After being discharged from the hospital, Mu Yiran and Ke Xun parted ways temporarily, and Mu Yiran returned home.
It was the Lunar New Year, and everyone wanted to be with their families.
As for whether to take Ke Xun back to meet their relatives, the two discussed it and decided to wait until the Ru Hua incident was completely resolved.
...
When Ke Xun was awakened by his phone's WeChat notification, he could feel through the curtains that it was already bright outside. Not in a hurry to check his phone, he groggily and instinctively rolled over, lifting his arms and legs, trying to hug the person beside him, only to realize when he missed that the person wasn't there, but somewhere else.
Ke Xun opened his eyes, paused for a moment, then closed them again, grabbed Mu Yiran's pillow, hugged it, rolled over, kissed the pillow, and then reached for his phone, swiping the screen with his eyes half-open.
Ximen Wuyou: Comrades, some bad news! Although Great-Grandma finally got in touch with that fortune teller from last time, he refuses to help again…
Wenxin Group Shaoling: Does the old lady know any other fortune tellers?
Ximen Wuyou: Either they're not skilled enough, or they won't help. [Shrugs]
Chuntianli: What should we do? When I worked in other cities, I often saw fortune tellers setting up stalls under overpasses. Maybe we should try looking there?
Ximen Wuyou: …Brother, my Great-Grandma isn't like those swindlers! My Great-Grandma has a legitimate lineage, and the people she knows are all disciples of reputable schools. Even if we go to those charlatans, would they dare to look at you?!
Chuntianli: Sister, don't get excited… I was wrong. [Cheers to our friendship.jpg]
Ximen Wuyou: …
Jiandan Qinxin: If all else fails… we can only ask Great-Grandma again. Wu You, what do you think?
Ximen Wuyou: There's no other way. I'll get Great-Grandma a better pair of reading glasses, let's try that first. So, what's the plan for the rest of the time?
Wenxin Group Shaoling: Things shouldn't be delayed any longer. I think we should all go directly to City C on the tenth of the month, and go to the same hotel as last time. After everyone books their tickets, let us know in the group chat what time you'll be arriving. Then Wu You will arrange the time and let the elderly couple know in advance.
Ximen Wuyou: Okay.
Qiu Chujin: Please post the hotel's coordinates in the group chat.
Little Radish Pulling White Rabbit: Sister Cen, is that convenient for you? If not, I'll drive to pick you up~
Qiu Chujin: Thank you, Radish, I'm fine with that. See you on the tenth.
Wenxin Group Shaoling: Other members, please reply after seeing the above to ensure everyone is aware.
Deep Sea Feiyu: Received.
Corgi: [At this moment, a domineering CEO rides by on a shared bike.jpg]
Wei Feng·Mang: [At this moment, a netizen walking a Corgi passes by.jpg]
Corgi: [Think about whether you look like a silly netizen.jpg]
ZHW: ...Got it.
Qingqing Zijin: Okay.
Yuji Qiuguang: Okay.
Corgi: I'll inform Yiran. That's all for now, see you on the tenth.
Before 3 PM on the tenth, the members arrived in City C from their respective cities one after another. Wu You had arranged to meet her great-grandmother at 9 AM on the eleventh day of the first lunar month.
The short rest of a few days did not relax the members' nerves. On the contrary, the unimaginable situation they were about to face made it even harder for them to calm down.
Only Ke Xun and Mu Yiran seemed more relaxed than the others. Both had cut their hair short, and Mu Yiran looked even more aloof than before, while Ke Xun... looked more street-smart. His hair at the nape of his neck was shaved very short, and after taking off his coat and scarf, a lip print tattoo was revealed below the tips of his hair.
"Damn, you're so slutty," Wei Dong said, openly criticizing him.
Ke Xun didn't intend to tell him that he also had a "MOONEY" tattoo above his tailbone.
He still couldn't bear to recall the night the boss saw the tattoo.
Even someone as physically strong as him wanted to beg for forgiveness later. The next day, he quickly found some ointment and covered the tattoo up. Judging from the boss's expression, he seemed a little regretful...
