Chapter 68: Chapter 66: Divination Art Is Truly Unreliable; One Shouldn’t Engage in Feudal Superstition

Black Stone Town, nestled at the foot of Panyun Mountain in Bian State of the Jin Kingdom.

Butcher Zeng, a burly man with graying hair and a thick waist, chewed on a foxtail grass stem, his brow furrowed in worry. He listlessly chopped at a piece of meat.

Liu the Louse ambled past his stall, glanced at him, and snickered. "Boss Zeng, did you sneak into a widow’s bed last night and finish in three seconds? Why the long face?"

"Get lost!" Butcher Zeng swung his arm forcefully, sinking the meat cleaver deep into the cutting board, which was coated in a thick layer of grease.

Liu the Louse flinched, shrinking his shoulders. When he saw the glaring, leopard-like eyes of the bearded butcher fixed on him, a wave of panic washed over him, and his pace quickened involuntarily.

Only when he was a safe distance away did he dare to mutter, "What a lout!"

After Liu the Louse left, Butcher Zeng’s gloomy expression returned. He apathetically chopped meat for a little while longer before heading back into his house.

He washed his hands meticulously, dried them carefully, then opened a box by his bed and took out a scroll.

He unrolled it, revealing the image of a handsome young man with eyes as dark and bright as stars and a face as refined as jade.

Butcher Zeng stared blankly at the painting. It wasn’t that he was into men. It was just that ten years ago, when that great lady had left this hand-painted portrait with him, she had given him specific instructions:

"If the man in this painting comes to you with a message to deliver—be it a letter or just a few words—you are to bring it to me immediately. There will be a handsome reward for you."

"But if you delay..."

"...then you’d best pick out coffins for your whole family in advance."

Butcher Zeng knew all too well the ways of the great lady from the Heavenly Emotions and Oceanic Resentments Sect.

He lived in fear that one day, the great lady would grow impatient with waiting and, with a single, simple spell of Magic, his entire family would be turned to ash.

’So, my dear sir in the painting, when on earth are you going to show up!’

"Butcher! Butcher Zeng!"

A strange voice called from outside.

"Who is it? Squawking like a crow so early in the morning..." Butcher Zeng grumbled, impatiently rolling up the scroll. He pushed the door open and froze on the spot.

After a long moment, he rubbed his eyes hard and looked again.

It was him. The elegant young man from the painting had somehow stepped out of the scroll and was standing right there before him, alive and real!

That gentle gaze, that faintly roguish smile at the corner of his lips—it was him!

Butcher Zeng almost bolted back into the house to unroll the scroll and see if the man in the painting was still there.

The young man studied him and asked, "Can you deliver a message to Lin Sha?"

His tone was calm, showing no anger at the butcher’s rude remarks.

Butcher Zeng froze. ’Lin Sha? Who is Lin Sha?’

’Oh, is that the great lady’s given name?’

Cold sweat beaded on Butcher Zeng’s brow.

He didn’t dare listen to another word from this young man.

’There are many things this young man can say without consequence, but if I hear them, I’ll be in deep trouble.’

’Best to get this over with quickly.’

But... Butcher Zeng covered his mouth, his face contorted as if he had a toothache.

’If this young man’s letter contains something it shouldn’t, and the great lady flies into a rage after reading it, how many spells of Magic could a small fry like me endure?’

’I’d better hope I can withstand a few. If she can vent all her anger on me, maybe she won’t go after my family...’

"Can you?"

Hearing the young man’s pressing question, Butcher Zeng quickly pushed aside his distracting thoughts. "Yes, yes I can. Do you have a letter for me to deliver, sir? This humble one will set off at once."

As he spoke, he held out his hand expectantly.

"Just take a message for me. Tell her I’m here waiting for her."

Butcher Zeng asked cautiously, "May I ask for your name, sir?"

"My surname is Qiu. My name is Qiu Yuanqing. Oh, and tell her to hurry. I won’t be staying long. I just want to catch up with her, and then I’ll be on my way."

"...Yes, I’ll be sure to deliver the message completely and accurately."

But inwardly, he gave a bitter smile. ’If I deliver that message word for word, I won’t live to see tonight’s moon, let alone tomorrow’s sun.’

Without another word, Butcher Zeng closed up his butcher shop and hurried up the mountain.

