Chapter 409: Target

The moment Li Huowang saw the shadow puppet play, he immediately sensed something was wrong, and a whistling sound instantly reached his ears from behind him.

As Li Huowang spun around, Li Sui’s tentacles, wielding various torture instruments, blocked a massive, heavy *modao* sword.

“Crash!” The floor couldn’t withstand such immense force. The wooden planks beneath Li Huowang’s feet instantly shattered, and he was sent tumbling down by the *modao*’s powerful impact.

When Li Huowang got back on his feet on the lower floor of the wooden building, two Zuo Wang Dao disciples, wearing blood-stained mahjong tiles—one an eight of bamboo, the other a nine of bamboo—stood on either side of him, staring.

Although they were covered in flames and their skin was rapidly blistering and charring, just like Li Huowang’s, there was no trace of pain on their faces.

Perhaps due to Zhuge Yuan’s old almanac, they didn't utter a single word to Li Huowang.

These two Zuo Wang Dao disciples were tall, each carrying a *modao* over a *zhang* (approx. 3.3 meters) long on their shoulders, standing like formidable guardian deities.

“Where did you trick these weapons from?! From the Military Strategists, right? Which Military Strategists?!” As Li Huowang roared, the two Zuo Wang Dao disciples stomped a foot, charging aggressively towards him.

“Clang, clang, clang!” Li Huowang was instantly sent flying, but seeing the large nicks on their *modao*s, a smile appeared on Li Huowang’s flame-enveloped face. Their weapons were far less sharp than his Purple Tassel Sword.

“Li Sui, catch!” Li Huowang thrust the copper coin sword into Li Sui’s tentacles.

Then, Li Huowang, holding the Purple Tassel Sword in one hand, charged towards one of the Zuo Wang Dao disciples.

Just before their engagement, Li Huowang’s hand flashed, and he sliced off three of his own fingers.

Taking advantage of his opponent being distracted by his fingers, Li Huowang raised his sword and struck.

Seeing his comrade in danger, the other Zuo Wang Dao disciple attempted to rescue him, but the copper coin sword and various torture instruments on Li Sui’s tentacles kept him from getting close for the moment.

Even if some were cut off, more black tentacles would still emerge from Li Huowang’s riddled body.

“Clang, clang, clang!!” Sparks continuously flew amidst the flames. With the final strike, Li Huowang directly severed his opponent’s massive *modao*. Li Huowang immediately twisted his sword-wielding wrist and slit his throat.

Li Huowang slowly turned around, looking at the other Zuo Wang Dao disciple and threatening, “Put down your sword, and I’ll spare your life!”

Upon hearing this, the Zuo Wang Dao disciple stood still for a moment, holding his massive *modao*, before falling straight backward.

When Li Huowang rushed over, he found that the Zuo Wang Dao disciple had been burned to death. These two were not immune to flame damage; they had simply staked their lives in a final struggle before being consumed by fire.

Li Huowang, who had intended to press for more details, was furious and kicked the corpse viciously.

He had initially thought that the Zuo Wang Dao disciple impersonating the Great Qi emperor held the highest status, but since he died so easily, it seemed these two were merely pawns among the Zuo Wang Dao.

With a “clang,” the copper coin sword, burnt dark red, fell to the ground. Li Sui’s burning tentacles frantically retracted back into Li Huowang’s body.

“Dad… sniffle… it hurts… it hurts so much…”

“I know, you worked hard. Next time, if I’m on fire, try not to come out.”

Picking up the copper coin sword, Li Huowang quickly headed back. He had to deal with these Zuo Wang Dao before the fire extinguished.

However, when he returned to the Liang mansion, he was startled to find that both the eunuchs and the Embroidered Uniform Guard had vanished without a trace.

If not for the huge bonfire still burning behind him, Li Huowang might have even thought he was hallucinating.

When Li Huowang approached Zhuge Yuan, he saw him rolling up a landscape painting scroll.

“Brother Li, how did you know these people were Zuo Wang Dao? From such a distance, I, your humble servant, was almost deceived by them,” Zhuge Yuan asked, surprised.

“I didn’t know. In that situation, it was one of two things: either they were Zuo Wang Dao, or they were the walking corpse emperor of Great Qi you mentioned. Either way, it wouldn’t be wrong to call them Zuo Wang Dao. The Great Qi emperor has already discovered your rebellion; surely, you wouldn’t have a peaceful end, would you?”

