Chapter 561
Chapter 561
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 561
>Chapter Title: Transaction
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Facing the command of Great Liang's National Advisor, even though these people had received Ji Lin's imperial decree, none dared to act the slightest bit presumptuous.
"Yes, this lowly one obeys." In an instant, everyone around scattered, not daring to linger.
Seeing the man's tremendous authority over these people, Li Huowang felt a twinge of unease in his heart, mentally calculating how he'd handle it if the National Advisor turned on him.
If it really came to that, he'd probably have no choice but to rely on Cultivator Zhuge Yuan to fight for him.
As Li Huowang thought this, Huangfu Tianguang tucked his Constellation Sword into his sleeve and walked up to him empty-handed.
"If you're waiting for the Celestial Supervisor, you might be waiting a good long while—he's tied up with some trifles. How about this: I'll handle Dice for you, and this illusion is mine."
"Hmm?!"
Both Li Huowang and Shangguan Yuting were stunned. He truly hadn't expected the man to say something like that.
From the looks of it, the National Advisor was angling to steal the Celestial Supervisor's prize. Were these two at odds behind closed doors?
"What's the matter? You think the Celestial Supervisor can deal with Dice, but I can't? What nonsense. Dice is just good at slipping away. Once I know his location, crushing him to death would be child's play with one hand!"
Li Huowang pondered this carefully. He'd already gleaned some information from the man's actions. First off, he hadn't simply snatched it outright, which meant he didn't want to antagonize the Celestial Supervisor too severely.
Secondly, the secret of the Shangji Pouring Mouth held immense appeal for both the Celestial Supervisor and the National Advisor.
Having weighed the risks and benefits, Li Huowang looked at the National Advisor once more.
"The Celestial Supervisor has done me a great favor. This arrangement leaves me uneasy."
Huangfu Tianguang eyed Li Huowang up and down with puzzlement.
"You're that loyal to her? How come I never knew? I recall you don't even hold a post in the Heaven Monitoring Division."
Li Huowang pointed toward the eyes covering Shangguan Yuting's head.
"There are plenty of these things. If the National Advisor could spare one more for me, it'd ease my mind."
If he had two such secrets, he could use one to track Dice and the other to find Miao Miao.
Since the National Advisor had made the offer, now was the time to press his advantage.
Hearing Li Huowang's words, a look of understanding crossed Huangfu Tianguang's face.
"I see. Very well—a good general doesn't starve his troops, and this 'grain' isn't mine to begin with."
With that, Huangfu Tianguang formed a hand seal with one hand and muttered under his breath. After circling Shangguan Yuting once, he pointed straight at Li Huowang.
One of Shangguan Yuting's eyeballs flew out at once, merging into Li Huowang's shadow.
He then swept his broad robe, and Shangguan Yuting vanished just like that.
It was clear he was quite pleased with his gains, reaching out to pat Li Huowang on the shoulder.
"Since you've taken this, you know what to say when the Celestial Supervisor returns and asks where these things went, right?"
Li Huowang's mind raced before he slowly nodded.
"I understand."
Whether the Celestial Supervisor would hold it against him upon returning to find Shangguan Yuting gone and nothing gained—Li Huowang couldn't worry about that now.
Ji Lin was on the verge of ascending the throne. Until he rescued Miao Miao, he couldn't rest easy for a moment.
"Mm~~ A promising youth." Huangfu Tianguang nodded in satisfaction.
"National Advisor, when do we set out to hunt Dice?" Li Huowang asked, his tone laced with urgency.
"Right now."
Hearing the man's utter confidence, Li Huowang headed straight for a river down the mountain.
To activate the secret of the Shangji Pouring Mouth required using a water surface reflection.
As he rushed to the riverbank, Li Huowang glanced at the National Advisor shrinking distances beside him and couldn't resist asking,
"National Advisor, Dice is such an irredeemable villain—why aren't you or the Celestial Supervisor in any hurry about him?"
This question had weighed on Li Huowang's mind for ages. Finally, he had a chance to voice it.
"Hmph hmph. The Dice who schemed to seize the God Mountain Ghost Eye has already been slain. What does killing another one accomplish? Sitting and Forgetting Dao is like the grass of Qingqiu—burn it down once, and it grows back."
"Just wound Sitting and Forgetting Dao badly enough. These days, the world has far bigger headaches than them."
"Sitting and Forgetting Dao dies off, only to sprout anew after a time?"
Li Huowang's eyes bulged. Even in his "red" memories, he'd never heard anything like this.
"As long as one person in this world still tells a lie, Sitting and Forgetting Dao can never be rooted out."
At those words, Li Huowang jolted inwardly, as if grasping something, and glanced up at the bright, sunny sky overhead.
This world was far stranger than he'd imagined, with much he still didn't understand.
A winding forest stream appeared before Li Huowang. With Dice's demise so close, his breathing grew labored.
He bent down and scooped a bowl of water from his reflection, the eye reflections within swaying side to side with the current.
Li Huowang drew a deep breath, silently recited Dice's location in his mind, then lightly patted the water onto his forehead.
In an instant, he shuddered as if doused head to toe in cold water. The next moment, all sounds vanished—no rushing stream, no birdsong, not even the National Advisor's heartbeat.
In their place, Li Huowang gained another viewpoint—a eunuch's viewpoint.
It belonged to a young eunuch who, after burning incense with his godfather in the treasure chamber, followed deferentially as they exited.
Spotting the grand hall outside, Li Huowang realized it instantly: this was Great Liang's imperial palace! That young eunuch was Dice!
Li Huowang's eyes snapped open, his body swaying unsteadily. The new viewpoint hadn't vanished; instead, it overlapped with his own!
Everything from both perspectives merged into chaos, but Li Huowang had no time for that. He turned to the National Advisor.
"Dice is inside the palace! He's a young eunuch handling the ascension ceremony!"
"Haha, how intriguing. This thing actually works."
Delight crossed Huangfu Tianguang's face as he yanked the Constellation Sword from his sleeve with his right hand.
"Go!" Great Liang's National Advisor hurled the sword skyward and stomped its hilt hard. The blade streaked northward, trailing afterimages.
But that was just the start. Huangfu Tianguang seized Li Huowang's collar and bounded fiercely across the treetops, catching up to the sword and mounting its flat.
Sword underfoot, he bore Li Huowang swiftly toward the capital.
The shifting dual perspectives, combined with Li Huowang's top-heavy disorientation, left him dizzy and muddled.
Yet the sensation soon faded; Li Huowang was adapting to the dual views.
By then, the pair had reached the skies above the capital.
"National Advisor! Dice is fleeing—he knows you're here!"
"Hmph! He won't get away!" The National Advisor stomped the sword hilt, and the Constellation Sword flipped up into his grasp.
He thrust the blade skyward, and with a "crack," thunder boomed from the clear sky.
Heavenly lightning struck the dozens of altars ringing the palace, igniting the purple scriptures in their wooden basins with thunderfire.