Fortune

"This old gentleman was quite interesting."

Chu He picked up the Map of Mountains and Rivers that the Old Man had left on the chair and could not help shaking his head.

To the Xia Clan, such a precious item was something the Old Man definitely had not forgotten to take because of senility!

Leaving it here meant he intended to give it to him directly.

Of course, in the Old Man's heart, he was giving it to that nonexistent senior.

Was he not afraid that the senior would take the item and refuse to do anything?

Perhaps he was worried about that too!

But this also showed that he truly had no other options left!

That was why he seemed so generous.

"The Xia Clan is about to face a tremendous threat."

Chu He made a guess.

The Old Man had come looking for reinforcements out of desperation!

His injuries were too severe, beyond saving. At most, he could hold on for another dozen years or so before preparing for his own funeral!

His wounds were injuries to his origin, far more serious than those of the Lin Family Ancestor back then!

Chu He could tell that the Old Man's own physical body had likely been sealed away before, suppressed by a secret treasure, and that he had only recently broken free from the seal.

"With the Xia Clan in turmoil, even if I want to sign in peacefully, I'll probably be disturbed from time to time."

"Just thinking about it pisses me off!"

Little Turtle returned. It walked up to Chu He's feet, squatted there like a lapdog, looked up at him, and wagged its little tail!

It was hungry!

The Old Man's Pills had not suited its palate, but they had stirred up its appetite.

"Eat, eat, eat. All you know is eating. You're completely useless!"

Chu He glanced at it and spoke irritably.

With a casual motion, he took out a handful of golden dog food and tossed it into Little Turtle's mouth.

This was something he had received from signing in several times.

There were already several large bags of it in the system space.

The description was simple.

Royal Dog Food, Golden Sand. Rich in nutrition and sweet in taste, it could strengthen and temper the body of a Dog King cub, allowing it to grow up healthy.

Special reminder: Aside from dogs, it was also suitable for other living beings. Humans could eat it too!

Humans could eat my ass!

The instant he saw its name, no matter how fragrant it smelled, there was no way Chu He would ever put it in his mouth!

So it became Little Turtle's exclusive ration.

And it loved it.

Like a cat eating catnip!

Every time it caught the scent, it started growing restless.

It was excited beyond measure!

If this dog food were not truly miraculous—a treasure suited to the King level and difficult to digest—Little Turtle could finish it all in a single day.

"Suppressing fortune, huh!"

After sending Little Turtle away,

Chu He picked up the Map of Mountains and Rivers again.

After examining it, an interested look appeared on his face.

Although the Old Man had not told him how to use this thing,

Chu He, who had devoured countless books and possessed knowledge of ancient and modern times, understood it after only one look!

Though he did not know how the Xia Clan had activated its fortune-suppressing function,

Chu He had his own method.

His palm moved.

A golden swimming dragon shot into the sky.

Its entire body radiated dazzling golden light as it soared above heaven and earth, growing larger and larger.

In just a few breaths,

it had grown large enough to cover the sky above Lin City. Coiling in the heavens, its dragon eyes opened and flickered, lifelike as though it were a true dragon.

However, it was merely formed from fortune.

Ordinary people could not see it at all.

The golden dragon soaring through the air lowered its head slightly, gazing down from the heavens and meeting Chu He's eyes.

Chu He flung out the treasured map.

The Map of Mountains and Rivers shimmered with a clear, lustrous glow, reflecting a curtain of light invisible to ordinary people. Upon it, it was as though someone held a brush.

A Book Repository was sketched into existence, followed by the Lin Family, Lin City, the wilderness and rivers outside Lin City, all the way to the entirety of Lin Commandery.

As the images upon it increased, the light curtain swelled with the wind until it covered Lin City, facing the golden dragon in the sky from afar.

Dragon and map regarded each other for a moment.

Chu He turned his palm and pressed down.

The golden dragon in the sky swung its tail, then its sky-covering body plunged down with overwhelming force, entering the light curtain manifested by the Map of Mountains and Rivers.

This scene was immensely shocking!

It was like a Giant Dragon crashing into heaven and earth.

Yet the collision between the two was silent and unnoticed by ordinary people.

A moment later, the golden dragon and the phantom of the Map of Mountains and Rivers completely fused together.

Then,

the light curtain shattered.

The phantom of the Map of Mountains and Rivers turned into specks of golden light and merged into the Map of Mountains and Rivers.

After the fusion was fully complete,

whoosh!

An invisible force rippled through the void.

Like an aurora, it instantly spread from the Map of Mountains and Rivers to encompass the entire Lin Commandery.

Light deepened in Chu He's eyes, like inverted stars, as he observed heaven and earth.

He saw golden fortune drifting everywhere within his sight, protecting this entire stretch of heaven and earth.

Chu He lowered his head. A miniature golden fortune dragon coiled around his body.

As fortune spread, the stronger one was and the better one's talent, the greater the benefits received.

And Chu He was undoubtedly the strongest existence within Lin Commandery.

At that moment, a term came to Chu He's mind.

Child of fortune.

That was him!

Outside Lin City.

In the wilderness, a jujube-red Heavenly Dragon Horse pulled a carriage steadily along a mountain path.

There were two people inside the carriage.

Two men.

One old, one middle-aged.

"Master, why did you leave behind the Map of Mountains and Rivers before even meeting that senior?"

After a long while, the middle-aged man could not help speaking.

"We can't keep it!"

The Old Man shook his head, his emotions complicated.

The Xia Clan had reached a moment of life and death.

When the time came, who knew which foreign race would profit from the treasured map.

Rather than that, it was better to give it directly to that unfathomable senior.

Perhaps it would earn them a bit more goodwill. Even if he would not protect the Xia Clan for three hundred years, it would be good enough if he could act just once.

Even if the worst happened and the senior remained unmoved,

it was still far better for the treasured map to be in the hands of the Human Clan than in the hands of the foreign race that would destroy the Xia Clan.

Just then,

the Old Man's brow suddenly relaxed.

His entire body loosened as he let out a contented sigh.

????

What was going on? He had been worried sick just moments ago.

Why did he suddenly feel happy and excited?

He turned his head and looked at his disciple, who wore the same comfortable expression.

The brow that had just relaxed furrowed again.

Something was wrong.

Very wrong.

His disciple was no ordinary person.

At that moment, he too sensed that something was amiss.

He turned his head and saw the suspicion in his master's eyes.

Without hesitation,

he instantly made his move, grabbed the Old Man, and with a boom, smashed through the carriage. His body flashed as he prepared to flee far away.

However, at that moment, a mysterious gate suddenly appeared in the sky. Caught unprepared, he plunged headfirst into it.

"Fuck!"

All that remained in place was the Heavenly Dragon Horse, stopped with a bewildered expression, along with a vigorous curse!

P.S.: Thanks to groveplace for the 100 reward.

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Thanks to Yu for the 2352 reward.