Farewell, Qiu Daxiang

Qiu Luoye stood in the scrubbing stall, shuddering in waves. He felt cold. It was only natural—the flesh of a muskmelon was icy and crisp, so of course he would feel freezing. Qiu Luoye rolled his neck and shoulders. "What kind of poison was that? It doesn't even feel like my own body." Li Banfeng shivered along with him. "I'm freezing too. This poison produces an intense chill. Swallow an antidote pill first, then go soak in the hot water." Li Banfeng handed him the medicinal pill refined by the Red Lotus. Qiu Luoye shook his head. "I don't need this. You two brothers take them." "We have our own." Li Banfeng took out two throat-soothing lozenges, gave one to Ma the Fifth, and swallowed the other himself. Seeing this, Qiu Luoye swallowed his pill as well, then stared down at the mangled flesh on the floor for a long moment. This was the flesh that had sloughed off his own frame; parts of it inevitably looked familiar. Li Banfeng had initially considered using lime to conceal it, but explaining where lime had come from would have been difficult. Now that it was plastered over with human bath grime, it seemed completely natural and left no flaw. Qiu Luoye gave the pile of mush another kick. "Is that scrubber really dead?" Li Banfeng said, "His corpse is right here. How could there be any doubt?" Ma the Fifth chimed in from the side, "I saw it with my own eyes! Old Seven blew him to pieces!" Qiu Luoye looked at Li Banfeng and suddenly felt there was no reason to doubt it. Having seen the corpse, the man was certainly dead. "Could that scrubber have had accomplices?" Li the Seventh had been waiting for precisely those words. "I'll go outside and take a look." Qiu Luoye said, "I'll go with you." Ma the Fifth grabbed hold of him. "Big Brother, you're injured. Come with me and soak in the hot water first." Once Qiu Luoye sank into the steaming water, much of the chill dispersed, though his body still felt odd. His flesh was still stiff, and far slicker than before. What kind of poison had that scrubber used to be this formidable? *** Li Banfeng dashed into Qiu Luoye's territory, returned to the Portable Abode, and said to the gramophone, "Precious Wife, the first hurdle is cleared, and he's taken the medicine. We'll be through the second hurdle in no time." The wife picked up the covenant deed. She had three tasks to perform. First, she used steam to wash away the bloodstains on the deed. That blood belonged to Qiu Luoye, but a mist was maintained over the deed to preserve an illusion, making it look from the outside as though the blood was still there. For now, this illusion was vital to fool the Inner States. With the blood washed away, was the covenant deed entirely severed from Qiu Luoye? Not yet. For the second task, the wife flipped the deed to its back, which was densely inscribed with Qiu Luoye's lifetime of battle achievements. The deed remained entangled with Qiu Luoye. As long as any link persisted—even a mere name—the matter remained unsafe. Stroke by stroke, the wife replaced every mention of Qiu Luoye's name with Qiu Daxiang. For the third task, there was still another muskmelon Qiu Luoye inside the Portable Abode. The wife used the gramophone needle to prick the muskmelon Qiu Luoye's hand, dripping its juice across the iron covenant deed. With that, the covenant deed was entirely severed from Qiu Luoye. *** Stationed near the boundary line, Chuanzi noticed something amiss. The gravel and fallen leaves near the border instantly crumbled into ash. Wuqin Township and Qiu Luoye's territory were parted by the boundary line. A brother beside him asked, "Brother Chuanzi, what's going on?" Chuanzi could not fathom it either. "Don't ask questions. Watch the road! Don't let anyone through!" Aside from Li Banfeng's household, no one knew the truth of what was happening. Qiqiu City was now split in two: the land of Wuqin Township belonged to Qiu Luoye, while Qiu Luoye's original domain belonged to Qiu Daxiang. And who was Qiu Daxiang? As far as the covenant deed was concerned, whoever bled onto it was Qiu Daxiang. The muskmelon had spilled its juice; therefore, the muskmelon was Qiu Daxiang. *** The gramophone spoke to the muskmelon Qiu Luoye: "You are Qiu Daxiang." The muskmelon Qiu Luoye stared at the gramophone with a wooden expression. Could the muskmelon Qiu Luoye form an affinity with this deed? The juice had been shed. Whether an affinity took hold depended on whether the muskmelon Qiu Luoye knew he possessed the moniker Qiu Daxiang. Seeing the melon's expressionless face, Li Banfeng felt uncertain. The gramophone said, "Husband, go ahead and do it. This muskmelon was grown from Qiu Luoye's blood. As long as the moniker works, it will surely form an affinity. "Husband must act swiftly. Once the covenant deed leaves the room, the illusion can hold for