Li Banfeng lay fast asleep on the couch when a woman approached, carrying a blanket, and draped it over him.
Her movements were gentle, yet after covering him, she deliberately stroked his cheek.
Li Banfeng cracked his eyes open. Through the haze of sleep, he could only make out the faint silhouette of a woman.
She was slender, slightly delicate, her supple waist swaying gently before him.
Li Banfeng smiled faintly, then suddenly drew the scythe from his side, pointed it at the figure, and snapped, "Who are you?"
"What are you doing?" Red Lotus gently brushed Li Banfeng's hand with a lotus leaf.
Li Banfeng blinked and took a closer look.
The one who had draped the blanket over him was no woman; it was Red Lotus.
The slender beauty he had seen a moment ago was nothing more than the gentle swaying of her lotus leaves.
Red Lotus sounded rather aggrieved. "I was worried you'd catch a cold and kindly covered you with a blanket. Why pull a weapon on me?"
Li Banfeng put away the scythe and patted around his clothes.
Red Lotus asked, "What are you looking for?"
"My pocket watch."
"You mean Mengde? You sent her to attend to Zhao Xiaowan."
Li Banfeng rubbed his forehead and woke the projector. "Check your phone. What time is it?"
The projector yawned and glanced at the screen. "Eight in the morning."
Li Banfeng straightened his clothes, washed his face, and prepared to head out.
Red Lotus asked, "Where are you off to?"
"Work!" Li Banfeng said. "The Dark Star Bureau starts at eight-thirty. If I'm late, they dock my pay."
It was obviously a joke. Red Lotus gave a soft laugh. "I don't think you're in a hurry to work. You're going back to investigate that stairwell, aren't you?"
Li Banfeng picked up Red Lotus, set her on the table, and gently caressed the core of the lotus flower. "A-Lian, you saw what happened to me in that storeroom yesterday, didn't you?"
"I saw it. You'd better stay away from that warehouse. Little Train is hurt and asleep, with no telling when it'll wake up. If you run into Old Train again, no one will be able to save you."
Li Banfeng stroked the seven holes on the lotus core one by one and asked softly, "You're well-traveled and knowledgeable. Can you tell me what secrets are hidden in that storeroom?"
Red Lotus turned her lotus core and sucked Li Banfeng's finger inside. "That isn't something that can be explained in a sentence or two. Old Train is a grandmaster artisan cultivator. If he built that storeroom, it must possess an immense degree of spirituality. Once spirituality reaches a certain level, the place can undergo countless transformations.
"Take our compound, for instance. You've lived here for three whole years. Can you truly say you've seen through all its mysteries?"
Li Banfeng withdrew his finger and caressed her lotus leaves. "As long as I find the mechanism, I might find a way to control the walls."
Red Lotus wrapped a leaf around Li Banfeng's wrist. "Little Nine is a clever woman, but in the end, she isn't an artisan cultivator. To her eyes, whatever is crafted by artisans must have a mechanism.
"Her understanding of artisan cultivation ends right there. Like I said, Little Train was built by Old Train. Tell me, where is its mechanism?
"A person needs to know their own limits. Ninth Miss is used to being conceited; talking big off the cuff doesn't hurt her. But you've been tumbling through the Outer States—you need to understand the weight and depth of danger.
"Charging into the dragon's pool and the tiger's den all by yourself—do you really think you can make it out unscathed every single time? A single slip-up, and you lose your life. If you ask me, you shouldn't set foot in that building ever again."
Li Banfeng moved his hand back to the lotus core. "Hua Jiu'er, why are you caring for me so much today?"
Red Lotus tightened her leaves, wrapping his hand snugly. "I wouldn't call it caring. I'm just worried that if something happens to you, I'll be trapped here forever, never able to leave.
"You spent so much effort on that stairwell all because you want to uncover the origin of the Boundary. Am I wrong?"
Li Banfeng nodded. "You really do understand me."
