Chapter 623: Union

Chapter 623: Convergence

A wound had inexplicably appeared upon his own back.

When He Xinlai turned his head, sensing something amiss, he found nothing behind him.

Taishan Shi, sitting cross-legged in the dirt, slammed his hands together, and dust instantly billowed into the air.

Within the swirling grit, a hollow, transparent silhouette was cast in relief; Li Huowang had just displaced his physical form.

The ground trembled slightly, and the nearby woods were violently torn open as a bloated, fleshy Buddha, sprouting limbs, rolled out from within.

"Amitabha, two benefactors, the sea of suffering is boundless, yet a turn of the head is the shore!"

"Quick! His reinforcements are here! Stop holding back! Kill him while he’s blind!"

He Xinlai plucked the black cloth from his shoulder with one hand, and then hurled it with all his might toward the sun in the sky.

As the black shroud swallowed the sunlight, a vast area was instantly plunged into darkness, a localized natural disaster thus formed.

"Divine soldiers, arise!"

At Taishan Shi’s low shout, Li Huowang felt gazes converging on him from every direction; he could even feel the tugging within Li Sui’s body.

"Father, I... I feel so joyful!" Li Sui’s tentacles began to spread rapidly within Li Huowang’s body; this time, it was not parasitism, but assimilation!

If he did not resolve this immediately, he feared he would end up like a steamed bun, completely fused with Li Sui!

"Bang!" The towering Peng Longteng blocked Li Huowang’s left flank. Li Huowang shouted in his heart: "Sui Sui! Hold on! Do not yield to your instincts! We will be out soon!"

Just then, the ground suddenly collapsed, and Li Huowang plummeted into a deep pit in the earth, where things lurking in the darkness, waving bodies that seemed both real and illusory, swarmed toward him.

While Li Huowang struggled to defend himself in the dark, brandishing his copper coin sword and the purple-tasseled blade, He Xinlai waited for the perfect moment to strike.

Seeing the opening Li Huowang left due to his blindness, He Xinlai quickly executed a sword technique, stepping upon his own shadow to charge at Li Huowang.

But just as his long sword was about to pierce the man’s throat, He Xinlai’s vision blurred; he saw his opponent steadily reach out and grasp the blade. "What?!"

At that moment, Li Huowang slowly raised his head, and the eye that had been blinded bulged, rolling out onto the ground. A strange, dual-pupiled eye gleamed with sharp intensity from the socket.

"Who did you say was blind just now?"

His eye had indeed been blind, but he had his daughter’s ocular orb to borrow.

The only reason he hadn't revealed it sooner was to lure his opponent into a trap, and the man had fallen for it perfectly.

He Xinlai’s heart sank; without hesitation, he released his weapon and retreated into the darkness behind him.

However, being so close to Li Huowang, he had no chance; Peng Longteng’s massive frame blocked his path, and the tentacles from Li Huowang’s body surged toward him like a tidal wave.

"Taishan! Taishan Shi!"

He Xinlai shouted for his ally to rescue him, but nothing happened; sensing the situation had turned, the man had already fled.

When the black cloth in the sky was severed by Hong Da’s flying blade and everything returned to normal, Taishan Shi did not appear again.

As the others surrounded He Xinlai, now restrained by Li Huowang, the dust finally settled.

Looking at He Xinlai, whom he had already carved into a human stick and stripped of all his teeth, Li Huowang pulled out his torture kit and laid it open. "My turn!"

"No!" Fo Yulu refused him outright. "It was hard enough to catch a Great Shaman of the Dharma Sect; what if you accidentally kill him? I need to send him back to the Bureau for interrogation by specialists."

"Ha, are you looking down on me? I am from the Aojing Sect!"

"Everything must be done according to the rules."

"Spare me that! Since when has the Surveillance Bureau ever followed rules? Aren't you just after that bounty of Longevity Pills? I’ve worked in the Bureau too! Don’t let Taishan get away for the sake of such petty gains!"

Just as Li Huowang prepared to use force, he found that even Hong Da and Liu Zongyuan were standing on Fo Yulu’s side.

"Brother Er, don't be like this. This Dharma Sect of the Great Qi hasn't been around long; we won't be questioning him for long."

"If we can dig some vital information about the Dharma Sect out of his head, we might be able to wipe them out in one fell swoop."

"Er Jiu, I know you have many Aojing Sect methods, but when it comes to interrogation, there are those in the Bureau better than you."

Li Huowang’s brow furrowed as he scanned the faces before him; from their reactions, it was clear this man carried a high bounty in the Surveillance Bureau.

Unless he killed them all, he likely wouldn't be able to interrogate this fellow.

"I must have been out of my mind to think about saving Great Liang with you lot. You’re all only concerned with your own interests!" A furious Li Huowang turned, bent down, and shoved his head into the soil, searching for the traces of Taishan Shi’s earth-tunneling.

After searching carefully for a long while, Li Huowang finally found some tracks.

Ignoring the others from the Surveillance Bureau, Li Huowang meticulously discerned the subtle shifts in the soil and began to pursue him relentlessly.

But after chasing for a while, Li Huowang stopped, for a massive mountain blocked his path.

Taishan Shi seemed to have anticipated that someone would track him and had burrowed into the mountain beforehand; unless Li Huowang could move the mountain, there was no hope.

"Brother Er, don't be angry, hehehe~" Hearing the laughter behind him, Li Huowang asked without turning his head: "Speak your piece and be quick about it."

"Hey, we’ve known each other for so long, is it worth getting like this? Remember when we risked life and limb together to deal with Xin Zhuo?" Liu Zongyuan, wearing his wooden mask, walked up to Li Huowang with a grin.

"This is a good thing! Why the long face? We’ve captured a Great Shaman, and he’s alive—that’s a major blow to the Dharma Sect! There aren't many Great Shamans in the Dharma Sect, you know."

Seeing Li Huowang’s expression soften slightly, Liu Zongyuan continued: "Don't be impatient~ meals must be eaten one bite at a time, and things must be done one by one. We will definitely be able to eradicate the Dharma Sect completely. Don't be angry with Lord Ji Xiang; just do it as a favor to me."

Li Huowang took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "You know? If it weren't for the waste of time, I really would like to kill you all."

"Hahaha~ Brother Er is such a joker." Liu Zongyuan laughed and reached out to drape an arm over Li Huowang’s shoulder, but was blocked by the tangled mess of tentacles on his body. "Brother Er, shouldn't you put away your divine powers?"

"Sui Sui, pull the tentacles back."

"......."

"Sui Sui?"

"I can't pull them back, Father. After passing through that black sky, it seems we’ve stuck together..." Li Sui said, her voice filled with grievance.