Chapter 297: Defying Fate (Part 2)

“Wow…”

Xiao Shuang was the first to jump up excitedly. She ran to Shui Miao’s side and eagerly asked, “Shui Shui, is this magic?”

“Magic?”

Shui Miao smiled and shook her head, “It’s hard to define.”

“Why is it hard to define?” Xiao Shuang looked determined to get to the bottom of things.

Shui Miao thought for a moment, “On the surface, it’s somewhat similar to magic. You could say it’s magic, but it’s not really. And if you say it’s not magic, these butterflies aren’t real either, so it’s hard to say.”

“Then, where did they fly off to?” Seeing the butterflies flying away, Xiao Shuang quickly asked.

Looking at Xiao Shuang, Shui Miao felt like she was speaking to an innocent little girl. She asked only superficial questions and then stopped, a person with a simple mind who was especially easy to please and very pleasant to be around. “Of course, they went to find the trash can. Why don’t you go follow and see?”

“Great! Great!”

Xiao Shuang ran off happily.

Lin Zhiling was also curious and followed her.

Jiang Zhihao and the others didn’t leave but waited for Shui Miao with excitement. Seeing Shui Miao turn around, Jiang Zhihao quickly asked, “Master, what should we prepare when we go back? Do we need to bring cars and other things?”

“This…”

Shui Miao thought for a moment and then said, “When you were young, did you experience hard times?”

“We did. We were still in the collective farms before the land was allocated to individual households. We couldn’t eat enough, so we dug for wild vegetables when we were hungry, wore tattered clothes, and were really poor.”

Jiang Zhihao immediately started complaining about the hardships.

Jiang Tao and Sun Hao also began to lament.

Seeing the three old men getting increasingly bitter, Shui Miao interrupted, “Since that’s the case, you don’t need to go through that hardship again. Skip the spiritual cultivation practice. Each of you go back and prepare three off-road vehicles, a total of nine, find a dozen or so nimble drivers, preferably retired soldiers, and bring necessary daily necessities. We’ll go into the mountains together to search for the dragon veins.”

Shui Miao thought of his grandfather. It had been so long, and he didn’t know how he was doing.

Searching for dragon veins was something feng shui masters loved to do.

The three elderly men, upon hearing this, were immediately thrilled and hurried back to prepare. They had heard many legends about dragon veins, and the process of searching for them with their master would surely be exciting.

“No problem, I have a martial arts champion with excellent character.”

“I also have someone born as a special forces soldier…”

“I even have a female bodyguard who used to be a detective…”

The three old men spoke up one after another, proudly presenting the talents they considered excellent.

Shui Miao nodded, “Go back and prepare. Don’t just think about the good things. Hand over your businesses to your descendants. From now on, I hope you face everything with a fresh mindset. You are merely devoted cultivators seeking the Dao and immortality. Let go of worldly matters as much as possible.”

Indeed, cultivators could not have too many worldly thoughts, as they would naturally bring many troubles.

Shui Miao admitted to himself that he could not completely rid himself of worldly thoughts, so he only asked Jiang Zhihao and the others to do their best.

The three old men, who had lived several decades longer than Shui Miao, immediately understood his meaning.

After seeing the three off, Shui Miao walked back with Chen Meiling and Chen Xiang.

On the way, Shui Miao found his phone had run out of credit, so he used Chen Xiang’s phone to call his grandfather, only to find his grandfather’s phone was also out of credit.

Seeing Shui Miao return the phone to Chen Xiang, Chen Meiling quickly said, “Little brother, are you leaving so soon? Before you go, why don’t you go back and visit Mother?”

“Sure! Right away.”

Shui Miao nodded.

Shui Miao’s mood was complex. He wanted to stay by his mother’s side to fulfill his filial duty, yet he feared his true intentions might be detected by potential adversaries who could then threaten his loved ones.

The thought of his family and friends being harmed was what Shui Miao feared most.

Chen Meiling and Chen Xiang were unaware of Shui Miao’s concerns, assuming he was simply obsessed with cultivation and therefore reluctant to spend time with everyone. Not wanting to explain too much, Shui Miao used telepathy to summon Bai Feng, asking her to chat with Chen Meiling and Chen Xiang and teach them how to cultivate.

Shui Miao himself went alone to the door of the suite where his mother lived.

Yang Min and Yang Fen were chatting.

Shui Miao’s sudden return surprised them greatly, but after the surprise came the joy of family reunion.

To cheer his mother, Shui Miao deliberately made his account of cultivation sound as light-hearted and joyful as possible, without the slightest hint of danger. He even fabricated a story about a powerful master who looked after him, taught him how to be a good person, and showed him techniques to capture evil spirits, among other things.

Yang Min, who had been worried about her son, finally felt relieved hearing Shui Miao’s words.

As a mother, Yang Min wanted to thank this master who was taking care of her son.

Shui Miao told Yang Min that the master was a hermit of high cultivation, a fleeting figure like the head of a dragon seen but not its tail, so she wouldn’t be able to meet him.

Thus, Shui Miao spent several hours chatting with his mother and Aunt Yang Fen, then personally taught them how to cultivate and gave them some Yin Holy Spirits to strengthen their souls.

By evening, Shui Miao bid farewell to his mother and Yang Fen and left.

Having comforted his mother, Shui Miao felt a long-awaited sense of relief.

