Qin Tianjiu had a small courtyard in Yaowang Gully, and inside stood an old locust tree.
A young woman had once lived in that locust tree, and back then Li Banfeng had spotted her using his Golden Eyes of Keen Detail technique.
He had never imagined that their next encounter would be in the black market of Yuezhou City.
The girl's eyes were dull and unfocused. She was dressed exactly as she had been before, still clutching locust leaves in her hand, yet now she had become merchandise in a black market.
Where had she brought these locust leaves from? Could they really have come from Fatty Qin's courtyard?
How long had she been here?
How had these leaves not withered yet?
The woman beside him asked, "Well? Fancy her? This girl can fight, and she can warm your bed!"
Li Banfeng asked, "You said she has seventh-tier cultivation. What pathway is she?"
The woman chuckled. "Her pathway is quite uncommon. She's a Cold Cultivator."
Li Banfeng froze. "There's such a pathway?"
The woman laughed. "Didn't I say it's rare? Cold face, cold body, cold heart—sweeping through everything like frost and ice. The colder she is, the harder she fights."
Li Banfeng frowned. "If she's that good in a fight, how am I supposed to sleep with her? Can I even beat her?"
The woman straightened her expression. "Don't let her stay cold, then. Warm her up. Once a Cold Cultivator gets hot, she loses her strength."
Li Banfeng looked the black-market woman up and down. "Do you think I'm an easy mark? Making up some random pathway to swindle me?"
The woman stubbed out her cigarette. "I've been in this trade a full ten years. Ask around on the streets—who doesn't know Fourth Mother Yin? Would I ruin my own reputation over a single deal with you?
"Besides, this venue at the Cultural Palace has rules. If I pulled tricks on a transaction with you, how could I keep doing business here?
"Brother, this is good merchandise brought over from Puluo Province. Everything I'm saying is Puluo Province jargon, not that I know whether you even understand it.
"I, Fourth Mother Yin, don't just have a name in Yuezhou; I'm somebody in Puluo Province too. A failed deal doesn't kill the friendship. It's fine if you don't know the ropes, but don't talk so offensively."
Li Banfeng was surprised. "You're somebody in Puluo Province too?"
"What, you don't believe me?" Fourth Mother Yin sneered. "Ever heard of the Lu family in Puluo Province? The head of the Lu family, Lu Dongliang, has a major guard under him named Zuo Wugang. He's my sworn brother."
Li Banfeng stared. "Who did you say Zuo Wugang is a guard for?"
"The Lu family!"
Li Banfeng asked again, "And who did you say the head of the Lu family was?"
"Lu Dongliang!"
Li Banfeng fell silent for a moment, then asked, "How long has it been since you were last in Puluo Province?"
Fourth Mother Yin bristled. "Is that any of your business? Do you want to buy this ghost servant or not? If not, let's look at the next one."
Looking at the green-clad young woman, Li Banfeng said, "Since she's fine merchandise from Puluo Province, name your price."
"A seventh-tier ghost servant, pretty as a picture, untouched by anyone, a rare pathway, and her cultivation intact. Two hundred, firm."
"Two hundred?" Li Banfeng didn't know what currency she meant.
"First day at the black market?" Fourth Mother Yin frowned. "Obviously not two hundred bucks. I mean two million."
Two million for a seventh-tier ghost servant with such a rare pathway didn't seem high to Li Banfeng.
"Give me an account number, and I'll wire you the money." Ma the Fifth had pulled strings to open an account for Li Banfeng in the Outer States, so two million posed no problem.
Fourth Mother Yin shook her head. "We only take cash here. Leave a deposit first, then come back once you've scraped the cash together."
Li Banfeng smiled. Cash was even easier—he had plenty inside the companion dwelling.
He left the Cultural Palace first, found a street corner, hid his key, and returned to the companion dwelling.
Before long, Li Banfeng wheeled two suitcases into the cinema, called the snack vendor over to join them, went up to Box 205, and paid on the spot.
Seeing the two suitcases of cash, Fourth Mother Yin gave a thumbs-up. "Boss, you've got real capability! Two million in cash, produced just like that!"
The snack vendor urged, "Hurry up and count it. Make sure it's genuine."
Fourth Mother Yin counted the money right there. From the speed of her counting, she was clearly a seasoned merchant—a flick of a stack in her hand, not a bill off, counted down to the last note.
