Chapter 467: Village

Chapter 467: The Village

Creaking, creaking. The wheels of the cart left two narrow tracks on the ground.

Li Huowang sat on the front board of the cart, lightly flicking the whip to urge the horses forward. Beside him, Li Sui, dressed in a straw raincoat, peered curiously through the black veil beneath his hat at the sparrows perched on the tree branches.

Li Huowang tapped lightly on the cart. "Miaomiao, there's no need to stay cooped up all day. It's so stuffy. It's getting dusk now—why not come out and breathe some fresh air?"

Bai Lingmiao pulled back the curtain and sat gently beside Li Huowang, removing the white cloth covering her eyes as she looked around.

Gazing at that delicate profile, Li Huowang noticed Bai Lingmiao had changed somewhat. If her eyes used to be pink, now they had turned a soft pinkish-white.

What this meant was self-evident.

Li Huowang reached out and gently squeezed her hand in comfort. "It's okay. We're almost at Shangjing. Once we get there, we'll definitely find a way to fix your eyes."

Among the four matters, the issue of the self-protection of Niu Xin Village had been temporarily resolved. The most urgent matter now was Bai Lingmiao’s eyes.

This matter was pressing, but fortunately, it wasn’t as difficult to solve as he’d feared.

Having witnessed the great battle between the Heaven-Surveying Bureau and the Forgetful Dao Sect, Li Huowang didn’t think changing eyes in this chaotic world would be particularly hard.

"Senior Brother Li, why did you insist I come along too?" Bai Lingmiao asked softly.

"You absolutely have to come. This is about curing your eyes. How can we treat them if you don’t come?" Li Huowang replied with absolute certainty.

"Oh." Bai Lingmiao lowered her head and answered quietly.

"Tired? There's a village ahead. We can stay the night there instead of sleeping in the cart."

"Don't worry. At our current pace, we should arrive at Shangjing by tomorrow evening. Then, not only will you be able to see clearly again, but you’ll also be able to keep your eyes open during broad daylight."

"Mm, okay, Senior Brother Li. I’ll listen to you."

Li Huowang had been to Shangjing before, so he knew the route well. As the sun was about to set, a cluster of villages appeared before him.

But as they drew closer, a trace of worry crept across Bai Lingmiao’s face. "Senior Brother Li, it’s the same here..."

At a distance, everything seemed fine, but up close, the earthen houses were crooked and tilted, appearing ready to collapse. Weeds and tangled spider webs indicated these homes hadn’t been inhabited for quite some time.

Though Li Huowang’s expression grew grave, he wasn’t surprised. He’d encountered such scenes before.

Although the heavenly disaster lasted only a short while, many unlucky villages had lost people.

Even those villages that had escaped unscathed were merely exceptions.

This wasn’t just a few villages—it was happening across the entire land. Who could say how many people had died in the process?

"Who are you looking for?" An old voice startled Li Huowang, who immediately gripped his sword hilt.

But upon seeing an elderly man with only a few teeth left, leaning heavily on a cane, Li Huowang let go of his weapon.

A black cloth hung from his right shoulder, indicating someone in his family had recently passed away.

"Old man, it's me. Do you remember? I stayed here last time too," Li Huowang said as he approached the man, snapping his fingers between his eyes.

The old man studied Li Huowang’s face for a moment, then suddenly realized. "Ah! You’re that little boy! Come, come. There are plenty of empty rooms in the village. You can stay as long as you like."

As he walked forward, Bai Lingmiao quietly stepped beside Li Huowang. "Senior Brother Li, do you really know him?"

"No, just some tricks. Old man has a bad memory."

As the man led them inside, more villagers gradually emerged before Li Huowang.

Men and women alike carried large bowls, squatting or standing around a large banyan tree, eating and chatting as twilight fell.

Upon seeing Li Huowang’s cart, their gazes turned toward it. Some familiar with the old man even chatted casually. "Master Zhao, relatives visiting?"

Their expressions were normal, yet every one of them wore black cloth on their arms—a sight Li Huowang had seen most frequently on his journey.

Soon, they arrived at a clean courtyard of a small earthen house. "This is my youngest son’s. He died two years ago. You can stay here."

"Thank you very much, Master Zhao. I’m sorry to trouble you."

"Nonsense. Just borrowing a place to stay. No big deal. No big deal."

Watching him walk away, Bai Lingmiao said softly, tinged with sympathy, "Senior Brother Li, it seems many people died here after the last heavenly disaster."

Hearing this, Li Huowang quickly glanced at Zhuge Yuan, who stood silently in the distance, back turned.

Words spoken without intent, but heard with meaning. Based on his understanding of Zhuge Yuan, he would surely blame Li Huowang for the deaths of these people.

"Never mind. It’s in the past. Let’s not talk about it. I’ll go draw water from the well and cook something hot."

Since they still had a long journey tomorrow, they ate lightly for dinner. After washing up, they went to bed.

Li Huowang had assumed nothing would happen that night, but just as the third watch began, he was awakened by Li Sui, who was on guard duty.

Li Huowang glanced at Bai Lingmiao’s slow breathing beside him and whispered to Li Sui by the bed, "What is it?"

"Dad, they’re performing a play outside."

"Hmm?" Li Huowang looked once more at Bai Lingmiao, then quietly got out of bed and opened the door to step outside.

Not far from the banyan tree, Li Huowang saw a group of people forming a circle, dancing wildly.

They weren’t anyone else—they were the villagers from under the banyan tree, including the old man who had guided them into the village.

"Dad, what are they doing?"

"Shh, don’t make noise. Let me take a look."

Li Huowang frowned deeply. It seemed he had somehow become entangled with a sect he’d never seen before.

Yet strangely, when the old man had brought them into the village, he had carefully checked his emotions and sensed no malice.

"Could it be that they’re like the nun—just barely good people?" Li Huowang pondered and decided to observe quietly, seeing what exactly they intended to do.

Regardless of whether they harbored ill will toward him, at least for now, Li Huowang wasn’t afraid.

Because of the distance, the words they muttered could only reach him in fragments.

"Endured endless humiliation, countless misfortunes. My son, oh my son, everything goes wrong. Cut off from money and food. Oh my son, clothes worn out to the bone."