That day, "Master, I want to improve so badly" all but dominated the trending lists across major platforms. Clips from the livestream spread rapidly, and netizens flocked to discuss them.
[Holy crap, when I first scrolled past it, I thought it was some new special effect. It was actually real?]
[I saw it myself in the livestream. Absolutely real.]
[I knew immortal cultivation existed in this world!!]
[You're overthinking it. Immortal cultivation and Daoist cultivation aren't the same thing, okay? Those immortal cultivation novels were just adapted from Daoist cultivation. So-called immortals are really just people with stronger abilities.]
[Actually, early in the year, I came across a few celestial masters claiming to be official representatives doing educational livestreams. But apparently they got exposed as frauds afterward, and then people reported their accounts and got them banned.]
[They only banned them back then because they were worried about the impact. I know those two celestial masters. Their masters are making them buckle down and cultivate properly now.]
[God, suddenly this world feels so terrifying. There could be ghosts all around us.]
[You're overthinking it. Under normal circumstances, ghosts can't approach living people. Ordinary little ghosts don't even dare appear during the day. They only dare come out and wander around at night.]
[What if we run into a powerful ghost, then!]
[The odds of a normal person running into a powerful ghost are lower than the odds of a plane crash, okay? Powerful ghosts have either cultivated for over a thousand years or died unjustly and turned into vicious ghosts because their resentment lingered. If one really appeared, the Investigation Bureau would discover and eliminate it.]
[Wow, you know a lot. Got some inside sources, buddy?]
[I'm just a paranormal enthusiast. I don't know that much.]
Besides the curious netizens, the platforms also deployed plenty of paid commenters as instructed to steer public opinion and avoid causing panic.
Nobody knew just how many accounts claiming to belong to official celestial masters had sprung up online that day to educate people about all kinds of mystic knowledge. Their purpose, naturally, was to let everyone know that there was no need to panic if they encountered paranormal incidents in the future. These were all things they could call the police about.
For more than forty years, to encourage technological development, the country had publicly promoted the idea of rejecting feudal superstition and believing in science.
But some things simply existed. The consequence of relentlessly concealing the world's other side was that, over the years, many people who truly encountered supernatural phenomena either failed to recognize them or sought help indiscriminately, ultimately reaching a dead end and dying unnatural deaths.
The number of people dying in paranormal incidents rose sharply every year. Sometimes, when a large-scale paranormal incident suddenly broke out and the Investigation Bureau failed to arrive in time, casualties soared even further. Nobody knew only because the higher-ups had suppressed all of it.
Finally, starting this year, the higher-ups were going to secretly pilot a plan to spread accurate mystic knowledge in a reasonable manner. Without revealing those brutal facts, they would spread the idea that "the paranormal isn't frightening" among the public. Simply put, everyone was to treat "the paranormal" as a new kind of illness. If they encountered it, they could ask the police to handle it, and the authorities had corresponding means of resolving it.
The production team behind "Master" existed for precisely this purpose.
When it was nearly time for the group dinner, someone knocked on Qu Nanzhu's door to call him downstairs.
The restaurant Director Li had booked was on the hotel's twelfth floor, which was dedicated to banquet halls.
All the staff ate together as well, while the cameras were fixed in positions that could capture the guests. To avoid spoiling the mood, Director Li really did say only a few words before inviting everyone to dig in.
Daoqing and Daoming sat on either side of Qu Nanzhu. Lu Luqing also wanted to sit next to the Master, but he couldn't beat the two celestial masters to it and had to settle for a nearby seat.
There were no drinking-table rituals or insincere pleasantries required. Everyone ate and chatted among themselves, thoroughly enjoying the meal.
After dinner, Bai Shiyu called across a table to Director Li, "Brother Li, tell us what we're doing tomorrow!"
Luo Wenxi took a sip of tea and said mildly, "I think keeping the suspense is pretty nice, too."
Director Li pointed at Bai Shiyu. A little drunk, his voice sounded somewhat floaty. "No respect for your elders. I'm not telling you, brat."
Everyone burst out laughing.
[Shiyu, sobbing: That's not what you said during the day!]
[I'm dying. Director Li's eyes are already glazed over, and he's still drinking.]
