In the Alchemy Room of Qingfeng Daoist Temple, Li Huowang stood frozen. His body was covered in his Master's blood, and he clearly hadn't processed what had just happened.
Are these three elixirs really that powerful? Did Master Danyang and I make elixirs, or were we making explosives?
He lay on the ground for a while before climbing back to his feet. Wiping his face with his hand, he bent down to rummage through the mess on the floor. He picked through the remains for a long time but found no piece of flesh that still moved. Even Master Danyang's copper bell had been blasted flat. Li Huowang finally breathed a sigh of relief; Master Danyang was truly and utterly dead, and by his own hand.
But he's dead… so what now? Li Huowang stood motionless, momentarily unsure of which way to turn. He had thought he would be overjoyed after taking his revenge, but now that the moment had truly arrived, he only felt lost. For days, every plan had revolved around killing Master Danyang. He had never even considered that he himself would survive. Now Master Danyang was dead, Bai Lingmiao was safe, and he had fulfilled all his promises. What came next?
Just as he was mulling over this question, the door to the Alchemy Room was suddenly pushed open. Changren and Changming walked in, each holding a longsword warily. After glancing around and finding no sign of Master Danyang, they fixed their suspicious gazes on the blood-soaked Li Huowang. "Halt! What demon are you? Speak! Where is our Master?"
"Master? You're standing on him. And it's me, Xuan Yang, Senior Brothers."
Changren and Changming instinctively looked down and lifted their feet. Some internal organs were strewn on the floor beneath them. In an instant, their pupils shrank to pinpricks.
Li Huowang glanced around and picked up half of Master Danyang's face from the floor. "See? He's really dead."
"I'm the one who killed him," Li Huowang said, speaking more to himself than to them.
"By rights, given how many people he's killed, he should have died long ago. But I didn't kill him for that reason. It was a personal matter."
Just as Li Huowang was about to explain his motives, Changming and Changren exchanged a glance. Then, without a word, they slid their swords back into their sheaths, turned, and bolted out the door.
"Hey, wait! Let me finish before you go!" Li Huowang called helplessly after them.
After shouting for a while with no response, Li Huowang gave a wry smile. He clutched his still-aching stomach as he walked toward the doorway.
"Scabby-Head is dead! He's dead! Come on out, everyone! You can all go home!" Li Huowang shook the flattened copper bell in his hand with all his might, shouting into the surrounding darkness.
It was the first day of the New Year, but the harsh ringing failed to summon any roaming lords. Instead, it brought out the apprentices and Medicinal Guides. When they saw the half a face in Li Huowang's hand, they went wild with joy, falling to their knees and kowtowing in every direction.
Li Huowang walked slowly through the cave tunnels, determined to deliver the news to everyone within Qingfeng Daoist Temple. More and more people joined his procession, and the crowd began to shout along with him: "Scabby-Head is dead! He's dead! We can go home!"
Just then, Li Huowang felt someone at his side reach out to support him. Turning his head, he saw Bai Lingmiao, tears of joy streaming down her face.
Li Huowang smiled at her, swinging the half of Danyang's face in his hand energetically. "Scabby-Head is dead! You can all go home! It's the New Year! You can all go home!"
"Yes! Senior Brother Li! You can go home too! We can all go home!"
Li Huowang's expression stiffened for a moment. He then resumed ringing the copper bell with all his might, his voice hoarse as he roared, "Danyang is dead! Come out, all of you! You can go home!"
But not everyone in Qingfeng Daoist Temple was so happy. As Li Huowang approached Master Danyang's quarters, he heard the clash of metal from up ahead. Li Huowang led the crowd over and found Xuan Yuan confronting Changming and Changren in Master Danyang's filthy quarters. Both sides were brandishing weapons, and the atmosphere was incredibly tense.
Li Huowang looked at the so-called Heavenly Book wrapped in strands of black Copper Coins, immediately understanding what they were fighting over.
"Senior Brother Xuan Yang! Quick! Help us kill these two accomplices of Danyang! We can share the Immortality Scripture!" Xuan Yuan, his face no longer friendly, urged Li Huowang.
Changming stomped his right foot forward, sliding it across the ground as he pointed his longsword at Li Huowang. "Get lost if you don't want to die! The Master taught you the Alchemy Dao! In a fight like this, do you really think you stand a chance against two Sword Dao cultivators like us?"
Li Huowang sighed, feeling helpless as he looked at the scene before him. "That's not an Immortality Scripture, okay? It's just Ancient Scriptures. Everything I said before was a lie to fool Scabby-Head."
"Don't put too much faith in Scabby-Head's lies. The man was a chronic liar. 'A gift from the Lord himself,' my ass. With his personality, he probably robbed and killed someone for it. Senior Brothers, let's just go."
Changming and Changren each pinched a black Talisman between the fingers of their left hand and swiped it along their sword. A cold, sinister wind immediately swirled through the room.
"Senior Brother Xuan Yang, since you don't want to get involved, then stop with the nonsense. Just leave."
Changming and Changren raised their longswords and repeated in unison, "Senior Brother Xuan Yang, since you don't want to get involved, then stop with the nonsense. Just leave."
Feeling Bai Lingmiao's nervous fingers tugging at his Daoist robe, Li Huowang cupped his hands toward the three of them. "Very well, Senior Brothers. You carry on. We'll meet again." With that, he led everyone toward the exit of Qingfeng Daoist Temple.
The moment Li Huowang thoughtfully closed the door, chaos erupted inside.
In the dark tunnel, the homebound crowd walked with a mix of excitement and anxiety, the oil lamp in each person's hand trembling. The tunnel was unfamiliar and rugged, at times requiring them to use ropes to climb. Li Huowang had no memory of ever coming this way. But he knew with certainty that this was the exit, because the hands of those around him were trembling more and more violently.
After about the time it takes for two incense sticks to burn, a faint light appeared in the distance. The moment they saw it, everyone's pace became frantic, their walk breaking into a run. As they ran, the light grew larger and brighter, until it finally consumed their entire field of vision.
The instant they emerged from the cave, nearly everyone squeezed their eyes shut. After living inside for so long, the outside world was blindingly bright. As their eyes gradually adjusted to the light, the scenery outside Qingfeng Daoist Temple unfolded before them.
The sky was just beginning to brighten with the color of dawn. The distant mountains and forests were so pure and tranquil they made one's heart soar, like a delicate ink-wash painting. Just then, the first ray of New Year's morning pierced the thin mist and shone across their faces.
Li Huowang squinted at the sunrise and mumbled to himself, Did I really spend the whole night in the Alchemy Room with Scabby-Head? The sun's already up. It's a nice day.
Suddenly, someone nearby moved. It was an apprentice, his face streaked with tears. With head lowered, he bolted down a small path that disappeared into the forest. His flight was contagious. Soon, more and more people started running down the same path, desperate to get as far away as possible from this place of sorrow.
In no time, only the seven or eight people from the storeroom were left at the cave entrance, their eyes all fixed on Li Huowang.
"Senior Brother Li, let's go too," Bai Lingmiao said. Though her face was still streaked with tears, she was smiling brightly.
"Wait a moment," Li Huowang said. He pulled some slips of paper from his pocket and stuffed them into Bai Lingmiao's arms. "These are the last words and addresses left by the Medicinal Guides who died. Once you're out, find a security escort service on the way and have them delivered."
Bai Lingmiao held the slips of paper in both hands, momentarily stunned and unsure what to do.
Li Huowang smiled at the remaining few one last time. He lifted the oil lamp in his hand, turned, and strode alone back into the pitch-black maw of Qingfeng Daoist Temple.