Chapter 524
Chapter 524
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 524
>Chapter Title: Letter
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When Li Huowang learned from Zuyi that the Heaven Surveillance Division had invited the Ao Jing Cult to join forces against the Sit-Forget Dao, he immediately realized that seeking a solution from them this time had been a mistake.
If the Ao Jing Cult truly had a way to counter the Dice, the Dice wouldn’t have had the leisure to threaten him.
Li Huowang, sitting on the bench, let out a light sigh and said to Zuyi in front of him,
“Alright, you can go. The grudge from that night is settled. From now on, you go your way, and I’ll go mine.”
Hearing this, Zuyi froze for a moment, his voice carrying a hint of tension as he spoke,
“Great Elder, what about the secrets to ascending the steps...”
“There are no secrets!!”
Li Huowang seemed to recall something, his emotions starting to flare up with irritation.
“Do you know just how agonizing and despairing the ultimate pain of body and mind truly is!! For something like that, you masochists actually rush headlong toward it! Get out! Get far away from me!”
Amid Li Huowang’s curses, Zuyi slowly retreated into the courtyard. He looked at Li Huowang sitting on the bench inside the room, pondered for a moment, then slowly spoke,
“Great Elder, have you run into some trouble today?”
“As the Great Elder of the Ao Jing Cult, if there’s any disciple within the cult who can be of assistance, please command us without hesitation.”
Li Huowang shook his head and impatiently waved his hand at him.
“You can’t help. If you could, you would’ve already.”
Hearing this, Zuyi said no more and turned to leave the courtyard.
But just as his hand grasped the wooden door latch, a voice emanated from within his wide cloak.
“Elder, what this disciple is about to say may be overstepping, but all the troubles of the mortal world pale into illusion compared to the agony of ascending the steps.”
“As disciples of the Ao Jing Cult, we should focus our energies on the proper path as soon as possible.”
Li Huowang had no interest in arguing with the ravings of these self-torturing lunatics. He turned his back and ignored him.
“Great Elder.”
“What the hell is wrong with you!!”
Li Huowang whipped around, his hand gripping the sword hilt, only to unexpectedly see Zuyi bending down to pick up a pale yellow envelope from the ground.
“Great Elder, it seems there’s a letter for you.”
“A letter?”
The suspicious Li Huowang walked over, took it, and looked at the envelope.
“Since you have personal matters to attend to, this disciple will take his leave. If there’s any important news from the temple, I’ll send a dedicated person to report it to you. After all, you are the Great Elder of the Ao Jing Cult.”
However, Li Huowang paid no attention to Zuyi’s words at that moment. His eyes were fixed unblinkingly on the contents of the letter.
“Bai Lingmiao? Bai Lingmiao, who was kidnapped by the Dice, wrote to me?!”
With a slight tremble in his fingers, Li Huowang quickly tore open the envelope and pulled out the letter paper.
“Senior Brother Li, are you doing well? I’m truly sorry for not contacting you for so long.”
“I actually wanted to reach out to you much earlier, but they wouldn’t allow it. I can’t write who ‘they’ are—probably they’d change it if I did—but they’ve treated me well and haven’t mistreated me.”
“After I left, you must’ve searched everywhere for me. Senior Brother Li, don’t worry. I’ll be back soon—it won’t even take the two years you mentioned. In a little while longer, I’ll be able to return. Oh, and the persimmon cakes here are very sweet. I’m sending some to you. From your wife, Bai Lingmiao.”
“Two years? Two years? How does Bai Lingmiao know about two years!” Li Huowang’s pupils contracted slightly as he was instantly pulled back to that earlier moment.
Through the wire mesh, speaking to Yang Na as she was carried away by her father.
“Yang Na, wait for me! Give me three years! No! Two years! Just give me two more years!!”
“That’s right! No mistake! Bai Lingmiao left me at that exact time. Yang Na back then was actually the projection of this world’s Bai Lingmiao! She was carried away by someone at that moment!”
Gripping the letter in his hand, Li Huowang paced excitedly around the room! This letter carried profound significance!
It meant that perhaps the Dice hadn’t kidnapped Bai Lingmiao at all!! He’d been deceiving me from start to finish!
This was an exhilarating hypothesis. However, just as Li Huowang’s thoughts spiraled further, a raggedly dressed little beggar poked his head in from the doorway, his face full of apology.
“Boss Hongzhong! Oh man, I’m so sorry, so sorry. I was so focused on delivering the letter just now that I nearly forgot the persimmon cakes.”
He carried a bamboo basket with his filthy hands and panted as he walked in.
As soon as the little beggar set down the basket, he familiarly approached Li Sui.
“Hey, pleased to meet you! You must be Boss Hongzhong’s dog? I’ve heard so much about you.”
Li Huowang looked at the envelope in his hand, then at the little beggar chattering away to Li Sui. The excitement in his heart rapidly cooled.
“What’s the meaning of this? Does the Dice think I’ve been making too many moves lately and sent this letter to give me a warning?”
“Or maybe the Dice is bluffing! Bai Lingmiao really isn’t with him!!”
“Peng!”
Li Huowang reached out with one hand, grabbed the little beggar by the neck, and slammed him against the wall.
Without asking the man’s name, Li Huowang directly drew his dagger and peeled back his facial skin.
After flipping through several faces, Li Huowang saw a winking Nine Wan staring back at him.
“What exactly are you trying to do!!” Li Huowang asked through gritted teeth.
“Hey, what else could I be doing? Just delivering a letter, that’s all. I really didn’t steal any of those persimmon cakes—there were only that many to begin with.”
“Don’t worry, if you won’t tell the truth, I’ll make you tell the truth! Whether it’s the Ao Jing Cult or the Sit-Forget Dao, I’ll get it out of you! Pick one!”
As Li Huowang gnashed his teeth and spoke, he opened the torture kit at his waist.
Amid the clanging of metal, Li Huowang suddenly noticed something off about the mocking smile on the other’s face.
When he quickly released his grip on the throat, Nine Wan slumped limply to the ground, motionless. He was dead.
—————
“Sir, we’re just a theater troupe. Nothing worth checking here. Look, it’s all just costumes. Heh heh heh.”
Lv Zhuangyuan explained with a fawning smile to the city guards conducting the inspection.
However, the capital’s city guards didn’t even bother glancing at him. After rummaging through the carriage and leaving everything in disarray, they coldly flung the travel permit at Lv Zhuangyuan’s face.
Lv Zhuangyuan hastily caught the travel permit with both hands and carefully tucked it away. This thing had to be kept safe—in Great Liang, you couldn’t take a single step without it.
More importantly, it was left behind by the young Daoist priest. Losing it would be a real loss.
Once he cautiously slipped the travel permit back into the pocket sewn inside his undergarment, Lv Zhuangyuan led the others through the thick barbican.
As soon as they passed the barbican, the sight before them dazzled everyone’s eyes. This was the capital, the largest city in all the realm.
Many marveled at the towering wooden buildings lining the streets, and were especially astonished by the capital’s utterly distinct architectural style compared to other places.
(End of chapter)