Revelation of the Way of Heaven

"Although I really don't want to trouble you, Mother-in-law, this matter is of utmost importance. Perhaps you already knew it. I've come here to ask you to find someone for me," Han Kexin replied respectfully.

"Did you bring the things?" Granny Ding asked.

Han Kexin took a transparent plastic bag out of her pocket, inside which was a small blue porcelain cup, and handed it to Granny Ding. "This is the sake cup he used three days ago when he was drinking sake."

Grandma Ding took the plastic bag and casually placed it on the table. Then she picked up Anan from her arms and put it on the table. Anan was a little annoyed at being disturbed from its sweet dream, and it also didn't like the cold table. So it stood up, walked to the edge of the table, and with a light push of its hind legs, jumped onto a wooden platform very close to the electric heater. There was a jacket draped over the platform, which it used as its nest, and continued its sweet dream.

Grandma Ding stood up from her chair, turned to face the bookshelf behind her, and took down the blue crystal ball, about the size of a child's head, from the shelf with both hands. The crystal ball was held in place by a silver stand. When Grandma Ding placed the stand on the table, the light from the electric heater shone on the crystal ball, creating a dark red spot of light on it.

Grandma Ding sat down in her chair again, then opened the plastic bag and took out the small porcelain cup. Han Kexin spoke at this moment.

She said, "I remember you used to have me bring you a basin of water in a copper basin."

"That's an old method. Now we have more convenient tools to replace it," Grandma Ding said, picking up a white cloth from the table and carefully wiping the dust off the crystal ball. "Those of us in this line of work also need to keep up with the times," she concluded.

"Perhaps you could prepare a box for it, so you don't have to worry about it getting dusty," Han Kexin added.

"Not everything is suitable for storage in a box," Grandma Ding replied softly. She gently blew away a small spider clinging to the crystal ball before continuing, "The crystal ball is like our eyes. Putting it in a box is like closing our eyes, so we can't see anything."

As Granny Ding finished wiping the crystal ball clean, Qin Xiaochuan felt it had become even more mysterious and eerie after hearing her explanation. The dark red spot of light seemed to have turned into a leaping flame, and in that flame, he seemed to see dark red blood flowing along a strange pattern. On the other side of that pattern was a pair of compassionate eyes.

"What did you see?" Grandma Ding's voice suddenly interrupted him. She looked at him quietly with a kind expression, while Han Kexin looked on curiously from the side.

"Blood and eyes," Qin Xiaochuan answered truthfully.

Grandma Ding frowned. "It's something very secretive," she said, then ignored him and continued with her work.

Although he didn't understand what she meant, seeing her devout actions, he ultimately didn't ask.

She held the small porcelain cup in her hand, closed her eyes, and began to mutter incantations. After about two minutes, Qin Xiaochuan heard her say, "Open your merciful eyes for me." Then she opened her eyes.

As she opened her eyes, a clear image appeared on the crystal ball. Qin Xiaochuan glanced at the image curiously, then couldn't help but call out, "Kawamoto Taro."

Indeed, the person appearing on the crystal ball was Kawamoto Taro. At this moment, he seemed to be in a study, the light in the study being as dim as the light here. He was sitting on a futon, next to a table, and opposite the table was a middle-aged monk dressed in yellow robes.

"Where is this place?" he asked curiously, but no one answered him. Han Kexin was recording the scene on the crystal ball with her camera, and her furrowed brows showed that she didn't know the answer either.

Kawamoto Taro and the middle-aged monk were chatting, but unfortunately there was no sound from the crystal ball. It was like watching a silent movie, and they couldn't hear what the other was saying.

Qin Xiaochuan carefully observed the scene in the study, hoping to find some clues to determine what kind of place it was, but he came up empty-handed. Although the study in the picture was decorated in an antique style, finding such a study in the whole country was even more difficult than finding a needle in a haystack.

Just as they were feeling discouraged, Kawamoto Taro suddenly leaned forward to pick up a cup of tea from the table. As he did so, the camera on the crystal ball moved forward with him, revealing a thread-bound book on the table. On the book, the three of them saw a name: "Record of Miscellaneous Affairs for Disciples of Changsheng Temple".

This is a very useful clue. It goes without saying that they are in a temple called Changsheng Temple. But where is Changsheng Temple?

Qin Xiaochuan asked Han Kexin, but she also shook her head blankly. "We can find out by looking it up online," she said.

"You won't be able to find it." At this moment, Granny Ding suddenly spoke up.

"Why?" Han Kexin looked at her in confusion.

"There's no record of this place online." Although Granny Ding's voice sounded weak and frail, it was quite decisive, leading Qin Xiaochuan to conclude that she definitely knew about this Changsheng Temple.

"So, Grandma should know where this Changsheng Temple is now?" Han Kexin had the same thought.

"Alas, you haven't been a member of my clan for very long." The old woman sighed, her expression becoming somewhat complicated. She said, "Otherwise, you would surely know that there is a temple called the Temple of Longevity next to the Land of Witchcraft Origin."

"The Land of Witchcraft Origins!" Han Kexin exclaimed in shock. "Could such a place really exist?"

"Yes!" the old man said with a single word, then added, "At least that's how it's been in the legends throughout history."

Although Qin Xiaochuan didn't know what the "Land of Witchcraft Origin" they were talking about was, he could tell it was a legendary place and quite important. So he asked, "So, no one has actually discovered this place?"

Grandma Ding glanced at him, nodded, and said, "That's right. Although people throughout history have searched for it, hoping to learn the secrets of the ancient witch clan through it, for thousands of years, apart from a few people in myths and legends, no one else has been able to prove its existence."

"So, Grandma means that these people's goal is to find the source of witchcraft?" Han Kexin asked, frowning.

"I can't be sure unless you think they really have ulterior motives. You can consider that possibility. In any case, you can only make your own judgment," the old man said calmly.

"I understand." Han Kexin nodded. "Thank you for your guidance, Grandma."

"Compared to the path you are about to take, what I have done is nothing at all," the old man said finally.