and that only the 'Celestial Master's Seal' could open it."

"I asked what the Celestial Master's Seal was. Master Zhao said that the Celestial Master's Seal was passed down by Zhang Tianshi of Longhu Mountain, and it could suppress all evil and open all doors. However, the Celestial Master's Seal was lost in the war of the previous dynasty and its whereabouts are unknown."

"After I returned, I was seriously injured and bedridden. Before my death, I wrote this note, hoping that future generations would continue to investigate this case. If the Celestial Master's Seal is obtained, the gate of the Zhou family ancestral hall can be broken and the source of the evil artifact destroyed."

After reading this passage, Li Mu remained silent for a long time.

Celestial Master's Seal.

The seal passed down by Zhang Tianshi of Longhu Mountain.

It can suppress all evil spirits and open all doors.

It can break down the gate of the Zhou family ancestral hall.

He showed this text to Shen Xiao.

After reading it, Shen Xiao looked up at Li Mu.

"The Celestial Master's Seal," Shen Xiao said, "I feel like I've seen it somewhere before."

Li Mu's heart skipped a beat.

"Where?"

Shen Xiao frowned and thought for a long time before taking out his phone from his briefcase and flipping through his photo album.

"Last year, I went to a collector's house to look at some things. He showed me one of his collections—a jade seal, about this size." Shen Xiao gestured with his hand, indicating it was about the size of a fist. "He said it was from the Ming Dynasty and quite valuable. I didn't pay much attention to it at the time, but I thought the runes on the jade seal were very special, so I took a picture of it."

He scrolled through his phone for a while, then turned the screen towards Li Mu.

"This is it."

The photo shows a bluish-white jade seal with a coiled dragon carved on the knob and densely packed runes covering the surface. The seal is facing down, so the characters are not visible.

"This is the Celestial Master's Seal," Li Mu said, his tone without any hesitation.

Shen Xiao looked at him, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

Are you sure?

"Confirmed." Li Mu handed the phone back to Shen Xiao. "Where is this mark now?"

"It's in the hands of that collector. His surname is Gu, his name is Gu Yunshen, he's from Tianhai, and he works in finance. His family has a large collection of antiques, and this seal is one of his most prized possessions."

"Is it possible to contact him?"

Shen Xiao thought for a moment and nodded.

"Sure. I'm not that close to him, but we've crossed paths a few times. I'll arrange it for you."

"The sooner the better."

Shen Xiao picked up his phone, found Gu Yun Shen's number, and dialed it.

The phone rang a few times before being answered.

"Mr. Gu, this is Shen Xiao. Long time no see... Yes, there's something I'd like to ask you for help with... Do you still have that jade seal at home?... It's good that it's still there... I'd like to take a friend to see it... Yes, in the next couple of days... Okay, thank you, Mr. Gu. I'll contact you again when I've set a time."

After hanging up the phone, Shen Xiao looked at Li Mu.

"Gu Yunshen said you can go anytime. When are you planning to go?"

"The sooner the better. Tomorrow would be best."

"Okay, I'll arrange to meet him tomorrow morning."

Li Mu nodded, closed Shen Xiao's great-grandfather's notebook, put it back in the cloth bag, and returned it to Shen Xiao.

"Let's not deal with this tree today," Li Mu said. "Let's get the Celestial Master's Seal first, then we'll deal with this tree."

"Why?" Shen Xiao asked.

"Because I suspect that there is some connection between this small bronze tree and the large bronze tree in the Zhou family ancestral hall in Dongshan." Li Mu looked at the dark green tree on the table. "If I forcibly break the formation and transfer the spirit, it may disturb Zhou Lingsu. With the Celestial Master's Seal, we can go directly to Dongshan and solve the problem at its source."

Shen Xiao was silent for a moment, then nodded.

That makes sense.

Li Mu squatted down and covered the spirit-transferring array on the ground with a large cloth, and added another spirit-sealing talisman to the door of the study.

"Let's go, let's get out of here first."

The two went downstairs and left the villa.

Li Mu locked the door and turned to look at Shen Xiao.

"You've made plans to meet Gu Yun Shen tomorrow morning. I'll go with you."

"it is good."

Shen Xiao drove away.

Li Mu stood at the villa entrance, watching the black sedan disappear at the end of the street, then took out his phone and dialed a number.

"Manager Zhao? I have a question for you."

"Speak," came the aged voice of Manager Zhao from the other end of the phone.

"Have you ever heard of the Celestial Master's Seal?"

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone.

"How did you learn about the Celestial Master's Seal?"

"It was written in Shen Xiao's great-grandfather's notes. Back then, you—or rather, the former head of the Zhao family—went with Shen Heming to the Zhou family ancestral hall in Dongshan. Shen Heming asked you how to break down the door, and you said you needed the Heavenly Master's Seal."

Zhao, the person in charge, remained silent for a while.

"What else did you see in that notebook?"

"I saw the map, the location of the Zhou family ancestral hall, and the words Shen Heming wrote before his death."

Manager Zhao sighed.

"The City God forbade me to talk about that period of history. But since you've already seen the notes, I'll tell you a few things."

"Please speak."

"One hundred and twenty years ago, the Master Zhao who went to Dongshan with me was my master. After he returned, he was more seriously injured than Shen Heming, and he passed away in less than three years. Before he left, he told the City God that the door of the Zhou Clan Ancestral Hall was not an ordinary stone door, but a 'ghost door' made with evil magic, which could not be opened by ordinary means. Only the Celestial Master's Seal, or the real Celestial Master, could break the door."

Zhao's voice became somewhat hoarse.

"The Celestial Master's Seal disappeared during the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. Some say it was taken overseas, some say it was destroyed in war, and some say it was secretly collected by a collector."

"I've found some clues," Li Mu said.

There was a sound of something falling to the ground on the other end of the phone, followed by Zhao's rapid breathing.

"What did you say?"

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