The Unruly Immortals

Li Huowang bowed to Top Scholar Lv before him. "Band Leader Lv, thank you for your hard work. Once we get to Niuxin Mountain, you take the others and get settled first. I'll finish up here and catch up immediately."

The reason Li Huowang felt at ease letting him lead the team was mainly because there were hardly any bandits in Da Liang; otherwise, he would not dare to do so.

"Master! I have Divine Skills now; let me go with you!" Scholar Lv naturally wanted to go with Li Huowang, but neither Li Huowang nor his father agreed to that.

Then he turned to the Scholar beside him, "Study your characters well, and ask your father if you don't understand. Although he can't recognize all the characters, he can still recognize a few. Only when you recognize all the characters can you learn Divine Skills properly."

Having said that, he turned to Zhao Wu on the horse cart and the young Yang, entrusting them with some trifles.

"Brother Li, rest assured, although I may not be able to lift burdens or carry weight on my shoulders, as long as I, Zhao Wu, am here, not a single silver or horse cart will be missing," he said.

Just as Li Huowang was about to say something, his expression turned fierce, and he abruptly twisted his head, glaring viciously at the empty space to his left.

"Brother Li, what's the matter?"

Li Huowang's face darkened at first, but then quickly brightened up again. "It's nothing. We've said all there is to be said, further words are just a waste of breath. Let's set out,"

With a wave of his hand, the two groups parted ways and gradually drifted farther apart.

The embarrassed Lv Elevated Man put down his hand and, hugging his son, said to Top Scholar Lv beside him, "Father, why do I get the feeling that..."

Quickly glancing at Zhao Wu, Top Scholar Lv hastily interjected, "Good gracious, what is Taoist Master doing that concerns you? Show some skill and take care of your son first,"

"If you have the ability to have your son become a child scholar, then truly our Lv Family's ancestors would be sending up plumes of blue smoke from their graves."

"Father, what you're saying..." The embarrassed Elevate Man's face showed a trace of awkwardness as he carried his son, speaking no more.

On a progressively rougher path, Li Huowang and the others hurried forward with two horse carts.

Because they were few in number, everyone could ride on the carts, sparing them the need to rush and conserving their energy for the upcoming events.

Li Huowang, with a grim expression, was still thinking about that chaotic whispering he had just heard, despite having consumed Black Taishui just the night before. Yet today, the voice persisted, proving that it could not be suppressed by Black Taishui.

"What exactly is the problem? What's happening to me?" Li Huowang's usually calm state of mind was once again stirred, as terrifying speculations surfaced in his mind.

Is Wang Wei drugging me? Or is my mental illness coming back? No, I am not insane! Perhaps this is another manifestation of Xinsu! But whether this manifestation is good or bad, that's the question.

Just as Li Huowang's fists tightened more and more, a pair of gentle hands covered the back of his hand.

Bai Lingmiao did not speak a word, merely snuggled up beside him, soothing Li Huowang's increasingly irritable mood.

Li Huowang closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and exhaled deeply before reopening them. He suppressed the irritability in his heart.

"Don't rush, these are just occasional auditory hallucinations, nothing to fret about. At least for now, they are merely sporadic hallucinations, causing no harm."

"What haven't I been through before? It's just ordinary auditory hallucinations, nothing to fear."

"Trouble always arises. Regardless of what's causing this, like with Xinsu, I'll deal with one thing at a time and resolve them all."

"The urgent matter at hand is to pass the Astrological Bureau's test. Auditory hallucinations and the like must be put aside for now."

Having gathered his thoughts, Li Huowang looked up at the others.

"I didn't have time to mention it before, but now that I have a moment, I'll say it, the enemy we're facing is the Oblivion Path."

"To put it simply, they are a group of swindlers, a group of swindlers with Divine Skills."

"Also, remember this: the Oblivion Path can change a person's face. Be wary of everyone who approaches you, lest you inadvertently fall for their tricks."

Upon hearing Li Huowang's words, everyone quickly put aside their own matters and listened intently.

In the past, they had always encountered enemies passively, but this time they were actively seeking out trouble. Everyone was nervous, yet with a hint of excitement.

Huowang provided as many details as possible about the Oblivion Path to them.

They were his helpers, and the more they knew now, the more likely they might prove useful in the future.

Just as they were engrossed in listening, a series of hoofbeats suddenly rang out ahead.

Soon, rows of robust warhorses segregated Li Huowang and the other travelers from the main road.

"Oh, what important personage could this be?" Doggy's eyes were filled with wonder.

Looking through the gaps between the horse's legs, Li Huowang first saw a banner for clearing the way hoisted high by the guards.

Following the banner were four men beating gongs, and behind them, a group of beardless men with a feminine air about them.

Behind those hundred or so beardless men, Li Huowang saw a luxurious carriage the size of a small house.

Sitting amidst a setting of jade mats in the carriage, a fat man dressed in a yellow robe and wearing a jade ring on the thumb of his left hand snored away—he must be the one in charge.

As Li Huowang studied the yellow banner emblazoned with a four-clawed dragon, an elderly man beside him instructed his grandson, "The prince is on an inspection tour, hurry and kneel, quickly."

"Is this the Prince of Yinling City?"

Li Huowang carefully observed the snoring fat man and the women kneeling beside him, fanning him.

Judging by the dark blue patterns on their faces that resembled porcelain, it was quite clear they were from the Exquisite Pagoda.

By the time he regained his composure, he realized that those around him had already knelt down, including Bai Lingmiao and Doggy. His remaining standing atop the carriage was painfully conspicuous.

"How audacious! Who dares not kneel?" Several cavalrymen with unfriendly looks in their eyes and swords slung at their waists quickly surrounded Li Huowang.

Before Huowang could say anything, the cavalrymen had already drawn their swords.

Considering the situation, Li Huowang thought for a moment and then took out his badge.

When they saw the three characters for the Astrological Bureau, the guards' expressions changed immediately, and they quickly sheathed their weapons.

"Sir, we have greatly offended. Please accept our apology!" The cavalrymen saluted Li Huowang with a fist-over-palm gesture and, turning around, left with the others.

Watching their retreating figures, Li Huowang couldn't help but feel nauseated at the thought that the Astrological Bureau was helping these people consolidate their rule. "Why haven't these mad times swept these people into insanity as well?" he wondered silently as he regarded the fat man.

"Everyone get up, do not kneel."

After the prince had departed, things were calm for a while, until they reached the outskirts of what was known as Gan Yuan Village, where nothing untoward happened.

At the foot of a large mountain, the contiguous green roof tiles of Gan Yuan Village came into view for the first time before Li Huowang.

By its size, it looked like a normal large village, no different from all the other villages they had encountered along the way.