At that moment, Huayan was still immersed in the murmured Buddhist chants, unaware of her father's inquiries as she stared into space. Seeing his daughter lost in thought, her father refrained from asking further.

Alone with the monk, Huayan was the first person besides the monk himself to enter his meditation room. Even the abbot of the temple had not been granted such an honor. Her father was left waiting outside.

This divination monk at De'en Temple was both special and mysterious. His status surpassed even that of the temple's abbot. Besides his divination sessions, he spoke only in monosyllables. Nobody knew his true age, and he seemed to know everything that others didn't, spanning centuries past and future, yet he rarely revealed his knowledge.

Initially, the monk instructed Huayan to sit on a thin bamboo mat in the room and close her eyes. He then lit incense, assumed a lotus position, and began chanting, filling the serene meditation room with his deep, resonant voice. His voice was like the tolling of ancient bells, and Huayan felt her soul and body melding together for the first time, as if bathing in a stream of nourishment.

After several hours, when the monk ceased his chanting, Huayan slowly awakened. Upon opening her eyes, the monk's surprise was evident, his gaze reminiscent of the serene and wise aura surrounding the Buddha.

"My task is complete. Take this jade pendant, and you may leave," the monk's demeanor shifted from the emotional fluctuations earlier to one of detachment and politeness.

Huayan wanted to ask the monk why he hadn't said anything and why he let her leave after just a few hours of chanting. But before she could speak, a sentence appeared in her mind: "When your body and mind merge, my duty is fulfilled. The path is yours to walk; I cannot assist further! Remember to keep this jade pendant with you at all times, for it will be of great use in the future."

After a moment of realization, Huayan respectfully accepted the dragon and phoenix jade pendant from the monk and bowed before leaving his meditation room alone.

As she walked in the mountains, Huayan felt refreshed and invigorated. Previously plagued by sleepiness, occasional dizziness, and nocturnal nightmares, she now felt physically well, thanks to the continuous influence of the monk's chanting for several hours.

Back at the Jubin Hotel after a shower, Huayan lay on her bed, observing the jade pendant given to her by the monk under the gentle sunlight. Upon closer inspection, she noticed the emerald-green jade seemed to contain flowing jadeite within, perpetually circulating. Holding it in her hand, she felt a warm flow entering her body. Though she didn't know the benefits of this warmth, she decided to explore them slowly in the future.

At around five or six o'clock, Huayan and her father dined together at the hotel.

"How about dining in a private room today, Xiao Yan?" her father suggested. "It's quieter, and we can discuss matters regarding De'en Temple."

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"No need for that trouble. Isn't there a table available at the corner over there? Let's go, Dad," Huayan replied, sensing that the private dining rooms were likely fully booked during peak hours. Moments ago, she overheard a man asking about their availability, and the waiter shook his head.

Sitting at the corner table, Huayan picked up the menu handed to her by the waiter, intending to ask her father what he wanted to eat. However, she noticed her father's low spirits and realized he wasn't paying attention to the menu.

After quickly ordering their usual dishes once the waiter left, Huayan asked with concern, "Dad, you seem upset. What's wrong?"

"What did the monk say to you in the room this afternoon?"

Huayan immediately enlightened and chuckled, "Dad, is that what's been bothering you? If you wanted to know, you could have just asked instead of keeping it to yourself and feeling upset. I didn't tell you because the monk just had me listen to his chanting for a few hours, and then he abruptly asked me to leave. There was nothing substantial to tell you."

Her father, somewhat indignant, replied, "Isn't he just deceiving people? Another charlatan. Did he charge you a hefty fee?"

"No, not at all. He didn't take a single penny. He chanted for me for free. Actually, after listening to his chanting, I felt refreshed. Extraordinary people are always different from others," Huayan said with a fair judgment, easing her father's indignation.

Far up in the lush mountains, the divination monk sneezed several times, and his young disciple, aged eleven or twelve, thought he might be catching a cold. The monk smiled and shook his head, facing towards the direction of the seaside city. "No, it's not that."

"Hey, guess who I saw at the Jubin Hotel?" Cheng Cheng, exhilarated, called up Shang Guanning while hiding in the restroom. Cheng Cheng believed that apart from going abroad, Huayan had left the most profound impact on him. Watching her do the same things differently always felt unique and special.

Already frustrated and having scolded several executives, Shang Guanning, irritated by Cheng Cheng's call, replied impatiently, "Who else but your ** woman?"

Cheng Cheng chuckled inwardly, jokingly but also earnestly saying, "Well, she's not a woman from my **, but after your words, I think adding her to ** wouldn't be a bad idea."

Despite the lack of Cheng Cheng's usual teasing tone, Shang Guanning sensed his friend's genuine interest. Suddenly, he felt very curious about which woman would become Cheng Cheng's next partner or lover.

"Who's the woman you've set your sights on?" Shang Guanning asked, with a somewhat detached observer's attitude.

"You know her... it's Cheng Jie's ex-wife, Huayan, haha..." Frustrated by a woman falsely accusing him while pregnant, Cheng Cheng had been disheartened for a few days, but now, he was burning with desire.

Upon hearing about Cheng Jie's ex-wife, Shang Guanning, already in a bad mood due to work and personal issues, felt his mind go blank for a moment. After a few seconds of daze, he hastily and anxiously spoke into his phone, "Say that again, who did you say?"

"Huayan, don't you remember she even gave you her phone number? Do you still have it? Remember to help your brother out and check it. My success on the first shot depends on you. Hello? Hello? Why aren't you saying anything?" Seeing the call still connected, Cheng Cheng called out several times.

After a minute of silence, Shang Guanning, cold and serious, said, "Are you serious?"

Amused by Shang Guanning's sudden seriousness, Cheng Cheng, with a hint of sadness and helplessness, replied, "How could I be? You know my heart can't accommodate anyone else."

"In that case, stay away from Huayan," Shang Guanning said calmly after taking a deep breath, his tone devoid of any emotion, leaving no hint of his feelings.