Under One Person: Feng Shui Master, I Will Protect the Mountains and Rivers with My Own Body

Yan Sen slept soundly, making up for all the energy he had exhausted the night before at Phoenix Mountain.

When he opened his eyes again, the sun was already setting in the west.

After splashing some cold water on his face with a chipped enamel basin from the guesthouse, Yan Sen didn't treat himself like an outsider and immediately picked up his Nokia phone to call Gao Lian.

"Hey, Uncle Gao, are you awake yet? You'd better get up even if you're not." Yan Sen said matter-of-factly while wiping his face with a towel. "Please, take this opportunity to abuse your authority and get me a train ticket to Benxi, Liaoning. These days even landlords don't have surplus grain. I can work without making money, but I absolutely cannot lose money. That's a matter of principle."

Gao Lian on the other end of the phone was clearly already at work; the background noise was filled with the sounds of keyboard clicks and frequent phone calls. He sounded to be in a good mood: "I'm awake, I've been awake for a while. Don't worry about the tickets, I had them sent over a while ago. But it's not one, it's three."

"Three?" Yan Sen raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, Xu Si and Feng Baobao are going with you." Gao Lian's voice was steady. "Since there are suspected sorcerers among the Japanese, your whereabouts are no secret to them. Besides, you've already ruined their scheme, so the grudge is already set. I tend to think the worst, so having Xu Si and that skilled Feng Baobao with me will provide mutual support. The main reason is to protect your safety, and... those who want to see you don't want anything to go wrong on the way."

Yan Sen curled his lip, knowing exactly what was going on. Protecting his own safety was genuine; he was afraid that Yan Sen had made some kind of agreement with the immortals that Yan Sen didn't know about, so he asked people from the Central China region to accompany him to "monitor" him, and also to act as free henchmen.

Gao Lian looks like an honest man, but he's actually quite cunning.

"Sure, I'm worried about getting bored on the way anyway, it'll be more lively with lots of people." Yan Sen took the opportunity to back down and hung up the phone.

Half an hour later, at Harbin Railway Station.

The trio reunited. Yan Sen was still carrying his canvas bag, while Xu Si stood beside him, smoking and looking utterly unsatisfied. Feng Baobao, on the other hand, carried a huge hiking backpack stuffed with snacks, looking more like she was going on a picnic than a bodyguard.

The train rumbled along, and the scenery outside the window gradually changed from a bustling city to rolling black soil and mountains.

Xu Si's mouth never stopped throughout the entire journey.

"Hey Wood, where are we going? Uncle Gao just told me he'd follow you and protect you, but he didn't say a word else." Xu Si slumped over the small table, looking extremely anxious. "Benxi? What's there besides the steel mill? Are we supposed to go make steel there?"

Yan Sen, flipping through a copy of "Zhiyin" magazine he'd somehow acquired, didn't even look up. "You'll see when we get there. What's wrong, Fourth Brother Xu? Is this your professional habit kicking in? You won't take a step until you've got the details figured out?"

"Bullshit! Do you think I'm the kind of coward?" Xu Si retorted. "I'm just worried you'll get sold out and end up helping them count the money. Besides, all this secrecy is like a secret agent rendezvous; it's not transparent at all."

Yan Sen closed the book and looked at Xu Si's curious expression, a mischievous thought suddenly popped into his head.

He didn't explain, but just smiled meaningfully: "Don't worry, it'll definitely be an eye-opener for you. Just don't wet your pants."

"Tch, who are you trying to scare?" Xu Si rolled his eyes, then turned to Feng Baobao, trying to find an ally. "Baobao, do you think this kid is just playing tricks?"

Feng Baobao, wearing headphones and holding an MP3 player, didn't hear a word Xu Si said. Her eyes were glazed over, but she was mumbling incoherently, "Pig~ Your nose has two nostrils... When you have a cold, you still have snot hanging from your nose..."

Xu Si's face instantly darkened.

"Baby! Are you insulting me?!" Xu Si ripped off Feng Baobao's headphones. "Who has two nostrils like a pig? Who has snot hanging from their nose?"

Feng Baobao looked at him innocently, blinking her big eyes: "Fourth brother, what are you doing? These are lyrics. If you want to hear them, I'll sing them for you."

"I won't listen!" Xu Si slapped his thigh in anger.

Yan Sen laughed until his stomach hurt: "Alright, Fourth Brother Xu, stop flattering yourself. Who do you think you are to always assume others are alluding to you? That's called psychological projection, don't you understand?"

"You son of a bitch, Yan Sen!"

Despite the bickering and noise along the way, time passed quickly. Upon arriving at Benxi Railway Station, the car Gao Lian had arranged was already waiting at the exit.

It was a black Passat. The driver was a taciturn man. He didn't waste any words when he saw the group. He stepped on the gas and got onto the highway, heading straight for Tiesha Mountain.

