[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-just-stop-using-your-divine-powers":3,"chapter-just-stop-using-your-divine-powers-just-stop-using-your-divine-powers-chapter-19":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Just Stop Using Your Divine Powers!",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2275877,4450,"Chapter 19: Chapter Sixteen: [Traveling Together?]","just-stop-using-your-divine-powers-chapter-19",19,"\u003Cp>When the sky just began to lighten, Chen Yan opened his eyes on the bed and picked up his phone beside the pillow to check the time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Six in the morning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Last night, he’d read a novel until past midnight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Calculating it, he’d slept less than six hours, yet he felt refreshed and brimming with energy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan recalled that in the past, to wake up feeling this way, he’d needed at least ten hours of sleep—completely full and deep.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clearly, after the primordial energy entered his body, it had greatly benefited him; his physical condition must have improved significantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He got up, fried two eggs, sandwiched them between two slices of toast, paired it with a carton of milk, and finished it in a few bites.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wiping his mouth, Chen Yan remarked that toast was not as tasty as fried steamed buns.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Glancing at the time, it was past eight, so Chen Yan put on his coat and stepped outside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the morning, Chen Yan returned to the construction materials market.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After browsing and comparing, he finally chose a merchant selling decorative stone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yesterday, Chen Yan had already decided not to be a laborer—he found carving stone too grueling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had calculated: for such a large courtyard, including his own villa, setting up this Great Spirit Gathering Array required over a hundred meters of basic material—blue stone slabs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A hundred meters, carved by hand, stroke by stroke… by the time he finished, the house would be demolished!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He went straight to the merchant and placed the order.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He ordered fifty slabs, each two meters long, forty centimeters wide, and twenty centimeters thick.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he pulled out two images he’d prepared on his phone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Carve patterns on both sides of the blue stone slabs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Follow these two images I gave you—one side for incised carving, the other for raised carving.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan wasn’t afraid the runes would leak out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The patterns he left were incomplete; several key positions were deliberately omitted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He would personally fill in the missing parts when he set up the array himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So even if someone obtained this pattern from the merchant and copied it exactly, they’d get nothing useful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>·\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The merchant glanced at the images and showed no surprise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These days, when ordering stone for renovation, people often carved decorative patterns for aesthetics—anything goes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He quickly calculated the cost of materials and labor, then gave a price.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan, estimating the market’s usual gouging, tried to haggle it down by half.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The merchant smiled and nodded promptly: “Deal!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan: “...”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Damn, I overpaid!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He cursed inwardly but didn’t retract.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t plan to cast a Destiny-Cutting Technique on this merchant either.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But business is business—once you’ve haggled, the deal is final.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The price was agreed upon by both parties, willingly accepted, no coercion involved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you paid too much due to inexperience, that’s your own fault—you’re outmatched, and the merchant’s skill is legitimate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Accept it!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Delivery was set for seven days—but seeing Chen Yan pay so readily, the merchant added honestly: “If things go fast, five days should do.” They agreed on seven days to allow the workers some leeway.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan was very satisfied with this timeline!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he’d carved the runes himself on all these slabs… he’d first need to learn stone-carving techniques, practice until skilled, then begin.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he messed up even one slab, two meters of stone would be ruined—he’d have to start over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Where would he find that kind of time?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the merchant was different.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fifty blue stone slabs—cutting alone took one day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for carving… their business used machines!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They scanned the pattern into a computer, turned it into a template, and controlled the machine via software.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Place a slab on the machine, turn it on, and in moments, one was carved.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan heard the merchant had four such machines in his own stone factory!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leaving the materials market, Chen Yan felt elated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cultivation still requires scientific methods!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huh?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan remembered—the manual said the Art of Arrays was extremely difficult to learn and practice, a path demanding immense time and effort, requiring decades of study to achieve even minor mastery.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was it because ancient cultivators had no machines and carved everything by hand?