[Gushang Peace-Waves Society], Matchmaking, The River God Festival's Strangeness

Luo Bin felt somewhat offended and was just thinking about how to respond when he saw a young girl run out, her style completely different from Chen Manqing's.

If Chen Manqing was the dignified, aloof type, then the girl before him was the playful, adorable type...

Sixteen years old, wearing a bright yellow jacket over a white lace blouse, her chestnut-yellow curls tied into two bunches, with delicate, charming features.

This was the youngest miss of the Chen family, Chen Mansheng.

"River God Festival?" Luo Bin and Chen Jing both looked puzzled.

Chen Mansheng spotted Chen Jing and noticed the handsome, spirited young man standing beside him... and guessed what was going on.

Last night, her father Chen Tianren, Luo Wendi, and Elder Jiang had held their meeting in the Chen Residence's main hall. Aunt Ji Xuan was serving tea for the three of them, but she wasn't far away, and not a single word of their conversation escaped her ears.

And since she had a good relationship with Aunt Ji, she got the news early.

Even though she had never met this "martial talent" named Luo Bin, basic courtesy couldn't be skipped. After all, going by her father's intentions, he might very well marry their eldest sister Chen Manqing to this man...

She didn't think there was anything wrong with that, nor did she hold any resentment.

Sometimes she jokingly called herself the Chen family's marriage tool, but she knew her own worth well enough... If her elder sister married him, it would strengthen the bond between him and the Chen family.

Chen Mansheng squeezed out a syrupy sweet smile and said, "So you must be Brother Luo, right? Dad thinks highly of you, you know. Nice to meet you—I'm Chen Mansheng."

Luo Bin returned the smile. "Second Miss."

Chen Manqing seemed exhausted from handling the family's move to the estate last night, and was still asleep in her room even as the sun slanted westward. The group chatted on and off in the living room.

Ji Xuan had asked a question earlier without getting an answer, but she wasn't in a hurry. Right now, she was busy cutting fruit and fetching snacks for Luo Bin and the others.

"Second Sister, is the 'River God Festival' you mentioned at Yingshui Ferry?" Chen Jing asked, stuffing a cherry into his mouth.

"That's right. Want to come along? Elder Jiang is at the estate too. Staying another night here wouldn't be a big deal..."

Chen Jing perked up with excitement. "That sounds great. I haven't been out of the city to play in ages. When Big Brother gets back, I'm definitely making him take me to Jinmen to explore. Staying cooped up in Ping City this little place is such a waste!"

Luo Bin chimed in at the right moment. "What is the eldest young master doing in Jinmen? Handling business?"

Chen Jing and Chen Mansheng exchanged a glance, and the former spoke up. "Well..."

"If it's not convenient to say, that's fine. I was being presumptuous."

"Oh, Brother Luo, what are you saying? You're practically family now... It's not that Big Brother's matters can't be talked about, but just don't spread it around after you hear it."

Chen Jing's young face turned serious, his voice firm.

Luo Bin's heart tightened, and he replied earnestly, "Don't worry. I'll keep my mouth shut."

"Big Brother joined an organization in Jinmen called the 'Gushang Peace-Waves Society.' The name sounds a bit confusing, doesn't it?

Gushang is another name for Jinmen. 'Waves' means water, and 'Peace-Waves' means to calm the waters... As for why calm the waters, after what happened at the 'Moon Mantle,' you should understand by now.

The severity of the demonic calamity in Great Xin is unprecedented."

Chen Mansheng spat out a cherry pit from her tender lips and cut in, "You came from a humble background, so you don't know much about the former Great Li dynasty, naturally. Demons have existed since ancient times. But three hundred years ago, when Great Li was founded, the Green Satchel Warlocks of the Imperial Observatory broke the feng shui and severed the dragon veins, and Great Li's founding emperor issued the 'Zi-Wu Edict' forbidding old-era monsters from becoming spirits. Along with the Jia Shen Blank, these three things mark the beginning and end of Great Li's three-hundred-year rise and fall..."

Luo Bin's previous self had no way of accessing such hidden secrets. Even though he was just called "humble," it was the truth, and he didn't feel looked down upon... He followed up with his doubts:

"Does this have anything to do with the demonic calamity?"

Chen Mansheng dropped her flippant attitude. Seeing that someone was actually willing to listen to her story seriously, her sense of accomplishment swelled, and she grew animated:

"The severed dragon veins release a substance called 'Turbid Qi,' while intact dragon veins emit 'Clear Qi.' The former fuels demonic beings, while the latter is used by people for cultivation...

