Chapter 309: Defying Fate (Part 14)

“That’s interesting!”

Bailan’s heart skipped a beat. She hadn’t expected Wang Yong to have such skills up his sleeve.

Her curiosity about Wang Yong surged, and she became eager to learn what this elderly-looking young man had done in his youth and why his willpower was so strong.

Wang Yong had barely climbed a few steps when he heard a clattering sound—a crisp noise caused by small pebbles hitting the stony ground.

Small stones rained down like droplets. Some landed on Wang Yong’s body, while others struck his head, causing him to grimace in pain.

However, this didn’t scare Wang Yong. He placed his backpack behind his head and quickly crawled forward.

This trick had failed again.

Bailan didn’t want to kill Wang Yong immediately, so she stopped and attempted to possess his body to access his memories.

Wang Yong had tattoos and wore a copper coin bracelet. These two items were particularly unpleasant for Bailan.

Copper coins, having passed through countless hands, carried a strong yang energy. This energy felt scorching to ghosts, and most couldn’t endure its heat. However, Bailan was no ordinary ghost. She endured the pain of her spirit being scorched by the yang energy on the coins and forcibly possessed Wang Yong.

Wang Yong suddenly felt heavy and dizzy. Instantly, he suspected that he had been possessed by an evil spirit.

Possession by a ghost can be either partial or complete.

Partial possession means the ghost doesn’t fully open the seven orifices of the human body. The person can still move but will feel dizzy and uncomfortable. The ghost merely causes discomfort without fully controlling the body.

Complete possession requires the ghost to expend yin energy to forcibly open all seven orifices, fully taking control of the body and even accessing the person’s thoughts.

Normally, ghosts avoid expending yin energy. They prefer to possess people with weak constitutions since it’s easier to open the seven orifices. This is why healthy individuals, with strong yang energy and vitality, are rarely possessed. For a ghost, possessing a healthy person is like jumping into a fire pit—potentially fatal due to yang energy backlash.

Bailan was exceptionally powerful, unlike ordinary ghosts.

But Wang Yong was no pushover either. As a child, due to grave robbing, he had long consumed special herbal medicines that made his yang energy extremely strong, making his seven orifices very resistant. It would take a lot of effort for a ghost to open them.

Noticing that Wang Yong’s yang energy was much stronger than usual and his orifices were difficult to penetrate, Bailan’s curiosity was piqued. Ignoring the cost to her yin energy, she forced her way through all seven orifices, fully possessing Wang Yong.

The moment Bailan locked onto all seven orifices, Wang Yong stopped moving.

Bailan exhaled in relief. Just as she was about to start sensing Wang Yong’s memories, she suddenly noticed another ghost nearby. Before she could react, this ghost cast a talisman that trapped her inside Wang Yong’s body. This talisman was magical—it not only prevented Bailan from leaving but also stopped her from controlling Wang Yong’s body.

At this moment, Shui Miao arrived. Shui Miao picked up Wang Yong and ran away…

Feeling Shui Miao’s sudden appearance, Bailan realized something was wrong. Without bothering to access Wang Yong’s memories, she immediately used her yin energy to break free from the talisman.

Zhuge Abacus’s current power was weak, so the talisman’s strength wasn’t great.

Bailan forcefully broke through the talisman and escaped from Wang Yong’s body.

However, upon exiting Wang Yong’s body, Bailan found that both Shui Miao and the other ghost had vanished. With her spiritual senses, she discovered Wang Yong had also disappeared!

“What’s going on?”

Bailan didn’t realize she had already entered the Stone Demon Formation.

In fact, Shui Miao, Wang Yong, and Zhuge Abacus were just a few steps away from her, but her mind was affected by the formation, so she couldn’t sense them.

The Stone Demon Formation was a unique formation jointly created by Zhuge Abacus and Sima Zongheng. It could trap intruders’ minds, preventing them from escaping. Intruders might think they were running around, desperately seeking an exit, or screaming, but in reality, their spirits hadn’t moved at all—all their actions were merely mental activities.

In theory, Zhuge Abacus’s current power was inferior to Bailan’s.

However, Zhuge Abacus had arrived earlier, using scattered stones to set up the formation, drawing on the mountain’s spiritual energy, which was sufficient to easily suppress Bailan.

Shui Miao rescued Wang Yong to the side, immediately using immortal energy to heal his injuries before taking him back to the taxi.

Zhuge Abacus remained inside the formation, using the Stone Demon Formation’s power to enter Bailan’s mind and access all her memories.

Bailan was puzzled when suddenly her thoughts became hazy, as if she had entered a dream. When she regained consciousness, she found herself back in her childhood, watching everything from her past unfold before her eyes… Her thoughts immersed themselves in the memories, unaware that Zhuge Abacus was reading them.

※※※

“Shui Miao, you’re amazing! Just now, I almost couldn’t hold on.”

Wang Yong had recovered and was very excited, believing all that had just happened was due to Shui Miao’s actions.

“Dad, you’re such a tough guy. I’m impressed.”

While saying this, Shui Miao was thinking about Zhuge Abacus, hurrying to send Wang Yong away before returning to assist Zhuge Abacus in confronting Bailan.

