Chapter 329: Attending a Banquet

Chapter 329: Attending the Feast

When the light outside the window began to fade and his throat grew dry, Li Huowang finally came to a halt.

He reached down to touch his belly, recalling how Heitaizi had indeed helped him when he faced the human demon earlier. After thinking over all that had happened recently, he had already formed a plan for how to deal with Heitaizi going forward.

Although Heitaizi was continuously taking over his body, it seemed to bear no ill intent toward him. Since there was no malice, there was no need to treat it like Dan Yangzi. After all, back then, he had done everything in his power to escape Dan Yangzi. But with Heitaizi, not only could he not rid himself of it, but he couldn’t even live without it. It was inside his body, after all. If their relationship were good, there would be only benefits and no harm. Perhaps, once they became more familiar, he might even persuade this creature to stop consuming his body.

"Dad?"

Li Huowang exhaled slowly and touched his stomach again. "Listen, from now on you’ll be called Li Sui. Until we solve the problem with Xin Su, let’s try to get along peacefully."

"We’re all on the same boat. As long as you help me, I won’t abandon you either. Let’s both find a solution that benefits us both."

"Alright."

Hearing the reply, Li Huowang was momentarily surprised. The response showed that the days of reading books hadn’t been wasted; the creature had finally begun to understand what he meant.

“Gurgle~” A familiar voice made Li Huowang instinctively look up at the rafters where a pigeon sat, watching him.

"Fine, when it's time for dinner, behave yourself," Li Huowang stood up, slung his two swords across his back, and walked out of the inn.

It was still the same place, still the same pattern—people arrived before their voices did. “Haha~ Oh, Elder Diu, it’s been too long! I’ve missed you so much!”

Tuoba Danqing entered with his kind round face, followed by a line of serving girls carrying delicacies and wine.

After so many encounters, Li Huowang had learned his tricks. Once seated, he began eating and drinking with him.

Whether it was this man’s habit or a trait shared by others in the Heavenly Observing Bureau, it seemed that one couldn’t speak without food or drink.

After several rounds of wine and dishes, sensing the atmosphere was set, Tuoba Danqing reached into his sleeve and pulled out a badge, pushing it across the table.

"Come on, Elder Diu, take a look at this. You did a great job this time. Even I probably couldn’t have done better."

Li Huowang picked up the badge and saw the character Ren Wu, making his eyes gleam with envy. He was one step closer to success.

"Come on, what’s so special about a piece of metal? Eat, eat. Elder Diu, tell me what exactly happened this time? Tell your elder brother all about it."

There was nothing to hide in such matters. Li Huowang tucked the badge into his robe and slowly explained the situation to Tuoba Danqing.

After recounting everything, he asked the question that had been troubling him: "Brother Tuoba, what exactly is this human demon? Why is it so strange?"

"Hmph, what’s strange about it? People who live too long, if they don’t attain immortality, will naturally turn into evil spirits. After all, birth, aging, illness, and death are part of the natural order. Trying to defy fate isn’t simple."

"I’ve seen this countless times. They’re just stubborn cultivators who forcefully use longevity pills to extend their lives, and eventually become human demons."

"I didn’t expect it to cause such a stir. A human demon breeding another human demon—it’s the first time I’ve seen something like this."

"So using longevity pills to extend life always leads to becoming a human demon?" Li Huowang was stunned. Then, were these pills completely useless?

"Not quite. In normal cases, one hundred and twenty years is a threshold. The closer you get to it, the weaker the effect of the pill becomes. Once past that age, you must find a way to dispel your attachments. Otherwise, using the pill will only turn you into a human demon."

"Each sect has its own methods, some better than others. But don’t expect anyone to give them away freely—they keep such secrets tightly guarded."

"But some methods are widely known. However, those that everyone knows are often hard to complete. For example, using Xin Su’s confusion to break through attachments is the simplest and most effective method."

Upon hearing this, Li Huowang’s fingers subtly twitched.

"But think about it, how dangerous is a living Xin Su? And you’d have to constantly guard against others trying to steal it. That makes the method worthless, doesn’t it?"

At this point, Tuoba Danqing continued complaining like an old friend sharing idle talk.

As he drank, Tuoba Danqing suddenly remembered something and slapped his forehead. “Oh my, what a brain I have. Elder Diu, since you’ve achieved Ren Wu, go to the capital and register.”

"From now on, when you go to the Ministry of Ceremonies, you can exchange longevity pills for things inside the bureau. There are many kinds, and some items can’t even be found in the ghost market. Just remember, it has to be pills earned within the bureau—pills from outside won’t work."

"To the capital?" Hearing the name of the bureau’s headquarters, Li Huowang’s mood tightened slightly. "No worries. Not much money, I’ll save up and exchange later."

"Heh heh, Elder Brother Diu is different from others. When they hear this, they rush straight to the capital, but you always avoid it. Heh heh."

Tuoba Danqing raised his cup and drank it all in one go, his eyes half-lidded as he moved his chair closer to Li Huowang. "Little brother, since I know you so well, asking you something isn’t too much, right?"

"Brother Tuoba, please ask."

With a smile, he pointed at the copper coin mask on Li Huowang’s face. "Why do you always wear that thing? Are there secrets hidden underneath?"

Just then, Hongzhong appeared beside Li Huowang. "This old man has been testing you since he arrived. Be careful."

The words cast a sudden solemnity over the room. Li Huowang understood—no matter how pleasant the words sounded, once his identity was revealed, everything would be over.

Seeing Li Huowang remained silent, Tuoba Danqing lightly patted his own cheek. "Oh my, I’m being too forward. I spoke too much after drinking. Don’t blame me, Elder Diu. I’ll drink three cups as punishment."

Li Huowang knew this was a tactic of retreat—should he not resolve this today, the troubles ahead would multiply.

Various thoughts flashed through his mind. He pressed his belly and started retching. "No problem. If Brother Tuoba wants to see, I’ll tell you. Some things of mine tend to come out easily, so I cover them."

Soon, two black, sticky tentacles slowly extended from each side of the mask. Even more peculiar were the two double-eyed eyeballs wrapped around the tentacles.

Tuoba Danqing’s eyes twitched in shock. "Alright, alright, hurry and put them away."

After taking a bite of food to calm his nerves, Tuoba Danqing looked at Li Huowang with a nervous expression. "Elder Diu, I won’t ask what you cultivate, but cultivating so many things... won’t you go mad?"

Li Huowang shoved the tentacles into his mouth and swallowed the nausea down. "Not bad."

(End of Chapter)