Lu Ding, male, nineteen, transmigrator, bearer of the golden finger Monster Containment Prison, and a first-year student in Yunhai University's Department of Geological Exploration.
Summer break had arrived, and with nothing better to do, Lu Ding decided to finish his internship report ahead of time.
The university required every student to complete an internship. They had to find their own placement, preferably something relevant to their major, though it wasn't a big problem if it wasn't. Credits were awarded based on the quality of the internship report.
It worked out perfectly.
Lu Ding was short on money anyway. After all, he was a transmigrator, and one with a golden finger at that. Having both parents dead was a fundamental law.
He had only been able to attend university thanks to government assistance and the scholarship his good grades had earned him.
He still had to earn his own living expenses.
Making money meant working, and an internship meant working too.
He might as well combine the two. Besides, the sooner he submitted his internship report, the better.
Just as Lu Ding was worrying about what to do over the summer, he happened across a recruitment ad for a geological surveyor.
It even said they could provide proof of internship.
The pay wasn't bad either: eight thousand a month for students from prestigious universities.
For anyone with a special talent, the salary was negotiable.
As for what that talent was, probably only students majoring in architecture or geological exploration would have some idea.
Feng shui!
That was right, feng shui. In a technological society, people didn't dare openly discuss mystical matters.
But in industries that touched on such things, you had to believe at least a little.
As it happened, Lu Ding knew a thing or two about them.
He wasn't a materialist.
He had already transmigrated. What materialism was there left to uphold?
Besides, his golden finger explicitly called itself the Monster Containment Prison. Didn't that make it obvious that this world definitely wasn't as simple as it looked?
If there weren't any monsters, what was the golden finger for?
So, ever since he had sorted out his thoughts after transmigrating, Lu Ding had been delving into the occult.
Right up until today.
All so that when he found a monster someday, he wouldn't be left fumbling.
He would go straight up and kick its ass with the right remedy for the ailment!
This referred specifically to things like ghosts.
If it were a flesh-and-blood monster, Lu Ding might hesitate a little.
But when it came to spirits and vengeful ghosts, although Lu Ding had no practical experience, he felt he was terrifyingly strong.
Whether those methods worked or not, he certainly wasn't going to chicken out.
And so, Lu Ding made the call. The man who answered was middle-aged and spoke less-than-standard Mandarin.
Upon hearing that Lu Ding came with a special talent, he immediately invited him for an interview.
Lu Ding arrived and explained why he was there.
The project supervisor interviewed him personally.
Lu Ding launched straight into feng shui and geomancy, grave construction and headstone placement, cutting through mountains and laying roads, and taboos surrounding dragon veins. With references to the classics thrown in, he won the project supervisor over completely.
As for why he didn't mention reading birth charts or fortunes...
That wouldn't do. Although Lu Ding knew how, he kept it to himself.
What if they asked him to demonstrate?
Lu Ding couldn't guarantee that sort of thing. If he got something wrong, where else would he find an internship with benefits this good?
And so, amid repeated expressions of satisfaction from the project manager, Lu Ding successfully landed the job.
After nearly a month of hard work, just as payday was approaching, something happened at the construction site!
That evening, just before work ended.
A large rock was dug up at the site, and red liquid was seeping from a damaged section, just like blood.
It frightened the workers out of their wits on the spot.
Upon hearing the news, Lu Ding excitedly rushed to the scene.
The project manager was there too, with a dense ring of people crowded around, pointing at the large rock and commenting.
Lu Ding squeezed into the crowd. Seeing him, the project manager pulled him over and asked quietly.
"Lu Ding, you know a lot. Take a look-what the hell is this?"
It was true that Lu Ding knew a lot, but it was all knowledge from books and ancient texts. He had never seen anything like this in real life, and there were countless records of bleeding stones in ancient texts.
Checking them one by one would take far too long.
He simply grabbed the hammer drill beside him.
