Chapter 194: Disguise

*Dao Gui Yi Xian*

As Li Huowang observed the women, the voices of Sun Baolu and Gouwa drifted into his ears.

"Old Sun, these bandits sure have sharp eyes. Every woman they’ve snatched is quite comely. What do you say, should I pick one of them to be my wife? I don't mind if they're 'dirty,' as long as they can bear children."

"Forget it. They just came from that place. Don't take advantage of them."

"Pah! What kind of talk is that? It's not like I'm taking a concubine, like Cao Cao. What's wrong with marrying a wife through proper channels? I may not be handsome, but if they marry me, it would be a step up for them."

"Old Sun, don't you want one too? Miss this chance, and it'll be hard to find such beautiful wives later on."

"They're all pitiable souls. Let's not."

"We'd be helping them! Think about it, even if they go back, they'll be pointed at and never marry. They'll just live out their lives as widows. At least with me, they'd have a warm meal."

Li Huowang pulled the quilt off himself and stood up.

He ignored Gouwa's idle chatter and walked towards Lu Zhuangyuan, who was eating porridge.

After a full night's rest, the Lu family opera troupe was clearly in much better spirits; at least their faces were clean and their clothes were neat.

Seeing Li Huowang approach, Lu Zhuangyuan quickly stood up, handed his bowl to his youngest son, his eyes full of respect.

"Is this yours?" Li Huowang returned the tobacco pipe to its owner.

"Oh, yes, yes!" Lu Zhuangyuan, bowing and scraping, quickly took it with both hands.

"I’m so sorry to trouble you, Young Daoist Master, for such a small matter, and for you to deliver it personally."

"If you feel uneasy, then do me a favor. I happen to need your help now."

Lu Zhuangyuan was surprised. How could the Young Daoist Master, with all his divine powers, need his help for anything?

Li Huowang turned to look at the others who were eating. "Yes, help us disguise ourselves. Everyone, put on makeup."

Soon, everyone's faces were adorned with opera makeup. Even Li Huowang's copper coin mask was given a long beard.

When all their weapons were loaded onto the carriage, in a short while, the somewhat disheveled escort team disappeared.

All that remained was a large opera troupe of about twenty people.

"From now on, you'll lead this opera troupe. We are all under your command. If anyone asks questions, you'll be the one to answer."

With Hou Lao’er’s identification, their current appearance was too conspicuous. Li Huowang’s objective was to change their identities.

Lu Zhuangyuan was a sharp man and immediately understood. He quickly patted his chest, assuring that it would be no problem.

"Brother Li, will this work?" Gouwa, with a white circle painted on his nose, asked bitterly.

Li Huowang's long, flowing beard swayed back and forth as he shook his head. "We have to try. If we just walk on the road like this, it'll be too easy for them to find us. We can't fight the entire Later Shu."

At this moment, his face was completely black, coupled with the beard and his full official opera costume, making him utterly different from the red-robed Daoist he was before.

Unless the makeup was completely removed, he would be unrecognizable.

"Brother Li, please eat," Bai Lingmiao, in *huadan* opera makeup, came over with porridge.

Li Huowang picked up the bowl, about to drink, when he quickly scanned the group and noticed that only Chun Xiaoman hadn't put on makeup yet.

Seeing Li Huowang look at her, Bai Lingmiao quickly explained, "Sister Xiaoman has too much facial hair; she needs to be trimmed before she can put on makeup."

"Trim it quickly. Don't waste time. No one knows how much longer those people will take to catch up."

As Li Huowang spoke, he threw the long sword, which could cut iron like mud, over to them and began to heartily eat his porridge.

"No need for that. It's not a beheading; I can shave her face." Lu Zhuangyuan's daughter-in-law, Luo Juanhua, put down her bowl, took out two red headbands from her wrist, and walked over to help.

The threads crossed each other, quickly twisting off the black hair on Chun Xiaoman's face from the roots, revealing a patch of white.

By the time Li Huowang finished his bowl of porridge, most of the hair on Xiaoman’s face had been removed.

At this point, the other senior and junior brothers who had come out of Qingfeng Temple with them couldn't help but look over curiously.

Chun Xiaoman's face had always been covered in hair; this was the first time they were seeing what she looked like.

Luo Juanhua shaved her face meticulously, even cleaning up her neck.

Chun Xiaoman looked at the others with some unease, feeling a bit apprehensive.

To be honest, she herself didn't know what she looked like.

Xiaoman quickly stood up and walked to a bronze mirror, carefully examining her face.

Then, in the mirror, she saw the delicate face of a sixteen or seventeen-year-old girl, with a slightly round face and a straight, elegant nose.

Not stunningly beautiful, but certainly pretty.

Whether others were satisfied, she didn't know, but Chun Xiaoman was absolutely delighted. Her furry hands cupped her face, tears welling in her eyes.

No one wanted to be a hairy monster their whole life. She also wanted to marry and have children, just like other women.

"So Xiaoman is really quite young," Li Huowang mumbled, then began to urge them on.

"Don't look anymore. Hurry up and put on makeup, then we leave immediately. The entire Later Shu isn't safe for us."

Lu Juren picked up his brush and, with a few strokes, applied thick ink, covering Xiaoman's face, to her reluctance.

"Clip-clop! Clip-clop!" The sound of hooves suddenly rang out as a group of fierce-looking men on horseback galloped past.

Some of them quickly scrutinized the opera troupe before them but did not linger.

This was not a good sign. "Go. Let's go quickly. Those people are probably sending bandits to look for us now."

Li Huowang's words instantly made the recently relaxed atmosphere tense again.

Everyone stopped eating porridge and hurriedly packed everything.

For the next period, Li Huowang avoided the main roads, opting for smaller paths whenever possible.

Perhaps due to the makeup or their chosen route, ten days later, Li Huowang and his group actually managed to arrive safely at a small town nestled among several rocky mountains. The town was not large, only a single street in size, but it seemed to be a transportation hub, with a considerable number of travelers coming and going.

Seeing the bustling street, Li Huowang breathed a slight sigh of relief. Good, one less leg of the journey to leave Later Shu.

"We'll rest here tonight and continue tomorrow," Li Huowang said, leading the group further into the town.

After only a few steps, Li Huowang's eyes suddenly lit up. He saw the old man he had previously encountered on the road.

"Old man? Where are you going?"

Jin Shanzhao turned his head and saw that the speaker was an old man with a long beard.

After a brief recognition of the voice, he said with a hint of surprise, "Oh? It's you, Realized Master. What a coincidence."

"A coincidence?" Li Huowang's pupils slightly contracted. He quickly walked in front of the old man. "Hit me."

"Hmm? Why?"

"Thump!" Li Huowang punched Jin Shanzhao in the chest, causing him to clutch his chest and stumble back three steps.

"Realized Master? Why would you do this without cause? Have I offended you in any way?" Jin Shanzhao was almost knocked out by the punch.

Li Huowang ignored him, instead looking down at his fist and muttering to himself, "I can touch him, and this sensation... It seems he really isn't a hallucination like the monk."