Chapter 119 The Sound of Suonas Brings Joy and Sorrow to the Mountain "Last night they were washing the God of Wealth here..."
"The cast here is completely terrible..."
"Are you sure there's a cast here?"
"The biggest cast member is the boss (doge)."
"I'll come back when that person comes out... Please go play next door then!"
The boss's identity still affects Him. Although He is more free than other bosses, He cannot appear at any time.
Besides, even if he appeared, he might not be recognized. In the old campus novels, apart from Xue Chao, everyone thought Jiang Ming was a veteran player who had been misled or a potential newcomer.
However, the big guilds and top players can be seen every week, so they are not so far out of reach, and the audience can genuinely look forward to them.
Even more so at Xibei Mountain, one can occasionally hear snippets of the words of the most powerful evil god and catch a glimpse of a fleeting glimpse of him. However, Xibei Mountain is about to become history.
So some people are waiting for the overconfident Xue Chao to be crushed by the evil god at Joy and Sorrow Mountain. Others want to see what the lair of the most powerful evil god looks like.
The former requires waiting for the boss to appear, which is usually in the later stages of the game; the latter also requires players to explore in depth and gradually reveal the full picture of the secret realm. Both require investing a lot of money.
But when Ruoshui, the band, and the amusement park come together, it's a straightforward and powerful combination.
Marco Polo was also quick; despite starting his broadcast later than Xue Chao, he swiftly matched with three guilds, instantly stealing the spotlight.
The real-time rankings show a gap of more than ten places between Xue Chao and Xue Chao.
The investigation team's format is fixed, leaving little room for the host to improvise. In the secret realm, Xue Chao can easily defeat the boss, but the boss appears later, and it's best if he doesn't appear, especially since the dungeon next door is designed for top players and can't be easy either.
With viewership continuing to decline, it will be difficult to win back viewers if the guilds behind cannot break through the lineup of their rivals.
Just as the room was filled with pessimistic predictions, a new message appeared from the system:
[Guild member "Five Poisons" applies to join room]
The guild "Five Poisons" has joined the room.
The Five Poisons Guild is ranked seventh and is famous for its poisons. The guild members are all experts in using poisons. In addition, they are also skilled in underworld practices such as summoning spirits, cursing, and evil rituals. They are the masters of "playing dirty tricks" and have a bad reputation in the industry.
But the host loves these cunning old foxes who bring their own entertainment value; they can turn any type of game into a spy thriller or a werewolf game.
Guild tournaments are even more unrestrained, openly engaging in intrigue and suspense, making them a highly anticipated highlight even if placed as the grand finale of the guild tournament.
However, comparisons are inevitable. With two, three, and four outstanding examples preceding it, the appearance of the Five Poisons no longer makes it the Five Poisons, but rather "ranked seventh." This is disheartening, and the audience continues to leave.
"Only a shady character like the Five Poisons would dare to come to Mount Joy and Sorrow. This is a true pilgrimage!"
"You know what, there are quite a few red and white disciples in the Five Poisons."
"It's not necessarily that other guilds wouldn't dare, it could also be that the host has too few connections, hahaha!"
"Its reputation isn't good. It can't compare to Pineapple. What does it mean to be a true rising star?"
"Some of Huo's successors did indeed attempt to extort money by going to the moon."
"Speaking of the intersection with the top ten, the only thing that happened was that it hurt the two main players of the amusement park. That's the only intersection (laughing and crying)."
“Wenwen is strong, but he didn’t kill Xia Caizhe.”
"Don't you guys think Pineapple is already reminiscent of Old Huo from back in the day?"
"Xue Chao could only invite the Five Poisons; they're birds of a feather."
"Then what are you still doing here?"
"Waiting for that one, the one who rallied Ruoshui's team last time, and the one with Brother Shan, who got tricked by the evil god, hahaha, I'll remember that for the rest of my life!"
"Given that guy's unpredictable nature, he might just appear at the start and wipe us all out. I'm afraid I'll miss such a spectacular moment (thumbs up)."
"Given the current setup... we probably won't even need the most powerful evil god to intervene..."
