Chapter 299: Defying Fate (Part 4)

“Uh…”

Shui Miao never expected that after parting ways with his godfather Wang Yong last time, he would suddenly meet again today, and even more surprisingly, Wang Yong had become a taxi driver. This was truly unexpected. “Godfather, why is it you? How come you’re doing this?”

“Haha, we’ll talk later. First, let me take you to Jing Shui Village.”

With a grin, Wang Yong drove off immediately.

Sitting in the back seat, Shui Miao’s mind raced. Wang Yong had always been sneaky and mysterious. What secret was he hiding? His appearance here was definitely no coincidence, so what was his real intention?

Wang Yong remained silent, focused only on driving.

Shui Miao subtly concentrated his mind, attempting to penetrate Wang Yong’s thoughts to uncover his true intentions.

However, just as Shui Miao was about to begin, Wang Yong suddenly spoke, “Never thought it! You’ve become such a big shot now, the boss of Chen Group, worth hundreds of billions!”

“Godfather, why don’t you tell me about yourself?” Shui Miao withdrew his spiritual sense and looked at Wang Yong.

Compared to before, Wang Yong was now darker and thinner, clearly having endured much hardship.

Wang Yong smiled faintly, “It’s hard to explain. But don’t worry, Xiao Shui. Your godfather won’t harm you. Also, there are police secretly watching me, so you need to help me shake them off. Later, I’ll take you to a place you’ll definitely like, something to feast your eyes on, and you might even find authentic Daoist secrets there.”

“…”

Upon hearing this, Shui Miao was slightly startled. It seemed Wang Yong had been secretly following him and knew quite a bit about him. But one thing was certain—he didn’t know what cultivation realm Shui Miao had reached now.

Hmm, he’s been following me. Could it be that he wants something from me?

Or perhaps he wants to use me to escape some charges?

Shui Miao remained silent, subtly using his mind to sense his surroundings and found no police nearby.

Could it be that he’s just paranoid, suffering from a syndrome of suspicion?

As Shui Miao was pondering, Wang Yong continued, “Initially, I followed you because I wanted to help. But who knew you’d be so lucky, not needing any help at all. At first, I thought maybe you’d remember me and give me a call, but you didn’t. As time passed, I noticed you were getting more and more mysterious. Recently, you even disappeared. I was so worried! I’m glad you’re back, safe and sound.”

Wang Yong’s tone was like that of an elder caring for a younger family member, making Shui Miao feel a slight warmth.

But Wang Yong’s words only made Shui Miao even more curious about what was really on his mind.

Shui Miao lowered his head, pretending to have a headache and wanting to rest, thus bringing a brief moment of quiet to the car.

Focusing his mind, Shui Miao’s consciousness easily entered Wang Yong’s thoughts.

As soon as he entered Wang Yong’s mind, Shui Miao instantly received a flood of memories and chaotic thoughts. He quickly realized that Wang Yong wasn’t suffering from paranoia; rather, he was just burdened by guilt. In his youth, Wang Yong had done many bad things, and now, in his old age, his conscience was troubling him, making him feel uneasy.

But after learning about Wang Yong’s past, Shui Miao couldn’t help but feel a chill.

Wang Yong had a very difficult childhood. At six years old, he was kidnapped by grave robbers and forced to become a “soil rat” in the Yellow River basin. The soil there was soft, damp, and humid. If the tomb tunnels were too large, they would collapse, so in some places, small holes had to be dug. Children were tied with ropes around their waists and sent down to dig deep into the tombs to retrieve treasures, then pulled back up. Since the tunnels could collapse at any moment and the tombs were filled with toxic, yin-charged air, this job was truly a matter of life and death.

Wang Yong was clever as a child and managed to survive many near-death situations. Watching his companions die tragically, he never dared to relax for a moment. Whatever the grave robbers ordered him to do, he obeyed without hesitation.

Therefore, Wang Yong had done many things as a child that normal people couldn’t even imagine, let alone dare to do.

Because of his obedience and cleverness, Wang Yong gained the favor of the old grave robbers. Eventually, the old man decided to marry his daughter to Wang Yong. It was precisely for this reason that Wang Yong gradually stopped doing those life-threatening jobs.

Nowadays, many people enjoy reading books about grave robbing—thrilling and exciting, yes, but more importantly, many harbor dreams of getting rich overnight. Here, we must remind everyone, grave robbing is a severely karmically damaging act. We urge those who dream of getting rich through grave robbing to not sacrifice their ancestral blessings for a bit of ill-gotten wealth. Even if you don’t consider yourself, consider your descendants.

From the age of six, Wang Yong had been involved in grave robbing and could be said to have robbed all kinds of tombs.

There were three particularly unforgettable and unlucky experiences that haunted him for life.

The first occurred not long after he became a soil rat.

It was a very old tomb. Wang Yong and his friend Monkey broke through the tomb passage and entered. They found seven coffins inside. After great effort, they finally managed to open one coffin lid when a naked, pale-skinned ghost baby crawled out. The baby’s head was twice the size of a normal child’s, and its eyes were unusually large. It was extremely vicious, jumping up to bite Monkey’s neck. Wang Yong killed the ghost baby with a shovel and saw that its belly was full of worms. That night after leaving the tomb, Monkey died from poisoning. Missing Monkey, Wang Yong brought offerings the next day to pay respects, but Monkey had transformed into a ghost baby and chased after him. Fortunately, Wang Yong was lucky enough to encounter a big yellow dog and survived.

Since then, Wang Yong had often been haunted by nightmares of being chased by the ghost baby, waking up screaming in the middle of the night.

