Chapter 163: Arrived

The sound of copper coins clattering rang out as the copper coin mask was placed on Li Huowang’s face. As he smelled the unique smoky, burnt scent emanating from the copper coin mask, Li Huowang felt an unprecedented sense of security.

"Once we reach Ancian Nunnery, we'll let the abbesses examine it. If it can even fool them, then this item will be extremely valuable."

Li Huowang, wearing the mask, stood up and, with a hint of excitement, shouted to the others behind him, "Let's go! We need to reach Mount Henghua as soon as possible!"

The iron-rimmed carriage wheels began to roll once more, and they set off towards Siqi.

As they gradually approached Siqi, a region known for its numerous lakes and rivers, the roadside vegetation regained its vitality, and even the air became humid. However, the journey back was not smooth sailing; the Siqi border had become increasingly vigilant. Fortunately, the long border between Siqi and Houshu, coupled with the relocation of some border troops, meant their defenses were spread too thin to cover everything. Taking advantage of a gap in the border troops' rotation, Li Huowang and his companions returned to Siqi from Houshu.

One morning, Li Huowang was tightly bound to a tree with chains as thick as a bowl's rim, while his fellow disciples silently watched him babble incoherently. Having witnessed this many times, they had long grown accustomed to it and were no longer as surprised as before. They had a very good understanding of Li Huowang's condition.

After a while, Li Huowang's eyes gradually regained clarity. He looked up at the sunny sky, then at the lush green trees by the roadside, and slowly let out a breath. Regardless of what they had experienced on the journey, they were finally about to arrive.

"Let's eat lunch," Li Huowang said to Bai Lingmiao, who was untying him. "Once we're done, we'll leave. If we hurry, we should reach Mount Henghua before dark."

Glancing at Li Huowang's left sleeve, which had remained unchanged for days, a flicker of sadness crossed Bai Lingmiao's eyes. She turned around and picked up a wooden bucket to fetch water from the nearby river. The clear river water was very clean. The wooden bucket she held, along with Bai Lingmiao's tears, fell into the stream.

"Are you worried about Senior Brother Li?" Chun Xiaoman, who had come along, whispered.

"He's disabled now!" Bai Lingmiao said, choking up. "His hand will never grow back!"

Chun Xiaoman seemed to want to comfort her but realized she didn't know how to begin. Bai Lingmiao was so heartbroken; it seemed she had already fully accepted Senior Brother Li as her man.

"This time, it was just an arm," Bai Lingmiao sobbed. "But what if there's a next time? Why is it so hard for us just to go home?"

Seeing her best friend Bai Lingmiao so heartbroken, Chun Xiaoman felt as if she could relate. Although Li Huowang hadn't explained anything, throughout their journey together, Chun Xiaoman could tell that the red bamboo slip at his waist was used to sacrifice parts of himself in exchange for supernatural abilities. As long as that item remained with Li Huowang, he would surely lose more and more of himself.

Chun Xiaoman looked at the increasingly distressed Bai Lingmiao, her heart softened, and she wrapped her arms around her. Ultimately, this was primarily due to their lack of strength. If they had the power to easily resolve such situations, they wouldn't be facing this predicament. However, trying to persuade Senior Brother Li to discard the bamboo slip was almost impossible; although it came at a great cost, its power was immense. She steeled herself and thought, "If worst comes to worst, I'll ask Senior Brother Li to teach me how to use that bamboo slip." Since anyone could use that item, it might as well be her. Both Bai Lingmiao and Senior Brother Li were cared for by others, and their injuries would bring pain to those who loved them. As for herself, she had already decided not to marry, so it didn't matter.

"If it were my hand that broke..." Chun Xiaoman murmured, looking down at the sorrowful Bai Lingmiao, then at her own hand covered in black fur. "...That's fine too!"

After a quiet moment of comfort, the two of them resumed fetching water. The others were still waiting to eat, and they couldn't afford to delay their journey. The wooden bucket was once again lowered into the cool water and began to fill.

"Wait," Chun Xiaoman said, dipping her furry hand in the water and gently wiping Bai Lingmiao's eye. "It's just a bit of dust. Let me wipe it for you."

"Thank you, Sister Xiaoman."

"Don't be silly, we're sisters," Chun Xiaoman replied. "Besides, I'm going to be your child's godmother someday."

Chun Xiaoman had just finished speaking with a smile when she saw Bai Lingmiao's expression turn increasingly terrified. "Sister Xiaoman! Look behind you!"

Xiaoman quickly pressed one hand to the hilt of the sword at her waist and spun around sharply. In the clear river water, bodies, lying haphazardly, slowly floated towards them.

Soon, everyone gathered by the river, silently watching the bodies on the water's surface. From their clothing, it was clear these were Siqi soldiers, indicating that there must have been fighting somewhere upstream. Amidst the chaos of war, the common people naturally fared poorly. Among the soldiers' corpses were many ordinary citizens, their eyes filled with despair.

"So many floating bodies," Gouwa remarked with a sigh, leaning against a tree trunk. "How many people must have died here?"

"From now on, I'm afraid we can't drink from the river anymore," someone added. "We'll have to drink well water."

While his fellow disciples voiced their concerns, Li Huowang was contemplating other matters. "Everyone has seen plenty of dead bodies," Li Huowang said. "Don't you think these corpses are too fresh?"

Li Huowang's words made everyone pay attention to the details of the corpses. Unless they had died that very day, bodies in water would normally look horrifying, certainly not like this.

"Yes, look!" someone exclaimed. "These dead people still have color in their faces!"

"If it weren't for the fact that they can't move," another chimed in, "they would be indistinguishable from living people."

Li Huowang looked at everything before him, his eyes narrowed slightly. These bodies gave him a strong sense of unease. "Were they killed by some special ability to look like this?" he wondered. "Have other factions interfered in mundane wars? Or perhaps I'm simply mistaken," he mused. "In this world, are wars involving bizarre sects the normal kind of war?"

After pondering by the river for a while, Li Huowang led the others away. Perhaps because of the sheer number of dead bodies, everyone's mood was heavy. No one spoke until they reached the small town at the foot of Mount Henghua. When the familiar scenery of the town, which they had visited many times, reappeared before them, everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Senior Brother Li, it's so late," someone asked. "Are you still going up the mountain, or should we go after breakfast tomorrow?"

"No rush," Li Huowang said, walking into a pastry shop from which a fragrant aroma wafted. When he emerged, he had a large stack of pastry boxes on his back; he had bought so many goods that the shop was almost cleared out.

"I'm leaving now," Li Huowang said. "You all stay at the previous inn; it'll be easier to find you when I come down. Oh, and where's Gouwa? I just saw him."

"He went to the latrine."

No sooner had the words fallen than Gouwa, looking very comfortable, walked out from a nearby alley. "Hey, this latrine is really clean," Gouwa said. "I didn't even see half a fly or any maggots."