Chapter 162: Arrival

Chapter 162: Arrival

A clattering of copper coins rang out as the copper coin mask was placed upon Li Huowang's face.

Breathing in the distinct scent of charred smoke from the mask, Li Huowang felt an unprecedented sense of security.

"Once we reach the Ance Nunnery, I'll have the Abbess and the others take a look. If even they can be deceived, then this item is of immense value."

Li Huowang stood up, still wearing the mask, and shouted to the others behind him with a hint of excitement, "Let's go! We must reach Mount Henghua as soon as possible!"

The iron-reinforced wheels of the carriage began to roll once more, setting off toward Siqi.

As they gradually drew closer to Siqi, a land of many lakes and rivers, the flora along the roadside regained its vitality, and even the air grew moist.

However, the journey back was far from smooth, as the border passes of Siqi grew increasingly vigilant.

Fortunately, the border between Siqi and Houshu was inherently long, and the border troops, already depleted by reassignments, simply could not cover every inch.

Seizing a gap in the border guards' shift change, Li Huowang and his companions crossed back from Houshu into Siqi.

One early morning, Li Huowang was bound tightly to a tree with chains as thick as a bowl, while his fellow disciples watched him mutter incoherently in silence.

Having witnessed this so many times, they had long grown accustomed to it; their initial shock had faded, and they were thoroughly familiar with Li Huowang's affliction.

After a long while, clarity gradually returned to Li Huowang's eyes. He looked up at the bright sun overhead, then glanced at the lush green trees by the road, and slowly let out a sigh of relief.

No matter what they had endured on the road, they were finally about to arrive.

"Let's have our midday meal. Once we're done, we'll set off again. If we hurry, we should reach Mount Henghua before nightfall," Li Huowang said to Bai Lingmiao, who was untying him.

Glancing at the left sleeve of Li Huowang's robe, which had remained unchanged for so many days, a trace of sorrow flashed in Bai Lingmiao's eyes.

She turned around, picked up a wooden bucket, and headed to the nearby river to fetch water.

The river water was crystal clear and pure, and the wooden bucket plunged into the stream along with Bai Lingmiao's tears.

"Are you grieving for Senior Brother Li?" Chun Xiaoman, who had followed her, asked softly.

"He's disabled now! That hand of his will never grow back!" Bai Lingmiao sobbed.

Chun Xiaoman seemed to want to offer some comfort, but found herself at a loss for where to begin.

The other girl was so heartbroken; she had clearly come to regard Senior Brother Li as her own man.

"This time it was only an arm, but what if there's a next time? Why is it so hard for us just to go home! Waaah."

Seeing her closest friend Bai Lingmiao so devastated, Chun Xiaoman felt a pang of shared sorrow.

Although Li Huowang had never explained it to them, through their journey together, Chun Xiaoman could tell that the red bamboo scroll at his waist was used to sacrifice parts of himself in exchange for supernatural powers.

As long as that thing remained with Li Huowang, the parts of himself he sacrificed would only grow fewer and fewer.

Watching Bai Lingmiao grow even more sorrowful, Chun Xiaoman's heart softened, and she wrapped her arms around her in a tight embrace.

In the end, it all came down to their lack of strength; if they had the power to easily resolve such situations, they wouldn't be in this predicament now.

Yet, persuading Senior Brother Li to discard the bamboo scroll was practically impossible; though the price was steep, its power was immense.

Steeling her resolve, she murmured to herself, "If all else fails, I'll just have Senior Brother Li teach me how to use that scroll."

Since anyone could use that thing, it might as well be used by her.

Whether it was Bai Lingmiao or Senior Brother Li, they were people dear to her, and their injuries would break someone's heart.

As for herself, she had already resolved never to marry, so it hardly mattered.

"If it were my hand that was severed..." Chun Xiaoman looked down at the grieving Bai Lingmiao, then at her own hand covered in dark fur. "That would be fine too!"

After whispering words of comfort for a while, the two resumed fetching water. The others were still waiting for a meal, and they dared not delay their journey.

The wooden bucket was lowered back into the cool water to begin filling.

"Wait." Chun Xiaoman dipped her furry hand into the water and gently wiped the corner of Bai Lingmiao's eye. "There's a bit of dust here. Let me wipe it off for you."

"Thank you, Sister Xiaoman."

"Don't be so polite. We're sisters, and in the future, I'm going to be the godmother to your children."

No sooner had Chun Xiaoman finished speaking with a smile than she saw Bai Lingmiao's expression turn to sheer terror. "Sister Xiaoman! Look behind you quickly!"

Xiaoman swiftly pressed one hand against the hilt of her sword at her waist and spun around sharply, only to see corpses floating haphazardly down the clear river.

Soon, everyone had gathered by the riverbank, all of them staring in silence at the bodies drifting on the water.

Judging by the clothing of the corpses, these were soldiers of Siqi; there must have been a battle somewhere upstream.

In times of war and chaos, the common folk naturally fared poorly, and among the soldier corpses were quite a few ordinary civilians, their eyes filled with despair.

"So many bodies drifting in the water. How many people must have died up there," Gouwa remarked with a sigh, his back leaning against a tree trunk.

"I'm afraid we can't drink the river water anymore; we'll have to stick to well water from now on."

While the other disciples worried about such things, Li Huowang was pondering something else entirely.

"You've all seen plenty of dead bodies. Don't you find these corpses unusually fresh?"

Li Huowang's words drew everyone's attention to the details of the bodies.

Unless they had died that very day, corpses in the water would normally look horrifyingly decomposed, absolutely not like this.

"That's right, look! These dead men still have color in their faces!"

"If it weren't for the fact that they can't move, they'd be indistinguishable from the living."

Gazing at the scene before him, Li Huowang narrowed his eyes slightly; these corpses gave him a profound sense of unease.

"Could they have been killed by some special ability? Has some other faction meddled in the mortal war?"

"Or perhaps I'm simply overthinking it. In this world, is a war involving those bizarre sects the only normal kind of war?"

After pondering by the river for a while, Li Huowang led the others away.

Perhaps because of the sheer number of dead, everyone's mood was somewhat heavy, and no one spoke all the way to the town at the foot of Mount Henghua.

Only when the familiar scenery of the town, visited several times before, appeared before them once more did everyone finally breathe a sigh of relief.

"Senior Brother Li, it's getting so late. Are you still going up the mountain? Or should we wait until after breakfast tomorrow?"

"No rush." Li Huowang stepped into a pastry shop wafting with a fragrant aroma.

When he emerged, he was carrying a huge stack of pastry boxes on his back; taking all these goods, he had practically emptied the shop.

"I'm heading off. You all stay at the same inn as before, so it'll be easier to find you later. Oh right, where's Gouwa? I just saw him a moment ago."

"He went to the latrine."

No sooner were the words spoken than Gouwa walked out from a nearby alley, looking thoroughly refreshed.

"Hey, this place's latrine is clean enough. I haven't seen a single fly or maggot."

(End of Chapter)