The Daolao Ghost of Yuezhou

The Judge's Brush burned the translation from Room Nine. Li Banfeng didn't understand what the Judge's Brush meant by this, and the gramophone was rather curious as well. "Husband, what did that translation actually say?" Before Li Banfeng could answer, the Judge's Brush took the initiative to chime in: "Complete rubbish!" For the Judge's Brush to speak up on his own was extraordinarily rare. Not only did he speak up on his own, he even offered to work: "Paper!" The glove laid out a clean sheet of paper. "Ink!" The glove ground ink for the Judge's Brush. "Photograph!" The glove held the photograph steady and straight. Hong Ying stared in bewilderment. "What's gotten into you? You just do whatever he tells you?" The glove pondered for a moment. "It's all for the master of the house. Nothing shameful about it." The glove, who normally had the nerve to talk back even to the Old Master, was this obedient before the Judge's Brush. Before long, working from the photograph, the Judge's Brush finished writing out several passages of translation. Passage one: "The Boundary originates from matter-antimatter annihilation; the source of antimatter lies in the regular fluctuations of dark matter." Li Banfeng was startled. "This is research on the Boundary?" The Judge's Brush didn't care about that; he simply continued translating. Passage two: Derivation and calculation regarding the trigger process of matter-antimatter annihilation. Passage three: Error analysis in the calculation process. The translation consisted of just these three passages. When he was done, the Judge's Brush returned to his rack and called out, "Quilt!" Li Banfeng had experience this time. He hurried to fetch a silk handkerchief and draped it over the Judge's Brush. The Judge's Brush rolled over, and the handkerchief slipped off. "Too slippery! Use newspaper!" He didn't like silk. Li Banfeng found a newspaper and draped it over him instead. Seeing these translations, the gramophone perked up. "Husband, leave these to this humble servant. Grant me time to study them slowly." Holding the ledger, Li Banfeng walked over to the Judge's Brush. "Brush, could you do me a favor and translate this ledger as well?" The Judge's Brush turned over and ignored him. Li Banfeng circled around to him and continued, "Plenty of good food and fine drink are yours for the having. A fair trade between us." After waiting a moment, the Judge's Brush seemed to have fallen fast asleep. Li Banfeng had no choice but to put the ledger away for now. The magical treasures were still eating; Migelov, along with more than a dozen of his subordinates, had all been served up at the table. Li Banfeng said to the glove, "Save a portion for Brush. When you have a moment, discuss translating the ledger with him again." The glove sighed. "Capable folks truly are hard to cater to. Master, don't take it to heart with him." Li Banfeng pushed open the door of Room Two and looked toward Room Nine. "Old Master, is the one in Room Nine truly a Literary Cultivator?" The companion dwelling was busy studying the mud castle and hadn't paid much attention to what had just happened. "She should be a Literary Cultivator, but I reckon she doesn't actually know the Lavshan language. Literary folks talk big from time to time. Keep saying it long enough, and they start believing it themselves." This didn't feel as simple as boasting. She was steering me toward doing something—or rather, steering my wife toward doing something. She could fool me, and could even fool the Old Master, yet she couldn't fool the Judge's Brush. Why was that? By evening, the glove had successfully persuaded the Judge's Brush to translate the ledger for Li Banfeng. More than a dozen bizarre names appeared in the ledger. According to the accounts, the Birch Hermitage collected payments from these parties on a regular basis. The next day, Li Banfeng arrived at the Dark Star Bureau and called over Tangyuan. "There are a few people I'd like to ask you about. Have you ever heard of someone named Green Walk Black?" "Green Walk Black?" Tangyuan shook her head. "Seventh Master, is that a person's name?" Whether it was a person's name, Li Banfeng wasn't certain either. He wrote down the three characters for Tangyuan. She studied them for a long time before asking, "Could it be 'Night Walk in Green Shades'?" "What is Night Walk in Green Shades?" "A dark-ability enthusiast group. They worship the God of Green Shades and are accustomed to gathering in the wilderness late at night." "Does this group have dealings with the Birch Hermitage?" Tangyuan was stumped. Li Banfeng recalled the information provided by Zhong'er, which had mentioned the organization Night Walk in Green Shades; its