The matters concerning the Ghost Mother Sect have come to an end.
Master Yang was completely unharmed, and the conjectures of the senior and junior brothers were all correct.
The Water Baptism Sect intended only to divert attention from the great figure residing in Peaceful Sun Town and had no real intention to fight.
Otherwise, the losses would far outweigh the gains, and recklessly doing so would only lead to ruin.
The court will soon send people to take care of the issue, allowing Liang Qu and his companions to peacefully await their rewards.
However, this process might take a while: back-and-forth communication, sending people, and the Three-Court Tribunal to reach a conclusion will easily take over a month.
As they were about to part ways, Master Yang called out to Liang Qu, "Xiao Jiu, stay behind for a while. I want to check your fate pattern."
The senior brothers halted in their tracks.
Hu Qi asked, "Master, have you obtained the incense ashes?"
Yang Dongxiong nodded, "Yes, when I visited Tide River County, I mentioned it casually, and the county magistrate went to the Great White Cloud Monastery overnight to obtain some twenty-year-old incense ashes for me."
Liang Qu, having read extensively, had a basic understanding of Fate Patterns.
He knew that incense ashes are the most crucial material in determining one's Fate Pattern.
These ashes were not ordinary; they had to be nurtured for over five years after burning Life Mark Incense, with a longer duration leading to more accurate Fate Pattern results.
A good Fate Pattern typically implies greater achievements in the future, particularly for martial artists—signifying stronger prowess.
Additionally, a Fate Pattern can reveal many insights, often guiding one's actions for optimal results.
For instance, the youngest Martial Saint of the Great Shun, Zhang Longxiang, had both a primary Fate Sign and a secondary Fate Sign in his pattern.
The primary sign was the Great Pillar Divine Mountain, while the secondary was "Wicked God Stealing Food."
A sign represents a seal, or authority, while secondary implies deviation or informal control.
This particular sign was both auspicious and ominous.
The predictor stated that if Zhang Longxiang wished for extraordinary achievements, significant dangers must be faced.
If he overcame them, his path would be smooth; otherwise, he could either vanish into obscurity or live hidden with no progress.
Thirteen years later, Zhang Longxiang encountered an ambush in the Northern Desolation Lands, where all accompanying soldiers perished, yet he single-handedly fought three Perfect Manifestation Beasts, killing two and wounding one.
He achieved perfection at the age of forty-eight, thus becoming the Heavenly Dragon Martial Saint, extending his lifespan by eight hundred years.
Similarly, there was another Martial Saint related to the Wild Mountain, who lived in seclusion for thirty-six years and at the age of two hundred and eighty verified his path, creating the Wild Mountain Doctrine, experiencing the cycle of life and death, and rejuvenating himself.
Unfortunately, he belonged to the Great Qian rather than being a rogue saint.
After emergence, he resisted surrender and was slain by the Great Shun's Martial Saint—none other than Zhang Longxiang.
Hence, the Great Pillar Divine Mountain ultimately overpowered the Great Desolate Stone Mountain.
The battlefield of the great war was soaked in blood, nurturing a multitude of spirit beasts and minor demons.
Even a burrowing mouse there grew to the size of a calf, with sharp teeth and claws capable of biting through trees, posing a deadly threat to ordinary people.
It took Great Shun a long time to clear up the area afterward.
These stories were recounted in books, documented in official history, not mere folklore.
Of course, a Fate Pattern is not absolute; people's Fate Patterns often influence each other.
A good Fate Pattern might not manifest as valuable, leading to premature demise before achievements, while a bad one might not show its flaws if aided by a benefactor, allowing one to rise effortlessly.
Some are born with seemingly unfortunate fates, yet meeting a benefactor can dramatically change their destiny, a fascinating occurrence.
Therefore, Fate Patterns serve mainly as a reference; excessive superstition may lead to inferior outcomes.
