Chapter 232
Chapter 232
It took a fire engine, several ropes, and a great deal of effort to haul Zhao Wuchang back out.
He stared blankly ahead.
His experience in the sewer had driven him to the brink of collapse. Across all his lifetimes, he had never suffered as much as he had in this one short day. The Human Nuclear Warhead truly lived up to his reputation.
Weeping, he screamed at Liu Ye.
“Get lost!”
“Why are you blaming me? You did all of this yourself.”
“Go away! Don’t touch me! Sob…”
Zhao Wuchang cried bitterly and shoved Liu Ye aside.
Liu Ye had no choice but to release the wheelchair’s handles. The restaurant owner had lent it to them.
Using one hand to turn the wheel, Zhao Wuchang struggled forward.
At last. At long last, he was free of that walking disaster! Once he escaped the bastard, his network of contacts would let him command the wind and rain again and return to the pinnacle of the world.
“Xu Fei!”
“Stop calling me!” Zhao Wuchang roared.
Crash!
A car hurtled toward him and sent him flying.
Liu Ye fell silent.
You could at least look before crossing the road!
The world spun around Zhao Wuchang. His entire body felt cold, as though he had been plunged into an icehouse.
Images surfaced in his mind one after another.
“Young monk, why won’t you look at me? You must be hiding something in your heart!”
…
“Young monk, am I pretty?”
…
“Young monk, I’m getting married. Will you take me away?”
…
“Young monk, if there is another life, I will find you again. You must remember me!”
From beginning to end, the young monk kept his eyes tightly shut, too afraid to look at the woman before him. Until one day…
“Faxin, did you hear? The young lady who often came looking for Fakong is dead.”
Clack!
The young monk’s wooden-fish mallet froze in mid-strike. His tightly closed eyes flew open.
“I heard her husband’s family abused her to death. Her body was mangled beyond recognition.”
“That’s right. The killer’s family was wealthy, so nothing happened to him. He even married another wife.”
“Her own family accepted money and refused to pursue the matter. They didn’t even claim her body. It was dumped in a mass grave.”
“How tragic!”
Drip. Drip.
Drops of bright red blood ran down the wooden mallet and struck the floor.
A few days later, that family made a generous donation to the temple. The abbot declared that one need only lay down the butcher’s knife to become a Buddha on the spot.
A few days after that, the family received a plaque from Philanthropist Zhao for building a road for the county.
That night, the young monk went to his master’s room. At the sight of him, his master hurriedly concealed something.
“Master! Can someone truly lay down the butcher’s knife and become a Buddha on the spot?” the young monk asked quietly.
“Ah, that. As long as benevolence remains in one’s heart, anyone may become a Buddha. The Buddha is merciful. He does not dwell upon such things.”
The abbot looked solemn and dignified.
“I see…”
The young monk drew a wooden mallet from behind his back.
Before long, rumors spread that the temple’s abbot had been murdered. Not long after that, the entire household of Philanthropist Zhao was killed. Not a single person survived.
Fortunately, the family still had an illegitimate son living at the temple. Mindful of the Zhao family’s contributions to the county, the local authorities allowed him to inherit the estate. The illegitimate son gave himself the name Zhao Wuchang.
“Young monk, if there is another life, I will find you again. You must remember me!”
Time flew. No matter how turbulent the world became, the Zhao family always produced a group of outstanding descendants who kept the clan standing firm.
“I must live. I have to wait for someone!”
“I am alive, but… why am I still living?”
“I must live! I must live! I must live forever!”
Whoosh!
The layer of black fog dispersed. At last, he remembered the woman’s face-and the memories he had lost.
Zhao Wuchang opened his eyes, tears streaming down his cheeks.
“You’re awake!”
Liu Ye hurried to his side.
Zhao Wuchang looked at him and said, “Brother Liu, could you ask John to come here?”
Was he planning to complain about him?
Despite the thought, Liu Ye still asked a nurse to call John.
The instant Liu Ye stepped outside, a figure appeared in the hospital room.
Zhao Wuchang seemed to have expected him.
“Have you come to collect my destiny?”
Wang Xu stood beside the window without a word.
Zhao Wuchang spoke slowly.
“One life should have been happy and fulfilled, with a harmonious family, yet she was betrayed by her own family and buried by her husband’s family.
“One life should have been crowned by academic achievement and a promising future, yet she was trapped in a school and denied reincarnation for all eternity.
“One life should have enjoyed perfect health and freedom from illness, yet she became weak and sickly.
“One life should have belonged to a charitable soul who delighted in helping others, yet he became a murderer who killed for pleasure.
“One life should have belonged to an enlightened immortal and protector of the nation, yet he became a traitorous usurper.
“And my own life should have been filled with brotherly affection and marital devotion. Instead, I devoured my descendants and turned brothers and children against one another.”
He looked at Wang Xu.
“The fragment in your hands must be the Fate-Altering Chapter. You have already collected six tragic lives that were twisted into their opposites. I imagine the final one is nearly complete as well. I can roughly guess what you intend to do, but let me warn you: that book will not grant your wish. It will only leave you regretting it for the rest of your life.”
“Regret is a problem for the future.”
Wang Xu extended a hand. A sphere of light rose from Zhao Wuchang’s body and entered the book in Wang Xu’s grasp.
“You don’t want the Soul-Swapping Chapter?”
“My goal is not to collect the Yin-Yang Secret Codex.”
He heard footsteps approaching outside. In an instant, he vanished.
Before long, John and Xu Fei entered the hospital room.
Zhao Wuchang had believed that nothing could surprise him anymore-until he saw Xu Fei dressed head to toe in cyberpunk attire.
“Yo!”
Zhao Wuchang fell silent.
His heart began to ache faintly. He should have planted a teacher beside the boy from the very beginning.
“I didn’t expect you to summon us yourself,” John said.
Then he saw Zhao Wuchang wrapped from head to toe in bandages and seemed to realize something.
“Brother Liu?”
Zhao Wuchang silently nodded.
Xiaoshuai was speechless. Why did the Old Master have to provoke Liu Ye? Huicheng was enormous, yet he had deliberately sought Liu Ye out. And now look what had happened to him.
Seeing the Old Master like this left Xiaoshuai strangely uncomfortable. But why? He felt as though he had overlooked something important.
“John, Xu Fei, there is a file in my villa at Century Garden in the eastern part of the city. It contains three inheritance agreements. Decide among yourselves how to arrange them. From now on, I entrust the Zhao family to you.”
This was his final contingency. No matter who won or lost this game, the Zhao family would not fall.