Chapter 351 - Gather
Faced with Ji Xiang’s endless chatter, Li Huowang did not speak and just continued to listen. If this person only spoke about fabricated historical records, then it wouldn’t have been enough to scare Ji Xiang so much. There must be some other reasons.
“This person is easy to recognize. He has a fan with the words ‘Everyone has their values’ written on it. If you encounter him, remember to stay far away. He’s not a good person.”
Li Huowang thought for a moment and probed, “Lord Ji Xiang, when we came out from the Buddha’s Skeleton Temple that day, did you ask me that question because Zhuge Yuan’s abilities are strange?”
“Yes,” Ji Xiang nodded. “This person can somehow change fate.”
“Change fate?”
“Not change a person’s fate, but change destiny itself. He has an old almanac. Whatever he says is auspicious will definitely happen. If he says otherwise, then it will definitely bring bad luck.”
“Words creating reality?” Li Huowang was stunned. Although he had seen a lot on his journey so far, this kind of supernatural ability was still a first for him.
If this person had goodwill towards him, that would give him great support. But if he harbored ill intentions...
After some contemplation, Li Huowang asked again, “Lord Ji Xiang, does this person use his abilities more for good or for evil?”
“How would I know? I only know that whenever he appears, something bad is bound to happen. He is like a jinx,” replied Ji Xiang as he picked up a cup of tea and took a sip. Then, he continued, “Alright, I’ve told you enough. It’s already a rare exception. Do your job well, and if you succeed this time, then I’ll put in a good word for you when I return to the Bureau.”
“Thank you, Lord Ji Xiang.” Li Huowang turned to leave.
His expression remained serious as he looked at the wrapped spindle. Although he had learnt some information about Zhuge Yuan from Ji Xiang, he still did not know if Zhuge Yuan’s goodwill toward him was genuine or not.
If it was, that didn’t make sense. But if it was false... that made even less sense! What was his objective?
Asking directly like this won’t work. I must think of a way from this spindle, and I need to figure out what this thing is first.
But for now, I should set this matter aside and help Ji Xiang find a Muddled One. It’s the most crucial step to get information regarding Bei Feng.
Shortly after Li Huowang left the simple study, an elderly woman with graying hair walked out from behind a folding screen. Although her face was covered with wrinkles, one could tell that she was quite beautiful in her youth.
The elderly woman asked Ji Xiang with a concerned expression, “Lord, is this person reliable?”
“Ah, I can’t be sure either. He came from a faraway place to Great Liang, so who knows where he originated from. In any case, whether or not he’s reliable, we have to use him. We cannot let those in the capital know, or it’ll mess everything up!” said Ji Xiang.
Still sporting the same worried expression, the woman walked over to Ji Xiang’s side, and held Ji Xiang’s bejeweled hand. “Ah, Lord, if it doesn’t work out, can’t we just resign? We live in constant fear every day. What’s the point of living a few more decades like this?”
“That’s easier said than done. How could it possibly be so simple?” Ji Xiang had an agonized look on his face. He took out a red handkerchief from his left sleeve and wiped the sweat off his forehead. “This matter involves many high-ranking figures. It’s a task from the Imperial Preceptor, and might even have the emperor’s intentions behind it. If we small fry get entangled in such a big matter, the best we can hope for is to escape with our lives.”
The elderly woman gently embraced Ji Xiang, her voice filled with a hint of pleading as she said, “Brother, when we’re done with this, let’s go back to Liu Pan, and grow old under the mulberry tree where we used to play when we were young. When we left the village, you said that you wanted me to enjoy life. But no matter where we are, I’m the happiest as long as I’m with you.”
Ji Xiang patted the old woman with his red handkerchief, but didn’t say anything.
Feeling anxious, he notified all of them to gather at Yinling City gates the next day at the fifth section of the night.
It was still too dark, but Li Huowang had already gotten up. He first came to the stable and pulled apart the curtains. After that, he cut off a piece of meat from the tentacles of the beast squirming inside, and then wrapped it up for the journey ahead. Next, he threw some dried meat into the carriage before starting to nail up a wooden plank.
He did not know how long he would be gone this time. Thus, it was better to nail up everything to prevent any mishaps.
Before long, under Li Huowang’s hammering, this carriage had become a large coffin.
After finishing all this, he placed his belongings onto the horse, mounted it, and rode toward the city gates.
“Woof woof!” Unexpectedly, Bun followed after him.
“Go and watch the carriage! When I return, if I hear you’ve been out fighting other dogs, I’m going to stew you in a pot!” said Li Huowang before leaving.
It was dawn. Aside from a few vendors setting up their stalls, there were not many people on the streets. Thus, Li Huowang reached the city gates quite quickly.
Hong Da and Tuoba Danqing also appeared as expected, but there were two new faces that he hadn’t anticipated.
Including Ji Xiang and himself, there were a total of six people. This was enough to show the other party’s determination.
From the two newcomers, one was a Moongate kid with the surname Liu, and the other was a Shaman.
Li Huowang carefully observed the drum hanging on his waist, and was rather certain that this was a Shaman’s drum. It was identical to the one that he had previously seen on Li Zhi’s waist.
However, compared to the beggar-like Li Zhi, this man was obviously very different. He wore a black fur coat, and he seemed quite fierce with two diagonal black knife scars across his face. It seemed that a machete would fit him better than the drum on his waist.
He greeted those who he knew, then turned to the man with the scarred face and asked, “Are you a Shaman? Where’s your Second Deity?”
The scar face crossed his arms and glared at him. “Who the hell are you? Why are you prying into my business?”
At that moment, the kid from Moongate, Liu Zongyuan, saw that Li Huowang had unsheathed his sword by half an inch and quickly stepped forward to block Li Huowang, trying to mediate. “Ah ah. Brother Er, there’s no need for this. Consider it as giving me some face, alright?”
Li Huowang looked at Liu Zongyuan before turning to them, and then pressed down slightly, the killing intent immediately vanishing.
“Come, let’s go over there. Don’t make things difficult for Ji Xiang,” said Liu Zongyuan.
Li Huowang may not give face to others, but since it was Liu Zongyuan who had helped him once, Li Huowang decided not to confront this person.
He glanced at the wooden mask on Liu Zongyuan’s face, and then asked, “Brother Liu, how have you been lately?”
“Still the same. Let’s help Ji Xiang through this difficult time first. If he’s not doing well, then we won’t either,” said Liu Zongyuan.
This was true. They were like grasshoppers strung together with a string. If Ji Xiang fell, whatever he promised would also go up in smoke.
“What’s the background of that person? Why does Ji Xiang want to find a Shaman as a companion? From what I know, they aren’t usually very capable,” asked Li Huowang.
“Ah, your words are rather subjective. There are talented people in every profession, and the Shamans are no exception,” said Liu Zongyuan.
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