I discovered a world bug.

All I can see is death...

These words were like a stone, completely shattering Lin Shu's hopes.

Without a doubt, what he saw in the divination was his own death.

If Lingfeng's interpretation is correct, then he is clearly the sacrifice in that so-called "ritual"...

Damn it...

Bad luck!

Lin Shu gritted his teeth fiercely, but for some reason, he suddenly felt a sense of relief.

People's greatest fears often don't come from the worst possible outcome, but rather from the unknown expectation of a bad outcome.

You don't know how bad things will get next, so you're afraid and worried that the existing "good" will be defeated.

But if you know and clearly see the bad outcome from the beginning, you won't be afraid.

Not only were they not afraid, they even became excited.

They're all going to die, how bad can things get?

Let's figure out how to get through this first!

Lin Shu calmed himself down, and now he had discovered a new mystery:

How did my own death come about?

Is it really what is called "divine retribution"?

It doesn't seem like it either.

Xu Changshun died suddenly in the Second Hospital due to cardiac arrest.

This way of dying actually fits more closely with his stereotype of "divine retribution".

That elusive, irresistible force takes effect imperceptibly, and once it does, it swiftly and decisively takes a person's life.

This is the power of "Heaven".

And what do I see?

That was clearly a death led by "humans," and one might even have been forced to "go to their death."

This isn't divine retribution at all!

If it's not divine retribution, then who wants their own life?

After a moment of silence, Lin Shu typed out new keywords for the search.

"Rituals, taboos, divine retribution."

This time, he only found one file.

However, this document contains a wealth of information—it records numerous cases of "heavenly retribution" caused by the misuse of rituals. Some of these cases come from ancient texts, while others are from Xu Changshun's own collection.

Argumentatively speaking, the content of this document is absolutely solid.

The problem is that it lacks a clear logical basis, and even Xu Changshun had some doubts about the concept of "heavenly harvest".

He wrote in the document:

"We know what it is, but not why it is, and yet it is not so. I believe that the existence of 'divine retribution' and 'backlash' may be controlled by a more complex and deeper mechanism, but there is currently no direct evidence to prove it."

"Perhaps one day, when I face the 'retribution of heaven,' I will be able to glimpse even a corner of it."

"I just don't know if I'll still have the chance to see the truth and record it by then..."

A prophecy.

He really did run into "heaven's retribution," and he really didn't have the chance to record it.

And the truth that I want to know, I will probably have to find it myself.

Hopefully, we can make it in time!

Lin Shu sighed softly. There was a figure moving at the door, and he immediately looked up.

"How is it?"

Xu Feng walked in. Lin Shu stood up and, seemingly "casually," closed her laptop.

"He did want me to be his apprentice, but he didn't tell me why."

Lin Shu pointed to the computer.

"His computer contains a lot of his experience as a spiritual master over the years. It's very complex, and I can't read it all in a short time."

"Take it with you if you can't finish reading it."

Xu Feng had now recovered from his grief. After a brief pause, he continued:

"However, it's okay if you don't want to be the master; I don't think he's forcing you."

"These things... you can help him find someone who is destined to pass them on, that will do."

"The person is gone, but you are still alive and have your own path to walk."

"clear."

Lin Shu looked at Xu Feng gratefully—at a time like this, he was still thinking of her; he was truly a good person.

However, his suggestion should absolutely not be adopted.

I cannot give up what Xu Changshun left behind, no matter what.

Putting aside the fact that he needs these things to survive, even if we take a step back, those things have indeed lifted a corner of the fog surrounding this world. If he continues to explore, even more things will be revealed to him.

For example, the truth of the world.

After all, what Xu Changshun did was to reproduce.

That would mean that all these rituals existed and were once effective.

They have been active in the world in various forms, bringing many strange influences.

And the eras in which they existed...

What is the world really like?

In a daze, he seemed to see a "mythical age" that had once existed.

Lin Shu gently shook her head, pulling her wandering thoughts back.

He looked at Xu Feng and said:

"If it's convenient, I won't leave today."

"By the way, on what day did Master Xu emerge from seclusion?"

"If I want to carry on his legacy... shouldn't I, in principle, accompany you to send him up the mountain?"

......

The funeral procession is scheduled for the third day—in rural Linchuan City, the funeral procession is generally called "going out."

This is a gentle avoidance, turning what would have been a cold, permanent farewell into a brief, yet still hopeful, separation.

Of course, this is also entirely in line with the views on life and death in this ethnic minority region.

Most of the time, people here don't consider death to be a final farewell.

They believe that on important days, the ancestors who have "gone up the mountain" will walk home in groups of three or five along the path, silently have a meal with their relatives who are still alive, and then chat as they return to their new homes.

For them, death wasn't so terrible—in most cases, it wasn't so terrible.

Even for Xu Changshun, the "master," although the funeral naturally carried a somewhat eerie and cold atmosphere, most people were only solemn and sad for a few minutes when they left the house. After the three gongs sounded and the coffin was carried on their shoulders, the atmosphere suddenly relaxed.

The strong men carrying the loads chatted and joked without restraint, and the host didn't seem to mind.

Only the shaman sitting on the coffin, holding a cow horn and a bell, was slightly more serious, but it was merely serious, not "solemn".

Xu Feng carried the memorial tablet at the front of the procession, with his sister Xu Wan on his right and Lin Shu on his left.

"...I'm very grateful that you came to see my dad off, but I'll say it again: if you don't want to be a shaman, then sending him up the mountain is the end of it."

