Mutated Tao

“What? Senior Li, did we go through all that trouble just to retrieve something fake?” Puppy’s voice was filled with nervousness when he saw Li Huowang pause there.

He really hoped that this thing would be useful since Senior Li was quite difficult to deal with when he was having an episode.

On the other hand, Li Huowang just shook his head with a frown, holding the Black Taisui while frozen in place.

What am I hesitating about? It’s just a hallucination over there.

He lifted the Black Taisui to his mouth, yet hesitated once again.

Everyone in the tent could tell that Senior Li was deep in thought after recovering from a major illness.

When Chun Xiaoman returned from her sword practice, she approached Bai Lingmiao to enquire about what was happening.

Meanwhile, Li Huowang slowly returned the flesh in his hand back to the Black Taisui’s body.

“Miaomiao, how much gold do we have left?” inquired Li Huowang.

Bai Lingmiao felt that it was quite strange that he would ask about this right now, but still answered honestly, “We exchanged some silver at Women’s Mountain earlier, so there should still be a few dozen taels[1] left.”

“A few dozen taels? That’s not enough,” Li Huowang mumbled to himself, then turned to look at Sun Baolu. “Your people should have some hard currency, right? Can you help me borrow some? Don’t worry, we will return it once we’re done.”

A rare trace of hesitation flashed across Sun Baolu’s face as he replied, “Alright, I’ll go ask.”

“Senior Li, what do you need so much gold for?”

“Yes, we should have enough money to reach the Liang Kingdom.”

Faced with all these questions, Li Huowang sighed. He shook his head, opened the curtain, and prepared to step out of the tent. “Stop asking, it’s none of your business. Is there anything to eat? I’m hungry.”

Sun Baolu was even more efficient than Li Huowang had anticipated. He had only just taken the first bite of his meal, when Baolu returned, carrying a small, round package while leading his mother into the tent.

Sun Baolu did not speak first, and instead cast a questioning glance at his mother.

Upon seeing his mother nod slightly, he carefully unwrapped the cloth in his hands. The gleaming gold within almost dazzled all their eyes.

It was an oval-shaped, palm-sized gold box, inlaid with various pieces of fine quality agate and jade. Inside this golden box, there were several gold ingots and some jewelry.

While it did not seem big, gold was very valuable. This small bundle was worth quite a lot.

Seeing Li Huowang’s surprise at the value of this item, Sun Baolu’s mom could understand that he was wondering about how a commoner could get their hands on something so valuable. She said, “Daoist, there’s no need to treat this as taboo, as this is not something taken from graves. It is my dowry, given by the host family back then.”

“The host family?” questioned Li Huowang as he reached out to take the box, nearly dropping it due to the heavy weight of the gold.

The woman’s expression was rather complex as she explained, “Yes, the host family gave it. After all, those that can afford to use a ‘beauty paper’ are all very wealthy. This item may be priceless to the common folk, but it’s practically nothing in the eyes of some. Daoist, you saved my son, so consider this as repayment. I hope you will accept it.”

“I don’t want it, and am merely borrowing it. I will return it to you once I’m done,” replied Li Huowang. From the looks of it, she wanted to use this object to pay off the favor.

She seemed to be unwilling to come into further contact with Li Huowang, and bowed respectfully before leaving through the curtain door.

“What’s up with your mother? Why the huge change in attitude?” asked Li Huowang.

Sun Baolu was evasive, as though he could not express what he wanted to. “Senior Li, you’ve likely frightened many by returning here. Being able to get out of that place alive while bringing back two strange items… It’s likely that the tribe members are gossiping about you behind your back.”

“Never mind. Also, I don’t want your family’s item. When I’m done with it, you can take it back. Do you understand?” said Li Huowag.

There was some uneasiness in Sun Baolu’s eyes as he asked, “Then, Senior Li, when do you plan to use this gold?”

Li Huowang held onto the golden box and looked slightly dejected. “In a bit, though, even I don’t know when. Baolu, I appreciate all your help. We may have to stay here for some time.”

“Senior Li, you’re being too courteous. You have saved my life,” replied Sun Baolu.

In the following days, the other disciples all found that Senior Li, who was recovering, always kept the golden box by his side. One might think of him as a miser, but they knew that he was not like that.

Among them, only Bai Lingmiao knew some details. She understood why he was behaving like that.

At night, Bai Lingmiao turned around to see that the person beside her was sitting up straight while clutching the golden box motionlessly, almost looking like a wooden statue.

Seeing this, Bai Lingmiao sighed softly, then turned slightly away from him. “Senior Li, are you very reluctant to leave that place? Or do you still think that there’s a possibility that it’s real over there?”

In the darkness, Li Huowang did not reply.

“Then, Senior Li, do you hope for that place to be real or fake?”

Faced with those questions, Li Huowang sighed deeply before his extremely exhausted and hoarse voice echoed within the tent, “I too, wish to know the answer to that question.”

As the days passed, Li Huowang, who had become almost unrecognizable after so many changes, gradually returned to his original appearance.

His wounds had almost healed completely, and so, he was about to go and question Han Fu. At this point, Baolu walked in. He was now dressed in Qing Qiu’s local attire.

“Senior Li, the tribe chief has asked me to ask you some questions,” said Sun Baolu.

“What is it?” Li Huowang looked through what he knew quickly. Things had been calm in Qing Qiu recently, and there were no significant matters.

“It’s about those women you rescued from the bandit village. Some of them have caught the eyes of a few young men, and the chief wants to probe them a little. However, if you don’t agree, then they won’t dare to act recklessly either,” said Sun Baolu.

“Sure, why not,” Li Huowang readily agreed.

From Baolu’s mother’s attitude, staying in this place seemed like a stable option. It was definitely better than following him everywhere and risking their lives.

Back at the border of Hou Shu, quite a few of them had died because of Peng Longteng. If these women continued to follow them, who knew how many of them would be left by the time they arrived at the Liang Kingdom?

“Alright! Then I’ll head back and report to the chief!” After receiving Li Huowang’s approval, Baolu was back to normal and no longer as taciturn as before, his personality returning to his cheery self.

Just as the excited Baolu was about to leave, Li Huowang reached out and grabbed his arm, instantly turning it black and blue.

Sun Baolu turned back to see Li Huowang looking at him fiercely as he shouted, “Hurry! Get Zhijian to bring the chains over!”

“Alright!” replied Baolu.

Sensing his surroundings change around him, Li Huowang hurriedly stashed the golden box into his arms.

Soon, the noisy and bustling tent was replaced by the quiet and clean hospital ward.

It was night here, and Li Huowang noticed that his mom was sleeping on the chair beside him. At this moment, she was covered in a small blanket that he used in his own room.

“Mom.”

1. Taels refers to both a unit of the currency and the weight. Here's it's referring to the currency ☜

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