The Unruly Immortals

Hearing Bai Lingmiao's words, Li Huowang nodded.

"No problem. If it's slower, then it's slower. How many urns of ashes do we have left now?"

"Don't worry about these little things. I've been to the Escort Agency with Sister Xiaoman, and we've entrusted the Bodyguard to send back the last batch of ashes of our fellow brothers."

Hearing this, Li Huowang's heart inexplicably lightened.

"Bang bang bang!" The urgent knocking on the door interrupted their conversation. "Master, please open the door! I've really mastered it!"

Li Huowang put down the map in his hands and walked toward the door.

"Creak~" The door opened, and there stood Scholar Lv, his face sporting two dark eye bags, holding a Copper Coin in his hand. This was what Li Huowang had taken from the Copper Coin Sword to let Scholar Lv practice with.

"Master, I've really done it! The Copper Coin just moved!"

Without waiting for Li Huowang to reply, Scholar Lv rushed into the room, placed the Copper Coin on the table, and began to stomp his feet and form hand seals. "Om dha bhakzha nam tar!"

As he repeated the incantation continuously, Scholar Lv's voice grew louder, veins on his forehead bulged, and he looked as if he was about to devour the Copper Coin.

After dozens of repetitions, the Copper Coin finally began to tremble.

Scholar Lv, drenched in sweat, saw this scene and excitedly looked at Li Huowang at the doorway. "Master, look, I've done it!"

Then Scholar Lv saw Li Huowang step forward, look at himself, then at the Copper Coin on the table, and spoke, "You've mastered it? Do you feel any discomfort in your body?"

"Not at all! I'm feeling great. I've never been as happy as I am today in my life; I'm almost an Immortal! Hahaha!"

Li Huowang examined Scholar Lv in front of him, pondering, "It seems like Han Fu's Nascent Soul didn't trick me, but this is just the beginning—it's hard to say if there will be traps ahead. You only live once, so it's better to be cautious."

"Then you should continue practicing, don't stop. For now, go back, and tomorrow I will teach you the next part of the incantation."

Hearing this, Scholar Lv nodded vigorously and turned to leave.

Li Huowang turned his head and exchanged a smile with Bai Lingmiao, then he walked over to close the door and went back to lie down on the bed.

"Scholar seems to have improved a lot." Bai Lingmiao whispered into Li Huowang's ear.

"Hehe, has he? I can't tell. He's completely different from before. I hope learning this cultivation technique will allow him to return to normal," Li Huowang said, then slowly closed his eyes, his breathing gradually becoming steady.

"Brother Li, what have you been busy with these past few days?"

Hearing the words beside his pillow, Li Huowang, with his eyes closed, replied, "I haven't been busy with much. Don't worry; we'll leave in a few days. It won't delay your return home."

No sooner had he spoken than Li Huowang felt a pair of soft hands grasp his right hand. "Brother Li, I'm not worried about going home, I'm actually worried about you."

"Worried about me? There's nothing to worry about. With Black Taisui, I'll never fall into illusions again. My left eye, previously crushed, is starting to sense some light now; I estimate it'll regrow in a bit of time."

"Besides, there's no longer anyone chasing after me to kill me. I'm doing very well indeed, better than ever before."

Li Huowang, with his eyes closed, felt a light body press against him, arms gently wrapping around his waist.

It was Bai Lingmiao. She did not believe a word of what Li Huowang just said, understanding him so well.

Li Huowang sensed her worry through her actions. He sighed softly, opened his eyes, and turned to look at the three varied forms of illusions beside him.

Li Huowang gently patted Bai Lingmiao's back and said faintly, "Don't worry, the boat will straighten out when it gets to the bridge. There's always a solution."

Days passed, and Li Huowang had almost scoured the entire small county. Despite having a direction, he still hadn't found anything.

Li Huowang, who had concealed the color of his body underground, sat atop the wall, watching the bustling street below with people constantly coming and going.

Carts and ox-carts passed by continuously. With a lift of a tail, a steaming pile of cow dung would drop onto the ground, only to be quickly scooped up by children with their baskets soon after.

After fighting over the cow dung, they stood in small groups by the pancake stall, deeply inhaling the aroma of the fried treats.

Looking at the smoky scene before him, Li Huowang thought to himself, "Could it be that this place is too small? I haven't found any clue about the county magistrate who likes tofu. Maybe a bigger place would be more useful?"

"I can't stay in this place for too long anyway. Since I can't find anything here, I might as well look in other regions. As long as I keep searching, there will come a time when I strike luck. Today is the last day anyway."

With a single hand pressed against the wall, Li Huowang leaped down and headed towards the teahouse nearby.

That was the place where information flowed most freely; logically speaking, big and small news from inside the county should have spread from there.

Just as Li Huowang reached the entrance of the teahouse, a group of men wearing long gowns exited the teahouse, bustling with excitement.

"Hurry up, a troupe performing risqué plays has just arrived! Their performance is far more interesting than the storytelling in this teahouse."

A troupe of actors? A trace of hesitation appeared on Li Huowang's face. If he wasn't mistaken, the only troupe in this county should be Lv's Troupe.

As he was pondering this, his feet had already carried him into the teahouse. However, inside, apart from the storyteller and the teahouse workers idly chatting, there was no one else.

"Hah, there's nothing to find out here." Li Huowang turned and walked towards the inn.

But just as he lifted his right foot, as if possessed, he ended up following the footsteps of the men he had seen earlier.

He wanted to see what kind of spectacle Top Scholar Lv had created that managed to draw all the teahouse patrons away.

The stage set up by Lv's Troupe wasn't far away, located right at the base of the West City, where a sea of people gathered beneath the platform, cracking sunflower seeds and soybeans, and chatting leisurely in a lively atmosphere.

As Li Huowang drew nearer, on the stage, Lv Elevated Man, his face painted for the play, was delivering his lines to his wife.

"Ah~ I~ don't want the finest nor the lowliest, I only want~ only want~ I just desire my sister~ that little spot of red in her heart~"

Suddenly, there was a burst of teasing laughter from beneath the stage.

"Those lines don't seem quite right?" Li Huowang watched Lv Elevated Man on the stage with confusion.

Right when he was thinking this, Lv Scholar on the stage began to sing along with the music.

"Reach out, touch sister's little nose tip~ Oh, the fragrance diffuses outward,"

"Reach out, touch sister's little mouth~ Baby, her eyes smile faintly,"

"Reach out, touch sister's bosom tips~ Right in front, beneath her chest,"

"Reach out, touch sister's ears~ Her protruding ears swing like on a swing..."

At first, the performance was normal, but as it progressed, it became more risqué, and the laughter and catcalls from below the stage grew louder.

At this moment, Li Huowang finally realized why the performance was referred to as a risqué play and why the crowd beneath the stage consisted solely of men, with not a single woman present.

Faced with the various masterful performances of other troupes, this old rascal had managed to find a way to survive, truly worthy of being an experienced performer with decades on the stage.

Having resolved his curiosity, Li Huowang shook his head and turned to leave the bustling stage.

But just as he was about to walk away, low murmurs from nearby reached his ears,

"This is much more entertaining than the risqué performances in Pi County."

"Didn't they say that place is being ravaged by the plague? You still dare to go there?"