Ghost Story

Under Murong Qing's puzzled gaze, Si Ming said to the old beggar, "Grandma, if you're really hungry, how about I treat you to a meal? We'll find a restaurant, and you can eat as much as you want, it's on me."

The old man's dim eyes suddenly brightened. "Really?"

"This is a real beggar," Si Ming concluded, and chuckled, "Of course, as long as you don't go to those particularly expensive restaurants."

"Don't worry, this old woman isn't the kind of heartless person. Oh dear, we've met a benefactor today, young master, come with me."

The old man bowed repeatedly and then led the way.

Si Ming gestured to Zu Jiangchun with his eyes that they would meet again later, and then left with the old man. Murong Qing followed without hesitation. He Qichang hesitated for a while, but decided that it would be more convenient to split up and gather intelligence, so he decided to continue following Zu Jiangchun and playing the role of a bodyguard.

Aren't the three of you going to act together?

After the shrewd Murong Qing and Si Ming left, Zu Jiangchun deliberately tried to gather information and asked He Qichang, who seemed difficult to communicate with but was actually the easiest to get close to.

"No need. We're a temporary team, everyone has their own methods, and there are four of us in total."

"There are four people! Where is the fourth one?" Zu Jiangchun asked in surprise.

He Qichang was taken aback. "Uh, I remember we boarded the ship together, and I stayed with Murong Qing, but I don't know where we went after that. By the way, what was that person's name again?"

Zu Jiangchun was speechless. "You're asking me? Who am I supposed to ask? You can't even remember your teammates' names. You're much more unreliable than you are in appearance."

"Why didn't you give me money directly, but instead treated me to a meal? Did you discover something?" Murong Qing asked Si Ming on the way.

"No, it's just a habit."

When Si Ming was a child, he often gave his spare change to beggars. As he grew up, he realized that beggars earned far more than he did working himself to the bone. As a result, he no longer felt any sympathy for beggars. In particular, after hearing news about human traffickers deliberately cutting off the hands and feet of babies to make them play the victim and gain public sympathy, he felt disgusted from the bottom of his heart.

If everyone stopped giving money to beggars, making it unprofitable for these criminals, such ugly things wouldn't happen. Although it would affect beggars who genuinely need help, in the long run, this sacrifice would be worthwhile.

Si Ming had this innocent thought when he was in college in his previous life. Although it changed slightly after he entered society, he still insisted on not giving money directly, no matter how pitiful the other party seemed.

If he encounters someone pitifully saying they've been hungry all day and asking for money for a meal, he will treat them to a meal. If the person says their money has been stolen and they can't get home, asking for money for a train ticket, he will help them call the police and ask them to take them home.

In fact, whenever he offered his help, the other party would leave dejectedly. Until he traveled through time, he had never encountered a single person who genuinely couldn't afford food or a train ticket; they were almost all scammers.

But the person in front of him was clearly someone who truly needed help, and Si Ming wasn't stingy with the money for a meal for such a person.

The old woman looked to be over seventy years old and had a small figure, but she had a big appetite. She found a fast food restaurant, ordered ten dishes and five bowls of rice in one go, and devoured them all in no time. Only then did she put down her chopsticks with a sense of satisfaction, indicating that she had eaten about 80% full.

Even in this world where everyone is a "good-for-nothing" due to martial arts training, such magnanimity far exceeds the average level.

"Young man, you're a really good person. This old woman hasn't eaten so well in a long time. Thank you for spending so much."

"It's nothing, just a small amount of money. As long as Grandma is happy with her meal, that's all that matters."

The old woman looked at Si Ming and Murong Qing, and asked with a smile, "Young couple, are you here on vacation?"

Murong Qing blushed slightly and explained, "No, we're on a business trip."

Suddenly recalling the time during the fight on the boat when someone immediately recognized him as a student, he added, "We're still students, working during our winter break to gain some social experience."

