The Zhao Family Temple complex housed a total of twenty-eight shrine halls, both large and small.
Among them, three were main halls.
The remaining twenty-five were secondary halls.
The three main halls were: the Hall of Wealth, the Longevity Star Hall, and the Hall of Wenchang, the God of Literature and Culture.
A quick glance at these domains makes the Zhao Family Temple’s specialty quite clear—they focus heavily on deities associated with scholarly and civil pursuits.
While they do have a hall for martial deities like the Thunder Ancestor, it is relegated to a lesser, secondary hall.
Though still adorned with sacred imagery and decorated in a magnificent, opulent style, these secondary halls are noticeably a tier below the three main halls when it comes to both location and the sheer grandeur of their construction.
This wasn’t necessarily a sign of disrespect towards the Thunder Ancestor. Rather, it was a direct reflection of the temple’s core identity and business strategy.
Of the four great families of Jiangdu City, the Zhao and Wang families had, from the very founding of their temples, committed themselves to the path of civil and scholarly deities. The Sun and Qian families, on the other hand, pursued the path of martial deities.
While the Sun Family Temple certainly possessed its own Longevity Star Hall, by the same logic, it was only a secondary hall there.
Though the difference in designation was just a single word—”main” versus “secondary”—the practical difference in effect was substantial.
Offering prayers to the Longevity Star in the Zhao family’s main hall could yield a success rate for blessings that was at least twenty to thirty percent higher, if not more, compared to doing so in the Sun family’s secondary hall.
This was the fundamental reason why, despite being business rivals, the Sun family would hire someone to perform the Longevity Star rites right here in the Zhao Family Temple. To put it bluntly, the Longevity Star Hall in the Zhao temple was simply more efficacious—far more efficacious—than the one in their own temple. For that increased probability of success, the Sun family was willing to choose the Zhao Family Temple for this crucial ceremony.
…
By the time Lu Chen arrived at the Longevity Star Hall, the entire area was packed to the brim, almost impassable.
A sizable contingent of temple staff and private security guards from the Sun family had formed a human barricade, cordoning off the area with warning tape and keeping all other worshippers several meters back.
Inside the main hall, the gilded statue of the Longevity Star stood towering and benevolent, its expression serene and gentle.
The hall itself was occupied by only a handful of people: the Sun family members, Tan Kun, and Zhao Zhihong.
The self-proclaimed “Longevity-Bestowing Immortal,” Tan Kun, had already begun the ceremony. He was holding aloft a stick of purple incense of the highest quality.
Purple incense! The most premium grade of incense offered in any temple. And not just standard length, but tall, ceremonial incense! Lu Chen estimated that a single stick likely cost somewhere between two and three hundred thousand. The extravagance was undeniable.
…
“Hey, how many offerings do you think it’ll take Master Tan to succeed? Want to place a little wager?”
The surrounding worshippers, not content to merely watch, were already making side bets.
“Given his Affinity Level with the deity, theoretically, he should succeed once every two attempts. But that’s just theory. If he’s lucky, maybe on the first try. If his luck’s bad, it wouldn’t be unusual to take over a dozen tries. If I had to bet, I’d say ten attempts.”
“You’re seriously underestimating Master Tan. In the field of lifespan blessings and longevity, he’s ranked in the top three of the entire Jiang Province! And among those top three, he’s the only one who’s even available for hire. The other two are elders from major clans who never perform blessings for outsiders. I say two attempts, maybe three at most, and he’ll get it done.”
“Five hundred bucks on it?”
“Fine, you’re on!”
…
Listening to the conversation nearby, Lu Chen mused to himself, Tan Kun’s personal power level is only at the Second Rank. He’s not even as strong as the average family’s head bodyguard. Yet the treatment and respect he commands would be the envy of many Fifth or even Sixth Rank cultivators. Why? Because the Longevity Star is one of the most sought-after deities among all the popular gods. Establishing a forty-seven percent Affinity Level with a deity of that caliber… yes, that definitely gives him the right to be arrogant.
