Go all out

Chapter 31: Scales and Choices

Tian Zhan’s bright flashlight beam illuminated the ground below. When I walked over, I was taken aback to see a shriveled object lying quietly in the beam—it looked like a seashell, but was about the size of a dinner plate. “What is that?” I asked instinctively. Tian Zhan didn’t say anything either. He crouched down, picked up the object, sniffed it, and then looked utterly astonished. Yin Fang took a deep breath and murmured, “Are those fish scales?” “Huh?” I thought I’d misheard him. I was utterly astonished. Since this place used to be the Longquan Spring, it must have been full of water back then, so it would be normal to find fish here. But what surprised me was that these fish scales were as big as a dinner plate? How huge must that fish have been? Tian Zhan shook his head. “We can’t be sure. These scales have a very strong fishy smell, and besides, fish aren’t the only creatures with scales…” As Tian Zhan said this, his tone took on a meaningful undertone. Yin Fang’s expression changed. I was a bit confused. What else lives underwater and has scales besides fish? “Tian Zhan, stop beating around the bush—I’m dying to know. Just tell me, what else is there?” I asked impatiently. Tian Zhan gave me a deep look, then fixed his gaze on the scale in his hand. “There are many creatures that live underwater. Crocodiles have scales, water snakes have scales, mermaids have scales, and there’s also…” “Dragons?” Yin Fang interjected. “What?” I was startled. Dragons? Are there really dragons in this world? Tianzhan had mentioned before that the Yangtze River has a river god—a water dragon—but that’s the Yangtze River. It’s so vast; maybe there really is a water dragon there. The world is so big—anything is possible, right? But this is just an underground water source. How big could it be? Could it really hide a dragon? Tian Zhan nodded. “That’s right. So many of these things have scales, and there are even some creatures we don’t know anything about at all, so we can’t draw any conclusions.” Yin Fang nodded, indicating she agreed with this explanation. Hearing this, I breathed a sigh of relief. It was true—there was no need to jump to conclusions and scare myself. Maybe it was just left behind by a huge fish weighing several hundred jin? “This Dragon Spring has been dry for a long time. I suppose the owner of these scales left them behind when it was forced to find a new place to live,” Yin Fang said. That made some sense—creatures that depend on water would naturally follow it when the water dried up. “All right, there’s no need to dwell on this. Let’s keep moving forward. This underground area is quite vast; if we don’t hurry up and explore it, who knows how long it’ll take us to see everything,” Tian Zhan said as he put the scale away. “Mm-hmm,” Yin Fang and I nodded. “Go!” Tian Zhan formed a strange hand seal with one hand and tapped the paper figure on the ground. The figure immediately began walking forward like a puppet, scouting the path ahead. This cave was enormous, and no one knew what we might encounter; having this paper figure lead the way naturally made things much safer. The three of us naturally followed. Under the beam of Tian Zhan’s powerful flashlight, I took a quick look around the cave. In truth, it wasn’t much different from a mountain cave—except that the walls here were slightly smoother and rounder due to having been eroded by water over time; otherwise, it was just like any other mountain cave. As we walked, Tian Zhan chuckled, “If that Zhang Daoling really did come up the mountain nineteen years ago, he might have even passed through this Longquan area. The three of us might just get to soak up some immortal energy.” “How many years has it been? Is there still any immortal energy left?” I thought to myself, speechless. “Who’s to say? Zhang Daoling is an immortal of our Daoist tradition. I’ve often heard rumors of a man dressed in ancient clothing wandering the lands of China—I just don’t know if that man is the legendary Zhang Daoling…” Tian Zhan’s eyes sparkled with a hint of longing. “Is that true?” I, too, became somewhat intrigued. Someone wearing ancient clothing in this day and age—while nine times out of ten it’s just a nutcase, it could actually be the real Zhang Daoling, even if the odds are slim. After all, if what the Rat Spirit said was true—that it started snowing after Zhang Daoling arrived here, and then I appeared in the snow—and the Rat Spirit and the others didn’t know about it, perhaps this Zhang Daoling knew my true origins. He might even have seen my birth mother. So, if I’m lucky enough to meet Zhang Daoling, perhaps he’ll be able to shed light on my origins and help me find my birth mother—and then I’ll ask her why she abandoned me. “Of course. Zhang Daoling is none other than the renowned Celestial Master Zhang, who dedicated his life to vanquishing ghosts and demons. That mysterious man is very likely Zhang Daoling.” Tian Zhan said, then turned to Yin Fang. “Yin Fang, what do you think? You’ve heard about this, haven’t you?” Yin Fang nodded, but then shook her head. “It’s true that this story exists, but it’s hard to say for sure if it’s Zhang Daoling.” “Uh… you’re right. No one has ever seen Zhang Daoling. Everyone who knew him over a thousand years ago is long dead. Even if Zhang Daoling appeared right in front of us, the three of us wouldn’t be able to recognize him,” Tian Zhan said dejectedly. I smiled and shook my head. “You’re wrong there. If Zhang Daoling is one of your Daoist immortals—and since he’s an immortal—his facial features would be quite unusual. He might look ordinary, but he’d possess what we in physiognomy call a ‘peculiar facial appearance.’ If I were to see him, I might not be able to identify him by name, but I’d sense that he’s no ordinary person. I’d naturally take a closer look at someone like that.” It’s true that my skill in fortune-telling isn’t very advanced right now, so when some people deliberately use various methods to conceal their true nature, I can’t discern much. But as time goes on, once I’ve mastered the skills my master taught me, my cultivation is sufficient, and I’ve gained enough experience, my fortune-telling abilities will naturally improve. By then, if I ever actually encounter the person Tian Zhan mentioned, I might just be able to recognize him. “Uh, are you just bragging?” Tian Zhan asked with a laugh. “Of course not,” I shook my head. “All right, I’ll take your word for it. You fortune-tellers have many methods. If you really are a Level 10 fortune-teller, then perhaps you could truly see through an immortal with the body of a mere mortal!” Tian Zhan said meaningfully. I nodded. The Art of Qimen Dunjia is divided into nine schools; since our school of fortune-telling ranks second, there’s naturally a reason for that. A truly skilled fortune-teller can make predictions by analyzing anything. Tian Zhan looked at me intently and continued, “But honestly, your master’s divination skills are greater than yours. You’ve got to work hard.” “Mm-hmm.” I nodded. Having studied under my master for so long, I’m still only a Level 1 fortune-teller. My master often tells me I have good natural talent and am quite smart, so even at this level, I can give people fairly accurate readings—though that’s only relative to ordinary people. When it comes to capable individuals like Tian Zhan and Yin Fang, I still can’t quite see through them yet. I really do need to work harder. Tian Zhan and I chatted back and forth, while Yin Fang said very little—basically nothing at all. After the three of us had walked for about ten minutes, Tian Zhan suddenly stopped, looking somewhat startled and puzzled. “What’s wrong?” I asked. Yin Fang was also looking at Tian Zhan curiously. “My paper doll has vanished—I can’t sense it anymore,” Tian Zhan said, staring straight ahead. “Is someone there?” Yin Fang’s expression changed. “Probably. Otherwise, how could a paper figure I just made—one capable of killing people—suddenly vanish?” Tian Zhan nodded, then turned to look at me. “It might be your master.” I froze, instinctively glancing ahead. The road stretched endlessly before us. I sighed inwardly. Was my master warning the three of us? What exactly lies within this Longquan region? What could have turned my master into a murderous maniac? “I’m afraid your master has already predicted that the three of us would come here. Xiao Tian, can you divine where your master is?” Tian Zhan asked, looking at me. I shook my head. I hadn’t reached that level of mastery yet. Right now, I could only read faces and use the Four Calculations to tell fortunes. Things like pinpointing someone’s location or tracking them down—those weren’t tasks a Level 1 fortune-teller like me could handle. “In that case, the three of us need to be extra careful,” Tian Zhan said gravely. “Your master was willing to kill three people to cover up this secret. Since we’ve come down here, he’ll surely assume we’re here to steal his treasures. He might very well try to kill us too.” “Mm-hmm,” Yin Fang nodded. I remained silent. Would my master really kill me? I would never have thought that way before, but he had already cut my rope once… This time, Tian Zhan had no choice but to tear another paper figure out. With such a paper figure leading the way, it would at least be a little safer. This time, Tian Zhan didn’t let the paper figure stray too far ahead. The three of us fell silent, proceeding cautiously forward. I had no idea how long this cave was, but we must have walked two or three kilometers by now. Ten minutes later, the three of us came to a halt—the paper figure sent ahead had stopped long ago. It turned out there was a fork in the tunnel ahead—we had to choose between two paths. Since this used to be an underground river, it wasn’t surprising to find something like a tributary here. But now, which one should the three of us take? Tian Zhan muttered a few words under his breath, while Yin Fang frowned as she stared at the two openings. The Five Elements were in disarray here, so feng shui probably wouldn’t be of much help. Sure enough, after looking for a while, Yin Fang shook her head in resignation. After glancing at them a few times, I turned to Tian Zhan and Yin Fang and said, “We’ve got no choice. You two, relax the energy on your faces. I’ll use your facial features to determine which path to take.” A person’s facial features can reveal a great deal to me—what lies ahead, and what each path holds. Through facial divination, I can determine all of this. However, these two were quite skilled; through their own methods, they seemed to have put on a thin veil, making it impossible for me, a Level 1 Feng Shui Master, to see through it. Tian Zhan and Yin Fang exchanged a glance. Yin Fang furrowed her brow. “Just read his face then.” I wasn’t surprised by Yin Fang’s outright refusal. After all, no one wants an outsider like me to figure out most of their secrets just by glancing at them, right? Of course, I’m not that nosy—why would I read things I shouldn’t? It’s simple: for example, I can look at someone’s face and tell what illnesses they have, who they’re attracted to, or whether they “entertained themselves” last night—things like that. These are private matters, and I do have professional ethics. Tian Zhan seemed at a loss for words. He closed his eyes in resignation and appeared to mutter some sort of incantation. I stared at Tian Zhan’s face; after a moment of blurriness, I finally felt I could “see” his face clearly. I motioned for Tian Zhan to pick any path and walk a few steps down it, then asked him to turn around so I could use facial divination to determine if he’d chosen the right one. Tian Zhan picked a random path, walked a few steps down it, and then turned back to face me. I stared intently at his face, analyzing it carefully. At this point, I only needed to examine his “Palace of Destiny.” Typically, this palace reveals the quality of a person’s fate—including their financial fortune, career prospects, and overall luck. Tian Zhan’s Palace of Destiny appeared very bright and full; in ancient times, such a palace was characteristic of a great general. However, a wisp of black energy was now emerging from it. This meant that taking this path would likely lead to danger. Could it be that he would encounter my master? Filled with astonishment and doubt, I could only gesture for Tian Zhan to take the other path. After he did so, he turned back to face me again. After waiting a few minutes, a slight change finally appeared in his Life Palace—but strangely, Tian Zhan’s Life Palace not only returned to its brightness but grew even brighter. This suggested that taking this path might lead to some kind of discovery. Of these two paths, the first was dangerous—and nine times out of ten, that was the one my master had taken—so naturally, we should follow him. But the second path was puzzling: what could possibly be found in an underground river? He hesitated inwardly. Which path should he take?