Lord of Fortune and Virtue, The Tragic Destruction of Lijia Village!

As dusk approached.

Fan Wu held a sheepskin scroll in his hand, which depicted a rudimentary map of the Great Zhou Southern Commandery.

There weren't many markings on the map.

Only the names of counties and simple routes.

He relied on this to find his way, traveling from Prison Dragon County all the way to Baihe County, and then to the place where he was currently resting.

"Another day's travel east and I should reach Yinghe Prefecture."

Fan Wu carefully put away the sheepskin scroll. After reaching Yinghe Prefecture, he only needed to travel north for a while...

He would then be able to reach the commandery capital of the Southern Commandery and find his sworn elder sister.

Fan Wu slowly stood up.

He patted his pants.

Just as he was about to continue his journey, he heard the sound of gongs and drums. He could even hear a piercing sound, like that of a suona.

Fan Wu walked in that direction.

It wasn't because he liked to watch the excitement, but because that direction was the only path he had to take to Yinghe Prefecture.

After all, his map only showed one route.

Fan Wu had to follow it.

After walking for a while.

Fan Wu saw a village ahead, and it seemed to be quite a large one. Rows upon rows of densely packed houses and cultivated fields came into view.

He also saw people.

Many people.

These people were likely local mountain folk.

Fan Wu could clearly smell the scent of burning incense in the air.

Amidst the sound of gongs and drums...

He could faintly hear people reciting prayers and scriptures.

This was...

A sacrifice?

At the entrance of the village ahead, there were hundreds of people gathered. Most of them were ordinary villagers, men and women, old and young.

Their commonality was the slight look of worry and bewilderment on their faces.

A six-foot-tall statue of a deity was placed on an incense altar.

The villagers all cast their gazes towards the statue.

Their eyes held more or less anticipation and hope, as if seeking the deity's blessings.

In front of the statue, not only were there many well-prepared offerings of beef, lamb, chicken, and duck, but also many fruits and pastries.

Inside a cauldron-like incense burner, a large number of candles were inserted.

Each candle was burning slowly.

Wisps of smoke curled upwards.

Drifting with the wind.

An elderly man, whose steps were somewhat shaky, held a ceramic bowl in his left hand and a willow branch in his right.

He walked with a peculiar, unpracticed gait, dipping the willow branch into the water in the bowl and sprinkling it around.

As he chanted in a strange tone, he repeatedly uttered a phrase: "Please, Lord of Fortune and Virtue, bestow your blessings..."

"Please, Lord of Fortune and Virtue, bestow your blessings..."

"Please, Lord of Fortune and Virtue..."

After the elderly man finished sprinkling all the water from the ceramic bowl, he carefully placed the willow branch and the bowl onto the incense altar.

Then, he took a large handful of candles, lit them all.

Enduring the stinging, choking smoke, the old man tremblingly bowed respectfully in the four cardinal directions.

However.

The next moment!

A strange gust of wind, from an unknown source, blew past. The elderly man suddenly lost his balance and fell straight onto his backside.

The large handful of candles he was holding scattered all over the ground, and most of them were extinguished.

"Village Chief!"

"Village Chief, are you alright?"

The surrounding villagers and common folk were startled by this scene, and they all wanted to step forward to help the old man up.

The old man suddenly waved his hand.

Signaling no need.

His old face, full of wrinkles and age spots, was filled with sorrow and sighs.

He sat on the ground for a long while, hesitating, before speaking under the gaze of everyone present, "The wind just now didn't come out of nowhere. This old man was asking for the blessings of Lord of Fortune and Virtue."

"As a result, a gust of wind, by sheer coincidence, knocked me to the ground at this moment. This can only mean... Lord of Fortune and Virtue cannot help us."

"It's also possible... that Lord of Fortune and Virtue believes our hearts are not devout enough. We can't stay here any longer. We should move away in a few days..."

"Sigh..."

As the old man spoke, he sighed repeatedly. The wrinkles on his face deepened as if he had aged several years.

His posture became even more stooped.

"Village Chief, didn't those people from the imperial court... from that department say they would handle this matter?" someone among the villagers and common folk said in a low voice, "Perhaps we can wait for them to resolve the issue, and then we won't have to move?"

"That's right!" someone else chimed in, "We are all poor mountain folk. We don't have much surplus at home, and we don't have many copper coins. Where can we move to?"

"But... everyone knows about the anomalous events that happened in Lijia Village next door a few months ago. And our Nie Village has shown signs of being affected recently! Someone in the village falls gravely ill every few days. Who can withstand this?"

"That Imperial Astronomy Bureau hasn't come here for quite some time. They probably have no solution!"

"Alas, we should just listen to the old Village Chief... The village is no longer safe. The entire Lijia Village next door died!"

"..."

The villagers' sighing discussions were slightly noisy.

The statue they worshipped was likely the immortal deity the old man referred to as "Lord of Fortune and Virtue."

Fan Wu, leading an old green ox, walked unhurriedly towards Nie Village ahead.

The sound of the old green ox's hooves hitting the ground was quite clear.

Some of the villagers in Nie Village with sharper ears turned their heads in surprise.

Instantly.

They were stunned!

Fan Wu's robust physique, in the eyes of these generally sallow and thin villagers, was undoubtedly like a moving pagoda.

It shocked them all!

The aura emanating from the extermination of a large number of anomalous entities within just a few days made the few villagers who saw Fan Wu almost gasp for breath.

"Vi... Village Chief, there's an outsider!" one of them swallowed hard and couldn't help but exclaim.

Immediately, everyone turned their heads.

All eyes fell on Fan Wu in astonishment.

Then...

There was a widespread sound of gasping.

The sound of gongs and drums, and the playing of suonas, also abruptly stopped at this moment.

The entire scene fell silent.

So quiet that even the sound of others' breathing could be faintly heard.

The old Village Chief of Nie Village also managed to stand up.

He pushed through the crowd and looked outside the village.

He saw Fan Wu.

"Hiss!" Even though the old Village Chief had lived for seventy to eighty years and had seen much, it was his first time seeing someone so tall.

However, compared to the other villagers and common folk, the old Village Chief was much calmer.

Perhaps it was because he knew he didn't have many years left to live.

In such a situation...

There was no need to be afraid of anything.

"This Daoist Master..."

The old Village Chief's tone was quite polite as he kindly reminded, "Nie Village does not receive outsiders for the past few months. The village has been... a bit restless lately."

"Please, Daoist Master, take another route."

"..."