Chapter 66: Good Person

Chapter 66: A Good Man

Hearing a stir behind him, Li Huowang clutched his searing shoulder and turned his gaze back to the fallen Li Zhi. Was he... apologizing to me?

"You're about to die, yet you're still putting on an act. You put on a good face now, but was it someone else who just tried to kill me?"

Li Zhi, his complexion growing increasingly ashen, forced a bitter smile.

"I had no choice, I truly had no choice. They forced me. You could run, but I really couldn't escape. From the day I became a spirit medium, I was never able to run away again."

Dark crimson blood gradually seeped from Li Zhi's body, staining the earth red; his time was running out.

Li Huowang stood there with a complex expression, looking at the man before him whose words might be truth or lies.

"Actually... this isn't so bad. Finally, there are no other voices in my head," Li Zhi said with a sigh of emotion.

"Was everything before forced upon you by the immortals?" Li Huowang asked again.

"Heh... believe it or not, it doesn't matter. From the day I became a medium, I became a puppet in their hands. I resisted, but it was truly useless. Mortals cannot fight against immortals."

Li Huowang couldn't be bothered to discern whether the man's words were true or false; he walked straight over, grabbed the sword hilt, and prepared to pull it out.

But when he yanked with force, it wouldn't budge. He found that Li Zhi was actually gripping the blade tightly with his hand that had its fingers sliced off.

Blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, Li Zhi chuckled. "Daoist Li, uh, next time you meet someone like me, remember to be more cautious. A Xin Su like you is a coveted prize in the eyes of others. You can't guarantee they won't harbor ill intentions."

Hearing this, Li Huowang's heart clenched. He hadn't expected to get any more information from Li Zhi, yet the man had spoken of his own accord.

Looking at the dying man before him, Li Huowang deliberately softened his tone. "What exactly is a Xin Su?"

"A Xin Su is formed from the transformation of the Great Beginning, taking shape and possessing substance, yet not yet forming a complete body; thus it is called Xin Su. It is the beginning of substance before the body is fully formed."

"What?" Li Huowang clearly didn't understand what the other was saying.

"The immortals told me this. I'm a rough man, didn't study much, so I don't quite understand. But it was the first time I'd ever seen them so joyous, so I figured... it must be a good thing."

Li Huowang raised his own hand, staring at it in sheer shock.

Thinking of the ill-intentioned monks from Zhengde Temple earlier, this was proof enough that Li Zhi hadn't lied to him.

"In this world, am I something extremely rare? But apart from being mentally ill, I'm clearly no different from an ordinary person. What does Xin Su really mean?"

Li Huowang etched the passage Li Zhi had just spoken firmly into his mind, faintly sensing its profound significance.

Immediately after, his thoughts turned once more to his deceased master, Danyangzi.

Li Huowang realized that there had been omens from the very beginning; his cheap master hadn't just been looking for medicinal catalysts at random.

Since others cultivated in ways just as bizarre as Danyangzi, it was highly likely their cultivation also required a catalyst like himself.

At this moment, Li Zhi's voice began to fade, and his pupils started to dilate and lose focus.

"Daoist Li, could you do me a small favor?"

Li Huowang looked back at the dying Li Zhi. "Speak."

"The twenty-second of next month is the Qingming Festival. When the time comes, could you burn some extra paper money for me? I, Li Zhi, have been poor my whole life; I don't want to be a pauper even after death."

As he finished speaking, Li Zhi smiled out of habit once more, blood flowing from the corners of his mouth.

"In the next life, I'd rather be reincarnated as a beast than ever be a spirit medium again. It's too suffocating and too... exhausting. A whole life lived worse than a bouncer in a brothel."

"Daoist Li, remember, you can do anything in the future, but never become a spirit medium. This job is truly not meant for humans; it's far too bitter and too suffocating." Two clear tears slid down from the corners of his eyes.

Li Huowang looked at the man with a complicated expression, all the past events flashing through his mind. He might have been a good man at heart, but what he did or didn't do was never his own choice.

He was merely a pitiful soul controlled by those immortals.

This cruel world had taught him that those who wield special powers are not necessarily masters of magic like Xinhui or Danyangzi; they could just as well be slaves to that very power.

"Thank you for the guidance; this is very important to me, Brother Li Zhi."

Li Zhi now had only one last breath left. Taking a deep breath, he used his final strength to say, "Also, that day you asked about exorcism, you had something going on, right? Remember to head south. Go find a group of nuns dressed in black over there. They... barely... count as... good people. They should... help you."

Li Huowang never expected such an unexpected windfall. Since it concerned the Danyangzi within him, he hurriedly asked, "Nuns? What are their sects called? Are they skilled at exorcising evil spirits?"

Li Huowang spoke for a long while but received no response. Only then did he realize that Li Zhi's eyes had lost all their luster; he was dead.

Gazing at Li Zhi, who died with his eyes still open, Li Huowang felt a tumult of mixed emotions in his heart.

If he hadn't been a spirit medium, perhaps the two of them could have become good friends.

Just then, the others walked over from a distance. "Senior Brother Li, as soon as the drumming stopped, that monster suddenly froze. Oh? What happened to this guy?"

Gouwa, Xiaoman, and the others had tangled with the second spirit and looked quite battered; everyone was wounded, though thankfully only with minor injuries.

Li Huowang sighed, reached out to grab the sword hilt in Li Zhi's abdomen, pulled it out, and sheathed it behind his back. "Find a place and bury the two of them, so they won't be torn apart by wolves and jackals."

"Why, Senior Brother? He was a wicked man who murdered and robbed!" Gouwa was utterly bewildered.

Li Huowang offered no explanation, simply reaching over to gently close Li Zhi's eyes.

Li Huowang didn't leave a tombstone for Li Zhi; he was all alone and would have no one to pay respects anyway, and leaving one might only invite trouble.

After busying themselves for most of the day, by the time they returned, the roosters in the village were already crowing.

Just as he reached the gate, by the well, he saw an unexpectedly frail silhouette. Bai Lingmiao, who had been lying in bed extremely weak just before, was now bending over to draw water.

"Senior Brother Li! Where did you all go? How did you get hurt? Did something happen?" Bai Lingmiao asked with worry.

Frowning slightly, Li Huowang walked over and tossed her bucket aside. "You're running a fever, why are you drawing water? Go lie down inside right now."

"I'm fine, I'm better. If you don't believe me, feel for yourself."

When Li Huowang pressed his hand to her forehead and found her fever had truly broken, he said with some surprise, "The pills I refined aren't that potent. Are you sure you're alright?"

Bai Lingmiao's expression stiffened for a moment, but then a smile returned to her face. "I'm fine, what could possibly be wrong with me? Isn't it a good thing that I've recovered?"

"Even if you're fine, go back and lie down. Don't touch water right after recovering from an illness!"

(End of Chapter)