Death (For the Guild Leader, masx)

“Brother Li! What are you doing?!” Seeing Li Huowang mutilating himself, Bai Lingmiao ran over, heart aching, and grabbed his left hand, which was bleeding profusely.

His face twisted in pain, Li Huowang shoved her away and roared, hysterical, his eyes bloodshot.

“Why can’t you just let me be quiet for once?! Why does something always have to happen in this godforsaken place?!”

The dagger embedded in his palm was pulled out, only to be viciously stabbed back in again. This time, it pierced all the way through.

Startled, Bai Lingmiao froze for a few seconds before lunging forward and snatching the dagger from his hand, flinging it far away.

Then she spread her arms and wrapped them tightly around the man before her. “Huowang, don’t! Please!”

The moment he heard her voice, Li Huowang went still. He closed his eyes, trembling, and slowly buried his face in her soft embrace.

Gradually, Li Huowang calmed down.

He loosened his hold and looked at Bai Lingmiao again. Taking a deep breath, he said, “Alright, I’m fine now. Where are the others? Have you seen anyone else?”

Hearing this, Bai Lingmiao silently nodded. Her eyes were slightly red as she pulled Li Huowang toward the island’s edge.

Soon, on the shore, he saw the other human ingredients.

There had been seven adults and five acolytes. Now, only six adults and three acolytes remained. And not all of those who were left could even move.

Bai Lingmiao, her grief-stricken lips trembling and blue from the cold, said, “Junior Brother Sun is a better swimmer than me. We tried our hardest to pull people out of the lake, but we only found these. And… the Fool drowned too.”

Li Huowang stood before the group, staring at the Fool’s face, purple from suffocation. Another human ingredient had the same pallor. So did one of the acolytes.

Two were missing, and three had drowned. In one trip, twelve people had easily become seven.

Li Huowang hadn’t known them well. But regardless, they were companions in life and death within Qingfeng Temple.

When they rested, he’d heard them talk about home. About the days they’d reunite with their families once they returned.

Now, it all ended abruptly. They died for nothing.

His face dark, Li Huowang paced along the shore, staring at the drowned men. The negative emotions from earlier had vanished without a trace.

“Bang!” Li Huowang kicked a bloodied, mangled head, sending it flying. “Damn it!”

He’d lost his mind just now! Feeling remorse for a bunch of murderers!

He wished these human dregs could come back to life, just so he could kill them all over again, one by one!

“They deserved to die!! Their whole families should die!”

Just as Li Huowang’s emotions threatened to spiral again, a man who had been barely noticeable stepped forward. His voice was filled with guilt as he spoke to Li Huowang. “Brother Li, I tried to grab the Fool, but he was too heavy. I couldn’t hold on.”

Li Huowang recognized him. He was the Senior Brother Sun that Bai Lingmiao had mentioned was a good swimmer. His name was Sun Baolu.

Li Huowang frowned, looking at the man who was soaking wet and shivering like a drowned rat. “Don’t stay here. Head to the stockade and find the kitchen. Get a fire going.”

Things were what they were. Saying more was pointless. With so few survivors left, he couldn’t afford to lose any more to the cold.

The group carried the bodies of their companions, slowly making their way into the stockade.

The entire reed stockade was splattered with blood and strewn with corpses. Dark red blood pooled everywhere, sticky underfoot.

The others exchanged glances, as if they had questions, but Li Huowang didn’t want to explain.

Turning another corner between the various buildings, Bai Lingmiao gasped and immediately hid behind Li Huowang.

The formerly imposing Yuan Family Ancestor was there, his head wedged onto a bamboo pole, mouth agape, eyes wide with死不瞑目, filled with unwillingness.

“Did I put him there? When did I kill him?”

Bewildered, Li Huowang tried to recall but found no memory of it. There were simply too many dead.

After searching for a while, they finally found the kitchen. The iron wok was lifted off the stove, and firewood was tossed inside to form a campfire.

Everyone gathered around it to warm themselves, hoping the flames would drive the cold from their bones.

Li Huowang didn’t join them. He stood in a corner of the kitchen, silently watching the stiff, purple-tinged faces before him.

Finally, his gaze settled on the Fool’s round, honest face. Li Huowang hadn’t expected him to die, too. That loyal, simple-minded Fool.

He was so innocent. Honestly, even the acolytes were more mature than he was.

“I shouldn’t have kept calling you Fool. I should have at least given you a proper name. It would make writing your tombstone easier.” Li Huowang muttered, staring at the corpse.

The moment he said it, he saw the Fool, whose body was already stiff and purple, suddenly snap his eyes wide open.

“Corpse rising!” Shocked, Li Huowang jumped back and immediately drew his sword again.

As the others scrambled for weapons, the Fool, his face blank, opened his mouth wide. “Ooough~”

Clumps of foul-smelling black lake mud mixed with lake water poured out of his mouth in great heaves.

Once his stomach was empty, the Fool lay on his side, gasping for breath. His complexion quickly regained color.

“My god, Brother Li! You can even raise the dead? How did you do that?” Dogwa ran over, delighted, and helped the Fool sit up.

Li Huowang ignored him, rushing to the other drowned victims to try and revive them. Maybe they were like the Fool, not dead, just unconscious from choking.

But unfortunately, the Fool’s case was unique. After working on them for a while, none of the other drowned bodies showed any sign of returning to life.

Still, having one come back was a good thing. The group crowded around the Fool as he warmed himself by the fire, fussing over him. The atmosphere in the kitchen was no longer as oppressive.

Under everyone’s concerned gaze, the Fool stewed for a long time before finally getting out a sentence. “I… I… I’m hungry!”

“Hungry? Then we’ll eat meat! I saw pigs being raised here when I came in! I’ll go butcher one right now!”

Dogwa grabbed a cleaver from the chopping board and hurried out.

Soon, the iron wok was back on the stove. Once the water boiled, large chunks of fatty pork were thrown in to cook.

After a while, Xiaoman sprinkled in some salt, and the air was thick with the aroma of meat.

Everyone had been busy all night, and not just the Fool was hungry. Li Huowang pulled out his longsword, speared a large piece of fatty pork from the wok, and tore into it like he was eating a piece of fruit.

As he chewed the pork, Li Huowang’s mind was still on other things. “A bandit stronghold this big has to have more to offer than just pork.”