"Apprentice... my time is running short, and there are things you ought to know now. I am not actually a Taoist, nor do I know any Taoist magic; the tricks are just sleight of hand from the martial world."
"You heard me right, I am a con artist from the martial world."
"When I first arrived in Qiulong County, I intended to pretend to be a ghost-busting Taoist, scam a fortune, and then leave. Due to some twist of fate, the people in the county came to believe that I had real abilities. Those landlords, they offered a small fortune to convince me to stay."
"My greed got the better of me. Seeing the opportunity to amass wealth... I couldn't bear to leave. Before I knew it, more than twenty years had passed."
"Luckily, my luck held up and I never ran into any real demons and devils."
"Don't be mad that I deceived you for twenty years. I was afraid you, being young, might blab. Once that kind of secret got out, our chances to make money would vanish. We would both be done for!"
"I am not going to last much longer. The more than four thousand silver taels I've saved up are hidden inside the statue of the True Martial Great Emperor in the Taoist Temple."
"You're naturally strong and tall, so you should be able to carry more than four thousand taels no problem. Take the silver and leave Qiulong County at once!"
"Once I'm gone, those people from Qiulong County will inevitably seek you out to help them solve any strange occurrences. If it turns out to be a false alarm, that's fine, but it's dreadful if you encounter the real thing! It's risky to keep dangling your feet in the river, for who's to say you won't get them wet one day; I worry your life might not be safe!"
"By the way, I am not alone. Aside from taking you in, I also have a daughter."
"Speaking of which, she is like your elder sworn sister. Don't get any foolish ideas; my daughter is over forty, and her husband is a big deal!"
"Although you are only my apprentice, I have always treated you as my son. I may have deceived others all my life, but these words are true."
"Unfortunately, I have a poor relationship with her, and I can't bring myself to live in the Prefecture. If you're willing, take this letter to your sworn sister at the Nanjun Prefecture Government in the Great Zhou Dynasty; my daughter is the wife of the Prefect!"
"The over four thousand silver taels I've gathered are your travel expenses and reward!"
"Once you find your sworn sister and reveal your identity, you might still come into great wealth."
"Cough cough cough..."
"..."
With a letter in hand, Fan Wu recollected the confessions his con artist master had made on his deathbed.
Who would have thought that the well-renowned ghost-busting Heavenly Master of the entire Qiulong County was actually a charlatan from the martial world!
And he himself was the apprentice of that charlatan!
The dramatic irony was palpable.
Three years ago, when Fan Wu first arrived in this world, he found he had become a young acolyte in a Taoist Temple.
After assimilating the memories of this body, he quickly realized the extraordinariness of this world.
This was a world infested with demons and spirits!
In the first year after his transmigration, he felt rather fortunate, thinking his luck was good because acolytes could learn Taoist Magic! With the knowledge of exorcising demons and spirits, he would stand firm and confident.
In the second year, Fan Wu started to sense something was off. But maybe due to his sense of alienation and reverence for the strange world and its strange inhabitants, he didn't ask too many questions.
By the third year, he had outlived his master. The master's final words made Fan Wu realize his premonitions were correct.
"But you told me too late!"
Fan Wu carefully stowed the letter away.
He wasn't averse to grabbing the silver and making a run for it.
But whether due to bad luck or some other reason, not long after his swindler master had died, a curious incident occurred in Qiulong County.
As the "ghost-busting Heavenly Master's" one and only apprentice with the "true lineage for exorcising spirits," Fan Wu...
was summoned by the Magistrate of Qiulong County.
At that time, he had not even had the chance to smash open the statue of the True Martial Great Emperor and take out the silver!
The called-upon Fan Wu to exorcise ghosts was keenly aware that he could not tell the truth.
Telling the truth and ending up in prison was the least of his worries; getting beaten to death on the spot wouldn't be surprising.
All he could do was pretend to conduct several exorcisms.
The subsequent incidents seemed to have stopped. Whether it was a coincidence or just a false alarm was unknown.
Fan Wu cleared his mind of distractions.
He took a deep breath.
Already tall and naturally strong, he had rolled up his sleeves, revealing the firm muscles on his forearms. Over these three years of transmigration, he had not mastered any Taoist magic, but he certainly had built up his physique.
At first glance, he didn't look like a Taoist priest at all.