ties with the Birch Hermitage were very close. Li Banfeng went ahead and called Zhong'er over, showing him another name: "Yellow Decay." This didn't look like a person's name either. Zhong'er pondered for a long while and asked, "This should refer to Yellow Bloom Leaves. That's also a dark-ability enthusiast group. They believe withering and decay mark the beginning of new life, and they're particularly fond of using withered yellow leaves as ritual props." "Does this organization have ties with the Birch Hermitage?" "Yes. Yellow Bloom Leaves is a dark-ability group we monitor closely, because they sit right on the borderline between insiders and outsiders. They've acquired many destructive dark-energy rituals, which have created numerous safety hazards. Last year, they gathered on the outskirts of the city and held a ritual called Summon Yellow Leaves. The ritual failed, causing dark energy to run amok, which led a large volume of nearby produce to ripen prematurely and caused considerable economic losses. The bureau penalized the organization severely and placed them on our close-watch list. And that Summon Yellow Leaves ritual came directly from the Birch Hermitage. According to my investigation, over half of their dark-energy rituals came from the Birch Hermitage. Why the Birch Hermitage provided assistance to them remains unknown." In truth, the reason wasn't complicated: the assistance hadn't been given for free. Li Banfeng opened the ledger and looked at the payment sums. Every month, Yellow Bloom Leaves paid hefty sums to the hermitage. The investigation went much smoother after that. During translation, the Judge's Brush had rendered the names of these enthusiast groups into personal names, but with slight semantic adjustments, the corresponding organizations could be identified. Migelov, president of the Birch Hermitage, sold ritual procedures, pharmaceutical formulas, and low-tier dark-energy carriers as merchandise at high prices to these enthusiast groups. It had become their regular method of raking in wealth. Now that Migelov was gone, would the Birch Hermitage disappear with him? Or would someone else take his place? Li Banfeng called over Chen Changrui and assigned a task: "Focus surveillance on the movements of these dark-ability enthusiasts. If they receive assistance from other groups again, or engage in financial transactions with other groups, notify me immediately." The gramophone worked through the formulas over and over, scratch paper stacking up several feet high, yet she still couldn't derive the results she wanted. Li Banfeng brought out the blueprints from the hermitage and showed them to his wife. His wife said, "This might be apparatus used to breach the Boundary. Well, not quite apparatus—judging by the dimensions, it looks more like a structure. Almost like a tower..." After examining them for a moment, the gramophone set the blueprints aside. "Husband, this humble servant doesn't want to look at blueprints. I only want to solve these problems, or else my heart simply can't find peace." "Leave solving the problems to that calculation cultivator in Room Eight. Why subject yourself to such hardship, wife?" "I already showed them to that calculation cultivator. After working through them, he said two pages of blackboard notes are missing from the middle. According to his calculations, there's simply no way to derive the subsequent results. Those two missing pages are crucial to proving the correlation between the extent of matter-antimatter annihilation and the flow of dark matter. I tried many methods trying to derive those two missing pages, but every single method fell short of a few critical steps. So... Husband, what are you doing with that oil can?" "Nothing," Li Banfeng said with a look of utter enchantment. "I just felt that when my wife speaks of calculations and derivations, whether in posture or expression, you're exceptionally enchanting." "Bah!" The gramophone spat at Li Banfeng. "Am I enchanting, or is that flirtatious minx enchanting? You're thinking of that mentor from your university days again, aren't you?" "I truly wasn't thinking of her. The one on my mind is you, wife!" Li Banfeng embraced the gramophone from behind. "Allow me to solve this puzzle first, then I'll attend to you, husband." The gramophone's mind was entirely on solving the problem, with no inclination for anything else. Li Banfeng felt tender pity for the gramophone and stayed to work through the derivations alongside his wife. All through the night, they achieved nothing. His wife truly was stubborn. Unable to bridge the gap in the derivations, she became so anxious her tone changed: "Husband, why don't you go..." The gramophone hesitated, stopping mid-sentence. Li