Ten minutes later, the two million was tallied, and Fourth Mother Yin handed over the young woman's covenant deed to Li Banfeng on the spot.
For a Nightmare Cultivator, a covenant deed was an essential anchor for controlling a ghost servant, but Li Banfeng was no Nightmare Cultivator, nor did he know how to use it.
Fourth Mother Yin didn't care about that; as the seller, all that mattered was that the payment and goods were settled.
What was this green-clad girl's name?
Feng Yuqiu.
The name was written on the deed.
Li Banfeng took the deed and was just wondering how to communicate with her when, to his surprise, the girl stepped out from behind the curtain of her own accord and stood beside him.
Fourth Mother Yin chuckled. "The girl's taken a liking to you. Boss, take care of your stamina tonight.
"Doing business with you has been an absolute pleasure. I'm Yin Liting, nicknamed Fourth Mother Yin. Boss, how should I address you?"
Li Banfeng said, "My surname is Boss, given name Boss, nicknamed Big Boss. Until next time."
With that, Li Banfeng left with the ghost servant. Fourth Mother Yin frowned slightly, but said nothing.
The snack vendor pocketed a cut of two hundred thousand as commission and headed downstairs to continue tending to business.
...
Back at his residence, Li Banfeng had the green-clad young woman sit in the living room and asked, "Your name is Feng Yuqiu?"
She nodded without speaking, her face completely expressionless.
Li Banfeng asked, "How did you come to the Outer States?"
She looked up at Li Banfeng for a long time, still silent.
Could this so-called Cold Cultivator actually be a Sloth Cultivator?
Li Banfeng stopped trying to converse with her. Taking out his phone, he called Luo Zhengnan.
"Old Luo, how's the investigation into Yesong Bridge's territory coming along?"
"Seventh Master, from when I arrived at Yesong Bridge until now, I've found a total of seventeen patches of wind-sand soil."
Wind-sand soil was the Puluo Province term for stealth spaces. Wind and sand blurred the eyes, preventing clear sight, and land invisible to the naked eye was called wind-sand soil.
"How large are these seventeen territories?" According to the covenant deed, more than half of Yesong Bridge's land was invisible to the naked eye.
Luo Zhengnan said, "Hard to say, Seventh Master. With most wind-sand soil, I can only open the entrance. If I go inside, I won't be able to get out."
Luo Zhengnan genuinely faced this difficulty when scouting stealth spaces. He could find an entrance, but in most cases, he had to hold it open from the outside; once he stepped inside, the entrance would snap shut.
"Seventh Master, I considered finding an assistant, but what you tasked me with is surely confidential, so I couldn't let anyone else in on it."
Old Luo was indeed thorough. Li Banfeng said, "Note down the entrances. Once I'm back, we'll inspect them carefully. I need to track down two people, and I'll need your help with that."
"Just give the word, Seventh Master."
"Qin Tianjiu of the Three Heroes Sect—inquire about his recent situation for me. If you find him, pass a message along.
"And another person named Yin Liting, nicknamed Fourth Mother Yin, who claims to be Zuo Wugang's sworn sister. Ask Old Zuo for me if there's any truth to that."
"Await my word, sir."
As soon as Li Banfeng hung up, the green-clad girl, Feng Yuqiu, stood up, reaching out and gesturing at him.
With both hands, she outlined a large sphere, as though gesturing the shape of a massive watermelon.
Then her hands slowly drew closer together, as if the sphere had shrunk.
Her lips parted and closed. She wanted to speak, yet could produce no sound.
Her face remained blank, but her eyes stared fixedly at Li Banfeng.
A big ball, growing smaller.
Li Banfeng asked, "Are you talking about Fatty Qin? A slimmer Fatty Qin?"
Feng Yuqiu nodded.
"Did you come to the Outer States to look for him?"
Feng Yuqiu opened her mouth, still unable to speak. Even though she showed no facial expression, Li Banfeng could sense her frantic urgency.
What was she trying to convey?
Would Madam know?
Li Banfeng didn't want to bring Feng Yuqiu into the companion dwelling; once she entered, he couldn't let her leave alive.
Bring Madam outside to ask a few questions?
Not many people who saw Madam lived to tell the tale either.
Li Banfeng arranged a bedroom for Feng Yuqiu and had the pendulum watch over her.
He returned alone to the companion dwelling and asked Madam, "Is there really a Cold Cultivator pathway?"
