Chapter 995
Sylvia woke up at dawn.
She sat on the bed in a daze for a while before starting her morning routine.
It was only 5:30 AM when she checked the time. She changed into sportswear, ready for a morning run.
Life at the Hipps family estate was peaceful, but she always felt an emptiness inside, especially without Franklin. It was as if there was a gaping hole in her heart, letting the wind blow through painfully. The pain was so intense that she almost wanted to dig out her heart to see if it would stop hurting.
Sylvia left the estate, which was nestled halfway up a scenic mountain. She ran down the path, listening to the sound of her shoes against the ground and feeling the sweat gradually bead on her forehead and trickle down her back.
Sometimes she looked up at the fading stars, other times at the last city lights below. The cool morning breeze brushed past her ears as the sun slowly rose over the horizon.
As the golden rays illuminated the world, Sylvia stopped to gaze at the rising sun.
The sun rose every day, and life went on.
Suddenly, she heard a rustling sound by the roadside.
She paused, thinking it might be a small animal. Just as she was about to continue running, she heard faint breathing.
She stopped again and listened carefully. It was indeed breathing.
"Cough, cough-"
A violent coughing sound came from a ditch by the road.
Sylvia was sure someone was there!
In the early morning, the estate's road was empty except for her. Who else would be up so early?
She was about to leave when she heard a voice, "Child, come here. Our meeting is destined by fate. I've been waiting on this road for half a month... finally, I've met you." Sylvia was stunned. Was this person talking to her?
Or to someone else?
She didn't know him. As she hesitated, the voice spoke again, "Don't just stand there, come quickly. It's just you and me here. My time is almost up; this might be our first and last meeting." Sylvia was now almost certain he was talking to her.
She squinted slightly and walked towards the ditch, which was overgrown with tall wild grass. As she walked, she asked, "Are you talking to me? We don't even know each other..."
"It doesn't matter. The bond between people isn't determined by time. Some people leave an unforgettable impression even after one meeting." The person said before starting to cough violently again. By now, Sylvia had climbed into the ditch and pushed aside the wild grass to approach him.
She saw an elderly man with long white hair, dressed in tattered robes that resembled a Taoist robe.
His long white beard hung down his chest, making him quite striking.
In modern society, few elderly men kept such long beards.
The old man was slumped against a rock, looking weak and frail.
Sylvia had no doubt that without the rock, he would collapse.
Despite his sickly appearance, his weathered eyes were bright and focused on Sylvia. "You came? Child."
Sylvia looked at the strange old man in confusion. "Why are you here alone? Are you sick? Do you need me to take you to a hospital?"
The old man shook his head and smiled weakly. "Child, become my disciple! I'll teach you everything I've learned in my life; it will fulfill my wish."
"Disciple?" Sylvia found his words odd. "What can I learn from you?"
"My name is Newman, head of the Sackcloth Sect. Our sect always has only one successor. I... I'm dying." The old man grasped Sylvia's hand with all his strength. "I have a manual for you. And all my knowledge of spells and formations will be passed on to you."
He pulled out an old, yellowed book from his tattered robes and handed it to Sylvia. "Child, this is our sect's legacy; it's all yours now."
Sylvia found it strange. "The world is vast and full of wonders. But why give it to me?"
"I've been here for half a month because I calculated that my successor would appear here soon. So I waited." The old man smiled, his wrinkled face relaxing. "It's you! You have great fortune and talent; you're a rare genius. Whatever you do will yield twice the result with half the effort."
"Thank heavens! I've found such an ideal disciple."
He studied Sylvia's face as he spoke. "Unfortunately, your ties with your parents and siblings are weak. You have a sister... cough... cough! Your love life will be full of twists and turns. Marriage will also be difficult..."
He coughed again before looking up at Sylvia. "You still don't believe me, do you?"
"I don't understand face reading or calculations." Sylvia had been educated in materialism for over twenty years; how could she believe in such things?
Especially things like feng shui and formations-they sounded strange and mystical.
She even thought the old man might be delusional in his final moments.
But his expression seemed sincere.
For a moment, she couldn't decide whether to believe him or not.
Seeing her hesitation, the old man laughed again. "I'll draw a talisman now to transfer all my knowledge to you. Once you accept it all, you'll inherit my abilities."
A talisman...
Like something out of a fantasy anime?
A talisman and a formation?
As Sylvia wondered about this, she saw the old man raise his hand and start drawing in the air between them.
A golden symbol appeared, floating in mid-air before Sylvia's eyes.Content © provided by NôvelDrama.Org.
She was shocked!
She couldn't believe what she was seeing.
"This is real."
"Yes!"
The old man smiled at the symbol and said, "Break!"
The symbol floated above her head, spinning rapidly before merging into her body...
This...
A burning sensation surged through her.
A few minutes later, she slowly opened her eyes.
The old man smiled at her; his eyes had dimmed.
"My only wish in this life was to have an ideal successor. Many people harmed me; I am gravely injured. Master doesn't ask you to avenge me; just live safely and do no evil...
don't become a flower of evil. that's
enough."
"Master?" Sylvia held his hand. "I'll take you to a hospital; I'm a doctor; I can save you."
"No need. Heaven has decreed my death; I won't live past today... today... is my... cough-cough-" The old man coughed violently again before spitting out blood and closing his eyes as his head slumped. Seeing this, Sylvia immediately checked his breath and found he had stopped breathing.
She then checked his pulse.
After a while, she sighed. "Master, since fate brought us together, I will give you a proper burial so you can rest in peace."
Sylvia carried the frail old man on her back and walked back step by step.
As she walked, she contacted the Hipps family's butler. "Can you get me a high-quality coffin? It must be the best."
"Coffin?" The butler was shocked early in the morning. "Miss, what are you talking about? I don't understand."
"My master has passed away; I need to arrange his funeral." Sylvia hung up after speaking.
She didn't ask for help but carried the old man back to the Hipps family herself.
Bringing back a dead body caused an uproar in the Hipps family.
The news spread quickly through all the houses and courtyards.
"How unlucky!" Annika sneered when she heard about it. "She's new here; who could she possibly know? A master? Who believes that?"
She went to Jaelynn's courtyard while talking. "Did you hear? Sylvia brought back a dead body! Isn't that disgusting?"
"What?" Jaelynn had just woken up and was applying BB cream to her face. "A dead body?"
These young ladies had never seen a dead body before!
And Sylvia brought one back?
Jaelynn was both curious and impressed. "Should we go to the hall and take a look?"
"I'm not going!" Annika found it unlucky. "If you want to go, go yourself; I'm going back to my courtyard."
Jaelynn put down her BB cream and left directly.
When she arrived at the hall, she found Sylvia had hired professional embalmers to handle things.
Old Mrs. Hipps and Clare were there with others, all looking displeased.
"This is my master. He was harmed by evildoers and gravely injured; there wasn't enough time to save him." Sylvia looked at the old man in the coffin. She had read the manual and learned about the Sackcloth Seet and the old man's name.
Master Newman.
He was a powerful celestial master.
It turned out celestial masters really existed; she just hadn't known or encountered them before.
Now she possessed Master
Newman's skills-she could set up
formations, draw talismans, and read feng shui. Unfortunately... she couldn't predict the future yet; that was too advanced and required time to learn.
The manual mentioned that anyone who calculated heavenly secrets would suffer backlash.
Master Newman looked like he was only fifty or sixty but seemed ancient-perhaps due to backlash?