Chapter 626
Chapter 626
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 626
>Chapter Title: Merge
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His own back had inexplicably been injured.
When He Xinlai sensed something was off and turned to look, he found nothing behind him.
Taishan Stone, seated cross-legged in the earth, slammed his palms together heavily. Dust instantly billowed from the ground.
Amid the flying dust, an empty transparent human shape was outlined in stark relief—Li Huowang had just shifted his body out of the way.
The ground trembled faintly as the nearby woods burst apart. A bloated mass of flesh that was Buddha Ancestor, sprouting arms and legs, rolled out from within.
"Amitabha! Benefactors, the sea of suffering is endless—turn back to the shore!!"
"Quick! His reinforcements are here! No more holding back—kill him while he's blind!"
He Xinlai yanked the black cloth from his sleeve with one hand, then hurled it forcefully toward the sun overhead.
As the black gauze enveloped the sunlight, a vast area plunged into instant darkness, birthing a patch of heavenly calamity just like that.
"Godly soldier, huh!"
With Taishan Stone's low shout, Li Huowang instantly felt gazes from all directions. He could even sense the pull from Li Sui within his body.
"Dad, I feel so joyful!" Li Sui's tentacles began rapidly spreading through Li Huowang's body. This time, it wasn't parasitism—it was assimilation!
If he didn't resolve this immediately, he'd end up just like Mantou, fully fused with Li Sui!
"Bang!" The towering Peng Longteng blocked Li Huowang's left side. Li Huowang shouted inwardly, "Sui Sui! Hold on! Don't give in to your instincts! We'll get out soon!"
At that moment, the ground suddenly sank, and Li Huowang plummeted into the pit in the soil. From the darkness within, things lurked, wriggling their half-real, half-illusory bodies as they closed in on Li Huowang.
As Li Huowang struggled to defend himself in the dark with his copper coin sword for warding off evil and his purple-tasseled sword, He Xinlai nearby bided his time for a sneak attack.
Spotting Li Huowang's blind flailing expose an opening, He Xinlai swiftly cast a sword incantation and charged toward him, stepping on his own shadow on the ground.
But just as his longsword was about to pierce the other's throat, He Xinlai's vision blurred. The opponent steadily reached out and gripped the blade. "Hm?!"
At that instant, Li Huowang slowly raised his head. The punctured, blinded eye bulged out and rolled to the ground. A bizarre eyeball with double pupils gleamed vividly in the socket.
"Who'd you just call blind?"
His eye had indeed been blinded earlier, but he still had his daughter's eye to borrow.
He'd held off revealing it precisely to lure the enemy into this trap—and sure enough, the fool took the bait.
He Xinlai's heart sank. Without hesitation, he released his weapon and retreated into the darkness behind.
But he was too close to Li Huowang now; escape was impossible. Peng Longteng's massive frame blocked his path, and then tentacles surged from Li Huowang's body like an avalanche, engulfing him from behind.
"Taishan! Taishan Stone!"
He Xinlai bellowed for his ally to save him, but nothing happened. Sensing danger, the other had fled long ago.
Once a massive flying blade split apart the black hemp cloth shrouding the sky, everything returned to normal—and Taishan Stone never showed himself again.
As the others surrounded the He Xinlai ensnared by Li Huowang, the dust settled.
Gazing at He Xinlai before him—now reduced to a limbless trunk, all teeth yanked out—Li Huowang pulled out his torture kit and laid it open. "Let me do it!"
"No!" Buddha Jade Furnace rejected him outright. "We've finally caught a high-ranking Dharma Cult sorcerer. What if you accidentally kill him? I need to bring him back to HQ for professional interrogation."
"Heh, you looking down on me? I'm from the Sitting Still Cult!"
"Everything by the book."
"Cut the crap! When has the Surveillance Division ever played by the rules? You're just after those reward Yangshou Pills, aren't you? I worked in the Division too! Don't let a bit of petty gain let Taishan Stone slip away!"
Li Huowang was about to force the issue when he noticed even Hong Da and Liu Zongyuan siding with Buddha Jade Furnace this time.
"Ear Bro, don't be like that. This Great Qi Dharma Cult hasn't been around long—interrogating him won't take much time."
"What if we dig some crucial Dharma Cult intel from his head? We could wipe them out in one go."
"Ear Ninth, I know you've got plenty of Sitting Still Cult tricks, but for interrogations, HQ has experts better than you."
Li Huowang's brows furrowed as he scanned their faces. From their reactions, this guy clearly commanded a hefty bounty in the Surveillance Division.
Unless he killed them all, he wouldn't get to question the man.
"I must've been out of my mind back then, thinking of teaming up with you to save Great Liang. All you care about is your own gains!" In a fury, Li Huowang spun around, crouched low, and shoved his head into the dirt, hunting for traces of Taishan Stone's earth escape.
After a thorough search, Li Huowang finally spotted some clues.
Ignoring the Surveillance Division entirely, he meticulously traced the subtle shifts in the soil and doggedly pursued.
But soon, Li Huowang halted— a massive mountain loomed in his path.
Taishan Stone had clearly anticipated pursuit and burrowed into the mountain ahead of time. Unless Li Huowang could move the entire peak, it was hopeless.
"Ear Bro, don't be mad, heh heh~" Hearing the laugh behind him, Li Huowang didn't turn. "Spit it out."
"Ayy, we've known each other so long—gotta be like this? Back when we fought Heart Turbidity, we went through life and death together." Liu Zongyuan, wearing his wooden mask, grinned as he stepped in front of Li Huowang.
"This is great news! Why the long face? We kept a major sorcerer from escaping—alive, no less. That's a huge blow to the Dharma Cult! They don't have many of those."
Seeing Li Huowang's expression soften slightly, Liu Zongyuan pressed on. "No rush~ Rice one bite at a time, troubles one by one. We'll crush the Dharma Cult for sure. Don't stay mad at Remembrance Minister—just give me face."
Li Huowang drew a deep breath and slowly exhaled. "You know? If it weren't for wasting time, I'd really, really want to kill you all."
"Hahaha~ Ear Bro's such a joker." Liu Zongyuan laughed and reached to clap Li Huowang's shoulder, only to be blocked by the crisscrossing tentacles. "Ear Bro, time to retract the divine ability?"
"Sui Sui, pull back the tentacles."
". . ."
"Sui Sui?"
"Can't retract them, Dad. After going through that black sky, we're... kinda stuck together." Li Sui's voice carried a note of grievance.