The next morning.
When Second Uncle climbed the mountain, there was a briskness to his steps. He was clearly a little nervous, but the moment he saw Lin Xiaosu standing safely on the platform, his face relaxed. "Nothing happened last night, right?"
"Second Uncle, what kind of damned place is this? Last night... there really was a ghost... Something actually crawled out from down there. It was an Earth Mother seven or eight feet long. Luckily, Hu Ya was fierce. She slammed that snake around a few times until even its mother wouldn't recognize it."
Second Uncle listened to the harrowing tale without so much as a ripple on his face. "That's it?"
"A seven- or eight-foot-long Earth Mother! Second Uncle, how can you be so calm?" Lin Xiaosu did not mention the even more explosive matter, because he did not know how much Second Uncle knew about the "skylight."
"On an Astrological Shift Day, heaven and earth underwent upheaval, and the flow of energy turned abnormal. Strange things appearing were nothing unusual. Last time, a butterfly as big as one of your barred chickens came out. Fortunately, it was a butterfly. If it had been a mosquito that big, I might not be here anymore. All right, as long as nothing happened." Second Uncle spoke.
"But... what exactly is going on? This is completely unscientific..." Lin Xiaosu lightly scratched his head.
"Willow Forest Temple has its mysteries. The previous Temple Master, Daoist Master Lu Yun, once said that this place is a Mystic Gate connecting to the Primordial World. If your fortune is sufficient, you might see the skylight open and witness miraculous things beyond anything you could imagine."
A skylight?
Lin Xiaosu's eyes flickered. "Second Uncle, have you seen it?"
"I've been in charge of Willow Forest Temple for twenty-three years. There were seventeen Astrological Shift Days during that time. Every time, I sat at the heart of the formation and stared up at the sky, hardly daring to blink. But I never saw the skylight."
He had looked upward and failed to see the skylight.
That was because he had not looked down!
Lin Xiaosu said, "What about Daoist Master Lu Yun? Did he see it?"
"Him? He was blind. But don't let that fool you—he was more extraordinary than ordinary people..."
The former Temple Master of Willow Forest Temple was named Lu Yun. He had arrived at Willow Forest Temple before liberation.
Second Uncle's connection to Willow Forest Temple began with Second Aunt's illness. She had congenital anemia and was originally unable to bear children. But she and Second Uncle loved each other deeply, and she wanted to give him a child, so she became pregnant despite the risks.
Before she went into labor, she suffered massive bleeding. They took her to the county hospital, but the doctors were terrified at the sight and did not dare admit her. They told them to send her to the provincial capital overnight. But it was hundreds of miles away, and no one could guarantee whether she would live or die on the road. Just as Second Uncle was frantic and at a complete loss, Daoist Master Lu Yun drifted over, smiled faintly, and said, "A minor ailment. Come, to Willow Forest Temple!"
Second Uncle and Second Aunt slept one night in this temple.
They took no medicine and received no injections. They simply slept for one night, and the bleeding stopped. On the third day, Li Diandian—whom Lin Xiaosu called Hu Ya—was born here. The moment she entered the world, her resounding cries shook the entire mountain forest.
And Second Aunt's chronic illness of many years unexpectedly improved as well.
Daoist Master Lu Yun had saved both Second Uncle's wife and daughter. From then on, he believed in Daoist Master Lu Yun as if he were an immortal.
More than twenty years ago, Daoist Master Lu Yun set off to wander the world. Before leaving, he instructed Second Uncle to guard Willow Forest Temple well. More than twenty years had passed since then, and there had been no news of Daoist Master Lu Yun. No one knew whether he was dead or alive.
"Second Uncle, did you ever tell... the higher-ups about Willow Forest Temple?"
The higher-ups naturally meant the relevant government departments.
Second Uncle looked dejected. "I did. When that mutated giant butterfly came out last time, I was afraid the next thing to appear would be a mosquito as big as a barred chicken and cause some huge disaster, so I reported it twice... The first time, they just laughed and told me not to spread feudal superstitions. The second time, good lord, four or five people in white coats came. They nearly hauled me off to a mental hospital."
"I can understand that." Lin Xiaosu nodded lightly. "Put yourself in their shoes. If I passed the civil service exam in the future and entered a government office, then some mystical old Daoist suddenly came in and told me this kind of nonsense, I might do the same."
