Hong Zhong

Chapter 738: Hong Zhong

Beside a massive, tilted pillar, Li Huowang stared at the Hong Zhong before him. He stared at the Zuowangdao, listening to the story the man was telling him.

After Hong Zhong had poured out everything inside him, Li Huowang’s expressionless face paused for a moment before he spoke. “You’re putting on an act, right? At a time like this, is this really amusing?”

At Li Huowang’s words, Hong Zhong froze for a few breaths. Then, with a vigorous wipe of his hand, his melting face reformed into the colors of Hong Zhong. The impassioned expression from moments ago had vanished without a trace.

“Not bad, Li Huowang. You actually saw through it. You’re not stupid after all.”

Everything Hong Zhong had just said had been an act, a ploy to toy with him the same way one might fool a child.

After everything he had been through, Li Huowang hadn’t forgotten what this man was. He was Zuowangdao.

Even if he was also Li Huowang, he was still Zuowangdao. Any word that came out of a Zuowangdao’s mouth could be a lie.

“I saw through it because I put myself in your shoes. I realized that if I were in your position, I wouldn’t break down over something this petty. Besides, you repeat yourself every hour on the hour. What do you have to break down about?”

“Ha! I suppose you’re right. Tell me, what’s it like out there? I’m about to suffocate in here.”

Hearing this, Li Huowang’s brow gradually furrowed. The Hong Zhong before him was still Li Huowang, but this was a different strand of his experiences, one created by Doumu.

It seemed that after this strand of experience had been peeled away from his body, left without a beginning or an end, his personality had become far more extreme.

Seeing that Li Huowang wasn’t taking the bait, Hong Zhong pressed on. “Surprised to see I still exist, aren’t you? The True-and-False Heavenly Law was taken from Doumu, yet I haven’t disappeared. Want to know how I managed it?” There was a distinct smugness in his voice.

“I was supposed to disappear. But I couldn’t accept it, you know?” Hong Zhong leaned in closer to Li Huowang.

Li Huowang took a step back. “I don’t want to know how you exist. I’m not interested. Time is short, so I’ll make this brief. I came here because I’ve run into a problem, and I need—”

“Wait, wait, wait, hold on a second. Can you let me finish first? Do you really think I’m just some insignificant NPC you can skip past whenever you feel like it? Is this the attitude of someone asking for help?”

When he saw that Li Huowang was looking at him silently, Hong Zhong nodded with satisfaction. “Good. Now, come and see my story.”

He turned and led Li Huowang around to the other side of the pillar.

When they reached the other side, Li Huowang saw that the mountain-like pillar was covered in dense rows of carved characters.

He moved closer and realized it was his own handwriting. Clearly, Hong Zhong was using this method to record what happened beyond the one-hour loop, substituting it for his own memory.

Li Huowang stepped up and read it carefully. When he was done, he turned to look at Hong Zhong.

“The only reason you haven’t disappeared is because you’re propping yourself up with Kui Lei’s Heavenly Law of Death?”

A smug expression spread across Hong Zhong’s face. “That’s right. The True-and-False Heavenly Law is gone, but I still have a fragment of a Heavenly Law inside me that I can use: Death. I’m using that piece to scrape by.”

“In here, I’m stuck in a one-hour loop, but it’s still better than being gone. Besides, as long as I still exist, there’s always a chance. See? Haven’t I gotten my chance now?”

“So, tell me. Why have you come looking for me? And what can you offer?”

“I can take you out of here.” As Li Huowang said this, his eyes were fixed on Hong Zhong. Yet he found that, faced with this tremendous temptation, the other man’s face showed no expression at all. It was as if he were listening to a story about someone else.

“Taking me out? Is that for my benefit or yours?”

“It’s a win-win. For both of us.”

If he could obtain Hong Zhong’s memories, he would immediately grasp the full picture of the Zuowangdao’s art of Cultivating the False.

“Why would I want to leave? I’m fine right here. I don’t see a win-win.” Hong Zhong’s tone was utterly indifferent.

Clearly, both of them were Li Huowang. Whatever Li Huowang considered, Hong Zhong had already considered it too. “I don’t have a physical body. Even if I got out, I’d just become a fragment of your memory. How is that any different from being in here?”

“So, you’re just going to keep waiting? Waiting for generations?”

“Doesn’t matter. I can wait. After all, my memory only lasts an hour, so I’m not afraid of going mad from the long wait.” Hong Zhong looked at Li Huowang with a mocking glint in his eyes.

“I can wait. Can you? Even if you haven’t said it, I can tell your business is urgent. You’re going to have to sweeten the deal.”

“Cut the act! There’s a huge problem out there right now! Think about Bai Lingmiao and Li Sui! Do you want them to be in danger?!”

At these words, the cynical smile on Hong Zhong’s face slowly faded. “What’s happening out there?”

Seeing that the man across from him was finally taking things seriously, Li Huowang gave him the short version, relaying everything that had happened since.

“Right now, I’m Cultivating the True but not the False. I’m carrying a ticking time bomb by my side. Forget protecting anyone; it could hurt the others at any moment. I need to resolve this, and fast.”

Hearing this, Hong Zhong fell silent, his head bowed in contemplation.

“Is this something you need to hesitate over? What the hell is there to hesitate about?”

“Tch, what’s your rush? I’m not hesitating over whether to leave or not. ‘Cultivating the True without the False leads to qi deviation’—that was The Dice himself who said that. Do you think I can just use this without thinking it through?” Hong Zhong was clearly deeply suspicious of this as well.

“I’ve thought about it. Even the worst-case scenario from Cultivating the False is better than my current situation.” Li Huowang had once truly hated the Zuowangdao, even hated these liars to the bone.

But everything is relative. Compared to the Fa Sect, who wanted to destroy heaven and earth, the Zuowangdao, who only cheated people to death, suddenly seemed a lot less hateful.

Hearing this, Hong Zhong shook his head. “Heh heh. You don’t understand the Zuowangdao. You don’t understand The Dice. I’m Hong Zhong. I know them.”

“If this really is a setup by Boss Dice, then what he’s scheming for from us is much bigger than a pittance. Don’t think you can let your guard down just because he’s dead now.”

“A Zuowangdao, as long as one of his cons still exists, hasn’t truly died.”

Hearing this, Li Huowang couldn’t help but frown. “You suspect…”

“I suspect this is an opener. You know what an opener is? It’s underworld slang from the Manual of Deception. It means the beginning of a big con.”

“The opener of a con is usually not the con itself. It might even benefit the mark. Like on a gambling table, the little bit of sweetness you feed the new mark when they first sit down.”