It was terrifying.
The group stayed at the hotel overnight and had breakfast together on the morning of the eleventh day of the first lunar month. Wu You borrowed a friend's seven-seater van again, while Luo Jin drove his Mercedes-Benz G-Class. The thirteen people filled two cars and went to Wu You's great-grandmother's house.
Even though Wu You had informed her great-grandmother in advance, the sight of three more people with strange bone structures, thirteen of them standing in a dark row before her, still shocked her. Her face turned pale, and she collapsed onto the edge of the bed, unable to stand up. She kept muttering incantations for more than half an hour before finally stopping her anxious chanting and looking at everyone with a complicated expression.
"These old bones of mine don't have many years left to live..." Great-Grandma's voice trembled slightly, "Today I'll risk my life to give you a checkup..."
"Great-Grandma..." Wu You was both shocked and anxious, quickly grabbing Great-Grandma's arm, her eyes reddening with heartache, "It's all my fault, I shouldn't have dragged you into this..."
Everyone listening fell silent. Involving innocent people was not what anyone wanted, but right now, they had no other choice but to seek Great-Grandma's help.
Great-Grandma gently patted Wu You's shoulder, comforting her, "Everything is predestined. If it's a blessing, it's not a curse; if it's a curse, you can't escape it. Don't cry, girl. Everyone's waiting. Let's finish quickly, and we'll all have lunch at home."
Wu You rubbed her eyes, looking sadly and helplessly at Mu Yiran and Ke Xun. Ke Xun stepped forward and said, "Great-Grandma, don't worry too much. You don't need to tell us anything. Just try to draw the bone structure of the three of them. After you're done, tear up the paper and burn it. We won't have lunch here. We'll leave as soon as you're done."
This time, just like when they invited the bone structure master last time, they set up video equipment in Great-Grandma's room in advance. This time, they used the high-definition camera brought by Luo Jin.
Without delay, Wu You placed paper and pen on the table for Great-Grandma. Great-Grandma put on her new reading glasses, and Hua Jiqiu, Yue Cen, and Li Xiaochun lined up in front of her, while the others watched quietly.
However, the result was still regrettable. Great-Grandma was simply too old. Even though she could see the bone structure of the three men with her reading glasses, her trembling hands, uncontrollable due to her age, prevented her from successfully drawing their features.
Great-Grandma tried several times, but all attempts ended in failure.
Everyone was at a loss.
Wu You helped Great-Grandma to a nearby room to rest, while the others stayed in the room to discuss a solution.
Li Xiaochun said, "If all else fails, let's go to the fortune tellers under the overpass. They say there are hidden masters among the common people; maybe one of them is a real expert. We can just go to several overpasses. Even if it's like finding a needle in a haystack, it's better than making no progress at all."
"Even if we have to search for someone like looking for a needle in a haystack, we can't go to those people," Wu You said, frowning as she returned to her room. "Great-Grandma knows many practitioners with legitimate lineages. Although these practitioners she knows are either unable or unwilling to help, they also know many more practitioners. Maybe someone will be willing to help. Even if we're searching for a needle, we'll still be looking for these people, but it might take a long time. I don't know if we'll have enough time."
"I'm afraid we won't have enough time," Shao Ling said. "The more uncertain something is, the faster we need to finish it. Don't pin our hopes on time. Time is the most ruthless thing; it will never stop or extend for anyone. We still have a lot to do. After we collect all thirteen bone fragments, we might get more clues. We have no idea what preparations these clues will require. We must allow sufficient time for preparation in advance, so we must race against time now."
Shao Ling's words made sense, and everyone agreed. They continued to ponder solutions, but as time passed, they couldn't find any effective way to solve the problem at hand. An atmosphere of anxiety gradually filled the room.
Li Xiaochun pulled out his phone and started calling his friends from years of traveling around the country, asking them one by one if they knew anyone who could help.
However, from the content and tone of his conversations with the people on the other end of the line, it was clear that things weren't going well. The people on the other end either didn't take it seriously, gave him a dismissive laugh, thought he was mentally unstable, or simply hung up on him.
