Mutated Tao

“Xiaohai, are you really going to leave? It hasn't been that long since we returned, and you're leaving again? Isn't that kind of unnecessary?"

“Xiaohai, Hou Shu is really far. There's also the sea to the south of it. The journey and return trip will probably take you at least a year.”

When the others who had come out of Zephyr Temple together with Yang Xiaohai heard his plans to visit his parents, they all tried to dissuade him.

They had endured hardships together, so they were aware of the risks that one would have to take by traveling such a massive distance.

They were all concerned, as the journey was lengthy, and no one could say what Yang Xiaohai would experience on the way.

Yang Xiaohai remained silent, but his belongings were already on his back. In the end, he stared at Li Huowang sitting nearby and asked, “Senior Li, what do you think? Should I go or not?”

“Your limbs belong to you, so it’s not up to me to decide whether you want to go or not. Puppy, give him your scepter so he can protect himself on the road.”

“Huh?”

“Hurry up. Also, bring a carriage over for him. It’s such a long way, and his shoes will wear out with all that walking.”

Soon, Yang Xiaohai’s luggage for the journey had increased significantly. The carriage was filled with so much dried food that it would last them all the way to Hou Shu.

“Take this bag of silver. You can use it to fund your journey as well as to handle certain issues on the road."

Yang Xiaohai was at a loss for words upon feeling the weight of the bag of silver. “Senior Li, I can’t take these. I...”

“Just take it. The village is not going to run out of money anytime soon. Unfortunately, I'm still recovering from my injuries, so I can’t go with you. Since you want to go, then go. The world has become more peaceful these days, but you should still protect yourself with the talismans you’ve learned to draw. Don't forget to practice using that scepter, too.”

Yang Xiaohai knelt and kowtowed toward Li Huowang a few times before he jumped onto the carriage with the pear-faced woman.

Soon, the carriage started moving away from the village.

Puppy was holding his daughter in his arms; he took a step forward and shouted, “Xiaohai! Don't forget to visit Sun Baolu once you're in Qing Qiu! Tell him I got married and that I have a daughter now!”

“All right, Senior Puppy!” Yang Xiaohai exclaimed.

When Yang Xiaohai could no longer be seen, everyone dispersed in groups.

On the way, Puppy couldn’t help but grumble, “Who’s going to cook for us now that Xiaohai is gone? Zhao Wu, how’s your cooking?”

“Look at my legs. Do you really think that I can cook?” Zhao Wu asked, leaning on his crutches. He glared at Puppy as if he were worthy of disdain.

“That’s too bad. What should we do now that no one can cook? Xiaoman, can you cook?”

“Get lost.”

“Since no one is going to cook for all of us anymore, we should stop the communal pot from now on,” Li Huowang said. His words attracted everyone’s attention. Eating together was an old habit that was made from their arduous journey, but Gao Zhijian had become the emperor, Sun Baolu had back at home, and the Lu family had already settled down in Shangjing; several people had died along the way as well, which meant that they no longer had enough people to fill up the table with dishes.

“We have our own families now, and we don’t lack money anymore. From now on, let’s cook our own meals and stop going to the Bai Family Estate to eat.”

Bai Lingmiao smiled slightly at Li Huowang's words.

“No, Senior Li...” Puppy said, sounding anguished. He wasn't willing to part with the days when they could just open their mouths to eat. Those days were just too comfortable for Puppy to let go.

“Stop talking nonsense and just do it,” Li Huowang said. With that, he led Li Sui toward the Bai Family Estate.

Puppy scratched his head and looked at Zhao Wu beside him. “Hey, you’re still single, so no one is going to cook for you in the future. You better try and persuade Senior Li to change his mind.”

“Don’t count on me to back you up. I can cook for myself,” Zhao Wu said. He then ignored Puppy’s astonishment and limped his way toward the warehouse.

Although it was called a warehouse, it was actually an uninhabited house that was cleared out to store the things that Gao Zhijian had sent over to the village.

Gold, silver, cloth, and various gifts filled up the house.

Zhao Wu placed the abacus on the table and began taking accounts.

This was Zhao Wu’s job, and he was the only one who could do something like this throughout the village. His family's business was selling rice, so he grew up around abacuses. In other words, no one could match him when it came to calculations and taking accounts. When they were still in the middle of their arduous journey, they barely had any money, so Zhao Wu didn't really have to do any calculations and accounting.

However, Cowheart Village's population had exploded, and they had also received an influx of money and grain. Zhao Wu's talent could finally be shown to the world.

Zhao Wu used an abacus to keep track of everything—the village's expenditures, purchases, and what was purchased. Of course, Zhao Wu also tracked the amount of old rice available for consumption and how much new rice they needed to replace the old rice. He was just one person, so his job was extremely exhausting. However, Zhao Wu was more than happy to do it, as he didn't feel like a useless person incapable of lifting even a finger.

Five hundred pearls? Why did Gao Zhijian send so many pearls? There’s no one in the village who needs them. Zhao Wu shook his head gently and made a comment with his pen.

It took Zhao Wu an entire day to take everything into account. When it was nightfall, he felt his stomach rumbling, but he still hadn't heard Yang Xiaohai calling them for dinner.

Zhao Wu stiffened and realized that he actually had to cook for himself from now on.

Yang Xiaohai had left the village, after all. Ah, it really feels strange for someone to leave all of a sudden.

Zhao Wu picked up his crutch and limped toward the kitchen. He was planning on grabbing something edible to eat so he wouldn't be late for Master Wu’s evening class.

Zhao Wu’s heart burned with pride when he recalled Master Wu’s evaluation of himself yesterday. Master Wu had told him that he had the highest aptitude for literacy in the entire Cowheart Village.

Master Wu hadn't lied. Zhao Wu could recognize eight hundred words, so he could be considered somewhat literate.

It’s really dark. Where’s the oil lamp? Zhao Wu fumbled around in the kitchen. His hands found a cool, soft spindle-shaped object. He picked it up and stuffed it into his arms. Sweet potatoes will do. I'm going to eat them on the way, so I won't be late.

Zhao Wu picked up the pace. When he reached out for the fourth sweet potato in the steamer, he ended up touching a bony hand in the darkness.

“Ghost!”

Bang!

The wooden door to the kitchen was blown apart.

Li Huowang, covered in wriggling black tentacles, stood by the door with a spine sword in his hand. His face was filled with killing intent as he scanned the kitchen.

“Senior Li! There’s a ghost in here! There’s a ghost in this room!” Zhao Wu exclaimed. He didn’t even pick up his crutch as he frantically crawled behind Li Huowang.

“Quiet down!” Li Huowang warned. He took out a green glowing stone from his pocket and threw it into the dim kitchen.

Soon, he saw a man dressed in tattered clothes. The man was cowering in a corner, and his shoulders were trembling as if he was eating something.

”Turn around!” Li Huowang exclaimed, holding his sword horizontally.

The man turned around and froze. The sweet potato that he was about to shove into his mouth fell to the ground. Then, he trembled all over and prostrated on the ground. He kowtowed nonstop to Li Huowang, pleading, “Master, spare my life!”