Chapter Six - Professor Gai Wancheng

I said to Xiu Xiu beside me, "Xiu Xiu, I'll have to trouble you with things here for the next few days. Gao Feng and Tiantian, if you two don't have anything urgent, please stay at the shop and help keep an eye on things."

The two women nodded. Xiu Xiu said, "Mm, don't worry. Leave everything here to me. If anything comes up, I'll give you a call."

I nodded and replied, "All right, I'll go pack my things now, and we'll set off shortly."

With that, I turned and walked into the house. Meanwhile, Gao Feng looked at my retreating figure with a heavy heart and said to Xiu Xiu, "We haven't even had a proper chat since arriving, and now he's leaving again. Sigh..."

Xiu Xiu patted Gao Feng's arm gently and said, "Men all have their own matters to attend to. You can't keep them tied to a leash all the time, or the rope will snap, and when that happens, you won't be able to pull them back..."

After packing some necessary items, Li Kun, Xu Tian, and I emerged from the room. I glanced at the other two, and we exchanged smiles. Each of us had a backpack slung over our shoulders, and we carried nothing else.

Seeing this, I nodded to them and said, "Let's move."

After saying our goodbyes to the three women, the four of us—including Hu Yue'er—embarked on our journey toward Liaoning Province.

Before leaving Elder Xu's place, I had written down Gai Wan-cheng's address on a piece of paper. Judging by the address, we should arrive around Yangshu Town by tomorrow afternoon.

The three of us were quite accustomed to traveling, but this was Hu Yue'er's first time seeing a train. Although she had changed into a set of Gao Feng's clothes, her striking appearance still drew frequent, curious glances from the surrounding passengers.

A few bold young men even stepped forward to strike up a conversation with her, but Hu Yue'er turned a deaf ear, ignoring their advances completely. It wasn't until we reached our private compartment on the train that the surroundings finally quieted down.

A compartment with four bunks was just right for the four of us. However, since we were four rough men, it would inevitably be awkward if Hu Yue'er stayed in the same space. We all felt in our hearts that since she was a fox immortal—practically a celestial being—sharing a compartment with us would be rather inappropriate.

Consequently, I spent some extra money to book a separate compartment for Hu Yue'er, and only then did we truly relax.

Hu Yue'er's compartment was right next to ours. At the moment, the four of us were sitting in our compartment chatting idly, while Hu Yue'er stared intently out the train window at the passing scenery, sighing in amazement, "This contraption travels so fast."

The rest of the trip passed without incident, and that night, all of us fell fast asleep.

By the following morning, we arrived at Shen City in Liaoning Province.

The moment we stepped off the train, we felt a noticeable change in the weather; it was much warmer here than back home. Li Kun turned to me and asked, "Old Liu, where is Senior Gai located, and how do we get there?"

I checked the address again and said, "He probably isn't in the city center. Judging by the place name, it should be out in the countryside. Let's find someone to ask."

After inquiring with a few locals, we finally figured out the exact route. Yangshu Town was indeed located in the countryside and was quite a distance away; we would need to take a long-distance bus, which would take about an hour to reach.

***

After gathering directions, the four of us boarded the bus bound for Yangshu Town. Following an hour-long nap on the bus, we finally arrived at our destination.

True to its name, Yangshu Town—which translates to Poplar Tree Town—was flanked by rows of poplar trees on both sides of the road the moment we stepped off the vehicle. Back home, people generally loved eating poplar leaves; after boiling them, you could dip them in bean paste and eat them directly. It was a local specialty of sorts, mainly because they were cheap, delicious, and readily available for anyone to pick straight from the trees.

Looking around, we saw nothing but towering trees and vast mountains. According to the address provided by Elder Xu, Gai Wan-cheng's residence was right along the main street of Yangshu Town.

As we walked into the town, Xu Tian dialed Gai Wan-cheng's phone number. Once the call connected, Xu Tian said, "Senior Gai, I am Xu Tian, the grandson of Xu Rui-xiang. We have arrived in Yangshu Town."

After Gai Wan-cheng gave us a specific landmark, we headed further into the town.

Before long, we spotted a large courtyard enclosed by tightly shut iron gates. A house number plate reading 0221 hung by the entrance.