[Wait, nobody told me God Qu could eat this much.]
[That little mouth hasn't stopped.]
Chen Xun took a bottle of fruit tea out of the bag he carried and tapped Lu Luqing, who was sitting behind him, on the shoulder. "Hello, could you please pass this to Qu Nanzhu?"
Lu Luqing took it and gave Chen Xun a puzzled look.
Chen Xun said, "I'm his assistant." Temporarily.
Lu Luqing said, "Oh."
He turned back around and handed the fruit tea to Qu Nanzhu. "Master, your assistant just asked me to give you this."
Having eaten his fill, Qu Nanzhu looked up and took it, then glanced at Chen Xun, who was sitting sideways to him and using his phone.
"Thank you."
Just then, Chen Xun's message arrived as well.
Chen Xun: [Today's food was too greasy. Have some fruit tea to wash it down.]
Qu's Bamboo: [You're so thoughtful. Thank you.]
Chen Xun: [?]
The other party withdrew a message.
Chen Xun: [You're welcome.]
Qu Nanzhu pushed the straw in and happily began drinking.
The others had finished eating and were getting ready to leave, too. Director Li's table was still drinking, and they had even dragged Zhou Mingzhong over.
After saying goodbye to Director Li, the guests returned to their respective rooms.
Qu Nanzhu remembered that he still had three fortunes left to tell that day, so he started a livestream without warning as soon as he got back.
Bewildered and pleasantly surprised, his fans clicked into the stream.
[Sitting bolt upright on my deathbed. God Qu is streaming again tonight?]
Qu Nanzhu hummed in acknowledgment. "Yes, I still have three fortunes left to tell."
Then he let out a "Wow!" "Why are there so many people?"
[Master, you're famous! You've already got forty million followers on Weibo!]
[We're all here to gaze up at the great master!]
[Officially certified! Great master, please accept my knees!]
Qu Nanzhu smiled. "I'll pass on the knees. Get ready to connect."
As he spoke, he enabled guest calls, and an excited young girl soon connected.
"Aaah, hello, Master! My name is Doudou!"
"Hello, Doudou. What would you like your fortune told about?"
Doudou wanted to ask whether her current boyfriend was suitable for marriage, because she occasionally had the feeling that he didn't love her very much. But after reading her face, Qu Nanzhu's answer was "a rare find that can't be sought out." Doudou understood immediately and disconnected after thanking him repeatedly.
Of the next two readings, one concerned physical health and the other financial fortune. They were finished in less than half an hour.
His fans felt for him after his exhausting day and didn't try to keep him streaming. Instead, they all urged him to rest early.
After a night of pleasant dreams, the next morning arrived, with the production team once again providing a wake-up service.
Unlike yesterday, everyone greeted Qu Nanzhu with great enthusiasm when they saw him today.
After breakfast, they drove to the second filming location. With yesterday's experience as a foundation, the production team no longer held back today and took the guests straight to a village haunted by an evil ghost.
After handing out the jade talismans, Daoming gave the guests a concise explanation of the village's situation.
Mountains stood on both sides of the village, leaving it with barely any daylight, and another mountain blocked its front, creating a configuration that gathered yin energy. At first, people in the village simply kept falling ill for no apparent reason, and the village doctor couldn't identify the cause.
Later, people gradually began reporting to the village chief that their livestock had died of illness. Within a few days, half the village's livestock was gone. Thinking it was an epidemic, the village chief hurriedly had people burn all the dead animals.
But afterward, the situation didn't improve. More and more poultry died, and more and more people fell ill. The villagers believed someone had angered the mountain god and that this was its punishment. The village chief thought that made sense, so he gathered the villagers again to slaughter pigs and ducks as offerings to the mountain god.
Fortunately, his son, who had been studying away from home, returned at this point. Upon hearing what was happening, he immediately called the police.
"So, in the end, this matter was handed over to us to handle." Daoming wore an official smile. "I hope everyone will reject blind feudal superstition. If you encounter difficulties you can't resolve, be sure to call the police, all right?"
[Hahaha, okay, got it!]
[Feudal superstition really is no good. Let's all embrace scientific Daoist cultivation.]