Changban Slope

After tidying up the souls in the three courtyards, Li Banfeng opened the fourth gate. He had only taken a few steps in the courtyard when the war drums thundered from all directions, their sound never ceasing.

Li Banfeng surveyed his surroundings. In the spacious courtyard, various groups of people appeared, including cavalry, infantry, archers, and muskets.

Such a big show?

Li Banfeng was starting to panic.

He couldn't tell whether these soldiers were real or fake; the only thing he was certain of was that they weren't human, but rather the spirits of the dead.

Li Banfeng dodged back and forth amidst the hail of bullets and arrows, and gently touched the pendulum.

The pendulum understood, went around behind Li Banfeng, cut open Li Banfeng's suit, picked out a record from the inner layer, and used the tip of the pendulum to evenly glide across the texture of the record.

The principle of a phonograph has nothing to do with electromagnetism; it only involves the friction and vibration between the stylus and the record.

The pendulum now acts as a striking needle, a tactic devised by Li Banfeng and his Wife.

Li Banfeng can use the Deep Mansion Technique to imitate his Wife's singing style, and he can also play his Wife's records directly on a record player.

However, Li Banfeng's singing skills were far inferior to Wife's, and there were some enemies that he couldn't handle with his singing skills alone.

However, sometimes it is inconvenient for Li Banfeng to take out the record player. In critical moments, he can use a pendulum as a record player, which can be used as a makeshift emergency device.

"On the ancient road and in the desolate mountains, a bitter struggle ensued, the blood of the common people flew red, the lamps illuminated the yellow sand, the world was dark, the dust obscured the stars, and the cries of ghosts echoed."

The aria sung by Zhao Zilong in "Changban Slope".

This is a martial arts male role aria, but it was carved by the Wife. It is common for famous actors to cross-dress, and the lyrics of this aria also contain the Wife's special vocalizations.

The aria from "Changban Slope" is very powerful, and the entire courtyard of thousands of troops seems to be stunned for a moment.

Li Banfeng glanced around. It would be best if he could find Xiao Yeci; if not, he would have to retreat immediately and not fight a direct confrontation here.

Xiao Yeci was indeed not found. Li Banfeng turned to leave when he suddenly saw the actor standing in front of him, his costume changed from a blue dress to a young male role.

"Excuse me, sir, wait a moment. Where did that song come from?"

Li Banfeng glanced at the actor, then pulled out a record from behind him. "This is from here. Have you seen this record before? Shall I play it again for you?"

This is Li Banfeng's usual tactic: tell the truth first to gain the enemy's trust, making it easier to use his art of Definite Statement with conviction.

Just as he was about to swing the pendulum across the record, he suddenly heard the actor shout, "Don't use a weapon! You'll ruin the record!"

Li Banfeng was taken aback, then snapped angrily, "What's all the fuss about? If there's no record player, we have to play music like this!"

"I have a record player!" the actor's voice trembled slightly. "Let me listen to it one more time, and I'll give the person back to you!"

After speaking, the actor waved his hand, and several ghosts led Xiao Yeci over.

Xiao Yeci's hands were tied, her mouth was gagged, and her face was filled with terror.

Li Banfeng instructed the actor to escort Xiao Yeci back to the courtyard, and the actor complied.

Several ghosts carried a record player to Li Banfeng's side. The actor kicked the ghosts aside and carefully wiped the record player with his sleeve.

The record player hadn't been used for years, and it was covered in a thick layer of dust. The actor cleaned it very carefully and then brought out Oil Pot to oil the record player.

With everything in place, the actor looked at Li Banfeng with anticipation.

Li Banfeng placed the record on the tray, and the actor carefully cranked the handle, playing the lyrics of "Changban Slope" from the record player.

The play itself is fierce and powerful, Wife's singing is very infectious. Every time Li Banfeng hears this part, he feels his blood boiling.

But the actor opposite him didn't get excited; he cried.

Li Banfeng never expected that even the dead could shed tears, and that they would cry so uncontrollably.

After crying, the actor looked at Li Banfeng and asked, "Could you give me this record?"

Li Banfeng waved his hand. "That won't do! This is my secret weapon for fighting on the battlefield."

The actor sobbed, "This isn't just a magic weapon! This is a priceless treasure! You don't understand..."

Li Banfeng frowned and said, "How could I not understand? With this record, dealing with ghosts and monsters is a piece of cake."

"I told you you don't understand! You're using this record to fight a war, what a waste!" The actor cried even harder, as if Li Banfeng had desecrated something very important.