Banfeng asked, "Wife, where do you want me to go?" The horn turned toward Li Banfeng, but his wife grew vexed again. "No, you can't go! We can't let that shameless minx look down on me!" Li Banfeng asked, "Wife, were you telling me to go find Teacher Song?" "Who said anything about looking for her? What, can nothing get done without her?" After a moment of silence, the gramophone added, "Finding her is fine too, but you may only discuss this puzzle—nothing else!" Li Banfeng laughed. "Darling wife, what else could I possibly talk to her about? Do you still not trust me?" His wife was disgruntled. "If it were anyone else, fine. But that seductive minx will certainly hook your soul away. I just don't trust it!" Li Banfeng comforted the gramophone a couple of times. She extracted the intermediate derivation process and handed it to Li Banfeng: "Only ask her to solve the problem. You must not tell her the context or origins! That minx possesses formidable abilities and certainly has an unusual background. If she learns about the Boundary, she might well turn you in, Husband." Li Banfeng wasn't worried that Teacher Song would report him, but he genuinely didn't want to drag her into trouble. Having arranged a time over the phone, Li Banfeng went to the university that afternoon to work on the problem with Teacher Song. "Banfeng, you've already researched to this depth?" Seeing the derivation process, Teacher Song was very surprised. Li Banfeng smiled. "I am indeed very interested in dark matter." "I recommend returning to university to upgrade your credentials and specialize in dark matter research." Li Banfeng shook his head. "Credentials don't matter. What matters is the knowledge." Teacher Song admired Li Banfeng's attitude. Though she had no classes today, she still wore a white button-down shirt and black trousers; her attire reflected her reverence and rigor toward academia. The derivation process was truly not easy. Teacher Song's foundation was better than his wife's, yet several attempts all ended in failure. Beads of sweat dampened strands of her hair, sliding slowly down them onto her face. Li Banfeng bought cold drinks for his teacher, looked up reference materials, performed basic calculations, and dutifully acted as her assistant. At four-thirty in the afternoon, as the evening sun dipped low, Teacher Song suddenly clutched her chest. Li Banfeng was startled. "Is your heart acting up?" "A little..." Teacher Song's breathing grew somewhat rapid. Worried she was having an attack, Li Banfeng hurried to ask, "Do you have your medicine with you?" Teacher Song shook her head. "I shouldn't need it... Banfeng, I'm afraid we won't be able to solve this problem today." Li Banfeng gathered the scratch paper. "Teacher, rest early. I'll go back and do some research first, then come consult you again in a few days." Teacher Song nodded. The two walked out of the classroom building together, and Li Banfeng headed for the campus gate. "Banfeng!" Teacher Song suddenly called out to him. Li Banfeng turned back. Teacher Song remained silent for a long moment before saying, "Seeing you delve into academic study makes me very happy. As for other matters... you must be extra careful." Li Banfeng nodded repeatedly. After waiting a moment and seeing that Teacher Song had nothing more to say, he turned and left. Teacher Song truly did have something else to say. The reason she had felt palpitations earlier was that a magical treasure on campus had resonated with her. That magical treasure had encountered a dangerous individual. Teacher Song worried that this dangerous individual would bring harm to the school, so she had wanted to tell Li Banfeng and have him help her resolve the matter. Yet she didn't want to drag Li Banfeng into danger. After weighing it back and forth, she decided to handle it alone. She went to the campus supermarket. The magical treasure that had resonated with her was precisely the campus supermarket's storage locker. That dangerous individual was He Jiaqing, who had deposited something inside the locker. The campus locker was a magical treasure of an exceptionally high tier. Ordinary people could not obtain the contents through brute force, and even the current Teacher Song could not do so. But Teacher Song had other means. She and the locker were friends, and friends had special ways of communicating. Teacher Song ran her fingers across the locker doors one by one, conversing with the locker. The locker doors vibrated rhythmically, conveying a message to Teacher Song: "Alerting you that He Jiaqing was here was done out of our friendship. Safeguarding a customer's property is a duty I must uphold." The locker was unwilling to hand over the item He Jiaqing had stored to