Mutated Tao

Li Huowang understood Chan Du’s intentions.

Chan Du wanted him to recognize the value of the Great Qi. Indeed, the Great Qi was very useful, and if Li Huowang had control over it, his supply of False Qi would be endless. However, it was not what he wanted.

Li Huowang gradually relaxed his furrowed brows. “Stop trying to win me over. Once again, I’m not helping them because they’re useful to me—I just couldn’t stand to see people starve.”

With that, Li Huowang walked through the crowd and headed toward the You Capital amidst their shouting.

“Of course, I know that Zhuge Yuan is compassionate. However, it’s our honor to assist Zhuge Yuan.”

“Feeling excited now?” Li Huowang turned back and glared at him, but Chan Du was still calm. Li Huowang ignored him and continued forward.

“I know what you’re trying to do. Stop trying to win me over with these tactics. I’ll repeat myself—the matters of the Great Qi should be resolved by the people of the Great Qi! I won’t involve myself with the Dragon Veins!”

“Benefactor Li, there’s no need for you to handle the Dragon Veins. Still, it would be a good opportunity to kill two birds with one stone, as the enemies from the Diamond Realm actually came.”

Li Huowang stopped again and looked at Chan Du, whose face had completely healed by now. “What do you mean by that?”

“Since we’re already mortal enemies, when we invade the Diamond Realm and seize a few Dragon Veins, I’m sure the Buddha will not blame us either.”

“Huh?” Li Huowang was surprised. He had previously turned Chan Du away when he tried to discuss the matter of the Dragon Veins.

He hadn’t even imagined Chan Du would have such ideas.

The Great Qi’s Deputy Chief, Liang Yuxuan from the Minglun Hall, hurriedly added, “Daoist Li, that’s great! This way, the Great Qi and the Great Liang can be completely bound together! It’s not something that can be easily bought off with just food!”

“Do you think that seizing the Dragon Veins is as simple as just talking about it?” Li Huowang replied. He quickly came up with a solution in his mind. It was feasible—Gao Zhijian had once been the Great Qi’s Dragon Vein, yet he could still serve as a Dragon Vein in the Great Liang.

“Benefactor Li, since the Great Qi rightfully belongs to you, any Dragon Veins seized by the Great Qi will belong to you. Once the Dragon Veins are in your possession, you will have the freedom to extract as much Dragon Qi from them as you desire.

Li Huowang stopped in his tracks, looking at Chan Du with a hint of amusement. He reached out and snatched the Buddhist beads that Chan Du was spinning in his hands.

“Abbot Chan Du, you usually seem inconspicuous, but you’ve been gathering a lot of information behind the scenes.”

Chan Du joined his hands in prayer, closing his eyes slightly as he said, “Amitabha, I am but a humble monk. I don’t know what Benefactor is referring to.”

“Indeed, you don’t know, and of course you wouldn’t.” Li Huowang slapped the Buddhist beads onto Chan Du’s chest. He then drew his spine sword, slicing open a rift and slipping into it.

Chan Du placed the Buddhist beads back in his palm and slowly spun them again. “Amitabha. Heaven has the virtue of benevolence.”

***

It was late at night. Zhao Wu held a lantern and leaned on a cane, wobbling down the path in Cowheart Village with a letter in hand.

A peddler who had come to stay had just delivered the letter, which had been sent from Qing Qiu. The only person who could’ve written a letter from Qing Qiu to Cowheart Village was naturally that kid, Sun Baolu.

Zhao Wu wanted to find a well-lit area to read the letter and check on Sun Baolu’s situation.

Their relationship was closer than that of real brothers since they had escaped from the Zephyr Temple together. It was normal for them to care about each other. Zhao Wu was now able to read and had no difficulty reading letters.

As he was about to reach home, Zhao Wu suddenly felt a strong urge to urinate. He looked around and immediately headed to the outhouse with his lantern.

After he relieved himself, he exited the outhouse. The light from his lantern illuminated the nearby woodshed. He spotted a flash of green between the wooden planks, making his heart skip a beat.

“What’s this? Why is there something green in the woodshed?” He raised the lantern again and knocked, but the green color disappeared.

“Could it... could it be haunted...?”

Zhao Wu thought it over and felt something was off. “No, how could there be ghosts on Senior Li’s territory?”

Mustering his courage, he used a stick to pry open the wooden door and cautiously held the lantern up in the woodshed.

The next moment, Zhao Wu froze in place. A pitch-black ghost dressed in a bright red and green ceremonial outfit was floating in the air.

“Ghost!” Zhao Wu’s terrified scream echoed over Cowheart Village.

Zhao Wu was paralyzed with fear. When he finally managed to turn around and desperately tried to escape, Puppy appeared before him.

“Is there really a ghost?”

Zhao Wu quickly grabbed Puppy’s clothes and clung tightly to his back. “In the woodshed! Hurry up! There’s a ghost in ceremonial clothing!”

Puppy, who had just been fearful, immediately relaxed and walked toward the woodshed. “Oh, is that it? You startled me.”

“Don’t go! There’s a ghost!”

“Don’t pull me. That’s not a ghost. It’s just the ceremonial outfit I hung up.”

Puppy took out the bright red and green ceremonial outfit from the woodshed, which had gold coins painted on it.

He showed it to Zhao Wu. “See, this is the ceremonial outfit. I bought a coffin since Senior Li almost died once when we were traveling, and the shopkeeper threw this in. This thing was left over since he didn’t die later on. It cost quite a bit at 120 coins, so I kept it in case it could be used later.”

Zhao Wu erupted in anger. “You! Why did you leave it here? You should’ve kept it at home!”

“Oh, keeping it at home would be unlucky, so I put it in the woodshed. It’s no big deal. The kids who cook every day are used to it.”

“Burn it right now!” Zhao Wu looked disgusted. He tried to grab the ceremonial outfit, but Puppy pulled it away.

“No, no. How can you throw it away? I paid for it myself! If Senior Li doesn’t need it, whoever dies in the village later can use it first,” Puppy said, running outside with the ceremonial outfit.

Puppy ran ahead, and Zhao Wu chased after him.

Zhao Wu moved slowly with a cane, which meant was unlikely to catch up with the able-bodied Puppy. Unexpectedly, Zhao Wu caught up quickly and grabbed the ceremonial outfit.

However, he quickly noticed that something was wrong with Puppy. He was trembling, and his pants were wet. He had wet himself from fear.

“What’s wrong with you?” Zhao Wu raised the lantern and followed Puppy’s gaze. The moment he did, he felt a chill all over. If he hadn’t just visited the outhouse, he might have wet himself too.

In the dimly lit village path, a dirty, tattered sack filled with something was hopping toward them.

There were many things inside, and it was bulging.

The sack was soaked with blood and filled with dismembered corpses.