The second incident occurred when Wang Yong was eleven years old.

That time was an accident.

It was another very old and deep tomb. After Wang Yong entered alone, the rope suddenly broke. Everyone was in a panic, causing a collapse, and Wang Yong was buried inside. He cried out in despair, a feeling he would never forget. Fortunately, he was rescued after losing consciousness.

Though this incident ended without serious harm, it left a deep psychological scar. From then on, Wang Yong was too afraid to descend into any tomb passages.

The third incident happened when Wang Yong was sixteen, a time that changed his fate and mindset.

At sixteen, Wang Yong had already become a core member of the grave robbers.

This time, he took three children to rob a tomb.

Unfortunately, strange things happened again. One child entered the tomb and screamed. The rope broke. Wang Yong quickly sent a second child down with a knife to rescue, but the second child also screamed. Thinking it was the ghost baby again, Wang Yong tied a cloth around the third child’s neck and sent him down. But the third child also died!

Helplessly watching three children die, Wang Yong refused to give up. He started digging to widen the hole, determined to go down himself to avenge the three children. But halfway through digging, Wang Yong saw a pale, naked corpse crawling out. Without hesitation, he swung his shovel, cutting off the corpse’s head. However, more pale corpses began crawling up from the tomb one after another. Wang Yong killed eleven of them before they were all gone.

Wang Yong dug up the tomb, buried the three children, and discovered a large amount of treasure inside.

He gathered dry wood, burned the corpses, and buried the three children.

He stayed by their graves for three days and nights, crying all the while—not just for the children, but for himself and for Monkey too. Three days later, Wang Yong finally decided to leave the grave robbers, taking the treasure with him to start a new life far away, never to rob graves again.

Thus, Wang Yong came to Zhonghai City.

It took him a very long time to adjust his mindset.

After marriage, his wife was frightened by his constant nightmares and eventually divorced him. She left behind a child, which Wang Yong couldn’t properly care for, leading the child to associate with hooligans and eventually end up in prison.

Initially, Wang Yong only wanted to use Shui Miao to help transport his treasures.

But over time, Wang Yong gradually came to see Shui Miao as his own son, just as Da Shuang gradually turned her memory of Ji into a one-sided love. This time, Wang Yong came looking for Shui Miao mainly out of longing and because he was struggling with loneliness, always having strange thoughts and memories from his childhood, causing him great pain.

Now, Wang Yong had hidden some more treasures in a public cemetery.

The Daoist secret he mentioned was one of the treasures he had stolen back then.

Feeling Wang Yong’s memories, Shui Miao was deeply shocked by his tragic background.

It was terrifying!

It was like a nightmare. If it had been himself in Wang Yong’s place, he doubted he could have endured such immense psychological pressure.

Shui Miao raised his head, looked at Wang Yong’s back, and sighed, “Godfather, I’m feeling much better now.”

“Do you want to go to the hospital?”

Wang Yong glanced at Shui Miao’s face in the rearview mirror, noticing nothing seriously wrong.

Shui Miao smiled faintly, “No need. I practice qigong, and once I cultivate, I’ll be fine. By the way, Godfather, I can see your complexion isn’t good—probably from lack of sleep. Just keep driving, don’t talk. Let me use my energy to help you relax and refresh your spirit.” Saying this, Shui Miao placed his hand on Wang Yong’s shoulder.

Wang Yong said, “Great!” and smiled as he continued driving.

But not long after, Wang Yong was incredibly surprised to feel a warm current of energy indeed flowing through his body. Wherever the energy flowed, his fatigue vanished instantly. It felt like he had just taken a steam bath and then slept soundly, leaving him full of energy and in great spirits.

Shui Miao withdrew his hand and said lightly, “Later, I’ll give you a head massage too. I guarantee you’ll sleep well.”

“Haha! I haven’t slept well in decades. Don’t exaggerate now!” Wang Yong was very happy, his voice now loud and full of vigor.

Shui Miao smiled too, “By the way, Godfather, why don’t you come with me today? I’m taking a few apprentices into the mountains to search for dragon veins. If you come with us, I promise to take good care of you with delicious food and drinks.” After learning that Wang Yong truly regarded him as a son, Shui Miao changed his mind and decided to bring him along from now on, ensuring he would never feel lonely again.

“Sure! As long as I can be with you, I’m willing to go anywhere.”

Wang Yong said sincerely.

The taxi turned a corner and had already entered Jing Shui Village.

Shui Miao looked out the window and hurriedly said, “Not to the construction site—go to a small building behind the village committee. Lin Jie is staying there.”

“Lin Jie? You mean Lin Qing’er, the owner of Linhai Hotel?” Wang Yong found it hard to believe. How could such a big boss possibly live in a place like this?

“Yes! She might be considering suicide because of relationship issues. When we get there, don’t go down. Let me help her.”

After saying this, Shui Miao immediately spread out his spiritual awareness to locate Lin Qing’er.

Behind the village committee of Jing Shui Village, in the third row of houses, an elderly man, Lin Laoye, was lying on a recliner in the sun, listening to a radio. Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Lin Qing’er was busy preparing dinner.

Hmm?

Shui Miao immediately felt puzzled. Wasn’t Lin Laoye’s lifespan supposed to have ended?

Wait…

Suddenly, Shui Miao noticed something strange about Lin Laoye’s soul!

Carefully sensing further, Shui Miao saw that Lin Laoye’s soul was actually that of a young person. In other words, Lin Laoye was already dead, and his body was being possessed by another soul. Yet Shui Miao was somewhat confused—Even if Lin Laoye’s body had been possessed by a ghost, since he was already dead, why hadn’t his body decayed?