Bizarre Honkai, a Wife-Chasing Crematorium

"Ugh…"

Changle groaned, her eyes snapping open. She shoved Li Mo off of her.

"What… what are you doing?!"

"Checking if you're dead. Your reflexes are good. You're still alive," Li Mo said impassively, then added, "I have two questions. First, what did you see last night? Second, is there a town or settlement at the foot of Taixu Mountain? If you passed through it, tell me everything you know about it."

Changle sat up, her head still swimming, but she tried to recall the answers.

"Last… last night…" she murmured, then abruptly stopped, shaking her head at the woman on Li Mo's shoulder.

Li Mo paused, then realized last night's events were taboo. Changle's coma was a warning. Speaking about it might bring greater calamity.

"We'll set aside the first question for now. Answer the second one. Don't tell me you don't know anything."

"Of course I know! I've been carefully memorizing our journey!" Changle said indignantly.

Mingyue's coldness was infuriating. It was hard to imagine he was even human.

His words and actions were so direct, so purposeful, without any tact.

"Then tell me. With me here, you won't die." Li Mo was blunt. He had his restart ability.

If Changle's information was crucial, he would let her speak, even if it meant triggering a death rule, then restart and save her, repeating the process until he learned the truth.

If it wasn't important, he would let it go.

"You better be right about that," Changle sighed, finally hearing a reassuring word from him. It was a rare occurrence.

Composing herself, she addressed Mingyue seriously. "There is indeed a sizable town at the foot of Taixu Mountain. It takes about half an hour to walk through it."

"The town has a large population, people from all walks of life, their clothing varied. We spoke with some of them when we passed through."

"Concerned about being unprepared for the Heavenly Path, our group rested in the town for a night."

"We didn't notice anything strange."

"Why do you ask, Mingyue? Are you planning to descend the mountain now?"

Changle became wary. If Mingyue left now, what would she do at night? The Heavenly Path wasn't something you could traverse in a day or two.

A round trip would take a considerable amount of time. Without Mingyue to deal with the demons, she would be torn apart at night.

Unfortunately, her worst fears were about to be realized.

Changle had assumed Li Mo wouldn't descend the mountain so readily. After all that effort to climb it, just two more days, and they could meet the Jingwei the Immortal and receive her blessings. There was no reason to give up halfway.

But reality rarely followed human desires.

"I'm going down to take a look," Li Mo stated his plan.

Changle was startled. "No, that's too dangerous! Think about how much effort it took to climb the Heavenly Path, how many demons we encountered! A round trip will take several days!"

"Just stay on the mountain, stay in the room for two more days! We're so close to meeting the Jingwei the Immortal!"

Li Mo shook his head, dismissing her concerns.

"It's precisely because we're about to meet Jingwei that I need to uncover the truth quickly. I've made up my mind."

"I'll leave in half an hour and return tonight. Before that, you need to memorize everything I'm about to say."

"After entering the main hall, avoid eating, avoid making eye contact with the Seven Swords of Taixu, avoid drinking water, avoid talking to those who are eating."

"Don't just avoid eye contact in the room; avoid it with anyone, including me."

"The food on the table isn't delicacies, but rotting corpses. If you can stomach that, be my guest, but you'll likely become the same. I know you still have some rations left; you can eat those."

"Also, warn your assassins not to consume anything on Taixu Mountain, not even leaves or grass."

"After returning to your room, avoid getting injured, avoid leaning against the walls, avoid letting demons enter."

"Especially don't touch that head. You should know why."

"Demons can't enter the room if there are less than five of them outside. I should be back before the time when demons roam freely. If I'm not, do as I've instructed. As for how long you can survive, that's up to fate."

"At Xu Shi (7-9 pm), avoid being called to turn around, avoid standing under trees, avoid lighting lamps."

"It's hard to determine the exact time of Xu Shi, so just be cautious. It's best to return to your room and close the door early, just in case."

Li Mo gave detailed instructions, as if going on a long journey.

But the more detailed his instructions, the more anxious Changle became.

She knew that without Mingyue's guidance and protection, even reaching the summit would have been impossible.

Let alone surviving the strange occurrences on Taixu Mountain.

If it weren't for Mingyue, who was equally strange, they would have been killed by demons last night, without even knowing how they died.

"Do you really have to go?" Changle pleaded.

But Li Mo was resolute.

"You shouldn't stop me, nor should you interfere with my decisions."

"I didn't save you purely out of kindness. Perhaps I did yesterday, but not today."

"You know what you need to do; I don't need to spell it out for you. If you don't even know that, then it's better for you to die here, so you don't endanger more people."

With that, Li Mo turned and left, his back to her, his departure final.

Changle reached out a hand, then let it fall.

She knew she shouldn't stop him, but… could she really survive the dangerous hours after Xu Shi alone?

The image of the assassin's twisted neck, his grotesque death, was fresh in her mind. She clutched her chest.

Fear and anxiety urged her to follow Mingyue, but her mission and the expectations placed upon her kept her rooted to the spot.

"Two more days. I just need to hold out for two more days," Changle reassured herself, though this comfort felt more like self-deception, offering no real sense of security.

Outside, Li Mo strode purposefully towards the Taixu Heavenly Path, fully equipped: Bizzare Handgun, Bizzare Coins, thermometer…

If nothing unexpected happened, the town at the foot of the mountain, far from the summit, shouldn't be too dangerous.

His regenerative abilities in his twice-dead state, combined with the Bizzare-suppressing handgun, the attention-grabbing coins, and the Bizzare-detecting thermometer…

He had the means to sense, deal with, and escape danger, with a certain margin for error.

