The Unruly Immortals

Li Sui's appearance was largely as he had imagined, with the only difference being that she seemed even more horrifying than he had expected.

Her body wasn't very compact, and in some places, it was even hollow, exposing some of her organs.

Mantou's body obviously wasn't enough to support Li Sui; the places where the bones were broken were all entwined with black tentacles.

Although it wasn't nice to speak of his daughter this way, she truly looked terrifying now.

Li Sui's chest was pulsating, and with each beat, one could see a book, wrapped in flesh and blood, through the cracks.

Li Huowang remembered that was the Talisman collection he had given to Li Sui.

"Dad, what's wrong?" Li Sui didn't understand why Li Huowang was staring at her like that.

"Nothing, just looking," Li Huowang stretched out his hand and patted her on the head.

"Go on. Go find the kids and have some egg custard. Call a few people over for me while you're at it."

In Niuxin Village, after dinner was usually a time for rest, and people didn't wander around much, so the people Li Huowang wanted to find quickly gathered.

The tall Gao Zhijian, Chun Xiaoman covered in long hair, Zhao Wu with one shoulder higher than the other leaning on a crutch, and Doggie with patches of white and blue on his face—these people were all brothers who had gone through life and death with him.

Apart from those four, there was also the visibly shorter Young Yang.

Li Huowang turned to the cook of Niuxin Village, "I didn't call for you, what are you doing here?"

"Hehe, I saw them coming, so I thought I'd have a look. How about it, Brother Li, should I leave now?" Young Yang said with a bashful smile, scratching his head.

After being together for such a long time, it was clear that they had grown familiar with one another. In the past, he wouldn't have dared to do this.

Li Huowang couldn't be bothered with him and turned his attention to Gao Zhijian, "How is the recruitment of the militia going? How long before they are combat-ready?"

Gao Zhijian wrinkled his nose and shook his head with some dissatisfaction. "It'll take a long time."

Li Huowang soon learned from Gao Zhijian that hardly anyone in the village was cut out for military training; if they weren't disabled, they were just not strong enough. After sifting and choosing for a while, only two were barely satisfactory.

However, this seemed within reason, as all these people were just scraps picked up by Bai Lingmiao from slave traders.

But this wasn't in line with Li Huowang's expectations; he needed to speed up the process.

"Zhao Wu, I broke up the gold that Sun Baolu's mother gave me in Qingqiu earlier. Use the money to help Gao Zhijian buy some more qualified servants, even if it costs more, but they must be loyal," he said.

"We must form a militia as soon as possible so that even when I'm not here, if another disaster happens, you'll be able to protect yourselves."

"Yes, Brother Li," Zhao Wu, the treasurer, nodded in response. "Brother Li, are you going out again?"

"Mhm, I need to take another trip for something. If all goes well, it shouldn't take too long this time."

He then looked at Chun Xiaoman, "I heard you are practicing the White Lotus Sect's cultivation technique under the Ancestral Temple?"

"Yes, I'm practicing it."

"This kind of thing needs to be done on the down-low. It's okay to teach others, but you must definitely teach our own people."

"It's not like the Military, although that Divine Strikes medium seemed somewhat interesting. However, the White Lotus Sect is notorious, and the Technique Divine Ability probably also has a high degree of recognition. Being too ostentatious might attract the attention of the Astrological Bureau."

When he heard Li Huowang explain in detail about the Astrological Bureau, and the Bai Family Members' predicament before, Xiaoman nodded solemnly, suddenly feeling the weight on his shoulders.

Then Li Huowang looked at the last one, Doggie, who, ever since having a daughter, had become a lot quieter compared to his previous bravado.

"Doggie, you okay?" At Li Huowang's inquiry, a signature playful smile spread across Doggie's face.

"Hey, I'm fine, I'm fine. I eat when I should eat and drink when I should drink. Don't worry, Brother Li. With me here, Niuxin Village won't be in chaos," Doggie said.

