This Is My Big Brother!

Li Banfeng and Teacher Song searched all across the residential compound, but found no trace of any daolao ghost. Teacher Song had doubts about whether the information was genuine. Could that video have been fabricated? There were many experts at Yuezhou University and plenty of professionals in the Dark Star Bureau, and Teacher Song also knew high-ranking Peeping Cultivators. If the video had been doctored, it certainly wouldn't have escaped their sharp eyes. Then why couldn't they find any daolao ghost on site? Had the daolao ghost really escaped into the open? Was Yuezhou truly doomed? Was there really no turning back...? The more Teacher Song thought about it, the more pessimistic she grew, and her body involuntarily gave a shudder. Not good! Something was wrong! Teacher Song felt an attack coming on. *Calm down. Keep your emotions under control. The symptoms aren't too severe yet; you should be able to weather it. You can't cause trouble for Banfeng right now.* "Banfeng, report the situation here to the Dark Star Bureau first. I'll search one more time so nothing gets overlooked. Whatever you do, don't mention me to them." Li Banfeng nodded, left the compound, and reported the situation to Shen Jingye. After hearing Li Banfeng out, Shen Jingye concluded that the daolao ghost had already escaped the compound. The urgent measure now was to lock down Yuezhou City and launch a carpet search. Du Wenming agreed with Shen Jingye's assessment and prepared to report the situation immediately. Li Banfeng asked Shen Jingye, "How do you plan to lock down Yuezhou City?" "By locking down all the major thoroughfares, of course—" Halfway through, Shen Jingye lapsed into deep thought. If a daolao ghost wanted to leave Yuezhou City, it had no need whatsoever for roads. It was barely constrained by roadways at all. Just as everyone was at a loss, a staff member from the Reconnaissance Division suddenly shouted, "There's movement!" "What movement?" "The drone caught something! There's something in Building Six!" The reconnaissance operative rewound the drone's footage by a little over a minute. Everyone watched as a round, black figure leaped from Building Six over to Building Five. This recording was relatively clear, with several key frames revealing bodily details: pitch-black skin bathed in oozing pus; a face with only a distinct mouth, while the eyes, ears, and nose were blurred into featureless lumps; a rounded silhouette seemingly devoid of any sharp contours; and short, thick limbs resembling chunks of meat. In the video, Li Banfeng couldn't spot any flaw. Was it truly a daolao ghost? When he passed Building Six earlier, Li Banfeng hadn't sensed the slightest danger. His cultivation had indeed risen and his combat power was far stronger now, but a creature like a daolao ghost remained a threat to him. He shouldn't have been blind to the danger. The present situation left no time for second thoughts. Li Banfeng quickly entered the compound and headed straight for Building Five. Shen Jingye urged the Reconnaissance Division, "Send drones into Building Five!" The operatives tried several times, but failed. Building Five was planned for thirty-six stories, but only ten had been constructed so far. The interior was packed with scaffolding and safety nets, making drone flight operations impractical. "Are there no cameras in the stairwells?" An operative replied, "Building Five only has two cameras, and neither is on the floor where this happened." Amid the tension, Li Banfeng had already dashed into the stairwell. Just as he climbed to the eighth floor, he heard a muffled thud. A blob of yellowish-white pus slowly trickled down the stairs. Carefully dodging the pus, Li Banfeng rushed up to the ninth floor and found Teacher Song panting on the landing, beside a corpse whose torso had ruptured open. Teacher Song drew her pointer and swept it past Li Banfeng's earpiece, muting his transmission. "I happened to be in Building Five just now. When that thing jumped over from Building Six, I caught it right in its tracks." Li Banfeng asked, "Are you hurt?" Teacher Song shook her head. "I'm not sure if this is the only daolao ghost that came to Yuezhou City. Have the Dark Star Bureau come clear the scene first. As for the subsequent investigation, I will give you my full cooperation." "Whatever you do, don't touch the daolao ghost's corpse. Their flesh and blood are poisonous." Teacher Song nodded. "Go find Shen Jingye first and ask about his disposal plan. Buy me a little time. I'll do a bit of investigating here and leave right