Teacher Song. Teacher Song gently tapped the locker doors with her fingertips, conveying her intention as well: "I am a teacher at this school; protecting the safety of the students is my responsibility. I suspect that the item He Jiaqing stored poses a tremendous danger." The locker soon returned feedback: "According to my observations, the item itself will not bring harm or disaster." Teacher Song tapped the locker doors again: "Can you tell me what the item is?" "It is an information storage device." "What kind of information is stored inside? Is the information itself harmful?" The locker could not answer. Teacher Song offered a promise: "Give me half an hour. If the information does not pose a hazard, I will return the item immediately." After a brief wait, the third locker door in the second row popped open automatically. What He Jiaqing had deposited was inside. It was a USB flash drive. Teacher Song inspected the flash drive carefully; the drive itself indeed posed no danger. She took it back to her office and plugged it into her computer. There was only a single video file on the drive. Opening it, she saw surveillance footage of an abandoned construction site. Lately, there were many abandoned construction sites across Yuezhou. Teacher Song examined it closely for a time and, through the scenery visible outside the windows, determined it was a housing development in Yunxiu District. The video was about thirty minutes long. For the first twenty minutes, there was nothing unusual in the footage. At twenty-one minutes and sixteen seconds, a dark shadow suddenly flitted past. Teacher Song rewound the footage and used frame-by-frame slow motion to scrutinize the dark figure. After capturing the crucial frame, Teacher Song clearly saw the figure's silhouette. Its limbs were short and stout, its torso plump and rounded, with barely any defined angles. Looking more closely at the dark figure's movement patterns, Teacher Song was shocked. A daolao ghost! A daolao ghost had appeared in Yuezhou! Teacher Song immediately drove toward the construction site. Dealing with a single daolao ghost was not difficult for her. Yet as she drew near Yunxiu District, another crucial question crossed her mind. Had only one daolao ghost arrived, or a whole horde? If she rushed to the scene now, could the situation still be kept under control? Daogui Ridge could move. Was it merely daolao ghosts that had come to Yuezhou, or the entire Daogui Ridge? This could trigger a catastrophe—a catastrophe for all of Yuezhou, perhaps even for the entire nation of Huan. The site had to be contained; beyond that, more manpower was needed to launch a wider-scale operation. She pulled out her phone and dialed a number. Li Banfeng returned to his lodgings and organized the calculation drafts. Though they hadn't arrived at the final answer, they had made some progress. Just as he was about to return to the companion dwelling to give the drafts to his wife, he heard the projector say, "Director Seven, there's a message from the Dark Star Bureau." Li Banfeng read the message: An anomaly had occurred at the Hesheng Residential Compound on Shifeng Road in Yunxiu District; all combat personnel of the Dark Star Bureau were to assemble at the compound. All combat personnel? That meant far more than just the Public Security Squad. What kind of sudden emergency was this severe? Li Banfeng handed the drafts to his wife and immediately went to Hesheng Residential Compound. Shen Jingye was already waiting at the entrance. Vehicles arrived one after another: the Public Security Squad, Demolitions Unit, Reconnaissance Section, Biochemical Defense Unit, Electromagnetic Defense Unit, Air Defense Unit, Water Defense Unit, Toxic Hazard Defense Unit, and Special Emergency Squad—all present and accounted for. "Xiao Shen, what's happened?" Shen Jingye said, "Someone discovered a daolao ghost in this compound." "Discovered what?" Li Banfeng wondered if he had misheard. Shen Jingye repeated earnestly, "A daolao ghost! A mutated creature formed by cross-infection between dark energy and pathogens. Being in Puluo Province, you surely know what it is; I shouldn't need to explain." Li Banfeng asked, "Where did the information come from?" "From surveillance footage of Building Nine in the compound." "What time was the footage recorded?" "Two hours ago. Right now, the daolao ghost might still be in the compound, or it might have gone elsewhere. The situation is extremely critical! A daolao ghost could very likely bring unimaginable disaster upon all of Yuezhou! This is the gravest challenge we've faced since the Green Water Bow incident. We cannot afford the slightest mistake." A daolao ghost had come to Yuezhou? If it was true, it really would