The Unruly Immortals

"Clippity-clop, clippity-clop," the iron shoes of the horse continuously struck the ground, creating a rhythmic and crisp sound.

The wheels of the carriage behind rolled slowly over the hoofprints, followed by the large footprints of Gao Zhijian.

A group of people followed the carriage, continuing along the narrow road.

Everyone seemed to be preoccupied with their thoughts, and from time to time, someone would sneak a glance at the leader, Li Huowang.

In their eyes, Li Huowang was clearly dead, even if there were no flies, but after checking many times, he was absolutely, thoroughly dead.

Yet, he had suddenly come back to life, out of the blue, and it was all too bizarre.

Of course, that wasn't the only strange thing; including how his body suddenly moved from the grave to the outside, then after spouting some nonsense about the world going mad, he passed out again.

All these events happened way too quickly for them to digest.

If it weren't for the fact that Senior Brother Li still looked just like his old self, they might have thought something else had taken over his body.

The only thing that comforted them was that, after sitting in a daze for a while, Senior Brother Li, who had woken up again, returned to his usual self.

When they asked what exactly had happened, the only answer they got was that everything was over.

If he said it was over, then it was over, and no one dared to ask further, glad as they were that he was alive.

"Let's stop and have dinner," said Li Huowang, causing the wheels of the carriage to halt.

Some people went to fetch water, some to collect wood, and others to pick wild vegetables; after so many days, they worked together with considerable harmony.

Li Huowang did nothing; he sat there, skimmed through the translation of the "Fire Coat True Scripture" in the fading sunlight.

Yingzi's handwriting gradually appeared before Li Huowang's eyes. As Master Danyang passed away, Li Huowang's lost cognition gradually returned. He was no longer illiterate and could completely understand what was written on the pages.

This also indirectly confirmed that Master Danyang was truly dead and not just pretending as before.

The "Fire Coat True Scripture" was phonetically transcribed using Yingzi's characters. Through the translation, Li Huowang was learning to use this peculiar book, wrapped in wax.

However, this thing wasn't easy to learn. It said that when casting magic, one must do so with compassion.

It never occurred to Li Huowang that he would need to engage his emotions to cast spells.

As Li Huowang chanted the indistinct incantations, the white wax on the book slowly began to melt and tried to form lumps.

However, Li Huowang's practice was soon interrupted.

"Senior Brother Li, hehe~ Senior Brother Li? Are you busy?" Dogwa, with several pieces of kindling tucked under his arm, approached with a sly grin.

He looked around, and seeing that Bai Lingmiao, who had gone to pick wild vegetables, had not yet returned, he leaned in and whispered, "Senior Brother Li, I made paper offerings on your grave to show my filial piety. I burned two paper figures for you, women!!"

"Hmm?"

Seeing Li Huowang frown, Dogwa looked around guiltily, then leaned in closer and asked, "Senior Brother Li, did you receive those two women when you were 'over there'?"

Li Huowang found himself at a loss for words. "I was never dead in the first place."

"I know you're alive now, but you were dead before, right? I figured if you had received them, then I could also burn a few more women for myself to keep on standby."

"I never died before, so there's no question of receiving anything."

"But you clearly didn't have any breath left at that time. We even waited three days before burying you. How come? Didn't the ox-head and horse-face take you to report to the Underworld? Oh, by the way, what does the Underworld look like?"

Li Huowang looked at him with impatience, pondering how to end this pointless chatter swiftly. "I received them."

"Ah! That's fantastic!" Dogwa's face lit up with joy, clapping his hands gleefully and nearly jumping with delight, his mind already starting to scheme.

"What did you receive?" The woman's voice from behind startled the dog child.

He turned his head and saw Bai Lingmiao and Chun Xiaoman returning from picking wild greens, he quickly chuckled, "It's nothing, just chatting with Brother Li."

Today's dinner was dough drops, a food that's simple to make and convenient to eat.

Just mix flour with cold water to form a dough that is half-wet, not dry, then squeeze it from the base of your thumb into the pot.

Seeing the dough drops slightly float up, Bai Lingmiao picked up the lard can, scooped a big spoonful into the cast-iron pot, and finally added the easy-to-cook vibrant green wild greens.

Soon, the white dough drops and green wild greens were tumbling in the water continuously.

Seeing this scene, and smelling the fragrance that wafted up, everyone couldn't help but swallow their saliva. After a long trek, everyone needed to replenish their strength.

"Hey, who'd have thought I, Cao Cao, would have the days to eat white flour every day, where's the sense in that?" the dog child said proudly, tapping his chopsticks.

The first steaming bowl scooped from the pot naturally belonged to Li Huowang.

Bai Lingmiao brought it to Li Huowang, and when she saw him receive it with both hands and dig in heartily, a joyous smile instantly bloomed across her face.

Her Brother Li really hadn't lied to her; his severed hand had truly grown back.

"What are you looking at me for? Aren't you eating?"

Bai Lingmiao nodded, also filling a bowl for herself, and sat down next to Li Huowang to start eating.

There weren't many people in this group, but with Gao Zhijian and Bai Lingmiao, the two big eaters, a large pot of dough drops was eaten without leaving a drop of soup.

After washing the pots and dishes, as the sky gradually darkened, there was nothing else to do at night. A fire was quickly lit, and everyone went to sleep.

Gao Zhijian was on night watch, and with Mantou, who had a keen sense of smell, Li Huowang didn't have much to worry about. After washing up by the river, he lay down early to rest in the carriage.

He had just closed his eyes for a short while when he felt a soft body wriggle under the covers from one corner.

With his eyes closed, Li Huowang caught her and gently pulled her into his embrace.

It wasn't long before Li Huowang felt her arms encircling him, and the embrace tightened, almost burying her body into his. Soon after, he felt his chest getting wet, accompanied by pitiable sobs.

"Why are you crying?" Li Huowang stroked down her hair on Bai Lingmiao's back in a comforting gesture.

"My mother always taught me that a good wife needs to be diligent, must know how to manage a household, be generous, must know how to speak, and she said you can't meddle in a man's affairs."

"But do you know? I am really scared... scared that one day you'll suddenly be gone like that day, and never wake up again..."

The carriage fell silent, and Li Huowang could feel her sincere affection for him.

Bai Lingmiao's voice carried a hint of a sob.

"Brother Li, why do you always shoulder everything yourself? Why don't you tell me? Do I really mean nothing to you?"

"Because I don't want you to get hurt, but now that everything is past, I'll tell you everything."

Li Huowang lowered his head and kissed Bai Lingmiao's hair, sighed softly, and began to recount the whole story to her.

He explained everything thoroughly, rambling on from Qingfeng Taoist Temple to the final confrontation at Mao's Gate.

But suddenly, he faltered.

"What happened next? What happened after that? Did Master Danyang die? How did you come back?" Bai Lingmiao's heart hung in suspense as she reached the crucial moment.

Li Huowang's expression became one of struggle, and veins throbbed on his forehead, he involuntarily began to clutch his head.

"Those... those... things!! I... I don't know how to describe them! I can't put it into words!!"