away." With that, Teacher Song tapped Li Banfeng's earpiece once more with her pointer, unmuting it. Li Banfeng had gone down only two floors when he stopped in his tracks again. Teacher Song's state was off. A faint sound of rapid panting drifted from above. That panting was all too familiar to him—he had heard it before. He quickly returned to the ninth floor and saw Teacher Song sitting on the stairs, clutching her chest, trembling all over, on the verge of sliding down the steps. Li Banfeng stepped past the daolao ghost's corpse and rushed forward to support her. Teacher Song's face was deathly pale and her features contorted; with every breath, it seemed as though someone were strangling her throat. Her illness had struck! Shen Jingye's voice came through the earpiece once more: "How's the situation inside?" "The daolao ghost has been taken care of. Bring people in to handle the scene. I'm going to investigate elsewhere. Remember, no dark-energy users below Tier Six are allowed inside." Li Banfeng took off the earpiece and handed it to the projector. The projector responded, "Most of my peers in the area have become my friends." That meant Li Banfeng could evade the majority of the surveillance cameras. Hoisting Teacher Song onto his back, Li Banfeng sprinted out of the construction site. The Dark Star Bureau members outside never caught sight of his figure; they felt only a gust of cold wind brush past their cheeks. Li Banfeng dashed all the way to Teacher Song's home, unlocked the door using the glove, carried her into the bedroom first, and then found her medicine bottle in the refrigerator. Taking out three capsules, Li Banfeng pried open Teacher Song's mouth. Just as he was about to feed her the pills, she shook her head frantically. Her body began to convulse violently, as though something were stuck in her throat. *Pfft!* Teacher Song spat up a mouthful of white foam, slumped over the edge of the bed, and began vomiting violently. Her condition was too severe; she couldn't swallow the pills. Li Banfeng had encountered situations before where she couldn't take medication. In moments like this, special measures were needed: relieve her symptoms first, then administer the medicine. Li Banfeng rushed into the bathroom and immediately filled the bathtub with water. Once it was half full, he retrieved a packet of medicinal powder from the nightstand and poured it in. When the powder had dissolved, Li Banfeng undressed Teacher Song and lifted her into the tub. After soaking in the bath for half an hour, Teacher Song eased up slightly. Li Banfeng helped her out, draped a bathrobe over her, and had her rest on the bed. Having soaked in the herbal bath, her symptoms were alleviated, but she still needed to take the oral medication. Li Banfeng brought the pills over, but Teacher Song still refused to swallow them. Looking at Li Banfeng, she said with great effort, "Taking medicine... might not work." "Did the bath not soak long enough?" Li Banfeng turned to fetch more powder. Teacher Song pointed to her clothes beside the bed. "Use my phone... send a message to Kang Zhenchang... have him... come... save me." The renowned physician Kang Zhenchang was currently considered the foremost of all Medical Cultivators, having once cured Lüshuigong's lesions. Li Banfeng pulled the phone from Teacher Song's trouser pocket, found Kang Zhenchang's number, and sent a text. The reply came back with three words: *Coming right now.* Li Banfeng asked, "Should I step out for a bit?" Teacher Song looked at Li Banfeng. There were things she felt too embarrassed to say aloud; right now, she needed someone to look after her. Li Banfeng understood and kept silent vigil by her side. After waiting an hour, Teacher Song mumbled groggily, "Thirsty... water..." Li Banfeng brought over a glass of water. Teacher Song looked at it, hesitated for a long while, and said, "Can't drink." "Why can't you drink?" Teacher Song shook her head. "Wait a bit longer." Another two hours passed, and Kang Zhenchang still hadn't arrived. Teacher Song began convulsing again. Because she hadn't taken the oral medication, a secondary attack was imminent. Yet when Li Banfeng brought the medicine to her, she kept shaking her head. "Can't take it." "Why can't you take it?" Li Banfeng couldn't understand. A secondary attack was extremely dangerous and could be fatal for her. "In any case... I can't take it..." Helpless, Li Banfeng had Teacher Song soak in the medicinal bath once more. Soaking in the tub, her convulsions grew more and more frequent, while the powder's effect grew weaker and