Distorted World

Strategy

As the world evolves, people meticulously create various “fields” for immersion. Fields of emotion, fields of resonance, fields of pleasure, and fields of deliberation.

People live in their own respective “fields.” Even if they are composed of falsehoods and lies, in a world where truth and reality are subjects of debate, desires and lies that blur the line between true and false prevail.

He stole two people’s traveling funds upon his arrival, merely to test his powers. At first, he had more disdain, but even now, he does not consider it a mistake.

This does not necessarily brand him as cold-blooded and ruthless; the laws of demons are entirely different from those of humans, and there is no need to follow the same rules. Just like different groups often form different consensuses, none can be absolutely accurate. However, this observation and his innate powers act like a cheat code in this world, sufficient for him to survive here.

Heaven alone knows why the shaman did not completely seal his powers, forcing him to endure a miserable life in a human form with a demon’s mindset. Since his mind and powers remain intact, the human laws naturally become tools for his use.

Planning lies in human hands, success lies in heaven’s will.

The foremost survival issue at hand has already been targeted on Yang Renshu.

On the day of Ren Yin, it was already evening.

The private room at Moon Viewing Tower was extraordinarily noisy, with guests coming and going—officials from the prefecture and county, local gentry, and occasionally some well-known literati, calligraphers, and painters. The gathering was lively and bustling.

Yang Renshu was one of the key figures at the banquet. As the innkeeper placed dishes such as Crabmeat Lion’s Head, First-Class Pot, and Dragon Well Shrimp on the table, just about to serve the “West Lake Vinegar Fish” from the serving dish behind him, he suddenly heard a voice from behind:

“Sir Yang, I have brought the diviner you were looking for,” the deputy steward of Muan Prefecture stepped back and bowed. A man dressed plainly but with an extraordinary demeanor walked forward.

The guests paused, their gazes turning toward this direction.

The man bowed respectfully, his features gentle, with slightly upturned eyes that conveyed a scholarly humility when he lowered them. His posture was upright, his face like white jade, and every movement exuded an indescribable transcendence and calmness.

"Gentlemen, I apologize for the interruption. My name is Bai Changming, from Lin'an. My family has been involved in medicine, divination, and numerology for four generations. I heard that Sir Yang is proficient in astrology and divination, and I came to the gathering hoping to exchange knowledge. Though I am not particularly skilled, I accepted the invitation and have come to disturb your feast, which is indeed presumptuous." Bai Changming bowed, feeling the weight of everyone's gaze.

Yang Renshu opened his eyes wide, his face showing surprise.

Before he could speak, the Prefect of Yangzhou, who was half-drunk with a flushed face, waved his hand and said, "You look decent enough. What can you do? Show us something to open our eyes." He then glanced around, and the others either nodded or agreed, clearly in support.

Bai Changming bowed again, suppressing his instinctive urge to wrinkle his nose at the strong smell of alcohol in the room.

"The Book of Changes encompasses all things. I specialize in the All-Things Divination, using celestial objects and earthly items as references to predict the fortunes and misfortunes of past and present events. With the guidance of fate, my predictions are accurate nine times out of ten. If any of the gentlemen are interested, I will gladly demonstrate."

"Do you mean to say that you can divine any event from ancient times to the present?" Yang Renshu's gaze fell. He was initially somewhat displeased with this young man's self-recommendation. If he turned out to be a fraud, it would only invite ridicule.

Yang Renshu's eyes were sharp. This person appeared gentle and scholarly, yet his entrance had placed both his dignity and Yang Renshu's face on the table of competition.

His humble demeanor masked an extreme arrogance!

"Then let me ask you, in the house at the southeast corner of Muan Prefecture, a mural was destroyed last year. Can you tell me how it was damaged?" The alcohol fueled his resentment, and Yang Renzhu did not soften his tone to comfort Bai Changming's bold move.

At these words, the entire room fell silent. Two or three pairs of chopsticks that were about to pick up food quietly retreated. Not to mention that the room in the southeast corner was accessible only to Yang Renzhu's close relatives, who else besides his family could know how many murals were there, let alone that one had been burned long ago?

Bai Changming maintained his serene composure, unaffected by the mundane world. He bowed again, apologized, and then went to the potted plant in the anteroom to extract three flat leaves.

The onlookers were momentarily speechless, and the fine dishes on the table were all neglected.

Minister of War Gengyin, sitting diagonally across, put down his chopsticks. He observed the confident words of the diviner Bai Changming, but his intuition sensed a subtle and dangerous aura. For a moment, he felt as if he were staring into the eyes of a venomous snake lurking in the darkness.

"You are correct," he said, choosing not to further challenge the diviner.

"The mural was lost in June last year. Summer is inherently hot and dry, and that day, fireworks from a neighbor accidentally set fire to the painting 'Flowing Water and Spring Mountains.' Young master, your skills are impressive."

"Hmm, one prediction isn't enough to convince everyone. Since you made the offer first, I won't be shy. How about you try this one?" asked the Governor of Liuzhou.

"Please, Sir, go ahead," Bai Changming bowed low, arranging the leaves, his expression unchanged as he listened attentively.

Holding the leaves in his palm, he identified the sunny side as yang and the shady side as yin. He then threw the first leaf, which landed on its sunny side. He drew on his sleeve with a brush, and repeated the process, noting each result. After retrieving the second and third leaves, he performed the same operation, throwing them six times in total.

"To answer your question, Sir, this hexagram is called the Mountain Fire Bìng Hexagram. I venture to deduce that the upper trigram is the Mountain Trigram, and the mural you destroyed was related to mountains and water. Although water was involved in the formation of this hexagram, the dominant image is that of fire consuming water. Therefore, water is only reflected in the theme of the mural, symbolizing disappearance. The lower trigram is Fire, indicating a sudden and fierce fire that turned everything to ashes. Thus, I deduce that the mural was destroyed by an unfortunate fire."

Yang Renshu was half-sobered by this point, and he remained silent for a long time.