Chapter 8: Owl God Snatching Food!
"Harm you? Are you not someone else in disguise, truly the original Fool..."
Upon seeing Wang Yuan's eyebrows furrow, Wang Cheng immediately shifted gears.
"... Uncle Thirteen?"
Although these two still found it somewhat unbelievable, deep down they had already accepted the fact that he had been pretending to be a fool for over a decade.
After all, if this person truly wasn't Wang Yuan, there was no longer any need to continue the act.
Yet, the implications behind this were even more chilling to them.
A boy, not even fifteen, had hoodwinked every single soul in Daling Village.
From the moment he understood the world, he had played the role of a ridiculed fool—how terrifyingly deep and cunning must his scheming be?!
What was I doing at fifteen? Still fishing in the river and catching birds in the trees, right?
Those who achieve the impossible naturally command awe, whether for their power or their cunning strategies.
Wang Cheng even felt that compared to such a sinister and enduring character, not even Master Ge's weird abilities could offer a sense of security.
Although absurd, he had involuntarily started to regard Wang Yuan as somewhat equal to a Magician in his mind.
He also immediately sensed trouble brewing; it was a quest for vengeance.
Thus, he tried to lift his head and said sincerely to Wang Yuan:
"Uncle Thirteen, you must have relied on your intelligence that night of the 'Corpse Sacrifice', successfully evading the Weird's schemes.
But consider that we are blood relatives. Please, take my advice.
Since you have left Daling Village, you might as well flee. We will definitely not disclose your affairs.
Master Ge is a Magician who practices cultivation, after all.
Think about it. When he acts personally to summon other 'Weirds', what will you use to fend them off? Can you find the Killing Rules as you did last time?"
The pale-faced youth beside him, who didn't want to die either, tried to add his voice but was too heavily numbed from shock, and could only nod vigorously.
No one could have guessed the true method with which Wang Yuan had escaped the Weird's deadly grasp.
But then Wang Yuan smiled thinly, his teeth eerily white.
"What will I use to defend myself?
Green onions, ginger, cooking wine, garlic, stock up on cumin, chili powder!
Last time it was like eating sashimi, completely unfamiliar. This time I'll try stir-frying and deep-frying, sprinkle some cumin for a drink, maybe the taste will be even better."
Meanwhile, his hand gently exerted pressure, and a thin line of blood appeared on Wang Cheng's neck.
"Wait, I'm telling, I'm telling!"
Hearing his mad ravings about using the Weird for drinks, Wang Cheng's mental state finally collapsed.
Sadly, he realized he couldn't tell whether this man was truly insane or feigning madness, and it was this uncertainty that was the most terrifying.
To this man, killing a person was probably no different from slaughtering a chicken, wasn't it?
Feeling the blade press down another notch, Wang Cheng quickly cried out:
"I don't know what they intended to do. I just distributed your family's ten acres of land and obediently followed the Clan Leader's orders."
Worried Wang Yuan might be dissatisfied, he hurriedly added:
"Owl God Tomb! Owl God Tomb! All I know is that their schemed affairs involve the Owl God Tomb."
"Owl God Tomb?"
Although Wang Yuan was not forbidden from attending classes at the clan school, to say he had learnt systematically and thoroughly would be an overstatement.
His main focus had been on how to survive; other knowledge took a backseat.
Beimang Mountain had nothing else but countless large tombs of princes and generals; at least he had never heard of this "Owl God Tomb."
It was only moments before in the backyard that he heard an unusual scripture referring to something called the "Three Owl Gods"; perhaps...
Sure enough, seeing his frown deepen, Wang Cheng hurriedly added:
"The term 'Owl God Tomb' is used by Master Ge, but us Tomb Guardians from the Wang Family refer to it by another name—Yili King's Tomb!
Our Wang Family has guarded the first Luoyang King's Royal Mausoleum for nearly two hundred years, which has quite the history. It's said that two hundred years ago..."
Listening to his story, Wang Yuan's expression shifted continuously.
If one was to discuss the Owl God Tomb, one couldn't circumvent the most central figure, the founder Luoyang King of the Great Yan Dynasty, "Yili King" Zhou Yi.
This Prince was the twenty-fifth son of the Great Yan Ancestor and also the youngest.
His fiefdom was Luoyang, hence he was called the Luoyang King, but his actual title was "Yi King," and his posthumous title was "Yili," combined to form: Yili King.
Viewed easily, "Yili" was a sinister posthumous title like "Spirit" and "Yang."
This title was personally bestowed by his elder brother, the then-Emperor Taizong of Wen, and aptly summarized his entire life.
