After that, Liu Tao fetched a huge pot of wine and a roasted pig's head. He placed them on the altar table with all sincerity.
"Please help yourself, Ancestor!"
"We once again borrowed your body to kill some enemies today. Thank you for lending us your strength!" Liu Tao said loudly and respectfully.
Soon, the fragrance of incense filled the air and a peaceful atmosphere surrounded the ancestral temple. The roasted pig's head glowed with oil, looking fierce.
A six-year-old kid was biting his fingers with his eyes glued to the pig's head, which made his mouth water. He mumbled, "Daddy, Mommy, I wanna eat piggy, I want that piggy…"
The Fifth Elder heard him and turned to chide him at once. "It's called 'pig,' not piggy!"
Then, he scolded the kid's parents too. "Please teach your child to respect our ancestors! What blatant disrespect to cry 'eating piggy' in front of the ancestors1!"
Shocked, the couple covered their child's mouth immediately.
The child was displeased.
He was about to cry!
The couple bowed down and whispered something in his ears. In the next second, the kid was suddenly beaming with joy.
"Haish! Have my descendants really become like that?!"
Liu Fan sighed over what he had just witnessed.
He would have suspected that his coffin had been placed with the wrong family if not for the bloodline connection he had felt.
He glanced around at his descendants and realized that green-colored numbers were produced whenever they worshipped him. The numbers would fly from the top of their heads to his spirit tablet.
Some numbers were big, but some were small.
At the same time, he noticed that his "respect points" were increasing on the system screen.
"The head of the clan, Liu Tao, worshipped you; respect points +50…"
"The First Elder Liu Dahai worshipped you; respect points +10…"
"The Second Elder Liu Erhai worshipped you; respect points +12. The Third Elder Liu Sanhai worshipped you; respect points +13. The Fifth Elder Liu Wuhai worshipped you; respect points +100. The Sixth Elder Liu Liuhai worshipped you; respect points +100…"
"A clan member Liu Daquan worshipped you; respect points +6. A clan member Liu Erquan worshipped you; respect points +5. A clan member Liu Xiaoquan worshipped you; respect points +0…"
"I see now. The green numbers on their heads are respect points!"
Liu Fan understood.
The more numbers there were, the more serious and pious the person was during his worship.
Apparently, the Fifth and Sixth Elders respected him the most. They had contributed 100 respect points each, even higher than the head of the clan.
They were much better than the First Elder and the Second and Third Elders.
The total points from the three of them combined were less than 50. That explained why they had suggested that the coffin should be placed in the ancestral temple and that Liu Fan should be trained into a battle puppet.
"How arrogant of them to look down on me, old fellows!"
Liu Fan decided that he would focus on educating those three about respect in the days to come.
As for those who had made zero contributions, all of them were kids.
Their bright eyes couldn't leave the roasted pig's head at all as they sucked on their fingers. Judging from their expressions, Liu Fan felt that they respected the pig's head even more than they respected him.
"What?! Why's there a −50?!"
Liu Fan was stunned.
It came from a clan member who was standing in the corner. He was dressed in gray, and a bright red "−50" was floating over his head.
The man was young and tanned. He looked like he was in his early 20s.
When it was his turn to worship, his bows were 90 degrees and his face was solemnly serious. There was no trace of disloyalty at all.
The head of the clan and the other Elders seemed pleased with him. They nodded gently as the young man came forward.
"Liu Chao is the most extraordinary man in our family, and I agree with that. At the tender age of 21, he's mature, respectful toward the ancestors, and exceptionally talented in cultivation. So far, he has successfully refined his bones. He will be able to achieve the Body Tempering realm once he's done refining his muscles. By that time, our Liu family will have another martial art expert of the Fish Dive State!" said the Second Elder, Liu Erhai, smiling.
Liu Tao nodded and turned to the First Elder. He commended, "It is thanks to you, First Elder. I knew that you were a great teacher!"
Liu Dahai was beaming with joy and pride, but he replied humbly, "I don't deserve such a compliment. It's all thanks to our ancestor. He answered our prayers!"
Then he turned and bowed at Liu Fan's spirit tablet.
But this time, he contributed zero respect points.
Liu Fan was furious inside his coffin.
What a hypocrite!
Despite his nice words, that old fellow must have been thinking about himself when he worshipped his ancestor!
As for his disciple, Liu Chao, every worship of his came with a bright red "−50" flying off from the top of his head.
Whenever the "−50" landed on the spirit tablet, Liu Fan noticed that the total number of respect points on the system screen would reduce.
At that moment, all of the other clan members were done worshipping. Hence, there were no more contributions of green-colored respect points. Annoyingly, only this guy continued to worship Liu Fan non-stop, again and again!
The respect points went down by 50 every time he took a bow.
"Damn it. I'll die at this rate!"
Liu Fan cursed.
He looked at the screen. He'd had more than 500 respect points a short while ago, but now he had only 250 left!
At this moment, the system beeped.
"The system detected that this man is not from the Liu family. He is a spy from the Lu family and his real name is Lu Wushuang. He has blended in to steal the cultivation techniques of your family and to assist the Lu family into wiping out your clan!"
When he heard that, a cold, murderous look emerged in Liu Fan's eyes.
However, the system hadn't revived his body. He couldn't even lift his fingers, let alone walk out of his coffin.
The system reminded him again that he didn't have enough respect points.
"How? I can't just sit and watch as this spy destroys my clan!"
Liu Fan cried. Suddenly, the system beeped again.
"Advertisement time. The Ancestors' Incantations is a set of useful spells crafted carefully for the System of Ancestors. There are two parts to it — The Love of the Ancestor and The Rage of the Ancestor!"
"The Love of the Ancestor can shower the target with your love."
"For instance, the Love of the Ancestor — the Spell of Start-Cultivating-at-the-First-Crow-of-the-Cock2 can be used on lethargic members of the clan. The spell will help the target get rid of his bad habits and motivate him to cultivate with the sword every morning. He will become diligent and hardworking under his ancestor's heartfelt love!"
What a magical spell!
Liu Fan was surprised.
The advertisement continued…
"The Rage of the Ancestor can curse the target with your anger."
"For example, the Rage of the Ancestor — the Spell of Treat-Everyone-with-All-Sincerity can be cast on dishonest clan members. Under this spell, the target must speak the truth and be frank with others. He must make known his true self, no matter how ugly it is. This way, he will endure his ancestor's fury and bear the consequences!"
Liu Fan burst with joy immediately.
That's wonderful!
He looked at Lu Wushuang, who was still bowing at 90 degrees to him. Liu Fan told the System, "Redeem the Rage of the Ancestor: Treat-Everyone-with-All-Sincerity!"
"Redeemed successfully. 100 respect points deducted."
That's expensive!
But Liu Fan didn't have time to mourn for his loss of respect points. Locking his eyes on Liu Chao, he was ready to cast the spell.
"System reminder: The target is not a member of your clan. Hence, the effect of the spell can last for only two hours. Do you confirm the use of the spell?"
"I confirm!"
"The Rage of the Ancestor — the Spell of Treat-Everyone-with-Sincerity. Go!" Liu Fan willed.
A white flash crossed the screen.
In the next instant, Liu Fan saw that Liu Chao, who was about to bow to him again, suddenly shuddered and stood up straight.
He turned to look at the crowd. His eyes were full of sincerity and honesty!
"Attention, please. I would like to share a secret with you all!"