Chapter 537
Chapter 537
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 537
>Chapter Title: Great Qi
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> “Brother Li, head east first.” Hands clasped behind his back, Zhuge Yuan looked up at the surrounding mountains and rivers as he spoke to Li Huowang.
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> “Got it.” Li Huowang nodded, leading Li Sui onward, crossing mountains when they appeared and fording rivers when they blocked the way.
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> “Left full, right bowed—this path is blocked. Head two li west.”
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> Li Huowang did as instructed, though a sliver of doubt lingered in his mind. “Brother Zhuge, isn’t the Supreme Irrigation Mouth fixed in one spot?”
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> “Of course not. The Supreme Irrigation Mouth is a living thing that moves, and it’s extremely adept at escaping. Fortunately, its movements stir changes in the surrounding feng shui. As long as we use the Metal-Dividing Water-Fixing technique, we can trace it through the mountains and rivers.” As Zhuge Yuan spoke, he pinched his fingers and gazed up at the stars overhead.
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> “Got it.” Li Huowang nodded and fell silent, pressing on with head down.
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> He had to admit, having Zhuge Yuan as a guide put his mind much more at ease—especially in this unfamiliar land of Great Qi.
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> Under Zhuge Yuan’s lead, they wound their way along until it was well into the latter half of the night. Li Huowang stepped into cracked rice paddies and halted, eyeing the distant town dotted with faint lights.
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> The town looked sizable enough; finding an inn to stay the night shouldn’t be an issue.
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> He glanced at Li Sui, who was on all fours to his left, then turned to Zhuge Yuan. “Brother Zhuge, let’s call it here for today and get some rest.” With that, Li Huowang headed toward the town with Li Sui in tow.
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> “Brother Li, rest well tonight. By my calculations, we should catch up to the Irrigation Mouth tomorrow.”
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> “Good. Here’s hoping all goes smoothly.”
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> It had been some time since he’d arrived in Great Qi. The surroundings weren’t terrible by any means, but Li Huowang couldn’t shake the persistent unease gnawing at him.
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> He wasn’t sure if it was his heightened senses warning him or not. Even without encountering anything amiss, he never let his guard down.
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> The town drew nearer, and Li Huowang’s sharp nose caught the scent of burning firewood.
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> Guards stood at the gate, but they seemed hardly diligent, huddled around a bonfire and slurping soup from their bowls.
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> They didn’t so much as lift an eyelid as Li Huowang approached.
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> He passed smoothly into the town. He’d planned to find an inn, but there wasn’t one open—not a single shop at all. The place felt eerily desolate.
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> With no other choice, Li Huowang followed the firelight to a doorway, intending to beg a night’s lodging. A stove had been set up in the modest courtyard, where a man with a white cloth wrapped around his head stirred something in a large earthenware pot.
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> Hearing Li Huowang’s footsteps, the man adding firewood to the stove turned his head.
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> He was a fair-skinned man, and the fragrance wafting from him sparked suspicion in Li Huowang’s heart.
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> “Daoist, what do you need?”
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> The man stood, eyeing Li Sui warily—the hulking figure clad in a rain cape behind Li Huowang.
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> After a quick scan of the man, Li Huowang’s unease deepened. The fellow had bound feet!
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> A grown man with feet half the normal size, tottering on those three-inch golden lotuses—it made Li Huowang’s skin crawl.
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> Seeing the man reach behind him for something, there came a sharp “clang!” as Li Huowang drew his sword and pressed the blade to the man’s neck.
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> “What are you doing!!”
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> “Brother Li! Brother Li, no need to get worked up. This is Great Qi—you don’t have as many enemies here as in Great Liang. He’s just one of the male prostitutes.”
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> Only then, hearing Zhuge Yuan’s calm explanation, did Li Huowang understand. In Great Qi, men who sold their bodies were divided into different trades, and those with bound feet were one such variety.
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> As Li Huowang sheathed his sword, the man—who had pissed himself—collapsed to the ground, trembling and kowtowing frantically.
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> “Hero! The silver’s all at the bottom of the chest! It’s yours—please spare my life!”
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> Li Huowang spotted the red handkerchief tucked into the man’s waistband.
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> “I’m not a bandit here to rob you—I just want a place to stay the night! Get up! I’m crashing here tonight. Here—keep the extra as a tip!”
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> Li Huowang hauled him to his feet and slapped a few fragments of silver into his palm.
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> “This... this...” While the man floundered, Li Huowang shoved open the door and stepped inside.
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> The room was small and simply furnished. For someone in his line of work, the place was surprisingly clean.
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> His eye caught two colorful clay statues on the altar to the left, drawing his attention.
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> The long ears and three-lobed mouth on the figurines prompted Li Huowang to turn to the man. “What are these that you worship?”
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> The bound-footed man gave a bashful smile. “Answering the hero, sir—they’re the Rabbit Lord. Everyone in my line of work prays to the Rabbit Lord.”
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> “Heh, figures.”
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> The night was deep now, and Li Huowang had no intention of chatting further. He meant to seize every moment for rest.
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> He climbed the stairs to the second floor, barricaded them with a cabinet, then lay on the bed and shut his eyes.
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> Beside him, Li Sui coiled into a round pancake shape. Her eyes were closed, but her ears swiveled left and right, alert to every sound around them.
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> Time ticked by. Li Huowang drifted into sleep as the crackle of burning firewood continued outside the window.
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> Dawn crept in. Just as sunlight hit the window, Li Huowang snapped his eyes open—footsteps approached from outside.
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> Li Sui had beaten him to it, already crouched at the window and peeking through a crack.
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> “Dad, some people showed up outside—like that guy, with white cloths on their heads. They talked secretly.”
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> “They finished talking, he added more firewood to the stove, and then they all left together.”
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> Li Huowang rolled out of bed and grabbed the weapon from under his pillow. “Time to go. I figure he’s off to report to the authorities.”
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> “Mm.” Li Sui nodded and followed him downstairs.
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> The bound-footed man was gone, leaving only the stove still bubbling away.
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> “This guy just boiled it all night?” Pondering that, Li Huowang stepped out the gate, ready to leave the town behind.
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> But as he passed through the town, he noticed every household boiling something. He couldn’t help frowning.
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> “Brother Zhuge, is this some custom in Great Qi?”
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> “Great Qi has no such custom. Brother Li, what’s the date? Is it the Dragon Boat Festival? I recall zongzi need to boil a full day and night.”
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> Li Huowang took a deep breath and shook his head. “No, the scent of bamboo leaves would be strong—I’d smell it if it were. Whatever, let them do what they want, so long as it doesn’t get in my way.”
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> With that, Li Huowang quickened his pace, leading Li Sui toward the town gate.
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> But just as he neared it, a vast array of steaming stoves blocked his path. “What the hell is going on??”
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> He also saw crowds carrying heavy earthenware pots toward the outskirts of town.
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> (End of chapter)