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even his crude imitation of a Spirit Gathering Array was incredibly time-consuming and laborious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What if he tried something like the Yellow River Array or the Qimen Dunjia Array…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How much material would that require!!!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a single array master to carve every rune by hand…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It would take forever.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>·\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Having solved one major problem in the morning, Chen Yan was in high spirits. After leaving the materials market, he went to a large warehouse supermarket for a major shopping spree.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The year-end was near—he needed to buy some New Year goods.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan thought of the Old Grandma—well, now he felt no sadness at all remembering her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This New Year, he’d be spending it alone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He figured he’d still need to return to the countryside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’d grown up in the village; the villagers still got along well with him, occasional squabbles aside, mostly harmonious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Besides, the villagers had helped a lot with the Old Grandma’s funeral.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The mourning couplets were written by the village head; the funeral tent was erected by villagers’ help.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the funeral procession, the coffin was carried by several villagers who volunteered to help Chen Yan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These debts of kindness must be repaid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chickens, ducks, salted fish, cured meats—he didn’t need those; villagers slaughtered pigs themselves during the New Year, so they had no shortage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan bought a case of good cigarettes and several boxes of milk powder for the elderly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He skipped buying alcohol—he couldn’t take it on the high-speed train anyway; he’d buy it in town after returning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he shopped and calculated, he went to the luggage and accessories section and picked out a black leather men’s briefcase.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This briefcase was meant for the village head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even now, whenever the village held meetings, the old man still carried a bag with peeling leather.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It still bore the inscription: Commemorating the XX Victory of XX Years…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That bag was older than Chen Yan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan thought: he’d give the old man a new one for the New Year.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The village head had always been kind to him; when he was a child and mischievous, he’d climbed onto the roof and crushed the tiles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the Old Grandma found out and chased him to beat him, the old man had smiled and held her back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When Chen Yan got into university, the old man helped arrange a car and accompanied the Old Grandma to the train station to see him off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The leather briefcase Chen Yan bought wasn’t expensive—only two hundred yuan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The village didn’t need fancy things; the village head only used his bag to carry a teacup and a couple packs of cigarettes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Buying him a donkey or something extravagant would be absurd.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan wasn’t unwilling to show more filial piety to the village head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But… the money belonged to the Old Grandma!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The letter the Old Grandma left said: money earned through occult arts could only be spent on members of the sect.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Giving it to others was fine within reasonable limits, but excessive or lavish spending would bring a curse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even as the Old Grandma’s grandson, he’d lived in poverty for years.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>·\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The large warehouse supermarket offered a delivery service; Chen Yan, too lazy to carry all the items back, left his villa’s address, paid a small fee, and arranged for delivery the next day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leaving the supermarket, he checked the time—it was past lunch, past one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan stopped at a braised food shop, bought half a roast duck, half a pound of duck liver, and a few steamed buns, then headed home.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He arrived just after one-thirty. Walking into the residential compound, strolling toward his villa’s front gate…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He saw a business vehicle parked in front of his villa.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two men stood by his front door.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One wore a gray suit and looked quite businesslike. Chen Yan recognized him at once—the “Someone of a Certain Year.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was looking down at his phone, then raised his head and spotted Chen Yan; immediately, he put away his phone, broke into a wide smile, and walked forward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mr. Chen, sorry to disturb you! I was just about to call you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan smiled: “Didn’t we agree on three this afternoon?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man looked slightly embarrassed but spoke politely: “I’m sorry—we were supposed to meet at three, but due to special circumstances, I had to come early and disturb you. It’s my mistake, and I apologize for the trouble.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he spoke, he looked directly into Chen Yan’s eyes: “Shall we go inside to talk? Is it convenient?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan nodded and unlocked the courtyard gate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>·\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The gate opened, and as they stepped inside, the courtyard’s condition became perfectly clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The courtyard wall had once been over a man’s height, making it impossible to see inside from outside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside, the courtyard followed a stepped design: first, they walked along a path of irregularly laid pebbles, ascending two levels of steps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Along the base of the walls, there had once been rows of flowers and plants, but years of neglect had left them wild and overgrown.