The Unruly Immortals

As the color of the sky outside the window gradually darkened, Li Huowang, parched and tongue-tied, finally slowed to a stop.

He touched his stomach with his hand and recalled that during the encounter with Black Taisui, the latter had indeed helped him.

After thinking about all the recent events, he strategized in his mind how to get along with Black Taisui moving forward.

Although Black Taisui was continuously taking over his body, it seemed to bear him no ill will, and since it had no malice, there was no need for him to treat it like he did Master Danyang.

After all, he had done everything possible to free himself from Master Danyang, while with Black Taisui, he could not only not get rid of it, but he also couldn't do without it.

It was inside his body, and having a good relationship with it could only be beneficial and not harmful; perhaps once they were more familiar with each other, he could even persuade this being to stop eroding his body.

"Dad?"

Li Huowang took a breath to calm himself and once again touched his stomach, "Listen, from now on you'll be called Li Sui. Until we find a solution to the Xinsu trouble, let's try to coexist peacefully."

"We're all grasshoppers on the same rope; just help me out, and I won't abandon you. Let's work together for a solution that's good for both of us."

"Good."

Surprised by the response he received, Li Huowang realized that the days of reading enlightenment books hadn't been in vain, as the other party now understood what he could say.

"Coo coo~" At the familiar sound, Li Huowang instinctively looked up at the rafters, where a pigeon perched, watching him.

"Alright, when it's time to eat later, you behave yourself," said Li Huowang as he stood up, slinging his two swords over his shoulders and walked out of the inn.

It was the same old place, and as usual, the noise preceded the crowd. "Hahaha~ Oh, Er Jiu, dear brother, long time no see, I have missed you so much."

Tuoba Danqing entered with his amiable round face leading a procession of maidservants bearing exquisite food and wine.

After so many interactions, Li Huowang had figured out Tuoba Danqing's routines, so he sat down to join him in eating and drinking.

Whether it was a peculiarity of this individual or a trait of everyone at the Astrological Bureau, it seemed like they couldn't speak unless they ate or drank something.

After the wine went around thrice and the dishes were tasted five times, feeling that the atmosphere had been adequately primed, Tuoba Danqing extended his hand and pulled out a waist token from his bosom, sliding it across the table.

"Come, come, Er Jiu, have a look at this. The job you did this time was not bad at all. I'm afraid even I couldn't have done it better."

Li Huowang lifted the waist token and immediately felt an intense surge of desire; he was one step closer to his goal.

"Come, come, what's so great about a piece of metal, let's eat, Er Jiu dear brother. What exactly happened this time? Tell me about it, would you?"

Since there was nothing to hide, Li Huowang tucked the waist token into his chest and slowly recounted everything to Tuoba Danqing.

After explaining the sequence of events, Li Huowang also asked the questions that perplexed him, "Brother Tuoba, what exactly is the tail behind that Taoist Evil Spirit? Why is it so odd?"

"Hey, what's so odd about it? If a person lives long enough without achieving immortality, they naturally turn into an Evil Spirit. After all, birth, aging, sickness, and death are the natural way of the world; it's not so easy to try and alter one's fate against the heavens."

"I've seen a lot of these cases, brother; they're all cultivators who refused to see reason, forcefully extending their lives with Yangshou Pills, eventually turning into Evil Spirits."

"I just never expected things to get this big, to be a supernatural creature and raising one too is truly a first."

"Forcibly using Yangshou Pills to extend life, and in the end, one turns into a supernatural creature?" Li Huowang felt extremely surprised, "So, aren't Yangshou Pills completely useless then?"

"Not exactly, under normal circumstances 120 is the threshold, the closer you get to 120, the weaker the effects of the Yangshou Pills become. Once you are past 120, well, you have to find a way to dissipate the obsessions in your heart. Otherwise, forcibly using Yangshou Pills will only turn you into a supernatural creature."

"Each sect has its methods, good and bad alike, but don't expect anyone to freely tell you, as they all keep these secrets very well guarded."

"However, there are also some methods that everyone knows about, but because everyone knows them, they are not easy to accomplish. Take, for example, using the confusion of Xinsu to dissipate obsessions is the simplest and best."

Upon hearing this, Li Huowang's fingers imperceptibly curled slightly.

"But think about it, having a living Xinsu is very dangerous, and after obtaining it, you constantly have to guard against it being stolen by others. Speaking of such a method is as good as not mentioning it at all, don't you agree?"

As he spoke, Tuoba Danqing continued to complain, as if he were chatting with an old friend.

While drinking, Tuoba Danqing suddenly slapped his forehead as if he remembered something, "Ah, look at my memory, Brother Er, since you've already reached the fifth rank, why don't you light a candle in the Capital City?"

"Later when you go to the Ministry of Rites, you can also take Yangshou Pills to the bureau to exchange for things. Not only is there a variety of items there, but also some things you can't find in the outside ghost markets. But remember, it has to be Yangshou Pills earned internally, outside ones won't do."

"The Capital City?" Mentioning the headquarters of the Astrological Bureau, Li Huowang's mood immediately tensed, "No problem. I haven't earned much, I'll exchange them when I have more."

"Hehehe, Brother Er is truly different, others would race to the Capital City as soon as they found out, while you always seem to be avoiding it. Hehehe."

Tuoba Danqing picked up his cup and drained it in one gulp, his eyes blurry as he shuffled his stool closer to Li Huowang, "Little brother, since we're so familiar, it wouldn't be overstepping for big brother to ask you something, would it?"

"Please feel free to ask, Brother Tuoba."

He chuckled and pointed at the copper coin mask on Li Huowang's face with his finger. "Why do you always wear this thing? Are you hiding something behind it?"

Just then, Hong Zhong suddenly came up to Li Huowang's side, "This old guy has been testing you since he arrived, be careful."

With those words, the atmosphere suddenly became a bit tense. Li Huowang understood that no matter how nice the words, the moment his true identity was revealed, everything would be over.

Seeing Li Huowang not speaking, Tuoba Danqing quickly patted his own cheek, "Oh dear, I've become nosy, saying the wrong things after drinking too much, Brother Er, don't take it to heart, don't take it to heart, I'll punish myself with three drinks."

Li Huowang knew that the other person was retreating to advance, and if he didn't solve this issue today, there would be more trouble in the future.

All sorts of thoughts flashed through his mind, Li Huowang held his stomach and began to heave, "No problem, Brother Tuoba. If you really want to see, I'll tell you that I have to keep some things sealed with it because they tend to come out easily."

Not long after, two black, sticky tentacles slowly extended from the sides of the mask, what was more unusual was that each of the tentacles was also twined with a pair of double pupils.

This spectacle made Tuoba Danqing's eyes twitch, "Enough, enough, put them back quickly."

After taking a bite of food to calm his nerves, Tuoba Danqing looked at Li Huowang with a somewhat anxious expression, "Brother Er, I won't ask what exactly you're cultivating, but aren't you afraid of Possession by Deviant Forces with such a mixed practice?"

Li Huowang stuffed the tentacles back into his mouth with his fingers, then forced himself to swallow despite feeling nauseous. "It's manageable."