Red Lotus gave a soft laugh. "In this household, aside from Zhao Xiaowan, who understands you better than I do? Did she not risk her life researching the Boundary just to please you?"
Li Banfeng smiled. "Do you also think the Dark Star Bureau is connected to the Boundary?"
Red Lotus replied, "The Boundary is held in the hands of the Outer States, and yesterday the Boundary appeared in that storeroom. There is definitely a connection.
"I just don't understand why you're putting so much thought into the Boundary. You hold status and position in both the Outer States and the Inner States. Why wear yourself out for Puluo Province? Wouldn't it be better to live your own carefree life?"
Li Banfeng raised an eyebrow. "What you say makes a lot of sense. I'll give it serious thought."
He walked over to the main house. The family was still asleep. In the companion dwelling, day and night blurred together, and no one had the habit of waking early. Now that Mengde was away, there was no telling how long they would sleep.
Li Banfeng was just about to reach the door when Hong Ying ran up behind him carrying a washbasin, stifling a yawn. "Seventh Master, empty the wash water."
"Why are you so diligent today?" Li Banfeng took the basin.
"What a thing to say, Seventh Master! When am I ever not diligent? I'm the dwelling spirit; I have to keep the house clean."
True enough. Dwelling spirits always loved cleanliness. With the madam not at home, the task of cleaning naturally fell to Hong Ying.
After dumping the wash water and returning the basin, Li Banfeng looked at Hong Ying.
Dwelling spirits all loved cleanliness...
That detail seemed to have been overlooked before.
As soon as Li Banfeng left, Fifth Miss's figure emerged on the wall.
"Senior, I truly can't learn your level of scheming. When you put that blanket over him, I thought you wanted him to sleep a little longer, but you were actually waking him up.
"You urged him not to go to the Dark Star Bureau, yet revealed secrets tied to the Boundary. Now he's even more determined to get to the bottom of it.
"Senior, your methods are so brilliant. Could you teach me a trick or two?"
Red Lotus glanced at Fifth Miss. "That's just the kind of man he is. Whatever he sets his mind on doing, he's bound to see it through. The fire was already burning; all I did was add a little kindling.
"Instead of wasting your breath with me here, go do something proper. Whatever you do, don't forget what I told you to do."
***
Arriving at the Dark Star Bureau, Li Banfeng locked his office door, brewed a pot of tea, and poured several cups. "Everyone, make yourselves at home. Let's talk over some tea."
Banfeng Two took a cup, mimicking the motion of drinking. "I reckon this tea tastes pretty good. If you lent me the body for a couple of days, I'd definitely savor it properly."
Li Banfeng continued, "I called everyone out today mainly for one thing. Our previous investigation of the stairwell was a bit reckless. For our next move, I want to refine our plan to minimize the risks as much as possible."
Banfeng Two chimed in, "If we don't go, there's zero risk."
Li Banfeng shook his head. "Not going isn't an option."
Banfeng Two offered another suggestion. "Go find He Jiaqing, strike a deal, and get his information. That would save us a lot of risk."
Li Banfeng shook his head again. "I will never make a deal with He Jiaqing."
Banfeng Two said, "Then what do you have in mind?"
Li Banfeng said, "My idea is that we shouldn't move en masse. We should form an advance scout force to probe key areas, preventing an unexpected accident from wiping us all out."
Banfeng Two fell silent.
Li Banfeng scanned the group. "Any opinions?"
Banfeng Zi said, "The Sage says: Banfeng Two is the most suitable to serve as the scout!"
Banfeng Two kicked Banfeng Zi. "Which Sage said that?!"
After prudent discussion, the Banfengs decided to establish an advance scout force, consisting entirely of Banfeng Two alone.
Banfeng Two asked Li Banfeng, "Why won't you consider cutting a deal with He Jiaqing? Having He Haisheng on our hands isn't doing us any good anyway."
