Chapter 682: Eight Sufferings

Chapter 682: The Eight Sufferings

With his eyes closed, Li Huowang felt the wound he had inflicted upon the other party. Without hesitation, he raised his fire striker and slashed it across his own skin, sending a burst of flame engulfing his entire body.

No matter what this thing was, its body was enormous—only by going all-in could he hope to deal with it.

Li Huowang, still with his eyes shut, controlled both arms, over a dozen tentacles, gripping the edges of the wound. With a roar, he yanked hard.

With a tearing sound, the flaming figure of Li Huowang plunged straight into the wound.

He wielded three swords in his three hands, flames blazing all around him as he charged recklessly through the creature’s insides.

He returned a hundredfold, a thousandfold, the humiliation he had just endured.

Soon, he heard the crackling of burning flesh, intermingled with cries of pain that sounded like a dragon's wail. The violent trembling nearly made him open his eyes.

But the more the creature struggled, the deeper Li Huowang burrowed. When he sensed the pressure ahead ease, he realized—no matter what it was—it had been pierced straight through.

The crackling of burning flesh eventually turned into the sound of fierce flames consuming everything. Li Huowang began to feel himself falling.

Just as he hit the ground, he opened his eyes and saw the dark clouds above transform into a sea of fire, vanishing rapidly. He had won.

“Water!” With a thud, Li Huowang fell into the earth. After a few breaths, he spat out dirt and emerged from beneath the soil.

When he stood again, the rain had stopped. The thin morning light poured in, casting itself on his charred face.

The air after the rain was fresh. Whether the creature was dead or merely wounded, it seemed everything had ended.

The three monkey children had never seen anything like this. They regarded Li Huowang almost as a god, kneeling in worship, bowing their heads repeatedly.

What others thought mattered not to Li Huowang. Now, gazing at the vast sky, he pondered other matters.

Whatever that creature was, it clearly wasn’t an ordinary supernatural being. Yet calling it a “Destiny Keeper” felt too simplistic.

If forced to define it, Li Huowang believed it was closer to a Joy Deity—or perhaps something akin to those things outside Baiyujing.

This world wasn’t simply black or white. It wasn’t just between mortals and Fate Keepers. There were many shades in between.

“Has the Divine Lord Yu’er now enlisted even such beings?” This thought only worsened Li Huowang’s mood. The enemy’s influence grew larger in his mind.

If such creatures existed even in remote places, then what guarded the Dragon Vein of Later Shu?

Seeing everyone looking toward him, Li Huowang shook his head. “It’s all over. Let’s rest for a while. We’ve all been exhausted through the night.”

Upon hearing this, everyone found their anchor. Their anxiety dissipated, and they began moving about—some tending to wounds, others preparing meals.

As the steaming food touched their lips, fear and worry vanished from their hearts.

Li Huowang tore off Yang Xiaohai’s bandage carefully, examined the wound, and rewrapped it. “Have your wife change the bandage. It got wet earlier—the wound is pale from soaking.”

“Senior Brother Li, I’m just slightly injured. Your injuries...” Yang Xiaohai looked at Li Huowang’s blackened body, hesitating.

“Focus on yourself. Mine is minor too.” Li Huowang walked back to the bonfire, picked up a bowl of noodles, and began eating them with grilled salted fish.

“Senior Brother Li, don’t move. I’ll have the Bai family heal you,” Bai Lingmiao said, raising her drum.

“I’ve run out of longevity pills. No need to summon spirits.”

“Senior Brother Li, they’re very cooperative right now. No need for longevity as payment. Bang bang bang!”

As Li Huowang ate bite by bite, he sensed something approaching, something watching him.

Li Huowang tensed, pretending to be casual as he picked the belly section of the braised fish with chopsticks, removing the long thick bones, and placed it in Yang Na’s bowl.

Glancing sideways at the window, seeing it was Old Lady Qi, he finally exhaled in relief. This time, it wasn’t them.

Yang Na, who had returned to normal, watched all of this. She said nothing, instead praising Sun Xiaoqin’s cooking.

After a full meal, Li Huowang headed to his bedroom. He sat on a stool, his expression gradually turning grave.

This couldn’t go on. Just moments after Yang Na took her medicine, those people’s gazes appeared again. He’d briefly met them face-to-face, but he hadn’t managed to photograph them.

He didn’t care much for himself, but he feared for Yang Na and his mother.

Li Huowang pulled out his phone and dialed a number directly. “Hello? It’s me. Have you found the source of those two severed fingers?”

“It’s been so long, and you still haven’t found anything? Is your database complete? Two fingers cut off, and no one shows up?”

“What do you mean there are more important matters than two severed fingers? I repeat: I’m not crazy! Someone really wants to kidnap me!”

Hearing the door open behind him, Li Huowang hung up the phone and turned to see Yang Na holding a fruit tray. He asked gently, “How are you feeling?”

Yang Na shook her head slightly, walked to his side, placed the tray on the table, and took his hand in hers. “Huowang, what’s wrong? Are the side effects of that medicine unbearable?”

“No way. Haha, not at all. Just thinking about some things,” Li Huowang hesitated for a moment before speaking. “Nana, can I ask you for a favor?”

“Of course. What is it?” Yang Na nodded.

“I need to visit an old friend at Kangding Hospital, but I don’t want my mom to come. Can you accompany me?”

He had to meet Qian Fu sooner or later, regardless of whether he was mad or babbling nonsense. But what he said had proven true—someone had tampered with the surveillance, and someone was plotting against him. These weren’t figments of imagination. Li Huowang dared not ignore them.

Yang Na didn’t ask further. Seeing that Li Huowang needed help, she simply gave him a gentle hug and nodded. “Okay.”

Taking advantage of Sun Xiaoqin leaving, Li Huowang set off with Yang Na.

But before he could leave the residential complex, Old Lady Qi, standing with her hands on her hips, blocked him along with two elderly men at the gate. “Xiao Li, where are you going? Where’s your family?”

“To Kangning Hospital,” Li Huowang answered truthfully.

“What are you doing at a psychiatric hospital? Do you have a good reason?” Old Lady Qi’s eyes filled with deep suspicion.

Looking at her like a jailor would look at a prisoner, Li Huowang shot back, “You know I’m mentally ill. If you think I’m going to a psychiatric hospital, it’s for a follow-up. What? You don’t allow that either?”