Fortune Rises from Books

Rustling...

Raindrops fell on the fields, and this parched land was rapidly transformed under the nourishment of the rain. Smoke rose from the cracked ground, spreading and enveloping the withered crops.

Raindrops seeped into the soil, cracks disappeared, and tender buds sprouted. This apocalyptic scene actually showed signs of recovery.

Seeing this, the villagers not far away all stared wide-eyed, their faces showing disbelief.

What they saw was not only the transformation of the parched land, but also the limited rainfall in that particular area; both of these were beyond the realm of common sense.

As the dried-up soil became moist, the once-dried-up stream began to fill with water again, showing signs of flowing once more.

Only then did the villagers realize what had happened. The wailing farmers knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly, speaking in words they couldn't understand, but their overwhelming gratitude was palpable.

"Has the heavens intervened?" The village elder was equally astonished. Then, realizing a possibility, he became excited and knelt down as well.

This emotion was highly contagious. Before long, the entire crowd was affected by the emotional fluctuations, and they all knelt down, kowtowing and praying to the gods. The place was immediately enveloped in emotions of awe, gratitude, and fear.

They either thanked the heavens or showed reverence to the Lord of the Land god, expressing gratitude to every deity they could think of.

As everyone kowtowed, the parched land had already turned green again, and the scorched crops sprouted new shoots in a short time, then grew rapidly and quickly returned to their Original Edition state.

This scene stirred everyone's emotions, making them forget everything else.

However, compared to the adults' excitement and worship, the teenagers still retained a childlike heart and were not completely infected by the fervor. Many of the toddlers rolled their big, dark eyes and looked around.

For them, what had happened in the past half-day was magical, amazing, and mysterious, but it did not inspire awe for some the Unseen being. After the initial panic subsided, it instead gave rise to curiosity and longing.

In the children's senses, from the initial breaking of the sky and the revelation of light, to the subsequent withering of crops and drying up of streams, and finally to the present scene of rain and the resurgence of life, everything is so fascinating.

Besides, the disheveled Daoist priest also piqued the interest of several children. Unlike the adults who were busy worshipping the gods, these children were not focused and their eyes wandered. They soon noticed that the disheveled Daoist priest, who had stood in the parched land when the crops were reviving, had disappeared without a trace.

A living, breathing person vanished in the blink of an eye. This discovery intrigued the children, who wanted to tell their family members and adults, but the latter had no interest in such matters.

Even if they knew, they would only regard that Daoist priest as a manifestation of a deity, and become even more respectful and fearful.

Finally, under pressure from their families, the children reluctantly knelt down, outwardly feigning reverence, but their eyes were still searching for that disheveled figure.

At this very moment, the disheveled Daoist priest, whom the children were searching for, was already several miles away. Watching Qiu Yan's retreating figure hurrying ahead, he casually called out—

"Fellow Daoist, please wait."

These words reached Qiu Yan's ears, causing Qiu Yan to instinctively stop. But at that moment, Qiu Yan's Divine Soul suddenly twitched, and a dazzling light appeared within it.

This ray of light expanded and then coalesced into a cluster, vaguely resembling the outline of a book. As the pages were turned, several pages flew out and Divine Soul throughout Qiu Yan's Divine Soul, influencing his judgment and interfering with his thoughts.

As a result, Qiu Yan did not stop as instructed and continued walking.

"Huh?" The disheveled Daoist priest who spoke up changed his expression slightly, a glint of light flashing in his eyes before disappearing.

Immediately afterwards, Qiu Yan also regained consciousness. He was startled at first, but then he scanned the light with his mind and clearly discerned its reality. This light was the last wisp of Book Mine essence.

On his Heart Path back from Scholar Forest, Qiu Yan activated several Phantom Books collected by Ginseng Baby. Among them, three books were particularly special. Two of the books were imbued with the Qiu Yan -Jadebreaker Sword Technique and the Eight-Character Ancient Seal Inscription, awakening them from their slumber. The last book remained in his soul, to be studied later.

However, the atmosphere and content of this last Phantom Books are completely different from the others.

The other books were either about chess, calligraphy and painting, or even Swordsmanship and music, and could always teach people something. But this last book was mysterious and varied. Qiu Yan tried to find the specific content several times, but could not find it. He only vaguely sensed that it was related to Fortune.

Qiu Yan hadn't expected that the Phantom Books, which had been dormant for a while, would react to a single sentence from the person behind him, even interfering with his actions and causing him to continue forward instead of stopping when he should have.

"What's going on? What's so mysterious about this last Phantom Books?" With a thought, Qiu Yan recalled his feelings just now and couldn't help but feel doubtful. But then he noticed that the Phantom Books in his soul was thinner than before, as if some of its pages had disappeared.

"This is really strange..." Qiu Yan pondered to himself, vaguely grasping the effects of this Phantom Books. However, his immediate priority was the person following closely behind him.