Li Banfeng shook his head. "I suspect He Jiaqing doesn't hold any genuinely valuable information. Even if he did, he wouldn't part with it easily."
***
Meanwhile, He Jiaqing was inspecting the venue on Chu Yaoxian's territory. Today, he was convening an important meeting where the thirteen local gods who had agreed to ally with him would officially join the Brotherhood Alliance.
For this gathering, He Jiaqing had specially constructed an assembly hall on Chu Yaoxian's land and instructed her to arrange land reclamation duties in advance, keeping all the three-headed people busy and as far from the hall as possible.
Chu Yaoxian was extremely meticulous in her work; there were no oversights at the venue.
He Jiaqing sat at the conference table, rehearsing his speech once more.
"Today, we gather here for our own decency and dignity! From this day forth, we will no longer be under anyone's thumb. The brothers and sisters of the Brotherhood Alliance will stand tall and, with the bond of flesh and blood, carve out a land that belongs to us!"
Having rehearsed enough, He Jiaqing looked at the restless Zou Guoming. "Datou, what happened?"
Datou said, "Word just came from the Outer States. They still haven't found any trace of Third Master. It seems we won't be able to find him on our own. We can only wait for Li Seven to relent."
He Jiaqing shook his head. "Li Seven won't relent. He won't trade with me at all."
Datou couldn't understand. "Then why did you bring it up with him in the first place?"
He Jiaqing said, "I brought up the trade to keep him in the Outer States for the time being."
Datou asked in surprise, "You were certain he'd stay at the Dark Star Bureau to investigate this?"
He Jiaqing smiled. "I wouldn't say certain, but I was at least ninety percent sure. Our excursion to the Dark Star Bureau may have failed to rescue Third Uncle, but it caused a huge commotion. With something that important inside the bureau, how could Li Seven let it go so easily?"
Datou lowered his voice. "It's a pity we discovered so little. If we had more clues, we might have been able to make Li Seven cooperate with us."
He Jiaqing handed Datou a cigarette. "Brother, no matter how many clues we had, Li Seven wouldn't cooperate with us. Even if I could see the full picture of the entire Dark Star Bureau, Li Seven wouldn't believe a word I say.
"He's the head of the bureau; he has all the opportunity and time in the world to investigate the whole affair. He only trusts the conclusions he uncovers himself.
"The current situation is already quite favorable for us. As long as he stays in the Outer States, he won't have the chance to ruin our plans. Otherwise, we wouldn't even be holding today's meeting."
Datou shook his head. "Not necessarily. There are still ways to deal with him."
He Jiaqing chuckled bitterly. "What ways do you have to deal with him? Do you know how many of our ventures he's ruined? Do you know Gu Wuyan?"
Datou did indeed know Gu Wuyan. "Old Duan and I went looking for him once. The guy's a master at fast-talking rhymes. He made me so angry I couldn't eat for an entire day. Once I advance above the clouds, I'll definitely teach him a lesson."
He Jiaqing sighed. "Gu Wuyan's words are infuriating, but at least there was room to negotiate before. Now there's nothing left to discuss, because Li Seven already gave him his covenant deed."
Datou frowned. "When did that happen?"
He Jiaqing said, "Just a few days ago. Now Gu Wuyan is parading around everywhere, proclaiming how magnanimous Li Seven is, returning the covenant deed after just one meeting. Quite a few local gods secretly want to follow Li Seven. We've worked so hard—how can we afford to have him meddling like this? Isn't it much better to keep him in the Outer States for a few extra days?"
Datou thought for a moment. "Once Li Seven gets to the bottom of things, he's bound to return to Puluo Province."
"How could it be that easy to investigate?" He Jiaqing lit his cigarette and took a drag. "Still, we do need to hurry. Before he comes back to cause trouble, we must wrap things up as quickly as possible."
At seven in the evening, the thirteen local gods arrived one after another. After exchanging pleasantries, each took a seat. He Jiaqing swept his gaze across the gathering.
