My Wife is A Sword God

Chapter 694: The Ancestral Shrine in Suiyang City

“Ancestral Shrine?” Qin Feng looked at the source of the voice, which belonged to a slender man.

He did not ask any further questions and gestured for the man to continue.

“Master Jia has a habit. Wherever he goes, he likes to worship gods. Whether it’s a mountain god temple or a city god temple, as long as he comes across one, he’ll definitely go inside and burn some incense.”

“Sometimes, even if the statue inside the temple looks neither human nor ghost, Master Jia will never miss the opportunity. He believes that the more gods you worship, the more blessings you will receive. It doesn’t matter what they are, as long as you are sincere, the gods will respond.”

Qin Feng raised his eyebrows slightly, understanding Master Jia’s thoughts.

The world is in such a chaotic state these days, and merchants traveling outside often encounter dangers. Instead of being scared and anxious all day long, it’s better to find a spiritual refuge to feel better. 

This can also be regarded as a kind of psychological suggestion. 

Just like in his previous life, he used to put up Conan posters before every exam, hoping for good luck, but the results were often disastrous… Superstition is of little use in the end.

The lean man spoke again: “Our destination this time was Suiyang City in the South Region. It is rich in fine fragrant wood and is the best choice for making incense.”

“As usual, Master Jia worshipped the gods along the way, and nothing unusual happened. But after worshipping at the ancestral shrine in Suiyang City, some strange behavior occurred.”

Suiyang City… Qin Feng’s heart sank at the mention of that name. If he remembered correctly, one of the nine rifts in the Immortal Realm that Anya had mentioned earlier was located near Suiyang City.

Could there be a connection between these two things?

“What kind of strange behavior?” Qin Feng asked curiously.

The slim man swallowed and recalled, “The night we were in Suiyang City, I went out to relieve myself in the middle of the night and suddenly heard a ‘bang, bang, bang’ coming from Master Jia’s room.“

“I was curious, so I went closer, and I could hear Master Jia mumbling and seemingly repeating the word ‘money, money, money! “

“With the firelight coming from the room, I could also see the source of the ‘bang, bang, bang’, it was someone repeatedly banging on the door of Master Jia’s room!”

“At that time I was quite scared and didn’t dare to stay, so I hurried back to my own room. I had planned to mention this to the others, but the next day Master Jia seemed completely normal, just as he always did.”

“So I didn’t say anything, thinking that maybe I was just confused in my sleep.“

“Now that this has happened to Master Jia, it must be related to his strange behavior that night!”

Qin Feng’s brow furrowed in thought, then he asked again, “Do you know what was enshrined in the ancestral shrine that Master Jia worshiped in Suiyang City?

“How should I know, I don’t believe in such things,” the lean man waved his hands dismissively.

At this point, another man spoke up, “I know a little bit about it.”

“Go ahead, tell us,” Qin Feng said.

“When the master went to that ancestral shrine, I was the one who was driving the carriage. The incense offerings there were very good, and there was a constant stream of people coming and going. It took me a while to find a place to park the carriage.”

“I didn’t go inside the shrine itself, but as I passed through the main gate, I took a look inside. The ancestral shrine looked quite new, with red tiles and white walls, but I didn’t see any statues inside – it didn’t seem to be a temple for gods.”

Qin Feng nodded slightly. Normally, city god temples would have large statues for people to worship. The lack of statues, combined with the fact that this shrine was very new, meant that it was most likely a strange, ominous ancestral shrine.

The coachman continued, “While I was waiting for the master, I overheard people talking to each other.” 

“They all said that the deities enshrined in this ancestral shrine were much more powerful than those in the city god temple-essentially, you get whatever you pray for. That’s why the shrine has such a strong flow of incense offerings.”

Fulfilling every wish, how ominous… Qin Feng looked at Deng Mo, whose expression had also become serious.

After inquiring further, Lord Deng dismissed the others and said to Qin Feng, “Looks like we’ll have to go to Suiyang City ourselves to get to the bottom of this.”

Suiyang City, located in the Southern Domain, was approximately 2,400 li south of the Imperial City, as Qin Feng recalled from the Great Qian’s geographical records.

“Qin Feng, even though you have just returned to the Imperial City, I still hope that you will accompany us on this trip. After all, that ominous black qi doesn’t have any power over you, and I’ll feel more comfortable with you there.”

Deng Mo said seriously. As the head of the Demon Slaying Department in the Imperial City, he couldn’t just leave at will, or else he would have gone himself.

Qin Feng thought for a moment before nodding in agreement. “Lord Deng, don’t worry, I was planning to go there myself. I just need to let my family know so that they don’t have to worry.”

Qin Feng had his own thoughts. If the events in Suiyang City were truly related to gods and demons, he couldn’t just ignore it.

And with the Thunder Qilin and Little White, even if there was real danger, he can prepare in advance.

“Very well, tomorrow morning, I will have Zhan Qingfeng take some people to accompany you,” Deng Mo said.

Zhan Qingfeng was taken aback as he remembered the scene of the wealthy merchant and all the coroners with their heads crushed. Trembling with fear, he immediately said, “Lord Deng, I was planning to take a day off tomorrow. Could you assign someone else instead?”

Upon hearing this, Deng Mo calmly replied, “Your day off has been postponed.”

“Huh?” Zhan Qingfeng exclaimed.

“Is there a problem with that?” Deng Mo asked.

Zhan Qingfeng gritted his teeth, “To be honest, Lord Deng, I was planning to visit a lady tomorrow to take care of an important personal matter. I’m already twenty-three years old, and my mother has been pressuring me, so I was hoping that you would allow me this opportunity!”

Zhan Qingfeng then took out a handkerchief from his pocket, swearing that it was a token given to him by the lady.

Deng Mo, who was not entirely heartless, was about to give in and assign someone else when Qin Feng looked at the embroidered words on the handkerchief and said, “So the lady you want to see is from the Floating Fragrance Courtyard. Could she be one of the… courtesans?”

Zhan Qingfeng blurted out, “Yingchun isn’t exactly a top courtesan, just a minor one…”

Deng Mo’s expression immediately darkened. “If I don’t see you tomorrow morning, don’t ever show your face in the Demon Slaying Department again, understand?”

“Yes, I understand…” Zhan Qingfeng replied glumly. As an experienced office worker, his favorite thing to do was to slack off, and his least favorite thing to do was to go on business trips.

Deng Mo turned to Qin Feng and said, “I will also write to the Demon Slaying Department and the Sword Dao Alliance in Suiyang City and ask them to help you.”

Places with Immortal Realm Rifts and Netherworld Realm Rifts bring more dangers, but also more opportunities. After all, the concentration of Ancient Divine Breath and Netherworld Qi in rift areas would be much higher than elsewhere.

Suiyang City was such a place. Although it was not a heavenly city, it had a training hall for the Sword Dao Alliance. The Sword Dao Alliance also had close ties with the Great Qian Demon Slaying Department, and could provide assistance if needed.

“Thank you, Lord Deng,” Qin Feng bowed respectfully.