Chapter 740: Sitting in Oblivion Dao

Li Huowang stopped, lost in thought, as he looked at Hong Zhong.

Getting him to agree again wouldn't be difficult; Li Huowang just needed to repeat the previous process. However, despite Hong Zhong's prior assurances, he was still a member of the Sitting-Forget Path, which made Li Huowang hesitant. Even with the previous Hong Zhong, Li Huowang had always been wary, unsure if he harbored any hidden intentions.

Now that this guy had just reset, should Li Huowang seize the opportunity to probe this Sitting-Forget Path version of himself? Even if he was discovered, it wouldn't matter; after an hour, Hong Zhong wouldn't remember anything anyway.

With this thought, Li Huowang calmly looked at Hong Zhong's distraught face and asked, "Hong Zhong, can you answer a question for me? Why did you run away when you saw me just now? Is my impression of you really that bad?"

Hearing Li Huowang's question, Hong Zhong chuckled. "Heh, what do you think? Do you really believe you make a good impression on others...? Don't deceive yourself. If you had a choice, you wouldn't want to be with Li Huowang either."

Li Huowang's brows furrowed. "Don't forget, you are also Li Huowang."

"Hahaha, you're right. I am Li Huowang, which is why I hate myself too. When I'm bored, sometimes I even deceive myself."

This was not a good sign. Li Huowang paused, then asked, "So, even if I genuinely wanted to help you, you wouldn't trust me?"

Hong Zhong chuckled. "If you're talking about sincerity, would you dare to believe it? If you don't trust me, why should I trust you?" He added, "Even Zhuge Yuan didn't believe it."

Hearing this, Li Huowang's molars clenched. He immediately understood what the previous Hong Zhong had thought of him. Perhaps Hong Zhong would indeed carry out what he promised, but it was likely he also had his own hidden agenda.

After a moment of consideration, Li Huowang looked at Hong Zhong again. "Don't be so absolute. The previous you would have cooperated with me."

"What did you tell the last me? Tell me, I want to hear it." Hong Zhong propped himself up.

"Alright, let's talk as we walk. I'll repeat what happened before, and you can judge for yourself if I'm lying."

Li Huowang quickly began explaining. He couldn't afford to be slow; if an hour passed, the guy probably wouldn't remember anything again. This time, Hong Zhong didn't run away. He followed Li Huowang, listening in silence.

After fully understanding the situation, Hong Zhong nodded in realization. "Oh! So that's what happened. You should've said so earlier!"

"Would it have helped if I'd said it earlier? You just ran away. How could I have said it earlier?"

As Li Huowang spoke, the Bardo Temple appeared upside down on the distant ceiling.

"So?" Li Huowang looked at Hong Zhong. "Since you understand Li Huowang, you should also realize that I'm not lying to you now. Although you made a choice once, since you're new, I'm letting you choose again. What I'm saying is, cooperating with me is better than waiting foolishly here."

"Heh, that's not necessarily true. Maybe one day, Doumu will rise, and then I can come back."

"No need to repeat that. You said that last hour. If you still say that, then you're thinking the same as the last Hong Zhong."

"Is that so? Heh." Hong Zhong scratched his head. "Alright then, my choice is the same as last time."

"Then let's go quickly. The next hour is almost up, and I really don't want to repeat this circular conversation a third time."

As Li Huowang spoke, he led Hong Zhong toward the Bardo Temple, having already made up his mind. Upon arriving beside the Bardo Temple, Li Huowang finally heard the buzzing sound of the rotating wheel again. Although Hong Zhong couldn't enter the Bardo Temple, Li Huowang could forcibly pull him in.

Their bodies began to stretch into long strips, eventually, with a buzzing sound, entering the rotating wheel held by the mummified lama.

When Li Huowang opened his eyes again, he could clearly feel the people around him immediately sigh with relief. Li Huowang reached out and gently patted Li Sui's head as she approached him, his mind quickly racing. Soon, he felt an additional memory in his mind: one of himself from childhood, transforming into Hong Zhong of the Sitting-Forget Path. This was the memory that Doumu had implanted in his mind. With these memories, the false cultivation techniques were also naturally included.

Recalling this, Li Huowang breathed a sigh of relief. Regardless, although the process had been somewhat complicated, the result was barely acceptable.

"Thank you for your help, masters." Li Huowang thanked the mummified lamas, but they said nothing in return, turning away and leaving indifferently. It was clear that his previous trickery had been seen through; the hour had not vanished.

"Dad, are you okay? You really died just now, you scared me." Li Sui asked anxiously.

"I'm fine. It won't happen again." Li Huowang patted her head and turned to leave the Bardo Temple.

As he left the city, Li Huowang eagerly began to peruse the Sitting-Forget Path memories, searching for the false cultivation technique.

"Sitting means movement. Forgetting means thought. Without sitting, its function ceases; without forgetting, its thought rests. If the function doesn't cease, the spirit is still. If the thought doesn't rest, the mind is calm..."

As Hong Zhong, he now knew most of the Sitting-Forget Path's techniques from childhood to adulthood, even the "Vain Heavenly Treasure Vastness" for summoning Doumu. However, knowing them didn't mean he could use them. Li Huowang reached up and wiped his face, attempting to change it, but nothing on his face changed.

He sighed softly. He had been able to use the Sitting-Forget Path's divine abilities before because Doumu had directly infused them into him. Now that Doumu had fallen, everything from before had been stripped away. Even though he had found Hong Zhong's memories, he would have to start practicing all of the Sitting-Forget Path's divine abilities and techniques from scratch.

However, Li Huowang wasn't overly concerned about this. The Sitting-Forget Path's direct combat capabilities were inherently weak. He hadn't expected its techniques to help him deal with the Dharma Sect anyway. His cultivation abilities were already sufficient in that regard. He had acquired this memory simply to balance his cultivation, as he truly didn't want to keep the unusually severe side effects of his existing cultivation for another moment.

"Let me see..." Li Huowang walked out of the Bardo Temple, casually sat down in a nearby teahouse, and began searching for the Sitting-Forget Path's foundational techniques. However, as he looked at "The Sutra of Deception" in his mind, Li Huowang fell into deep thought. The Sitting-Forget Path's introductory teachings didn't explain how to practice or circulate energy; instead, they began by teaching how to become a true deceiver.