Xuan Ya gave a slight nod and fell silent, her gaze returning to the shimmering surface of the sea.
“Since there’s no serious trouble, you two may go to the tidal flats to catch some fish, shrimp, crabs, and shells to prepare for our evening gathering.”
“Understood, Master!” Gantang responded as if granted a great pardon, bouncing excitedly toward the edge of the surf.
“Disciple obeys.” Lu Qiancha also bowed in acknowledgment, but inwardly let out a long breath of relief.
The two quickly dispersed.
Lu Qiancha strolled to the waterline, her deep blue eyes flickering with spiritual light. Her spiritual awareness flowed like mercury, quietly sweeping over the soft sand.
Soon, several green-shelled flower crabs stranded by the tide, frantically clawing at the sand, along with a few exquisitely patterned sea conches, were locked into her sight.
She bent down and reached out; her clawed palm had just touched the icy texture of a shell—
An extremely elusive sound, as if an echo from the deep sea, like the burst of a water bubble, suddenly trembled beside her ear. “Hmm?”
Lu Qiancha froze mid-motion. Underneath her disguise, her deep blue pupils contracted instantly to pinpoints.
Her surging spiritual awareness rippled invisibly, sweeping out fiercely in all directions.
Where it passed, birds scattered, insects hid, and the sea breeze stirred the fine sand into soft whispers…
Not a trace of abnormal aura or fluctuation was detected.
“Could it be an auditory hallucination?”
She frowned deeply, suspicion rising, lightly shaking her head, though the small wolf ears beneath her disguise remained sharply alert.
Then Lu Qiancha casually picked up another shell.
“Please come to the midd..…”
That voice rang out again, even closer and clearer than before!
It was as if the speaker stood right beside her, the words pouring into her ears like fine sand.
“?!”
Lu Qiancha snapped upright, her gaze sharp as a hawk’s, sweeping the surroundings—but still, there was nothing.
Only the sound of waves washing the shore and the faint laughter of Gantang catching crabs in the distance.
Her heartbeat quickened slightly as she stared at the sea conch in her hand, a strange sensation crawling up her spine.
Tentatively, she bent to pick up another shell—
“Please, noble one, come to the woods for a talk.”
This time, the words were coherent and clear, as if whispered directly into her ear, carrying a hint of aged but peaceful respect.
“Who?!”
Lu Qiancha shouted sharply, her voice like thunder cracking across the tranquil beach. She instinctively clenched the shell tightly.
Her piercing gaze immediately locked onto the direction the voice had indicated—the dark green thicket separating the beach from the forest.
Nearby, Xuan Ya, who was focused on prying crabs from the rocks, abruptly looked up at the sound.
His figure blurred as he strode swiftly over, wind trailing behind him, settling beside Lu Qiancha.
His jade-handled duster sword angled protectively before him, his cold gaze scanning the surroundings. “Qiancha! Why the alarm?”
“Master!” Lu Qiancha took a deep breath, striving to calm the tremor in her voice. “Did you just hear a voice?”
“A voice?”
Xuan Ya’s eyes flickered with surprise. He concentrated for a moment, but all around was only the wind and the tide.
“Where would a voice come from? Could someone be secretly transmitting words to you through mystical means?”
Lu Qiancha was silent for a moment, then slowly shook her head. “No, perhaps I just misheard.”
Xuan Ya studied her pale face and tightly furrowed brows, the last hint of doubt in his eyes shifting to concern.
“Enough. Your complexion is truly poor. Since the water and earth energies conflict, you should not exert yourself mentally. Return to your tent at once and rest. Do not force yourself.”
“Disciple takes leave.” Lu Qiancha bowed her head and responded before turning and walking away.
However, once her figure was fully hidden within the tent shadows, Lu Qiancha’s pace abruptly changed.
She moved with sudden speed, a gust of wind at her feet, dashing swiftly toward the dense, verdant forest across the shore.
Avoiding the tangled vines and stepping over thick layers of pine needles and humus,
Amid the crisp scent of wood and foliage, a faint yet unmistakable fragrance of incense mingled.
Less than half a li ahead, an ancient, modest temple suddenly appeared before Lu Qiancha.
The temple was small, no taller than two zhang, roughly five or six paces wide, built entirely from a bluish-gray stone, perfectly fitted as a whole.
Its roof was covered with heavy, deep red glazed tiles, and two equally red lacquered doors, faded and mottled, stood wide open.
In front of the temple’s stone steps, several small blue-black Stone Crabs sat like guards on either side, and when they saw Lu Qiancha, they did not scatter.
