Chapter 735: Red Center

Chapter 735: The Red Middle

Beside a tilted colossal pillar, Li Huowang gazed at the red middle before him, at the figure of Zuo Wang Dao, listening to his words as he poured out everything in his heart.

After finishing his confessions, Li Huowang remained expressionless for a moment before speaking: “You’re putting on an act, aren’t you? It’s already this late—what’s the point?”

Hearing these words, the red middle hesitated for several breaths. Then, with a sharp swipe of his hand, the melted face returned to its original floral pattern—the fervent expressions from earlier vanished without a trace.

“You’ve got it, Li Huowang. You actually noticed. You’re not that stupid after all.”

Everything the red middle had said was just an act, meant to toy with him like a child once again.

Having gone through so much, Li Huowang hadn’t forgotten the truth: this man was part of Zuo Wang Dao.

Even if he was also Li Huowang, he was still Zuo Wang Dao—and anything spoken by Zuo Wang Dao could be false.

“I noticed because I put myself in your shoes. If I were in your place, I wouldn’t collapse over such trivial matters. Besides, you repeat this every hour—do you really think you’ll go mad?”

“Heh, makes sense. Tell me about the outside world. I’m about to suffocate in here.”

Li Huowang frowned slightly upon hearing this. This red middle, though still Li Huowang, was a different experience created by Doumu.

It seemed that since this experience had been severed from his body and became headless and tailless, his personality had grown more extreme.

Seeing that Li Huowang didn’t respond, the red middle continued on his own: “Are you surprised to know I still exist? The true/false heavenly path taken by Doumu has been stolen, yet I haven’t disappeared. Want to know how I did it?”

As he spoke, the red middle wore a particularly smug expression.

“I was supposed to vanish. But I refused to. Do you know what that means?” The red middle leaned closer to Li Huowang.

Li Huowang took a step back. “I don’t want to know how you’re still here. I don’t care. Time is tight. Let me cut straight to the chase—I came here because I ran into a problem. I need—”

“Wait, wait, wait! Can you please let me finish first? Do you really think I’m some insignificant NPC you can skip over? That’s how you ask for help?”

Seeing Li Huowang look away without speaking, the red middle nodded proudly. “Good. Now, let me show you my story.”

The red middle turned around and led Li Huowang toward the other side of the pillar.

When they reached the other side, Li Huowang saw that the massive cylindrical pillar, like a mountain, was covered in densely packed inscriptions.

As he approached, he realized the handwriting was his own. Clearly, the red middle used this method to record events happening beyond the one-hour loop, replacing his own mind.

Li Huowang leaned in and read carefully. After finishing, he turned to face the red middle.

“You survived only because of Kui Lei’s death heavenly path hanging on?”

The red middle showed a proud smile. “Right. The true/false heavenly path is gone, but there’s still a portion of it inside me—death itself. I use that to survive.”

“Here, even though I can only loop within an hour, it’s better than nothing. And as long as I exist, there’s always hope. Look, hasn’t my chance finally come?”

“Tell me, why did you come to me? What are your conditions?”

“I can get you out.” Li Huowang looked directly at the red middle, but found no reaction. He seemed to be listening to someone else’s story.

“Get you out? Is this helping you or me?”

“It helps both of us. Win-win.”

If he could gain access to his memories, then the fake cultivation methods of Zuo Wang Dao would instantly become clear.

“Why should I leave? I’m fine here. I don’t see it as win-win,” replied the red middle indifferently.

Clearly, both were Li Huowang, and what Li Huowang considered, he also considered. “I have no physical form. Even if I leave, I’ll just become another memory in you. What difference does it make?”

“So you plan to keep waiting like this? For generations?”

“No matter. I can wait. My memories last only an hour anyway—I won’t go mad from endless waiting,” said the red middle with a mocking gaze.

“I can wait. Can you? Though you haven’t said it, your situation seems urgent. You need to pay more.”

“Stop joking! There’s trouble outside now! Think of Bai Lingmiao and Li Sui! Do you really want them to be in danger?”

The playful smile on the red middle’s face faded. “What happened outside?”

Seeing that Li Huowang had finally taken him seriously, he summarized briefly what had happened afterward.

“Now I cultivate the real path, but I carry a ticking time bomb with me. Not only am I not protecting anyone, I might harm others at any moment. So I must resolve this quickly.”

Hearing this, the red middle fell silent, lost in thought.

“Do you really hesitate? What exactly are you hesitating about?”

“Hmph. Why the rush? I’m not hesitating whether to leave or not. Cultivating the real path instead of the fake can lead to madness—Dice said so. If you don’t think it through, can you even use it?” The red middle clearly doubted this deeply.

“I’ve thought about it. Even the worst-case scenario after cultivating the fake path is better than my current situation.” Li Huowang had indeed hated Zuo Wang Dao before, even despising these swindlers.

But everything has its limits. Compared to a sect that could destroy heaven and earth, the deceitful Zuo Wang Dao didn’t seem quite so hateful anymore.

Hearing this, the red middle shook his head. “Heh, you don’t understand Zuo Wang Dao. You don’t understand Dice either. I am Hong Zhong. I know them.”

“If this is truly Dice’s game, what he seeks from us goes far beyond just this little bit. Don’t think he’s dead and safe now.”

“A Zuo Wang Dao is not truly dead as long as one of his schemes remains.”

Upon hearing this, Li Huowang frowned. “You suspect...”

“I suspect this is a bait. Do you know what a bait is? In the language of deception, it refers to the beginning of a big scam.”

“A bait is usually not the scam itself—it may even benefit the victim. Like at a gambling table, when a new sheep sits down, the initial sweet taste offered.”

(End of Chapter)