Chapter 2

In an instant, the smoke that filled the hall was completely devoured by the turtle shell, which seemed still unsatisfied, trembling gently in the bowl. On the black-brown turtle shell, a faint, wondrous light began to flow.

At this moment, the three thick incense sticks in the incense burner, like the fuses of gunpowder, burned out instantly, continuing to emit a large amount of smoke. This smoke, without any surprise, was completely absorbed by the turtle shell.

"Crack..."

Gradually, the wondrous light from the turtle shell grew stronger. The ancient, rugged surface, with its fish-scale-like patterns, began to peel and crack. As the cracks spread, a colorful mist, like translucent and crystalline glass, spread out like ripples.

"Boom!"

The ripples shimmered, and the altar table in the hall suddenly collapsed, the entire table splitting into pieces and scattering on the ground. Not only that, but it also created a large pit in the solid and hard ground.

Qi Xiang, hearing the commotion in the bathroom, was taken aback and, without bothering to rinse the foam from his hair, hurriedly wrapped a towel around himself and rushed out, looking around.

"Huh?"

Upon entering the hall and seeing the scene of devastation, Qi Xiang was immediately stunned, very puzzled and confused, not understanding who had done this.

The pit in the hall was not small, with a diameter of at least half a meter, and the surrounding ground for several meters had cracked like a spider web, with concrete blocks loosening and flipping up, as if they had been hit hundreds of times with a large iron hammer, a sight that was truly unbearable to see.

"Who did this?"

Qi Xiang instinctively rushed to the door but found the courtyard empty and the gate securely locked, showing no signs of a burglar's intrusion. Besides, even if there were burglars, they wouldn't dare to use a large iron hammer to smash the hall in broad daylight.

Qi Xiang calmed down and returned to the hall, looking down at the pit on the ground.

"Could it be a sinkhole?"

Thinking of this possibility, Qi Xiang was frightened, instinctively stepping back a few steps.

After all, in recent years, news reports often mentioned that due to unreasonable urban planning, it was easy for the movement of underground plates to cause sinkholes and pits.

Qi Xiang did not want such misfortune to happen to him.

As he was considering whether to call the police, his gaze inadvertently swept over the area and noticed that at the bottom of the pit, buried under the mud and stones, there seemed to be a faint glow.

Qi Xiang was curious and, on a whim, picked up a broken piece of wood from the ground and probed the bottom of the pit, moving aside a few pieces of broken stone.

In that instant, a magnificent light flashed, and a colorful, glass-like glow filled the entire hall.

Qi Xiang was stunned, caught off guard, and at a loss.

"What is this?"

After a long while, Qi Xiang finally came to his senses, his confused eyes gradually clearing, and he saw in shock that the object emitting the brilliant, dazzling light was a turtle shell.

Qi Xiang was suddenly startled and immediately thought of the item he had brought back.

However, the turtle shell before him was clearly different from the one he had brought back, and the difference was like heaven and earth.

Qi Xiang remembered very clearly that the turtle shell he had brought back was very ordinary, with a black-brown color, dry and unremarkable. But the turtle shell before him was like gold and jade, shimmering with a lustrous, gem-like glow, clearly a rare treasure.

"A rare treasure..."

This thought flashed through his mind, and Qi Xiang's heart trembled. His hand moved involuntarily, quickly picking up the turtle shell and holding it in his palm.

Holding it in front of his eyes, Qi Xiang could see more clearly that the turtle shell was pure and flawless, as if carved from the finest jade and crystal, with a colorful, glass-like light flowing inside, beautiful and magnificent.

After a moment of admiration, Qi Xiang found himself once again entranced.

"Whoosh!"

Suddenly, the glass-like light from the turtle shell, like a sword or a needle, shot toward Qi Xiang's forehead.

Qi Xiang was completely unprepared, feeling a tingling sensation at his forehead, followed by a sensation as if something had drilled into his head, causing him excruciating pain. He didn't even have time to scream before fainting.

If there had been someone present, they would have seen a strange scene.

The turtle shell, the size of an egg, suddenly transformed into a fine stream of light, instantly entering Qi Xiang's forehead. As he lay unconscious, a faint light flickered at his forehead.

The light was like a star, a spark that could spread like wildfire.

In an instant, Qi Xiang's mind was filled with a bright light, shimmering and clear. The light spread like ripples, wave after wave, from his mind to his entire body.

As the light floated, Qi Xiang's consciousness gradually "woke up." He slowly "opened" his eyes and was horrified to "see" himself in a place that was very hazy and ethereal, seemingly without boundaries.

This place was surrounded by endless clouds and mist, as if he were in the clouds.