Since both were rising stars and started playing guild dungeons at the same time, they were naturally compared. Many viewers from other rooms flooded the chat with sarcastic remarks, and the comment section quickly became a noisy mess.
The spectators next door were confident, as the second, third, and fourth ranked guilds had all gathered in their room. Everyone knew that although Seven Kills was a guild, its members were scattered. The guild competition might not be decided until the last day, and each member had their own ideas.
There were no host or advisors. As the number one guild, they were randomly matched on the last day of each guild competition, so it was impossible for them to come.
Therefore, no matter which guild Xue Chao invites, it will be impossible for them to surpass him.
The two sides were hurling insults at each other, while the audience from next door were smug and even used the Seven Killings to make sarcastic remarks, asking him to invite the Seven Killings. The other group immediately chimed in, saying that how could he possibly invite the Seven Killings?
Just then, a new guild application appeared.
[Guild member "Seven Kills" requests to join the room]
The guild "Seven Kills" has joined the room.
The reversal of fortune came so quickly that after a brief moment of doubt, the comments section was instantly turned upside down, and the viewers in Xue Chao's room immediately felt triumphant.
"Wow, look at the newly joined guild! Who are they? What's their ranking?"
"The people next door said that Seven Kills will only be randomly matched on the last day. Today is Wednesday, so they came here specifically for our host? Is it because they couldn't invite anyone else that they didn't want to?"
"When it comes to truly top-tier guilds, it has to be Seven Kills. The quality of just seven of their members is equivalent to that of hundreds of members in other guilds!"
"I think the other kids at the amusement park next door, besides Zhu Wen, are only about the top 50 level."
"Ruoshui also has one that's over 100."
"Oh dear, how come three of our Seven Killers are in the top ten, and another is in the top twenty?"
"Upstairs, Yan Jin, Xia Caizhe is dead, Lao He is back in tenth place, all four top ten are here, hahaha!"
Large guilds usually have a few key members who are their top performers, because there are only so many people in the top ten.
The company relies more on its top-performing members to attract those of average or above-average skill, generating revenue, and then continuously expanding its scale to attract even more members.
Therefore, even in guild competitions, the entire team won't consist of top players. Besides the strong ones, they will also bring along players who specialize in a particular area, support players, and promising newcomers. For example, Yan Bocheng's ranking is outside the top 100, but he can work well with Zhu Wen.
But Qi Sha doesn't have this problem. There are seven people in total, all of whom are top-tier players. They can indeed be "worth three teams."
The early start of the match by Qi Sha immediately attracted a large crowd of spectators back to Xue Chao's room, narrowing the gap between the two rooms, with Xue Chao now only one place behind Marco Polo.
The audience next door kept insisting that "it's still a long way off" and that "the host is so bad that even with seven kills, he can't surpass him."
But all the guild teams have already loaded up, and if they want to widen the gap further, they need to start a new round of war.
For the guardian of the secret, the first task is to understand the contents of the secret realm and find the dice.
Xue Chao knew that Xibei Mountain was cold, so he specially put on a black fleece-lined coat. However, the snow on Xibei Mountain could not be described as merely cold; it was painful.
The stone tablet inscribed with "Baitou Village" made his hand freeze. He stood at the entrance of the village and glanced around briefly. The entire village was shrouded in wind and snow, like a buried ancient site, a history book recording a lost civilization.
The snow fell softly, like turning the pages of a book. The people in the ruins were not dead; they are forever alive in this independent space and time.
I don't know if there's only one entrance, but the one he came through was quite narrow. After walking a short distance inside, there was a dilapidated Taoist temple. Only when he got close did he see the words "Temple of the God of Wealth".
A wooden divination tube, filled with a hundred divination slips, was tied to the vermilion pillar.
In the center of the courtyard stands a square incense burner, its vibrant red lacquer gleaming against the backdrop of antiquity, though the snow cannot conceal its striking contrast.
Like bloodstains, even after being buried for many years, they are still shocking to behold at first glance.
Strangely, a divination stick container was also tied to one corner of the square incense burner, exactly the same as the one at the entrance.
