Chapter 301: Voices in the Mist

"But the people from Niuxin Village *were* taken away by the Imperial Astronomers," Constable Cao's words sent a jolt through Li Huowang. "How can that be? Why would the Imperial Astronomers take Bai Lingmiao's family?"

Then, he quickly collected himself. "Wait, maybe it wasn't the real Imperial Astronomers. Maybe someone was impersonating them!" Regardless of whether they were genuine or impostors, it boded ill for Bai Lingmiao's family. Li Huowang had already witnessed with Hong Da that the Imperial Astronomers cared little about sparing lives as long as their task was completed. As for impostors, the outcome could only be worse, or even worse.

"Which way did they go?" Li Huowang asked Constable Cao, his expression grim. All he could do now was pursue them as quickly as possible, though he wasn't sure if he could catch up.

"It seems they headed towards the capital. I don't know how far they got," Constable Cao replied, his trembling hand pointing west. Li Huowang swiftly placed one foot in the stirrup, vaulted onto his horse, and galloped off in that direction.

Watching Li Huowang's receding figure, Magistrate Wang breathed a sigh of relief. At that moment, his aide approached him. "My lord, I find this matter quite strange. Don't you think something is going on between these two groups?"

Magistrate Wang looked annoyed. "Strange or not, what does the Imperial Astronomers' business have to do with this magistrate? Get the sedan chair; we're returning to the residence!"

The rhythmic thud of hooves filled the air as Li Huowang rose and fell with his horse's gait. His mind was a jumbled mess of thoughts, various conjectures emerging from deep within. "What if it wasn't the Imperial Astronomers? What if it was...?"

"Heh heh... don't be so jumpy. In my opinion, this doesn't look like the work of another faction." Li Huowang immediately turned to look at Hong Zhong beside him, who was idly floating in mid-air, yawning.

"In your opinion? Is there a single truthful word that comes out of your mouth? The way you say it, I'm even more convinced the Imperial Astronomers were impersonated by the Sit-Forget Sect."

"Believe it or not. When we, the Sit-Forget Sect, decide to trick someone, we do it openly. We never resort to impersonation in a different location," Hong Zhong sat up and stretched. "Heh heh heh, besides, who said we never speak the truth? Lying effectively means nine parts truth and one part falsehood. If it's all lies, who would you fool?" Li Huowang ignored him, concentrating on the journey ahead, mentally preparing for whatever might come next.

The journey continued for several more days. Though Li Huowang's body was resilient and could endure the strain, his horse, being mortal flesh and blood, required rest. One evening, Li Huowang tethered his horse to a tree, then climbed up into the branches and closed his eyes.

He didn't know how much time had passed, but he was woken by the whispers of the Black Grand Elder. When he opened his eyes again, the sky was completely dark. Shaking his groggy head, Li Huowang climbed down the tree and patted the neck of his horse, which had been standing asleep. The sound of hooves resumed, echoing far into the desolate dirt road.

Just as Li Huowang wondered how long this life of sleeping rough would last and whether he'd ever find them, he noticed something. Under the dim moonlight, he crouched by the roadside, examining the dense array of footprints on the ground. Observing the number and varying sizes of the prints, Li Huowang instinctively felt these must be the people he was looking for. When he saw faint traces of blood among the footprints, an excited Li Huowang tugged on the reins. "Giddy up!"

Perhaps due to their numbers, the group wasn't moving quickly. After Li Huowang chased them furiously for an hour, the footprints on the ground became increasingly clear. To avoid alerting them, Li Huowang dismounted, camouflaged himself against the earth, and cautiously crept forward.

The pitch-black sky gradually yielded to deep blue. As dawn approached, Li Huowang finally found a group of huddled, sleeping prisoners in a patch of woods. Every person there, regardless of age or gender, wore a wooden cangue around their neck, clearly indicating they were high-priority prisoners. At first, Li Huowang wasn't certain if these were the people he sought, but upon seeing a beautiful woman who bore a striking resemblance to Bai Lingmiao, he knew he had found them. Seeing that despite their haggard faces and tattered clothes, they all still had their limbs, a part of Li Huowang's anxiety finally eased.

"Good. As long as they're alive, there's a chance to salvage the situation."

Li Huowang didn't reveal himself immediately. Instead, he began circling the group, searching for their escorts. If they were enemies, he would fight. If they were the Imperial Astronomers, he would negotiate. Regardless, he was determined to rescue these people. He slowly circled several times, yet saw no one. "It's impossible that no one is watching them. If no one were, the Bai family would have already fled."

Just as Li Huowang pondered this mystery, he suddenly heard an extremely eerie clattering sound from behind him, like something rattling inside a bamboo tube. He slowly turned, noticing that a hazy white morning mist had drifted into the dim forest. The clattering sound emanated from within that mist. The creaking drew closer. The sleeping Bai family members began to stir, and hearing the sound, a flicker of fear appeared in their eyes. Some of the children instinctively started to cry. Li Huowang could even smell a pungent, foul odor. He distinctly felt something moving within the white mist, but he couldn't make it out clearly.

Whether it was a blessing or a curse, he couldn't escape it. Li Huowang didn't want to wait passively. Gripping his sword hilt with one hand, he held his breath and cautiously ventured into the white mist.

Once inside the white mist, the clattering grew louder. Li Huowang followed the sound. "Clatter, clatter," accompanied by this strange noise, a wooden head, adorned with a black melon hat and blush on its cheeks, swayed out of the dense white morning mist. "Clatter, clatter." Each sway of the wooden head produced that peculiar rattling sound from within.

The moment he saw it, Li Huowang's hairs stood on end, but he didn't immediately act. He sensed that this wooden figure wasn't looking at him. "What in the world is this thing?!"

Li Huowang clenched his jaw, intensely vigilant as the round wooden head floated closer. Suddenly, an intensely powerful gaze descended from above him, sweeping over his head and making it difficult for him to breathe. Li Huowang sharply looked up. A massive, pallid face with a slightly sinister, bitter smile slowly pressed down from the thin mist. When it fully revealed itself before Li Huowang, he finally saw what it truly was.