Chapter 270 - Fear
Amidst Lu Juren and Luo Juanhua's fearful gazes, Li Huowang’s body slowly floated up from within the ground.
Then, he stared at the silver in Lu Zhuangyuan’s palms and said, “It seems like he has been threatened by someone else. Alright then, there’s nothing much you can do now.”
With that, Li Huowang turned toward the door.
As Li Huowang opened the door, he once again sank his illusion into the ground. Once he became invisible again, he entered the kitchen.
The cook remained the same as before as he covered his body in a blanket and stared outside the window while trembling as if he was afraid of something.
Compared to the woman from earlier, the cook didn’t have the smell of blood or rust on him.
While Li Huowang was stealthily observing him, the cook suddenly placed both of his hands into his pants. At the same time, his face became very snarly.
Seeing this, Li Huowang frowned and left.
Li Huowang went outside and saw the waiter wiping the tables while looking in the direction everyone was staying.
That fatty was right. The people of Pi County are indeed panicky and their faces really do look terrible.
Realizing that he wouldn’t be able to find any information at the inn, Li Huowang walked out into the rain.
Just as he stepped out, he saw an old man who was wearing a raincoat and a veiled hat while coming from the opposite direction. He was wearing wooden clogs.
When the old man looked toward where Li Huowang was standing, he was horrified by what he saw. He cried out loud before directly fainting in the rain.
What the? Did he see me? How did he see me?
Li Huowang looked down but saw nothing wrong with his technique; he was still invisible.
However, after a moment, Li Huowang then realized what was happening. Even though his illusion was inside the ground, his real body could still interact with the physical world. Now that it was raining and he was standing in the rain, others could see a human-shaped void where there is no rain.
It was no wonder that the old man fainted. Even Li Huowang would’ve been frightened if he saw something like that.
The older town guard looked at the ground, but couldn’t find any footprints. After a moment, he waved his hand and said, “Let’s go!”
Meanwhile, Li Huowang was hiding in a corner of the wall near the roof. After confirming that they had left, he quickly came down and carefully made his way to his destination.
Li Huowang knew that every county would have a book that recorded anything major that happened within the county. This book was Li Huowang’s goal.
Li Huowang sank his illusion into the ground and turned invisible before easily entering the administration center. Once there, he searched around the offices and soon found what he needed.
Year of the Rat and Ox, Fourth Month, Famine... People sold their own children to buy food.
Year of the Earth Horse, end of the Lunar New Year, Eclipse.
Li Huowang flipped through the pages until the last entry. However, he was surprised to see that the latest entry was recorded two years ago and the only thing it recorded was that they had a good harvest that year.
Impossible. The entire County is struck with panic and fear, and yet they haven’t recorded it down? Or... are they trying to cover it up?
Just as Li Huowang was thinking about it, he heard the painful cries of a boy. Surprised, he quickly placed the book back where it belonged. Then, he gently tiptoed across the hall to where the sound was coming from.
His sharp hearing could pick up the words that came from the child’s mouth.
“Father... It’s painful... Mother... I don’t want it...”
Soon, Li Huowang found where the sound was coming from. It was coming from the firewood room. By now, the voice had also become very clear.
“Father! Stop! Don’t pull it! Waaaa~ Mother~ It’s painful! Stop...” The boy’s voice was very miserable; it was as if he was being tortured.
Is this what the harvester told me about? They are beating up their child?
Li Huowang carefully approached the paper window and used his wet finger to poke a hole through it.
As soon as he looked into the room, his pupils shrank in shock.
He saw a crying boy who was tied to a pillar. He looked quite awful.
Two people stood beside the boy. Based on their looks, they seem to be the boy’s parents. Even though they looked reluctant, they still held a metal clamp and used it to pull at the boy’s genitals.
In response, the boy shouted, his chained body shaking from the pain.
Li Huowang couldn’t believe what he was seeing. The pain that the boy was suffering from was probably almost comparable to his own torture methods.