As a Thief Cultivator beyond the clouds, He Jiaqing could discern many things from people's expressions.
All thirteen local gods had signed contracts with him. Someone like Zhuang Jiahan, a Farming Cultivator, was little cause for concern. Having signed the deed, he would definitely fulfill his end; he was here today merely to go through the motions.
However, someone like Qiu Sandao, a Blade Cultivator, sat with a slouch and a languid posture. Though a smile graced his face, it didn't reach his eyes, and he took occasional sips of tea—a clear sign that variables remained.
Then there was Han Huozui, a Smoke Cultivator. His gaze was sullen, his face etched with disdain, looking ready to breach the agreement.
The covenant deeds were bound with curses. If they broke the contract, were they not afraid of He Jiaqing's ruthless retaliation?
Of course they were afraid, but it depended on the angle from which they breached it.
If they could pin He Jiaqing down and claim he had failed to honor the terms, the curse on the deed might not take effect.
Even if they couldn't pin him down, so long as they could rally everyone in the room to exert collective pressure on He Jiaqing, they truly didn't believe he could curse every single one of them to death.
Apart from the local gods, Duan Shuqun and Qian Xiangjun were also present, while Datou and Shen Rongqing were outside running support. There was also an elderly gentleman wearing glasses and a grayish-blue robe, pen and paper in hand, whose purpose remained unclear.
He Jiaqing glanced at him. The old man smiled and said, "I belong to the Brotherhood Alliance. Miss Shen asked me to take the meeting minutes."
Shen Rongqing was always doing superfluous things like this. What use were records for a meeting like this?
He Jiaqing felt displeased, but held back his temper. Shen Rongqing had that habit; she always wanted everything put down in writing.
Fine, when the empire took shape in the future, these records could perhaps count as historical archives.
The meeting began. Before He Jiaqing could even finish reading his prepared speech, Han Huozui, the Smoke Cultivator, interrupted him. "Hey, Jiaqing, can we talk about something real? Stop going on about dignity and our own land. If you don't return our covenant deeds, what dignity do we have? Our little lives are still clutched in your hands. How dare we talk about carving out a land?"
He Jiaqing did not take offense, maintaining a smile. "Brother Han, didn't we already agree on the covenant deeds? Once you all formally join the Brotherhood Alliance, they will be returned to their rightful owners at once."
Han Huozui fitted a cigarette into his holder, exhaled a cloud of smoke, and said slowly, "We need to make this clear. You say after joining the Brotherhood Alliance, but when exactly is that? Are we waiting three days, a month, or eight to ten years? Is there an exact date?"
Just as He Jiaqing was about to answer, Shen Rongqing entered the conference room, approached him, and whispered into his ear, "Chu Huaiyuan brought people onto the territory, claiming she's here to reclaim land."
Chu Huaiyuan had chosen this exact moment to come?
He Jiaqing observed the expressions of the local gods. Some were staring at him, some looked toward Han Huozui, and a few were murmuring amongst themselves.
Were they in contact with Chu Huaiyuan?
Or perhaps in league with her father, Chu Shaoqiang?
He Jiaqing stepped out of the hall and whispered to Shen Rongqing, "Go with Datou. Find an excuse to stall Chu Huaiyuan and keep her away from the hall."
Just as Shen Rongqing was about to leave, He Jiaqing called her back. "Take Old Duan with you too. I'm afraid Datou won't keep a cool head. Remember, on no account must Chu Huaiyuan be harmed."
Chu the Second was a disciple of Old Mother Ku; He Jiaqing had no desire to fall out with Old Mother Ku over this.
Shen Rongqing called Duan Shuqun, and the two left the venue together.
Duan Shuqun grumbled, "Why did you bring in a scribe to take minutes? Jiaqing doesn't like that."
"Huh? Really?" Shen Rongqing was bewildered. Who had brought in a scribe?
