Chapter 1

Chapter 1

My name is Qiao Moyu. I’m a junior at Nanjiang University and the sole contemporary successor of the Earth Master lineage.

In ancient times, an Earth Master was another name for a Feng Shui master.

As the saying goes: ‘First-class Earth Masters observe the stars; second-class Wind Masters seek the water’s mouth; third-class masters wander the earth.’ Most of those walking the world today are merely ordinary Feng Shui practitioners. Those capable of mastering the art of star-gazing and qi-watching held positions in the Imperial Astronomical Bureau in ancient times, serving the imperial family.

My Qiao Family ancestors served as the Director of the Imperial Astronomical Bureau and were the hereditary Sect Master of Feng Sect.

This time, I traveled to Guangxi to visit a friend. To my surprise, an accident occurred the moment I stepped into the hotel.

“Hello, I’d like a single room.”

The receptionist was on the phone with her head down. I nudged her impatiently for a while before she finally took my ID. Without even looking up, she tossed a room card to me.

“8302-”

“What’s with the attitude?”

I took the card and dragged my suitcase toward the room. After some effort, I found Room 8302. Just as I was about to swipe the card, I realized the door was already ajar.

I figured housekeeping had just finished cleaning, so I didn’t think much of it. I pushed the door open, shoved my suitcase to the side, and collapsed onto the bed, falling asleep instantly.

I hadn’t slept at all last night and had just endured a three-hour flight; I was utterly exhausted.

In the midst of my hazy slumber, I was jolted awake by a scent.

It was a familiar, fishy stench-a faint, foul smell of blood mixed with the fragrance of sandalwood. It was a contradictory and unique scent, both fragrant and putrid, and I felt as though I had smelled it somewhere before.

I opened my eyes and realized the smell was coming from under the bed.

“What exactly is that smell…”

Murmuring to myself, I leaned over to look down. My eyes widened instantly, and every trace of sleepiness vanished.

A man was lying under the bed.

He was wearing a bathrobe, his palms were spread out at his sides, and his fingers were still twitching slightly.

“Hey, buddy, are you sick? Hiding under someone’s bed to scare them!”

I reached out and dragged him out. Just then, a knock came from the door.

“Hello, hotel housekeeping. Do you need this room cleaned?”

I walked over, swung the door open, and pointed at the man, fuming. “What’s wrong with your hotel? How can you not know there’s a grown man hiding under the bed?”

“Ah-”

“Ah! Murder! Murder!”

The maid let out a hysterical scream, turning to run as she shrieked. I looked back, only to see the man I had dragged out lying motionless on the floor. His head-well, he didn’t have a head.

But I clearly saw his hands moving just a moment ago.

I walked over to him and crouched down to observe closely.

The wound on his neck was incredibly clean. The flesh at the edges was neat, not jagged or rolled back. Most miraculously, there was no blood. The entire circumference of his neck seemed to be sealed by something transparent.

Suddenly, it clicked.

This man was actually a Jiangtou Sorcerer-and a top-tier one at that, capable of the Flying Head Jiangtou.

When Jiangtou Sorcery is mentioned, people usually think of Southeast Asian countries; it is often called South Seas Black Magic. However, the origins of Jiangtou Sorcery are actually quite complex.

It is a product of the fusion of the Maoshan Art, Miaojiang Gu Poison Art, and Indian Buddhism.

Jiangtou Sorcery is generally categorized into three types based on the medium used: Medicine Jiangtou, Blood Jiangtou, and Ghost Jiangtou.

Medicine Jiangtou is almost identical to the Miaojiang Gu Magic, using the ‘Five Venomous Creatures’ as mediums to harm people. The victim must come into physical contact with the medicine to be affected.

Blood Jiangtou uses fresh blood as a medium, but the most powerful of all is Ghost Jiangtou.

Flying Head Jiangtou is the pinnacle of Ghost Jiangtou.

In the so-called Flying Head Jiangtou, the sorcerer performs a ritual to detach their head from their body. The head then flies off to distant places to cast curses or seek revenge on victims.

Rumor has it that to master the Flying Head Jiangtou, one must go through seven stages, each lasting eighty-one days. During the first six stages, the internal organs fly out along with the head.

Just imagine a head dragging a long trail of intestines behind it. Even without any spells, a normal person would be scared half to death just by looking at it.

Furthermore, once the head flies out, it will suck the blood of any animals it encounters along the way to maintain its magical power.

This man had actually reached the seventh stage of the Flying Head Jiangtou. To think he didn’t even hide his body properly and left it here to scare people.