Chapter 372: Good Intentions

Seeing the terrified face-changing performer trembling before him, Li Huowang was about to tear off the man's mask to see how many faces he truly had.

Noticing the tense situation, the innkeeper, who had been tallying accounts at the counter, quickly came over to mediate. "Esteemed guest! Esteemed guest! I sincerely apologize, truly I do. My staff has offended you. How about this: your meal is on the house, and I'll offer you all a complimentary soup?"

Li Huowang paused for a few seconds, then slowly composed himself and sat back down.

"What's wrong? Why are you so tense?" Bai Lingmiao asked, confused by his unusual behavior.

Li Huowang sighed softly. The face-changing performer had reminded him of the way the Sit-Forget Sect switched their faces, leading to an understandable overreaction.

Li Huowang continued eating from his bowl as he explained to her, "It's nothing. This is Shangjing, the jurisdiction of the Imperial Astronomical Bureau. The Sit-Forget Sect shouldn't be able to infiltrate here."

After a hurried meal, Li Huowang switched to another inn that had no opera troupe, settled in, and then set off alone toward the address provided in the letter.

Unfamiliar with Shangjing, Li Huowang didn't find the location until late into the night, after curfew had been enforced.

With a "creak," the wooden door opened. Ji Xiang, holding a lantern, peered out, looked left and right to ensure no one else was present, then quickly pulled Li Huowang inside.

Li Huowang looked up into the courtyard and saw a small space. Besides a well, a large jujube tree occupied most of it. Li Huowang was quite surprised that Ji Xiang, such a high-ranking official, lived in such a small place, seemingly without even household servants.

Though small, it appeared exceptionally refined. It would be just enough for a family of three.

"Erjiu, my family has been waiting for you day and night, and finally, you've arrived," the smiling, pale-faced old eunuch said, gripping Li Huowang's hand and not letting go.

Li Huowang firmly pulled his hand back and cupped his fist towards Ji Xiang. "Thank you, Ji Xiang, for your assistance. I'll never forget it!"

"Hehehe, not at all, not at all," Ji Xiang chuckled, scrutinizing Li Huowang with a smile, his mind's thoughts unknown at that moment.

Now that he had met the man in person, Li Huowang didn't stand on ceremony, especially since the other party already owed him a favor. "Lord Ji Xiang, your letter mentioned you could contact the military strategists and had a method to dispel the surrounding malevolence. Is that true?"

Priorities varied, but Li Huowang still felt that Bai Lingmiao's situation was more urgent than his own.

"Yes! Yes, yes, yes! I knew you'd ask about this, so I've specifically prepared for it. Shall we go now?"

Though he didn't know why the other party seemed more eager than himself, Li Huowang preferred speed in this matter. He immediately followed Ji Xiang through a long corridor to the back door, where two sedans were already waiting.

"We respectfully invite Your Lordship to board the sedan~" The four sedan bearers nimbly knelt on the ground, highly skilled.

It was Li Huowang's first time riding in a sedan, and frankly, it was very uncomfortable, the swaying motion making him feel carsick.

Ji Xiang lifted his sedan curtain and enthusiastically called out to Li Huowang's parallel sedan, "Brother Erjiu, where are you settling down after just arriving in Shangjing? Did you like that courtyard just now? If you do, why don't my family just leave it for you to live in?"

"Thank you for your kindness, Lord Ji Xiang, but I cannot accept such a gift without earning it. Erjiu is unworthy of such generosity."

For some reason, Li Huowang felt that ever since the 'Heart Turbidity' incident, this eunuch had become overly enthusiastic. Who just offers a house after only a few words of conversation?

Hearing Li Huowang's words, Ji Xiang feigned displeasure. "Oh, Brother Erjiu, you're speaking like a stranger now. What do you mean 'without earning it'? You helped me so much before; what's a small house compared to that? This was originally meant for our retirement. Please don't despise it just because the location isn't perfect."

"So, it's settled then. The keys and the land deed are both under your sedan seat. And inside the house, my family has left a few small, unimportant items."

Li Huowang reached under his seat and immediately felt three brass keys and several sheets of paper.

Sitting in the swaying sedan, Li Huowang held these items, pondering the other party's motives.

After much thought, Li Huowang finally realized that the other party intended to directly repay the favor owed with this house. He suspected the "small items" left inside the house were also extraordinary.

"Giving me his retirement house, what does that mean? Does he not intend to work for the Imperial Astronomical Bureau anymore?"

Just as Li Huowang was pondering this, the sedan curtain was pulled open, and the sedan bearer's humble voice rang out, "We respectfully invite Your Lordship to alight~"

Li Huowang tucked the keys and deed into his robe, bent down, and stepped out of the sedan. As he looked up, a huge, snarling lion's head seemed to jump out at him.

Stepping back a few paces, Li Huowang clearly saw the yamen before him: another prison. Ji Xiang seemed to be inextricably linked with these jails.

With a "creak," the main prison gate opened a crack, and Ji Xiang led Li Huowang inside.

The entire prison had double gates and double walls, appearing exceptionally sturdy. After entering the main gate, there was a second, smaller door, requiring not only a deep bow but also a squat to pass through.

Further inside was a third door. Carved into the frame of this third door was what looked like a tiger, but Ji Xiang's quiet explanation revealed to Li Huowang that it was not a tiger, but the legendary ferocious beast—Bi'an.

As the third door opened, gazes that felt almost tangible fixated on them. Gradually accustomed to the dim prison environment, Li Huowang could now clearly see who was watching him.

How to put it? If one had to describe it, what lay before him was a room full of Peng Longtengs.

These wardens, whose faces bore etched characters, were either standing or lying, drinking or playing finger-guessing games. All of them were military strategists, and their presence caused the malevolence in the air to solidify and cling, making even a few breaths difficult.

Li Huowang found it hard to imagine what kind of entity was imprisoned here that required such a group of people to suppress it.

"Oh, isn't that Eunuch Chen? What brings you here?" an elderly warden, who was drinking, looked at Ji Xiang with surprise. His thick white sideburns connected from his left earlobe to his right.

"Hehehe~ Commander Cao, it's been a long time, I've missed you dearly. How's everything with your family?" Ji Xiang chuckled, leaning closer.

"It's alright, just as usual. My daughter-in-law and son are always bickering. Wait a moment, I'll light an incense stick for the Prison God first."

It was only when Commander Cao made this gesture that Li Huowang noticed a shrine, carved from sandstone, embedded halfway up the high wall on the left.

Inside the shrine were three small brick-carved statues. The central figure was an old man with a benevolent expression and dignified posture. However, the two small demonic figures on either side were the complete opposite: fierce, hideous, and monstrous.

The old man in the center was the so-called Prison God.