Inside the hall, the dispute raged on. No matter how He Jiaqing explained, Han Huozui stubbornly clung to one point: "Jiaqing, just give us a straight answer. When will you hand over our covenant deeds?"
He Jiaqing said, "Didn't I just say? Once we are bound together as one, the deeds will naturally be returned to everyone."
Han Huozui swapped out a fresh cigarette in his holder, his tone and expression hardening. "We even signed contracts with you. Doesn't that count as being bound as one? We've treated you with complete sincerity; you can't just keep feeding us empty words, can you?"
Qiu Sandao, the Blade Cultivator, nodded. "I think Old Han makes a good point. Those who haven't signed contracts should be kept on guard, but we've signed contracts—do you still not trust us?
"Look at how upright Li Seven does things. Gu Wuyan made an agreement with Li Seven, and he received his covenant deed on the spot. We haven't even caught a glimpse of what our deeds look like!"
As soon as those words were spoken, the crowd voiced their agreement.
"Gu Wuyan has been grinning ear to ear these past couple of days, bragging to everyone he meets."
"Why shouldn't he brag? He has the real thing! Seventh Master truly gets things done!"
"Seventh Master is a lord from the Inner States. When he says he'll deliver the deeds, he actually does!"
"Has anyone here received theirs? I heard only Chu Yaoxian got hers, but that's because they share the same bed."
"We don't even know where our deeds are. Now we've joined the Brotherhood Alliance and offended Seventh Master in the process—what are we gaining from this?"
Chu Yaoxian's face flushed crimson.
Even the most honest, Zhuang Jiahan, felt resentful and joined in the chatter.
The elderly gentleman responsible for taking notes waved his hand. "Everyone, please stop shouting."
He Jiaqing frowned. What right did this scribe have to speak here?
Han Huozui glared at the old man. "Who the hell are you? You tell us not to shout, so we shouldn't shout? Do we have to take orders from you now?"
The old gentleman shook his head. "How could I dare give orders to you all? I'm getting on in years and my hands are slow. You're all speaking at once, and I can't keep up with the notes."
Qiu Sandao sneered. "If you can't keep up, don't earn your living this way! Is the Brotherhood Alliance full of people like you, sent out just to make fools of themselves?"
That single retort dragged He Jiaqing and the entire Brotherhood Alliance into the mud.
The old gentleman sighed. "Forgive me, everyone. If I wrote messily, I could barely keep pace. But for a meeting this important, I felt it best to write neatly."
Han Huozui blew a puff of smoke at the old man. "I'm not much of a reader. What counts as messy? What counts as neat? Why don't you explain it to us?"
He had been itching for an excuse to stir up trouble, and this old man had stoked his temper.
The old gentleman explained patiently, "Omitting a few strokes makes it cursive. For instance, the character for 'kill' can be written in shorthand, and if one wanted to write it even simpler, a single horizontal stroke would suffice."
Han Huozui chuckled. "Do you really take me for an illiterate? Can a single horizontal stroke be read as 'kill'?"
"Can it not?" The old gentleman held his brush and drew a single horizontal stroke in the air.
Han Huozui's eyes froze as a "horizontal stroke" appeared across his throat.
Fresh blood seeped from the stroke as it severed through to the back of his skull. Han Huozui's head dropped cleanly off his shoulders on the spot.
The group of local gods was stunned out of their wits. Before anyone could react, the old gentleman looked at Qiu Sandao. "Did you just say I shouldn't earn my living this way? Just because I wrote a little slowly, you went and smashed my rice bowl?"
Qiu Sandao hastily activated his Blade Cultivator arts, sending a wave of invisible, razor-sharp blades hurtling toward the old gentleman.
The old gentleman traced a downward left-slanting slash stroke toward Qiu Sandao. The invisible blades vanished instantly, and the stroke swept down from Qiu Sandao's temple to his chin, leaving a clean imprint across his face.
Half of Qiu Sandao's head was sheared away. Yet he remained seated in his chair, maintaining his loose, languid posture.
