At night, Professor Han slept soundly in bed.
Once the lights went out, the lanterns outside illuminated the entire mountain around the Mount-Viewing Kiln Factory.
Light as scarlet as blood shone in through the window.
The window lattice cast its pattern across Professor Han's face.
Those lanterns were like eyes, staring down beneath the Kiln. The Yin Gods that normally roamed here had all become their wicks, turning this place into the gloomy Divine Kingdom of that Three-Official Yin God.
Outside, an equally Uncanny, mercury-colored aura formed strange, tree-shaped Incantation Script, weaving around the little building to keep the lanterns from flying inside.
The Great Tiger formed from the Uncanny aura stood beside Mazu at the foot of the first-floor stairs, both looking up at the lanterns drifting outside.
One was a Door God, while the other oversaw matters at sea.
None of this gave either of them cause to intervene.
Besides, the Three-Official Yin God turned a blind eye to the two deities.
He did not dare provoke them.
Mazu was speaking with Yu Lei. She saw through the essence of this art at a glance: it was an ancient form of witchcraft, unrelated even to the earliest Celestial Masters' Way.
It had borrowed the guise of the Three Officials Bestowing Blessings.
"It's witchcraft, a method of stealing fortune and determining fate.
"I've seen methods like this before.
"But they've become rare in recent years. If he keeps this up, someone will soon swoop in and steal the fruits of his labor.
"These fate configurations may all be false, but once obtained and fitted onto someone else, they can still give that person a few good years.
"Especially that headless Uncanny. His essence is extremely unusual, and the fate configuration formed from it is actually more useful than the