Chapter 685
Chapter 685
-----------------------------------------------------------------
>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 685
>Chapter Title: Eight Sufferings
>-----------------------------------------------------------------
Li Huowang, eyes still closed, felt his strike hit home. He decisively raised the fire striker and slashed it across his own skin. Towering flames engulfed his entire body.
No matter what this thing was, with a body that massive, he had no choice but to go all out.
The blind Li Huowang directed the two arms on his body and over a dozen tentacles to seize the edges of the wound. With a furious roar, he yanked hard.
Amid the ripping sound, the fully ablaze Li Huowang plunged straight into the gash.
His three hands gripped three swords as he rampaged inside the creature, flames trailing in his wake.
He unleashed all his earlier pent-up frustration a hundredfold, a thousandfold onto whatever this abomination was.
Soon, he heard the sizzling of burning flesh, mingled with faint agonized dragon roars. The violent shuddering nearly forced Li Huowang's eyes open.
But the more it thrashed, the deeper he burrowed. When the pressure ahead suddenly eased, he realized he'd pierced it clean through.
The searing sizzle eventually turned to the roar of an inferno. Li Huowang felt his body plummeting downward.
The instant he hit the ground, Li Huowang opened his eyes. He caught sight of the sky's blanket of dark clouds turning to fiery sunset hues, vanishing at breakneck speed. He'd won.
"Water!"
With a splash, Li Huowang sank into the mud. Moments later, he spat out dirt and clawed his way free.
As he stood once more, the rain had stopped. The faint morning sunlight pierced through, shining on his charred black face.
The post-rain air was crisp and fresh. Whatever that thing was—dead or crippled—it seemed the ordeal was over.
The three monkey kids had never witnessed anything like this. They saw Li Huowang as a living god, dropping to their knees in utter reverence and kowtowing nonstop.
Li Huowang didn't care what anyone thought. His gaze fixed on the now cloudless expanse above as other matters weighed on his mind.
Whatever that thing had been, it clearly wasn't some ordinary evil spirit. Yet calling it a Si Ming felt off too.
If forced to categorize, Li Huowang thought it closer to the Joy God—or those entities beyond Bai Yujing.
The world wasn't just black and white, nor merely mortals and Si Mings. Plenty lurked in between.
"Yu'er God has even roped in things like that now?" Li Huowang's mood soured further. The enemy's reach seemed to grow in his estimation.
If even this remote backwater harbored such beasts, what guarded Later Shu's dragon vein?
Seeing everyone turn to him, Li Huowang shook his head.
"It's all over now. Let's rest. Everyone's exhausted after last night."
His words steadied them all, hearts dropping from their throats. They sprang into action—tending wounds, preparing food.
As steaming hot meals filled their bellies, the night's terror melted away.
Li Huowang peeled back Yang Xiaohai's bandages to inspect the injury carefully, then re-covered it.
"Have your wife change the bandages. They got soaked, and the wound's all pale and pruned."
"Senior Brother Li, this is nothing. Look at you..."
"It's nothing for me too. Worry about yourself."
Li Huowang returned to the campfire, bowl of noodles in hand, pairing it with grilled salted fish as he ate.
"Senior Brother Li, don't move. Let the Bai family heal you."
Bai Lingmiao grabbed her drum and began to beat it.
"I have no Nourishing Lifespan Pills left. Don't summon the immortals."
"Senior Brother Li, they're being reasonable now. No lifespan as payment needed. Thump thump thump!"
As Li Huowang shoveled food down bite by bite, he sensed something drawing near, something watching him.
He tensed up but kept his cool, using his chopsticks to pluck the belly from a braised fish, deboning the thick spines before placing it in Yang Na's bowl.
A sidelong glance out the window revealed Qi Dama. He exhaled in relief. Not them this time.
Yang Na, now more herself, noticed but said nothing. She just complimented Sun Xiaoqin on how much tastier her cooking was.
Sated, Li Huowang headed to his bedroom. He sat on the stool, his expression growing grave.
This couldn't go on. Not long after Yang Na took her meds, those stares had returned. He'd even locked eyes briefly, though he regretted not snapping a photo.
He didn't mind for himself, but he couldn't let it drag Yang Na or his mother down.
Li Huowang pulled out his phone and dialed.
"Hello, it's me. Any leads on those two severed fingers?"
"It's been so long, and still nothing? How complete is your database anyway? Two fingers, and you can't ID anyone."
"What do you mean 'bigger fish than fingers'? Let me say it again: I'm not crazy! Someone really is trying to kidnap me!"
Hearing the door open behind him, Li Huowang hung up and turned to Yang Na, who carried a fruit platter. His tone softened.
"How are you feeling?"
She shook her head gently, set the platter down beside him, took his hands in hers.
"Huowang, what's wrong? Is it the meds' aftereffects? Are they bad?"
"No way. Heh, not bad at all. Just thinking about stuff."
After a pause, Li Huowang spoke up.
"Na'na, I need a favor. Can you help?"
"Sure. What is it?"
"I have to go back to Kangning Hospital to visit an old friend. But I don't want Mom coming. Will you go with me?"
They were always hovering. No matter what, he had to meet Qian Fu face-to-face.
Crazy or raving as the man was, his words had rung true. The surveillance tampering, the threats—they were real. Li Huowang couldn't ignore that.
Yang Na asked no questions. If he needed her, that was enough. She hugged him lightly and nodded.
"Sure."
Slipping out while Sun Xiaoqin was away, Li Huowang set off with Yang Na.
But before they reached the complex gate, Qi Dama—hands on hips, flanked by two elders—blocked them.
"Little Li, where to? Where's your family?"
"To Kangning Hospital."
"What's a trip to the loony bin? Got a good reason?"
Her suspicious glare, like he was a criminal, made Li Huowang snap back.
"You know I'm a nutjob. Why else would I go? Checkup, obviously. That a problem?"
-----------------------------------------------------------------