The 'Zi-Wu Edict' in particular was a 'heavenly rule' pressing down on countless spirits. Suppressed for three hundred years, the moment Great Li collapsed, those monsters and demons madly seized the 'Qi' in the world...

Add in the warlord chaos across the land, with corpses littering the fields... and you get the current situation."

After saying this, Chen Mansheng added, "So there are things in the water too, and they're even harder to deal with than those on land. The 'Gushang Peace-Waves Society' is an organization set up to quell these so-called 'water calamities'..."

Luo Bin fell into thought, gradually piecing together the worldview in his mind. These monsters weren't born from "unknowable entities" or "rule-based horror stories."

That put him at ease. As long as there was a traceable origin, it was fine...

Unlike a certain work from his past life, where Yang Jian faced a world of five turbid evils and vengeful ghosts descending upon the mortal realm.

Otherwise, this little "Crimson Martial Arts Modifier" really wouldn't be enough to handle it.

"I still need to get stronger. Looking at it this way, the outside world is way too damn dangerous..."

A thought suddenly struck Luo Bin, and he turned to Chen Mansheng. "Second Miss, the 'River God Festival' you mentioned—will there be any danger?"

Chen Mansheng waved her hand with a flourish, quite bold. "Yes!

But Yingshui Ferry isn't far from Long Wind Pier, and there are steamships and merchant vessels passing through. It's not as scary as you'd imagine...

If we went knowing there was absolutely no danger, wouldn't that be too boring?"

Chen Jing was so startled he quickly covered his sister's mouth—she was a year older than him. If Aunt Ji heard and tattled to their father, they'd probably never get to go out again.

Luo Bin: "..."

By evening, Luo Bin had enjoyed a fine meal with the Chen family. Under Ji Xuan's pointed gaze, he went and knocked on Chen Manqing's door—she was still asleep.

Thump! Thump!

No response.

Luo Bin's back was faintly damp with sweat as he retreated in defeat. He knew Madam Ji meant well in playing matchmaker, but this was far too abrupt.

Ji Xuan, frustrated by his lack of nerve, pushed the door open directly, only to find Chen Manqing still sleeping soundly. She quietly slipped back out.

"A-Bin, you still need to toughen up that courage. A man can't win a wife without a thick skin. You, A-Jing, and Mansheng are going to watch the 'River God Festival,' right?"

It's this late...

But with you along, I'm much more at ease. There's also a troupe putting on performances over there, all funded by the nearby villages. It's liveliest at night...

Luo Bin was flustered by her words. As a man who bore the title of "Xiao Chunan" in both his past and present lives, his tactics were still green. To ease the awkwardness, he asked:

"Aunt Ji, aren't you coming?"

"You youngsters go have fun. What business does an old, faded woman like me have joining in..."

...The three young people loaded up with fruits and snacks, accompanied by Hu Junzhi and Zhang Huai, drove a jeep toward Yingshui Ferry.

Jiang Ling, reclining on a couch in the estate with his eyes half-closed, glanced in their direction, shook his head, and chuckled: "Youngsters sure have guts..."

About fifteen minutes later, Luo Bin was eating when a faint, gratified smile crept across his face.

[Spirit Charm +1]

Truly a reassuring notification.

The jeep rattled over the gravel path of the ferry and stopped by the banks of the Yingshui River. The moment the door swung open, the clamor of gongs and drums, wrapped in the river wind, hit them in the face.

At the center of the riverbank stood an altar ten feet high. The incense table was laden with offerings of three sacrificial animals and five grains, while incense sticks as thick as an arm burned in the censer, smoke swirling.

Several Duan Gong in Daoist robes, holding Peach Wood Swords, paced in ritual steps around the incense table, chanting the "Water Suppressing Incantation"—this was the spirit-invocation segment of the local River God Festival.

Chen Jing suddenly exclaimed, "Look—what's that on the incense table?"

Chen Mansheng said impatiently, "What could be on the incense table? Just the three animals and five grains, right..."

Luo Bin, having broken through to the Golden Skin Pass, had sharp eyesight. He swept a glance, and his heart jolted several times. Then he looked at Zhang Huai and Hu Junzhi, both Martial Masters like himself.

From each other's eyes, the three read the same emotion—shock.