Chapter 1103 Master Ma's Demise
Even more astonishing to Chen Xuan was that the golden dragon, which he had last seen at a mere thirty zhang, had now grown to a full forty zhang!
Could this golden dragon grow larger?
This was simply unbelievable!
He had no time to ponder this further. Suddenly, he noticed a dark figure standing atop the golden dragon's head. His gaze sharpened.
It was Master Ma!
For some reason, Chen Xuan felt a sense of unease.
Quickly, Chen Xuan retrieved the worn altar cloth from the belongings Master Ma had left behind. He spread it on the ground, then took out the Five Emperors Coins and the emerald turtle shell, placing the coins within the shell. He began to perform the Yan Ji Shu divination.
To be honest, Chen Xuan had secretly attempted to use Yan Ji Shu with the Five Emperors Coins and the emerald turtle shell to calculate the fate of the Dragon Tamers, but had never succeeded.
Yet this time, the Yan Ji Shu, which had always failed, succeeded on the first try.
Looking at the hexagrams, Chen Xuan's expression was complex, filled with surprise and sorrow.
He slowly looked up at Master Ma, who stood proudly atop the dragon's head...
The reason for his emotions was that, during the Yan Ji Shu divination, Chen Xuan had calculated that Master Ma was indeed the Dragon Tamer, and that Master Ma would perish because of it!
"Young Chen, do not be sad. A long time ago, I calculated my own fate. This is the path I must take. If you truly feel you owe me, when you burn paper at your ancestral graves, remember to ask your Chen family ancestors to find me a good job in the King of Hell's palace!"
Master Ma spoke the last part with a touch of humor.
But the sadness and desolation could not be dispelled.
Chen Xuan had also calculated that Master Ma's lifespan was nearing its end. He didn't know if Master Ma was joking, but he nodded nonetheless.
Master Ma grinned, his expression one of hearty acceptance.
The golden dragon beneath his feet suddenly went berserk, stirring the lake's water to attack Master Ma.
"Wicked beast, surrender quickly!"
Master Ma formed a Xuanmen hand seal with both hands.
Chen Xuan had never seen this seal before, but it exuded a profound ancient aura.
Immediately after, countless black runes materialized from thin air and lightly fell upon the golden dragon.
The golden dragon, however, seemed to recoil as if struck by something terrifying, emitting a shrill dragon's roar and struggling desperately.
In the end, the once arrogant golden dragon actually began to plead for mercy!
But Master Ma did not desist. The black runes multiplied in the air, obscuring the heavens and the earth, clinging tightly to the golden dragon's body, its horns, and so on.
Originally a golden dragon, resplendent and mighty, it now turned completely black due to the runes.
At this moment, the golden dragon lost all its ferocity, becoming like a fawning puppy!
And Master Ma, standing on the dragon's body, his already graying hair turned as white as snow, aging more than a decade in an instant.
Staring at Master Ma, Chen Xuan's gaze sharpened: "Sealing with life!"
Normally, Feng Shui masters sealed with cinnabar or the blood from their fingertips. However, Master Ma was using his own life force as the sealing agent!
The consequence of this was the forfeiture of his life.
A moment later, Chen Xuan felt a bond form between the golden dragon and the Su family of the provincial city, specifically Su Yunxi. He knew that the final step of forging the dragon vein had also been successful.
"Young Chen, remember my instructions!"
With that, Master Ma plunged headfirst into the lake.
Chen Xuan dashed forward, leaping high!
He caught Master Ma, descending rapidly. His toes touched the lake's surface as he landed lightly. By now, Master Ma's hair was snow-white, his skin covered in wrinkles, and he had no trace of vitality.
Sealing with life—no amount of heavenly treasures could replenish one's lifespan.
"Master Ma, rest assured, I will do as you said."
Looking at Master Ma in his arms, Chen Xuan nodded solemnly.
At that moment, a clear dragon's roar echoed.
Chen Xuan turned his head and saw the golden dragon flying towards him. The black runes on its body had vanished, returning to its golden hue.
Its dragon eyes were filled with friendliness. It slowly flew closer, nuzzling against Chen Xuan, its expression fawning.
"This golden dragon has gained sentience?"
Chen Xuan was greatly astonished. He had never expected this dragon vein to develop sentience.
He gently stroked the golden dragon's head, finding the creature rather amusing. He said seriously, "Alright, I'll play with you later. You play here by yourself. I have important matters to attend to."
Now that Master Ma had perished, he still had to arrange Master Ma's funeral rites.
Chen Xuan had originally planned to find a geomantically auspicious spot for Master Ma's grave. Just as he was about to set off, he suddenly remembered that besides the Dragon Concealing Array in the provincial city, the dragon vein he had created was precisely the second most auspicious geomantic location in the provincial city.
Considering everything, the other dragon vein was too ancient and its dragon qi had long since dissipated. It would be better to bury Master Ma here. If buried here, Master Ma would surely be reincarnated into a good life.
The most advantageous part of this dragon vein was undoubtedly the artificial lake. Thus, Chen Xuan instructed men to dig a pit by the lake. While the pit was being dug, Chen Xuan also had a coffin made of nanmu wood and a tombstone delivered.
As the workers dug the pit, Chen Xuan carefully placed Master Ma into the nanmu wood coffin. Just as he was placing Master Ma inside, a pair of briefs suddenly fell out. He hesitated for a moment before placing the briefs back into the coffin.
The coffin was covered, placed in the pit, and then buried with earth, and the tombstone was erected.
The golden dragon seemed extremely reluctant to have Master Ma buried there, but upon receiving a glare from Chen Xuan, it dared not show anything. It seemed to fear Master Ma greatly, and even with his corpse, it kept a respectful distance, finally diving into the artificial lake and disappearing.
After completing everything, Chen Xuan dismissed the workers and solemnly kowtowed three times to Master Ma: "Master Ma, rest assured, I will do as you said!"
As he stood up to leave, he suddenly remembered Master Ma's instructions; there seemed to be a letter left in his bag.
Chen Xuan found Master Ma's bag. Besides the altar cloth, spirit turtle shell, and Five Emperors Coins that Chen Xuan had already seen, it also contained several extremely precious magical artifacts. Master Ma's collection was undoubtedly among the best in the Feng Shui world.
For any single artifact within this bag was sufficient to be considered a treasured heirloom in the Feng Shui world.
However, Chen Xuan was not in the mood to examine them further. After searching for a while longer, he finally found two letters. One was for him, and the other was for his disciple.
Tearing open the envelopes, Chen Xuan unfolded the letters. The writing was elegant and refined. He had never expected Master Ma's calligraphy to be so good.
The content of the letters was very clear. Master Ma had known his fate a long time ago. He had come to Jiangnan Province specifically to accomplish this task. He asked Chen Xuan not to be sad, as this was destiny. He also thanked Chen Xuan for taking him to enjoy food, drink, and entertainment, stating that he had never felt so carefree.
Furthermore, Master Ma also gave instructions on a third matter: to take care of his only disciple and to hand over his possessions to his disciple. Of course, this excluded the Five Emperors Coins, the spirit turtle shell, and the altar cloth, as Master Ma had passed these three items to Chen Xuan.
Chen Xuan was not greedy. As for the spirit turtle shell, Five Emperors Coins, and other items, he did not intend to keep them and planned to pass them on to Master Ma's disciple.