Mutated Tao

“The sacred text, the bronze bell, and the gourd,” Li Huowang checked off the items that he had given to the nun for safekeeping. Since he was going to find the Ao Jing Sect, he had a feeling that these objects and the farewell letter may end up being useful on the journey, and shouldn’t be left here.

Even now, Li Huowang still felt like all of this was a dream. There was actually a method of possibly getting rid of Dan Yangzi, albeit, the possibility was very small.

Just as he was about to take his items and leave, Li Huowang noticed some changes to his belongings.

“That’s a… tooth mark?” Li Huowang touched a corner of the sacred text and then glanced doubtfully at Miao Yu[1].

In response, the fat nun who had been stuffing herself until now suddenly looked guiltily toward the ceiling.

“Venerable Miao Yu, you even gnawed on this and left a tooth mark? Do you happen to know what this sacred text is? Truthfully, if you can help me figure it out, then I’ll have to thank you.”

“No, it definitely wasn’t me. In fact, there was already a tooth mark on it to begin with. The Benevolent Nunnery has helped you so much, so don’t go around falsely accusing good people,” defended Miao Yu weakly.

As he listened to Miao Yu’s clumsy lies, Li Huowang just helplessly shook his head.

He picked up the gourd and shook it, only to find that it was actually empty—the last remaining lifespan pill was missing. Li Huowang once again looked at the fat nun.

Strangely, even though he had been stolen from, Li Huowang did not feel the slightest bit surprised about it. He should have already anticipated this outcome back when he entrusted his belongings to these greedy nuns for the sake of safekeeping.

With a resigned look, Li Huowang carried the three items and walked over before patting the folds of skin on the plump nun’s body. “If fate wills it, see you again, Venerable Miao Yu.”

Then, he turned and began to walk toward the entrance. However, just as he was about to leave, he turned to look back at the nun behind him.

Meanwhile, Miao Yu was peeking at him as he turned around, but then quickly buried her head in the food once again. When she saw Li Huowang approach her, she took the initiative to speak. “That thing was indeed eaten by me. The taste wasn’t all that great. If you want to, then go ahead and complain about me to the Abbess!”

When he saw her pretend like she didn’t care, Li Huowang could only chuckle. “I am not that petty. I came back to ask you about something. Have you heard of the Ao Jing Sect?”

Miao Yu looked puzzled as she continued to chew on the food bolus in her mouth. “Didn’t I tell you that Ao Jing Sect’s Cross Temple is located on the large mountain to the west? I even told you exactly where to go to find them, so can’t you look for them yourself?”

Li Huowang shook his head. “I’m not here to ask about its location. I want to know about what the Ao Jing Sect is like. What kind of background do they have? What sort of people are their members?”

Hearing this, the rotund Miao Yu frowned, her facial features scrunching up like a bun. “You even have the Profound Records on you, yet you don’t know what they are like? If I had to describe them, then they are basically a bunch of freaks.”

“Freaks? Are they even stranger than you guys? Hahaha…” Li Huowang couldn’t help himself and burst out laughing.

Miao Yu looked displeased. “I’m not joking! That bunch is very strange. You’ve used the Profound Records, so you should know a little bit about how their cultivation methods function. They don’t meditate or recite chants, and neither do they cultivate like others. Instead, they torment themselves, claiming that it pleases their Sacrificial[2] God.”

“Sacrificial God? Isn’t it Ba-Hui? Does that thing have two names?” Li Huowang was rather surprised at the unexpectedly different name.

“Who cares what they are called. In any case, the people of that sect like to wear big hats and robes so that they can cover up the injuries on their bodies. Last time, I even saw one of them who did not have any skin left. Even though Abbess has given you a Flesh Book, it's not guaranteed that they will respect it. So, be careful when you deal with them. After all, there have been some grievances between them and us in the past,” said Miao Yu.

Li Huowang had only been asking random questions, but he actually managed to receive some details, and so he continued, “What sort of grievances?”

“It was all because of the Abbess’ son. Those of the Ao Jing sect like to capture Strayed Ones for who knows what reason. In any case, by the time we finally managed to retrieve him, the Abbess’ son had gone completely crazy,” explained Miao Yu.

At that moment, Miao Yu paused and looked Li Huowang up and down before clicking her tongue in pity. “Tsk, tsk, I nearly forgot that you are also a Strayed One. It’s going to be very dangerous for you.”

“Sister, do you think I want to place myself in danger? I don’t have much of a choice here…” Li Huowang sighed regretfully, then turned around before walking out of the Benevolent Nunnery’s entrance.

After Li Huowang left, Miao Yu continued to sit there as she scarfed down her food while muttering to herself, “When he had been writing his farewell letter, I saw that he seemed determined to meet his death. How come that changed so quickly, and now he’s in such a rush to look for the Ao Jing Sect? Did one of you end up tugging on his heartstrings?”

“I can’t be bothered to tug on the heartstrings of a Strayed One. Don’t drive yourself crazy. I reckon that this change should be from Abbess Jingxin’s intervention,” a voice rang out in Miao Yu’s head.

“Oh~ I see,” replied Miao Yu. Meanwhile, various voices rose and fell inside Miao Yu’s head.

——————————————

Currently, Lu Zhuangyuan’s face was swollen as he led the Lu Family Troupe on the road. They looked disheveled and ragged in appearance, and all of them had an ugly expression on their face.

Lu Zhuangyuan’s daughter-in-law who was on the carriage was even more distraught as she tightly embraced her daughter and cried bitterly while leaning against a wooden box.

At that moment, a lit tobacco pipe was forcefully swung through the air in an arc.

“Cry! All you know how to do is to cry! How many days of crying has it been? You were the ones who didn’t follow my instructions to rub ash on your faces! And now, all my silver has been plundered by those damned soldiers! Am I crying? What’s the matter? Is your purity more important than my silver, huh?” shouted Lu Zhuangyuan.

“Dad, I’m begging you, please stop!” Lu Juren’s eyes reddened. His sullen face was an indication of his pent-up anger.

When Lu Zhuangyuan saw his son looking like that, he sighed deeply. “Don’t worry, they didn’t manage to take all the money. I may not be good for much, but I can still hide some money. Those soldiers found only two spots; there are at least three others that they didn’t find,” Lu Zhuangyuan said as he took out a copper key and opened the large wooden crate on the carriage.

His callused hands rummaged through the luggage for a while, and then he retrieved several pieces of silver of varying sizes from inside a hidden compartment. He picked out a broken piece of silver that was slightly larger than a soybean, and reluctantly passed it to his daughter-in-law.

“Our Lu family hasn’t treated you well. Take this, and buy whatever you want when we get to the market,” said Lu Zhuangyuan.

Luo Juanhua had previously been sobbing as though she had been wronged. However, once she touched the piece of silver, her face instantly lit up and she carefully tucked it into her small purse. “I won’t be using this; I’m saving it for Cui'er’s[3] dowry.”

Lu Zhuangyuan just watched all this in silence. Every time she felt wronged, she would put on an act to extort him like this. At this point, he had grown accustomed to this.

1. Name changed again to Miao Yu, for consistency ☜

2. Chinese term here used was 牯, which suggests a cow to be sacrificed for a ritual. If it survives, it will be called 牯神, Sacrificial God ☜

3. Likely typo from the author, which was Xiu'er instead of Cui'er. Xiu refers to Lu Xiucai, who is Lu Zhuangyuan's younger son and so it doesnt make sense for there to be a dowry for him. Cui'er is Luo Juanhua's daughter and Lu Zhuangyuan's grand-daughter, so Luo Juanhua saving for her dowry makes sense. ☜

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