Li Huowang nodded and then pointed his finger at the Rotten Wood Ruyi on the table, "Take this Magic Artifact; it can confuse people's focus and can be used in conjunction with your White Hair Needle."

This was the gift given to him by the eunuch who manages the Record of Appearance, crafted from a Xinsu tongue, a specialty Magic Artifact that could fill a person's heart with confusion.

Li Huowang, since acquiring it, had never once used the thing and decided to simply give it to Dog Wa.

"Oh my, this this this, is an Immortal Artifact! Brother Li, you're far too kind, to just give it to me for free." Dog Wa, with excitement dancing in his brows, held it in his hands, turning it over and marveling with clicks of his tongue.

"There's also this Pill Recipe. I've copied one down; inside are methods for refining elixirs such as the Blood Nourishing Pill and the Essence Cultivating Pill—techniques I learned from that leper at Qingfeng Taoist Temple long ago."

"Included are some Talisman drawings for practicing medicine, too. There's not a single doctor in the village, so find someone literate and they might pass as half a doctor."

"Me me me! I know how to read! The Master always praises me for my quick wit! I already recognize thirty characters!"

Young Yang self-nominated and walked over, picking up that Pill Recipe book and looking through it, back and forth.

Li Huowang's brows furrowed as he watched him, "You're holding it upside down."

"Oh oh oh..."

Li Huowang reassessed the five people before him, "We've all been through life and death together. The world feels unsteady to me; if something really happens—when the mountain falls, the support is gone; when the water flows away, the reliance ends. Only oneself can truly be depended upon."

"Hey, no worries. We still have you, Brother Li. With your Divine Skills, who would dare disrespect us?"

Dog Wa's flattery only earned a cold glance from Li Huowang.

"What if I die one day? What if I go mad again one day? What would you do then?"

As soon as Li Huowang said this, the atmosphere in the room immediately grew oppressive.

Dog Wa opened his mouth as if he wanted to lighten the mood, but he said nothing.

"Alright, everyone but Gao Zhijian can leave."

The other four glanced at the tall Gao Zhijian, took the items Li Huowang had given them, and left.

Li Huowang looked at the towering Gao Zhijian before him and after pondering for a while, he said, "Zhijian, you must have been no simple man in the past. Although they always say you're slow, I think you're actually hiding your intelligence."

Gao Zhijian silently nodded.

"Want to go back?" Gao Zhijian shook his head.

"Fine, if you won't go back, I won't ask. From now on this is your home. Besides me and Miaomiao, you are the strongest. When I'm not here, help me protect this home."

Li Huowang took a knife, made an incision in his stomach, and after rummaging inside, he pulled out a blood-stained human skin figurine.

"Take this; at a critical moment, it can save your life."

Understanding the value of the item, Gao Zhijian immediately inhaled sharply, repeatedly waving his hands to decline.

"If I tell you to take it, you take it!" Li Huowang said, forcefully pushing it into his hands.

My skin is almost healed—this thought lingered on his lips for a while before he swallowed it back down.

Li Huowang patted him on the shoulder. "We are brothers who have gone through life and death together; being so courteous just feels distant."

Gao Zhijian looked at the human skin in his palm and solemnly stored it away.

Following that, he reached into Li Huowang's Torture Tool Bag, pulled out a dagger, sliced his own palm, and then did the same to Li Huowang's palm.

He then pressed the two bleeding palms firmly together.

Li Huowang looked at the slowly coagulating cut on his palm and chuckled softly. "Which custom is this from?"

When Gao Zhijian had left, he pulled out a sheet of paper from his chest, something he had written when his eyes were still blind, which listed his current troubles.

"This trouble doesn't exist anymore!"

As Li Huowang's trembling finger pressed on the second line and slowly crossed it out, the words quickly disappeared.

Second: The anomalies of the natural disaster. Since the plan of the Astrological Bureau was thwarted by the Oblivion Path, perhaps there would be more such disasters to come. He himself was not afraid, but how to protect Ox Heart Village was the question.