The Daoist

Chapter 240: The Daoist

Li Huowang had never imagined that, in order to eat the heirless inheritance, people would actually deliver their own kind to a malevolent spirit. Behind the seemingly playful name of this “Rope Spirit” was such an absurd custom.

“With so many people delivered to its doorstep, that Rope Spirit must be quite pleased, right?”

“Naturally. The moment it sees an old person coming, its demeanor shifts—it couldn't be more genial. If it had hands and feet, it would be grinning from ear to ear, offering tea.”

Li Huowang chatted idly with Han Fu, and as they spoke, the distance between them narrowed. At least on the surface.

“Daoist Han, how much longer until we can leave this place?” Li Huowang asked, looking at the darkness receding on either side.

“Kah—ptui!” Han Fu spat on the ground. “Soon. Just remember one thing: in this Fengdu, if you want to get out, don’t go down. Go up. The higher you climb, the closer you get to the surface. When you reach the very top, even if there’s no road, you can just drill a hole and be out.”

“Fengdu?”

From this man, Li Huowang finally learned the name of this nesting series of dark caves beneath Qingqiu.

He lightly tapped the ground with his foot, feeling the slight incline beneath his shoe, and felt a small measure of relief. “He’s right. We are going up.”

“Ahh, these days, everything is a chore. I thought becoming a Daoist would be easy, but even being a Daoist is exhausting. Right, Xuanyang?” Han Fu yawned, stretching his arms high over his head.

“You’re not wrong, Brother. To be alive in this world is to be exhausted by everything,” Li Huowang replied with a perfunctory nod.

It’s been a long time since I last heard that little girl’s voice he was arguing with. But he doesn’t look worried at all. Could it be she’s not dead? Li Huowang’s eyes darted to the sides, sweeping the surroundings.

Though their relationship had warmed slightly, and they had shared a moment of danger under the threat of the Rope Spirit, Li Huowang still did not trust him.

“Look over there. We’re almost there.” Following Han Fu’s pointing finger, Li Huowang saw a faint, blurry white dot in the distance. It looked like the weather outside was decent.

Seeing the exit, the tension in Li Huowang’s group eased. After circling this long, they were finally at the end.

Staying in this sunless place for so long, even just glimpsing that bit of light from afar lifted everyone’s spirits considerably.

Under Han Fu’s guidance, Li Huowang and his people, carrying the Black Tai Sui on their backs, trudged toward it.

Even on the verge of leaving, Han Fu’s mouth wouldn’t rest. “Hey, Brother, do you know about that Heavenly Calamity before? I hear the commotion was enormous. Everyone was fighting, practically a bloody soup, and then it all stopped because of the calamity.”

“Naturally. Decay vanished completely,” Li Huowang said, turning to count his people. Seeing that no one was missing, he felt a little more at ease.

“I remember the last time a Heavenly Calamity happened, I was three years old.”

Li Huowang was staring intently at the growing white dot, but these words made his pupils contract sharply. He was instantly riveted by the information. “Wait—has the disappearance of rot happened many times before?”

This news shook Li Huowang to his core. He realized that after all his time in this damn place, his understanding of the world was pitifully small.

Suppressing his agitation, Li Huowang softened his tone. “Brother Han, I have no memory of the last Heavenly Calamity. Could you enlighten me?”

“You don’t know? I figured you did. The last time, I heard, Lies disappeared. Now that was something!”

“My master told me that when that happened, those Zuowandao swindlers were so frantic they wanted to kill themselves, hahaha!” Han Fu laughed with genuine glee at the memory.

“Lies disappeared?” Li Huowang found it hard to imagine what kind of world that would be. Everyone only spoke the truth?

Just as he was about to press for more, Han Fu spoke first.

“Hey, Xuanyang, have you any idea what causes a Heavenly Calamity?” A smug, showy pride crept onto his face.

“Daoist Han, do you know?”

Han Fu shifted his cloth shoes a little closer to Li Huowang and lowered his voice to a near whisper. “I’m only telling you, so keep it to yourself. This is from my master—he said—”

The moment Li Huowang’s heart leaped into his throat, Han Fu’s right hand darted across his face.

With a faint pa-tap, the copper coin mask on Li Huowang’s face came loose and fell toward the ground.

Li Huowang caught the mask with his hand almost instantly, but it was already too late. His face was fully exposed before Han Fu.

Han Fu stared at Li Huowang’s features. First, a look of understanding crossed his face, then it was replaced by a hint of smugness.

“I was wondering what it was. Turns out it’s a Heart-Element.” The sharp voice of a young girl suddenly emanated from his body.

Then, to everyone’s shock, a baby’s head, the size of a fist, poked out from inside Han Fu’s collar.

On the infant’s sparsely-haired scalp sat the same square, yellow Daoist crown with the Taiji symbol that Han Fu himself wore.

A Daoist in yellow robes, but with two heads—one large, one small. The sight was deeply unsettling. No wonder he hadn’t cared about the appearance of Dog-Whelp and the others. He was far stranger than anyone in Li Huowang’s group.

Seeing this, Li Huowang’s face twisted with rage. So that’s who had been talking to him in the darkness all along!

“Daoist Han, what is the meaning of this? Do you really think the Qingfeng Temple has no one?” Li Huowang’s hand was already on his sword hilt. He had no desire to start a conflict with this man of unknown strength.

“Heh heh~” Han Fu’s two mouths—one large, one small—grinned simultaneously, revealing rotten, yellow-and-black teeth. “Since you’re a Heart-Element, what do you think I mean?”

“Yeah, guess. Go on, guess,” the smaller head chimed in.

As he spoke, Han Fu formed a hand seal with one hand and pressed it against his chest. In the next instant, the darkness behind him seemed to gain substance, wrapping around him like layers of gauze.

He’s trying to kill me!

With a metallic clang, Li Huowang drew his longsword in a flash and slashed at Han Fu’s lone, exposed eye.

The darkness had barely enveloped Han Fu when Li Huowang’s blade struck, cleaving the shadowy mass in two.

But he was too late. The split darkness was empty. Han Fu was gone.

“Boy~ since you’ve come to Fengdu, you might as well stay.” Two overlapping, mocking voices rang out from all directions.

Li Huowang scanned the surrounding darkness. His eyes locked onto the distant glow of the exit. Without a moment’s hesitation, he barked at the others, “Move! Get out of here now!”

Whatever Han Fu’s purpose in hiding within this darkness, Li Huowang’s group had to get out of this cursed place. In here, they were at a total disadvantage.