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The grass had also been left unattended, with large patches turned dry and yellow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not far away, the swimming pool sat close to the house, but it was empty, filled only with fallen leaves and dead branches.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since moving in, Chen Yan had been too busy with his own affairs to care for any of this—he was a young man, and few of his kind enjoyed tending to flowers and plants.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for the pool, temperatures would soon drop below freezing; who would swim outdoors in weather like that?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since it was useless, he’d simply left it uncleaned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Accompanying the man into the courtyard was another figure, hard to judge as old or young.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why say “hard to judge”?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wore a traditional front-buttoned jacket, its fabric seemingly silk, with subtle woven patterns—clearly expensive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His entire head was covered in silver hair, combed into a neat, tightly styled pompadour; the precision suggested he’d used some kind of product.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Such a pure, even white could only come from someone seventy or eighty years old.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet his face looked remarkably smooth and ruddy, his appearance suggesting no more than his early forties.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His round, plump face, swollen by fat, showed no wrinkles at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan glanced at him and knew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This man was either born with premature gray hair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or he’d dyed it white on purpose.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His demeanor was lofty—he hadn’t even looked at Chen Yan when entering, following “someone from a certain year” inside without a word.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he walked, his chin was slightly raised.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>·\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They passed through the courtyard, and Chen Yan invited them inside, seating them in the living room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan had no tea, so he placed two bottles of mineral water on the coffee table before them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The silver-haired middle-aged man seemed about to pull out a cigarette, but seeing no ashtray on the table, he frowned slightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan pretended not to notice—he disliked smoking in his own home.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan sat across from “someone from a certain year” and said slowly: “I’m sorry—when we signed the contract, things moved so fast I only remembered the owner’s name and forgot how to address you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, I’m Yan—Yan as in ‘strict.’ I’m Assistant to Director Fang, handling his asset-related matters.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he spoke, he handed Chen Yan a business card.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan took it and read: Yan Zhaoxing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The “Director Fang” he mentioned was the original buyer of this haunted house—and now Chen Yan’s landlord.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Alright, then I’ll call you Assistant Yan.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan smiled politely and tucked the card away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In truth, they’d certainly introduced themselves that day; Chen Yan simply hadn’t remembered his name—which was awkward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Chen Yan knew: the more you try to hide awkwardness, the more uncomfortable it becomes. Better to say it plainly and make things easier for everyone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Assistant Yan paused, then said: “Today’s visit is indeed an intrusion. But I’ll be straightforward.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan said nothing, smiling calmly, listening attentively.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This house,” Assistant Yan said slowly, “has certain special circumstances—you must have known about them already. Though the matter is a bit awkward to discuss, the special conditions do exist. So…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“After Director Fang acquired this house, he took some measures.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“For example: deep cleaning the rooms, replacing some interior fixtures, and renovating certain areas…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“And of course, he invited a master to perform rituals.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That’s why we’re here today—it’s related to those rituals.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rituals?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan raised an eyebrow—you’re talking about this? I’m familiar. My family does this for a living.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cough, cough!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The silver-haired middle-aged man suddenly cleared his throat loudly, drawing both their attention, then smiled slowly:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Little Yan, why don’t I handle this? I’m afraid you won’t explain the professional details clearly.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Assistant Yan nodded quickly, respectfully: “Yes, yes, Master Qing, you’re the expert—please speak, please speak!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a pause, Assistant Yan turned to Chen Yan and said seriously: “Mr. Chen Yan, let me introduce you—this is… Master Qing, the expert our Director Fang has invited.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Chen Yan looked at this “expert master”…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A fellow practitioner?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>·\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【A little tip as a New Year red envelope would be appreciated—no need for much, just for good luck.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>·\u003C\u002Fp>",2252,"2026-06-20T00:04:18.515Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","ff03ca713f6fae24aba240dd8e0877a739ce009c8cc9242a71b33d994c082373","just-stop-using-your-divine-powers-chapter-20","just-stop-using-your-divine-powers-chapter-18",174,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fjust-stop-using-your-divine-powers-cover.jpg"]