After Xu Feng wrote "Ren Bo" on the Divine Tablet, a spark of spiritual light settled upon it.
And that was not all.
Drained of strength, Xu Feng fetched paper and a brush.
On a square sheet, he drew Ren Bo's likeness with clumsy but precise strokes.
He looked nothing like the kindly little old man of later generations.
Ren Bo, this Earth Uncle, did not look old at all.
Nor was he gentle or benevolent. He loved a fight and never backed down.
His horns, hands, feet, teeth, and eyes were all weapons.
With antlers and a bear's body, he had a powerful, fearless figure with a savage, domineering air.
He had three eyes, each gleaming fiercely. He looked more beast than man.
The sight was unnerving!
Once Xu Feng finished the portrait, it too became a spiritually connected, consecrated object. He hung it on the wall behind the offering table and worshipped with devotion. With both objects in place, the shrine's principal deity had taken his seat.
With that, Xu Feng's work was done—and done successfully!
The essence of incense offerings entered the Divine Tablet and was consumed by the deity. After several notices of "Offering Accepted," Xu Feng gained divine protection.
His Earth Uncle Protective Talisman also received a share of the offerings, growing more powerful!
It was obvious enough.
Xu Feng knew Sheep Leader had been quite a figure in life. He had dared to raid the tomb of a Corpse-Liberation Immortal, and after death, heavenly lightning had burned his corpse. Of the few things he left behind, a knife and a Protective Talisman were both formidable items.
He had been something of a legend. And for another legendary figure, Zhao San, to collect his remains afterward made a fitting end to that legend.
The Forest