Mutated Tao

Li Huowang lay on the bed, wearing the hospital’s specialized straitjacket. He looked up at the intravenous drip above him, seemingly waiting for something.

Then, the ward door squeaked open, and in came a voice, “Hey, Little Li, weren’t you recovering well before? What happened so suddenly?”

Li Huowang’s attending physician walked in, looking at him with a disappointed expression.

Upon hearing this, Li Huowang, whose head was wrapped in bandages, anxiously explained his case, “Doctor, they were the ones who attacked Yang Na first! I was forced to fight back to protect her!”

The Doctor adjusted his glasses with his finger and said, “You call that fighting back? That’s more like killing! Liu Jianye is still admitted to the ICU. Your kick nearly killed him. You have spent quite some time here, and know how the others are. Did you really not consider Master Liu’s condition before you took action? I had assumed you to be a sensible kid.”

When Li Huowang thought of the frightened Yang Na, he continued to remain indignant. “So what if he has a mental illness? Does that give him a free pass to do whatever the heck he wants? If I had to choose between Yang Na being harmed or being sent to prison, I would pick the latter in a heartbeat.”

“You-” Hearing Li Huowang’s retort, the attending physician was at a loss for words.

Finally, he just sighed and shook his head. “Forget it, the hospital director has called the families of both parties. You don’t need to worry about these matters anymore.”

Upon hearing that, Li Huowang turned away and curled toward the other side of the bed where no one was facing him, contemplating whether the jade pendant worth 400,000 would be enough for compensation.

However, he wasn’t all that worried. Now that he knew that those pills were indeed effective, Li Huowang suddenly felt that he had many new choices in his life.

Feeling that his young patient’s spirits were low, the Doctor tried to console him. “Little Li, don’t worry, you won’t be sent to jail. The hospital can issue a certificate for you. Focus on recuperating properly, and we’ll handle the other matters.”

Li Huowang sensed the concern in his tone and replied, “Thank you, Doctor.”

“There’s no need to thank me; after all, I’m still your attending physician. And I have to care more for you as well since you’re so young,” Li Huowang felt his hand pat his own shoulder.

“But Little Li, tell me the truth. How did you manage to injure them to that extent? That’s not something the average person can achieve. Were you in a normal state, or were you going through a stressed hallucination?”

Li Huowang’s heart skipped a beat, his attention focusing on his shirt pocket. “That was me.”

“I specialize in psychology and have some expertise in this area. Think well before you answer me again, and don’t try to hide your illness. I especially hate it when my patients try to deceive me.”

Though the Doctor’s tone was friendly, Li Huowang could sense the heavy atmosphere in the room.

What should I do? I can’t let him know about the existence of those pills.

Just as Li Huowang was anxiously trying to find a way to avoid the question, his surroundings started to fade, and the Doctor’s voice started growing hazy.

Just a few seconds later, he found that he had once again slipped into the hallucination and that he was lying on the stone bed inside Xuan Yang’s solitary cave.

He sat up and supported his head, surveyed the simple furnishings around him, and smiled.

Hehe, no matter what happens, this is also a way out.

He did not plan to return so quickly this time around. In case the Doctor was the one waiting for him.

He stepped out of his room and saw some of his fellow disciples entering and leaving the cave’s passageways. His mind started to plan his next moves.

Since those pills were effective, he knew that he could not be as careless in the future. He had to manage his standing in this place properly and maximize the benefits he could reap from there.

Fortunately, his status was elevated from a mere guiding drug ingredient working away in the Preparation Room to one of Baldy’s official disciples. This allowed him to have much more freedom of movement.

When he saw a bearded man who was also wearing a set of Taoist robes walk by him, Li Huowang’s eyes gleamed, and he immediately chased after him, shouting, “Senior, senior!”

The bearded Taoist turned to find that it was Li Huowang who was calling out to him. He replied indifferently, “Junior Xuan Yang, what’s the matter?”

Li Huowang imitated the tone they spoke in, “Junior just became Master’s disciple and would like to receive Senior’s guidance. What should I be doing next?”

“Forgive me for being blunt, but even though you were personally accepted by Master, your seniority is the lowest. For now, you can only run errands within Zephyr Temple. Only the inner-circle disciples have the privilege of learning the cultivation of Immortality from the Master, and you aren’t qualified enough yet. For now, follow me and wait outside the pill room.”

“Cultivation of Immortality?” Li Huowang mumbled to himself. He had never heard of any immortal using humans to refine pills to achieve immortality.

“Can Master really become an Immortal?”

The bearded Taoist had a look of self-satisfaction as he said, “Of course. Master even has supernatural powers. You just need to serve him well.”

From talking to this senior called Xuan Yin, Li Huowang also got a clearer idea of the hierarchy within this cavernous Taoist Temple. There were five official disciples, one personal disciple, and only one temple master, which was Dan Yangzi himself.

Aside from these people, the rest were just auxiliary staff members, such as the cooks, the guiding drug ingredients working in the Preparation Room, or the young assistants tasked with doing miscellaneous work. In total, there were around 180 people.

This was the first time that Li Huowang got a comprehensive understanding of this Taoist academy. They didn’t have a lot of people, especially after the last batch of disciples died.

While they were conversing, the pill furnace appeared before Li Huowang again, and along with it came a sense of suppression. White smoke faintly wafted out from within, as though it was being used to refine something.

This time, accompanying Dan Yangzi was his inner-circle disciple as well, who had a gloomy expression.

After waiting for a while with Xuan Yin, Li Huowang was assigned his task. It was the same task as the previous Xuan Yang—to retrieve ingredients and keep a proper inventory of the Preparation Room.

Li Huowang arrived at the Preparation Room which was covered in white dust. The workers within looked toward him, a tinge of fear in their nervous expressions.

Initially, the young girl suffering from albinism pursed her lips and took a few steps forward in an eager manner, but in the end, she did not say anything and slowly backed away.

The other party’s status had changed from a fellow oppressed to the oppressor.

Li Huowang looked at them while his mind whirred. The dynamics of his relationship with them had changed, and perhaps he could use this fact to gain some benefits.

“Um, do you guys have any money on you?” asked Li Huowang.

This question left everyone stunned.

“Money, don’t you understand? Silver, gold, or jade will do too,” Li Huowang asked again.

If he were being honest, Li Huowang really did need money now. It was unknown just how much compensation he would need to provide Old Liu with, and his own family was from an ordinary background. If the compensation was huge, his Mom might even have to sell the house. Hence, his urgent need for money.

“Since it cannot be spent here, better to pass it all to me as protection fees. I’ll have your backs from now on.”

His words were quite straightforward, so everyone understood them and began to search their pockets. They did not beg for Li Huowang to protect them but only hoped that he would not bully them after they handed over their items.

A blackened and shattered silver piece about half the size of a thumb; a copper hairpin; and around forty round copper coins with a square inner hole. All these items were his harvest.

Li Huowang sighed when he saw all these things; it seemed that he had miscalculated. These guys wouldn’t have much money at all. From the looks of it, even his medical insurance would be worth more than all this junk.

Chacha and Char’s Thoughts

So the first thing he did after getting a promotion was extortion... I like it huehuehue