Facing an Ancient God for a Year

Weekends sure are lively!

Fu Qian took a sip of lemonade and surveyed the crowd below him.

This was an old mall just a fifteen-minute walk from his home.

The psychological suggestion he gave to Tan Ying had been simple—come here in an hour.

The reason for this was naturally to confirm the issues with Tan Ying’s bracelet.

Since he couldn’t be sure that the anomaly with the bracelet was his doing, he at least had to take half the responsibility for helping out.

...So as the helper, Fu Qian felt he had no obligation to make a house call, but rather that the one being helped should come to him.

This spot had the best vantage point in the mall; he timed his wait here so that he would not miss Tan Ying the moment she arrived.

Hey!

A few minutes later, Fu Qian set down his lemonade and greeted someone below.

The next moment, Tan Ying, her hands full of snacks, looked up puzzled.

…

“How come you are here?”

As Tan Ying came upstairs and saw it was indeed Fu Qian, she couldn’t help but ask.

“My home is at most eight hundred meters from here.”

Fu Qian looked at her.

“The question is, what are you doing here? Who comes to shop here for no reason?”

That said, his gaze lingered for a moment on Tan Ying’s hands.

“And to eat so much so early in the morning?”

“That’s exactly why!”

Tan Ying looked quite proud.

“I’ve been here before; the snacks are particularly tasty.”

Are you sure?

Fu Qian looked at the pile of items in her hands, almost all of which were common street foods.

These items were more or less the same, and Fu Qian didn’t believe they could be anything special.

Little did he expect that Tan Ying would come up with such a reason to fulfill the psychological suggestion.

It seemed that once the psychological suggestion had been given, even if she would act on the instruction, her rationale would still provide a reason to make her actions seem logical.

In fact, this was why Fu Qian had taken the extra steps to choose this place.

If he had asked her to go directly to his home, he doubted this lady could come up with a reasonable excuse.

Indeed, there was a problem!

Upon facing her, Fu Qian also confirmed his previous speculation.

Although Tan Ying looked even healthier than last time, radiant and rosy-cheeked,

In Fu Qian’s eyes, the bracelet on her left hand was glowing brilliantly, more vibrant than she was.

It almost seemed alive.

“Nice bracelet? Did you just buy it?”

“Isn’t it!”

Tan Ying raised her wrist and showed it off in front of Fu Qian.

“Didn’t I just have a birthday? Among all the gifts, this one caught my eye instantly.”

“I see,”

Fu Qian nodded.

“May I take a look?”

?

Now Tan Ying was curious, as most men aren’t usually interested in jewelry.

But curious as she was, Tan Ying wasn’t stingy, so she took it off and handed it over immediately.

Fu Qian effortlessly received it and held it in his palm.

In an instant, the blood in his palm seemed to be drawn by a special attraction, causing a subtle change in its circulation pattern.

This thing was much stronger than the stone lion from last time!

“It really seems nice…”

Fu Qian examined it without giving anything away.

“How much was it?”

What?

Tan Ying was a bit stunned at first, then realizing what he said, couldn’t help but cover her mouth and laugh.

“You’re not thinking of buying it, are you?”

“Hmm.”

“You really want it?”

Seeing Fu Qian wasn’t joking, Tan Ying’s smile faded somewhat, and she shook her head firmly.

“Are you buying it as a gift? Unfortunately, it’s a gift I received, I really can’t sell it to you.”

“It’s not about the gift per se, it’s that the bracelet isn’t good for you.”

As he spoke, Fu Qian handed the bracelet back.

“Isn’t good for me?”

Tan Ying, frowning, took it back and seemed eager to put it on again.

“Yes, I’ve studied the stars at night, and this bracelet clashes with your destiny. Wearing it for too long is not good for you.”

“Can’t believe you’re a fortune-teller too?”

“Don’t believe it?”

“Nope.”

Tan Ying shook her head with a giggly smile, clearly thinking Fu Qian was joking.

“Exorcist, robber, consultant, art master…”

Tan Ying counted item by item on her tender, white fingers.

“With so many professions, since when did you become a fortune-teller?”

She did have an impressive memory.

All those were just nonsense he had blabbered at Tan Ying’s birthday party, chatting with her classmates. Unexpectedly, she remembered everything.

“Otherwise, why do you think I’m sitting here?”

Fu Qian huffed.

“One divination a day, only for those predestined. If you don’t believe, want to make a bet?”

As soon as Fu Qian said it, Tan Ying seemed intrigued.

Indeed, as soon as she got up this morning, she felt like wandering here, and then happened to run into him.

That could be considered fate.

“Sure, what’s the bet?”

“I bet that today there will definitely be an anomaly in the sky.”

Fu Qian pointed upwards.

“What kind of anomaly?”

“A solar eclipse.”

“Are you kidding me? How often does that happen in your world?”

Tan Ying had the look of someone enduring a fool.

“Experts said last time that it’s an extremely rare celestial event, once in several hundreds of years.”

“So, you betting or not?”

“…What’s the stake?”

“If I win, you sell me the bracelet.”

Fu Qian pointed at the one Tan Ying was holding.

“And if you lose?”

“I’ll be your model.”

“For real?”

Tan Ying’s eyes sparkled instantly.

“Of course it’s true.”

“Alright.”

Tan Ying was a bold woman, she slapped her snacks aside resolutely.

“How long? There has to be a time limit, right?”

Fu Qian made a gesture of figuring something out with his fingers.

“Within five minutes.”

“…Okay.”

Now Tan Ying’s expression was beyond pitying the fool.

“I’ll just go to the restroom.”

Since the bet was settled, Fu Qian stood up and stretched lazily.

“Hey, you better not run away!”

Tan Ying warned him, looking alert.

“You know where I live.”

“That’s true…”

Descending from the balcony, Fu Qian quickly found a hidden spot, activated the seal, and took out Blasphemy’s Embrace from the warehouse.

Aiming, drawing the bow, shooting an arrow—all within five seconds.

The next moment, the clear blue sky suddenly exploded with a dense rust color, and in less than ten seconds, the sun, which was too bright to look at before, was reduced to a mere bright outline.

After tossing Blasphemy’s Embrace back into the warehouse, Fu Qian returned the same way and soon saw Tan Ying with her jaw hanging open.

It wasn’t until Fu Qian finished his lemonade that Tan Ying recovered, looking at him as if he were an alien.

“How could this be…”

“Name your price.”

Fu Qian did not answer her.

“Okay, fair is fair… Not asking too much, one hundred and eighty thousand.”

Seeing the sly smile on Tan Ying’s face, Fu Qian knew she was doing it on purpose.

Such a quality jade bracelet was indeed worth more than one hundred and eighty thousand in the market.

It was clear she had heard about his financial situation and shrewdly based her price on what she thought he could afford, ensuring he couldn’t walk away with it while still somewhat honoring the spirit of the contract.

Youthful indeed!

…

Half a minute later, Tan Ying stared at her phone’s notification of the funds received, her eyes bulging in shock.

“You… aren’t planning to gift it… to a client, are you?”