The roof tiles were covered with snow, and the door was wide open. At a glance, one could see the statue of the God of Wealth, whose face had faded to a blurry color. It was tall and majestic, half-exposed in the wind and snow, also gazing at the wind and snow.
On the altar of the God of Wealth, in addition to incense burner and offerings of fruit, there is also a divination stick container.
Amidst the majestic scene of high mountains, heavy snow, dilapidated temples, and statues of gods, many mahjong tables are haphazardly arranged beside the four incense burners in the courtyard.
The sesame paste box was placed right in the middle of the mahjong table, and the snow on the table and stools was a layer thinner than elsewhere, as if many people had recently been playing mahjong in the snow at the God of Wealth Temple.
This is so strange.
It's not surprising that everyone prays to the God of Wealth, but this was the first time Xue Chao had ever seen someone making money by playing cards right under the God of Wealth's nose.
He opened a mahjong box, which contained neatly arranged mahjong tiles, but the size was not suitable, and there was still a lot of space.
Just like you should put some other things in addition to mahjong tiles.
Xue Chao entered the temple. On the offering table in front of the statue of the god, there was a large gold ingot as wide as his shoulder.
The gold ingot was hollow. He opened the lid and found it filled with copper coins and banknotes, as well as a few old pieces of gold jewelry.
The offerings were very fresh, as if they had just been changed. He looked at the bamboo tube, and just as his fingertips pinched one of the sticks, he heard the sound of unsteady footsteps coming from outside the courtyard, crunching on the snow.
Xue Chao turned around and saw an old woman.
She was old and hunched over, huddled in her padded jacket, wearing a headscarf. Her face was like dry tree bark, and her features were like a few wrinkles among the bark, so from a distance, her features were almost indistinguishable.
A cold wind blew, and she shivered, as if she had been doing it skillfully for many years.
Her eyesight wasn't very good either. Even though the snow was thick, the tall and imposing Xue Chao still had a strong presence in front of the statue. But it wasn't until she walked through the courtyard filled with mahjong tables and reached the door that she realized there was such an outsider.
But her surprise was short-lived. Her cloudy eyes slowly examined Xue Chao, then she took out three incense sticks from the incense tube, lit them, stuck the ends to her forehead, slowly bowed to the God of Wealth, and then put them into the incense burner.
After she finished her prayers, she looked at Xue Chao with a quiet gaze, as if everything was understood without words.
Xue Chao casually placed his hands in his coat pockets to the side and raised an eyebrow.
The old woman's voice, like a withered branch falling into the dull snow, hoarsely asked, "Young man...don't you offer incense to the God of Wealth?"
Xue Chao: "Aren't you going to ask me who I am?"
He was dressed in a high-end black fur coat, handsome and tall, which made him stand out in the ancient village covered in white snow. Moreover, he was three heads taller than the old woman. Standing together, he was afraid that the old woman would feel too oppressed, but the old woman was unmoved.
The old woman stated bluntly: "No matter who it is, they should offer incense."
“That’s right.” Xue Chao followed suit, taking out three incense sticks from the incense tube and lighting them. As he lit them, he said lazily, “The God of Wealth here is really enlightened. He can even organize a game of mahjong for the villagers and act as the referee. But with so many people, whoever wins money will definitely think it’s because of His blessing. Such blatant favoritism is too enviable. Didn’t a fight break out?”
He placed the incense sticks in the burner in order and bowed, but he emptied his mind of all thoughts, remaining as still as water, and only engaged in superficial interaction.
He didn't want to owe God a debt.
The old woman glanced into the courtyard, knew what he was talking about, and then said, "They were washing the God of Wealth here last night."
Then he bowed to the God of Wealth again.
Xue Chao: "Washing the God of Wealth?" It sounds like money laundering.
The old woman explained that it was indeed money laundering, but not the kind he understood; it was "laundering ill-gotten gains."
Every year on the 22nd of the lunar calendar, at the hour of Yin (3-5 AM), villagers gather at the God of Wealth Temple to play mahjong. The money they win is theirs, but the money they lose must be put into the mahjong box.
Once the hour of Yin (3-5 AM) has passed, all the mahjong tiles are put into the box, with the money placed at the bottom.
