Chapter 912: Method

Chapter 912: A Way Out

"Connections?" Li Huowang stared at the dice before him, a surge of revulsion rising in his chest at the man's habit of speaking in half-truths. "We are at this point, and you still intend to keep secrets? What is this calamity really about? What else do you know!"

The Dice chuckled, a dry, rattling sound. "Red Center, what good would it do to tell you? Do you even have the luxury to worry about other things? Shouldn't you be busy figuring out how to deal with that hermaphrodite?"

"You saw how strong he is, and you admitted yourself that you only fooled him temporarily. Once he sees through the ruse, the next time he comes, he won't be so easily deceived."

Thinking of Zuo Qiuyong’s unshakable power, Li Huowang’s expression darkened. The man was a Siming of the Flesh; if he wanted to contend with him, the only option he could conceive was to borrow the power of Jizai.

"Don't count on Jizai; he’s been very busy lately." Hearing the Dice suddenly say this, Li Huowang snapped his head up. "So, you gathered this information from Jizai?"

"Oh, quick on the uptake this time, aren't we? Look, what does it matter if I don't hide things? I told you, it’s useless." The number on the Dice’s head shifted to one.

"What else did the past me say? What is the key to killing Zuo Qiuyong? Speak!" Li Huowang stepped forward, grabbing the Dice by his collar.

"He never said. To be honest, he might not even know who this Zuo Qiuyong is." The Dice shrugged, spreading his hands.

"Don't lie to me! He is the future me; how could he not know Zuo Qiuyong!" At this, a flicker of joy crossed Li Huowang’s face. "He is still there, which means the future me is still alive. I will surely survive this ordeal unscathed!"

Hearing this, the Dice immediately poured cold water on his hope. "That’s not necessarily true. The almanac changes every moment. If you die right now, Jizai ceases to exist as well."

Li Huowang shoved him away in a fit of rage, sending the Dice stumbling. "Aside from flapping your gums, what use are you! Did you come here just to watch the show?"

"I am useful, of course. If it weren't for me just now, you would have been in mortal danger. If that eunuch really wanted to finish you, your Heart-Sustainer skin wouldn't have stood a chance. Remember, Li Huowang, you owe me a favor."

Just as Li Huowang prepared to retort, footsteps echoed from the left. Thinking it was Gao Zhijian, he turned, only to see Li Sui walking toward him.

Seeing the eunuch’s robes on Li Huowang, Li Sui took off her red Taoist cloak and draped it over his shoulders. "Father, what happened? What exactly occurred after you went to the Tianchen Kingdom?"

It seemed that with Zuo Qiuyong scared off, the Great Qi’s offensive had ceased; otherwise, she could not have been walking here so leisurely.

Li Huowang, his face etched with exhaustion, pulled the collar tight with his right hand while sliding his left into the sleeve of the red robe. "Sigh, it’s a long story."

He then gave a brief account of the cause and effect to Sui Sui. "Heh, who would have thought? There is actually another Siming within the Tianchen Kingdom—a Siming of the Flesh. I never imagined our enemy would be such a thing."

"When you go back, tell Gao Zhijian and the others to stop preparing for battle. Against a Siming, no number of mortals will suffice. If we want to fight him, we need another Siming."

At that moment, the Dice interjected, "Don't look for Jizai. I told you, he’s busy and has no time for this. Think of something else."

Fire surged in Li Huowang’s heart. "That’s the second time you’ve said that! No need to repeat yourself! My ears aren't that dull! If you have time to spout nonsense, you’d better think of a solution!"

Though the Dice had indeed helped once, his cavalier attitude made it seem as if he were merely here to spectate.

Hearing this, the Dice chuckled again, his body shrinking until he vanished from the spot, his voice fading into the air.

"Red Center, this attitude of yours won't do. We of the Sit-and-Forget Path must be open-minded. A day spent unhappy is the same as a day spent happy; why live with such heavy burdens? Even if you die in the next moment, you should be laughing in the one before."

"Look at that! Look at his attitude!" Li Huowang, suppressing his rage, pointed into the empty air.

Li Sui did not answer; she seemed to be digesting what Li Huowang had just told her. After a while, she turned to the pacing Li Huowang and said, "Father, I have a way to deal with Zuo Qiuyong. Perhaps we could try it."

"What?" Li Huowang stood still. He was about to ask, but immediately realized what she meant. "Are you talking about that previous method? Stuffing the innate qi and divine light from other Heart-Sustainers into my body? To bring my cultivation to perfection?"

Li Sui nodded. "Yes. It wasn't possible before because we lacked those who could touch the heavens and the Dao from the Tianchen Kingdom, but now we have them."

As she spoke, several figures approached the entrance. They were the 'Speak-Not' army, their heads strung together by tentacles like candied haws, swaying as they walked toward Li Huowang.

Li Huowang looked at the army with a complex expression; it seemed that while he was away from Great Qi, Li Sui had captured quite a few.

He said with a heavy heart, "But we still don't know what it looks like once the seven wheels of cultivation are perfected, or if it will be enough to match Zuo Qiuyong’s strength."

There was another hidden danger Li Huowang did not voice. Although the path to power lay before him, he felt a lingering unease.

He had not forgotten the time he could not distinguish truth from falsehood, and that was only with two wheels. If he perfected all seven, then perhaps, as Li Sui said, everything he thought and imagined would become reality.

The stronger this power, the greater the side effects.

Back then, he had borrowed the Red Center from beneath Qingqiu to barely balance the cultivation of truth and falsehood. If he elevated the 'true' part and broke that balance, heaven only knew what the consequences would be.

Yet, if he did not use it, and Zuo Qiuyong truly came to Great Liang, judging by their previous encounter, it would be a slaughter without suspense!

"How will we know if we don't try? Besides, there is no other way now, is there? Father, don't belittle yourself. He is a Siming, but are you not a Siming as well?"

"Also, Father, I know what you are worried about. Cultivating truth without falsehood leads to madness. When that time comes, we will kill the Dice and graft the 'false' part within him onto you; that will naturally solve the problem."

Li Huowang looked at Li Sui with a complex expression, thinking of her changes. The Sui Sui who once lived in his belly would never have said such things.

"Sui Sui, are you hiding something from me? If there is something, remember to always discuss it with me."

Li Sui nodded gently, her voice soft as ever. "Alright. Then, Father, will you try this method?"

Li Huowang pondered for a moment, then nodded firmly. "Yes! We are backed into a corner; we have no choice but to try!"

In his mind, he recalled Zuo Qiuyong’s expression—like a cat playing with a mouse—and a fierce killing intent burned in his eyes.

"Come then! Let’s see whose life is tougher!"

Only one chapter today, I truly have no inspiration. Three chapters tomorrow.

(End of chapter)