Chapter 2486: Chapter 2476: Tian Family

At the instant Chu Lu spoke, the three people beside him looked at him simultaneously, staring until the burly master felt somewhat awkward. After all, if he hadn’t made a mistake, Long Yan might not have gone through this ordeal.

To this, Long Yan just smiled.

“If you hadn’t inadvertently taken this task, I would have gone anyway. You just gave me a reason to go, and besides, it could bring you some revenue; why not? It’s a win-win situation.”

Actually, the main thing for Long Yan was the information left within that small sculpture; there were still some parts he didn’t quite understand. But it didn’t matter; if it was difficult to figure out, he’d just fight his way through. The injuries sustained in the temple were almost completely healed.

“Can you let me look at that sculpture?”

Tian Luo Yi, originally silent, sat nearby. Because Long Yan saved everyone’s life last night, Tian Luo Yi no longer had the desire to confront him directly. Although his tone was still that icy manner, he was always like this before, and Long Yan didn’t mind.

“Heavenly Stem Jia Wood, Earthly Branch Chen Soil?”

Tian Luo Yi quietly repeated Long Yan’s words about the sculpture twice, then his entire spirit was invigorated. Actually, though Long Yan and Tian Luo Yi had already known each other for two days, he had never seen Tian Luo Yi with such a drastic expression change.

“Quick, take out that sculpture and let me have a look.”

Tian Luo Yi’s tone carried a trace of fanaticism, which stunned not only Long Yan but also Chu Meng and others who had spent more time with Tian Luo Yi. Clearly, they had never seen Tian Luo Yi with such a look, as though he were possessed.

Long Yan said nothing more. Tian Luo Yi’s appearance obviously meant he knew something, so without any hesitation, Long Yan took out the sculpture from his Storage Space. Initially, Long Yan wanted to keep the sculpture close, but upon reconsideration, this sculpture was like a repeater that wouldn’t stop talking. Not only would it be discovered, but it also made Long Yan feel an eerie chill.

He simply created a small space for it within the Storage Space.

The sculpture’s mouth opened and closed, still repeating the same line.

“Heavenly Stem Jia Wood, Earthly Branch Chen Soil… Heavenly Stem Jia Wood, Earthly Branch Chen Soil”

As if unwearied, the sculpture’s mouth opened and closed mechanically to utter these eight words. But ever since the statue was exposed to the air, Tian Luo Yi’s previously fanatical expression changed; like he’d been struck by lightning, he stumbled back two steps and sat down heavily.

“So it’s true… It’s really true.”

Two “so it’s true” in a row, Tian Luo Yi’s expression became somewhat complex, looking despondently at the sculpture in Long Yan’s hand.

Long Yan had been observing Tian Luo Yi’s expression, noted how Tian Luo Yi kept gazing at the sculpture, and then extended it towards him, placing it in his hand.

“If I… no, I certainly haven’t guessed wrong. What the sculpture says should indeed be the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches.”

As Tian Luo Yi finished speaking, apart from Long Yan who seemed pensive, the others looked at Tian Luo Yi with puzzled expressions, clearly unaware of what the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches were.

“When it comes to Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches, they actually date back a long time ago, passed down from my father’s generation, and now it’s likely lost.”

Long Yan had once learned a bit about the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches, but only superficially. He himself had never thought about the them; they’re a method of fortune-telling some soothsayers use to describe where one might encounter calamity, using this ambiguous system to convey the nature of the misfortune.

Long Yan didn’t know specifics, but this thing was typically used to denote a certain place. Of course, many Feng Shui Masters relied on Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches to set formations and plunder others’ luck, increasing their battle success rate, which wasn’t unheard of.

Chu Meng and the others felt that ever since they had known Tian Luo Yi, he had never spoken so much, mostly because it was about his family background.

Tian Family originally was the branch controlling Feng Shui in this Small Town, but since the fight against the gods and demons, the Feng Shui in this area has never been good. Not mentioning the ancestors from each family’s grave popping out, rampant demons and beasts made the Mercenary Town seem like a dead town.

Out of desperation, Tian Luo Yi’s Old Ancestor, a senior named Tian Xingyi, tried to set a Great Formation using the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches to reverse the town’s Feng Shui, but ultimately failed. After all, the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches are merely units in fortune-telling.

Yet, the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches also represent luck, and this senior was unwilling to accept failure, betting the accumulated luck of the Tian Family over the years.

When speaking of this, Tian Luo Yi choked up a little. Of course, this was just the beginning of the Tian Family’s nightmare; even though the family’s luck reached a considerable figure, it still failed.

Despite this, the town’s Feng Shui was altered; though the Tian Family’s luck was all consumed, the town was different. The once rampant demons and beasts returned to the Mountains and Ranges, but now the remaining Tian Family became the most pitiful.

Because of the reversal against destiny, future Tian Family members couldn’t live past fifty years, and could never become officials or generals; otherwise, disaster would ensue. To this day, Tian Luo Yi’s family had been single lineage; as the Old Ancestor predicted, Tian Family members never lived beyond fifty years, and even women marrying into the family weren’t spared.

“So that’s why I have never sought a partner.”

As Tian Luo Yi looked at the sculpture in hand, actually he had already made up his mind; life comes alone, and it suffices to have one when one dies.

Chu Lu felt a bit rueful; emotionally and rationally, people in the Small Town should be grateful towards Tian Luo Yi, but ever since forming a team with him, they had never heard him mention this. Nowadays, people were inclined to forget such ancient secrets, and the Feng Shui knowledge passed down for generations would naturally vanish after Tian Luo Yi.

“So if I can help you, let me go this time, precisely because if it’s my fate to die, then let me die in that temple.”

Tian Luo Yi stood, eyes shimmering, forcing Long Yan to nod helplessly; though he’d heard of Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches, he didn’t understand them, needing to take Tian Luo Yi with him.

“There’s no way I’ll agree to bring only Luo Yi.”

Chu Lu stood, slinging the Greatsword over his shoulder with a cheeky grin.

“We’re coming too.”

The two women, Chu Meng, also insisted on joining, Long Yan glanced over them all, sighed, knowing this would be the result, ultimately having to go together.

“Alright, but prioritize your own lives. If I see you’re in bad shape, I will send you out early.”