The Unruly Immortals

After returning the horse, Li Huowang entered an inn, as he needed a good rest to recover his strength before boarding the ship due to the exhausting ride on roads and waves.

"Your dishes are ready, sir," said the waiter as he finished serving the dishes. Just as he turned to leave, Li Huowang stopped him.

"Wait, the fish and shrimp are still alive? How am I supposed to eat these?"

"Hehe, is this your first time in Huating City? They're not alive; this is called 'raw pickled.' Look, the other guests are eating like this too. You should try it—if it's not to your liking, it's on the house."

Li Huowang looked at the other tables' food and then waved the waiter away with his right hand wrapped in gauze.

Perhaps because of its proximity to the sea, the local cuisine differed greatly from other places, with a focus on seafood.

Although it was a bit uncomfortable at first, he had to admit the fresh, sweet taste of the raw pickled meat was quite unique.

Li Huowang, full from the meal, immediately fell asleep, only waking up the next day when the sun was three poles high. He shook his groggy head, got out of bed, and said, "Time to board the ship!"

It was easy to find a ship heading to Apricot Island; it was a square-bottomed medium-sized blessed ship, capable of carrying several dozen people without issue.

Just as Li Huowang was about to board, he was stopped by the unkempt, bearded captain, "Hold on! What's your surname?"

"Surnamed Er."

"Don't play dumb with me! There's no such surname as Er. If you don't tell the truth, just get off. I don't have time for your nonsense."

"Surname Bai."

After sizing Li Huowang up and down again, the captain waved his hand, "That's more like it. Next, what's your surname?"

A short while later, watching the port slowly shrink in the distance, Li Huowang let out a slow breath, his feelings incredibly complex at the thought of seeing Zhuge Yuan again.

Doubt? Excitement? Joy? Curiosity? Perhaps there was a bit of each.

Touching his stomach, Li Huowang felt a bit more at ease. He was no longer the same Li Huowang who had just left Qingfeng Taoist Temple; no matter what happened next, he was prepared.

"Hehe, not coming inside to sit for a while? It's quite cold outside with the sea breeze," a voice came from behind.

Li Huowang turned his head just in time to see a young man with a dog plaster on his forehead grinning and leaning close to him.

Frowning slightly, Li Huowang was too lazy to deal with this overly familiar person and shifted to the side.

"Sharing a ship is fate too. It takes six days to get to Apricot Island. Come inside and join us for a game of cards. We're one short; you'd make four."

"I don't know how," Li Huowang replied coldly and quickly walked to the other side of the deck.

Seeing Li Huowang's attitude, the man lost interest in bothering him and turned to head toward the cabin.

Just then, the sky suddenly darkened, and everyone looked up to see a huge ship passing by.

The ship was enormous, like a small mountain, and its mere proximity blocked out all the sunlight on the blessed ship. Along the side, a row of bronze lion heads, each as large as the Eight Immortals table, was hung.

The lion's mouths were wide open, with something inside glinting coldly, like the sharp teeth of the bronze lions.

This was clearly a battle ship, and its scars bore evidence of a recent battle.

The moment this imposing warship appeared, everyone on deck instantly lay down, shivering as if they were sieves.

"A ship of the Da Liang Kingdom? Who are they at war with?" Li Huowang pondered this question as the oppressive warship slowly headed towards the port.

When the sun reappeared above the deck of the blessed ship, everyone breathed a sigh of relief as if a heavy burden had been lifted.

"You really have guts, not even kneeling. If you had upset one of the soldiers, your little life would have been over!"

The pushy man walked up to Li Huowang and gave him a thumbs up.

"Where have they come from?" Li Huowang asked him.

"How would I know? But the whole city is buzzing, saying they went overseas searching for something."

"Such a large-scale deployment just to find something?"

Li Huowang immediately remembered how he, himself, had previously sought the Record of Appearance for Heart Turbidity. It was also a search.

"Could it be that Heart Turbidity is just one of the things they want? What exactly do they plan to do with so many celestial treasures?"

Li Huowang always felt that at this moment, something significant was happening somewhere, yet he couldn't find any lead.

He slightly shook his head, casting aside these unrelated queries and turned towards the cabin.

In the following days, nothing much happened. The voyage was unusually smooth, but for Li Huowang, sitting on this ship gradually nearing Apricot Island, time seemed to pass excruciatingly slow.

"Jade Kirin"

"Six hundred sons,"

"A hundred thousand 'guan', baldy, can you speed up your card playing? You always dilly-dally like a woman."

"Hey! Hold on, I won! Pay up, pay up!"

Li Huowang leaned against the ship's side, silently watching people play cards to pass the time. After a few days, he had figured out that this leaf card game was akin to holding mahjong in hand.

But with fewer tiles, mahjong has more than a hundred, while this card game only a few dozen, making it quicker to play and to win or lose.

Not only did he understand the rules, but Li Huowang also understood the players. The pushy man liked to cheat, but the bald man with a beard had the best card skills, consistently winning with his expertise.

It wasn't only Li Huowang who watched; others, bored, also gathered around to watch the game for entertainment.

"Damn you! You little cheat! No wonder I've been losing every round!!" The card game soon devolved into a brawl, but it didn't detract from the amusement of others.

"Ah ah." A little girl, under four and wearing split pants, came over to Li Huowang and tugged at his pant leg.

Seeing Li Huowang look at her, she cheerfully offered the half-eaten piece of molasses candy she was holding.

Li Huowang looked into her eyes, which were incredibly clear and simple-minded, only wanting to share something tasty with someone else—reminding him of that silly junior sister of his from Qingfeng Taoist Temple who used to share candy with him.

"Woof woof..." Mantou, seated in a corner, poked its head out.

The sight of the big yellow dog thrilled the little girl, and she immediately offered the molasses candy to Mantou.

Just as Mantou carefully opened its mouth to take the candy, a tentacle reached out swiftly, snatching the candy away.

Seeing the sticky black tentacle retract into Li Huowang's red Taoist robe, the little girl burst into giggles, totally oblivious to what had just occurred.

While she leaned on Li Huowang, gaping at where the tentacle had disappeared, a sallow-faced woman hurriedly embraced her and, after bowing several times to Li Huowang, walked toward the cabin where the women were staying.

Mantou glanced at its immobile owner, then cocked its head and continuously licked the red Taoist robe where tiny handprints were marked. The sticky prints carried a hint of sweetness.