“Ah, I see. Brother Li is so astute; this humble servant truly admires you,” Zhuge Yuan said, holding the painting and bowing to Li Huowang.

After another look around, Li Huowang confirmed no one else was there and couldn’t help but ask in confusion, “Brother Zhuge, where are those Zuo Wang Dao people?”

“Them? They’ve all left.”

“Left? We finally encountered Zuo Wang Dao, and you just let them escape? At least keep one alive!”

Upon hearing this, the fire in Li Huowang’s heart and on his body suddenly flared up.

“Brother Li, please calm down. How about you retract your divine abilities first? It looks quite painful,” Zhuge Yuan said, his face flushed from the heat, stepping back slightly.

Too choked with anger to speak, Li Huowang looked around and jumped into a nearby pond.

When the charred Li Huowang poked his head out of the pond, he saw Zhuge Yuan extending a hand towards him.

Li Huowang, like a drowned rat, sighed deeply and extended his hand.

Zhuge Yuan pulled him out with a strong tug.

“Tell me, where did those Zuo Wang Dao go?” Li Huowang asked grumpily, glancing towards the doorway. Outside, there was no one either; all traces of people had long vanished.

“They’ve been made to forget everything about Great Liang by this humble servant’s Heart Impurity Scroll and have rediscovered their identities in Great Qi. They’ve returned to Great Qi.”

“Huh?” Li Huowang looked at Zhuge Yuan in astonishment. “What did you say? Where are they now?!”

“Yes, as this humble servant said, Youdu is under curfew now. They insisted on leaving, so I estimate they’ve already reached the West City Gate.”

Li Huowang looked around, then swiftly stepped onto a wall, his body rapidly dislocating to reach the top of the wall.

He scaled the wall towards the roof, performing several more consecutive dislocations, until Li Huowang stood on the highest rooftop.

Although it was night, his excellent vision clearly saw the distant, massive city gate and the vast, quiet street where no one was present.

Evidently, Great Liang’s West City Gate was deserted. Zhuge Yuan was right; those people really did go to the so-called Great Qi!

“Brother Li, what are you looking at?” Zhuge Yuan’s voice suddenly appeared beside Li Huowang.

Li Huowang quickly recoiled a few steps, looking at Zhuge Yuan with immense shock. “Is this Great Qi not just near you, but a real Great Qi?! As long as one forgets everything about Great Liang and believes in your plan, they can go to your so-called Great Qi?!”

Zhuge Yuan, who was fanning himself, looked a bit displeased.

“Brother Li, what are you saying? What ‘nonsense’? This humble servant has always said there is a Great Qi. Did everything I said completely fail to register with you?”

“But…” Li Huowang’s mind was in a turmoil. If there really was a Great Qi, where was it located? A parallel world? Was the Heart *Pan* the key to another parallel world?

But if it were a parallel world, then why were Great Qi’s male prostitutes twisted from Great Liang’s prostitutes, instead of being independent entities?

He truly couldn’t understand the bizarre nature of the Heart *Pan*.

Just as Li Huowang’s thoughts grew more muddled, Zhuge Yuan couldn’t help but say, “Is this difficult to understand? This humble servant said that Great Qi is real, and Great Liang is fake. It’s just that you cannot distinguish them.”

“No, no, no.” Li Huowang quickly shook his head, stepping back again, and patiently said, “Brother Zhuge, no need to say more. Even if Great Qi is real, next time you’d better keep the Zuo Wang Dao for a while. Let me interrogate them first, and then you can send them to Great Qi.”

“Interrogate them about what?” A playful smile appeared on Zhuge Yuan’s face.

“Naturally, to find out where Beifeng is now, and what his true strength is!”

Feeling his voice was a bit loud, Li Huowang took a deep breath, once again suppressing the irritation in his heart.

“Brother Zhuge, don’t blame me for being too impatient, but I still have no clues, and my time is running out.”

Zhuge Yuan nodded knowingly, then casually raised the canvas in his hand and vigorously shook it.

With a “whoosh,” the white canvas unfurled, and a dying person rolled out from inside.

“Brother Li, this person is Beifeng.”