Above the clouds, there seemed to be many pavilions and buildings, stretching endlessly.

One of these buildings was particularly eye-catching. It was grand and magnificent, with multiple layers of roofs, upturned eaves, and carved beams, resembling an ancient imperial palace.

However, this building was entirely white, constantly emitting a jade-like glow, shimmering with light.

This light seemed to have a mysterious attraction, making Qi Xiang involuntarily "walk" toward it.

Before he knew it, Qi Xiang found himself at the entrance of the imperial building. He had no time to think about what was happening when he noticed that the gate of the building was several dozen meters high.

Standing below, he could only touch a copper nail at the corner of the gate, feeling very insignificant.

"Am I dreaming? How can there be such a wide gate in the world..." Qi Xiang pinched himself, but felt no pain.

"Ha, it doesn't hurt, I must be dreaming!" Qi Xiang closed his eyes, feeling relieved as he waited to wake up, expecting to find himself lying in bed...

"One, two, three!"

Qi Xiang opened his eyes again, his pupils instantly contracting, clearly panicking.

Because he found that although his consciousness was very clear, when he opened his eyes, he still saw the misty space and the grand, magnificent imperial palace that did not seem to be a human construction.

"Where am I?"

Qi Xiang was scared and broke out in a sweat. He habitually reached out to wipe his forehead but was terrified to find that his hand passed through his forehead, feeling insubstantial and powerless.

"Ahh~~ Ahh~~ Ahh~~"

After a moment of shock, Qi Xiang let out a series of high-pitched, mournful screams, each one higher and more intense than the last, a sound that would linger for days.

No matter who it was, if they found themselves in such a bizarre "ghost" state, their reaction would be even more intense.

The sound was deafening and heart-wrenching.

Most importantly, it was very loud!

Perhaps disturbed by the noise, a ripple suddenly appeared in the void. In an instant, Qi Xiang felt a violent kick, as if he had been hit by a high-speed train, and was immediately thrown backward...

"Pain!"

This was Qi Xiang's only thought, and he struggled to get up. The moment he did, he was stunned again. Because when he got up and looked around, he found himself back in a familiar place.

The cracked tiles and scattered pieces of wood from the broken table, though messy, made Qi Xiang feel very close.

Qi Xiang suddenly thought of something, quickly raised his hand to slap his forehead, and heard a "slap." The tingling pain made him overjoyed. This time, it couldn't possibly be a dream, right?

But was what happened just now really a dream?

Qi Xiang was confused and uncertain...

"Right, where's the turtle shell?" Qi Xiang's mind raced, and he hurriedly searched everywhere. But after searching every corner of the hall, he still couldn't find the turtle shell.

"Where did it go?" Qi Xiang was dazed and touched his forehead, feeling even more bewildered. In his subconscious, he vaguely understood something, but his rational mind told him that it was impossible, unscientific...

Qi Xiang's mood was complex and conflicted.

At this moment, a sharp ringtone suddenly echoed in the room.

Qi Xiang perked up, quickly returned to the room to find his phone, and, seeing the caller's name, answered without hesitation.

"Boss Jiang..." Qi Xiang was very polite: "Tomorrow? I'm free, of course I'm free... No, no, I can take the bus myself... Yes, see you tomorrow!"

After the call, Qi Xiang's thoughts became active again. He felt that no matter what had happened just now, the most pressing matter now was... to take a shower.

Looking in the mirror, Qi Xiang saw that he was covered in dirt, as if he had rolled in a mud pit, black, greasy, and sticky, making him very uncomfortable.

Thinking about this, Qi Xiang felt uneasy and rushed to the bathroom, turning on the shower and scrubbing.

Too greasy, too greasy.

Qi Xiang used more than half a bottle of shower gel and showered for over an hour before feeling refreshed and satisfied, changing into clean clothes and going out.

Returning to the hall, Qi Xiang couldn't help but frown at the broken ground. This was a rented place, not his private property. If the neighborhood committee aunties found out, they would definitely pull him aside for a heart-to-heart talk, a sound that would pierce his ears.

Fortunately, the area was relatively remote, with no neighbors nearby, leaving room for maneuver. He could find a cement worker to repair it carefully, and it would definitely pass muster.

With this thought, Qi Xiang cleaned the hall simply and saw that it was already very late. He went out to have dinner and then returned to sleep.

The night passed without incident. For some reason, Qi Xiang slept very soundly and felt refreshed and energetic when he woke up the next day, full of vitality.

"Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise."

After washing up, Qi Xiang stood in the courtyard, stretching his limbs casually. As he casually performed a few Tai Chi postures, he was surprised to feel a cool, subtle energy moving through his body...

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