Chapter Seven: The Transformation of the Lotus and the Selection of the Ghost Gate, Concealing a Blade Behind a Smile, A Heart Filled with Malice

After waiting for a while, seeing that no one in the temple responded, a look of ferocity and ruthlessness gradually appeared on his face. He suddenly spat on the ground and muttered a curse.

Before he could say more, Liu Piyun had already interrupted him: "Wait! My livelihood is not something you need to worry about; I will arrange it freely. What I am curious about is how you plan to handle this Ghost Gate?" He let out a cold laugh: "If you think you can rely on that person from earlier to obtain something to control this situation, I advise you to give up. This is the Ghost Gate; it is not something that can be dealt with by the tricks of small households!"

They drank this wine until the sky turned white. By the time the crowd of people and animals dispersed, Old August was already unable to move. They simply left him in the tavern of Fat Lu, while Supreme Treasure asked Old Liu to carry him back to the temple for safekeeping.

After speaking, he remained silent, turned around, and closed the temple door with a click

Suddenly, everything came to a halt

The fellow who rushed out of the temple also plopped down on the ground, and before those in robes could regain their senses, he was already wailing while patting his backside: "Oh my goodness, what an unseeing thing is blocking my door! Is it a person or a ghost? If it's a person, at least make some noise; look at what it did to my wine gourd, it’s all smashed... What a pity, this gourd contains such fine wine, and I haven't even taken a sip yet..." He cried out in a heart-wrenching manner, flailing his arms and legs, yet there was only thunder without a drop of rain, no tears to be found!

A fat man in a water silk shirt followed closely behind the car. As soon as he got out, he ran up to the lean old man and asked, "How is it? This place matches what you calculated, right? The location is correct, isn't it?"

Before he finished speaking, the thin old man looked at the changing shadows of the compass in his hand and raised his hand to grasp the red string

There was no way to avoid it. As the three brothers caught a whiff of the foul, sour smell of alcohol from his nose, they were thrown off balance and fell out! "Brother! Brother!" Several of the robe-clad brothers hurriedly called out, reaching out to help, but it was already too late—this plump fellow tumbled down the steps of the temple in a rolling motion

The Supreme Treasure is unsure whether he truly understands or not, but in any case, that head is nodding like a spinning wheel

Immediately, someone responded and turned to ride away. Only then did the fat man smile and say, "Master Liu, do you think this is acceptable?" His handling of the matter was well-founded and reasonable, leaving everyone else momentarily stunned—Liu Biyun, who originally intended to muddle through and resolve the issue, found himself at a loss for words.

By the time the sky brightened, all the people in the ghost market had already fallen asleep. The entire City God Temple was silent, save for the chirping of birds and the whispering of the wind—this was its true night, devoid of ghosts and human presence, quiet as a grave.

Ding! Ding ding! Ding ding ding ding ding ... ...

Several brothers stared at each other in astonishment

The old man was not idle either; he took out thirty-six silver bowls and dishes from the box, instructed someone to fetch river water to pour into the bowls. After the red thread was finished, he ordered his disciples to place them on top of the wax poles, while he took out incense sticks, lit them, and inserted them one by one beneath those wax poles.

Tick...! A few droplets of water fell from beneath the silver cup, landing on the incense head!

Beside it lies a gourd that has been split in two, and there is a pool of wine on the ground

Since that is the case, I will not waste any more words—this place is not for sale, please leave!

Liu Piyun of Qianshou said: "Indeed, this method first senses the changes of yin and yang through a wax rod, and then uses a specially made silver cup to absorb and amplify the yin and ghostly energy. This change then influences the external environment to form ice mist, and the dripping of this ice mist affects the speed of the incense..."

Wait! The stout man showed no sign of displeasure on his face. He simply dipped his finger into the remnants of the wine on the ground and sniffed it under his nose, immediately exclaiming, "Not bad, this is the 'Burning Knife' produced by Tianyi Old Brand, at least aged for over ten years. The aroma is fragrant and pure, and it has a smooth, sweet, and refreshing taste. However, this wine is not particularly rare. San, you should go back immediately and fetch a jar for Daoist Master, as a gesture of my apology to ease his worries!"

As he had predicted, the thin old man walked around in the formation, suddenly reaching out to gently pinch a red string, pulling and flicking it...