bring a catastrophe. In theory, a single daolao ghost could create countless daolao ghosts, until an entire city was destroyed. Yet how could a daolao ghost appear in Yuezhou? Li Banfeng was very familiar with the habits of daolao ghosts. Even after being modified by Critick and undergoing many changes, their range of activity remained limited; they could not venture too far from Daogui Ridge. Had Critick conducted another experiment? Had his plan to annihilate all mankind been initiated? Or had Daogui Ridge been moved to Yuezhou by him? Shen Jingye issued orders to completely seal off the construction area, evacuate nearby residents, and deploy reconnaissance drones to conduct a comprehensive sweep of the site. All Dark Star Bureau personnel were on standby, ready to enter the site at any moment. Li Banfeng said, "If it's confirmed there is a daolao ghost on site, dark-energy users below Tier Six must not enter." Shen Jingye shook his head. "That's not for you or me to decide. I know the site is extraordinarily dangerous, but this is the mission of all combat personnel in the Dark Star Bureau! Every single person in the Dark Star Bureau, myself included, must be prepared to make sacrifices." Li Banfeng said, "A mission is one thing, throwing lives away for nothing is another. Self-sacrifice isn't how you solve the problem. Sending one more person in might mean creating one more daolao ghost. Don't you understand this logic?" Shen Jingye replied, "Everyone understands logic, but right now we don't have time for logic. What matters right now is our responsibility and duty!" Li Banfeng stared at Shen Jingye. "When Lühuazi came, where were your responsibility and duty then? You sold me out—did you think I forgot about that?" Shen Jingye pressed his lips together. "The situation was different back then..." "How was it different? Was Lühuazi's threat somehow less than a daolao ghost's?" Shen Jingye couldn't answer. For him, the two situations truly were different. His promotion paperwork had already passed committee review and would be issued this week. Right now, he could not afford to sit on his hands, let alone allow the slightest mishap. The reconnaissance drones conducted multiple rounds of searches, but found nothing. Shen Jingye prepared to send the Reconnaissance Section into the site, but Li Banfeng shook his head. "You can't let them go!" Shen Jingye said, "We must demonstrate the proper attitude." "A daolao ghost can't see your attitude, and your attitude isn't worth a copper to it!" Shen Jingye looked into the distance. His attitude indeed wasn't meant for a daolao ghost. Du Wenming stood in the distance. He had not taken command of the operation, merely observing from afar. Shen Jingye glanced at the two individuals beside Du Wenming. "See that? He even brought the unobservables along." "What do you mean, unobservables?" Li Banfeng looked toward the pair beside Du Wenming. "Aren't they plainly visible?" "Unobservable doesn't mean invisible. It means the way they employ their dark abilities cannot be observed or explained. To put it bluntly, they are Curse Cultivators from Puluo Province. Bringing Curse Cultivators shows just how seriously Director Du takes this operation." Li Banfeng said, "So your attitude is for Du Wenming's benefit?" Shen Jingye said, "Even if he weren't here, we would still have to take action." "I'll go," Li Banfeng said, briefly checking his gear. Shen Jingye was taken aback. "You're going alone?" Li Banfeng looked at him. "Or should the two of us go together?" Shen Jingye pressed his lips together. "Someone has to stay on site to command." Li Banfeng said, "Are you saying I should stay here and command?" Shen Jingye fell silent. If he said one more word, Li Banfeng would throw him right into the construction site. Sending him in would only make him a burden anyway. In the end, Li Banfeng entered the site alone. The construction site had planned for twelve buildings. Three of the towers were already topped out, while the other nine ranged in progress from bare foundations to over thirty stories high. Sweeping his gaze across every building, Li Banfeng didn't sense the slightest danger. The footage of the daolao ghost had come from the surveillance camera of Building Nine. Walking to the base of Building Nine, Li Banfeng suddenly turned his head around. He discovered someone standing at the base of Building Five, watching him in silence. The person's figure was exceedingly blurred. Li Banfeng instantly raised his guard. A drone circled above Li Banfeng's head, the video feed transmitting swiftly to the Reconnaissance Section. Shen Jingye stared at the monitor, unsure why Li Banfeng had halted. The drone adjusted its camera angle, panning in the