Meanwhile, Du Youqian went to a small creek outside of town. He used a bit of Magic to clear a patch of grass by the bank, then sat down and took out three copper coins.

The copper coins looked quite old but had not a trace of green tarnish; they had been handled so much they had developed a smooth patina.

If a Mortal were to see them, they would probably wonder: ’What dynasty are these copper coins from? I’ve never seen any like them.’

In reality, these were practice pieces Du Youqian had created while practicing Artifact Refining.

The three copper coins formed a set. They were an Upper Grade Spiritual Artifact with endless wondrous uses.

Before leaving the Zhongxuan Sect this time, he had copied every single Cultivation Technique Inheritance in the Sect’s archives.

The Zhongxuan Sect once possessed Tier Three and even Tier Four Inheritances, but most of the ancient scriptures had been lost or scattered over the years, and few remained.

Today, of its sixteen Cultivation Techniques, some only retained their Tier Two Inheritances, while others didn’t even have a complete Tier One Inheritance.

Besides the four techniques he had already mastered, the most helpful for a Cultivator’s Magical Combat and Cultivation were Puppetry Art, the Daoist Soldier Technique, and the Refining Treasure Art.

However, after browsing through the other twelve techniques, Du Youqian found himself most interested in Spirit Plants, Beast Taming, and Divination.

He was, at heart, a man who enjoyed the simple pleasures of life. In his life on Earth, now so distant that the memories were beginning to blur, he had enjoyed planting little plants and raising small animals.

After crossing over into this world, he first had to scramble for survival, then fight for power, and later became engrossed in Immortal Cultivating. In the process, he had abandoned all these hobbies.

Now was the perfect opportunity to pick them back up again.

As for Divination, that stemmed from the interest in the mystical arts of a young man who had grown up steeped in traditional Chinese culture.

Du Youqian didn’t really believe in fate.

And yet, he also believed that some things were destined to be.

Quite the contradiction, isn’t it?

Many Chinese people are just as contradictory.

Not believing in fate means daring to challenge it, refusing to sink into despair or yield.

Believing in destiny is perhaps a form of self-consolation after a failed challenge.

’But in this world, could things like fate and destiny actually exist?’ Du Youqian wasn’t sure.

’I can reincarnate endlessly, so what’s impossible?’

That was why he had learned the Divination Art, intending to experience it for himself.

The first time he had ever performed a proper Divination, he had asked whether he should reincarnate as soon as possible.

The result of the Divination was: Greatly Auspicious.

He then performed another Divination, asking if he could reach the Nascent Soul realm within ten reincarnations. The result was: Greatly Inauspicious.

’This damned Divination Art is as unreliable as I thought.’

Now, after rinsing his hands in the creek water, Du Youqian regulated his breathing, calming his mind and steadying his spirit.

He then silently began the divination, tossing the three Copper Coin Spiritual Artifacts six times. After memorizing the lines of the hexagram, he began to interpret it according to the Divination Art he had recently learned.

’Gou? Heavenly Wind Gou, wind under heaven. The woman is strong; do not marry such a woman. Uh, is this about Lin Sha and me? Is Lin Sha too strong for me to handle? Is it best not to get too close? That seems to make some sense.’

’The changing line is the fifth nine: a melon covered with willow leaves. Hidden elegance. It falls to him from heaven.’

’Interpreting this in the context of our actual situation... it seems pretty accurate. By my judgment, I am pretty much the only chink in her armor. No matter how strong she is—so strong that no one else can defeat her—I could still easily destroy her.’

’Of course, if someone were to use me against her, they could also succeed with ease.’

Du Youqian continued interpreting the hexagram. "’The changing line is the fifth nine, so it can transform into the Fire Wind Ding hexagram.’"

’Supreme good fortune, and success. This is auspicious and smooth-sailing. It means my meeting with Lin Sha this time should be a good thing.’

’But Ding also carries the meaning of ’getting rid of the old to bring in the new.’ If things remain stagnant and unchanging, there will surely be trouble later.’

’This definitely isn’t telling me to find a new lover...’

’It must mean that my relationship with Lin Sha needs to enter a new phase. Or... it could mean I need to renew myself. For example, by reincarnating?’

’However, with only one changing line, I should primarily focus on the original hexagram.’

Du Youqian fell into deep thought.