The old woman nodded. "That's good. Remember to go back as soon as you're done. The island hasn't been very peaceful lately, so don't wander around aimlessly, or you'll easily get into trouble. If you want to cultivate your relationship, it's better to find a place more suitable for young people to travel to. In your young people's words, that's how you can spark a romance."

Murong Qing said coquettishly, "Grandma, didn't I tell you? We're not a couple."

The old woman looked suddenly enlightened. "Oh, I thought you weren't referring to tourism, but something else."

"No, neither! They're neither a couple nor tourists."

Just because you're not a couple now doesn't mean you won't be in the future. Who can predict what will happen to young people? Don't take such a small thing to heart with an old woman.

Murong Qing was helpless. If she insisted on clarifying the matter, it would make her seem like she was being unreasonable.

Si Ming suddenly noticed that the old woman, out of Murong Qing's sight, secretly made a gesture to him, which probably meant "This is all the old woman can do for you," making him chuckle.

Murong Qing said, "Let's get down to business. Mother, tell us which places on the island are unsafe so we can be extra careful and avoid unknowingly stepping into them."

Chapter 168 Ghost Stories

"It's in the southeastern part of the island. You'll find out if you ask around. A Primordial Ancestor Divine Cult suddenly appeared there, claiming that because everyone disrespected the Great Primordial Ancestor God, they were punished by the gods, who sent down disasters and made the demon tides in all parts of the world even more dangerous... To put it bluntly, it's just a trick that cultists have always used in history, specifically to deceive those foolish men and women, and then extort money and seduce them. I saw through it long ago."

Murong Qing wanted to say that, judging by appearances alone, the old woman was undoubtedly someone easily deceived, but the woman before her was clearly beyond common sense. She could only ask instead, "Didn't anyone on the island notice anything amiss and expose their scam?"

"Do you think there weren't any sensible people among those who were deceived? In fact, some of them knew that the Primordial Ancestor Divine Cult was lying, but they willingly allowed themselves to be deceived. Even if they didn't believe, they forced themselves to believe because if they believed the Mohist Religion teachings, their deceased relatives would become emotionless streams of information, becoming part of the Taiwei God. They would neither be reincarnated nor able to enjoy their offerings in the underworld. But as long as they believed in the Primordial Ancestor Divine Cult, their deceased relatives could enjoy happiness in the underworld, and they would have a good place to rest after death."

The old woman reminded Si Ming of those disreputable cults from his past life, those doctrines that sounded incredibly absurd and childish, yet they managed to deceive many Chinese people, including wealthy merchants, officials, and highly educated individuals.

Some experts have analyzed the reasons, believing that it is because Chinese people generally lack some kind of spiritual sustenance, or that there is a break in their values, which is the fertile ground for those nonsensical cults to grow.

Si Ming felt that everything stemmed from the weakness of the human heart, the lack of willpower, and the inability to face the materialistic reality of the world. As a result, people had to find other things to make up for their shortcomings and thus escape reality.

A true Fierce Warrior dares to face the bleakness of life and the dripping blood.

But true Fierce Warrior are ultimately few and far between; most ordinary people are genuine cowards, neither daring to face the cruel reality nor to accept the pain and sorrow, and can only find a so-called spiritual sustenance to escape.

Before leaving, the old woman said something important, "In three days, this Primordial Ancestor Divine Cult seems to be holding some kind of sacrificial ceremony, which all believers will participate in. It's a very grand ceremony. If you don't want to cause trouble, you'd better leave here as soon as possible. My intuition is always very accurate. I was planning to save up enough money to buy boat tickets, but now it seems I need to hurry."

Zu Jiangchun was unable to complete the transaction that day. Firstly, it was already evening when she landed, and even if the transaction was completed, she would have to wait until the next day to go back. Secondly, the buyer, who was also the leader of the Primordial Ancestor Divine Cult, seemed to be busy with something and could not spare the time to meet her again until the next day.

"He's definitely busy preparing for the ceremony. I suspect he'll pull off something big during it; we need to intensify our intelligence gathering in this area."

Murong Qing told He Qichang about the information he had obtained from the old woman, and the latter agreed.