In terms of sheer value and prestige, Lu Chen had to admit that Tan Kun’s forty-seven percent with the Longevity Star far outstripped his own forty-three percent with the God of Wealth.
An idea suddenly stirred within him.
Lu Chen turned to the two men beside him who were placing bets. “Hello there, gentlemen. Would it be alright if I asked you a couple of questions?”
“Hey, aren’t you that forty-three percent guy? The one with the karmic connection to the God of Wealth? We didn’t even notice you standing here. Forgive our oversight.”
Seeing that it was Lu Chen, they were quite polite.
“What questions do you have? Go ahead and ask.”
“Thanks. I was just wondering, how much does this Master Tan typically charge for a single blessing request?”
“What, are you thinking of becoming a bounty-hunting spirit master yourself down the line?”
“Uh… I actually am considering it,” Lu Chen admitted candidly. “You two seem very knowledgeable, so I figured I’d ask for some insight.”
His frankness pleased them, and one of them readily explained, “We don’t know the exact specifics, but I heard about one job where Master Tan charged seven million to secure someone an extra year of life.”
“Seven million!” Lu Chen echoed.
The man shrugged. “Seven million is pocket change to the truly wealthy. Forget seven million. When it comes down to a matter of life and death, those people would happily pay seventy million.”
That was a fair point. If you could buy life itself with money, the rich would line up for the privilege.
Lu Chen pressed further. “And what’s the maximum number of years he can bestow in one go?”
“He can only grant a maximum of one year per session. And Master Tan has his own rule: he’ll only perform the blessing twice for any single individual. After all, this is borrowed time. Even an extra two years is pushing it. Honestly, even two more months, or two more days—you should be grateful for that much. Anything more would be a violation of the natural order, the Heavenly Way itself.”
“Has he ever had outright failures?”
“Of course he has. His success rate is about fifty-fifty, give or take. But that’s already incredibly impressive. Don’t forget, we’re talking about the Longevity Star here!”
“I understand. Many thanks for the explanations, gentlemen!” Lu Chen clasped his hands in a grateful salute.
From this brief exchange, it was clear that the profession of a bounty-hunting spirit master could indeed be extremely lucrative.
But a case like Tan Kun’s was exceptional, representing the top echelon of the field. It couldn’t be considered the norm for every practitioner. After all, does the absolute peak performer in any profession ever earn a modest income?
Lu Chen’s eyes narrowed thoughtfully. If I were to start making offerings to a deity capable of extending lifespan… perhaps I could carve out a piece of the market that Tan Kun currently dominates.
He immediately began running through a mental list of deities associated with longevity.
Aside from the widely renowned Longevity Star himself, there were indeed a few other divine beings with the power to bestow extended life.
First, there was the Goddess Magu. She was a female longevity deity, said to serve as a handmaiden to the Queen Mother of the West. She achieved divine status through immense merit and virtue. Compared to the Longevity Star, however, she was undoubtedly a much more obscure and less popular figure.
Second, there was the Star Lord of Extended Life, one of the Six Bureaus of the Southern Dipper asterism. He presided over lifespans, official ranks, and emoluments, holding the specific duty of prolonging life and safeguarding destiny. Among common folk, he was often simply referred to as the “Bureau of Extended Life.”
Third, there was the South Pole Emperor of Long Life, also known as the Old Immortal of the South Pole. He was the eldest direct disciple under the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning, the senior most second-generation disciple of the Chan School of Daoism, and counted among the Six Imperial Sovereigns, placing him on the same hierarchical level as the Jade Emperor himself.
However, there had long been intense debate within Daoist circles over whether the common Longevity Star was merely one of the South Pole Immortal Elder’s manifested avatars. Others argued that the prototype for the Longevity Star was actually the Old Man of the South Pole. Then, further complicating matters, yet another faction claimed the Old Man of the South Pole was simply a physical incarnation of the South Pole Immortal Elder, making them fundamentally the same entity. The arguments were endless and circular.
If one delved too deeply into the intricate genealogy of the Daoist celestial pantheon, one would quickly find it was a chaotic mess. There were signs of what one might call heavy “theological inbreeding.”
