Chapter 142: Yin Amulet, Primordial Worm!

Qi Yan had originally planned to take the trash downstairs and then buy breakfast on his way back, but he changed his mind at the last moment and decided to go see Uncle Yan first.

Ever since returning from Xiang Province, the group of them had been temporarily staying at a nearby express hotel, planning to look for a long-term rental apartment before settling down properly.

The place wasn't far, and they had left their address before. By the time Qi Yan arrived, Uncle Yan was already up and had tidied up—though his and Hao Dalong's room... was messier than his own home.

The two of them were currently eating instant noodles. Seeing Qi Yan come to find him, Uncle Yan was quite enthusiastic. "Little Qi is here! Quick, quick, have you eaten? If not... should I brew a bowl for you too? What's wrong? Coming to see me so early, did something happen?"

"You guys go ahead and eat slowly, I've lost my appetite... I do have a matter to discuss, and quite a few things at that."

Without delay, Qi Yan first brought up the matter of the new Yin amulet. Uncle Yan still had a large mouthful of instant noodles hanging from his mouth, his expression shifting between uncertainty—at times surprised, at times solemn.

"Are you certain?"

"Basically certain. The holder of the Yin amulet... I don't know him personally, but his girlfriend used to be my girlfriend. Yesterday was her birthday, and she asked me to come over specifically to ask about this. Before we went to Xiang Province, she had approached me once, but she didn't explain the situation back then, so I didn't take it to heart. It wasn't until I saw it with my own eyes yesterday that..."

Uncle Yan put down his paper bowl and fork, stood up, and paced back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back, muttering softly to himself as he carefully weighed the matter.

This was all a bit too sudden. Their long-distance trip to western Xiang Province to find the Yin amulets had been planned a long time ago; although the process of acquiring them was extremely torturous, they had been prepared both mentally and practically.

Now, Qi Yan rushing over early in the morning to report this really caught them off guard.

Hao Dalong slapped his thigh. "That's a good thing! Hehehe... I never expected this. If it really is another Yin Palace amulet, then our luck is simply too good, isn't it? Even the heavens are helping us! In this vast sea of people, just as we were worrying about having no clues, right after finding the third Yin Palace amulet, another breakthrough happens immediately?!"

His attitude was very optimistic, but Uncle Yan seemed somewhat apprehensive, slowly waving his hand. "Don't get too happy too early. That's right... our ultimate goal is to find all the Yin amulets in order to explore the secrets of the 'Yin Palace.' The seven Yin amulets are equivalent to seven keys; the more we find, the closer we get to our goal."

"However... we just brought the third amulet back from western Xiang, and after studying it upon our return, I found that it still hasn't severed its causal connection with its original host. My original plan was for us to rest for a period of time, and for me to carve out some time to figure out how to handle the subsequent issues regarding the third Yin Palace amulet."

"I truly didn't expect that the exact whereabouts of a new Yin amulet would surface so quickly now, and it's even in the possession of someone Little Qi knows. This actually leaves me a bit at a loss as to how to proceed next."

Qi Yan also nodded in agreement. "Yes, I thought about this issue last night as well. This person's name is Zhong Yu. Judging by the description of my former girlfriend, he acquired the Yin amulet even earlier than I did. Based on the timeline... it should be the sixth amulet? Its name is 'Lone Child.' I can't quite judge its specific effects right now, but... he's had the Yin amulet for so long, yet up until now, it doesn't seem to have caused any earth-shattering, massive turnarounds in his life. The only connection one might draw is that he recently went from being an obscure, third-rate voice actor to being signed by a major entertainment agency. Could this be considered the fortune brought by the Yin amulet?"

"'Lone Child'? ...Hiss, Lone Child..." Uncle Yan repeated the name a few times, his gaze drifting. "That name is rather interesting, huh... You said he's a performing arts worker, right? I am aware that in Southeast Asia, many stars engage in the practice of raising ghost spirits and Yin amulets; that's nothing new. As for the effects... they vary from person to person, I suppose?"

"But what you said makes sense too. If he has already acquired the Yin amulet for so long, if it truly were one of the seven amulets produced by the Yin Palace, the effect shouldn't be this weak... Strange."

Anyone with a slight understanding of Thai amulets knows that while nourishing a Yin amulet carries more risks than wearing a regular, righteous amulet, in terms of efficacy, Yin amulets generally surpass righteous ones.