Hong Ying answered, "Husband dear, there is! Turning water into ice—terribly powerful..."
*Smack!*
A board came down with a sharp crack, making Hong Ying shudder. The gramophone snapped, "You know nothing, yet you dare blabber so brazenly!"
Hong Ying rubbed her sore peach, complaining, "What did I get wrong?"
The gramophone ignored Hong Ying and turned toward Li Banfeng. "Precious Husband, turning water into ice belongs to Chilling Cultivators—an entirely different thing from Cold Cultivators.
"The Cold Cultivator pathway cultivates temperament. The colder a person is, the higher their combat power. I've never seen an above-the-clouds Cold Cultivator, but down on the ground, I once saw a seventh-tier Cold Cultivator defeat a ninth-tier Literary Cultivator.
"This pathway is truly formidable, but the moment they grow warm and passionate, their combat power plummets. That seventh-tier Cold Cultivator was ultimately slain by a third-tier Martial Cultivator, which shows just how peculiar this pathway is."
A seventh-tier beat a ninth-tier, only to die at the hands of a third-tier—this pathway was bizarre beyond belief.
"Madam, what exactly counts as 'cold' and what counts as 'warm and passionate'?"
Madam aimed at Hong Ying's peach and gave it a vicious thwack. Hong Ying flinched.
"Husband dear, take this slut Hong Ying, for instance. If I ignore her all day long, neither scolding nor striking her, she acts as if she can hardly go on living. That is cold.
"If I comb her hair, pencil her brows, apply rouge, play with her a while, and share a few jokes, she blooms with delight. That is warm and passionate.
"A Cold Cultivator must be cold toward others to advance their cultivation and increase combat power. Therefore, for a Cold Cultivator to achieve anything, they must be free of ties and devoid of sentiment. The moment they give their heart to someone, their life is forfeit."
Feng Yuqiu had been desperately trying to find Fatty Qin—could she have truly fallen for him?
And was it because she opened her heart that she was subjugated and turned into a ghost servant?
It was only conjecture.
Li Banfeng shared Feng Yuqiu's situation with the gramophone. "She wants to say something, but can't get the words out. I suspect she couldn't speak when she was alive either. Madam, do you have any way to communicate with her?"
"Husband dear, most Cold Cultivators can't speak. Not because of an illness, but to keep from growing attached. From the moment they enter the pathway, they rarely speak to anyone. By a certain tier, even if they want to speak, they can't bring themselves to part their lips.
"At an even higher tier, they can't write characters or draw pictures; they can't laugh when glad or cry when hurting. Whatever they want to express, they can't convey clearly at all, turning into complete blocks of wood."
That fit the pieces together.
Feng Yuqiu was in this exact state, having nearly lost all capacity for expression.
"Madam, do you have ways to restrict deceased souls?"
The gramophone pondered for a moment. "Husband dear, this humble servant knows a few tricks to restrain a deceased soul, but I cannot command them to do my bidding like a Nightmare Cultivator."
Li Banfeng said, "I don't intend to control her either. I'm just worried she might cause trouble while I'm away. After all, she is a seventh-tier Cold Cultivator."
The gramophone said, "If this servant could take her combat strength outside, subduing her would be trivial. But the Old Master of our house will never allow me to bring my power out."
Li Banfeng called out, "Old Master, can we make an exception for this?"
The companion dwelling refused flatly: "Out of the question!"
No matter how many fine items Li Banfeng offered, the companion dwelling would not agree to let the gramophone carry her combat strength outside.
The gramophone said, "Husband dear, don't press the Old Master. Even if he let me out, it wouldn't be proper for this servant to meet that woman."
Li Banfeng nodded. "I worried about that too. I thought about having the projector cast an illusion so she wouldn't see you, Madam."
"Rather than going to all that trouble, why not set some rules with her? Cold Cultivators may be cold-hearted, but they are still reasonable."
Li Banfeng established three rules, went outside the companion dwelling, and explained them to Feng Yuqiu.
Rule one: when Li Banfeng was present, she had to obey his commands.
Rule two: when Li Banfeng was absent, she could not leave the residence.
Rule three: in an emergency when Li Banfeng was not around, she had to obey Hanxue's orders.
Should she violate any of these three rules, Hanxue would destroy her covenant deed, scattering Feng Yuqiu's soul to the winds.
