Chapter 29: The Water Demon

Chen Yanlong was in a jubilant mood. As long as his precious grandson became engaged to the Liu family’s daughter today, the boy would be able to survive.

Chen Tiande had spent half his life perfecting a method to alter his grandson’s destiny and energy, only for it to ultimately benefit him instead. This thought brought him immense pleasure. The legendary "Golden Point Master" who had once shocked the entire Northeast Provinces had done nothing more than make a wedding dress for his grandson. Thinking of this, Chen Yanlong could not help but chuckle. So, the "Ghost Hand of Qingma" was nothing special after all.

At the entrance of the Liu family villa, guests began to arrive in a steady stream, heading toward the main hall. I watched from the sidelines, noting that most of these attendees were experts in the mystical arts; I could perceive a faint aura of mysterious solar energy emanating from them. Clearly, they had come out of respect for Chen Yanlong of the Chen Mansion, and their purpose was undoubtedly to intimidate the Liu family, ensuring they would entertain no second thoughts. A few others, however, kept their distance, merely greeting Liu Sihai before finding their own places in the hall. After entering, I chose a seat against the wall, remaining inconspicuous.

Liu Qingqing kept glancing toward the entrance, her beautiful eyes filled with disappointment.

"Qingqing, pull yourself together. The people here today are famous Feng Shui masters from the provincial capital. What are you thinking about? Don't tell me you're still thinking of Chen Qiyue?" Liu Sihai, sensing his daughter's state of mind, whispered a sharp reprimand in her ear. Hearing her father, Liu Qingqing could only suppress her thoughts and slowly look up at the sky.

As the time approached, Chen Yanlong grew impatient, eager to write his grandson Chen Feng’s name on the marriage contract. But just then, a man sitting not far in front of me stood up. He had a thick, bushy beard and a face full of coarse flesh, looking like someone not to be trifled with.

"Master Chen, don't be in such a hurry to write the name. We all know your Chen family has deep attainments in Feng Shui. Those of us here to witness the ceremony are all practitioners of these arts ourselves."

"Master Chen, why not show us a trick or two to broaden our horizons?"

"We all know the Liu family is only marrying into your Chen family out of desperation. If our skills prove superior to yours, couldn't the Liu family’s daughter be ours instead?"

The man’s name was Gao Qiqiang, a professional butcher. Relying on his intense murderous aura, he had performed a few exorcisms in the past and was incredibly arrogant, fearing neither heaven nor earth.

Hearing this, the previously smiling Chen Yanlong paused, his expression stiffening for a moment. But he quickly regained his composure.

"I am grateful to everyone for honoring the Chen family today by witnessing our two families' union. However, the Liu family's daughter and my grandson, Chen Feng, are truly in love. I ask you all to be mindful of your words."

As Chen Yanlong spoke, he gestured lightly with one hand. The teacups on the guests' tables all floated into the air, creating a truly eerie scene.

"A mere parlor trick. I fear that alone is not enough to convince us!" Gao Qiqiang slammed his hand on the table, and the floating teacups crashed down.

"If that is the case, then please, show us something that will convince everyone. Tell me, Ah Qiang, do you have the guts?"

Gao Qiqiang, refusing to believe in the supernatural, readily accepted Chen Yanlong’s challenge. "Master Chen, what is this 'convincing' task you speak of? I, Gao Qiqiang, may not have other talents, but I have guts. I'm not afraid of death!"

"Ah Qiang, you have courage. I, Chen Yanlong, admire that. In that case, please eliminate the evil spirit plaguing the Liu family. I have determined that this monster is hiding in the artificial lake in front of the villa."

"Do you have the guts to enter the water? If you can go down and eliminate the monster, our Chen family will yield Liu Qingqing to you. As for whether you can win the beauty, that will depend on your own means."

Chen Yanlong pointed toward the artificial lake, indicating that the evil entity disrupting the Liu family’s fortune was hiding within.

"Don't try to provoke me. Since I dared to come, I’m not afraid of any crooked monsters. If this water-dwelling creature dares to stop me from taking a wife, I’ll take my butcher's knife and scatter its soul to the winds."

The butcher stood up and strode toward the artificial lake. Without hesitation, he leaped in. He assumed the creature was merely a beast that had gained some essence, lacking any real cultivation.

But to everyone’s shock, less than a minute after the butcher entered the water, he was ejected by a massive force. He slammed heavily into the ground at the entrance of the villa, covered in blood. Looking at his face, his eyes had been gouged out and his tongue had been severed.

The sight made everyone present gasp in terror. The butcher, though not an elite, possessed an extremely fierce murderous aura that would usually deter common spirits. Yet, such a ferocious man had met a gruesome death in the lake in a single encounter. Now, no one dared to voice any opposition to Chen Yanlong.

The body was quickly removed, and the Feng Shui masters in the hall fell into a stunned silence, overcome by an inexplicable fear of the monster in the lake. Seeing that there were no more objections, Chen Yanlong stepped out of the hall.

He possessed true skill; he placed an incense burner by the edge of the lake, knelt, and bowed. As he bowed, he murmured, "Spirit of the water, master of the lake, I apologize for this intrusion and disrespect. I hope for your forbearance."

With that, he walked to the edge of the lake and leaped in. Soon, the water began to churn and splash violently. Everyone watched in suspense, wondering if Chen Yanlong had the power to finish off the great demon.

A moment later, Chen Yanlong leaped back onto the shore, clutching a handful of scales. "My friends, the demon in this lake has extremely high cultivation. After struggling with it for quite some time, I managed to tear off these few scales."

Chen Yanlong sneered and tossed the scales in front of the crowd. Now, no one dared to oppose the marriage between the Chen and Liu families. It seemed that the destiny left for his grandson, Qiyue, by the Golden Point Master was going to be usurped by Chen Yanlong after all.

Alas! How cruel fate is!

Just as everyone thought the matter had come to an end, I stood up. I had shed all my disguises. I, Chen Qiyue, had arrived.

"Since Master Chen has said it himself, this is the fortune my grandfather left for me. How can you all be so shameless as to steal it?"

I stared intently at Chen Yanlong, my expression dead serious. Although our families had broken off the arranged marriage, no one could take the fortune my grandfather had left for me—not even Chen Yanlong of the provincial Chen family.

"You brat, do you know what you are doing? The Liu family did have an arranged marriage with your family, but that relationship has been dissolved. This fortune has nothing to do with you anymore! I advise you not to invite humiliation upon yourself!" Chen Yanlong said coldly, his face grim.

"If that is the case, then I shall enter the water to slay the demon and win the beauty with my own strength!" I stood up, looked around at the crowd, and spoke to Chen Yanlong with absolute sincerity.