With excitement written all over his face, he said, "Who cares what it is? If it bleeds, that means we can kill it!!!"
He had waited far too long for this day!!!
Finally!
He had finally seen something that might be a monster!
He had to kill it today!!
Seeing Lu Ding about to charge in with the hammer drill, the people beside him hurried to stop him. "Young Lu, you mustn't! You mustn't! If you violate a taboo, bad luck will follow!"
"Exactly! This might be some kind of taisui."
"I heard the older generation say that taisui grow underground, and eating them can prolong your life."
"No, no, I heard my grandpa say that Taisui is a baleful god. Better to provoke the King of Hell than Taisui. I say we bury him again."
Seeing everyone stopping him from taking action, Lu Ding thought, This won't do.
"Taisui, my ass. Our construction site has work to do. Isn't it just a rock we dug up? If it delays the project, who's taking responsibility?"
He turned and looked around. No one spoke.
Finally, Lu Ding's gaze settled on the project manager, Luo Anping.
At that moment, everyone looked at him.
It left Luo Anping riding a tiger, unable to get off.
Right. They couldn't let this thing hold up the project.
Luo Anping cursed inwardly. Fuck, why does every sort of crazy shit happen to me?
Unearthing things like this was the greatest taboo on a construction site.
They had dug one up last year and drawn the attention of the relevant authorities. Now there was another one this year. Heaven was deliberately making an enemy of him, Luo Anping.
Just then, Lu Ding added fuel to the fire.
"Nothing to say now, huh? Manager Luo's still the one who'll take the blame in the end. You've certainly worked out a fine little scheme. Manager Luo, just say the word. If you say we're not drilling this rock today, I'll put the tools down right now."
Then sneak back tonight.
Those words sounded in Lu Ding's mind.
He continued, "If you give the nod, I'll drill seven or eight holes straight through it, top to bottom. Don't forget, I've got skills too. My birth chart is tough. I'm not afraid of these things at all."
Those words were what gave Luo Anping confidence.
Originally, he hadn't wanted to provoke this thing. In construction, it was better to believe such things existed than assume they didn't.
But when Lu Ding said he had skills, Luo Anping finally realized that he wasn't the one doing it. Lu Ding was. What did he have to fear?
He gritted his teeth and stamped his foot.
"Drill it!!"
Lu Ding could no longer hold back the smile on his face.
"Everyone, stand back!"
Seeing that they couldn't dissuade him, and that they weren't the ones doing it anyway, the workers scattered to the sides to watch.
Only Lu Ding remained. He switched on the hammer drill, raised it, and drove it into the rock.
As the hammer drill broke through the outer layer, red liquid streamed down, some of it splashing onto Lu Ding's clothes.
Seeing the excitement on his face.
The workers watching the spectacle all took another few steps back.
A trace of fear toward this seemingly young fellow, Lu Ding, also rose in their hearts.
He was seriously ruthless!!!!
Luo Anping's eyes widened. Hiring Lu Ding had really been the right choice. When something happened, he really did step up!!
A raise. He absolutely needs a raise. Payday's tomorrow-give him a bonus. Ten thousand!
As the hammer drill's relentless rat-a-tat filled his ears, Lu Ding's heart nearly leaped into his throat.
Why hasn't my golden finger done anything yet!!
Give me some kind of response!!!!!
As he cried out inwardly, a large chunk of stone broke away from the stone sphere.
A horrifying sight appeared. Two tightly shut eyes were embedded in the sphere. Before anyone could cry out, the eyes on the stone sphere opened. Everyone there was an ordinary person. When had they ever seen anything like this?
Shouting and screaming about ghosts and monsters, they ran.
Even Luo Anping was no exception.
But he saw Lu Ding still standing where he was. Conflict crossed his face, and in the end, he didn't flee alone. He turned back and grabbed Lu Ding.
"Lu, come on!!! This thing's a monster!!!"