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Shawn Young watched as the helicopter disappeared into the colorful evening sky. He thought of Yvonne Hu yelling at him, "You have to take responsibility for me!" as she left. For a moment, he had no idea what exactly she wanted him to take responsibility for. But at least—it was obvious she wasn’t ignoring him! Shawn didn’t understand what was going on in her head, nor her true feelings toward him, but it was definitely a good sign! Of course, everything would become clear once he returned to China.
Unable to figure it out, Shawn simply shook his head and decided not to dwell on these annoying issues. He had a mountain of things to handle right now anyway. He’d already planned to use Mai Zayan and Raveneye Mountain as his base to grow his business. But from Martin Yang, he learned that cross-border gambling was causing major problems for China, and the authorities were planning serious crackdowns. So running casinos was only a way to build up initial capital, not a long-term strategy. If he really wanted to build a successful empire, he’d have to tap into Myanmar’s rich natural resources and minerals! The area around Raveneye Mountain for hundreds of kilometers was loaded with treasures—especially jade! It was a real goldmine!
Myanmar is known as the Kingdom of Jade; over 95% of the world’s jade comes from here, especially the highest quality stones—which are almost all mined in Myanmar. The best deposits are concentrated in the Raveneye Mountain region of northern Kachin State! That’s why both the government army and the Kachin tribal forces have been eyeing Raveneye Mountain for ages. Now that Nick Carter, the drug lord who controlled the area, was finished, they naturally wanted a piece of the action!
But neither of these factions expected that—with the secret support of the Chinese government—after several rounds of intense negotiations, Raveneye Mountain would end up in the hands of Martin Yang, a Chinese businessman. Of course, Martin Yang was just the front man; the real new owner of Raveneye Mountain was Shawn Young!
To avoid unnecessary attention and trouble, Shawn decided to let the experienced and respected Martin Yang handle things publicly. Though he’d just acquired this lucrative territory, and Martin Yang was helping him out, Shawn knew that besides his Taoist skills, a successful business was also a man’s bargaining chip! He wasn’t a lone wolf anymore—he had a whole crew relying on him, plus a bunch of beautiful women by his side. The burden on his shoulders was getting heavier! So he had to get everything here sorted out before heading back to China. After all, his future depended on it.
Right then, Shawn walked out of the valley, crossed Dongping River Bridge, and teamed up with Max and the rest of his crew to get busy. Once the Chinese government sent their officials, the hostage crisis—hundreds of Chinese citizens kidnapped by terrorists—was resolved perfectly by Shawn and his team, with no disastrous losses. This flawless rescue made the Chinese authorities see Shawn in a whole new light, and laid the groundwork for him to shake things up in Beijing in the future!
After negotiations wrapped up, the powers in northern Myanmar were reshuffled. The process went pretty smoothly, since Nick Carter and several other drug lords were wiped out during the fighting! The remaining territories were divided up, the shadow of war faded, and order was restored. The old structure was gone, and the new powers were bursting with energy!
Once Martin Yang safely escorted Vivian Fang and Yvonne Hu back to China, he hurried back to join the team. After two busy days, things in Raveneye Mountain had calmed down. Thanks to the strong support from the Chinese government, all the poppy fields at the foot of the mountain were destroyed. In their place, they began inviting investment from China and started developing Raveneye Mountain’s rich resources, especially eco-tourism and modern agriculture.
Yen Xiaoyu, Tang Qianqian, Han Feng, and Xiao Wanquan had to return to China to report in, so as soon as things settled down at Raveneye Mountain, they left. On the third day, Shawn got a message from Longhair at the Mai Zayan casino: they’d found a group of domestic gamblers kidnapped by Goldtooth, the boss of the old Golden Mountain Casino, in a remote mine on the outskirts of Mai Zayan. There were dozens of them, men and women from all over China. After losing all their money gambling, they owed Goldtooth a fortune in loan shark debt, so he had them tied up and sent to the mine. Fortunately, Goldtooth hadn’t gotten around to ‘dealing with’ them before Shawn caught him.
That’s when Shawn remembered that Joanna Gong’s father, Samuel Gong, was probably one of the gamblers in that group. He rushed back to the Mai Zayan Special Economic Zone and had Leon Longhair take him to a remote spot five kilometers out—a deserted jade mine surrounded by thick sugarcane fields. After word got out that Goldtooth had been taken down, the thugs guarding those unlucky mainland gamblers vanished without a trace, leaving the group abandoned for days! If Zach Chow hadn’t rechecked the Golden Mountain Casino and heard about it from some old staff, those gamblers might have died in that mine!
Leon Longhair and a bunch of casino staff found the mainland gamblers in several leech-infested wells or locked up with bears in separate iron cages. By the time they were rescued, they were barely alive, reeking, and some could only be described as ‘mutilated’—their corneas, kidneys, and skin had already been harvested and sold by Goldtooth on the black market to pay off their gambling debts!
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Some of these gamblers met such a tragic fate partly because of their own choices, but also because they were lured to Mai Zayan by shady people. So Shawn ordered Leon Longhair and the others to take them to the clinic for treatment, saving whoever could be saved, and to contact their families in China to come pick them up.
Among the group, Shawn did find Samuel Gong, Joanna Gong’s father. He used to be plump and prosperous, but now he was tortured almost to death—one leg broken, hung in the mine for days as leech food, covered in wounds and blood, truly a pitiful sight. If Shawn hadn’t recognized his facial features, he wouldn’t have known it was Samuel Gong. Shawn entered the Heavenly Sanctuary to get a Dragonsoul Herb to heal him—after all, he was Joanna Gong’s father, basically Shawn’s ‘future father-in-law.’ Part of the reason Shawn came to Myanmar was to help Joanna find her dad.
Thanks to the Dragonsoul Herb, Samuel Gong’s injuries improved dramatically. But his broken leg was a total mess—crushed bone, torn tendons, and after soaking in filthy water and being bitten by leeches, the local muscle and nerves were dead. He’d be crippled for life—a harsh punishment for his gambling addiction!
And in surprising news—David Yu and Fiona Chin actually got back together! To make up for her past mistakes, Fiona returned all of David’s property, restoring his former status. It wasn’t as glamorous as before, but still a good outcome. To prevent Fiona from getting any more funny ideas, Shawn used the Divine Empowerment Ritual to transfer her cultivation to Rainie Bai, who had top-tier talent. Rainie Bai inherited all the power Fiona had spent years building up, while Fiona, now powerless, could only settle down and live with David Yu.
With Fiona’s issue sorted out, David Yu took her back to Shanxi to restart his business. He’d already decided to stick with Shawn Young, his ‘second father,’ and planned to use his influence to attract investment for Raveneye Mountain and help Shawn grow his empire!
Rainie Bai and her father also said goodbye to Shawn for now and returned to China. Rainie decided to help her dad start a new life, and with just a year left before she graduates college, she promised to come back and reunite with Shawn after graduation.
After another busy day wrapping up loose ends, Shawn set out for China with Martin Yang’s bodyguards, escorting Goldtooth and Nick Carter, plus Samuel Gong. He planned to hand Nick Carter over to Rainie Cheng, since Nick was one of Interpol’s and the international anti-drug squad’s most wanted drug lords. Giving Nick to Rainie Cheng would earn her huge credit!
And so, this wild adventure in Myanmar came to a close—for now. But even more exciting journeys were waiting for Shawn Young up ahead!