The Unruly Immortals

"Hahaha!!" Hong Zhong's laughter echoed incessantly beside Li Huowang, "Xinsu ah!! Li Huowang, hahaha!!"

Li Huowang held a cup in his hand, sitting there dumbfounded, watching the half-corpse in Tuoba Danqing's hands, looking at the dead man's head along with the attached internal organs below.

After a long pause, Li Huowang's eyes gradually widened, a look of shock slowly spreading across his face. "So this is... Xinsu..."

Under the table, his fists clenched tight, yet nothing showed on his face.

The drunken Tuoba Danqing, satisfied with Li Huowang's astonished expression, said with a hint of pride, "How's that? Haven't seen it before, have you? I won't lie to you, this is also the first time I've seen a living Xinsu!"

Li Huowang, trembling, reached out and gently touched the face of the Xinsu with his fingertips.

It was a middle-aged man with a square face, around forty years old, with a beard around his jaw.

If one only considered the appearance, it was entirely an ordinary face; however, the features were greatly twisted, and the eyes showed pain and despair that had been frozen by death.

Li Huowang was all too familiar with the agony of the body and heart, knowing that such an expression could only exist in those who had suffered greatly before dying; this man, who held the same status as him, had met a very tragic end.

"Aye, aye, that's enough, just a touch will do. Strictly speaking, you don't have the qualifications to look upon such a treasure. Letting you take a glimpse is already an exception; this is a precious artifact meant for the national treasury."

Li Huowang raised his arm mechanically like a puppet, pouring the wine from the cup into his mouth and gradually relaxing his expression and body. "Brother Tuoba, this Xinsu... why is there only the head and internal organs left?"

The question seemed to strike a chord with Tuoba Danqing, who irritably slapped the table.

"Ah! The original plan was to keep it alive, for a living Xinsu is much more useful than a dead one, but guess what? When Record of Appearance and I were nearly at the Border Pass, we were ambushed! It took all our effort to get away with just this much. It's truly a pity."

Li Huowang nodded, the heavy drunkenness concealing the shock on his face, "A pity, Brother Tuoba, indeed. If this Xinsu were alive, that would be wonderful. I've heard the confusion in a Xinsu's mind is quite useful."

Tuoba Danqing continued to boast, "More than that! The body of the Xinsu is a great treasure as well! Brother Er, the flesh and bones of the Xinsu, including the heart, are all rare materials!"

"Let me tell you, Record of Appearance has a powerful Magic Artifact refined with a Xinsu's beckoning, which can plunge someone's Divine Sense into confusion unexpectedly; I've heard offers of two hundred years of Yangshou, and he still won't sell!"

"Beckoning?"

"Beckoning means the tongue, the tongue is beckoning. Not understanding these elegant terms, Brother Er, you still have much to learn."

"As for Xinsu, I had only heard of it and never seen it before. I didn't expect there to be so much to it; Brother Tuoba, you have truly broadened my horizons." Li Huowang lifted his cup in a toast to Tuoba Danqing.

"Broadened your horizons, haven't I? Hehe, just hang out with me more often, and you'll see plenty more. Come on, drink up!" With that, he stuffed the Xinsu into a cloth bag and continued drinking.

This drinking session went on from the second watch of the night until dawn, only ending when Tuoba Danqing passed out, dispersing the gathering.

Li Huowang, supporting the mumbling Tuoba Danqing, brought him to the guest room, helped him onto the bed, and then picked up the yellow cloth bag containing the Xinsu, shook it, and placed it on the left side of his porcelain pillow.

Accompanied by a creaking sound, once Li Huowang had shut the door behind him, Tuoba Danqing, who was lying on his back and snoring, suddenly opened his eyes, which showed not a hint of sleepiness.

He propped up his head and first glanced towards the door, then reached out to touch the yellow cloth bag beside his pillow. A look of approval appeared on his face. "Not bad at all, to encounter Xinsu and not have a trace of greed — Hong Da has brought in a much more reliable person this time compared to the last."

Swathed in the smell of alcohol, Li Huowang staggered down the street, carrying not only the two swords on his back but also a big package in his hand.

Under the morning sun, Li Huowang's face showed neither sorrow nor joy, but he walked on in silence.

Other people on the street smelled the pungent alcohol scent on him and, seeing his odd attire, couldn't help but cover their noses and steer clear of him.

"Where did this drunkard come from? Drinking early in the morning."

"Exactly, the young folks these days are really becoming improper."

Amidst these comments, Li Huowang arrived at the inn where he was staying. As soon as he opened the door, Bai Lingmiao, who had been anxiously pacing inside, rushed up to meet him.

"Brother Li, how could you leave without saying a word? You worried me to death! Have you been drinking?"

Li Huowang unpacked the items in his hands, revealing several bamboo-woven food boxes. "I went out to eat with some people tonight, let's have them all try this. I packed it up; these things are quite expensive, let's enjoy something fresh."

After saying that, he lay down on the bed straight as an arrow and let out a deep sigh.

Seeing that Li Huowang wasn't in high spirits, Bai Lingmiao couldn't care less about eating. She sat on the edge of the bed, looking at his back. "Brother Li, what's the matter with you?"

Li Huowang sighed deeply once more, "It's nothing, just that some things aren't as I expected. Miaomiao, I've come to realize that in this damned place, nothing is reliable. 'When you lean on a mountain, the mountain falls—when you rely on water, the water flows away;' everything must be depended upon oneself."

As he spoke, Li Huowang recalled the twisted face once more — besides the abbess's son, this was the third time he had seen Xinsu. A Xinsu who was torn apart by people fighting over it.

After seeing that face, Li Huowang knew in an instant that the Astrological Bureau, powerful and abundant in numbers, was not, and could never be, his support. On the contrary, they could turn into his enemies at any moment.

To fully trust in the Astrological Bureau and survive in this dangerous world was nothing but a fool's dream.

These dangerous people, he could only ever use from a distance, not approach with kindness.

The moment he lifted his mask, the friend who had been drinking with him a second earlier could possibly tie him up and sell him the next.

He was Xinsu, a cursed existence. As long as this identity was with him for even one day, he was the Tangseng meat that everyone wanted a bite of.

Bai Lingmiao seemingly sensed the heaviness of Li Huowang's emotions, and she knelt down, stretching out her hand to gently stroke his back over and over, hoping to bring him some comfort.

"Brother Li, don't worry. No matter what, you still have us."