weaker. After holding out bitterly until five in the morning, Kang Zhenchang finally arrived. In the living room, Li Banfeng stared at the man across from him, not saying a word for a long time. The man said nothing either. With a flick of his sleeve, a woman materialized beside him, wearing a white lab coat, a cap, and a mask. She entered Teacher Song's room and closed the door. The two men continued to stand awkwardly in the living room. The man broke the ice first, gesturing toward the sofa. "Shall we sit down and talk?" "All right." Li Banfeng sat on the sofa. After an extended silence, he asked, "Back in Yanlou Village, the one who kowtowed and swore brotherhood with me—that was you, wasn't it?" Song Qianhun nodded. "It was me." Li Banfeng pondered for a moment, then asked, "The renowned physician Kang Zhenchang—is that you too?" Song Qianhun paused in silence for another moment. "To be precise, not me. Her." "Her?" Li Banfeng pointed toward Teacher Song's bedroom. "That woman just now?" Song Qianhun nodded. "She is one of my ghost servants." Li Banfeng thought about it, still feeling something didn't add up. "Some of my colleagues at the Dark Star Bureau saw Kang Zhenchang at the hospital. They said Kang Zhenchang was a man, not a woman." Song Qianhun hesitated for a moment. "It isn't that I crave the false prestige of a miracle doctor. I'm not the vain sort. I just wasn't comfortable letting a ghost servant operate alone, especially A-Kang. That girl has a temperamental nature and dislikes meeting strangers. It so happened that her name sounded like a man's, so I borrowed her name and cooperated with her to practice medicine outside." "What do you mean by cooperating with her to practice medicine?" "I put up a front treating patients out front, while she secretly did the actual healing in the shadows. My original intention was purely to heal the wounded and rescue the dying. I don't care about a few words of praise, and I care even less about empty fame." Li Banfeng pondered for a moment. "The one who cured Gui Jianchou last time—was that her too?" "Yes," Song Qianhun nodded. "I usually speak the truth. I truly am not a man given to vanity." No wonder the renowned physician "Kang Zhenchang" was so hard to find; no wonder so many people had no idea where he lived. He didn't reside in the Outer Province at all. He was a local spirit of Puluo Province. He was the great spirit of Yanlou Village, and also the number one physician in Yuezhou. Song Qianhun certainly kept in close contact with the Outer Province. This was likely thanks to the unique geographic position of Iron Gate Fort. With his cover blown, Song Qianhun found the atmosphere somewhat awkward. Li Banfeng didn't speak either, still sorting through his thoughts. After a dozen minutes, Song Qianhun broke the silence. He pulled a dice cup from his robes. "Brother, things have come to this, and I've laid bare the truth to you. Let's make a gamble on it. If I win, you mustn't breathe a word about today's matters. If you win, you still can't breathe a word about today's matters..." Li Banfeng waved his hand. "No bets. Big Brother, rest assured. As long as Teacher Song is cured, I certainly won't speak a word about today." Song Qianhun asked, "You care about her a lot?" "I do!" Li Banfeng nodded. "She really treats me well!" After another dozen minutes without the ghost servant emerging, Song Qianhun grew anxious. "Why did Xiaoshu fall so terribly ill this time? Was she provoked by something?" Teacher Song's name was Song Shu. "Provoked..." Li Banfeng thought about it carefully. "Today I went to Teacher Song to solve some problems. Perhaps because the problems were too difficult, Teacher Song got worked up into a frenzy, triggering an attack all at once." Song Qianhun smacked his lips. "That child has always been stubborn. Solving problems—why get so worked up over that? She knows she has a condition, yet she doesn't take better care of herself. Thank goodness she ran into you today." After waiting a little longer, Kang Zhenchang walked out of the bedroom, her expression grim. Song Qianhun asked, "What is it?" Kang Zhenchang pulled down her mask, her countenance heavy. "Xiaoshu says she was injured by a daolao ghost." "What—?!" Song Qianhun shuddered, his teacup shattering on the floor. "When was she injured?" "Not long ago, but—" Before Kang Zhenchang could finish, Li Banfeng rushed into the bedroom. "Teacher, where are you hurt?" Teacher Song parted her bathrobe. Beside her navel was a wound. She pulled the robe closed and gave a bitter smile. "When wounded by a daolao