The lean old man took out a redwood stake from www.hetushu.com, walked to the shadowy porch, and deeply inserted it into the ground. "Good! This is the spot!" he then thought for a moment and said to the plump man in the silk shirt, "The location has been identified. Now, all you need to do is buy this land, cousin. You handle the negotiations here while I go back to supervise the people below to prepare everything. We can't afford to be careless with this matter!"

At a quarter past three in the afternoon, the sun cast its rays from midair, creating shadows of varying lengths from the incense sticks intertwined with the wax rod, resulting in a dark patch on the ground that, from a distance, resembled pavilions and towers

"Go ahead!" At this point, Old Liu naturally stopped pretending. He turned around and sat on the steps: "Since you have investigated this land, I will not be vague either—this City God Temple has been passed down through generations for hundreds of years, and many have examined the feng shui of this place. However, this burial site is not suitable for interment; it can only nurture yin, accumulate ghosts, and enhance the power of the underworld. Moreover, there is a ghost gate located here. If there were no City God Temple to guard it, the vengeful spirits and resentful souls within a radius of hundreds of miles would run rampant without restraint... Therefore, the City God Temple absolutely cannot be relocated, and the land cannot be sold. You should abandon this idea!"

Zhi Zun Bao gazed at the silver goblet, noticing that there was no change or anomaly in it; it merely reflected a slight shimmer from the outside. With a thought, he tentatively asked, "Old Master Liu, is this what you taught me: 'Attracting three parts of the Yin and Ming energy, transforming it into a moment of Yin-Yang water'?"

The movement sways and shakes, yet that silver cup seems to be stuck to the top of the pole, never falling down!

Cousin Sanpai was awkwardly left at the door, his expression naturally not looking good. However, at such a moment, he calmly contemplated the situation from all angles. Once everything was planned out, he called out: "Master Liu, Master Liu! Come out, and let's discuss further; the price is still negotiable..."

After giving a few instructions to his subordinates, he was about to get into the car when he noticed the idlers standing at the shop entrance. His expression darkened as he scolded, "Look! Look! Look at your mother's ball! You brainless fools, you disaster-bringing scoundrels! Damn it, when the time comes, I'll make each of you get the hell out of here!"

The vibrating water waves rippled outward, and the red strings emitted a buzzing roar one after another, causing the wax rods to begin to sway. The silver cups, in response to the movement, produced a series of thudding sounds, some fast, some slow, some urgent, and some gentle. Some spun around while others trembled slightly, and some stood tall like Mount Tai, swaying beneath. It was as if they suddenly came to life, moving in a completely chaotic manner.

"That is! That is!" the chubby cousin known as the 'Three Rows' responded repeatedly, "This matter should have been my responsibility, so I won't trouble you, Master... You can go back and rest for now. Once I finalize the arrangements, I will return to accompany you in procuring the items!" After saying this, he instructed those around him: "You all take the Master back, and then accompany him to a certain place to look at the items..."

After the Taoist priest Guantian left with his young disciple in a horse-drawn carriage, Sanpai's cousin straightened his clothes and walked squarely to the entrance of the City God Temple, preparing to knock on the door

Upon hearing Liu Piyun's words, the cousin from the third row instructed someone to take a roll of horse manure paper from the carriage, unfolding it to show the temple keeper: "We are merely constructing a grave here, nothing major. Later, we will prepare to install two rows of stone Buddhas, and at that time, any ghost gate or whatever will be kept in check..." He chuckled twice: "You don't need to mention those deceptive tricks anymore; I know you are just in it for the money—fine, I will offer you a fair price: one thousand dollars. How about that? Is it enough?"

The sound of ticking echoed continuously, and all the incense sticks were extinguished

As Sanpai's cousin reached the doorway and raised his hand, the temple door unexpectedly swung open, and a disheveled Taoist priest suddenly rushed out, colliding with his stomach

At this moment, the smiles on the faces of the three cousins grew even broader: "Master Liu, since you brought this up, I will speak frankly. Our eldest brother in the front row wants to purchase the piece of land in your possession, specifically the one near the City God Temple," he said, looking quite pleased. "Since you want to buy the land, I have naturally conducted some investigations— the land deed has been in your hands for several decades, so do not try to pull a fast one on this matter!"