The drive took about an hour. During the drive, Xu Si was still throwing a tantrum, hugging his arms and shrinking into the passenger seat, looking like a wronged little wife.

Yan Sen sat in the back seat, looking at the increasingly dark mountain shadows outside the window, sighed helplessly, and kicked the back of the passenger seat: "Alright, Fourth Brother Xu, how old are you? You're already twenty-two, rounding up to twenty-five, in two more years you'll be almost thirty or forty, and you still need to be coaxed? How childish!"

"You son of a bitch, why didn't you just tell me I'm dead?" Xu Si laughed angrily.

"Alright, alright, let me tell you something." Yan Sen lowered his voice, his tone becoming slightly more serious. "This time, we're going to meet some senior figures. They specifically asked to see me, and I figured it would be a shame not to bring you along to broaden your horizons."

"A senior figure?" Xu Si curled his lip dismissively. "How old can he be? I've already met the Old Celestial Master. Can you find a senior figure in this circle who is more senior and more capable than the Old Celestial Master?"

Yan Sen looked at the majestic mountain peak in the distance, which resembled nine giant dragons coiled in the night, and a playful smile appeared on his lips: "I don't know if I can beat the old Celestial Master, but at this age... even if the old Celestial Master himself came, he would still have to politely call him 'Senior'."

Xu Si paused for a moment, then seemed to realize something, his expression changed slightly, and he stopped talking.

It was already past nine o'clock at night when the car was parked at the foot of Tiesha Mountain.

Darkness falls early in the mountains, and all around was quiet except for the sound of the wind rustling through the pine forest. The driver didn't turn off the engine, but simply nodded to Yan Sen: "Mr. Yan, the road ahead is blocked, the car can't go any further, so I can only take you this far."

"Thank you, Master."

Yan Sen got off the bus with his bag on his back, followed closely by Xu Si and Feng Baobao.

This is a famous Taoist mountain and one of the ancestral temples of the Northeast Immortals, usually bustling with worshippers. But at this moment, the mountain gate is tightly closed, and there isn't even a gatekeeper, giving off a desolate and unapproachable atmosphere.

"Let's go, let's go up the mountain." Yan Sen tightened his backpack straps, but after taking two steps, he suddenly stopped.

On a large blue stone on the only path leading up the mountain, a person was sitting.

The man was wearing a loose white training uniform and had a very short buzz cut that gleamed bluish in the moonlight. He sat cross-legged on a rock, neither meditating nor practicing, just listlessly looking up at the moon in the sky.

In the dead of night, a man with a buzz cut sitting in the deep mountains and forests looking at the moon—the scene is undeniably eerie.

Xu Si was a seasoned veteran; his hand instinctively reached into his pocket, his eyes instantly becoming alert.

He and Yan Sen exchanged a glance, both reading the same message in each other's eyes—this person was no ordinary person.

The man's aura was condensed and profound, yet extremely restrained, like an ancient but massive stubborn rock, quietly placed there, yet impossible to ignore his presence.

Yan Sen was about to step forward to check the road when he realized that someone was missing from his side.

Turning around, good heavens, Feng Baobao, who had been following behind, had silently crept up to the big rock without anyone noticing.

She didn't say anything, but just imitated the man with the buzz cut, tilting his head back and looking at the moon in the sky.

One adult and one child, one man and one woman, one sitting and one standing, the two of them looked like two statues, admiring the moon.

"Holy crap! Baby! What have you been doing?!" Xu Si was terrified and shouted in a low voice, quickly gesturing to Feng Baobao to come back.

Hearing the voice, Feng Baobao turned around and pointed at the man with the buzz cut with a matter-of-fact expression: "I want to see what this bald guy is doing."

Xu Si: "..."

Yan Sen: "..."

This reason is very much like Feng Baobao's.

The man with the buzz cut sitting on the rock finally reacted. He withdrew his gaze from the moon, looked down at Feng Baobao beside him, and then at Yan Sen and Xu Si standing not far away.

Those were very clean eyes, devoid of murderous intent or malice, only filled with pure curiosity and... boredom.

"Are you also going up the mountain to find the immortals?" the crew-cut man asked, his voice calm and carrying a kind of admonition. "Don't waste your time. I've been waiting here for two days. They say the mountain is closed and they won't let us in."

Yan Sen raised an eyebrow, about to speak.

Suddenly, a rustling sound came from the bushes nearby.

Immediately afterwards, a pure white fox, without a single stray hair, emerged from the forest like a white lightning bolt.

Instead of crawling on all fours like a normal wild animal, it pushed off with its hind legs, stood upright, brought its two front paws together, made a standard bowing gesture towards Yan Sen, and then nodded towards the mountain, signaling Yan Sen to follow it.

This scene left Xu Si dumbfounded.

