Chapter 516: Chapter 508: The Ever-Changing Face
Jing Xiaosi was left completely blank by the successive news from Qin Liuxi.
After a long while, he asked Qin Liuxi, "Is the Junior Temple Master’s prediction accurate?"
"According to Face Reading, your mother passed away early, and your father took a concubine. What I said about you having kinship means that this stepmother of yours is supposed to be a relative of the Jing Family. Since she’s a relative, her son and you are also related, albeit distantly," Qin Liuxi explained. "You were meant to live beyond seventy years, marry someone from the south, have twin children—a boy and a girl. In terms of your official career, there are no substantial achievements; you enjoy the blessings from your ancestors. However, your son will be upright and very popular with the people, becoming a steadfast pillar in the government."
Jing Xiaosi’s heart began to throb wildly.
Xiong Er and the others were also excited but surprisingly used their brains and said, "Junior Temple Master, the fortune you predicted for Xiao Si, is it based on the premise that his lifespan hasn’t been stolen?"
Feng Mi glanced over, realizing you also have a brain.
Qin Liuxi nodded: "Naturally, if his lifespan is short, all these predictions are empty words."
"What if his lifespan has been stolen, can it be taken back? His fate has been altered," Xiong Er asked nervously, staring at Jing Xiaosi’s face.
Feng Mi said, "Are you silly? You managed to find this place. As soon as she points it out, the face reading will immediately change."
Is it really that mystical?
Jing Xiaosi: "How can this lifespan stealing be successful? Other than being unlucky recently and having some stomach discomfort, I don’t feel anything else. The fainting was also because my stomach suddenly hurt unbearably."
"Exactly, there were no signs at all, he just suddenly fell down, it scared me to death."
"If you are affected by a yin-damaging magic related to your lifespan, once the magic is successful, all misfortunes will descend upon you, bad luck, health issues. Whether the stomach was the first to have problems doesn’t really matter; all five internal organs support and restrict each other, if the stomach is not well, other organs will also have problems. This means, vitality will be gradually eroded," Qin Liuxi explained.
Jing Xiaosi was silent for a moment, then asked, "Could you tell if the same person who stole my lifespan also placed the poisonous insect on me?"
Qin Liuxi nodded.
Xiong Er puzzled: "That doesn’t make sense. If it was that woman, why would she want to steal your lifespan and also place a poisonous insect on you?"
Jing Xiaosi was also somewhat confused. Shouldn’t she have just spared his life then?
"It must be something sudden that happened to the child," Qin Liuxi explained again. "When a poisonous insect is destroyed, the person who harbors the mother poison will suffer a backlash, and this backlash will affect them personally, and in more severe cases, it may even affect their descendants. This is why one shouldn’t commit evils; retribution is inevitable sooner or later."
"Serves her right!" Xiong Er clapped his hands: "I never liked that woman from the start, pretending to be a pure little white flower, but actually darker than anyone else. It’s only your scumbag father who was blind and thought she was fragile, pah. I really want to see his face when he realizes he’s been cuckolded."
"Keep it down, think of your brother," Feng Mi nudged him.
Xiong Er crossed his arms, stubbornly said: "A scumbag father deserves everyone’s spit. Ever since he brought that woman back, Xiao Si has disowned that father."
He still glanced at Jing Xiaosi though.
Jing Xiaosi’s face showed no expression, only bowing to Qin Liuxi: "Please, Junior Temple Master, break the spell for me."
Qin Liuxi raised an eyebrow: "You do trust me."
Jing Xiaosi showed a bitter smile: "I don’t know many from the Mystic Sect, even if I could go back to the capital and ask for help from Jinhua Temple, who knows if I would survive the trip?"
"Breaking this magic spell will cause a backlash on the spell caster, and the person who stole your lifespan will also receive Heavenly Punishment. In that case, you will also face a life-or-death situation," Qin Liuxi said, looking at his face.
Jing Xiaosi’s face was changing based on her declarations. If she pointed it out, he wouldn’t die early, but now if she mentions breaking the spell, his face reading shows he will encounter bloodshed, meaning even if the spell is broken, he could be chased down and killed.
Face reading is indeed mysterious, changing according to a person’s fate and even their actions, incredibly profound.
Xiong Er was somewhat scared, holding Jing Xiaosi’s hand: "To face such a dire risk... Xiao Si, we..."
"It’s okay, if it’s not a misfortune it’s a blessing; if it’s misfortune, it can’t be avoided. Didn’t the Junior Temple Master say, life through a near-death experience? As long as I survive, my lifespan will be as she described, long and having successful children," Jing Xiaosi said proudly: "You see, even this kind of evil magic I can now avoid, what else matters?"
Xiong Er’s eyes reddened, "Jing Jin really isn’t a man, you are his son, even if he dislikes your aunt, he shouldn’t let others mistreat you."
"Don’t mention him," Jing Xiaosi’s expression turned cold.
Xiong Er turned away to wipe his eyes, fists clenched, determined to speak up about everything big and small to his father once back in the capital, Jing Jin was too oppressive.
Jing Xiaosi asked again about breaking the spell.
Qin Liuxi countered, "Knowing that it’s someone related to you makes it simpler, do you have his birth dates? Just bring out his birth dates, match the two parties, and see if the causal link of the lifespan is there?"
"Can lifespan be stolen just knowing the birth dates?" Jing Xiaosi was curious.
Qin Liuxi shook her head, "Birth dates are the most crucial aspect, but you also need something of yours, like your flesh and blood, or hair, nails would also work. With these items, by using a puppet as a substitute body, spells can be cast to steal a few years of a lifespan, connecting the causal threads of both parties into one, and the spell would be successful."
"Sounds pretty easy," Xiong Er muttered.
Feng Mi snorted and laughed: "Easy? It sounds easy, but for the spell to succeed, it definitely requires the alchemist’s cultivation, magical skills, arrays, talismans, etc., all indispensable. You think just anyone can do this?"
Xiong Er sheepishly responded.
"Even if it can be done, don’t do it. After all, such evil magic is harmful. If unnoticed, let it be, once detected and the spell is broken, backlash is inevitable. Also, all these actions will be recorded in your life, noted in the Merit and Demerit Record. Acts that diminish yin de are best avoided," Qin Liuxi said indifferently.
Jing Xiaosi pursed his lips, "So, to avoid harming my yin de, I can’t even take revenge?"
"You can, what is cause and effect? There’s a cause, then an effect. If the other party harms you, your retaliation is fair. Just letting you know, certain retaliations can be more subtle. Like now, once the spell is broken, the backlash on the spell-caster, trust me, they won’t be better off than before the magic was cast," Qin Liuxi lightly chuckled: "Sometimes, the most desperate moment for a person is when they are confident of victory, sitting and fishing comfortably, but their sure win slips through their fingers like sand, the more they grasp, the less they can hold onto, nothing is more painful than gaining then losing."
Jing Xiaosi quickly understood her meaning, does this mean Jing Wu will die?
His mind suddenly flashed with spirit light, "Junior Temple Master, if I don’t resolve this spell now, will I die immediately?"
Qin Liuxi’s lips curled, amused, the face reading, again, had changed.