Chapter 64: Explanation

"Is it really that serious?" Uncle Yong asked.

"It's not a matter of how serious the situation is, but rather that you've taken a liking to this kid, and I cannot afford to take any risks. There's no need to alarm everyone; burning a single stick of incense will suffice," Seventh Uncle said.

Uncle Yong said nothing more and walked around the small courtyard straight to the main hall of the ancestral temple. By this point, the atmosphere had made me quite tense. Before meeting Senior Liu Qingshan, I was merely a metaphysics enthusiast, but after encountering him, his book taught me that many things were just worldly tricks. Yet now, this blurring of the true and the false left my mind in a haze.

They did not let me enter the temple. Once the doors were opened, I stood outside, able only to catch glimpses of the solemn and imposing interior. After about ten minutes, the two of them emerged from the hall. Seventh Uncle was holding a blue-and-white porcelain teacup. He dipped his fingers in the water, flicked it three times around my body, and then said, "A-Cheng, kneel and receive the tea."

Though I had no prior experience with this, I knew some of the rules regarding spirit-summoning tea from my readings. I immediately knelt, raised my hands above my head, took the teacup, and drank it down in one gulp. I didn't even look at what kind of water it was, nor did I taste it; combined, these two men were over a hundred years old and wouldn't play tricks on me, let alone poison me.

After drinking the tea, I felt absolutely nothing. With no sensation, there naturally wouldn't be any reaction. I was terrified that Seventh Uncle would suddenly ask, "A-Cheng, do you feel any unclean entity leaving your body?"

How would I even answer that?

Would I end up in a predicament akin to *The Emperor's New Clothes*?

About two minutes passed, and my knees were growing somewhat numb when I suddenly saw Seventh Uncle open his mouth and retch violently, spewing out a pool of black water!

It was as dark as ink and reeked foully!

I hurriedly stood up to steady him, but Seventh Uncle waved his hand and said, "It's nothing. That young man from the Blind Sect wasn't lying; this thing is extremely malicious and quite troublesome. It was somewhat reluctant to let me handle it. A-Cheng, did you feel anything at all?"

I shook my head blankly and replied, "No, nothing at all."

Seventh Uncle wiped the corner of his mouth and smiled. "This is truly interesting. Are you still a virgin?"

"Ah? Yes..." I scratched my head, feeling rather embarrassed.

Seventh Uncle nodded. "You only felt nothing because you are protected by pure yang energy; otherwise, at the very least, you'd be feeling a bit chilly right now. A-Cheng, your physiognomy carries a seven-tenths concentration of the Three Flowers Gathering at the Top. According to certain esoteric doctrines, you are a vessel with exceptionally rare aptitude and comprehension. In the past, if an old Daoist priest had laid eyes on you, he probably would have begged you to become his disciple. However, apart from that seven-tenths Three Flowers Gathering at the Top, there are three-tenths of other elements that I cannot fathom. Would it be convenient for you to tell Seventh Uncle your date and time of birth?"

I had heard the phrase "Three Flowers Gathering at the Top" far too many times.

This was the first time I had ever heard an actual explanation of this physiognomy, though.

My aptitude was exceptional, and I was a prodigy born for cultivation?

I was actually destined to be a natural-born Daoist?

This dashed my hopes somewhat, dampening the expectations I had always pinned on this particular physiognomy reading.

I had zero interest in spiritual cultivation; what I loved was making money!

Though that was what I thought, facing Seventh Uncle's inquiry, it was difficult to refuse outright, and I opened my mouth, ready to recite my birth data.

To my surprise, Uncle Yong directly reached out to stop me. He then turned to Seventh Uncle and said, "Old Qi, I know you've developed a bit of a fondness for talented youth. When I brought A-Cheng over tonight to introduce him to you, I did have the idea of letting him spend more time with you in the future. But don't forget, I already warned you that the person who guided him onto this path is no simple character. If you reach out too far and are suspected of having ulterior motives, I'm afraid it won't be appropriate."

Seventh Uncle instantly snapped to his senses. He nodded and said, "Fifth Brother is right. I almost forgot about that. What a pity. If I had met A-Cheng earlier, I certainly wouldn't have been stingy about teaching him these meager skills of mine. As for his guide—since things have reached this point, the only person in the jianghu who could make Fifth Brother you hold such respect is none other than the Divine Tone. Am I right?"

Uncle Yong cast him a sidelong glance. "This round you won't be winning with much grace, but I'm a man who honors a bet. Tomorrow, have your boy prepare the documents and send them over to my place."

"Then let me thank his Fifth Uncle on behalf of my Guisheng," Seventh Uncle smiled.

With that, Seventh Uncle patted my shoulder and said, "Don't you worry about this matter. Since you can suppress it, it can't harm you. Over the next couple of days, come over to my house with Fifth Brother for a cup of tea; consider it getting familiar with the place. If there's anything you don't understand in the future, you can come ask me. Strictly speaking, this approval came about largely because of you, so I'll have my Guisheng properly thank you."

At that moment, I felt as though my network of connections had suddenly blasted wide open.

It felt akin to spiritual cultivation, where the Governor and Conception meridians are suddenly unblocked all at once.

I instinctively touched my face, thinking to myself that I was actually making a living off my looks now. Were it not for this so-called Three Flowers Gathering at the Top, I would probably still be stuck working as a security guard, full of unfulfilled ambition and nowhere to vent it.

Before I could speak, Uncle Yong gave him a disdainful look and said, "Save it. Letting him hang out with someone like Guisheng too early will mostly just ruin him. When the right time comes, they naturally will find their own way to run in the same circles. That martial artist from Cangzhou was also someone this kid made friends with over the span of half a month. To say he bought that friendship with three hundred thousand feels a bit vulgar; it's more accurate to say money paves the way, while genuine emotion connects with the divine. Who would have guessed, as we wander around this village every day, that a security guard who acts like a chronic drunkard would have such a background?"

Seventh Uncle chuckled. "Not surprising. A-Cheng carries great fortune upon him. Let's go and see whether the Xingyi style—transforming the spear into fists—is fiercer, or if your old blade is sharper. Courtesy demands reciprocity, so I'll place a wager as well: as long as that kid doesn't lose too miserably tonight, if his daughter's illness can't be cured this time around, I will personally take the girl up the mountain to beg a favor from a certain someone!"

I stood there instantly dumbfounded and blurted out, "Seventh Uncle... how do you know about Da-hai... did you calculate it?"

"It's written in his brow palace; this hurdle won't be very easy for him to clear," Seventh Uncle smiled.

"A-Cheng, kowtow to your Seventh Uncle and express your thanks," Uncle Yong suddenly said in a stern voice.

I dropped to my knees with a thud and said, "Thank you, Seventh Uncle!"

Seventh Uncle helped me up and said, "Are you trying to kill me? Don't make you kowtow to Seventh Uncle until my eyes bleed. Even the Thousand-Hand Buddha's Eye couldn't withstand that, and these old bones of mine can't handle such torment. Let's go. It's been ten years—I haven't watched Fifth Brother fight anyone in ten years. Fifth Brother, if I remember correctly, the last time you fought someone was that fellow surnamed Xie in the capital ten years ago, wasn't it?"

Uncle Yong waved his hand dismissively. "Don't bring that up. That fellow surnamed Xie was hardly any better than this guy named Wu Dahai!"

With that, Uncle Yong walked on ahead, followed closely by Seventh Uncle. I silently trailed behind the two elders, digesting all the information from tonight.