The remaining local gods scrambled to their feet, desperately trying to flee, only to find the walls densely covered with writhing characters of text.
One by one, the characters detached themselves from the walls, steadily encircling the assembly.
The old gentleman sat before the table and sighed. "You spoke so many words, and I recorded them all. It truly wasn't easy."
A local god tried to ram his way through the wall. Before he even touched it, the character for "covenant" pierced straight through his torso.
The character had many strokes, and it minced the local god into fine bits of bloody flesh that scattered across the floor.
Another local god tried to make a desperate lunge at the old gentleman. Before he could draw near, the character for "fire" spiraled around him, reducing him to charred cinders.
Seeing no way out, Zhuang Jiahan, the Farming Cultivator, fell to his knees and begged for mercy: "Grandfather, spare my life! I'll do whatever you command! I'll listen to Master He from now on!"
"Listen to Master He?" The old gentleman smiled. "Where is Master He?"
Zhuang Jiahan looked back. He Jiaqing was no longer in his seat. There was no sign of him anywhere in the hall.
"Ah, you put your faith in the wrong man," the old gentleman sighed.
Zhuang Jiahan bolted on his feet, but after only two strides, the character for "He" pierced his chest.
Zhuang Jiahan felt a chill spread through his body. With his own eyes, he watched chunks of his flesh fall to the ground one after another.
***
He Jiaqing had already escaped the hall, sprinting dozens of meters before the character for "thief" suddenly materialized before him.
He did not dodge in haste; he knew he was surrounded. In front, behind, left, right, above, and below—a character for "thief" closed in on him from every direction.
His left hand held tightly onto an object while he extended his right hand. Using the ring on his finger, he slashed across the character for "thief." In an instant, the character was split into its component radicals: "cowry" and "weapon." Taking advantage of the space he had stolen, He Jiaqing slipped through the gap.
Running for more than a dozen li, He Jiaqing was ambushed more than a dozen times by hundreds of "thief" characters. Each time, he managed to use the stolen space to slip away.
Reaching the bank of a small river, He Jiaqing halted his steps. He saw the old gentleman sitting by the water, reading a book by the light of a lit oil lamp.
He Jiaqing bowed deeply. "Senior, how has this junior offended you?"
The old gentleman chuckled. "Back then, you went to Chaoge to steal covenant deeds and were captured once. You barely escaped with your life. Not much time has passed since then, yet you dared to steal from Chaoge again. Truly worthy of being Smiling Thousand Hands' disciple—you are simply too greedy."
A character for "greedy" flew toward him. He Jiaqing waved his right arm, attempting to use his ring to split the character and carve out an escape route.
But this time, he failed. The old gentleman had written this "greedy" in flowing cursive; the upper and lower halves could not be pulled apart, and the brushwork between the strokes was firm and vigorous, completely indivisible.
The character slammed against He Jiaqing's chest. Blood splattered, leaving a wound deep enough to expose bone.
He continued to maneuver frantically, doing his utmost to evade the character's relentless trajectory.
After a prolonged struggle, He Jiaqing managed to steal the spirituality embedded within the character for "greedy." The text collapsed into pools of ink, dripping onto the earth.
Clutching his chest with his right hand, He Jiaqing still kept his left hand clamped tightly shut.
The old gentleman asked, "What are you clutching in your hand?"
He Jiaqing gave no reply.
The old gentleman dipped his brush into the river water and penned the character for "open" in the air.
Driven by an invisible force, He Jiaqing's left hand was forced open against his will.
In the palm of his hand lay a bitter herb.
The old gentleman chuckled. "Old Mother Ku, how many years has it been since we last saw each other?"
From the distance came a woman's voice. "Shu Wanjuan, you became a marquis in the Inner States. How could a peasant like me ever get to see you?"
"Regardless of our stations today, our comradely bonds of old remain," Shu Wanjuan said, beckoning toward Old Mother Ku. "Come over and let's have a word."
Chapter 688