"Being able to accompany me in holding the memorial service, I can say that I have fulfilled my duty as a teacher and student."

Xu Feng continued with steady steps:

"It's not nice to say, but my dad probably doesn't care—we can't let the dead hold up the living."

"I know, I'm aware of it."

Lin Shu helped Xu Feng, who had stepped into a mud puddle and stumbled a couple of steps.

His gaze swept toward the coffin behind him, and the master sitting on the coffin was also looking at him.

The other person's eyes were full of doubt—in fact, apart from Xu Feng, almost no one supported him taking over Master Xu's mantle.

Among the Xu family members, Xu Wan, much like Xu Feng, felt that it was unfair and wrong to delay a young man's life for the sake of her father, and she was even more resolute in her opposition than Xu Feng.

As for the others...

All of them, including all the masters, believed they were not qualified.

"...Although he is also a Yao ethnic minority, no one in his family has ever done this kind of work, and he has absolutely no background in it. How can we take over?"

"You need to be careful. Your dad has such a good reputation; it's easy for someone with malicious intent to exploit it!"

"Don't talk about whether he was selected or not. To put it bluntly, your dad was probably just grasping at straws back then, so it doesn't count!"

"What will you do if he uses your father's name to swindle and cheat people?"

"Good character? Even if he is good-natured, there are some things that can't be learned. If Master Xu passes on his mantle to him, this lineage will be severed!"

......

Just before leaving, the sounds of the argument between several of Xu Feng's masters still lingered in his ears.

To be fair, Lin Shu herself felt that she wasn't "qualified" at all.

But there was no other way; to rightfully take away Master Xu's legacy, he had to inherit his mantle.

Therefore, no matter how much outsiders object, they can only pretend not to hear it.

That said, Xu Feng is really...

Powerful.

Some of the monks who came said that if they accepted the mantle, they would leave immediately and not perform any more rituals.

Xu Feng remained unmoved, leaving only the words, "Anyway, I didn't call you here," before personally directing the spirit-raising ceremony.

He offended most of the master priests, and in the end only one master priest surnamed Liu stayed to keep the coffin closed, out of respect for Xu Changshun...

Thinking of this, Lin Xu gave Xu Feng a grateful look, and then said:

"He chose me, and I still don't know why he chose me, but I can't just give up on his expectations so easily."

"At least, I have to give it a try."

"Besides, you today..."

"No need to say more."

Xu Feng waved his hand and stopped talking. The conversation naturally shifted to Lin Shu's current and future work arrangements, gradually drifting to the macroeconomic situation, the Iraq War, inflation...

Lin Shu felt a sense of unreality and detachment.

Is the world that I was once so familiar with, and the world that Xu Changshun was familiar with, which consisted of "rituals," really the same world?

That's so weird.

The sky gradually darkened, and the rain began to fall.

No one was using an umbrella, but fortunately, the weather in May wasn't really that cold.

Even the rain felt refreshing on my skin.

The funeral procession quickened its pace, and rainwater filled their mouths, making everyone reluctant to speak.

In the silence, only the shaman on the coffin continued to ring the bell.

"Ring ring----"

"Ring ring----"

Lin Shu's vision was blurred by the rain, and her steps were heavy from the mud stuck to her shoes. Before she knew it, she had fallen behind Xu Feng and Xu Wan.

He stopped, took a couple of breaths, and wiped his eyes.

But at that very moment, a familiar feeling suddenly welled up in my heart.

The funeral procession was densely packed together, crowding along the narrow path as they slowly made their way up the mountain.

Raindrops, like gray lines, fell continuously.

Pale yellow "snowflakes" danced in the sky.

Those are not snowflakes.

That's paper money!

I was wondering how raindrops and snowflakes could appear at the same time!

What I saw in my hallucination was not a ritual at all!

It's a funeral!

Lin Shu's hair stood on end.

A sense of danger instantly filled his mind!

Right here!

Right at this bend, lightning is about to strike!

"stop!!"

Lin Shu shouted, and Xu Feng and Xu Wan, who were walking in front, immediately turned around. The procession carrying the coffin behind them also stopped instinctively.

"What's going on?"

"There's a problem----"

Before Lin Shu could finish speaking, a white light suddenly shone.

"Be careful!"

Almost simultaneously, Lin Shu lunged at Xu Feng and grabbed a section of Xu Wan's arm.

"boom!"

"Click!!"

Lin Shu was thrown to the ground by the momentum of her forward lurch, her head slamming heavily against the muddy ground.

Xu Feng and Xu Wan had also been tackled to the ground. Xu Changshun's memorial tablet had fallen to the side, and in the direction of the tablet, near where Xu Feng and Xu Wan had originally stood, a tall pine tree had been split in half.

The broken edges were jagged, and the burnt resin emitted a strange, fragrant aroma.

At that moment, they were only 5 meters away from the pine tree.

Thunder...lightning...

This is the scene in divination.

She was supposed to die here with Xu Feng and Xu Wan.

But today...

I don't want to die!

Lin Shu was breathing heavily, still shaken.

Xu Wan struggled to her feet, staring incredulously at the pine tree not far away, before turning to look at Lin Shu.

Xu Feng quickly stood up and dragged the two of them to hide under a utility pole erected by the State Grid.

Meanwhile, in the funeral procession at the back, the bell that the shaman was shaking had stopped.

He almost stood up from the coffin.

The way he looked at Lin Shu had undergone a complete change...