The Metaphysics Big Shot Is At It Again, Setting Up a Street Stall

Wei Mian, a skilled Feng Shui master, spots a wanted poster for a murderer, Chen Jinhui. From his physiognomy, she deduces he has killed two people, not one, and that the second victim was a woman close to him five years ago. Using his ID number and facial features, she calculates his location: a small white house by the Qingshui River. She approaches, uses a paper talisman figure to open the door, and immobilizes Chen with a yellow talisman. She calls the police, who arrive to find the criminal subdued. At the station, Wei Mian demands the hundred-thousand-yuan reward. When Captain Fan Wencong questions her methods, she demonstrates her fortune-telling by accurately recounting his life events, including a near-drowning at age five, his father’s death, his mother’s remarriage, his divorce, and his current marriage. She also reveals that Chen Jinhui was a suspect in an unsolved five-year-old murder, which is later confirmed by the deputy captain’s investigation. Female officer Sun Yanni offers Wei Mian a place to sleep in the duty dormitory. Before Sun leaves, Wei Mian warns her not to take her usual route home. Sun dismisses the advice but later decides to take a detour, buying egg tarts. She then learns that a multi-car pileup occurred on her usual route at that very time, killing several people. Sun realizes Wei Mian saved her life.

The next day, Wei Mian receives the reward. She is revitalized by a wisp of Golden Light of Merit that falls upon her after saving Sun, which is more effective for cultivation than her previous efforts. She spends the money wisely: she buys a mobile phone, opens a bank account, and purchases yellow paper, cinnabar, and a high-quality compass from a funeral supplies shop. She then takes a train to Qing Province, where she has been admitted to Qingping University. She rents a one-bedroom apartment near the campus, paying six months’ rent in advance. The location is chosen for its proximity to the university and a large park that connects to a mountain, ideal for morning cultivation. She sets up a Spirit Gathering Array in the apartment using ordinary items, feeling the spiritual energy slowly accumulate. However, she quickly realizes that her funds are depleting. After expenses and a fifty-thousand-yuan donation, little remains of the reward. She still needs to pay tuition and buy daily necessities. She understands that she must find a way to earn money and accumulate Merit, which is now essential for her cultivation and for revitalizing her current body, which had been nearly lifeless when she entered it.

Wei Mian, once the sole female disciple of the Zhengyang Sect, decides to use her Feng Shui skills to earn a living. She performs a divination for herself, which indicates her wealth direction is northeast. That direction leads to North Mountain Park, also known as Sports Park. She packs her compass and copper coins and goes there. The park is full of elderly people exercising and various stalls selling goods. She observes a fortune-teller who she judges to be a half-baked practitioner. This gives her an idea to set up her own stall, both to earn money and to gain Merit by helping people. She buys some food to eat and begins assessing the area, preparing to start offering her fortune-telling and Feng Shui services. Her ultimate goal is to survive and recover her original strength through Merit cultivation, while also adapting to modern society and attending university.