The feeling of begging for help was unpleasant, especially for something so incomprehensible that it would make him seem crazy or like he was talking nonsense.
Wu You watched Li Xiaochun constantly smiling apologetically, pleading, and even apologizing on the phone, his brow furrowing deeper and deeper.
She bit her lip hard for a moment, then suddenly stood up and said to everyone, "I have an idea, but I don't know if it will work. Qingqing, do you remember me saying that I could see some unclean things when I was little? Later, my great-grandmother found a way to 'blind' me, and then I was no longer bothered by 'those things.' I think if I weren't blindfolded, maybe I could see something too! I'm going to find my great-grandmother now and ask her to restore my eyes to normal."
While everyone was still surprised, Wu You, who hadn't heard this before, had already pushed open the door and gone to the next room to find her great-grandmother.
After Gu Qingqing explained the reason, everyone looked at each other for a while. No one was sure if Wu You's actions would backfire, or if she would end up in a worse situation than others.
"I don't think so," Shao Ling said. "Wu You is different from that bone-reading master and Great-Grandma. She's an insider, so there's no possibility of her suffering a backlash for revealing any secrets. Besides, collecting all thirteen bone-reading images is very likely what one of the two forces in the painting wants us to do. In that case, it's more suitable for Wu You to do it. It won't involve anyone else, and she won't have to hide anything from us."
"Mr. Shao is right," Wei Dong agreed. "This girl is getting braver and braver."
Wu You stayed in Great-Grandma's room for more than an hour. When she returned to the room where everyone was, she looked a little nervous, but also a bit resolute.
"How was it?" Gu Qingqing quickly came forward with concern and took her hand.
"Let's try it. Great-Grandma just taught me how to read bone-reading images." Wu You said, standing in front of Hua Jiqiu, Yue Cen, and Li Xiaochun.
Everyone held their breath, not wanting to disturb her. She stared intently at Li Xiaochun, her lips moving slightly as if she were chanting something. Li Xiaochun, too, stared at her without daring to move. After about ten minutes, Wu You suddenly exclaimed in a low voice, both delighted and surprised, "I see it!"
Gu Qingqing quickly handed her a pen and paper. Without hesitation, Wu You immediately began to draw carefully on the paper.
Wu You had no drawing skills, but fortunately, the ancient symbols were simple and concise, so even if she couldn't draw them perfectly, it wouldn't significantly affect the result.
Fortunately, Wei Dong was there to give her some pointers: "When you're drawing, don't think of these symbols as paintings; think of them as characters, and it will be easier to 'write' them out."
This method was indeed very useful. Even so, it took Wu You nearly an hour to draw the bone structure of the three people, and she was covered in sweat.
As everyone expected, in the bone marrow charts of Hua Jiqiu, Yue Cen, and Li Xiaochun, Li Xiaochun had a rope pattern, while the other two had a mountain and sea pattern.
"The Four Earthly Branches and the Nine Cauldrons of the Classic of Mountains and Seas are confirmed." The veteran members exchanged glances. Although this result confirmed their speculation, its meaning still weighed heavily on their hearts.
After obtaining the bone marrow charts, the group did not linger. They bid farewell to Great-Grandma and returned to the inn. Wei Dong took out the ten bone marrow charts from before and immediately pieced them together. The result was indeed a map. The nine charts representing the Nine Cauldrons showed the main content of the map, while the four Earthly Branches were distributed around the Nine Cauldrons map.
"Luo Bo, come and see. Can you recognize the mountain range that this map points to?" Ke Xun called to Luo Yi.
Luo Yu examined the drawing closely, then suddenly exclaimed in shock, "Holy crap! It's there!"
Author's Note:
Welcome everyone to join me in the final chapter~
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Wu You: My great-grandmother opened my third eye, let me show you.
Everyone: Okay, okay.
Wu You: ...Mr. Shao! You actually—you actually wore elephant trunk underwear!
Shao Ling: ...You opened your third eye, not X-ray vision, okay?!