"Holy crap... this little thing is a deity?" Xu Si rubbed his eyes, feeling his worldview being challenged once again.

Yan Sen remained calm and returned the greeting, saying, "Thank you for leading the way, Immortal."

As he spoke, he was about to follow the white fox up the mountain.

"Huh? Wait a minute!"

The man with the buzz cut sitting on the rock wouldn't have it anymore. He jumped down with a whoosh, his movements incredibly fast, and instantly blocked the white fox's path.

"No, Master, this isn't right!" The crew-cut man pointed at Yan Sen and the other two, his face full of indignation. "Why can they go up? I've been begging here for two days, saying all sorts of nice things and nagging, and you haven't even shown your faces. These newcomers, and you're bowing and leading the way? Isn't this bullying honest people?"

The white fox was blocked in its path and was clearly displeased. A hint of human-like disdain flashed in its narrow fox eyes, and it gestured with its two front paws in the air while making "chirping" sounds.

The man with the buzz cut was bewildered, scratching his bald head. "Wait... what are you gesturing for? I don't understand either. Let's get this straight, you have to give me an explanation today, or I'm not leaving! I'm just staying here!"

The white fox seemed to be enraged by this shameless behavior. It took a deep breath, as if it had made a great decision, and suddenly opened its mouth, emitting a clear, melodious, and slightly spoiled girlish voice.

"Because they are distinguished guests invited by Master Biao! And you! You ill-mannered little bald-headed brat! You come up here making a scene and want to fight with the great-grandparents! You're not a Buddhist disciple, but you're more stubborn than those bald monks! You can't be chased away, you can't be scolded, you just sit there like a piece of meat, so annoying! That's why you're not allowed to go up! Do you understand now?!"

The girl's voice echoed in the empty valley, carrying a hint of resentment and disappointment.

"Honestly! She had to make me break the rules! Now look what's happened, I'll be punished by Grandma with two months of silence meditation! I'm furious! The consequences will be severe!"

This sudden barrage of insults completely stunned the short-haired guy.

He stood there, mouth agape, for a long moment before he reacted: "I just wanted an answer, not a scolding. And... what does 'little bald head shining' mean? I have hair."

"puff......"

Xu Si couldn't help but burst out laughing. Yan Sen also couldn't help but chuckle, his shoulders shrug.

This immortal's insults are really awful, and he's even watched "A World Without Thieves," huh?

Yan Sen forced a smile, straightened his clothes, stepped forward, bowed to the sulking little white fox, and said sincerely, "Little Miss, please calm down. I think this person is a bit reckless, but his eyes are clear and he doesn't have any malice. He's probably just a bit dull and not good at getting along with people."

Yan Sen glanced at the short-haired man, his mind racing with calculations.

This person is extremely skilled, and his presence at the foot of the mountain in the middle of the night is indeed an uncertain factor.

Although he doesn't look like a bad person, he could be a problem if he were to do something malicious or be used by those Japanese soldiers.

It's better to keep him with us. Once we're up the mountain, that's the immortals' stronghold. With three of us on our side, dealing with him will be easy. Besides... having several free experts as bodyguards, why not?

"Young lady, since he is also eager to seek the Dao, why don't we... let him come up with me?" Yan Sen suggested with a smile, "I happen to need someone to carry my bag."

Upon hearing this, the little white fox tilted its head and thought for a moment, its fox eyes darting back and forth between Yan Sen and the crew-cut man.

Finally, it gave a haughty snort and raised its chin at the man with the buzz cut: "Look at how he talks! And look at you! You're not as good-looking as him to begin with, and you still talk so arrogantly! You're getting a good deal out of respect for the Yan family's young master!"

After saying that, the white fox turned around, flicked its big tail, and ran up the mountain.

The man with the buzz cut felt like he'd been granted a pardon; his joy at being able to go up the mountain made him completely overlook the detail of "carrying a bag."

He turned around, clasped his hands in a fist and bowed deeply to Yan Sen and the other two, his expression solemn and grateful.

"I am Ding Shian, a wandering scholar. I thank you all for your help."

"No problem, no problem." Yan Sen patted Ding Shian on the shoulder and handed him his canvas bag. "Since we're on the same page, don't be shy. Here, Brother Ding, help your brother carry the bag, let's go up the mountain!"

Ding Shian paused for a moment, then subconsciously took the bag, slung it over her shoulder, and followed Yan Sen with a blank expression.

Xu Si, watching from behind, shook his head and whispered in Feng Baobao's ear, "Baobao, look at this kid, he's fooled another one. Anyone who goes with him now will be sold out by him!"

Feng Baobao thought for a moment and nodded seriously: "Yeah, Wood can be a bit naughty sometimes. But... that bald guy really does look like a simpleton."

Under the cover of night, the four people and the fox walked along the winding mountain path into the depths of Jiuding Tiesha Mountain.