Xu Tian checked the number and stepped forward to rap the brass door knocker against the iron gate.

As the knocker fell against the metal, the voice of a young man echoed from within: "Coming, coming!"

That was followed by the sound of approaching footsteps at a jog.

When the iron gate swung open, it revealed a young man of about twenty with short hair and a rather tanned complexion. Upon seeing us, he asked, "You must be the ones looking for Professor Gai? Come on in, Professor Gai has already told us about you."

Hearing the young man refer to him as "Professor Gai," we were momentarily taken aback. We hadn't expected Xu Tian grandfather's friend to be a professor.

I nodded and followed the young man into the courtyard.

The courtyard was exceptionally spacious and well-equipped, with various surveying instruments scattered about. It was evident these tools were meant for exploring ancient tombs.

The young man glanced sideways at Hu Yue'er, his eyes drifting repeatedly toward her figure. He sidled up to me and whispered, "Big brother, is this your girlfriend? She is stunning."

I shook my head and replied, "She's not my girlfriend. She's my cousin, and she's accompanying us to visit Professor Gai this time."

Hearing this, the young man let out an "Oh," and then walked over to a single-story brick house in the middle of the yard, pulling open the wooden door. "Professor Gai, the guests have arrived," he announced.

Through the doorway, we caught sight of an elderly man in his seventies standing beside a wooden table, examining something intently.

Hearing the young man's call, the old man turned his head to look at us, put down the papers in his hand, and walked toward us. As he drew closer, we got a clear look at Professor Gai. He stood about 1.75 meters tall with a head of snow-white hair, though his posture remained remarkably upright. A prominent aquiline nose made his face instantly recognizable, and he wore nearsighted glasses, giving him the quintessential look of a scholarly academic.

Gai Wan-cheng looked us over and asked, "Which of you is Xu Rui-xiang's grandson, Xu Tian?"

***

Xu Tian stepped forward and said, "Professor Gai, I am Xu Tian."

An expression of utter astonishment crossed the old man's face as he remarked, "I'll be damned. That old bastard actually has such a handsome grandson."

With a chuckle, Gai Wan-cheng waved a hand and added, "Don't mind me. That old geezer and I go way back, but he hasn't contacted me in years. Just thinking about it makes my blood boil."

Xu Tian scratched his head awkwardly. Gai Wan-cheng motioned for us to follow, saying, "You kids come inside and talk."

With that, Gai Wan-cheng turned around, lifted the doorway curtain, and stepped into the house, while the rest of us followed closely behind.

The interior was quite spacious. Unlike typical homes in Northeast China, there was no heated brick kang; instead, a bed stood in the corner, and a table about a meter and a half wide sat in the middle of the room, covered entirely in sheets of paper.

Drawn on these papers was a creature with a dog-like body and the head of a turtle. Its torso was slender and completely grey, and it possessed a tail significantly longer than its body, making it look like an absolute monster.

Next to this creature, a human figure was also sketched. Surprisingly, the human stood only as tall as the creature itself. More importantly, the monster stood on all fours like a lion, yet standing beside the human, it looked as massive as an elephant next to a man.

Seeing these illustrations, we all drew in a sharp breath of air, staring at them in utter confusion. None of us had any idea what this creature was, and even Hu Yue'er wore a puzzled expression.

Noticing us staring intently at the monster in the drawings, Gai Wan-cheng explained, "This creature is called a Sheng. It is the mythical totem of the ancient Kalakun tribe. According to legends, the Sheng stood much taller than ordinary humans, was the descendant of ancient deities, and lived by slaughtering. It was the most revered deity of the ancient Kalakun people."

After listening to Gai Wan-cheng's explanation, Li Kun, Xu Tian, and I were left in a daze. It seemed that Professor Gai Wan-cheng whom we were seeking was indeed a veteran expert in ancient totems, capable of unearthing even the forgotten deities of ancient tribes.

Seeing our stunned expressions, Gai Wan-cheng nodded with satisfaction and said, "Old Xu told me you had something you wanted to ask me. Well, spit it out. What is this all about?"

Once Gai Wan-cheng finished speaking, Xu Tian stepped forward and produced the six-clawed golden toad jade pendant.