After Yi King Zhou Yi was ennobled in Luoyang, he soon engaged in wrongdoing within the walls of Luoyang City, harming the common people.
He favored martial pursuits over scholarly ones, and he most enjoyed slaughtering civilians.
He often led hunting parties within the city, and upon encountering pedestrians who could not dodge in time, he would draw his sword and chop them down, blood splattering his clothes.
He also built a magnificent estate filled with beautiful women; whenever he fancied one, no matter the time, place, or who was around, he would immediately pounce on them.
He even had men and women strip naked in public to amuse him, exhibiting extreme debauchery and shamelessness.
According to records, in just the few years from when he took command at the age of twenty until his death from illness at twenty-six, he had taken over four hundred married women.
He also seized over three thousand civilian houses and chose more than seven hundred girls over the age of twelve for their beauty, amassing wealth that was beyond count. The entire populace of Luoyang County suffered greatly and complained endlessly.
After his death from indulgence, he was buried in this Royal Mausoleum that he had started building from the beginning of his rule.
However,
not long after the burial of the Yili King, strange incidents began to occur frequently in Luoyang City, not far from Beimang Mountain.
First, countless citizens successively dreamt they were eaten by a sinister spirit with an owl's head and a human body.
Just half a month later, Luoshui River suddenly flooded, destroying countless fields and homes, followed by theft, famine, and a terrible plague...one tragedy after another unfolded, and the prosperous Luoyang City quickly turned into a hell on earth.
"So you're saying that this disaster back then was caused by the vengeful spirit of the Yili King?
Could it be that he turned into some kind of powerful monster after his death, indiscriminately killing people?"
Wang Yuan instinctively searched his mind for all information about monsters but regretfully found that the Wang Family's archives provided scant detail on this aspect.
Not to mention the conditions for the birth of monsters,"
Wang Cheng shook his head:
"That's something outsiders wouldn't know. At that time, the government couldn't possibly use the reason that the Prince had turned into a monster to explain to the suffering people of Luoyang.
What is known is that both the 'Imperial Dragon Guard,' which specifically handles cases involving monstrous spirits at the court, and the 'Divine Palace Supervisor,' which oversees the clan's royal tombs and temples, sent people to investigate.
The conclusion was that this man offended the Owl God, born with a Life Chart of 'Owl God Snatching Food,' bringing harm to others and himself.
A condemnation was left in his record: Sun as the master star, with robbers alike; feeding on growth, depleting talent and wealth; killing the officials, generating owl imprints. Owl God Snatching Food, seen as a great omen of disaster!"
Afterward, the court urgently reassigned Duke Wang Gong, who was serving as a Dao General among the 'White Tiger Elite Soldiers' at the Thirty-six Camps, to bring descendants and clan members to act as Tomb Guardians here, suppressing the Owl God Tomb.
Only then did the disasters gradually subside,"
Combining what Wang Yuan now understood about "Life" and "Fortune."
Being born with the Life Chart of 'Owl God Snatching Food' would not be too harmful if it occurred to an ordinary person because their Qi Fortune was too weak, and all misfortunes would only afflict themselves.
Famine, disasters, diseases, imprisonment, harming one's father, harming one's mother—nothing more tragic than afflicting a single person or family.
But this scoundrel happened to be born a nobility, the youngest son of the Great Yan Ancestor, the youngest brother of Taizong, draped in silk and pampered with riches.
If his own Qi Fortune was below -5, described as 'Dark Clouds Overhead,' then Zhou Yi's was probably greater than +8, 'Purple Qi Comes from the East'!
Easily turning the 'Snatching Food' inward to outward, citizens suffered, leaving an endless legacy of harm.
After his death, his Qi Fortune dissipated completely, and the Yin Morality he accumulated in life began to take effect.
This man was filled with evil—what Yin Morality could he have, only karmic debts!
It was foreseeable that 'Owl God Snatching Food' combined with endless karmic debts instantly exploded like a bomb, almost dragging the entire Luoyang City to its doom with him.
However,
Wang Yuan, gazing down at Wang Cheng beneath the edge of the knife, said dispassionately:
"That ghost story is quite fascinating.
But whether it's 'Owl God Snatching Food' or the 'Owl God Tomb,' all of that is now in the past two hundred years ago, what does it have to do with me now?"
Hearing this, Wang Cheng sighed deeply:
"Is it truly in the past? I too would wish it could actually be past."
Ding ding ding…
At that moment, unnoticed by the three of them, a faint ringing suddenly started in the deep backyard of the city wall.