More like a fierce military commander who had been in the army for years.
Fan Wu picked up a heavy iron hammer he had prepared and looked up at the statue of the True Martial Great Emperor.
He was still feeling a bit nervous.
In this world of spirits and gods, was it really okay to smash a divine statue? But if he didn't smash it, how would he take the silver and flee?
"It's already evening. I must smash it open before nightfall, so by the dead of night, I can leave Qiulong County with the silver. This body is naturally gifted with divine power; shouldering those silver taels for a few dozen miles... tiring as it may be, it's not a big problem!!"
"If my master didn't lie to me, then I should take this letter to his daughter at the Nanjun Prefecture Government. Maybe, just maybe, I could actually confirm our kinship and save myself decades of wandering."
Fan Wu had already swung the hammer high, ready to smash down, but at that moment, he halted mid-action.
He stared blankly at the statue of the True Martial Great Emperor, his gaze resting on the statue's head.
Because.
He saw two lines of text!
[A Statue of the True Martial Great Emperor with a Trace of Incense Power—Life: ?—Power: ?—Skill: ?]
Fan Wu: "?"
What?
Words resembling game attributes dangled above the True Martial Great Emperor's statue's head, leaving Fan Wu momentarily unable to react.
He closed his eyes.
And then opened them again.
The text had not disappeared and still hung above the statue of the True Martial Great Emperor.
Afterward.
A stream of information suddenly bubbled up in his mind, causing Fan Wu, who was holding a large iron hammer, to involuntarily lower his arms. The rust-stained head of the hammer rested on the ground.
It took a while before Fan Wu recovered his wits.
He finally understood what had happened; he had actually activated a Golden Finger!
Fan Wu looked down at his hands.
His very own attribute panel...
Suddenly appeared!
[Name: Fan Wu]
[Life: 89＋]
[Power: 4＋]
[Skill: None]
[Free Attribute Points: 0]
This was the Golden Finger Fan Wu had just activated. The Golden Finger's function was very simple.
Besides letting him see the mysterious "Life" and "Power" attributes... its other function was to allow him to gain attribute points by slaying ghosts, demons, and devils and use those to enhance himself.
In short, it was: Kill monsters → Drop attribute points → Add points to become stronger!
The "Life" attribute signified Fan Wu's lifespan. It meant that once he reached the age of 89, Fan Wu could just lie down and kick the bucket.
It looked like he still had a decent chance of living a long life.
The "Power" attribute referred to a combination of strength, speed, reflexes, and other aspects, and was essentially an indicator of combat ability. The "Power" of a healthy adult typically ranged between 1 and 2.
Fan Wu felt that, perhaps because he was born with divine power combined with having learned some martial arts on the side—even if it was just basic martial arts and he knew a few moves—his "Power" attribute was higher than others.
The "Skill" referred to special skills Fan Wu knew, such as various Taoist magics, Sword Control Technique…the more esoteric stuff.
All the scriptures that his deceitful master had given him were fakes, and Fan Wu only knew some basic punching and kicking techniques.
So naturally, his "Skill" was none.
But...
It seemed that this Golden Finger couldn't immediately solve his current problem. To utilize the Golden Finger to boost his attributes and become stronger, he first needed the ability to slay these demons and ghosts.
Putting aside whether a disciple of a fake Taoist priest had such capability, just finding these demons and ghosts wasn't an easy task.
His deceitful master had been in Qiulong County for so long without encountering a single true haunted incident.
Fan Wu calmed down and touched the handle of the iron hammer, letting out a sigh, "Why would there be an actual deity statue inside a Taoist Temple built for a fake Taoist priest by a group of big dupes who have been fooled for over twenty years?"
Under such circumstances, even if he knew that the more than four thousand Silver Tael were hidden inside the statue of the True Martial Great Emperor, he had no way to obtain them.
Who knows if he would attract some kind of retribution if he just smashed down with the hammer?
This was the True Martial Great Emperor whose attributes were all question marks!
Bang, bang, bang!!!
Bang, bang, bang!!!
Suddenly.
The tightly locked gates of the Taoist Temple were frantically pounded on, followed by anxious shouting, "Taoist Priest Fan! Taoist Priest Fan! There's a huge problem! That filthy thing you exorcised with your rituals a few days ago... it's appeared again!!!"
Fan Wu: "..."
...
...