The overlapping identities of the Longevity Star and the South Pole Immortal Elder were just one example.
Another example: one of the avatars of the Celestial Worthy of Primordial Beginning was the Ninth Heaven Thunder Responder, the Universal Transformation Heavenly Worthy—better known as the Thunder Ancestor.
And yet another: one of the avatars of Taiyi, the Celestial Worthy Who Relieves Suffering, was the Eastern Extremity Emperor of Azure Radiance.
The list of such examples went on and on, seemingly endless.
Whenever Lu Chen had studied this in the past, he always got the sense that these high-level celestial beings would casually manifest an avatar to lay claim to yet another divine office whenever they felt like it. If you stripped away all those avatars from the few hundred official positions in the Heavenly Court, you’d probably be left with only one or two hundred unique individuals. A significant portion of the pantheon seemed to be a case of one deity playing multiple roles.
Of course, whether this world’s divine bureaucracy functioned in the exact same way, Lu Chen couldn’t be sure. Still, he felt that the business of bestowing blessings and extending lifespans was a remarkably profitable industry.
It was definitely something worth exploring in the future!
…
Inside the Longevity Star Hall.
A short while later, Master Tan Kun abruptly opened his eyes.
The faintly perplexed and troubled look in his gaze made the outcome obvious—his first attempt at making the offering had failed, without any hint of success.
“Master, how did it go?” Sun Qingcang and the others immediately crowded around him.
Master Tan raised a hand, his expression one of practiced calm. “Patience, Head of the Sun family. Allow Tan a moment to properly warm up. The hour is still early.”
Sun Qingcang certainly hadn’t expected an instant success on the very first try. He clasped his hands again respectfully. “We appreciate your efforts, Master.”
Behind him, Sun Qingcang’s wife, Madam Song, added anxiously, “Master, our family patriarch’s life is entirely in your hands. You simply must succeed.”
“Yes, Master! I’m rooting for you! I know you can do it!” chirped Sun Qingcang’s younger son, Sun Xingwen, his demeanor every bit the pampered young master.
As for the family’s celebrity eldest daughter, Sun Yourong, she remained silent. Yet the deep concern and encouragement in her eyes as she watched Tan Kun were unmistakable.
“Rest assured, everyone. Since Tan has accepted this commission, I will exert myself to the utmost. Now, I must begin the second round of offerings. Please, give me some space.”
So saying, Master Tan lit another stick of the premium purple incense.
As the family members withdrew, a flicker of genuine alarm finally crossed his eyes, hidden from their view.
Strange. In the past, whenever I communed with His Eminence the Longevity Star, there was always some form of response, however faint. A fluctuation of divine power, even if the blessing itself didn’t take hold. Why is there absolutely no power fluctuation whatsoever today?
This highly unusual situation stirred a deep unease within Tan Kun.
He took a deep breath and raised the incense before him once more.
“Heavenly spirits, earthly powers, Elder Lord Longevity Star, manifest your divine presence now!”
Seeing the ceremony resume, Sun Qingcang nearby was visibly on edge, his brow furrowed with worry. He couldn’t stand still, pacing restlessly.
Zhao Zhihong, ever the sycophant, offered words of reassurance. “Please don’t fret, Mr. Sun. I am confident that the Elder Sun will be blessed by fortune and watched over by heaven itself!”
Sun Qingcang nodded tightly. “I’ll take that as a good omen, Supervisor Zhao.”
Seeing his flattery land appropriately, Zhao Zhihong said no more and respectfully stepped back.
But the second attempt, as expected, also ended in failure.
A fine sheen of sweat now dotted Tan Kun’s forehead, and his heart rate involuntarily quickened.
He reassured himself, Don’t panic! It’s still early in the process. This is normal!
Without pausing to rest, he lit yet another stick of incense!
Yet…
Third attempt: failure.
Fourth attempt: failure.
Fifth attempt: failure.
…
Until a full hour had passed.