Bai Feng transformed into a beautiful woman, guiding everyone and benefiting them greatly.

As Shui Miao just entered the elevator, Bai Feng appeared with the black snake demon, the fox demon Qimei, and Jin Chanzi.

Bai Feng told Shui Miao that Lao Cai and the others were already waiting in Jing Shui Village, and tonight at midnight was the best time for the oath of brotherhood.

Shui Miao thought for a moment and asked Bai Feng and the others to go to Jing Shui Village first, saying he would follow shortly.

Shui Miao found Chen Meiling and Chen Xiang and shared an idea that had come to him while chatting with his mother and aunt. All his family and friends were gathered in Zhonghai City, which was convenient for mutual care, but if the millennium female ghost Bai Niangniang returned, wouldn’t everyone be in danger at once? Therefore, Shui Miao wanted Chen Meiling to hand over the company to subordinates, leave Zhonghai City, and disperse everyone to operate new companies in various locations, such as building a large supermarket or something else; even doing nothing would be fine as long as they moved elsewhere. This way, when the millennium female ghost Bai Niangniang returned, it wouldn’t be so easy for her to threaten all his loved ones.

Chen Meiling and Chen Xiang had somewhat detached from the pursuit of wealth and found Shui Miao’s idea feasible.

Besides leaving his phone number, Shui Miao also provided a special way to contact him before bidding farewell to Chen Meiling and Chen Xiang and heading to Jing Shui Village.

※※※

In Jing Shui Village, Lao Cai, Lao Qin, and Sima Zongheng had already arrived.

To Shui Miao’s greatest surprise, Xiao Tudou had broken up with his girlfriend. He decided to focus entirely on cultivation and avoid any romantic entanglements.

Xiao Mei was heartbroken. Facing Xiao Tudou’s firm decision, she couldn’t bear it and even had thoughts of suicide.

Shui Miao summoned the Zhuge Abacus from the Holy Yuan Bracelet to chat with everyone.

Then, Shui Miao pulled Xiao Tudou and Xiao Mei into a tent nearby to talk.

“Xiao Tudou, will you listen to me?”

Through telepathy, Shui Miao discovered that Xiao Mei was truly devoted to Xiao Tudou, even willing to die for him. But Xiao Tudou’s heart was solely focused on cultivating Dao and improving his abilities.

“I will listen!”

Xiao Tudou nodded heavily. His respect for Shui Miao was like reverence for a god!

Shui Miao nodded satisfactorily, “Good. Now I’ll ask you, seeing Xiao Mei cry like this, how does it make you feel? Don’t think of anything else, just answer me honestly.”

“It makes me sad and a bit heartbroken,” Xiao Tudou looked at Xiao Mei, hesitating as he spoke.

“That means you still love her!” Shui Miao patted Xiao Tudou’s shoulder. “If that’s the case, temporarily put aside your cultivation, take good care of her, and live with her.”

“Why? Why should I do that?” Xiao Tudou was taken aback.

“Hmph! Because she loves you deeply, you shouldn’t and can’t treat her like this. This is called unfinished worldly ties. Do you understand?” Shui Miao glared at Xiao Tudou, his tone a bit harsh.

“But Big Brother, don’t you also have many women who like you?” Xiao Tudou retorted不甘心ly.

Hearing this, Shui Miao couldn’t help but frown slightly and said indifferently, “That’s different. They just like me a little, no one truly loves me. They can live well without me. But Xiao Mei is different. Without you, she doesn’t even want to live. So you must settle this emotional debt.”

“But then, what about my cultivation?” Xiao Tudou was still thinking about cultivation.

“You can cultivate in a few decades too. Don’t think just because you’ve seen me achieve something, you have to rush into it. We’re different. You saw my glorious moments, but when I was in trouble and used as a pawn, you were asleep.” Seeing that Xiao Tudou wasn’t listening, Shui Miao raised his hand as if to hit him.

Unexpectedly, Xiao Mei quickly stood in front of Xiao Tudou to block him.

Shui Miao was deeply moved and pointed at Xiao Tudou’s nose, “You brat, grow a heart! If you dare to treat Xiao Mei badly, I’ll strip away your cultivation.”

“Brother, I know I was wrong…”

Xiao Tudou finally had a change of heart, moved by Xiao Mei’s genuine feelings, and nodded in apology.

Shui Miao nodded and walked out.

After stepping out, Shui Miao thought to himself that he seemed a bit unfair to the young wife in Shui Longling. If she truly loved him instead of Zhang Ling, he would definitely marry her.

Thinking of other women, Lin Qing’er was still thinking of her first love, and Xiao Tang Jie was merely after fame and fortune. There was no one as devoted as Xiao Mei.

Unconsciously, Shui Miao even envied Xiao Tudou, who had found true love so quickly. How good and worry-free that was!

※※※

At this moment, a clamor came…

Shui Miao turned to look and saw in the wilderness, Lao Cai, Lao Qin, Bai Feng, and everyone else. Somehow, they had brought many tables, on which were placed all sorts of things—fruits, vegetables, whole pigs and sheep, incense burners, spirit tablets, wine jars, large bowls, red carpets were laid on the ground, and red lanterns were hung on both sides. All the items for the oath of brotherhood were prepared in just a few minutes!

Am I the only living person here?

Shui Miao suddenly realized that those preparing to take the oath of brotherhood with him were not ghosts or demons!