Chapter 653: Chapter 653: 654: Can I have some meat to replenish myself?

The government officer named Xiao Qi had a look of terror in his eyes. As a government officer, he often imagined himself one day dying in a foreign land, so he wasn’t particularly afraid of death or reluctant to leave the world of the living. But what he was facing now was completely different from going willingly to his death!

Being directly imprisoned to serve as someone’s exclusive source of Inner Strength—that feeling of being unable to live or let go and die clawed at his heart, eating away at every inch of his skin.

“Hehe, scream all you want. We are deep in the mountains; even if you scream your lungs out, no one will come to save you.”

“Serve me well, and who knows, you may turn calamity into a blessing. A laborer should act like a laborer!”

Li Xiaobai said indifferently, without any trace of fondness for these government officers.

Ordinary officers were just a rabble, quick to shout but faster to run at the slightest sign of trouble. However, the likes of Xiao Qi, a true hound of the Court, were all cold-hearted and would stop at nothing to achieve their goals, each one a ruthless executioner living by the sword.

Having committed his fair share of indiscriminate killings and now draining the man’s Inner Strength, Li Xiaobai felt not the slightest twinge of guilt.

“Hmph, let me tell you, we Imperial enforcers are professionally and rigorously trained. You can torture my body, but you’ll never break my spirit. My brothers will definitely come to save me!”

The officer named Xiao Qi said through clenched teeth, his eyes filled with resentful anger.

“Hehe, your body is enough for me; your spirit is worthless.”

Li Xiaobai chuckled, effortlessly draining Xiao Qi’s laboriously gathered Inner Strength.

It was only the first day, and Xiao Qi’s spirits had already significantly diminished.

Li Xiaobai noted all this, thinking that one sheep wasn’t enough for shearing. After a few days, he would need to find and bring back more plump sheep for a truly sustainable and rotational use.

Thanks to this, after several rounds of draining Inner Strength, the Inner Strength in his Dantian had grown to the size of several basketballs. Both in quantity and quality, he’d made a significant leap. His swordplay had become even more mystical and filled with a murderous aura.

Technically, with such a level of Inner Strength, he should have been able to open the governor and conception vessels and advance to the next realm through the Circulation of the Heavens. However, Li Xiaobai intended to maximize the potential of the Spirit Realm Technique; he planned to fill his entire Dantian with Inner Strength before taking the next step.

The next day.

Li Xiaobai continued to extract Inner Strength from Xiao Qi, like a vampire. With each round of extraction, Xiao Qi grew weaker, his lips turning somewhat purple.

“Um…”

“Big brother, get me some meat to replenish myself, please.”

Feeling his condition rapidly deteriorating, Xiao Qi caved in, speaking feebly. At this rate, he wouldn’t survive a week.

“Eh, weren’t you the one professionally trained to never yield, even in death?”

Li Xiaobai looked at him strangely and said.

“Look at what you’re saying; that’s completely different. If I stay alive, big brother, you’ll be able to keep draining Inner Strength from me continuously, right? This is all for your good.”

“Any kind of meat will do—chicken, duck, fish—I’m not picky!”

Xiao Qi said, shivering.

“Hehe, you’re quite thoughtful. Don’t worry, you’re very useful to me. As long as you work obediently, I won’t let anything happen to you,”

Li Xiaobai said with a smile.

“By the way, tell me the location of the rest of your small squad…”

…

Half an hour later, disguised, Li Xiaobai appeared in a marketplace at a certain location. This marketplace was near the mountains, in a remote area where the martial artists generally weren’t very strong. The government had not extended its reach here just yet, and the streets only had notices posted; the latest wanted posters with his likeness had not been put up yet.

This indeed eased Li Xiaobai’s worries quite a bit.

He intended to inquire about Long Xue’s whereabouts and, by the way, see if he could find a few more “Inner Strength ATMs.”

Now, even if he were surrounded by several government officers, he was confident that he could fight his way out.

In a roadside teahouse, three chivalrous wanderers were discussing the major events that had occurred in the past few days.

“Have you heard? The demon head, Li Xiaobai, and that Demonic Woman killed an official on the execution ground and escaped right under the noses of the government officers. And I’ve also heard that one of the officers fell to Li Xiaobai’s hand just two days ago!”

“Yes, but the Imperial Court has already captured that Demonic Woman, not without some gains. I’ve heard that Li Xiaobai is a man of deep feelings and loyalty. With his martial sister in the hands of the government, he’ll likely walk right into their trap.”

“Naturally, the Imperial Court has already announced that if Li Xiaobai does not show up, they will execute that Demonic Woman to carry out justice!”

“This farce will probably come to an end soon.”

“After all is said, what does this Li Xiaobai actually look like to have such ability? In the future, he might well become another great demon who plagues the region!”

“Heh heh, this you might not know, but Li Xiaobai looks very different from ordinary people; it’s said he was born with six fingers, a natural martial arts prodigy!”

The group went back and forth, piecing together the entire situation, their mouths emitting sounds of amazement.

Li Xiaobai, sitting in a corner, heard everything crystal clear and was quite at a loss for words; his image was getting more and more mystical in the mouths of these folks of the jianghu.

However, the government officers’ actions were just as he had anticipated. They planned to use Long Xue as a threat to lure him into making an appearance.

This very fact indicated that they needed Long Xue to draw him out, and she wouldn’t be in danger for the time being.

“The Li Xiaobai you gentlemen speak of, I think I might have seen him.”

Li Xiaobai cleared his throat and spoke up to the group of chivalrous wanderers.

“Oh?”

“Who are you?”

The group turned around abruptly, their gazes fixed intently on Li Xiaobai as they asked. They could feel that he was likely a practising martial artist, although they couldn’t perceive his exact realm.

“I’m the seventh son in my family, everyone calls me Xiao Qi, you can call me Xiao Qi too,” he said with the naïve and trusting look, lowering their guard a bit.

“So, it’s Brother Xiao Qi. From what you’ve just said, you’ve crossed paths with Li Xiaobai recently?”

One of the wanderers asked.

“Not exactly, I saw a young man carrying a government officer running. He resembled Li Xiaobai as described by you gentlemen. My dad said reporting to the government could earn some reward money, and I’m just about to go report it!”

Li Xiaobai said earnestly, at the same time, waving a letter in his hand.

Seeing this, the eyes of the three chivalrous wanderers lit up immediately. The Imperial Court had issued a wanted order for Li Xiaobai, and now, even providing his whereabouts could lead to a handsome reward. Driven by greed, they were very tempted.

“When did Brother Xiao Qi see this man?”

Their breathing grew rapid, and they asked with fervent eyes.

“Just last night, it happened in a flash, so quickly that I almost didn’t catch it.”