The Unruly Immortals

"Please—Immortal—" Li Zhi's signature booming voice echoed from within the forest, and the Second God, with his bizarre body, began to tremble in sync.

"As the sun sets behind the mountains, darkness falls, every household shuts its doors, magpies and crows flock to the trees, sparrows and turtles scurry under the eaves, and the road shortens—ah!!"

Li Zhi's invocation abruptly stopped out of nowhere, clearly catching the Second God off guard. He lifted his head in surprise and looked at Li Huowang in front of him, as well as the upturned corners of his mouth.

"You came specifically to test me, but haven't I been testing you too? The monks have deceived me once before, and as the saying goes, 'Once bitten, twice shy.' I must be cautious of something, mustn't I?"

No sooner had Li Huowang finished speaking than the sound of scattered footsteps came from the forest—it was Dog Baby Fool and the others.

Armed with weapons, they pushed and shoved a bleeding-mouthed Li Zhi forward as he struggled to walk. The old drum that Li Zhi used for conducting rituals was now firmly grasped by Xiao Man, covered in black fur.

Li Huowang reached out, took the old drum from Xiao Man's hands, and in front of Li Zhi, he tossed it onto the ground and drove his sword down. "Puchi," the tightly strung drumhead was effortlessly pierced and torn open.

"It seems this item is your most prized possession, and without it, no matter which Immortal Sect you call, I fear they won't be able to come, will they?"

Through the days of interaction, Li Huowang had realized that no matter how powerful the Immortal Sects were, the ritual dancers were still mortals of flesh and blood. If he could control Li Zhi, everything else would be manageable.

Surrounded by the cold glare of blades, Li Zhi, who had taken a beating to his mouth, didn't show any signs of fear or even hatred; instead, there was a rueful, helpless smile, "Actually, I'm not in charge of these matters."

With a "clang," the sharp, charred-black blade was now pressed against Li Zhi's neck. "You're still trying to deceive at this time? Tell the Second God to stop resisting!"

Li Huowang's gaze was fixed intently on the far-off Second God, whose appearance had changed beyond recognition. Li Zhi was trapped, but that half-human, half-beast Second God in the distance was still a problem.

"Heh heh...you say that as if my wife would definitely listen to me," Li Zhi said with a chuckle.

After Li Zhi had spoken, he saw the Second God open its fearsome mouth and let out a ferocious roar, then like a wild beast, it ran on all fours towards the forest.

The Second God had actually fled, leaving Li Zhi behind all alone.

"Li True Person, I'm not lying to you. We disciples who are called into action are not the same as you. Some things are truly out of my control," Li Zhi weakly tried to explain.

"Do you think that by telling me these things, I will suddenly develop a benevolent heart and spare you?" Li Huowang pushed the blade forward slightly.

"Heh, it wouldn't make a difference." Facing the possibility of imminent death, Li Zhi seemed very composed.

After pondering for a moment, Li Huowang spoke slowly, "What is Xinsu? Why do you call me Xinsu?"

This was what he cared about most. They definitely had a reason for attacking him, and this Xinsu had come up twice already.

Li Zhi let out a resigned sigh, "It turns out you really don't know anything. I was fooled by you wearing the Blood Robe."

"What exactly is Xinsu!" Li Huowang gritted his teeth and asked, enunciating each word, causing the blade to draw a line of blood.

Li Zhi looked at Li Huowang in front of him and laughed, "Heh, you may be quick-witted, but you are probably no match for the old Immortal."

The next second, Li Zhi's eyes began to fill with blood and elongate; porcupine-like quills emerged from beneath his eyes, his nose twisted and extended forward, and his entire face began to deform into the grotesque shape of the just escaped Second God.

With a single-handed press, Li Huowang's sharp blade moved towards Li Zhi's neck, but instead of slicing through skin and blood vessels, the sword met a row of dense, hard snake scales.

"Kill him!"

Following Li Huowang's roar, "whoosh!" with the force of a gale, a gigantic wooden club was the first to arrive, brutally smashing onto Li Zhi's head.

Flesh and blood splattered, and Li Zhi, who was halfway through his transformation, was instantly split open, collapsing onto the ground.

"Dong dong dong!!" The rapid drumming echoed from the darkness of the forest, drawing everyone's gaze.

Stunned, Li Huowang instinctively looked down at the broken drum on the ground. "Drumming? How can there be drumming? Li Zhi's drum was clearly destroyed by me!"

"Please~ Immortal~ now~"

Accompanied by the drumming and the chanting, a figure stumbled out from the woods. It was the Second God, or perhaps it was Li Zhi.

As those things grew on Li Zhi's face, the stuff that had been on the Second God's face had all vanished. The two of them had somehow effortlessly switched places, Li Zhi turning into the Second God, and the Second God becoming Li Zhi.

"Dong dong dong~!!" Abrupt, the drumming sounded from beneath Li Zhi, and when the others looked beneath him, they all drew a sharp breath.

The man's clothes were torn open, one hand forcibly pulling up the skin and flesh of his abdomen, while the other hand held the Drum and Whip, striking down like that.

With no drum, Li Zhi actually flipped up his own skin to use as a drum! "Dong dong dong!!"

"The sun sets behind the mountains darkening the sky, every household locks their doors. Magpies and crows flee to the big trees, sparrows and turtles rush to the eaves. Hey, the paths of the little huts are broken and hard to travel, out of ten houses nine are locked, leaving one with its doors not closed. Burning incense and beating drums, I now summon the Immortals, hey~"

No sooner had the words fallen than the Second Immortal, lying on the ground, suddenly stood up, even though his head was mostly sunken in.

"Puchi" sounds were incessant, as all weapons including the longsword in Li Huowang's hand instantly pierced the Second God's body.

Li Huowang was certain that his sword had pierced his heart, yet the Second God still stood there, erect as ever.

"First invite the Red, then the Yellow, invite the breezes and the clouds to carry the sorrowful king. The Red leads the forces, Yellow storms the front, the breezes and clouds stand firm, and that sorrowful king guards the hall, hey~"

An immense force erupted from the Second God, and as he twisted his body violently, all those gripped their weapons were instantly disarmed.

"No good! We must stop Li Zhi's drumming!! He's the key!" Li Huowang reached with his right hand, and the Copper Taoist Bell instantly appeared in his hand.

"Bell, bell, bell!!" "Dong dong dong!!"

Two different sounds intertwined and entangled throughout the entire forest.

Various lines quickly coalesced into Mr. You, and as Li Huowang violently shook his dizzy head, Mr. You instantly split into four, rushing towards Li Zhi.

Ignoring the continuous bleeding from skinning himself, Li Zhi's forehead veins throbbed as his lips trembled rapidly, the chant's pace doubling in speed.

"Laid out on the table is a feast, so nice to eat, so nice to drink, tasty and drinkable, that's what you are, speak to the troops, tell the troops, troops, prepare for him, he wants to eat fatty beef and mutton, wants to eat lean chicken, duck, and goose, old Immortal, if what you desire is the ungrateful meat, the troops must also figure out a way to get it for you, hey~!!"

Li Huowang felt a pain in his neck and in a flash, the Second God had gotten behind him, sinking his full mouth of sharp teeth into the flesh of his shoulder with a ferocious bite.