direction of Li Banfeng's gaze, but the feed showed nothing—completely empty. Shen Jingye picked up the walkie-talkie. "Chief Li, what's going on?" Li Banfeng didn't answer. The distant figure was slowly approaching him. She wore a white shirt and black trousers, with ear-length short hair. Pushing up her glasses, she said to Li Banfeng, "I've already searched Building Nine. No daolao ghost was found." Teacher Song? How could she be here? Li Banfeng knew Teacher Song had a special background and that her cultivation was far from low, but he had never expected her to show up right at this construction site. Teacher Song placed a finger against her lips, signaling for Li Banfeng not to speak. Was she worried about being spotted by the people outside? Did the people outside not know she was inside the compound? Li Banfeng glanced up at the drone overhead. From that angle, the drone should have a clear view of Teacher Song. Teacher Song shook her head. "It can't see me. Neither its video nor its audio equipment can capture me, and your walkie-talkie can't pick up my voice either." Which pathway's technique was this? Shen Jingye's voice came through the earpiece: "Chief Li, what on earth is happening? Respond if you copy!" Li Banfeng said, "I'm observing our surroundings. Don't jump at shadows!" To be scolded by Li Qi in front of so many people from the Reconnaissance Section made Shen Jingye lose face, but now was not the time to worry about face. In the monitoring feed he was watching, there was only Li Qi, no one else. Teacher Song drew a retractable pointer from her sleeve and swept it lightly beside Li Qi's earpiece. "Banfeng, you can talk to me now. They won't hear your voice either." Li Banfeng asked, "Why are you here?" "I'll explain that to you later. Banfeng, what's your plan?" No matter how urgent the situation, Teacher Song's tone with Li Banfeng remained gentle. Li Banfeng said, "Use my technique to sense danger and locate the target as quickly as possible." Teacher Song nodded. "I'll coordinate with you. From now on, I'm under your command." "You've already searched this compound once?" Teacher Song nodded. "I checked every single building. Perhaps because my perception is insufficient, I didn't find any daolao ghosts." After a moment's thought, Li Banfeng decided to start searching from Building Nine anyway. Li Banfeng walked in front at a brisk pace. Teacher Song followed closely, guarding the rear. Before long, the two had searched every corner of Building Nine. They found no daolao ghost, nor did Li Banfeng sense any danger. Next was Building Ten, adjacent to Building Nine. At the main entrance of the Dark Star Bureau, the melodious notes of a harmonica sounded. The guard grew drowsy under the music. Once the guard slipped into dreamland, a cloud of smoke drifted into the main hall. The Dark Star Bureau building was exceptionally deserted today. Almost all combat personnel had gone on the mission to capture the daolao ghost. The smoke seeped through door cracks into the stairwell, drifted up the stairs all the way to the fifteenth floor, slipped through the corridor door, and passed through iron bars. Behind the iron bars was a room. Big Head sat inside, staring at the cloud of smoke before him. Having worked at the Dark Star Bureau for so many years, experience told him this smoke came from an exceptionally high-tier dark-energy user. A voice came from within the smoke: "Big Head, it's me." He Jiaqing! Big Head was startled and looked around at the surveillance equipment. The smoke dispersed, shrouding all the cameras. He Jiaqing's voice came through the smoke: "Big Head, I'm here to ask you one thing. Are you willing to go with me to Puluo Province?" Big Head lowered his head and did not answer. He Jiaqing continued, "If you don't want to go, you might be locked up for the rest of your life. Who knows when your wife will ever be released, and your child won't be able to hold their head high for the rest of their days." Big Head took a deep breath and spoke: "But if I leave, what happens to them?" "They come with you. Everyone goes to Puluo Province. I'll give you all a better life, far better than what you have now. Can you trust me, brother?" A glimmer of hope flickered in Big Head's eyes, but that glimmer soon dimmed. "This is the Dark Star Bureau. I can't escape." "Normally you couldn't escape, but today you can. Today is the best opportunity—an opportunity I created specifically for you." Big Head looked at the smoke before him, then at the iron bars outside the door. He nodded toward the smoke. PS: The storage locker at the campus supermarket was previously used by He Jiaqing to store the red lotus; it was just that he was wearing Li Banfeng's face at the time.