First Meeting with Wang Dao Xuan

The special scent in the small courtyard was quite mixed.

It had the smell of incense from an Earth God Temple, a warmth like a boulder, a strange earthy odor, and even a chilling scent akin to the Three Talents Demon Suppressing Coin...

It felt like a general store.

These scents were very faint, clearly indicating that even the items from the Xuan Gate weren't of high quality.

But this proved the other party was an expert!

Li Yan's anger turned to joy. Seeing the courtyard gate wide open, he stepped inside.

The courtyard wasn't large but was kept very clean. A jujube tree was planted on the left, and a stone trough with a fish tank was on the right, where several small red fish swam merrily.

A Bagua Mirror hung in the northwest corner, with a stone pedestal in the center.

The entire courtyard gave a feeling of freshness and peace.

Li Yan took a quick glance and understood.

The jujube wood represented wood, the fish tank represented water, the Bagua bronze mirror represented metal, and the central stone pedestal represented earth, anchoring the residence according to the Five Elements. It was just missing fire.

Li Yan turned his head to look, a smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.

That position was the kitchen, where the Kitchen God was enshrined, which represented fire.

The main house of the courtyard also had its door wide open, revealing an incense altar and a table inside, with a statue and many offerings.

The statue was of a Three-Eyed Taoist, holding a long sword. His Taoist robe was adorned with the sun, moon, stars, and the Four Symbols: Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise, making it look rather gaudy.

On the ancestral tablet, it read "Position of Mysterious Qi Manifesting Might Heavenly Lord Chen."

Li Yan didn't recognize it, but he could smell the attached incense, which was similar to that of an Earth God Temple. It was relatively faint but felt more majestic.

Inside the house, a middle-aged Taoist priest sat upright before a desk.

The Taoist priest was naturally Wang Dao Xuan. His attire was also interesting: he wore casual black clothes with a white short jacket, embroidered with Bagua on the back, a square cap on his head, and square-mouthed black cloth shoes on his feet, also embroidered with auspicious clouds.

This outfit was not cheap. Although washed until faded, it was still neat.

What was most captivating was his appearance: lean and vigorous, with a black beard reaching his chest, a clear and upright face, and very gentle eyes. While not exactly having an immortal's bearing, he inspired a sense of goodwill at first glance.

The Taoist priest held a wolf-hair brush and was drawing on a piece of paper.

Opposite him sat a young man, who looked like a scholar, with a bitter expression and brows full of worry.

Upon seeing this, Li Yan knew he was observing a fortune-telling session based on characters.

This profession was considered part of the Gold Gate in the Jianghu.

The Gold Gate is the head of the Eight Visible Gates, which consists of nine types, including fortune-telling, physiognomy, character analysis, spirit channeling, Yuan Guang, spirit communication, astrology, sorcery, and Spirit Mediums. Hence, there's a saying: "Nine Gold, Eighteen Leather, Seventy-Two Headmen."

It's called the head of the Eight Gates for two reasons. Firstly, people of the Gold Gate are adept at observing people and are eloquent, possessing many skills. Once one learns the methods of the Gold Gate, they can understand other gates by analogy.

For example, the methods of the Gold Gate can be directly applied to the Leather Gate, which deals with medicine and selling drugs, leading to the saying, "Gold changes to Leather, in the morning."

Secondly, this field is a mix of good and bad, with many swindlers pretending to be gods and ghosts. However, one might also encounter Xuan Gate People with extraordinary skills. Therefore, most people in the Jianghu tend to be polite when encountering them.

Even the bandits of the Lan Family Gate have eight things they don't rob, one of which is the Gold Gate.

Seeing that the other party was conducting business, Li Yan remained silent and stood outside the door.

Wang Dao Xuan clearly saw him but ignored him. Instead, he put down his brush, picked up the paper covered in writing, and examined it carefully for a moment. Then, under the young man's anxious gaze, he stroked his beard and said:

"You gave the character '金' (gold). Gold, the treasure of the world, the burden of man. Refined for a long time, it becomes good."

"Judging by your Eight Characters of destiny, you should have had a carefree youth, but these past few years have been filled with hardship, and your family's fortunes have declined..."

"Also, your financial luck has been poor recently, and you are being plagued by petty individuals..."

"Yes, yes, Daoist Priest, you are absolutely right!"

The young man nodded repeatedly, his face full of admiration.

Li Yan secretly chuckled upon seeing this.

He had personally witnessed some things and developed an interest in the Xuan Gate, but he was skeptical about fortune-telling. Even if it existed, he didn't believe ordinary mortals could glimpse the future.

Furthermore, he hadn't smelled any special scent.

His father had roughly explained this set of techniques, calling it a "horse tethering stake." The idea was to firmly tie down the client first, then lead them into the trap.

The young man before him was physically weak and had no calluses on his hands, but his clothes were somewhat worn. It was clear he was someone who had lived a life of comfort but whose family fortunes had declined – a scholar.

Besides, who would come for a fortune-telling if their life was going smoothly?

The young man had asked about the character "金." Even without breaking down the character, he knew the man was severely lacking money recently.

As for the petty individuals, who didn't have any behind their backs!

Li Yan saw through it but didn't expose it.

Firstly, it was a rule of the Jianghu. Exposing someone else's scheme was like smashing their rice bowl, unless it was too excessive and unbearable.