The incident happened so suddenly that Qiu Yan instinctively stopped. Now, recalling it, he immediately felt something was strange. At that moment, it seemed that the Karma and effect, the Fortune of the surroundings, were all affected and changed by that simple sentence.

Moreover, upon careful consideration, Qiu Yan immediately realized that even if someone suddenly spoke, it wouldn't be enough to make Qiu Yan Fleshly Body responding. Besides, the voice appeared so abruptly, and the speaker hadn't even noticed when they approached!

This gives a glimpse into the opponent's skill and cultivation.

Besides, Qiu Yan felt a chill run down his spine when he recalled the other person's words. He knew that he was familiar with those words in his previous life, but they were accompanied by a series of fallen figures.

"Why are you in such a hurry, fellow Daoist?" The disheveled Daoist behind him caught up in a few steps, now keeping pace with Qiu Yan. He grinned, acting as if they were old friends, and said, "Fellow Daoist was fighting with that Golden Crow Daoist when this old Daoist happened to be passing by. I thought the people around were going to suffer a terrible disaster, but I didn't expect you to be True Essence kind-hearted, sacrificing your own Qi and Blood to quell the calamity. You are truly admirable."

He expressed his admiration and made a gesture of cupping his hands in respect, but as he walked briskly, his mud-covered face grinning, he gave off a carefree and frivolous impression, which was quite strange.

Turning his head slightly, Qiu Yan sized up the man's face and noticed that he was not young, which immediately put him on guard.

"This man has followed me all the way here. It's our first time meeting, yet he acts like an old friend. Judging from his words, he was right there when I fought the Golden Crow Daoist. I wonder what his purpose is in following me."

Thinking this, Qiu Yan secretly channeled his energy, preparing to release his Incense Faith and divine power into his Soul Aperture. Even his Heart Fire quickly tensed up, and his inner Heart Ape sat cross-legged, showing a tendency to erupt at any moment.

Despite having made numerous preparations, Qiu Yan remained outwardly calm and didn't reveal his true feelings, simply replying, "Having disturbed the villagers' peace, I should make amends."

As soon as he finished speaking, his internal energy surged, increasing his speed even further.

"Well said, wonderfully said," the disheveled Daoist priest chuckled, shaking his head as he followed closely behind. "However, what's most commendable is that you, fellow Daoist, have done good deeds without seeking credit, saving many villagers without leaving your name or appearance. In doing so, you've only benefited the Lord of the Land. In my opinion, you should hurry back and reveal your identity so that the mortal will remember you." This man walked with an unsteady gait, as if he were drunk, but he followed Qiu Yan closely.

Qiu Yan narrowed his eyes. "The disaster started because of me, and it was also averted because of me, all within the time it takes to eat a meal. To use this to coerce gratitude is utterly unreasonable. Even if that Lord of the Land gains an advantage, so what? Who in this world can always gain an advantage without letting others benefit in the slightest? Relying on good fortune without restraint, there will be no chance of survival if it turns back on them later."

His words contained a subtle warning.

Upon hearing this, the slovenly Daoist priest looked up and laughed heartily. He pulled a gourd from his robes, took a large gulp, and then stopped in his tracks.

At this moment, Qiu Yan was moving at an extremely fast speed, and the surrounding scenery was moving backward like a carousel. The moment the Daoist stopped, he was immediately left behind and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

However, a sentence drifted from afar—

"Fellow Daoist speaks well. He is a remarkable person. I will remember him. If fate allows, we will meet again in the future."

As soon as he finished speaking, the man's aura dissipated. Even with Qiu Yan's heightened senses, he still couldn't detect the slovenly Daoist's presence. He immediately felt a chill and several questions popped into his head.

"What is the background of this Daoist priest? What level of cultivation has he reached?"

Qiu Yan's questions, of course, had no answers. As a flash of light appeared ahead and the Thought Fire returned, Qiu Yan had no choice but to gather his thoughts, guide the flame with his Divine Sense, and then reach out and grab an extremely weak divine Divine Soul from the fire.

"Qiu Yan, you'd better..." The Divine Soul was about to speak, but Qiu Yan sealed its thoughts and threw it into a porcelain bottle.

After doing all this, Qiu Yan stopped and sat down on a rock by the roadside.

Not long after, a light rose from the ground, then turned to reveal the figures of two men, each dressed in official uniforms and holding a long knife. Their attire resembled that of the city's constables, but they emanated a blue light and exuded an aura of authority.

The azure Divine Radiance represents the Sixth Grade of Divine Rank deity.

Qiu Yan rose and stepped forward, bowing respectfully. "Student Qiu Yan greets the two deities."

ps:

Thank you to "xiezhiwww", "wiler", "Great Idler, Little Fool", "Skywalker_Xiang", "tilaf", "Old Man Nick", "Eating Is Greatest", "qfhzmp", and "" for your monthly votes!

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I was too busy today and was delayed a bit. The second update will probably be after 11 o'clock.