Chapter 288
Chapter 288
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 288
>Chapter Title: Blind Man
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Chapter 288: Blind Man
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> In the dim, oppressive temple thick with the scent of sandalwood, Li Huowang stood before three mud statues, pondering the question in his mind. “Is the voice real or illusory?”
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> They had just entered the village, and the Sit-Forget Daoists hadn’t even shown up. Instead, he had confused himself.
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> As Li Huowang continued mulling over the issue, the door was suddenly pushed open from outside. The gray-haired temple priest stuck half his head in, lantern in hand, the dim candlelight illuminating everything inside the temple.
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> By the faint glow of the lantern, he scanned the interior of the village temple, paying special attention to the rafters.
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> Yet after looking all around, he found no sign of anyone.
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> “Strange, no thieves, so why’s the lock broken?” The suspicious temple priest circled around once more before pulling out a hemp rope to tightly bind the tiger-headed door knocker.
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> He was about to head back inside to sleep, but after second thought, he still felt uneasy. So he fetched a mat from within and lay down right at the temple’s entrance. “Sigh, now there shouldn’t be any thieves, right?”
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> Li Huowang, who had been inside the temple earlier, naturally wasn’t locked in—he had slipped out long ago and was now silently watching the temple priest’s every move from the rooftop nearby.
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> But aside from that one sound earlier, everything else seemed perfectly normal.
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> If not for the letter stating that traces of the Sit-Forget Daoists were truly here, Li Huowang might have thought this was just an ordinary village.
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> If he had passed through here while traveling before, he probably would have overlooked it entirely.
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> Thinking back to that earlier voice once more, Li Huowang’s brows furrowed even tighter.
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> “This won’t do. I can’t even trust my own senses right now. I still need to bring Bai Lingmiao and the others in to see if they hear any voices.”
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> With that thought, Li Huowang didn’t hesitate any longer. He leaped down from the roof and headed toward the village outskirts.
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> The night village was very quiet. Aside from faint distant barking dogs, there were no other sounds.
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> On the narrow winding path, fireflies danced up and down amid the grass by the walls. Li Huowang walked along this road, but the further he went, the more something felt off.
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> It wasn’t the sharp sensation of being watched, but some indescribable feeling.
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> Glancing back with his peripheral vision, there was no one behind him.
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> “What? Someone’s spotted me?” As he walked, Li Huowang suddenly pressed his back against the nearby mud wall and slowly edged toward the previous corner.
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> In his invisible state, he moved steadily but swiftly, hand already gripping his sword hilt, ready to slash at anyone around the bend.
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> Closer, getting closer. Li Huowang’s heart pounded faster.
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> In that instant of turning, Li Huowang took a deep breath, lips pressed tight as he began to draw his sword—only for a yellowish mud wall to appear before him.
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> Staring at the wall, Li Huowang felt as if his clenched fist had slammed into cotton—frustratingly futile.
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> As Li Huowang tried to turn, a pair of iron-like hands clamped his arms firmly in place.
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> “How is that possible? I’m clearly invisible right now! How did he spot me?!” Before Li Huowang could dwell on it, a voice came from behind. “Shh~ Don’t move! Keep them occupied a bit longer. Lure out more.”
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> The voice was whisper-low, but it sent Li Huowang’s heart racing to his throat. He stayed put as instructed, his mind racing to identify the person behind him.
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> “Sigh, bad luck. They ran again.”
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> The moment the grip on his arms released, Li Huowang’s first move was to whirl around toward the speaker.
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> By the faint glow of the surrounding fireflies, Li Huowang saw a blind man.
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> This was a gaunt old blind man dressed in a wrinkled black robe, feet in worn cloth shoes. Aside from the bamboo basket on his back, the only other thing he had was the yellowed bamboo staff in his hand.
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> His milky-white eyes were topped by a black melon cap, and the sparse goatee below his mouth didn’t lend him any air of immortality—instead, it added a touch of sleaziness.
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> Seeing his appearance, Li Huowang understood why the man had detected him so easily: he was blind to begin with.
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> As Li Huowang sized him up, the man was observing Li Huowang in turn—not with his eyes, but with his nose.
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> “Heavy scent of blood on you. You’re from the military side? Name’s Chen—friends can call me Blind Chen if they don’t mind. I’m a Ren trooper with the Celestial Watch Division.” An iron token identical to Li Huowang’s appeared in his hand.
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> “No, this junior is an Ao Jing Cult cultivator, Er Jiu. My rank is Internal Division Gui trooper. Greetings, Senior Chen.” Li Huowang pulled out his own token.
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> Hearing this, realization dawned on the man’s face. “Oh~ So you’re from the Ao Jing Cult. Since you’re here, you must be the reinforcements I’ve been waiting for, right?”
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> With that, he tapped his staff rapidly on the ground and strode quickly toward the village outskirts.
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> “Come on, walk and talk. I got here before you, so I can fill you in on some things first.”
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> Li Huowang smiled and followed behind him.
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> “Senior Chen, have you been handling things here alone? Could you tell me what’s going on in this village? And what were those ‘they’ you mentioned earlier?”
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> “Don’t know what they are exactly—that’s what we’re figuring out. All I know is those things can move through the mud. Just now, they spotted you and were about to make a move.”
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> “Is that so? These evil beings are tricky this time.” Li Huowang responded calmly in agreement.
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> “Who says otherwise? These earth-burrowing fiends—who knows what they look like? But that’s exactly why we get paid.”
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> “By the way, kid, since you’re the Internal Division reinforcement, you must have some special skills, right?”
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> “You joke, Senior Chen. I’m nothing special—just your average Ao Jing Cult practitioner with the usual tricks.” As Li Huowang replied, his eyes never left the man’s.
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> “Heh, well said. Everyone knows Ao Jing Cult folks are no pushovers. It’s just that your rituals need hard-to-find catalysts. Right, you here alone?”
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> “Yeah, just me. You alone too, Senior Chen?”
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> “Yeah, same as you—just me. Heh.” After Blind Chen said that, the two fell silent and continued toward the village outskirts.
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> Once outside the village, they began talking again.
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> “So you’re saying there’s still no way to deal with them yet, Senior Chen?”
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> Sitting on a moss-covered stone, Blind Chen sighed. “Who’d have thought Blind Chen would ever need to call for backup? You know I’m blind—those mud ghosts are like eels, impossible to catch. Even if you nab one, that’s all you get.”
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> “Sigh, right, Er lad. Got any ideas to force them all out for this situation?”
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> At this, Blind Chen’s tone brimmed with confidence. “Just figure out a way to flush them all out, and leave the rest to me. I may be blind, but if it comes to a straight-up fight, Blind Chen ain’t scared of them!”
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> (End of chapter)