Chapter 481
Chapter 481
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 481
>Chapter Title: Retreat
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Chapter 481: Retreat
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> In the peach grove thick with the stench of charred wood, Li Huowang didn’t dare walk too fast. The flesh and bone at his waist were still shifting, as if they might snap apart at any moment.
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> Seeing Li Huowang getting farther and farther away, anxiety crept onto the fat woman’s face.
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> “Hey, young man, I don’t want anything else! I just want those five years of pure yang lifespan from the reward! Name your price—I’ll buy it!!”
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> “Not for sale!” Li Huowang refused without hesitation. He was saving this side-effect-free lifespan to extend Bai Lingmiao’s short one.
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> The fat woman seemed reluctant to give up and trailed far behind. But when Li Sui appeared, crawling on all fours with bared white fangs and a threatening low growl, she finally stopped.
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> “Senior Brother Li?” Bai Lingmiao stared at the blurry black shape in the distance. Her soft voice held a hint of hesitation. It had been red just now—why had it turned black?
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> Li Huowang mounted the horse at once, enduring the excruciating pain throughout his body as he whipped the cart-pulling horse into motion.
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> “I’ll explain later! Someone’s got eyes on us—we need to get out of here fast.”
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> The cart raced down the dirt road through the night, not stopping for several hours until noon the next day. Only when the horse started foaming at the mouth did Li Huowang finally pull up.
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> Seeing no one following, Li Huowang let out a slight breath of relief. Whether the woman feared him or something else, at least she hadn’t dogged them relentlessly.
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> Having forced his battered body to hold out through the night, Li Huowang could endure no longer. His body slumped toward the curtain at the back of the cart.
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> “Miaomiao, I’m going to sleep. Don’t touch anything on the copper coin sword.”
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> The moment his head hit the soft fabric, Li Huowang lost consciousness.
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> This time, he slept for a long while. When he opened his eyes again, he saw Bai Lingmiao brushing something onto his charred body with a brush.
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> A light sniff told him it was badger oil for treating burns, from its distinctive smell.
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> “How long was I out?” Li Huowang’s words let Bai Lingmiao know he was awake.
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> “Senior Brother Li, you slept for three days. I stitched up the wound on your chest and the one on your waist with thread.”
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> “Oh.” Li Huowang suddenly remembered something and jolted upright in an instant.
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> Ignoring the splitting pain of torn skin and flesh, he reached straight for the copper coin sword beside him. Seeing no more black smoke rising from it, his heart sank.
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> “Senior Brother Li, are you looking for that invisible thing? I bought a wooden box from a peddler and put it in there for you.”
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> Carefully opening the wooden box, Li Huowang prodded gently into the empty space with the non-eating end of his chopsticks.
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> Feeling that strange resistance, he finally relaxed. The spirit fiend was still there.
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> “Senior Brother Li, are you hungry? I made some broth.” Bai Lingmiao lifted the curtain to leave, but Li Huowang held her back.
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> “I’ll serve myself. Don’t go near the fire like this—you might burn yourself again.”
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> As Li Huowang climbed down from the cart, the freshly scabbed blood crusts on his body cracked open one after another, blood seeping steadily out.
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> It still hurt a lot, but after so much, he was starting to get used to it.
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> Only after emerging from the cart did he realize it was night outside. Li Sui squatted by the campfire, holding a book and tracing something in the air with her vicious claws.
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> “Dad? You’re awake?” Li Sui looked up at Li Huowang.
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> “Practicing talisman drawing? Good, keep at it.”
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> Li Huowang patted her head lightly before picking up a bowl with one hand and scooping broth from the pot.
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> But just as he ladled up a bowl of hot broth, Li Sui stretched her head over and lapped at it rapidly with her tongue.
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> “What are you doing?” Li Huowang’s charred fingers curled, flicking her hard skull hard.
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> “Dad, can’t I eat? I always ate first before.”
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> Her words made Li Huowang size up Li Sui. It seemed Mantou’s memories and thoughts had merged into her mind.
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> “It’s fine, eat.” Li Huowang set the bowl in front of her.
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> Watching Li Sui lap up the hot broth furiously, Li Huowang said softly, “Li Sui, I’m hurt bad, and your mom’s almost blind. On the road ahead, you should help take care of things.”
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> “Sure, what do I do?”
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> “Wash clothes, dishes, make fire—or at least gather firewood if you can’t manage the rest,” Li Huowang said.
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> “Second Mom’s doing all that. If I do it, won’t she have nothing to do?”
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> “Second Mom?”
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> “Yeah, the Second Mom who likes wearing the red hat. I like Second Mom. We chat sometimes, quietly.”
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> “We also go out to catch meat to eat. One time we caught a really big piece of meat, and we split it—one half for each.”
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> “When did Second God get so close with Li Sui?” Li Huowang thought it over and realized it wasn’t a bad thing.
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> “Alright then. Help Second Mom out when she’s working.”
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> “Got it.”
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> Seeing Li Sui’s gaping maw and her black-tentacled tongue lolling to the left, Li Huowang smiled knowingly. He extended his left arm, pulling her head into his embrace and patting it gently.
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> “Thanks for helping back in the peach grove. Without you, that hit might’ve really done me in.”
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> Li Sui had no time to answer, drawn by the familiar scent. She extended her tongue, licking ceaselessly at the char on Li Huowang’s body.
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> “Sui Sui, is there anything you want to do?” Li Huowang asked softly.
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> “I want to stay by Dad’s side forever.”
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> “You can’t stay with me forever. After all, you’re my daughter, not a pet.”
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> “It’s okay now, but you’ll figure it out later. Think about it slowly, and when you do, tell Dad. I’ll see if I can help.”
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> “Dad, I don’t get it.”
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> “You will someday. For now, ladle some broth for your mom and take it over. Once we’re done eating, it’s bedtime. We’ve got to keep moving tomorrow.”
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> That night passed uneventfully. But when Li Huowang woke, he found the cart rumbling beneath him—he’d overslept again.
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> Pushing aside Li Sui half-draped over him, Li Huowang lifted the curtain and stuck his head out. He saw the cart amid a bustling market street.
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> “Looks like we’re in the city. Which one is this?”
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> Li Huowang pulled out the map and checked. This place was called Linzhang—not as grand as the capital or Silver Mausoleum, but still a decent-sized city.
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> “At this pace, we’ll reach the capital in ten days at most.” Li Huowang traced a faint black line on the map with his charred finger.
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> “Senior Brother Li, you’re awake? You looked exhausted. How about we rest here a few days?” Bai Lingmiao suggested.
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> Looking at her eyes, now almost entirely white, Li Huowang shook his head slightly. “Nah. Once I get you new eyes, we’ll head back to Oxheart Village and rest properly. No need for detours.”
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> That’s what Li Huowang said, and that’s what he planned to do. But if he wasn’t looking for trouble, trouble came looking for him.
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> That brazen gaze was impossible to ignore.
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> Looking up, he spotted the fat woman from the peach grove standing on the third floor of a fancy restaurant, smiling and cupping her hands toward him.
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> “Looks like I still haven’t shaken her…”
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>(End of chapter)