After over an hour of near-continuous ceremony and offerings, the sweat on Tan Kun’s brow was now dense and copious, streaming down his face. He looked utterly spent, as if he’d just been pulled from a river. The picture of exhaustion.
“How can this be? How is this possible?”
With each successive failure, Tan Kun found it harder to conceal his growing panic.
Eighteen attempts. Eighteen times without the faintest response from the divine.
Could it be… that His Eminence the Longevity Star is unwilling to grant this blessing to the Sun family?
His heart sank to the very depths.
And right alongside it sank the hopes of the Sun family.
One or two failures could be overlooked. Even three or four could be tolerated. But over a dozen consecutive failures without a single sign—this magnified Sun Qingcang’s anxiety to an unbearable extreme.
Seeing Tan Kun fail yet again, Sun Qingcang could restrain himself no longer and hurried back over to him.
“Master Tan, what’s happening? Still no response at all?”
…
Outside the hall, the gathered worshippers had taken full note of the situation inside and were buzzing with commentary.
“Damn, what’s going on? How many tries has it been already? Still nothing?”
“Holy crap, it’s gotta be close to twenty times now. That’s almost two million just burned up in incense costs. Looks like Master Tan might be out of luck today—odds aren’t in his favor.”
“Forty-seven percent Affinity and he still can’t get it done? Hard to say if it’s Master Tan’s luck that’s rotten, or the Sun family’s.”
“Seems like the heavens are determined to take the old Sun patriarch after all.”
Listening to the murmurs around him, Lu Chen wiped the sweat from his own brow. He was just thankful the sun wasn’t beating down harshly today, or else standing here for over an hour would have cooked him thoroughly. He too found the situation utterly baffling.
This doesn’t make sense. With a forty-seven percent Affinity Level, regardless of whether a blessing is ultimately granted, establishing basic communication with the deity shouldn’t be this problematic. How can there be zero reaction at all?
Could it be… that Tan Kun’s defeat was now all but certain?
As this thought surfaced, a sudden jolt went through Lu Chen’s heart. An unexpected restlessness began to stir within him, a burgeoning impulse.
For another, far more audacious idea was rapidly taking shape in his mind…
…
Meanwhile, inside the hall, Tan Kun spoke.
“I am sorry, Head of the Sun family. It seems that today, Tan is unable to render you any further assistance.”
The moment these words left his mouth, the faces of the Sun family members collectively paled with shock. Even Sun Yourong, usually so composed, now displayed clear signs of alarm.
Sun Qingcang stepped forward and grasped Tan Kun’s hands, his words earnest and pleading. “You can’t give up, Master Tan! Who else in all of Jiangdu City, in the entire Jiang Province, doesn’t know the great name of the Longevity-Bestowing Immortal? If you give up, where else can I possibly turn?”
“That’s right, Master Tan! You’re the most powerful spirit envoy we could possibly find. Please, you absolutely cannot abandon this now! What are we supposed to do if you quit?” Madam Song was openly weeping, whether from sheer desperation or from the fear of Tan Kun’s potential withdrawal, it was hard to tell.
“Master, please don’t worry about the money. If you can successfully bestow this blessing of longevity upon my grandfather, we are prepared to pay significantly more!” Sun Xingwen chimed in.
“My son is right,” Sun Qingcang declared loudly, his voice booming. “Master, if you can succeed, the Sun family is willing to add an additional ten million to the original fee. No, twenty million! Please, you mustn’t give up on us!”
He held up two fingers emphatically, his voice loud enough to be heard crystal clear even by the worshippers standing far outside the hall.
“Whoa, an extra twenty million on top! Good heavens!”
“The Sun family truly lives up to its reputation as a major clan. Absolutely rolling in wealth and power.”
“Bah, what’s twenty million to buy the old patriarch another year of life? That’s a bargain!”
A fierce wave of chatter erupted from the crowd.
And at that moment, hearing Sun Qingcang’s shouted offer, Lu Chen’s expression changed drastically. He could no longer suppress the wild idea that had been building inside him.
Could it be… has my opportunity truly arrived?!