In the most peculiar shadowy pavilion of the library, there exists a faint passageway, the entrance of which is precisely illuminated at a distance of 1.3 feet in front of the alchemical cauldron, neither a fraction more nor a fraction less

I know, I know! The chubby cousin from the front row said: "Actually, we are somewhat aware of the situation you mentioned, but our big brother in the front row has said that as long as you are willing to sell the land to me, we will naturally handle the subsequent matters well— we will find you a good livelihood in Rongcheng, and give you a large sum of money. By then, you can comfortably live off the rent, which is certainly better than guarding a dilapidated temple here..."

The commotion they caused naturally did not escape the notice of the people in the ghost market. However, seeing that the old temple keeper did not come out to say anything, everyone merely watched coldly from their shops. Now, seeing him prepare to knock on the door, they all came out of their shops with concern.

Old Liu is being overly presumptuous. The three rows of brothers in the Brotherhood are managed by a cousin who oversees finances and controls the economic and business interests of the society. His connections and social relationships are extremely complex, and his insights surpass those of ordinary people. Such trivial matters as alcohol, tea, and gambling are truly not challenging for him

Around noon, a sudden clamor arose on the yellow mud road as several men in blue clothing hurriedly arrived at the temple with two large carts. Upon reaching the location, a thin old man dressed in coarse cloth stepped down from the front cart, scanned the surroundings, and directly took an antique compass from the hands of a half-grown child behind him to begin determining directions and positions.

The emaciated old man nodded and said, "It generally seems correct, but this is a ghostly pit conducive to souls. I still need to use other methods to measure it accurately—Three Talents, Four Virtues. Take the items and follow me to set up the layout." After speaking, the emaciated old man measured his steps and walked ahead, while his disciple hurriedly grabbed a handful of wax rods from the cart and closely followed him. After measuring a position, he inserted a wax rod into the crevice of the green rock.

The old man quickly marked thirty-six points on the ground, and at each point of the Three Talents and Four Virtues, he inserted thirty-six wax rods. Subsequently, the two of them took out a red string and began to connect the heads of the wax rods one by one, intertwining them continuously, ... surprisingly forming a vague lotus pattern resembling hetushu .com .com ...

That third cousin is indeed an old hand in the game. After being helped up, he not only showed no sign of anger but also stopped two brothers who wanted to blame the Taoist. He waved his hand to signal his subordinates not to rush to dust themselves off, and with a smile, he bowed and said: "Oh, I really was a bit rash today, my apologies! If you could just say a word, I would be happy to compensate you accordingly"

Um, well, alright, alright... Old Liu suddenly remembered something after saying 'alright' a few times: "By the way, how did you know my surname is Liu?"

After venting my frustrations, I felt somewhat relieved, regardless of how unpleasant those people's expressions were. I got into the car and instructed, "Let's go find Brother Hongqi Five!"

Is this ... ... ? '' Just as Zhi Zun Bao was about to ask, the temple priest raised a hand to stop him: `` Shh! Don't say anything useless! The time is now three quarters past the hour, and if I am not mistaken, there should be a change soon! '' He pointed at the silver cups: `` Take a good look and see if you can discern anything from them? ''

"Stinking Taoist, you shameless thing that doesn't know how to appreciate kindness, you stubborn fool who insists on courting death! Fine, since that's the case, I won't be blamed. I'll just send you a coffin to lie in!"

At this moment, within the City God Temple, the temple keeper, Old Liu, was peering out through a crack with Supreme Treasure. "Make sure to observe closely; this is the technique of determining the burial site of the ancestral soil, which differs greatly from what I taught you. It primarily relies on the cold mist leaking from the gaps of the Yin veins to make the determination. We, on the other hand, base our method on the interactions of the five elements—look, we are about to use the finger snap to condense the pearl..."

Really? Upon hearing this, the temple priest Liu Biyun immediately sprang up from the ground: "Hey, do you know what kind of wine this is? Do you know how much this wine is worth...?" The more he spoke, the more agitated he became, his finger nearly poking the faces of those three cousins.

The legend of the Ghost Market is known by everyone within a hundred miles, yet very few truly understand what it is all about. Some regard it merely as a rural myth or a trick to deceive. It is likely that these three cousins think the same way. They mumbled a few vague words and made an offer. However, upon seeing the drawing, Liu Piyun had already formulated a plan in his mind. He stood up, brushed off the dust from his clothes, and said decisively: