Chapter 431: North Wind

Chapter 431: North Wind

Feeling the softness of the flesh in his hands, Li Huowang’s heart pounded with excitement. After searching for so long, he had finally found it!

This person was the key to breaking free from his delusions! He had dreamed of this moment night and day—this very day!

His mind was in chaos, yet his body remained calm.

In such a disordered situation, even dice could not notice Li Huowang's actions. At that moment, everyone else was engaged in battle against the Great Liang State Master and the Astronomical Bureau.

Thus, when the two arrived at the edge of the battlefield, only Xin Su Bei Feng noticed something amiss. “Wait! Who are you? Why do you have nine red tiles?”

Li Huowang was about to explain, but Bei Feng suddenly raised her head, and their eyes met.

“You let me explain,” Li Huowang opened his mouth, only to discover that the voice that came out was female. And now, the one supporting him was his own body—he had swapped bodies with Bei Feng.

Looking at the Li Huowang trapped inside his own body, Bei Feng wore an expression of satisfaction. “Oh my, look who we have here—it’s Red Tile, isn’t it? What’s wrong? Tired of being Red Tile? Want to be Bei Feng for a few days? Fine, fine, I agree.”

Li Huowang, seeing his body taken over, showed no panic on his face. “Did you really think I wouldn’t guess your trick? Don’t forget—I’ve already told you, this body is no longer mine alone. Sui Sui! Act now! She’s already switched places!”

Bei Feng’s heart skipped a beat. Instinctively, she began to move, but a sharp, piercing pain stopped her. The agony was so intense, as if every sensation had been amplified several times over, making it unbearable.

But it wasn’t over yet. Sui Sui’s tentacles quickly shot out from all seven orifices—around the eyes, blocking the mouth, bursting from the nostrils—and deprived Bei Feng of her five senses in the fastest way possible. It was all prearranged.

Since they had long known from the Astronomical Bureau that Xin Su Bei Feng was skilled in body swapping, how could Li Huowang not be prepared?

Just as a bolt of lightning struck violently near Li Huowang, he carried Bei Feng and rushed outward.

In the midst of all this confusion, no one noticed them. Li Huowang soon left the battlefield behind. The sounds from behind grew louder, but he no longer cared. Because now, he had obtained what he wanted.

At a corner where golden walls met, Li Huowang stopped, breathing heavily as he looked at Xin Su Bei Feng who now occupied his body. “Alright, Sui Sui, retract those tentacles from my ears and mouth! I’ll talk to her!”

Upon hearing this, the writhing tentacles that had emerged from his throat quickly coiled up and retracted.

Li Huowang looked at his own body, calmed his emotions slightly, then said, “I don’t care what the Seat of Forgetfulness wants to do with all this fuss. As long as you give me what I want, I’ll let you go right back.”

Hearing this, Bei Feng showed no trace of worry, instead praising him, “Impressive indeed. Daring to take advantage of the conflict between the Astronomical Bureau and the Seat of Forgetfulness, and succeeding too. No wonder you’re Red Tile.”

From beneath his garment, Li Huowang pulled out a small shovel, grabbed his hand, and shoved it into the gap between his fingernails.

With a tearing sound of flesh, the thin nail was torn away. Bei Feng tried to endure the pain, but her index finger trembled and cold sweat poured down her face.

“My body has undergone three ascents of the Cang Qian, and my pain sensitivity has been greatly enhanced. A minor scratch feels like a severed limb. Time is precious for everyone. You surely don’t want to experience anything more torturous than this, do you?”

As he spoke, Li Huowang inserted his finger into his navel and reached inside, gripping something slippery.

“Heh... heh...” Bei Feng shivered in pain, yet smiled. “Aojing Sect? You’re from the Aojing Sect? If there’s trouble, why don’t you go ask your godly figure Ba Hui instead? Why come to us, the Seat of Forgetfulness?”

Li Huowang swallowed hard, his voice trembling slightly as he said, “You’re Xin Su, aren’t you? I want to know how you escaped the identity of Xin Su, how you broke free from those illusions.”

“Hmm?” Bei Feng sounded surprised. “So you went through all that trouble to tie me up just to ask me this? You should have said so earlier! You were chasing me so urgently, I thought it was some big deal. Turns out, you just want a cultivation technique.”

“You didn’t need to go through all this. If you’d just asked me directly, I would’ve told you.”

“What?” Li Huowang frowned deeply at her words.

“Oh.” Bei Feng sighed softly, her tone now tinged with sadness. “I’m also Xin Su. Naturally, I know the suffering of being Xin Su—the pain of not knowing which side you belong to. I can empathize.”

“So, if I can help all Xin Sus escape that pain, I’m happy to see it happen. Unfortunately, there are too few Xin Sus.”

Li Huowang’s face twitched slightly. He didn’t believe a word of this story. “Stop stalling! If you don’t want to suffer, tell me the method now!”

“Fine, I’ll tell you. Just don’t pull me, okay? This is your own body—you’ll have to return to it later.”

“I’m telling you now. But before you practice this technique, you must understand something. First, why do we Xin Sus have illusions?”

“No need to explain. I already know. It’s caused by the innate Qi within our bodies.”

“Oh? You know quite a bit, huh. Then I’ll continue. To break free from illusions, you must control that innate Qi completely, just like I did. But you can’t do it alone. That’s why we must borrow the true owner of that innate Qi. Dou Mu.”

“Wait!” Li Huowang interrupted sharply, his face darkening. “What exactly do you plan to do by involving the Seat of Forgetfulness’ Guardian of Fate? Don’t try to fool me! That Dou Mu Tai Yin Guardian of Fate controls falsehood!”

Bei Feng sighed, looking helpless. “What is real? What is false? Can you really tell the difference? People say we of the Seat of Forgetfulness cultivate falsehood, but they never tell you that we cultivate truth too. The Guardian of Fate of Dou Mu is different from others. It’s like a lotus blooming in the same pond—one Dou Mu Tai Yin guards falsehood, the other Dou Mu Tai Yang guards truth.”

“The Yin-Yang Heavenly Dao differs from other heavens. Other heavens either exist or don’t exist. But the true and false are a pair of corresponding heavens—they exist together. Without truth, there is no falsehood; without falsehood, there is no truth. Do you understand now?”