Chapter 53: Ponder

Chapter 53: Pondering

The wheels of the donkey cart turned ceaselessly with a squeak and a groan, the axles emitting a harsh, grating screech.

"Gouwa, drip some sesame oil on the wheels."

Lying in the cart, Li Huowang spoke with great effort; his neck had just been stitched up by Bai Lingmiao with an embroidery needle and packed with healing salve, leaving him unable to sit up.

Before long, the squeaking subsided considerably, and Li Huowang stared blankly at the sky, his mind drifting back to the events of a few nights prior.

The trouble at Zhengde Temple had been resolved, but the trouble plaguing his own body had only just begun.

From his own perspective, it was Danyangzi, having achieved immortality, who had slain those Buddhas.

Yet in the eyes of the others, it was he himself, wearing a hideous and terrifying expression, who had lunged forward, burrowed into the bodies of the Buddhas, and devoured them alive.

A single world could not harbor two conflicting perspectives; thus, either what he saw or what they saw had to be an illusion.

Li Huowang turned his head to the side, where Bai Lingmiao, her eyes bound with cloth strips, clung tightly to his hand, refusing to loosen her grip for even a moment.

Withdrawing his gaze, Li Huowang looked back up at the white clouds drifting across the sky, a bitter smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

Truth be told, because of his affliction, even Li Huowang himself could no longer trust his own mind.

Coupled with his distended belly and the blood smeared across his face, everything pointed to the grim reality that he was the one who had acted, not Danyangzi.

"Could Danyangzi truly be dead? Was everything merely a figment of my delusions?"

The thought had barely surfaced before Li Huowang swiftly dismissed it.

"Relying on my fits of madness alone, I could never have so easily dispatched those colossal Buddhas; ultimately, it was Danyangzi."

"No matter what he has become now, the crucial point is that he is still here, still watching me." Li Huowang was absolutely certain of this.

"It's just that I always assumed his immortal self had descended in person, but it seems now that he was merely possessing my body to act."

"I previously hypothesized that Danyangzi was protecting me, and that conjecture has been proven true, but knowing the man, someone like him would never help me out of pure goodwill; his aid must serve some ulterior motive."

Recalling the strange sensations he had felt that night, a vague suspicion began to form in Li Huowang's mind, and he reached out to lightly scratch the soft palm holding his hand.

"Tell me, has my temper grown shorter since we left Qingfeng Temple?"

"Not at all, Senior Brother Li. Why do you ask such a thing?"

Li Huowang gently stroked the back of her hand, offering no explanation, merely murmuring in his heart, "Why do I ask? Because I fear that bastard Danyangzi is up to no good!"

Though no one else had mentioned it, Li Huowang himself could feel a shift in his demeanor and conduct.

"Could that old fossil Danyangzi be trying to resurrect himself through my body? Is he protecting me simply because he is protecting his own vessel?" This terrifying conjecture exploded in his mind, breaking him out in a cold sweat.

Yet he quickly calmed himself; it was, after all, merely a conjecture.

Danyangzi certainly had to be dealt with, but while the target was clear, the method was the true crux of the matter.

On this front, Li Huowang felt utterly blind; nothing in this world was laid out as clearly as in a game, and everything was unfamiliar, demanding that he seek out the answers himself.

Having survived the turmoil at Zhengde Temple, Li Huowang no longer dared to casually engage with other sects in this realm; after all, if even the most benevolent monk temples had turned so horrific, heaven only knew what the other places had become.

Yet, turning the matter over in his mind, Li Huowang realized that if he wanted to survive in this godforsaken place, he could not avoid them forever.

Just as Li Huowang was mulling over these thoughts, the donkey cart slowly ground to a halt, accompanied by the babbling sound of flowing water nearby.

"Senior Brother Li, I'm going to wash your clothes," Bai Lingmiao said, gently slipping her hand from his grasp and taking the bloodstained robes from the cart as she walked toward the adjacent stream.

The others were not idle either; in tacit understanding, they headed into the woods to gather firewood and prepare a meal.

Unable to sit up, Li Huowang could only rely on sound to gauge everything happening around him.

Before long, the aroma of cooked food wafted over, and Li Huowang's stomach rumbled, his wounded body desperately craving sustenance.

"Senior Brother, let me feed you." Li Huowang felt himself being propped up, resting against a furry embrace.

Li Huowang already knew the name of this woman, who was covered in black hair and resembled a chimpanzee; her name was Chun Xiaoman.

The name was quite straightforward, for she was born on the day of Xiaoman, and so she was called Xiaoman; country folk were just that casual when naming their daughters.

Xiaoman scooped up some horse meat soup with a wooden spoon she had carved herself and brought it to Li Huowang's lips.

One fed in silence while the other ate in silence; ever since the incident, Li Huowang had noticed that the others seemed even more afraid of him.

Li Huowang could understand their fear; after all, staying close to a man-eating monster would unnerve anyone.

When he had eaten his fill, Li Huowang whispered to Xiaoman, "Tell Bai Lingmiao to come back; if she can't get the stains out, just leave it."

"Alright." Xiaoman gently laid Li Huowang back down, placing the heavenly book beneath his head as a pillow.

Shortly after, Bai Lingmiao returned, the blood-red Taoist robe in her hands having failed to revert to its original cyan hue.

"Drape it over the donkey's back to dry, and hurry up and eat before the food gets cold."

"Mhm." Bai Lingmiao gave a soft reply and leaned over, carefully inspecting Li Huowang's wounds for a moment before heading toward the campfire.

The familiar clatter of hooves echoed from the distance.

The voice arrived before the person did. "Oh my! Little Daoist Master! So this is where you are! I thought I'd never see you again!"

When Lü Zhuangyuan's heavily wrinkled old face appeared before him, Li Huowang knew the Lü Family Troupe had followed them.

"Oh my, what happened to you... what happened..." he stammered, taking in Li Huowang's wretched state.

"Nothing much, just ran into a bit of trouble on the road. Is there something you need?"

"Little Daoist Master, how could you leave without a word? Didn't we agree to travel together? It's a good thing you mentioned heading out of the pass earlier, or I truly wouldn't have been able to find you," Lü Zhuangyuan said with a fawning smile.

A free escort found with such difficulty could not be discarded so easily.

"My apologies, Troupe Master Lü. I am wounded, so I won't linger to chat. Please make yourself at home."

"Yes, yes, you just lie there, you just lie there." Lü Zhuangyuan asked no further questions; having traveled the world for so many years, he naturally understood the principle that the more one knew, the greater the danger.

With the sun about to set behind the mountains, neither group planned to move on, especially since there was a small river nearby, making washing and drawing water exceedingly convenient.

Unable to sleep, Li Huowang gazed silently at the stars in the night sky, pondering the events of the day.

Suddenly, a rustling sound came from the right side of his body.

Before Li Huowang could react, a soft, petite body curled up silently in his arms, trembling like a leaf.

Inhaling that familiar, delicate fragrance, Li Huowang reached out with his right hand and gently patted her back. "It's alright. Leave everything to me. Leave it all to me."

(End of Chapter)