ghost, one ought to chop off the injured part... but the wound was on my stomach. At the time, I didn't know what to cut away. I'm truly foolish. I wanted to go help you, but as soon as you left, my illness flared up, and the daolao ghost caught me right there. I've become such a burden to you." That shouldn't be! Teacher Song's cultivation wasn't low. How could she have been injured by a daolao ghost, especially when there was only one? Song Qianhun walked in. "Xiaoshu, were you injured over on Shifeng Road?" Teacher Song nodded. "You heard about that case too?" "I heard. Du Wenming contacted me long ago, but I didn't go." "Why didn't you go?" Song Qianhun shook his head repeatedly. "Because A-Kang cannot cure the poison of a daolao ghost! Going would have been pointless—I'd only have disgraced myself in vain!" Kang Zhenchang couldn't cure the poison of a daolao ghost. Teacher Song's cheek quivered; she seemed about to convulse again. Li Banfeng now grasped the rough sequence of cause and effect. Learning that a daolao ghost had appeared in Yuezhou City had plunged Teacher Song into anxiety. This wasn't because Teacher Song lacked mental resilience, but because she suffered from a severe neurological illness. Back in Li Banfeng's university days, he had witnessed her attacks on three occasions, and Li Banfeng had saved her each time. This time, her condition had flared up again, but Li Banfeng wasn't on the scene. As Teacher Song tried to alleviate her symptoms, she happened to be ambushed by the daolao ghost. She had been wounded by the daolao ghost. Without amputating the injured part, being afflicted by daolao poison was tantamount to certain death. When Master Painter Tai Yue was poisoned by a daolao ghost, he had simply waited for death; when Chu the Second was poisoned, she had begged Li Banfeng to give her a swift end. This was practically common knowledge. No one was a saint, and no one could claim to be fearless in the face of death. The moment Teacher Song was poisoned, utter despair seized her, exacerbating her condition. When Li Banfeng brought her back to her residence, she refused to take the pills because she couldn't consume anything—otherwise, it would speed up the spread of the daolao poison. She had pinned all her hopes on the famous physician Kang Zhenchang, never dreaming that even Kang Zhenchang would be powerless. Song Qianhun froze in place, unable to speak, trembling from head to toe. Teacher Song bit her lip and offered Li Banfeng a faint smile. "Banfeng, there's wine in my cabinet. Would you have a drink with your teacher?" No matter what the situation, her tone toward Li Banfeng was always so gentle. Li Banfeng asked, "Teacher, your cultivation is above the clouds, isn't it?" Teacher Song nodded. "Quite humiliating, isn't it? To die at the hands of a single daolao ghost despite having such high cultivation, and to turn into a daolao ghost after death... I feel embarrassed even for myself." Li Banfeng wasn't thinking about humiliation. He was calculating how long Teacher Song could hold out. A physique above the clouds was far more resilient than that of the ground level. Li Banfeng hoisted Teacher Song onto his back and said, "Let's go. Come with me to get treated." Teacher Song asked, "Where to?" "Daogui Ridge." Teacher Song was stunned. "Have you gone mad? Foolish boy, put me down right now!" Li Banfeng said to Song Qianhun, "Big Brother, find some rope and lash her to my back." Song Qianhun stared blankly for a second, then heard Teacher Song say, "Dad, don't listen to him! This kid has lost his mind! You can't let him go anywhere!" Li Banfeng said, "Big Brother, there's one more thing. You definitely know the route from Huahu Park to Iron Gate Fort." Song Qianhun nodded. "I know it." "I need to take that route now, but without wading through water. If Teacher Song chokes on water, it'll be a massive problem." Song Qianhun said, "There's a dry way. I'll see you across." Teacher Song pleaded, "Dad, you can't send him across! You can't let him go to Daogui Ridge! Put me down immediately!" Li Banfeng said, "Big Brother, didn't I tell you to find a rope and tie her up?" Teacher Song said, "Dad, don't listen to him!" Li Banfeng grew annoyed and snapped at Teacher Song, "This is my big brother! Why do you keep calling him Dad? Are you deliberately trying to take advantage of me in seniority?" Teacher Song gasped in air for three solid seconds, completely struck dumb. Song Qianhun seized the moment to tie Teacher Song up. Fearing further complications, he even grabbed some tape and sealed her mouth shut. Carrying