Inside the hall stood a blue earth altar, topped with a statue of a god in yellow robes. A wisp of incense smoke drifted before the altar.
Lu Qiancha stopped about three zhang before the temple. The statue flickered with a gleam, then suddenly, an elderly man wearing yellow robes and holding a crooked wooden staff appeared.
“小石海土地, Xiaoshi Weng pays respects to the Mountain God of Taoyuan Village.”
The old man bowed slightly to Lu Qiancha, his voice aged but robust—the same voice that had called to her from the sea.
Hearing his use of her full title, Lu Qiancha was unsurprised. After all, true gods carried Divine Badges, and she could sense his identity. Her badge was the Mountain God Order, and his was the Land God Order.
“Your reverence honors me.” Lu Qiancha’s clear eyes returned the bow with neither servility nor arrogance. “May I ask why Your Reverence summons me here with sea shells as a guide?”
“Heh heh,” Xiaoshi Weng stroked his white beard, his smile warm. “Today, an auspicious bird sang on the temple’s eaves—a good omen indeed.”
“The old man here calculated with his fingers and found it was a blessing from a fellow god visiting this place. In joyful courtesy, I took the liberty of inviting you.”
“One is to extend the hospitality of a host, the other to celebrate the meeting of colleagues. Mountain God, I hope you will pardon my boldness.”
“How could I dare refuse? To witness Your Reverence’s temple is my fortune as well.”
Lu Qiancha’s eyes flickered slightly, a smile on her face but her heart quietly cautious as she began to quietly cultivate her spiritual power.
After speaking, she glanced around and fixed her gaze on the incense smoke before the Land God statue, asking with some confusion, “This place is remote and nearly uninhabited. May I ask why the temple’s incense is so abundant, the smoke so persistent?”
“Oh,”
Xiaoshi Weng’s face showed genuine surprise. “The Mountain God is not aware of the method of Enlightenment and Raising a God?”
“Your humble servant knows little. What is this method of Enlightenment and Raising a God? I beg Your Reverence to enlighten me.”
Curious, Lu Qiancha asked.
“Heh heh heh, this method has existed since ancient times,”
Xiaoshi Weng twirled his long beard, his smile growing brighter. His wooden staff glimmered faintly.
“Enlightenment is to use spiritual energy as a guide, awakening the latent wisdom roots of a naive life; Raising a God is to use incense as a foundation, enabling it to gain clarity and understanding, and offering a thread of sincere incense smoke before the deity.”
After speaking, as if to demonstrate, Xiaoshi Weng lightly tapped his wooden staff through the air at a Stone Crab on the steps that was raising its claws toward the sky.
“Poof!”
A wisp of incense smoke sparkling with tiny golden flecks, mixed with a trace of refined Mystic Blue Divine Power escaping from his fingertips, instantly entered the crab’s body.
The Stone Crab seemed to be held still by an invisible energy, its shell emitting a slight sound of hard surfaces rubbing together.
It stood frozen for several breaths.
Suddenly, it lowered its raised claws.
Like a human, it “plopped” onto the ground.
Its yellow bean-sized eyes shimmered with faint spiritual light.
Extremely clumsily but with utmost sincerity, it used its segmented black claws to knock heavily three times toward the Land God statue.
Lu Qiancha watched clearly as a wisp of incense Wish Power flowed from the Stone Crab into the Land God statue’s body.
“This……” Lu Qiancha’s eyes were filled with an uncontainable shock, and a strong surge of emotion rose within her.
She took a deep breath, suppressing her excitement, then solemnly bowed to Xiaoshi Weng with an even deeper posture, her voice unusually earnest.
“This method is profound and spirit-connecting. Your Reverence’s Dao is unfathomably deep. I am ignorant of this path and boldly beg Your Reverence to teach me this technique. If there is any need for spirit stones or treasures, I will offer everything I have.”
“Your praise is too much,” Xiaoshi Weng quickly stepped aside and gave a half bow, smiling like a kindly neighbor.
“I am but a humble Land God guarding this little patch of earth. How could I covet worldly possessions? Among colleagues, sincerity is the true treasure. This technique is merely a gift to a fellow Daoist, a blessing shared among us.”
With that, he lightly tapped his crooked wooden staff once on the ground.
Hum—
A concentrated light, like a needle, flowed with earthen-yellow divine script, shooting out from the staff’s tip and instantly entering Lu Qiancha’s brow.
Her body trembled slightly as a thick, vast stream of information spread through her spiritual sea.
It was the mysterious divine technique called Xuanxin Qiling Jue.
The formula was clear, its operation subtle and profound, without the slightest concealment or hindrance.
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