only a brief period—no more than two minutes. If the deed is not done within two minutes, you must bring it back, or the Inner States will spot the flaw." Li Banfeng nodded. Taking the iron covenant deed and the prepared paper deed, along with the remaining muskmelon Qiu Luoye, he left the Portable Abode. Standing upon Qiu Luoye's land, Li Banfeng unfurled the paper deed. A single line of text was written across it: "Qiu Luoye defeated Qiu Daxiang; Qiu Daxiang cedes the entire territory of a hundred li and myriad plots to Qiu Luoye." Li Banfeng glanced at the muskmelon Qiu Luoye and asked, "Qiu Daxiang, do you agree?" The muskmelon Qiu Luoye nodded in consent. Li Banfeng handed the paper deed to the muskmelon Qiu Daxiang, who took it and dripped muskmelon juice over the surface. Li Banfeng then produced a small vial and poured Qiu Luoye's remaining blood onto the paper deed. Whether pouring the blood of both Qiu Luoye and Qiu Daxiang onto the same paper deed would take effect depended on whether the iron covenant deed responded. He turned over the iron covenant deed. No reaction. It didn't work? Had the melon failed to establish an affinity with the deed? What now? Although the covenant deed was no longer tied to Qiu Luoye, Qiu Luoye was currently only the local spirit of Wuqin Township. Yet he was unfamiliar with Wuqin Township, and its land was not vast enough. Under such circumstances, he could not use his territory to stabilize his status and cultivation, which meant he would fail the third hurdle. Li Banfeng grew anxious. The two-minute window was almost up. Why was there still no change on the deed? Wait! He had nearly forgotten—the deed still bore an illusion! Li Banfeng engaged his Golden Eyes of Keen Detail and looked at the deed once more. At the very bottom, a line of script had emerged: *Qiu Luoye defeated Qiu Daxiang; Qiu Daxiang cedes the entire territory of a hundred li and myriad plots to Qiu Luoye.* It worked! It was done! Li Banfeng looked at the muskmelon and burst into hearty laughter. "The deed is done. Farewell, Qiu Daxiang!" As the words fell, Li Banfeng brought his foot down with Treading Ten Thousand Rivers, instantly blowing the muskmelon Qiu Daxiang apart. Li Banfeng immediately opened the Portable Abode and handed the covenant deed to the gramophone. "Wife, it's done." The gramophone said, "Hurry, hand the deed over to the Old Master!" Li Banfeng carried the deed to Room Three and set it on the floor. "Old Master, destroy this covenant deed." "Are you certain this deed has nothing to do with Qiu Luoye anymore?" Li Banfeng nodded. "Nothing at all." "Then I shall make my move!" The deed on the floor still bore traces of steam. A chilly gust swept through Room Three, scattering all the vapor and exposing the deed's true appearance. "What are you doing?" "Hehehe, having a little fun with them!" the Portable Abode chuckled sinisterly. The deed on the floor shimmered faintly with light. Li Banfeng did not grasp the Abode's intention. *Sizzle.* A plume of green smoke rose from the deed. Li Banfeng could not tell where the smoke was coming from. The Portable Abode said, "Use Perceiving Spiritual Voices to listen. Let's listen together and see if we can hear them. The sounds they make are truly delightful!" With the Portable Abode's aid, Li Banfeng employed Perceiving Spiritual Voices and heard a miserable shriek emanating from the deed. The voice was deep and resonant—a man's. Li Banfeng asked, "Who is that?" "That's the keeper guarding the deed in the Inner States. He touched my flame, hehehe..." The Portable Abode's laugh grew even more sinister. "Listen, another one seems to be coming!" Another agonized shriek came from the deed, belonging to another man, far hoarser than the first. "Good! That's what he gets for his itchy fingers, having to come over and touch it. Touch my fire, and you die! Burn those bastards to death! "Ah Qi, you have no idea. The ones guarding these deeds aren't mere lackeys—they are purebred Inner States folk! "Back in the day, Old Train loved putting an end to these purebred Inner States people. That bunch of bastards is the rottenest of all; killing them is the most satisfying!" Purebred! Li Banfeng grew excited as well. "Purebred Inner States folk... you mean Chu Shaoqiang's masters?" "Yes, the masters of those lapdogs!" "Where did they come from?" "Old Train investigated for years but never found out. They don't belong to our world!" Li Banfeng ground his teeth. "If only I could kill one of them with my own hands!" The Portable Abode laughed. "Ah Qi, you just killed these two with your own hands! You came up with the plan, and you carried it out. At least seventy percent of the credit is yours!" "Splendid! That's music to my ears!" Just as Li Banfeng was celebrating, another shriek came from the deed. "Another one! Hahaha!" The