Second Uncle slowly gritted his teeth. "That's why you definitely won't pass the civil service exam this time!"
"Second Uncle, my exam is only a month away. Fine, don't wish me luck—but you're even cursing me?"
"This isn't a curse. I just sincerely hope you fail... Really!"
Lin Xiaosu rolled his eyes. "Now I understand why Second Aunt nags so much. With the way you deal with people, who wouldn't nag? The fact that she hasn't beaten you half to death already proves she's virtuous..."
"No, Xiaosu..." Second Uncle leaned closer, revealing a somewhat ingratiating smile. "How about you stop taking the civil service exam and come help your Second Uncle guard the temple? You won't have to do it alone. We can take shifts—you guard it on even-numbered days, and I'll guard it on odd-numbered days."
"Don't even think about it!" Lin Xiaosu cut him off immediately.
"Then how about you come stay one night every weekend so I can go home and keep your Second Aunt company... I'm not afraid of you laughing at me. Your Second Aunt's problem is actually that she has too much energy. She can't stand being separated from her husband for so long." Second Uncle's old face reddened slightly.
Lin Xiaosu's eyes widened. Holy shit!
He seemed to have truly touched upon the root of Second Aunt's illness.
In modern terms, this illness could probably be called "young married couple hormone syndrome." It rarely appeared in people in their fifties.
But Second Uncle and Second Aunt were different. They were old, but their bodily functions had remained youthful after being stimulated by that damned flow of energy back then. Naturally, Second Aunt still had needs. Second Uncle lived at Willow Forest Temple year-round, leaving the couple separated. Second Aunt was constantly "thirsty," and no one else could cure that thirst. But the moment Second Uncle went home, the effect was immediate. My god, what was this? So this was the method you used on Second Aunt...
Second Uncle continued trying to persuade him. "Living at Willow Forest Temple has its benefits, too. Your body will be free of all illnesses. When you reach my age, you'll understand just how great those benefits are."
"Second Uncle, why don't you bring Second Aunt here?"
"The root of your Second Aunt's illness was planted here. She can't enter Willow Forest Temple."
That completed the circle.
Second Aunt's "thirst" was not really an illness. Her real problem was that, during her confinement at Willow Forest Temple all those years ago, her blood and energy had been replenished too much. Her flow of energy had gone astray, making her prone to wild thoughts. She always felt that Second Uncle had another woman outside...
If she entered Willow Forest Temple, the spiritual energy below would seep into her body and worsen her condition. If things went badly, she might truly become a mentally ill person with an extraordinarily healthy body.
Lin Xiaosu's eyes flickered. "Second Uncle, I have a good idea."
"Go on..."
"How about we develop this place into a health resort? Open it to the public... Think about it—there are so many rich people in the world. Once they have everything, the only thing they fear is death. If they knew that staying here for one night could cure illnesses, money would come pouring in so fast even the doors couldn't hold it back. Would you still need to pressure me into doing something I don't want to do? You could collect admission fees during the day, then take a helicopter down the mountain at night and have a happy, carefree time with Second Aunt..."
"You, honestly, what am I supposed to say about you? If I call you stupid, you really do have some business sense. But if I call you smart, you clearly haven't grasped how serious this is!" Second Uncle shook his head lightly. "What do you think this place is? It is a connection point to another world—or perhaps a seal. Why do you think I never dared tell Dian Dian or your Second Aunt? Because I'm afraid that with too many people around, someone might trigger some restriction. If the other world arrived, it would be a catastrophic calamity!"
Lin Xiaosu jumped. "Trigger a restriction, and another world arrives? Is that really possible?"
"Daoist Master Lu Yun said it would come one day. We just don't know when."
"Are there any signs?"
"Yes. Astrological Shift Day, Astrological Rift Day, Equatorial Calamity Day, Equatorial Radiance Day... But I can only calculate the lowest level, Astrological Shift Day. He also mentioned a Lawless Tribulation Day. If that calamity came, all the seals would break at once, all folded spaces would open, and Earth would expand a hundredfold, perhaps a thousandfold. Our current cities would be divided into countless isolated islands. Exotic beasts would run rampant, abysses would be everywhere, demons would stare from the shadows, and righteousness would cease to exist..."
A chill crept down Lin Xiaosu's back.
Second Uncle's expression also turned grave.
"Second Uncle, when is the next Astrological Shift Day?"
"One month from now, April thirteenth."
Before you continue