This is the exact reason why many people, driven by the desires in their hearts, are willing to take calculated risks and harbor a gambler's mentality to nourish ghostly spirits.

As for the Yin Palace amulets possessed by Qi Yan and his group, their efficacy can be described as..."suppressing all other amulets"! They are quite literally the "fighter jets" among Yin amulets, the absolute pinnacle of dark arts.

To name just one example, take Ding Lingzi's "Blind Spirit." Although the side effects of using the Yin amulet's power every time are not insignificant and place a huge burden on her mental state, the efficacy of this amulet can be said to be infinitely close to a heaven-defying supernatural ability.

A single glance allows her to clearly see a person's past, and she can even peer into the thoughts of others. If not for the side effects, wouldn't she instantly become an international divination master if she went around telling fortunes?

The seven amulets of the Yin Palace each have their own strengths and varied effects. Yet, if made public, every single one of them would undoubtedly be a "treasure" that countless people would flock to and desperately strive to obtain.

When the potential benefits reach an absolute peak, what side effects? What backlash? I'm afraid all these things would be completely cast to the back of people's minds, wouldn't they?

Uncle Yan sat back down, lit a cigarette, and continued talking to Qi Yan. "I told you before, both I and that person in Dingtai... ever since the Yin Palace amulets first manifested in the world, we have poured all our efforts into researching the Yin Palace and these amulets. To this day, the information and intelligence each of us holds might differ somewhat, but one point is indisputable, and you should have personal experience of it yourself as well..."

"If an unsuspecting ordinary person suddenly obtains a Yin Palace amulet, they will undoubtedly be shocked by their miraculous efficacy at first. That shock then turns into dependence, followed by madness, and finally... I'm afraid the only time they will realize this is no good thing is the day they are finally consumed by the amulet's backlash."

Uncle Yan flicked his cigarette ash and raised a single finger. "I'll give just one example: the first Yin Palace amulet—the one that was snatched away by those people in the Exhibition City—is named 'Primal Worm.' The holder of the first Yin Palace amulet was originally an ordinary person working in Rayong, Thailand. Not long after obtaining the Primal Worm, his financial fortune soared. He quit his job to start a business, effortlessly growing it into a massive enterprise and becoming a well-known tycoon in Thailand."

"Do you know how long it took this person to transform from an ordinary person into a multi-millionaire?"

Uncle Yan changed his hand gesture, hooking his thumb and pinky finger upwards. "Six months. A mere six months... The gold shops and jewelry stores he opened monopolized the business of almost every jewelry firm in the local area. Both the underworld and legitimate circles of Rayong, and even the Thai government, were especially friendly with him. I don't even know if the man dabbled in shady business; purely based on his legitimate ventures, his net worth was immeasurable."

"Although overnight millionaires are not uncommon in the world, for someone to have such smooth sailing right from the moment he acquired the Yin amulet, becoming immensely wealthy without encountering a single obstacle... that can be considered somewhat unbelievable, right?"

"The effect of the Primal Worm, the first amulet of the Yin Palace, is wealth-attraction—fanatically drawing wealth for its master while ensuring he remained unaffected by objective factors. Even the tycoon himself barely had time to process how he had suddenly transformed from a transnational migrant worker into a grand lord of wealth overnight. How many people in this world can resist such a tremendous effect?"

"However... this glory that descended from the heavens did not last too long either. Just two short years later, he died prematurely while still in the prime of his life. Moreover, according to rumors from insiders, he should have been less than forty years old at the time, but... within those two short years, he aged more than twenty years, with graying hair, a face full of wrinkles, and his physical health deteriorating day by day. No amount of money could nurse him back to health... Many people simply assumed he had grown like this due to being physically and mentally exhausted from worrying over his business..."

"Sigh~~~" Uncle Yan sighed. "During the very last brief span of his life, I imagine this Chinese-Indonesian tycoon finally realized just how terrifying the Yin amulet he had previously treated as his supreme treasure truly was. Among his numerous collections, he chose a Shiva statue he had bought at an auction for a sky-high price, took it to a grand temple to have high monks chant over it and perform rituals, and personally hid the Yin amulet inside the statue. I suspect his reason for doing this might have been to borrow the power of the statue to suppress this ominous object..."