Secondly, this method was not rare at all.

In his previous life, there were countless methods: shouting false slogans to sell goods, inciting emotions to harvest leeks, using profit incentives to gain capital... Which of these wasn't a "horse tethering stake"?

The Jianghu doesn't change, and human hearts remain the same; they just wear different masks.

If nothing unexpected happens, the time for reaping will be next.

Indeed, without Wang Dao Xuan needing to say more, the young man sighed with a worried expression, "To tell you the truth, I'm originally from Xingping County. My family had a silk shop, but we ran into a swindler and were left with nothing."

"My father was angered to death, and my mother cried herself blind. I didn't amount to anything in my studies, which made me realize that scholars are useless."

"My wife and children have suffered along with me, and my classmates mock me. I truly can't go on living. What should I do..."

Li Yan found himself speechless.

When people are in hardship, they tend to chatter endlessly, seeking someone to confide in.

But this young man had laid bare his entire situation. Anyone with even a little experience could have easily taken advantage of him.

Wasn't this like a lamb walking into a tiger's mouth?

Wang Dao Xuan, however, was not in a hurry. His expression remained unchanged as he stroked his beard and listened.

After the young man finished speaking, he picked up the paper again and looked at it for a long time before speaking thoughtfully, "It's not that there's no solution."

The young man's eyes lit up. "Please guide me, Daoist Priest."

Wang Dao Xuan pointed to the paper and said, "Look at your golden character. The 'person' radical is on top, upright and strong, indicating that the solution lies with 'people'!"

"Benefactors?"

The young man pondered, "Are you saying, Daoist Priest, that a benefactor will help me?"

Wang Dao Xuan nodded slightly. "Of course, there will be a benefactor, but this benefactor is not someone else, but yourself."

"Me? How is that possible!"

The young man was clearly stunned.

Wang Dao Xuan stroked his beard and said, "You have this tribulation in your life, but as the saying goes, no gold is perfectly red, and no person is perfect. True gold needs fire to be refined. As long as you can withstand this tribulation by fire, your luck will turn. While you may not become immensely wealthy, you will be able to live a stable life."

"And this 'person' radical also represents villains causing trouble, suppressing your fortune. You should stay away from them, and misfortune will naturally disappear."

A glimmer of hope rose in the young man's eyes. He hesitated for a moment and then asked cautiously, "Daoist Priest, an Yin Yang Master came to our door and told my mother to worship an Yin Immortal, saying it could change fate and protect fortune..."

"Nonsense!"

Wang Dao Xuan's eyebrows shot up. "Even Confucius said, 'Keep close to the virtuous and far from the wicked; respect ghosts and spirits but keep them at a distance.' As the saying goes, it's easy to invite a god but hard to send one away. What's the difference between provoking those people and welcoming villains into your home?"

"If your true gold fears the fire's refinement, then what's the difference between it and rubble?"

"To sever your own fate is truly beyond saving!"

The young man's face immediately showed shame. "You speak wisely, Daoist Priest. I was wrong."

He then felt in his bosom, his face showing difficulty. "I wonder about the consultation fee..."

Wang Dao Xuan held up three fingers and said calmly, "Your fortune is blocked, and I dare not charge too much. Three copper coins. As for the rest, if you can withstand the fire's refinement, you can come back and pay me."

The young man's face immediately showed gratitude. He bowed deeply with clasped hands:

"Thank you, Daoist Priest."

With that, he took out three copper coins and turned to leave.

As he walked out the door, his eyes had become resolute.

Li Yan watched, somewhat stunned, and a sense of respect rose in his heart.

Ghosts and spirits cannot change fate; the human heart can.

He could already see that the young man's destiny might have changed at this very moment.

This was true guidance!

Thinking of this, he strode directly into the door. He first clasped his fists and then smiled, "Daoist Wang, you've let the sheep escape after the horse has been tethered and the bells have rung. You're smashing your own pot."

His "Spring Code" was meant to announce his identity and to allude to the recent events.

Wang Dao Xuan heard this and laughed heartily, then stood up and shook his head. "My words can determine life and death, and accumulate good karma. I dare not act carelessly."

"Besides, that skinny sheep doesn't have much meat on it. There's no need to take it."

Li Yan nodded slightly. "Daoist Priest is righteous."

However, Wang Dao Xuan seemed not to hear his compliment. He first looked at the knife on Li Yan's waist, then glanced out the window, and sighed, "Yesterday I dreamed of evil spirits surrounding me, and today I see a magpie carrying flowers. I anticipated someone visiting, but whether it's fortune or misfortune, I cannot calculate."

"A swordsman arriving? Is someone trying to take my life?"

"Please don't misunderstand, Daoist Priest."

Li Yan quickly clasped his hands. "Actually, I have a question I need your guidance on. If you can resolve my difficulty, I will offer a generous reward!"

His Spiritual Power was currently out of control, so he couldn't afford to worry about the Lu family's affairs.

Wang Dao Xuan secretly breathed a sigh of relief and stroked his beard, smiling. "Is the layman here to have his fortune told, or to choose feng shui?"

Li Yan said in a deep voice, "May I ask, what are 'Cold Altar Rampaging Soldiers'?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Dao Xuan almost pulled out his beard, his expression changing greatly.

"Who exactly are you, Your Excellency?!"