Liang Qu was indeed curious about what his Fate Pattern would be.
He followed Yang Dongxiong into a secret chamber, while the other brothers, initially planning to leave, decided to stay and watch the spectacle.
Inside the secret chamber, Yang Dongxiong found a thick leather box and retrieved five items: a small bowl painted with a red rooster, a thick spell book, an ancient bronze square cauldron, a bulging pouch, and a large, pitch-black paper.
Master Yang handed Liang Qu the red rooster bowl, "Draw a bit of blood; not too much, use your left hand."
Liang Qu drew his Blue Wolf blade and carefully cut along the edge of his palm, dripping some blood until Master Yang took the bowl.
He placed the small bronze cauldron on the table, opened the pouch, and poured a layer of black ash, spreading it finger-thick.
"Press your right hand firmly and steadily into the ash, making it as clear as possible."
Following the instructions, Liang Qu pressed his hand down into the cauldron without disturbance.
Surprisingly, when he lifted his hand, no ash stuck to it, and his palm imprint was startlingly clear, observable down to the lines.
Yang Dongxiong nodded in approval, allowing the blood in the rooster bowl to settle.
As the scent of blood gradually faded, it was replaced by a peculiar, ambient fragrance.
He then poured the blood onto the black paper.
The blood, against all expectations, didn't spread due to surface tension but spread out thinly and broadly like a solid circle.
Yang Dongxiong then flipped the Cauldron's ash onto it, perfectly aligning it with the blood imprint.
The area where the palm was pressed indented slightly, vaguely revealing a palm's shape.
Subsequently, Yang Dongxiong tapped the table with his knuckles.
The black ash around it began to tremble slightly, floating out along the blood with visible line patterns forming on the left.
"Junior brother truly has a Fate Pattern!" Xiang Changsong joyfully exclaimed.
Not everyone possessed primary or secondary signs—most had none at both positions! Having one was proof of potential, regardless of its nature, even if it was a secondary sign.
After a while, Xu Zishuai craned his neck to look, puzzled, "Is the sign a river?"
The pattern was very simple; just a curvy, bending thick line.
"It's not over yet."
Yang Dongxiong declared solemnly.
The crowd focused and indeed, as the Master tapped his fingers, black ash floated up from the right side of the palm imprint, slowly outlining a curious image.
Xu Zishuai furrowed his brows, pondering, "The secondary sign is an ape?"
"Junior brother actually has both primary and secondary signs?!"
"The primary sign is a river, and the secondary a fierce beast—an ape?"
"No, it’s reversed. Master’s previous direction was eastward, meaning this side is left, and that’s right. The primary sign is the ape; the secondary is the river."
"It can't be! Why would a dead object be a secondary sign? Shouldn't they all be fierce deities?"
"It's not unheard of. I recall an old Perfect Manifestation General whose secondary sign was a setting sun, and he died under it eventually."
The senior brothers began to debate, getting tangled up about whether Liang Qu’s primary and secondary signs were reversed or not.
Then Second Brother Yu Dun spoke up, "Could it be that the secondary sign isn’t actually a river, but a dragon?"
"Dragon?"
Everyone stared closely again, noticing that the "river's" end did have some peculiarities, resembling the head of a horned dragon!?
"Is it truly a dragon?"
Yang Dongxiong fell silent.
The method of determining Fate Patterns was something he learned from an old Taoist in his youth.
Its accuracy was debatable, but it had never resulted in major errors and was more than sufficient for evaluating disciples.
Therefore, the primary and secondary signs should be correct, though an unfamiliar pattern had emerged.
Shortly, the black ash expanded with other patterns at both ends.
Yang Dongxiong consulted the spellbook, comparing the patterns one by one.
Everyone else fell silent, waiting patiently for Master’s conclusion.
Moments later, Yang Dongxiong plucked out a few strands of his beard.
"Fate of dire calamity, indeed, truly dire!"
(Chapter End)