Truth be told, these three rules were not easy to follow, especially the third. Feng Yuqiu was a seventh-tier cultivator; submitting to the commands of a magic artifact seemed rather demeaning.
Yet Feng Yuqiu agreed. That was the advantage of Cold Cultivators: she did not easily feel emotion, nor did she easily lose her temper. She trusted Li Banfeng, so whatever he arranged was fine by her.
That night, Feng Yuqiu stayed in the guest bedroom while Li Banfeng slept in the companion dwelling.
The next morning, Li Banfeng went to the Dark Star Bureau and had Tangyuan bring over the files on the black market.
The Dark Star Bureau had conducted numerous crackdowns on black markets. As for the one at the Cultural Palace, they had raided it more than a dozen times, striking hard every time with bountiful results, only for it to rekindle like dying embers before long.
Tangyuan suggested to Li Banfeng, "Seventh Master, I propose we launch a targeted operation to eradicate this chronic problem once and for all!"
"Eradicate it?" Li Banfeng shook his head. "If it were a sore, you could excise it. But this is plainly a drawing: erased and redrawn, redrawn and erased. How do you eradicate that?"
Tangyuan lowered her voice. "I know members of the black market collude with people inside our bureau, and I've gathered some leads."
Li Banfeng shook his head again. "That isn't collusion; it's tacit consent. Doesn't Captain Chen teach you these things?"
Tangyuan hung her head, her cheeks flushing red once more. "The captain mentioned it, but I just feel... never mind. You're going to laugh at me again, Seventh Master."
Li Banfeng didn't laugh. He flipped through the files earnestly, asking Tangyuan many questions along the way.
Having reviewed the black-market records, Li Banfeng asked Tangyuan to fetch materials on Cold Cultivators.
After a moment's thought, Tangyuan quickly returned with a dossier.
Li Banfeng checked the title of the dossier: Ice Freezer.
This document outlined an Ice Freezer's combat characteristics and several dark-energy arts—what Puluo Province called techniques.
The first technique Li Banfeng saw was Temperature Reduction: using temperature drops to neutralize attacks from high-temperature weaponry and increase the odds of survival in superheated environments...
Flipping through the Ice Freezer dossier, Li Banfeng shook his head. "This isn't a Cold Cultivator. This is a Chilling Cultivator."
Tangyuan looked bewildered. "This is the only cold-related profession I know of."
Li Banfeng said, "Bring me the files on the other professions. I'll compare them one by one."
Tangyuan brought over a stack of documents, and Li Banfeng leafed through them one after another.
The documents she brought described twenty-eight professions in all, from which Li Banfeng could match each profession to its corresponding pathway.
Yet there was indeed no profession matching the traits of a Cold Cultivator. Not only was there no Cold Cultivator, but Enfeoffment Cultivators, Mud Cultivators, Contrarian Cultivators, Mourning Cultivators, Lightning Cultivators... many uncommon pathways were missing entirely. Even Lightbulb's Oil Cultivator pathway wasn't included, let alone a pathway like Fool Cultivator that had been extinct for years.
Li Banfeng said, "These records of yours aren't complete!"
Tangyuan said, "With my current clearance, I can only access this level of files. Higher-level materials require higher clearance."
Li Banfeng turned stern. "What level am I at right now? I'm the deputy director. Am I not allowed to see them?"
"At present, you don't have clearance either. Viewing confidential files requires the director's approval..." Unable to find a more diplomatic way to put it, Tangyuan could only speak bluntly.
"He didn't give me clearance?" Li Banfeng picked up the phone and dialed Shen Jingye's number. "Young Shen, come by my office for a moment!"
What was going on? He was ordering Director Shen to come to his office?
Tangyuan's face went pale. Not daring to linger, she stood up. "Seventh Master, I'll take my leave."
Li Banfeng asked, "What's the rush?"
"Nature calls, I need the restroom..."
"Can't you hold it a bit longer? Wait until Young Shen gets here and we finish talking before you go."
Tangyuan shook her head vigorously. "I'll pass, Seventh Master! I really can't hold it, I truly can't..."
With that, Tangyuan scurried out of the office. A dozen minutes later, Shen Jingye walked in with a dark expression. "Director Li, what is it you need?"
"Young Shen, let's talk about the matter of confidential clearance. Regarding this, your work attitude needs correction, and your work efficiency needs improvement..."
