Chapter 55
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 55
>Chapter Title: Healing
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“Come, come—take a look, take a look. Are these goods to Daoist Master’s satisfaction?” Zhu Dexi said, pointing at the items spread across the ground.
A chaotic pile of junk lay before Li Huowang—mostly rusted swords and sabers, with a few bottles and jars off to the side.
“What is this stuff? All rusted scrap metal.” Gouwa crouched down and immediately began haggling.
“Don’t look at the rust—grind them a bit and they’ll still work. If I really had divine weapons, would they end up in my hands? Don’t you agree?”
Li Huowang ignored the blades. His gaze settled instead on the bottles and jars.
He crouched halfway and examined them one by one. None had any labels.
“This Daoist Master truly has an eye for quality—spotted the good stuff right away.”
Zhu Dexi squatted beside him, but the bloody stench from Li Huowang’s clothes forced him to shuffle back two steps.
Even so, he only grew more eager.
“Daoist Master, the one in your hand is good stuff. It’s called Half-Step Fall. Just a tiny bit mixed in water, and the person will collapse after taking half a step. Not expensive—three taels of silver per bottle.”
“Oh! Sharp eyes! This one’s also a treasure—Crane’s Crown Red. Just a fingernail-sized amount sends someone straight to the underworld. Five taels a bottle.”
“Yes, yes! This one’s even better! Take one pill and you’re guaranteed to last through the night with two women! Lord Liu of Wolfhead Mountain ordered this one. If you want it, I’ll prioritize you—but you’ll need to add a bit more silver.”
Li Huowang stood up impatiently. “How come everything’s a treasure in your mouth? Enough. I’ll take the first two. Gouwa, get the money from the cart.”
“Daoist Master is generous!” Zhu Dexi beamed so hard his eyes disappeared. “You really don’t want this one? I’ll give you a discount. You might not need it while you’re young, but when you’re old? Good things never hurt to have—after all, lineage matters.”
Li Huowang ignored him and turned to the others. “Each of you pick a weapon. Better to have one than not.”
At that, aside from Bai Lingmiao and Xiaoman, the men who had been itching for this all stepped forward eagerly.
Li Huowang tucked the two bottles into his robe and glanced at Lü Zhuangyuan, who had been watching the show.
“Master Lü, not buying something for self-defense?”
Lü Zhuangyuan quickly shook his head. “No need. If I carry no weapon and bandits catch up to us, at worst we lose money. But if I carry a weapon and still can’t win—then I lose my life.”
“Heh. Master Lü thinks things through. Everyone has their own way of living.” Li Huowang climbed back onto the donkey cart and lay down.
Once the crowd dispersed, each of Gouwa’s group held a weapon. Whether they knew how to use them was another matter—but at least they looked far more intimidating now.
As they excitedly compared blades, Bai Lingmiao approached with needle and thread in hand.
Her expression worried, she began stitching up the tears in Li Huowang’s Daoist robe with red thread.
“Senior Brother Li, all these odds and ends cost us over half our silver. We only have five taels left.”
“We travel year-round. We need tools for self-defense.”
On the surface, Li Huowang had his Daoist bell and could perform blood sacrifices to summon Dan Yangzi. He shouldn’t need mundane weapons.
But truthfully—
Li Huowang did not trust himself.
He feared that one day the Black Tai Sui’s stabilizing effect would vanish and he would sink back into hallucinations he couldn’t escape.
If that happened, and no one stood beside him—
he would be nothing but a lamb awaiting slaughter.
“Senior Brother Li, these blades only work against bandits. If we could learn the divine arts Dan Yangzi once used, we’d fear nothing,” Gouwa said regretfully, resting a saber on his shoulder.
“You want to learn? Would anyone teach you? Besides…”
Li Huowang recalled Dan Yangzi refining pills from human bodies, and Abbot Zhengde’s grotesque methods of “cultivation.”
“Even if they were willing to teach you, as an ordinary person—you might not dare to practice those arts.”
Though he hadn’t seen much of the world yet, Li Huowang already had a premonition:
Other factions in this world likely weren’t much better than Dan Yangzi.
Gouwa chuckled and nudged the one-armed man beside him. “Come on. Let’s find a coarse stone by the stream and sharpen these.”
The tall fool stepped forward like a wall blocking the light. “I—I…”
“Stop stammering. You can’t handle blades. Practice your club. That thing makes best use of your strength.”
Li Huowang lay back down.
This small interlude ended, and the two groups resumed their journey.
Days passed.
Aside from occasionally stopping in villages so Lü Family Troupe could perform, they were mostly on the road.
Li Huowang’s neck gradually healed.
Standing beside a water vat, he tilted his chin up and studied the scar in the reflection.
“Not bad. If I lower my head, it’s barely noticeable.”
He turned and rubbed Bai Lingmiao’s pale head.
“Why the long face? Has something happened?”
“Senior Brother Li, with people eating and donkeys chewing… after replenishing grain and feed, we only have one tael and three hundred forty-five copper coins left.” Bai Lingmiao counted on her fingers.
“So little already?”
Li Huowang stepped out of the farmhouse courtyard where they were staying and headed toward the Lü troupe’s stage.
“It could’ve lasted longer. But you made them practice weapons every day. They’re exhausted and eat more. Since the fool got that wooden club, he eats two jin of flour per meal! Two meals a day—that’s four jin!”
“Well, it’s not a firewood stick. If we bought it, we have to train. At the very least, they must learn to slash and thrust.”
Practicing daily was different from merely carrying a blade for show.
When facing enemies, if they smeared poison on the edge—
even ordinary men could become dangerous.
Li Huowang watched the others helping dismantle the stage.
“But at this rate, we can only last another month before everyone goes hungry.”
“No money… that’s a problem.”
He stroked his chin and glanced toward the Lü troupe thoughtfully.
“They must’ve earned quite a bit on this journey. If we just robbed them all, wouldn’t that solve everything?”
The thought surfaced—
and Li Huowang froze.
Why did he think that?
Whatever else, Lü Zhuangyuan, though smooth-tongued, was upright. Why would he consider robbing him?
The good mood he’d had moments ago was instantly overshadowed by a layer of gloom.
(End of chapter)