Chapter 1010: Past

Chapter 1010: The Past

Li Huowang stood atop the eastern gate of Shangjing, staring blankly at the scene below.

Though the world was tainted by malevolence, the common folk still had to live their lives; there were simply more outlaws now, and more quarrels in the daily grind.

"Are you selling this for fifty wen or not! If you don't, I'll hack you to pieces!"

"You little bastard! See this? This is your grandfather's neck—if you've got the guts, strike here! You really think I'm afraid of you, you son of a bitch?!"

"You motherfucker, you dared to short the weight! How many ounces short! I’m going to carve that much flesh right off your body!"

Watching the lives of the people in Shangjing, looking at those faces, Li Huowang felt as if everything were drifting further and further away.

Just then, something caught his eye. His pupils contracted to pinpricks, and with a sudden spring, he leaped, his feet dancing across the moss-covered tiles as he surged toward the source.

Cutting through layers of white lotus banners, Li Huowang arrived before Bai Lingmiao, who sat cross-legged upon a lotus throne.

Seeing her standing there, completely unharmed, Li Huowang could no longer contain his emotions; he rushed forward and pulled her tightly into his embrace.

Sensing the surrounding gazes, Bai Lingmiao’s two faces flushed with a mix of irritation and shyness. "What are you doing! Have some sense of the occasion!"

With a wave of her four hands, the two of them vanished instantly from the lotus throne.

When Li Huowang regained his senses, he found himself in a maiden’s boudoir filled with a faint, lingering fragrance.

He released her, scrutinizing the girl before him, noting the malevolent aura spilling from her four eyes.

"You’ve been tainted?" Li Huowang was startled, but quickly added, "It’s fine. If you’re tainted, so be it—as long as you’re alive, that’s all that matters."

Back in Baiyujing, when he saw the Unborn Mother merging with Bai Lingmiao, he had truly feared she would never return.

If her personality had changed, he didn't care.

Still shaken, Li Huowang opened his arms again, pulling her into a crushing hug, as if he meant to merge her into his very own body.

But before he could savor the moment, Bai Lingmiao pushed him away and reached to unbutton her top. "Hurry up, I have matters to attend to in Tianchen."

"Wait, Miaomiao, that’s not what I meant." Caught between laughter and tears, Li Huowang caught her four hands; since being tainted, her personality had become far more forthright.

"Miaomiao, I have no other intentions. We haven't been alone for so long; I just wanted to hold you."

Looking at the girl, Li Huowang reached out cautiously and pulled her gently into his arms.

Breathing in the scent of her hair, their shared past echoed through his mind. After a long silence, he spoke: "Miaomiao, you cannot leave. I really only have you left now."

Feeling the shift in his emotions, the malevolence in Bai Lingmiao’s eyes dissipated slightly.

She reached out, stroking his back again and again, and sighed softly. "Don't worry, I’m not going anywhere. We still have to find a way to resurrect Suisui."

"Yes!" Li Huowang nodded gently and closed his eyes. So much had happened lately; he was exhausted—truly, bone-wearily exhausted—to the point where he felt he could no longer hold on.

Back in a safe environment, back beside someone he trusted, Li Huowang, who had kept his spirit taut for so long, finally let his guard down completely.

"Brother Li, tell me... what shall we do once we’ve saved Suisui?" Bai Lingmiao’s voice was filled with a vague longing, reminiscent of the days when they had first left the Qingfeng Temple.

"Once we find Suisui, let’s go back to Niuxin Village," Li Huowang replied. "We won't do anything at all. I just want to live a quiet life. I’m so tired..."

"Is that so? And what is a quiet life?" Bai Lingmiao murmured to herself.

Li Huowang’s voice grew faint, as if he were sleepwalking. "I don't know. As long as no one else dies, that’s a normal life to me."

They spoke back and forth, not needing to say anything of substance, simply enjoying the peace of their conversation.

Leaning on each other, their scarred hearts began to heal, bit by bit.

An hour later, Bai Lingmiao, draped in her red Daoist robes, leaned against Li Huowang’s chest. Listening to his rapid heartbeat, she whispered, "I really must go. Tianchen is in chaos; although most of the people and spirits have converted to the White Lotus Sect, there are still some bandits and brigands who refuse to yield."

"Yes. Go. I have to find Gao Zhijian to discuss some matters." Li Huowang unfastened her golden ankle bracelet and handed her the white garments nearby.

"Brother Li, we really should talk more when we have the chance. I feel much lighter." Bai Lingmiao picked up a silk ribbon to blindfold her eyes.

Li Huowang nodded as he pulled on his boots, threw his Daoist robe over his shoulders, and walked toward the copper basin on the wooden stand.

But just as he reached to dip his hands into the water, the sight reflected on the surface caused his relaxed heart to seize in terror.

The reflection was his own, yet it was not Li Huowang—it was Jizai, and Jizai appeared to be in a state of extreme agitation.

"Hurry! Li Huowang! Baiyujing needs dragon qi! The more, the better! If it isn't stitched up, the sky will leak through!!"

Hearing this, it felt as if a heavy hammer had struck Li Huowang’s head, leaving his mind buzzing.

Baiyujing had no concept of time; it wasn't that these things had already happened—everything was only just beginning.

"What’s wrong? Are you alright?" Bai Lingmiao asked as she combed her hair.

Dazed and hollow, Li Huowang shook his head, as if fleeing from something, and stumbled toward the door. "I... I need to find Gao Zhijian. Baiyujing needs dragon qi."

Li Huowang burst out of the room, instantly shortening the distance with his arts, and raced toward the Daliao Imperial Palace.

Using his cultivation, he passed through wall after wall, eventually finding Gao Zhijian, who was eating while holding his son.

Gao Zhijian wrapped a scallion in a pancake, swallowed it in two bites, and looked up. "Brother Li? Has something happened?"

"The dragon veins. Baiyujing is in trouble. It needs two dragon veins—the five of you emperors must send them up together!" Li Huowang’s breathing was frantic.

Hearing that Baiyujing was in danger, Gao Zhijian turned serious. He asked no questions; time was of the essence. He wiped his mouth and stood from the dragon throne. "Very well!"

Soon, the five emperors stood before the giant bronze tree Li Huowang had manifested. Behind each of them trailed the ghosts of their predecessors, their chains now fully undone.

"Master Li, for the sake of the empire, we shall go. It is not that I doubt you, but this is a grave matter. Why do you not accompany us to Baiyujing?" asked the Khan of Qingqiu, whose form resembled a centipede.

"Just go! I am already in Baiyujing! My past self is waiting for you there!" Li Huowang’s temper flared, his expression growing increasingly ferocious, as if he were terrified of something.

The Khan of Qingqiu wanted to ask more, but Gao Zhijian stopped him. "If it weren't for Brother Li during the Dharma Sect incident, we would have been finished long ago. He has no selfish motives."

A dragon’s roar echoed as five dragon veins, entwined with two golden dragons, ascended into the heavens, drawing the people of Shangjing to their knees in prayer.

Hearing the dragon’s roar fade into the distance, a pained Li Huowang hammered his own head with his fists. "It’s fine. Don't panic. There must be a way. There must be!"

But even as he spoke, the reflection of Li Huowang in the polished marble floor spoke again.

"We need help here! Baiyujing needs help! Call everyone who can be called!!"

Soft footsteps approached, and moments later, a slender, delicate hand rested gently on Li Huowang’s shoulder. "Brother Li, is it my turn?"