Teacher Song on his back, Li Banfeng ran all the way to Huahu Park. Song Qianhun, wearing a Traveler Cultivator magical treasure, caught up with him. He led Li Banfeng around the lake three laps clockwise, five and a half laps counterclockwise, and eleven laps around an old locust tree. The tree's bark split open, revealing a hollow. Li Banfeng carried Teacher Song into the hollow. Below lay a tunnel. Following the tunnel for over three li, he emerged from the tree hollow on the other side into the newland. The remaining route was familiar. Song Qianhun urged, "Once you reach Iron Gate Fort, you won't need to enter the lake either. There's an old locust tree over there too, and the method to open the door is pretty much the same. Brother, go on ahead; I'll catch up shortly. This kindness—I'll remember it forever..." Having committed the method to memory, Li Banfeng rushed to Iron Gate Fort and ran from the newland toward Jianren Ridge. At Hesheng Residential Compound on Shifeng Road, Shen Jingye had stationed personnel below Building Five, never once going upstairs. If the daolao ghost hadn't been caught yet, Shen Jingye would have been frantic, wishing he could order everyone into the compound to dig three feet down to unearth it. Now that the daolao ghost was dealt with and only the cleanup remained, Shen Jingye was in no hurry. Although he had considered that there might be more than one daolao ghost, resolving this one already gave him something to report to superiors. Right now, no mishaps could be allowed during the cleanup. Du Wenming suggested, "Send specialists upstairs to collect samples. Once we have samples, take them back to the Dark Star Bureau for testing. After confirming it's a daolao ghost, destroy the corpse." Shen Jingye did not agree with this proposal. First, collecting samples was perilous. He knew daolao ghosts carried an incurable virus and did not want his subordinates taking such risks. Du Wenming suggested using a robot for sampling. That process was equally dangerous; if the robot malfunctioned, it might even spread the virus, and Shen Jingye could not bear that responsibility. As for destroying the corpse after testing, that seemed impractical to Shen Jingye as well. From laboratory procedures to comparative analysis would take at least a day. What might happen during that day, no one could foresee. Shen Jingye had seen plenty of situations where delays spawned disaster. So he called over Chen Changrui and secretly ordered him to have the security division deploy Burners who, aided by equipment, set fire from outside the building to incinerate the corpse without approaching it, thoroughly sanitizing the site. Chen Changrui immediately led his men to set the blaze. Everything in the building that could burn was reduced to ash. Du Wenming was rather displeased. "Bureau Chief Shen, shouldn't we at least go inside and see whether what Li Qi found was actually a daolao ghost? We haven't even confirmed the exact situation, yet you went ahead and burned the corpse!" Shen Jingye said, "Director Du, in my experience, anything Bureau Chief Li handles is handled properly. Bureau Chief Li's capabilities are beyond doubt; I trust his judgment." Du Wenming looked at Shen Jingye. "Bureau Chief Shen, it seems to me that the Dark Star Bureau, top to bottom, is overly reliant on Li Qi. Don't forget his identity." Shen Jingye's tone remained calm. "Director Du, I don't believe it's reliance. It is trust between colleagues." Those who bear no responsibility shouldn't preach so much doctrine. Du Wenming had never assumed command authority from start to finish, and Shen Jingye was not going to take risks over a single piece of advice from him. With matters at Hesheng Residential Compound handled, Shen Jingye returned to the bureau, preparing to deploy the next phase of work. A duty officer entered the office, looking panicked. "Bureau Chief Shen, something's wrong." "What is it?" "Zou Guoming is missing." "Zou Guoming? Datou?" Shen Jingye was stunned, sinking back into his chair, his thoughts thrown into disarray. Li Banfeng carried Teacher Song all the way to Jianren Ridge. As soon as he arrived at Huaide Village, he saw daolao ghosts on sentry patrol. For such a complex behavior as patrolling to occur among daolao ghosts—just how many improvements had Critic made to them? Looking into the distance, Daogui Ridge was faintly visible beside Sage Peak. Since Daogui Ridge was still here, it proved Critic hadn't relocated it to Yuezhou. Relying on the Home Cultivator talent of escaping notice, Li Banfeng carried Teacher Song through