Old Master and Li Banfeng laughed together, their laughter echoing through the Portable Abode. The Old Master sighed. "Pity this deed can't hold out much longer, or we could have baited a few more." Even as he spoke, Qiu Daxiang's covenant deed melted into molten iron, rapidly evaporating into nothingness. Li Banfeng said, "No rush. We'll have plenty of chances—until those bastards never dare reach into Puluo Province again!" "Good lad!" "Hahaha!" Laughter echoed through the Portable Abode once more. Hong Ying shuddered. "Those two laugh like fiends!" The moment she spoke, another shudder ran through her. No, this was her instinct for seeking good fortune and avoiding calamity. Something was about to go wrong! Hong Ying could not see, but her back sensed a chill. The gramophone was right behind her. Taking advantage of Hong Ying's distraction, it injected a plume of steam into her body. Hong Ying was instantly paralyzed. The gramophone moved her into Room Two. Hong Ying gritted her teeth. "What are you doing?" The gramophone produced a wooden trunk. "That madman is in such high spirits, I certainly won't escape tonight. "We sisters have fought battles our entire lives; I can't be left to suffer alone tonight!" Hong Ying wanted to scream, "You cursed, vicious woman..." The gramophone gagged Hong Ying, stuffed her into the trunk, and fashioned a dummy gramophone. The gramophone looked around; she still had to hide the Joyous Soil, or that wretched wench Hong Ying wouldn't be able to hold out for long either. *** Li Banfeng exited the Portable Abode and hurried toward the bathhouse. Halfway there, he was stopped by Chuanzi's men. "Seventh Master, you can't go across! That boundary line has appeared again." Li Banfeng picked up a stone from the ground and tossed it across the line. The stone flew past, completely unharmed. The men stared in bewilderment. The line had clearly been there just moments ago—how was it gone again? Li Banfeng tugged the brim of his hat low and gave a faint smile. "There won't be any boundary lines from now on. There will only be a single territory, and this place will only be Qiqiu City!" *** Inside the bathhouse, Qiu Luoye felt more and more that the flesh on his frame was not right. "Old Five, why does it feel like I'm wearing a suit of clothes?" Ma the Fifth shook his head. "No clothes. Who wears clothes while soaking in a bath?" "Something is clearly wrong with my body. It feels awful." Qiu Luoye scratched relentlessly at his skin and flesh. Ma the Fifth tried to dissuade him: "Brother Qiu, you've been poisoned. You mustn't scratch recklessly. Bear with it for a bit, and it will pass." Qiu Luoye could endure it no longer. "This isn't my body! This definitely isn't my body! Old Five, what on earth happened? Are you two hiding something from me?" With Li Banfeng absent, the Technique of Ironclad Evidence had lost its hold, and Qiu Luoye's mind was gradually clearing. He pounded at his skin, and the flesh began to swell outward. "Brother Qiu, don't! Listen to me, wait a moment—" *Bang!* Qiu Luoye exploded, spattering Ma the Fifth's face with muskmelon pulp. "Brother Qiu! Brother Qiu..." Ma the Fifth wiped away the pulp and saw a gaunt man standing before him, stripped of skin, his raw muscle and flesh exposed to the open air. The man turned his face toward Ma the Fifth. Ma the Fifth froze for a long time before calling out tentatively, "Brother Qiu, is that you?" Qiu Luoye touched his own raw flesh, still bewildered. "Is this me? Where did my skin go?" *Had the second hurdle passed?* *His own flesh had regrown!* Surprise and joy surged through Ma the Fifth, but he soon noticed something was wrong with Qiu Luoye. His thoughts were descending into chaos; Qiu Luoye swayed unsteadily and tumbled into the water. Ma the Fifth helped him up. This was a sign of an unstable soul. Hoisting Qiu Luoye out of the water, Ma the Fifth laid him on a recliner. At a loss for what to do, he could only wait for Li the Seventh to return. A few minutes later, Li Banfeng rushed into the bathhouse and saw the skinless Qiu Luoye on his last breath. "Brother Qiu, think of your own territory! Steady your soul!" "Territory? You mean... Wuqin Township?" Qiu Luoye's mind drifted; he could recall nothing. "Don't think about Wuqin Township! Think only of your own domain—the land you guarded for so many years!" "My own domain..." Qiu Luoye failed to understand. "The land you know best! Think of it carefully!" After a moment's contemplation, Qiu Luoye's eyes widened. His territory gradually resurfaced in his mind. From every mountain and stream to every blade of grass and tree, he was intimately familiar with that place. The more he thought, the clearer his thoughts became, and strength began returning to his body. Qiu Luoye sat up, his soul stabilized. The third hurdle was cleared.