Ten minutes later, Shen Jingye granted Li Banfeng clearance to view classified documents, though printing and issuing the authorizations would still take time.
Had he granted access to all classified files?
Li Banfeng harbored deep doubts about that.
The power of Fool Cultivator techniques went without saying, but Li Banfeng felt there were still deeper secrets beyond his reach.
...
Li Banfeng spent two days poring over various documents. Over those two days, Feng Yuqiu remained very quiet and stable. According to Hanxue's description, she spent the entire day sitting in her room with a blank expression.
Returning to his quarters, Li Banfeng tried other methods to communicate with Feng Yuqiu, but despite attempting numerous approaches, she still failed to display any adequate capacity for expression.
When evening came, Li Banfeng was considering another trip to the black market to glean information directly from Fourth Mother Yin, when Luo Zhengnan suddenly called: "Seventh Master, what is your address?"
Li Banfeng gave the address, and Luo Zhengnan replied, "I'll be there in an hour."
"Old Luo, where are you?"
"I've already arrived in Yuezhou. There are a few things best reported to you in person."
Luo Zhengnan was in Yuezhou?
Hadn't he been at Yesong Bridge just the day before yesterday?
Li Banfeng found it thoroughly baffling. Yet just over thirty minutes later, Luo Zhengnan actually arrived.
Seeing him drenched from head to toe—hard to tell if from sweat or water—Li Banfeng quickly fetched a set of dry clothes for him to change into.
Luo Zhengnan said, "Seventh Master, I asked about Fourth Mother Yin. Zuo Wugang has no such sworn sister at all. Where she came from, Zuo Wugang has no idea either."
Li Banfeng nodded. "And what about Qin Tianjiu?"
Luo Zhengnan said, "Qin Tianjiu seemed to run into trouble half a month ago and vanished abruptly from the Three Heroes Sect. To this day, no one has any word of him."
Li Banfeng frowned. "Why didn't anyone tell me about this sooner?"
"I thought it odd as well and had someone look into it specifically. When Qin Tianjiu first went missing, Great Golden Seal Shen Jinzhong of the Three Heroes Sect thought about letting you know, but never found an opportunity. At the time, the matter with Xia Shumin wasn't settled yet, and you were stuck at Yesong Bridge.
"Later, once things were handled, you visited many places and met many people, but never once asked after Qin Tianjiu. Shen Jinzhong assumed a rift had formed between you and Qin Tianjiu, so he didn't tell you. Instead, he kept sending men to search for him, but after all this time, there's still no trace."
Li Banfeng's frown deepened. "All he does when trouble strikes is make wild guesses. Shen Jinzhong never puts his mind to proper use."
When departing, Li Banfeng had indeed forgotten about Fatty Qin—but that was because Fatty held high status in the Three Heroes Sect and carried a Hungry Gut Silkworm, causing his cultivation to advance by leaps and bounds. Li Banfeng couldn't imagine what there was to worry about.
Who would have thought this brother of his really ran into trouble?
Li Banfeng told Luo Zhengnan, "Contact Ma the Fifth and have him dispatch men to search for Qin Tianjiu. The moment there's news, notify me."
Luo Zhengnan nodded in agreement, then drew out a map sealed in his special pocket so it hadn't gotten wet.
"Seventh Master, these are the patches of wind-sand land I surveyed at Yesong Bridge, all marked on the map.
"I've traveled to many places across Puluo Province, and everywhere I go, I usually search for wind-sand land. Every territory in Puluo Province has wind-sand land to some degree, but this is the first time I've ever seen as much as there is at Yesong Bridge.
"I think Yesong Bridge might be very unusual. I was worried something might happen to me midway through the investigation, so I'm handing this map to you first, lest all my efforts come to naught and leave nothing behind."
Li Banfeng took the map and handed Luo Zhengnan a land deed. "Old Luo, let's hold off on the search for now. Hearing you say this, I'm worried for your safety too.
"There will be plenty of opportunities later. Once I return to Yesong Bridge, we'll investigate together so we can watch each other's backs.
"Earlier, I bought a restaurant in Green Water City that's been sitting idle without an opening. I'm handing it over to you."
Luo Zhengnan thanked him repeatedly, then asked, "Seventh Master, do you plan to rest, or would you like to take a walk outside?"
Li Banfeng knew Luo Zhengnan had something to share. "It's still early. Taking a walk sounds fine."
