Chapter 13: The Scroll of Ancestor Xuanyuan

“Old Taoist Xuan Li, hurry, hurry and get ready. A great fortune has fallen upon your Xuanyuan Temple.”

Xizi panted heavily as he kept pounding on the main gate of Xuanyuan Temple. The sound was thunderous.

“Coming, coming. Xizi, stop pounding. You’re going to break my door.” Old Taoist Xuan Li was advanced in years, but his body was remarkably sturdy.

He opened the door and saw the skinny Xizi, saying somewhat helplessly, “I say Xizi, instead of selling vegetables at the market, are you here to grab a meal? I happen to have plenty…”

“No, no, Old Taoist Xuan Li, there’s a Great Immortal…” Xizi quickly interrupted the old taoist and then recounted everything he had seen and heard at Xuande Temple to Old Taoist Xuan Li.

Old Taoist Xuan Li looked at Xizi with suspicion. “I say Xizi, are you lying to me for a meal? How could such a person possibly come to my shabby little temple?”

Xuanyuan Temple had been in decline for who knows how many years. Its legacy was practically cut off in his generation.

As the head of the temple, Old Taoist Xuan Li was now seventy-three years old, even older than the previous Temple Keeper. With no offerings coming in, life was getting harder each day, and he simply couldn’t take on any disciples.

Even if he could, Old Taoist Xuan Li had no intention of doing so. He didn’t want to hold young people back.

Those youngsters would have better prospects by selling their labor elsewhere than by becoming his disciples. As for his own legacy?

Old Taoist Xuan Li had come to terms with it. It was just a portrait of the Ancestral Master. At worst, it could go into the coffin with him. They could deal with it after death.

“Why would I lie to you? Fine, if you don’t believe me, more people are coming behind me. They’ll tell you.” Xizi said with some frustration.

Old Taoist Xuan Li turned his head and saw that indeed, several people were running up behind, so out of breath they could hardly speak evenly.

“Congratulations, old taoist, congratulations. Hurry and get ready. That Great Immortal is coming soon. You have no idea—at Xuande Temple, the Great Immortal said the statue of the Sage Xuande lacked Spirituality and had no inner spirit. The old Temple Keeper almost couldn’t catch his breath.”

“Exactly. If your Ancestral Master has Spirituality, wouldn’t that mean great fortune?”

“Right, right…”

A crowd gathered, chattering incessantly, which left Old Taoist Xuan Li somewhat dazed. If Xizi might be fooling him, surely so many people wouldn’t all be in on the trick.

“Alright, alright, everyone please wait in the courtyard for a moment. This old taoist will go freshen up.” Old Taoist Xuan Li felt a surge of joy in his heart. Regardless of whether it was true or false, it was better to prepare in advance.

If it was false, what was there to scam from his rundown little temple? If it was true, then he stood to gain without loss, and perhaps even earn some offering money to make ends meet.

…

Chen Xiyi sat inside the Wooden Sedan Chair, looking at the dense clusters of white dots on his map. Each white dot represented a person.

Of course, aside from the white dots, there was also Wu Xiu, represented by a green dot.

‘Among all these people, not a single one can become my friend? Why is that?’

‘Is it because their motives toward me are all utilitarian?’

Chen Xiyi recalled the process of Wu Xiu becoming his friend. He had saved him from the jaws of a hungry wolf. It seemed that it was because of this life-saving act that Wu Xiu became his friend.

As for the surrounding commoners, despite their respectful demeanor, Chen Xiyi was sure of one thing: their attitude toward him was largely driven by self-interest.

Because he had built up the persona of a deity, their actions were aimed at getting him to grant them benefits, rather than sincerely regarding him as an object of Faith.

‘So I must remain aloof. If I help one person, others will surely make demands as well. As the saying goes, it’s not the scarcity but the inequality that causes trouble. Once I can’t satisfy everyone, the consequences could be severe, and I might even end up with red names.’

‘For now, I can only rely on bluffing. Only when I have real substance instead of an empty facade will I be qualified to further play the part of a mystic.’

Chen Xiyi had a clear understanding of his position. Unless he obtained something like a cultivation Module or a magic Module, relying solely on the Home Game System, he couldn’t perform divine feats. Perhaps only the Spirit of History Module could help him.

“A blue dot?”

On the map, Chen Xiyi suddenly noticed a conspicuous blue dot standing out among a cluster of white dots.

‘It’s a shame the map only shows light dots and doesn’t display names. But why isn’t it moving? Is it sleeping?’ Chen Xiyi was somewhat puzzled.

“Great Immortal, we have arrived at Xuanyuan Temple.” Wu Xiu suddenly spoke from outside the sedan chair.

This made Chen Xiyi’s expression turn serious.

He looked at the blue dot on the map. He had originally planned to come back another time to check it out, but it turned out to be right inside Xuanyuan Temple.

Perfect timing. Since he was here, he might as well go see what this blue dot was.

Chen Xiyi stepped out of the sedan chair without a word. The entire Xuanyuan Temple was surrounded by layers of people, densely packed.

There were also quite a few people with long knives at their waists, dressed in constable uniforms, maintaining order.

Not far away, a plainly dressed old taoist stood at the entrance, forcing himself to appear calm but clearly quite nervous.

The scale of the crowd was overwhelming. He couldn’t handle it, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead. Especially when a stone-like strange person descended from the Wooden Sedan Chair, which made him even more tense.

Chen Xiyi glanced around. It seemed even more people had gathered, but he didn’t mind.

He walked straight toward the old taoist. As he walked, he naturally switched his attire and transformed. This was a perfect opportunity to build momentum.

More importantly, he saw that the blue dot was in the room behind the old taoist. But he was certain there was no one inside that room. So what was this blue dot?

Old Taoist Xuan Li grew increasingly nervous, especially when the other transformed from a stone-like strange person into this immortal-like demeanor. He immediately recognized him as a deity. How could he not be nervous?

“Let’s go. Accompany me inside to see your Ancestor Xuanyuan.” Chen Xiyi brushed past Old Taoist Xuan Li and said casually.

The old taoist snapped out of his daze and hurriedly followed Chen Xiyi into the room. “Yes, Great Immortal.”

Wu Xiu also followed them in, but after entering, he wisely closed the door, which annoyed the crowd outside. How could you go in and then shut the door?

Chen Xiyi looked at the scroll depicting Ancestor Xuanyuan. The blue light flashing on the map was precisely this scroll.

[Item with Historical Connotation: The Scroll of Ancestor Xuanyuan]

Above the scroll hovered a piece of information resembling an NPC’s nickname, indicating that this was exactly what Chen Xiyi needed—an item capable of Enlightenment and Spirit Communication.