Even if there were Bizzare Entities in the small town, they wouldn't pose a significant threat.

Qin Suyi's dying words seemed to be instructing him to go there for something. He would know what it was when he arrived.

If it truly was the human-conscious Qin Suyi who had spoken, then she must have glimpsed a crucial clue in the Bizzare's memories, like Ellie in the broadcasting room.

Staying on the mountain, he could only react to danger, not act proactively.

Even looking at his human skin effigy on the scholar tree had been a huge risk.

Passive defense wasn't Li Mo's style; it was a last resort.

If there was an opportunity, actively seeking a way out was the best way to escape a maze.

Because Bizzare Entities never revealed the path to survival.

"Why such haste, young master? Are you dissatisfied with our hospitality?"

Li Mo didn't turn around, tilting his head slightly. "You overthink things. However, Miss Su Mei, you and five of the Seven Swords… finding me here is quite a 'coincidence.'"

During the day, without triggering any rules, they were just the ordinary Seven Swords of Taixu.

Li Mo was confident he could subdue all of them except Cheng Lingshuang within ten seconds. As for Cheng Lingshuang, it would only take another ten seconds.

He just had to control his strength and not kill them, triggering their restarts.

Thus, Li Mo's words became bolder.

Su Mei chuckled, exchanging glances with the five others beside her.

"Of course it's not a coincidence, young master. Please don't worry. We, the Seven Swords of Taixu, might be enemies of all mortals, but we are not your enemy."

"And you think I'd believe that?"

"We apologize, young master. We cannot discuss taboo topics with you yet."

"But what if I want to know more?"

After this brief exchange, Li Mo determined it wasn't the Name-Calling Bizzare Entity's rule.

After all, that rule had a compelling effect, making people instinctively turn around.

And it usually only called out names.

Su Mei and the others hadn't called out his real name, and their words hadn't given him any reason to turn around.

So he turned, facing the six remaining swords, keeping his gaze lowered.

"Didn't Sister Suyi already tell you more… by her own example?"

"..."

Li Mo didn't answer. Su Mei was implying she knew about Qin Suyi's private conversation with him.

"Young master, you must be heading to the town at the foot of the mountain, following the clue Sister Suyi gave you, seeking the other half of the truth."

"I happen to have the other half. Are you willing to listen?"

Su Mei's lips curved into an alluring smile, her eyes inviting.

She was deliberately enticing Li Mo to continue the conversation.

With a woman this cunning, Li Mo wouldn't trust her words completely. He would observe the expressions of the other swords to gauge the truthfulness of her claims.

As for the truth itself, Li Mo wouldn't give up so easily. It was his only weakness.

"Speak freely. Even if you take your time." Li Mo placed one hand on his hip, his Bizzare left hand hanging limply at his side.

"Are you prepared, young master? Once you know the truth, you'll pay a heavy price, perhaps even your life."

"Your every action will affect the lives of countless people. Or perhaps, you will become one of the new Seven Swords of Taixu, a grotesque executioner."

Su Mei's usual playful smile vanished, her tone serious, as if she were about to reveal something incredibly heavy.

So heavy that she had abandoned her decades-long facade of cheerfulness.

"Even escape will become a luxury. From the moment you glimpse half the truth, you either lead everyone to survival or stay here and die. There's no third option," Lin Chaoyu added calmly, her voice devoid of emotion, numb.

Even the usually confident Li Mo couldn't help but reconsider the price of knowing the truth.

No escape… not even through the Bizzare cave?

No, they shouldn't know about the Bizzare cave, that he was an outsider who had entered this world through it.

If they did, the straightforward Lin Chaoyu would have mentioned it.

Li Mo carefully observed Lin Chaoyu and Su Mei's expressions. Neither showed any unusual emotion.

They didn't know about his escape route.

But…

Li Mo continued to ponder. The Seven Swords of Taixu stood quietly, waiting for his answer.

Lin Chaoyu's confident declaration… she was certain that once he knew the truth, he would either save everyone or be trapped on Taixu Mountain.

The Bizzare cave was in the middle of the Heavenly Path. Even if he couldn't leave Taixu Mountain, he could still enter the cave and leave this world.

If he knew the truth and could reach the town at the foot of the mountain, he could also enter the Bizzare cave. There was no reason he couldn't leave.

Perhaps there was some unknown rule, a restriction, a lock, a hypnotic suggestion… that would mark him, preventing him from even thinking about leaving.

In that case, even the Bizzare cave might not offer a safe escape.

Should he gamble?

Was the truth worth the price?

After much deliberation, Li Mo decided to gamble.

He still had his restart ability. If the truth wasn't worth it, or if he was marked by an inescapable Bizzare rule, he could simply kill himself, restart, and choose to refuse Su Mei's offer.

He had a reset button. He could afford to test the waters.

If the price was acceptable, he would continue. If not, he would restart.

But he needed to gather more information first.

"So you're the latter. You failed to save everyone and are trapped on Taixu Mountain, or even… never mind, I think I've guessed correctly," Li Mo said, voicing his hypothesis, but stopping short of mentioning their deaths.

He absolutely couldn't mention their deaths, or they would shut down prematurely, and he would never learn the truth.

Su Mei just smiled, not denying it, her eyes half-closed, her gaze distant, as if deliberately clouding her thoughts.

At least for now, they refused to acknowledge their own deaths.

Li Mo pressed further, "Why me?"

"Countless people have climbed Taixu Mountain over the centuries, and there must have been many clever individuals among them. Those without sharp minds wouldn't have survived the trials and tribulations to reach the summit, let alone meet the Immortal."