Running A Cemetery in North America

When Sun Yan arrived at the eastern village entrance of Chai Family Village, he saw Shi Langfei and Gu Xing speaking to an old man whose hair reached the ground, saying something.

As he got closer, Sun Yan could faintly hear words like 'gone mad,' 'stay away,' 'the sea is dangerous.'

"What happened?" Sun Yan asked as he approached.

"We discovered something strange," Shi Langfei pointed at the old man with hair reaching the ground.

"Just a moment ago, I was checking by the sea and found this guy hugging a plank, washed ashore by the waves. After I woke him up, he went crazy, grabbing me and saying something about not going to sea."

Shi Langfei briefly explained, "The main point, you know what it is? This guy claims he's a fisherman from Chai Family Village, and while he was at sea, he got lost out there and the waves overturned the boat."

Sun Yan was unconcerned: "For someone who fishes, that's quite normal, isn't it?"

"It's normal, but what's not normal is this guy saying he encountered a storm at sea, drifted on that plank for who knows how long, and when he came back, no one in the village recognized him."

"Wait a minute." Sun Yan racked his brain: "Didn't you just say you found this guy holding a plank washed ashore a moment ago? How can this story about drifting at sea for decades also exist?"

The silent Gu Xing couldn't help but sigh and said, "Let me explain, Shi Langfei doesn't express himself clearly.

Here's what happened: this old man said he was only in his twenties when he went to sea, but he lost his way and drifted on a plank back to the shoreline. Returning to Chai Family Village, he found that he had been adrift for decades,

but the villagers of Chai Family Village didn't believe it. His family had died years ago, and nobody believed his story. In despair, he planned to take the plank out to sea again to end it all, but the waves pushed him back, and Shi Langfei found him and heard the whole tale from him."

"Such things can happen?" Sun Yan exclaimed in surprise.

This reminded him of a story from the Southern Dynasties' "Records of Strange Things" called 'The Rotten Axe Handle.'

It tells of Wang Zhi of the Jin Dynasty, who, while chopping wood, went deep into a mountain and saw some boys playing chess. Wang Zhi approached to listen.

The boys gave him something that resembled a date pip, and after he swallowed it, he no longer felt hungry.

After a while, the boys said to him, "Why don't you leave?"

Wang Zhi got up, but when he looked at his axe, the handle had long since rotted away.

By the time he left the mountain, everyone from his time had passed away years earlier.

The situation is strikingly similar to what the old man encountered, truly astonishing.

Could such bizarre occurrences happen in the world where decades pass in the blink of an eye, unnoticed?

The call of the Dragon King, young fishermen return from the sea as elderly men... this issue with Chai Family Village seems quite significant.

"Don't concern yourselves with me, just remember not to go near the sea. The sea is dangerous, and you haven't heard the call of the Dragon King; the Dragon King will not welcome you to his Dragon King Palace."

The old man hoarsely looked at Sun Yan and the others, then started to walk towards the sea again.

"Wait a moment, old man."

Gu Xing stepped forward to stop him. He shook his head, and scales grew over his body, horns emerged from his forehead, and he somewhat resembled a dragon.

"Do I look like a dragon?" Gu Xing laughed.

Seeing Gu Xing in this form, the old man was stunned and quickly knelt down, exclaiming excitedly, "Dragon King, it's really the Dragon King's manifestation!"

Kang Jinlong, associated with the dragon and known as Kang, with large horns for protection, is one of the twenty-eight constellations in mythology and the second in the east. Known as the god of wind, like a fire pearl, it lies in the neck position of the Azure Dragon constellation. Its essence, hence its name—Kang Jinlong—resembles a dragon in appearance and temperament, long-bodied, with scales, capable of flying, and good at moving. Historical records often depict it playing in the water.

As Gu Xing's Tomb Guardian, Gu Xing can transform into this dragon-like figure, likely related to the assistance of the divine power of Kang Jinlong Li Daotong.

"We plan to go to sea and take a look. You don't need to worry about the ship; can you still manage it?" Gu Xing asked.

The old man patted his chest excitedly, saying, "No problem, I promise to handle everything, Dragon King, rest assured."

"By the way, where's Lin Wan? Why haven't I seen her?" Sun Yan asked Shi Langfei.

"I sent her to buy a fishing boat. If we're to investigate why the fishermen disappeared, we'll surely need to go to sea ourselves. By the way, did you find out anything earlier?"

"Not much. I asked a local person, and he said that the fishermen who disappeared after setting out to sea all claimed they heard the call of the Dragon King. The Dragon King invited them to the Dragon King Palace to pick up treasures. It sounds quite mysterious; there's a possibility that something is hidden in this sea."

"The call of the Dragon King... forget it, I don't understand, let's head to sea first," Shi Langfei thought for a moment and then dismissed further contemplation.

It's clear he isn't fond of thinking too much.

Soon, an old iron fishing boat slowly approached from the distant coastline.

On the deck stood Lin Wan's figure, and in the cabin, there was a captain responsible for operating the ship.

"Come aboard," Lin Wan waved and indicated.

"How much did it cost?" Gu Xing asked after getting on board.

"Only a gold ingot."

"Rich lady, I'm envious."

"Get lost."

The captain emerged from the cabin and looked surprised when he saw the old man boarding with them, "Boss, why bring this madman aboard? It's bad luck to take him to sea."

"Is there a problem?" Lin Wan asked.

"In our village's saying, mad people aren't suited for going to sea. It might attract Saintess Cizhou's attention. Disturbing Saintess Cizhou could be dangerous," the captain said nervously.

Lin Wan took a gold ingot from her pocket and handed it over: "Don't worry, nothing will happen. I'll give you two more when we get back."

Seeing the woman's generosity, the shipmaster's adherence to tradition wavered.

They earn only a few coins from fishing each year. No one is born loving fishing; if they could earn enough money, they wouldn't have to stay in Chai Family Village, forcing their children to make a living by fishing for generations.

He accepted the gold ingot and returned to the cabin, saying, "Prepare yourselves, we're about to set off. I won't take care of anyone who's seasick."

Seeing Lin Wan's largess, Sun Yan couldn't help but curiously ask Gu Xing, "Isn't Lin Wan's Tomb Guardian the Kitchen God? How is she so wealthy? Others might think her Tomb Guardian is the God of Wealth."

"She's the second daughter of the Lin Group, her family is very wealthy, unlike us. Lin Wan became a Tomb Guardian purely out of interest," Gu Xing whispered.

Upon hearing this, Sun Yan couldn't help but shed envious tears in his heart.

He had just inherited the graveyard and worked tirelessly to achieve financial freedom.

But realizing that what was his end point was just the starting point for others, the gap felt huge.

Fortunately, his drawn Tomb Guardians were quite powerful, which served as a small comfort to Sun Yan.

"What are you two murmuring about? Are you talking behind my back?" Lin Wan raised her fist in warning.

"Not at all, I'm just discussing with Sun Yan about the magical combat of Tomb Guardians. His Tomb Guardian is the True Monarch of Pure Origin and Mysterious Dao, he should be quite experienced. I thought of asking him for advice," Gu Xing grinned sheepishly.

"Good, make sure there's nothing wrong."

The fishing boat slowly turned around and headed into the depths of the sea.