Luo Zhengnan said, "This is the best time for a stroll in the park. The night views are lovely, and it's quiet."
In the dead of night, Luo Zhengnan brought Li Banfeng to Huahu Park. "Seventh Master, how's your swimming?"
"Passable."
"Then follow me!"
Luo Zhengnan walked over to a Western-style villa, drew a hand-crank generator from a pocket at his waist, and began generating electricity.
After about five minutes, Li Banfeng noticed a change in the ground beneath his feet. The once-solid concrete grew noticeably softer.
The Qiansi Earring warned, "Master, there's movement."
Li Banfeng faintly heard the sound of weeping.
Before he could pinpoint where the crying came from, Luo Zhengnan increased the electrical current, and the ground rapidly transformed into a lake surface.
Luo Zhengnan tumbled into the lake, and Li Banfeng followed right behind.
Diving down to the depths of the lake bed, Luo Zhengnan continued cranking electricity underwater.
A brocade carp and a dark green crab watched the commotion nearby.
The current surged abruptly. The carp twitched, fainted, and floated belly-up toward the surface.
The crab fared better. Driven by curiosity, it followed Luo Zhengnan toward the center of the lake.
At the center of the lake was a whirlpool. Luo Zhengnan and Li Banfeng were sucked inside. The crab regretted its choice—it had no desire to follow.
Yet the vortex's pull was too strong; after struggling for a moment, the crab was drawn in as well.
At the core of the whirlpool, the current surged upward, thrusting the crab onto a lake's surface.
From the thicket beside the shore, a spotted crab stared right at it.
How bizarre.
All the others of its kind it had seen before were green; why was this one covered in spots?
The crab from Huahu Park looked around and realized its surroundings were completely different.
Wiping the water from his face, Li Banfeng looked up at the fog-heavy night sky and asked Luo Zhengnan, "This is a newland?"
Luo Zhengnan nodded.
"There's newland in the Outer States too?"
Luo Zhengnan caught his breath for a good while before saying, "I haven't figured it out either. Five years ago, I went to Tiemen Fort to hunt in the newland.
"The Tiemen Fort newland had a variety of blue-skinned persimmon with extraordinary magnetic properties. I dived in through Peach Blossom Lake and spent a full day searching the newland before finding those persimmons. But to my shock, that persimmon tree was fiercely formidable in a fight. I only plucked one persimmon, and the tree chased and beat me for two days and two nights.
"By the time I shook off the tree, I had fled deep into the newland. Deep inside, I found a patch of wind-sand soil—what you call a stealth space, Seventh Master.
"My equipment wasn't great back then, and it took me two whole days just to open that wind-sand land. I only meant to take a peek from the outside, not go in, because once you enter, you might never get out.
"But I never expected that persimmon tree to catch up again. Taken unawares and having nowhere else to run, I could only dive into the wind-sand land. I wandered through it for half a month, eating everything edible I could find, nearly starving to death in there.
"Later, I found this lake. In this lake, I sensed an exit—and outside that exit was actually the Outer States.
"That was my first time in the Outer States. People thought I had jumped into the lake to take my own life, so they fished me out and spent ages trying to console me.
"I told them I was just hungry and accidentally fell into the lake. A kind soul bought me a loaf of bread and a bottle of mineral water. I was truly famished, but by the time I wolfed down the bread and looked up, that kind person had vanished. I never even got to repay the favor.
"When night fell, I bought some more food, returned to the lake bed, opened the exit, and came back to this newland. I fumbled my way back for nearly a month before finally reaching Tiemen Fort.
"Two newlands, connected together: one leading to the Outer States, the other to Tiemen Fort. I've never been able to make sense of it, but I've never told anyone else either.
"Seventh Master, as I told you before, you don't need to worry about Tiemen Fort. At my speed, walking from here to Tiemen Fort takes a day and a night. At your pace, you won't even need half a day."
"Half a day," Li Banfeng looked into the distance. "Old Luo, you've rendered a tremendous service."
The moment his voice fell, rustling came from the thickets along the lakeshore.
Li Banfeng asked, "Are there anomalies here?"
Luo Zhengnan nodded. "Yes, and quite potent ones at that."
"If there are anomalies, is there a local spirit?"
Luo Zhengnan thought for a moment. "There should be."
Li Banfeng pondered and asked again, "Then where would the local spirit here come from? Native-born, or invested by the Inner States?"
Chapter 503