Praised by Shui Miao, Wang Yong became even more excited, launching into a boastful monologue.

Shui Miao didn’t respond. When they reached the roadside, he interrupted, “Dad, drive to the town and find Jiang Zhihao. He’ll teach you how to cultivate your energy. I need to go find a place to cultivate now without any interruptions, so see you tomorrow morning.”

“Then… okay, since you’re so capable, I don’t need to protect you. I’ll head back then.”

Hearing about the energy cultivation, Wang Yong immediately became interested and stopped clinging to Shui Miao.

Shui Miao took out his phone to call Jiang Zhihao, watching Wang Yong drive away before hurrying back to the Stone Demon Formation.

“Shui Miao, this Bailan’s fate is somewhat similar to yours, but she’s extremely ruthless. The ghost attendants around you were all killed by her. She even chased after Wu Ai to the City of Fengdu and destroyed his secondary spirit body. Her return was to uncover your secrets, eliminate you, and seize the Nine Tripod Cauldron. Moreover, her cultivation methods are quite effective and could greatly benefit you. I’m using the Stone Demon Formation to assist you. Use your Soul Devouring Power to refine and absorb her, obtaining her memories and yin energy.” As soon as Shui Miao returned, Zhuge Abacus immediately transmitted his thoughts to inform Shui Miao of the general situation.

Shui Miao had no hesitation when it came to someone trying to kill him. He immediately used his Soul Devouring Power to envelop Bailan, preparing to completely refine and absorb her.

Under the influence of the Stone Demon Formation, Bailan mistook the pain of her spirit for a pleasant sensation.

Soon, Shui Miao achieved significant results.

Bailan had a Qiankun Bag, filled with numerous pills and rare treasures!

Using his Soul Devouring Power, Shui Miao destroyed the soul imprints within the Qiankun Bag, claiming it for himself.

“Brother Five, there are many pills here. Hurry and take some to restore your strength!” Shui Miao was never stingy with his loved ones and friends, immediately tossing the Qiankun Bag to Zhuge Abacus.

The Qiankun Bag contained a vast amount of pills and treasures, all stored by the Yellow Spring Sect, which Bailan had stolen but now returned to Shui Miao. Zhuge Abacus was overjoyed, not hesitating to take out enough pills for himself and Sima Zongheng, storing them away while immediately consuming some to restore his cultivation. Then he returned the Qiankun Bag to Shui Miao.

Shui Miao was very excited and took several pills to enhance his spiritual power, continuing to refine and absorb Bailan.

Bailan was very powerful, wearing armor made of treasures.

Shui Miao planned to give it to Bai Fengjie later. He removed the soul imprints on the armor, storing it all in his Holy Yuan Ring, mercilessly stripping Bailan bare…

A soul body isn’t a physical body—it’s just a mass of black mist.

Therefore, Shui Miao wasn’t tempted by a mere mass of black mist.

As time passed, Shui Miao absorbed a large amount of Bailan’s yin energy, rapidly boosting his own cultivation.

With the Stone Demon Formation’s assistance, the progress was very smooth.

At midnight, Bailan’s soul body dissipated, her spirit essence depleted, leaving only her Yin Core floating before Shui Miao.

Once the Yin Core disappears, Bailan would be completely gone. Thus, Shui Miao hesitated, not making his move yet.

“What are you waiting for?”

Seeing this, Zhuge Abacus asked anxiously.

After all, midnight was the time when various monsters roamed freely. If other monsters entered the Stone Demon Formation and caused trouble, it would be problematic.

“Brother Five, if I fully absorb the Yin Core, will Bailan disappear completely? She doesn’t have a Life Talisman hidden elsewhere, right?” Shui Miao found it hard to believe that he now controlled Bailan’s fate. Once he acted, she would be utterly destroyed, disappearing forever.

“You’re thinking about this at a time like this?”

Zhuge Abacus was incredulous, “Shui Miao, this is a cruel world. If you don’t kill others, they will kill you. Even if she doesn’t have a Life Talisman hidden elsewhere, you can’t afford to be merciful. Do you want to spare her only to have her grow stronger and target your loved ones and friends?”

“No!”

Hearing this, Shui Miao felt a chill run through him. Instantly, he activated his Soul Devouring Power, absorbing Bailan’s Yin Core in one swift move.

Bailan was still immersed in her memories when suddenly she felt everything around her rapidly vanishing. In her confusion, her spirit essence and memories dissipated.

At this moment, Zhuge Abacus spoke again, “Don’t worry. Her spirit essence still exists, but it won’t retain these memories. From now on, she won’t be your enemy anymore.”

Zhuge Abacus had sensed all of Bailan’s memories, discovering that she indeed had a Life Talisman hidden in the Realm of Rakshasa.

Shui Miao refined Bailan’s Yin Core and spirit essence, gaining her memories, and let out a long sigh.

“Shui Miao, your current enemy has been eliminated. I should be leaving now. We’ll meet again in the future.”

Zhuge Abacus stood up, bowed, and prepared to take his leave.

“So soon!” Shui Miao hadn’t expected Zhuge Abacus to leave so quickly. Immediately moved, he hastily said, “Brother Five, Brother Five, before you leave, could you teach me this Stone Demon Formation!?”