Chapter 681: Contact

Yang Xiaohai’s words made Lu Xiucai’s face stiffen. Painful memories from the past flooded his mind, but he quickly suppressed them, feigning a casual tone as he said, “He’s dead. Killed by the Dharma Sect.”

“What?! The Scholar really died?” Yang Xiaohai’s eyes widened instantly.

Hearing this, Lu Xiucai slowly turned his head, his eyes wide as he looked at Yang Xiaohai. “What do you mean by that? What do you mean ‘really died’?”

Li Huowang, standing nearby, also glanced over. He knew that when Yang Xiaohai left, Scholar Lu was still enjoying himself in the capital. How could Yang Xiaohai know that Scholar Lu was dead?

“No, don’t misunderstand. When I was in Qingqiu, I encountered an earthquake, and then something strange happened. I thought it was just a dream at first. I saw Scholar Lu there, and he looked… odd.”

Yang Xiaohai quickly recounted his encounter with Scholar Lu. “And it’s not just him. In that Fengdu place, there’s another odd Senior Brother Li.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he saw Senior Brother Li frowning deeply as he looked at him. “What did you say? Another me? Tell me again what you experienced.”

Hearing this, Yang Xiaohai repeated his strange experience in Qingqiu, this time focusing on the peculiar Li Huowang.

“Hongzhong? Li Huowang? Hongzhong Li Huowang hasn’t disappeared?!” Li Huowang’s pupils contracted instantly upon hearing this.

Dou Mu had once bestowed upon him a past from the Zuowang Dao, and it was from this past that Hongzhong Li Huowang was born.

Li Huowang had always believed that with the disappearance of that past, Hongzhong Li Huowang should have also vanished.

But now it seemed that wasn’t the case at all. Although Hongzhong Li Huowang had left his side, he hadn’t disappeared; he was merely hidden, just like Daqi!

“But… why didn’t he go anywhere else? Why was he trapped in Fengdu?” Li Huowang pondered, his brows furrowed. “And what about the Siming that Hongzhong mentioned…”

He had never imagined that Siming, the one in charge of death, was actually dead and hidden beneath Qingqiu.

“Kid, you said there was very strangely colored seawater flowing into that cave, right?” Li Huowang repeated, emphasizing the important detail.

“Yes! The seawater was really weird. Even though it was far away, I felt like my body was being pulled in. If I hadn’t run into that upside-down temple of the Bardo at the last moment, I almost wouldn’t have made it back.”

Recalling his past experience, Yang Xiaohai couldn’t help but feel a shiver of fear. Seeing Senior Brother Li’s reaction, it seemed that experience was real, and he truly had almost not made it back.

“Was it this color of seawater?” Li Huowang asked, reaching out to pull out his Spine Sword and forcefully swiping it towards the distance.

The rift to Daqi opened, and from it still surged those metallic, dark iridescent substances.

They dripped onto the ground, pulsating like living things. Anything they touched would deform; lifeless objects gained life, and living things became even more twisted.

“Yes! That’s exactly it! This is what I saw, but there wasn’t just this little bit back then; there was so much! As much as the sea!” Yang Xiaohai said, backing away as if afraid the substance would get close to him again.

“Yu’er Shen… it really is Yu’er Shen.” Li Huowang’s expression turned grim. Not only was the Dharma Sect, which worshipped Yu’er Shen, conquering cities in Houshu, but Yu’er Shen itself was also attacking Siming, who oversaw death. “What does Yu’er Shen want? Does it intend to seize even the Heavenly Dao of Death?”

Lost in thought, Li Huowang’s attention was diverted by a soft touch on his right hand. He looked down and saw Bai Lingmiao holding his hand.

“Senior Brother Li, what’s wrong?”

Li Huowang habitually shook his head. “It’s nothing. Let’s go.”

Just as he was about to leave, he felt Bai Lingmiao’s hands pull him back. Her hands were soft, yet beneath that softness was a firm pull.

He turned his head and looked at Bai Lingmiao’s eyes, which were bound by white silk ribbons. “Senior Brother Li, I am now the Saintess of the White Lotus Sect, and the White Lotus Sect is spreading further and wider in Daliang. Now, I have the ability to help you.”

“If you truly encounter any trouble, there’s no need to bear it alone as you always have. Tell us, and we can find a solution together.”

Looking at Bai Lingmiao’s delicate face, Li Huowang reached out and gently stroked her cheek with the back of his hand. He could feel her genuine concern for him.

After a moment of hesitant thought, Li Huowang began, “This is a long story. You know about Yu’er Shen, whom the Dharma Sect worships, right?”

“Yes, I know. Wusheng Laomu said that Yu’er Shen is a betrayer.”

“The truth of the matter is this…” Just as Li Huowang was recounting the entire sequence of events, he stopped mid-sentence, frowning as he looked at the dark sea in the distance.

Torches lit up there, forming a long line that was approaching them. “Hmm?”

“Kid, what’s going on over there? Have all those people been swayed by the Dharma Sect?”

Seeing Li Huowang’s hand tighten on his sword hilt, Yang Xiaohai’s face instantly went pale. He said anxiously, “Senior Brother Li, they’re not the Dharma Sect! They believe in the Dragon King! Let’s go! Quickly!”

His father and elder sister were already dead; he truly didn’t want any more relatives to die, even if those relatives treated him badly.

“Are you hiding something from me?” Li Huowang glanced at him. Although he said that, he didn’t press for answers, turning instead to lead the others away.

He hadn’t forgotten his purpose in Houshu: finding the Houshu Dragon Vein was key. As for what Yang Xiaohai might be planning, he couldn’t be bothered to think about it.

But after only a few steps, there were also lights on the dirt road in the distance. It was clear that while they had been chatting, these people had already secretly surrounded them, with no intention of letting them leave.

“Heh, now this is interesting. I wasn’t looking for trouble with them, but they’ve come looking for trouble with me instead, Li Sui!”

As Li Huowang opened his mouth, Li Sui entered his body, and wriggling tentacles emerged from various parts of his body, brandishing menacingly.

“Master! This time, let me go with you! I want revenge on the Dharma Sect!” Lu Xiu, his eyes filled with hatred, stepped forward and said firmly.

Li Huowang glanced at him. “Alright, but save yourself. As I always say, I don’t want any burdens.”

“I’m not a burden!” Lu Xiucai said, pulling off his upper garment to reveal a paper bellyband covered in spell patterns.

His eyes burning with hatred, he pulled out a serrated sword with spikes on both sides. Stomping his right foot, he repeatedly tapped the sword against his forehead, muttering incantations all the while.