Setting Off

“You’re helping a Siming fight against Yuer Shen?”

Li Huowang stared at the Xuanpin before him, disbelief etched into his face as he repeated the words to confirm he hadn’t misheard.

This news—it was far too shocking for him to process quietly.

Hearing Li Huowang’s question, Xuanpin said nothing. He simply stood there, silent.

“Which Siming are you helping? In the White Jade Capital right now, which Siming is moving against Yuer Shen? What’s the actual situation?” Li Huowang pressed him with rapid-fire questions.

But once more, Xuanpin did not utter a single word.

“Are you going to talk or not? You throw out a hook and leave me here to ask myself questions—is that fun for you?”

This time, Xuanpin finally spoke. “This is all I can tell you. Think about what I said before. If you know too much, you’ll be touching karma.”

Hearing this, Li Huowang felt a dull, frustrated pressure in his chest, like punching a sheet of iron.

“You? The Sitian Jian can meddle in a fight between Simings? I find that hard to believe.” Li Huowang’s eyes were thick with suspicion as he sized up the Xuanpin before him.

“Heh. From the way you talk, you think you know me well? Or do you think you know the Sitian Jian well?”

“I’m not looking down on you, but what you’re saying is just too outrageous.”

No matter what, these were Simings. He had seen a Siming before. Li Huowang could not picture Xuanpin being of much use in a battle over the Heavenly Law.

“Just because you haven’t seen it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Since we oversee the heavens, we have our own methods. Besides, with the Fa Sect trying to destroy the world, naturally other sects are unhappy with them. They aid us openly and in secret.”

Seeing that Li Huowang was about to open his mouth again, Xuanpin swept his long sleeve. “Alright. Enough has been said. This is not something you should be dwelling on.”

“What you should be thinking about is this mission. Only if everyone does their part and fulfills their duty can we resolve this enormous trouble.”

Li Huowang cupped his chin, brows deeply furrowed, and thought for a long moment. Finally, he extended a finger toward Xuanpin.

“One last question. How are things up there? Are we winning, or is Yuer Shen winning?”

“It depends on how well you do on this mission. If you succeed, Yuer Shen won’t have many days left to play.”

“You don’t need to doubt me. Even if I’m keeping some things close, we’re on the same side. Besides, I gave you the Rotating Light Mirror. Such a valuable treasure, handed right over to you—that should be enough to show my sincerity.”

“Okay, how many times are you going to say the same thing? Who else is coming on this mission besides me?”

“Some capable hands.” Xuanpin pulled a Sitian Jian identity token from his robe and handed it over. On it were two bold characters: Bing Marshal.

Li Huowang knew the Sitian Jian had its own ranking system. Regardless of the details, this token was orders of magnitude higher than the Geng Banner rank he had once held.

“No one will be in charge of you this time. They all follow your commands. If you told them to die, they would not refuse.”

Li Huowang took the token, his gaze cold as he looked at the Xuanpin before him. “Where are they now? When do we set off?”

Xuanpin extended his withered hand and gently tapped the Rotating Light Mirror floating beside Li Huowang. “Go here. When you arrive, someone will explain things to you.”

Li Huowang looked at the bright spot on the mirror, said nothing more, turned, and walked in that direction.

Xuanpin called out to Li Huowang’s retreating back as he disappeared into the bamboo grove. “Don’t worry. If you really run into danger, I will step in and bring you back.”

Li Huowang felt that, when it came to matters of his own life, it was better to rely on himself.

After all, last time he was inside the Earth Dragon’s belly, this guy hadn’t lifted a finger. It wasn’t like he had suddenly learned that particular trick right now, was it?

“Mm-hmm, I got it. Alright, I’m hanging up.” Li Huowang’s finger pressed the red button on the phone. A beep, and the call ended.

“Who was that?” Yang Na took a sip of her bubble tea and asked Li Huowang.

“Who else? The grad student. He wants us to come over. It’s probably still about what Zhao Lei asked.” Li Huowang answered while keeping a sharp eye on the bustling street around them.

“Okay, let’s grab the stuff and head over.” Just then, her eyes lit up. She shoved her drink into Li Huowang’s hand and ran off toward a girl with a ponytail in the distance.

“Wifey! Long time no see, did you miss me?” Yang Na chirped excitedly to her best friend.

But the ponytailed girl clearly wasn’t as thrilled. She looked uneasily at Li Huowang in the distance, who was drinking the bubble tea.

Even though Li Huowang had deliberately worn sunglasses today and changed his clothes, Yang Na’s “rocky romance” was something she had followed every step of the way. There was no way she wouldn’t recognize him.

“Mengmeng, the stun guns?”

Yang Na took the small bag from her friend’s hand and opened it, revealing several high-voltage stun guns still in their packaging.

After his last experience, Li Huowang had come to understand the importance of weaponry. He couldn’t get anything illegal, but he would naturally stock up on anything that wasn’t.

Zhang Xiaomeng pulled Yang Na further away from Li Huowang. Her tone was sharp, as if disappointed in a promising student. “Tsk! Last time I went through all that trouble to buy you a stun gun, do you or don’t you understand who it was for? Why are you still tangled up with him? Stockholm syndrome?”

“What nonsense are you talking about?” Yang Na gave her a light punch. “Huowang is better now.”

“Better? That’s not okay either! He’s killed people! With your qualifications, what kind of boyfriend couldn’t you find? Why do you have to pick someone who had a mental illness?”

“Ugh, it’s really complicated…” After some hemming and hawing with her friend, Yang Na finally managed to convince her to leave. She picked up the bag and walked back.

Li Huowang handed the milk tea back, took the bag, opened it, looked inside, and nodded with satisfaction. “How much?”

“Not much, a few cups of bubble tea’s worth. You don’t need to pay.”

“Wasn’t going to pay for it myself, and didn’t expect you to either. This stuff is for them. It should be that bastard Qing Wanglai covering the bill.”

“Oh, really? Okay.” Yang Na sipped her tea and linked her arm through Li Huowang’s.

“Don’t have to ask for the original price. You can pad it a bit. That guy’s loaded.”

Hearing this, Yang Na leaned against him and laughed out loud. But even as she laughed, there was a hint of worry in her eyes.

Things were getting more and more complicated. She was truly afraid that everything was about to spiral completely out of control.

They scanned two shared e-bikes and set off toward Orange Island.

If there was one silver lining to this whole mess, it was this: as long as Li Huowang had Yang Na with him in public, no one asked too many questions. Young lovers dating was the most justifiable cover there was.