Ethan Foster was raised by Master from a young age and was very filial to Master. So, even though he knew that this Gabala artifact was deeply connected to him, he had never worn it. He would only occasionally take it out to play with in the quiet of the night.

“Tch, why are you so nervous? Seriously, is there anything of yours I haven’t seen before?”

Seeing that Ethan Foster wouldn’t let him touch the pendant, Chad couldn’t help but cry out and said, “Ethan Foster, is it because Mr. Chad was away in the army for a few years that you hooked up with some girl? Be honest, is this a token of love from some girl?”

Strangely enough, Ethan Foster grew up in the mountains, often following Master deep into the forest to gather herbs, enduring the elements. Yet, Ethan Foster happened to have fair skin and handsome features. Aside from the calluses in his palms, he didn’t look at all like a child raised in the mountains.

When Ethan Foster, Chad, and the others were about thirteen or fourteen, Chad and Sanpao would sometimes bring some village girls to play with Ethan Foster. Without exception, the more precocious girls would all show some affection for Ethan Foster, which made Chad quite jealous—hence his current remarks.

“A token of love? Only you could come up with that…”

Hearing Chad’s words, Ethan Foster said with a wry smile, “This thing is a magical artifact called Gabala, made from human bone. Would the girls in your village give something like this as a love token?”

“Made from human bone? Damn, why didn’t you say so earlier?”

Chad quickly withdrew the hand he’d stretched toward the Gabala and hurriedly said, “the old priest is always messing with these weird things. You actually dare to wear something as sinister as human bone? I’m telling you, keep that thing away from me…”

Chad had also grown up with the old priest and knew that, although the old priest seemed a bit crazy at times, he was actually a master hiding his true abilities. He had many things that ordinary people didn’t understand, so Chad just assumed the Gabala was something the old priest had passed on to Ethan Foster.

“You don’t know shit…” Listening to Chad’s nonsense, Ethan Foster couldn’t help but laugh and curse, “Gabala is made from the bones of enlightened monks and can ward off evil and disaster. How did it become something sinister in your mouth…”

Ethan Foster couldn’t be bothered to argue with Chad any further. This guy was a chatterbox and would never get it straight. He simply took the Gabala in his hand, carefully rubbed it, and then hung it around his neck.

As the only clue to his own origins, Ethan Foster naturally valued the Gabala immensely. When Master was still alive, Ethan Foster wouldn’t wear it out of consideration for Master’s feelings. But now that the old priest had passed away, Ethan Foster naturally wanted to keep it close.

“As a true Daoist disciple, wearing a Buddhist artifact really is a bit hard to justify…”

Feeling the coolness of the Gabala against his chest, Ethan Foster couldn’t help but feel a bit awkward. The reason was that, when the old priest was alive, he often criticized the current Buddhist sects, calling them all frauds, and that there were hardly any true enlightened monks left.

“All right, let’s go. We’ll pay our respects at Master’s grave, and then we can head down the mountain…”

After putting away the Gabala, Ethan Foster clapped his hands. He and Master were both recluses with few possessions—other than a few strings of Daoist beads for daily cultivation, there were only a few worn Daoist robes. Even the small wooden box Master left him wasn’t full.

“Yeah, we weren’t here when the the old man died, so we should go and kowtow a few times at his grave…”

Hearing Ethan Foster’s words, Chad’s attention immediately shifted from the Gabala. Although he didn’t show much respect for the old priest in words, he’d eaten and drunk plenty from him since childhood and actually held him in high regard.

“One day, when I have money, I’ll come back and rebuild the Shangqing Temple…”

Carrying the box, Ethan Foster and Chad left the temple. Ethan Foster looked back, a trace of reluctance on his face. Though living here every day felt lonely and cold, now that he was about to leave, a sense of homesickness welled up in his heart.

“All right, in the future, Mr. Chad will help you rebuild this place, okay?”

Chad might seem rough and careless, but he was actually quite thoughtful. Seeing the reluctance on Ethan Foster’s face, he threw an arm around Ethan Foster’s shoulders and said, “Let’s hurry and check out the the old man’s grave. I want to see what kind of feng shui spot he picked for himself.”

When the old priest was alive, he often lamented that, despite his mastery of geomancy and grave selection, he had no descendants. Even if he picked a prime feng shui grave for himself, it wouldn’t benefit any offspring.

“Don’t you get any funny ideas…”

Seeing the crafty look in Chad’s eyes, Ethan Foster couldn’t help but smack him on the head and said irritably, “Master set up an array—anyone who dares disturb his grave will die without a proper burial. Besides, there’s nothing in Master’s tomb anyway, so don’t even think about it…”