Huaide Village and sprinted toward Daogui Ridge. The perception of daolao ghosts differed from humans. Li Banfeng noticed that some daolao ghosts seemed to pick up on his presence. Moreover, while Li Banfeng was inconspicuous, Teacher Song in her current condition possessed no such ability. Combined with her lack of medication and the intermittent spasms racking her body, more and more daolao ghosts turned their eyes toward Li Banfeng. Near the foot of the mountain, Li Banfeng was surrounded by daolao ghosts. Traveler Cultivators had no fear of encirclement. Just as Li Banfeng prepared to force his way through with Sever the Path to Forge a Way, he heard a shout from behind: "Ya-ya-hu-ya-hu!" With that cry, the daolao ghosts surrounding Li Banfeng quickly dispersed and bowed toward Critic, who was approaching from a distance. Critic came up to Li Banfeng and said with a smile, "My friend, I really didn't expect you to visit me. Who is this beautiful lady on your back?" Li Banfeng lowered Teacher Song and said to Critic, "I need your help with something." Critic looked at Teacher Song, who was spasming periodically. After the rough journey, she had already lost consciousness. "Friend, this lady's illness is very peculiar. Her symptoms seem to stem from some sort of neurological aberration. That's outside my area of expertise; I'm afraid I cannot help her." Li Banfeng said, "I'm not talking about that condition. She was injured while fighting a daolao ghost. I want you to cure the filth virus in her body. I never ask favors for nothing—we can negotiate a fair price." Critic said, "I feel this beautiful lady doesn't need my treatment. Becoming one of us isn't bad either." "Those words hurt our friendship a little." Li Banfeng wasn't wearing his fedora, yet his demeanor still reminded Critic of the icy gaze beneath its brim. "The second half was a joke, but the first half was completely sincere. This beautiful lady truly has no need of my treatment, because there is no filth virus in her at all." "Are you sure you didn't mistake it?" Li Banfeng pointed to Teacher Song's belly. "She was indeed injured by a daolao ghost." "I can smell the scent of blood from the wound. Even through her clothes, I can sense microbes invading the laceration. In medical terms, this is called a mild infection. Taking a few antibiotics is plenty to deal with that kind of infection. Her physique is strong; even without any intervention, it would heal on its own. "However, on her person, there is indeed not the slightest trace of the filth virus. Furthermore, I have serious doubts about what you said. You claim she fought a daolao ghost, yet over the past day or two, no intruder has set foot here on Jianren Ridge." Li Banfeng said, "The place where she clashed with the daolao ghost wasn't Jianren Ridge. It was in Yuezhou." "Yuezhou, what a wonderful place," Critic said, shaking his head. "Friend, I can tell you with full certainty: no daolao ghost can reach Yuezhou, because they cannot leave Daogui Ridge for an extended period. You and I modified these wondrous creatures together; you should be very clear on this." "That modification before really had nothing to do with—" Li Banfeng didn't even bother to finish the defense. "Perhaps there are things I'm not clear on, or perhaps you've made new improvements to the daolao ghosts." Critic smiled. "Friend, I don't know whether to take that as sarcasm or a compliment. I wish it were true. I sincerely wish daolao ghosts could be freed from the constraints of Daogui Ridge and move about at will. But unfortunately, I cannot achieve that. If I truly could, I wouldn't send just a single daolao ghost to Yuezhou—I would send tens of thousands of them all at once." That made a great deal of sense. Teacher Song vomited up another mouthful of white foam. Critic said, "If you have medicine to relieve her symptoms, I suggest you administer it to her as soon as possible. If she continues to convulse like this, it will cause irreversible harm." Li Banfeng was somewhat hesitant. Critic shrugged. "Curing the filth virus is a trivial matter for me. I would have no reason to refuse you. If you don't trust me, why come to me in the first place?" Seeing Teacher Song's condition growing more severe, Li Banfeng gave her the medication. Swallowing three capsules and resting for half an hour, Teacher Song began to improve, showing not the slightest sign of turning into a daolao ghost. Critic had spoken the truth. The thing that had injured Teacher Song was not a daolao ghost. What on earth was that thing? P.S. Where did that thing come from?