Once everyone has left, the God of Wealth will take away this "ill-gotten wealth".
"Where did this money go?"
"The money will be confiscated and distributed to the village. In the future, if there are any major events in the village that require money from everyone, or if a family has a wedding or funeral, a portion of the money will be contributed by the entire village."
"The God of Wealth is fair and impartial. If that's the case, why not repair the statue?" Xue Chao looked up at the dilapidated statue again. If it weren't for the words "Temple of the God of Wealth" written at the entrance, one would not be able to tell which deity it was just by looking at the face whose features had faded.
Moreover, the temple to the God of Wealth was built at the entrance of the village, not inside, so it didn't seem to be treated with much respect.
Ha, I'm afraid some weirdo has a monopoly, and even the God of Wealth is being squeezed out!
"How can gods and mortals be the same? The God of Wealth is just a stubborn rock in his physical body. Neither stone nor gold can hold him. Giving us a single glance is a great favor!"
The old woman turned to Xue Chao and asked, "Are you here to worship the God of Wealth?"
“Who doesn’t like the God of Wealth? Like you said, of course we should worship him when we see him,” Xue Chao said. “But from what you’re saying, can we worship other deities as well?”
The old woman lifted her eyelids slightly, her cloudy eyes darting around: "All living things have their own gods. Light a fire and invite the Kitchen God, go out to sea and worship the Sea God, ask the God of Wealth for wealth. Every stone and blade of grass by the roadside has merit. It depends on what you want to ask for and what you have come to worship."
"I've already prayed to the ones I wanted to pray to. I'm here to ask for money. I heard you guys have been having some strange occurrences lately?" Xue Chao laughed. "Don't let my appearance fool you, I have some 'ghostly wisdom.' Ghosts pray to gods, and people pray to ghosts. I may not be able to help, but I can offer some advice."
The old woman squinted at him, then suddenly chuckled, like tearing bark off a tree. She turned and led the way: "If you haven't done anything wrong, you have nothing to fear. But you're right, how easy is it to distinguish between humans, ghosts, and gods? Why don't you talk to our village chief!"
Xue Chao followed behind the old woman, observing the village adorned with snow. He noticed that every household had a divination stick hanging at their door.
Not only in residential areas, but also in any place that can be called a location, such as wells, chicken coops, lake shores in the snow, farmland, etc., they are almost everywhere.
"How many days has it been snowing?"
"It started raining the day before yesterday, but it will stop today."
"How do you know?" Xue Chao asked, hearing her confident tone.
"If the gods point the way, I will naturally know."
"Whose deity is this?" Xue Chao suddenly had a flash of inspiration. "A divination stick?"
The old woman nodded: "Every day at the hour of Mao (5-7 AM), the divination slips will give instructions from the gods."
As she spoke, she closed her eyes, clasped her hands together, and bowed devoutly: "Last night I prayed to the gods, hoping that the snow would stop today. This morning when I went out, the fortune slip that fell out was the best one... The snow will definitely stop today."
The hour of Mao (5-7 AM) is when the sun has just risen and dawn is breaking. Xue Chao then asked, "Can I make a wish to the gods every night? What can I wish for?"
“Greed is no good; we should be grateful to the gods. Besides, this year's snow has brought a bountiful harvest, and we have plenty to eat and wear. Our children and grandchildren will also have their own blessings. Why should we have so many desires? It's just that my legs aren't very good; they tremble when they're cold for too long. I can only pray to the Red and White Gods for comfort. Even if I don't make any requests, the gods will guide us every day and tell us what is good or bad.”
Xue Chao understood. It sounded like a daily horoscope. There was a fortune slip on the ground when he went out in the morning. It was a reminder: if it was auspicious, he should do more; if it was inauspicious, he should be cautious.
As for this "Red and White Lord"... he must be some unlucky god.
He asked knowingly, "Who is the Red and White God? He's so effective, I should worship him."
“He doesn’t like to be disturbed, but if you are sincere, you can worship right away.” The old woman led him to a large house and said, “The village chief’s ancestral hall enshrines this deity.”
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