Before Li Banfeng could speak, the actor sang while crying, "Heaven and earth may end, but this sorrow will last forever. If you won't give it to me, I'll buy it. Name your price, I beg you to name your price..."

The actor cried more and more heartbrokenly, until he couldn't even speak.

Li Banfeng put the record away. "Don't cry yet, let's find a place to talk."

Although they fought for almost a whole night, Li Banfeng could tell that the actor was still trustworthy.

The two entered the main room, and the actor ordered someone to make tea.

The Ghost Servant brought out a teapot and teacups, but Li Banfeng didn't drink them. He didn't know how old this aged tea was.

The actor wanted to buy records, and that wasn't entirely unnecessarily unacceptable.

Li Banfeng quoted a price, for a total of three things.

"The first thing is to let us out."

The actor agreed, "That's easy."

"I'm not saying let us leave this house, I'm saying let us leave this area."

After a moment's thought, the actor asked, "You want to leave Carefree Plains?"

"Carefree Plains?" Li Banfeng didn't know this place had a name.

The actor said, "That's easy to do. Carefree Plains well-connected, and you can go anywhere within the territory of Pro State."

"You can go anywhere?" Li Banfeng was stunned. "This borders every part of Pro State?"

The actor nodded. "And they don't even need Travel Permit."

Li Banfeng pondered for a moment and asked, "How come this is the same as Bitter Vegetable Manor?"

The actor sighed, "There's a secret here, but I'm unwilling to tell you."

"You're not going to tell me, are you?" Li Banfeng stood up and said, "The records aren't being sold anymore."

"Wait a minute!" The actor stopped Li Banfeng and said, "You've actually hit the nail on the head. Carefree Plains was originally the Back Third of Pro State, but in recent years it has almost become Unclear Land. I can't say for sure why."

Could the Back Third of the land transform into Unclear Land?

This was the first time Li Banfeng had ever heard of it.

The actor continued, "Now that we've arrived at Carefree Plains, I'll give you a map in a bit. Follow the map and you definitely won't get lost, but you must walk quickly, or you might accidentally wander back into the Old Land."

This has confirmed Li Banfeng's guess that the house truly belongs to the Old Land.

Li Banfeng then made a second condition. "Without this record, I've lost a powerful weapon to deal with the spirits of the dead, so you have to compensate me with a magic weapon."

The actor looked ashamed. "To be honest, back then I did have a few such magical treasures, but times have changed and I can't produce any more. However, I do have one Spiritual Object."

He asked the ghost to bring him a wooden box, and when he opened the box, the ghost immediately hid in the distance.

The actor took a Horse Whip from the wooden box and handed it to Li Banfeng: "A soul without cultivation can be annihilated with a single whip, and even a soul with less than the third level of cultivation will be severely injured."

A soul with a cultivation level below the fifth level will feel immense pain from a single whip strike. If the opponent's cultivation level is above the fifth level, the whip can still be used, but it will only be an ordinary weapon.

Li Banfeng picked up the whip, wanting to try lashing it out.

The actor shouted, "What do you want to do?"

If this whip could truly harm the souls of the dead, it certainly shouldn't be tested here.

Li Banfeng used his Discern Spiritual Sounds Technique to listen to the sound of the whip. The whip was very quiet, without making a sound.

Li Banfeng frowned and asked, "Does this thing have a spirit?"

The actor said, "This is Spiritual Object refined from emptiness. It cannot be improved or recognize a master, so it cannot be compared with a magic weapon, but it has enough spirituality."

Li Banfeng put away the whip and raised his third condition. "Since I'm going to sell you the record, I need to know its origin and who sang the songs on it."

Li Banfeng certainly knew who sang it; his main purpose in asking the question was to test the waters.

The actor sighed and said, "The secret behind this is really not something I can reveal..."

Li Banfeng took out Horse Whip: "We're not selling records anymore."

The actor stopped Li Banfeng and said, "This aria comes from Swift Cavalry General Zhao Xiaowan, a famous general of the Great Huan Dynasty."

"Which dynasty exactly is the Great Huan Dynasty?"

"The Former Dynasty".

How far back is the Former Dynasty?

"I can't remember, I really can't remember."

The actor was telling the truth; he was a ghost, still living in a place like the Old Land, where he had no concept of time.

Li Banfeng asked, "What kind of person is Zhao Xiaowan?"

"A famous general, and also a famous actor."

Li Banfeng could only think of famous generals.

Even a famous opera singer like Li Banfeng could think of that.

However, these two identities are clearly in conflict.

"How could a famous general become an actor?"

The actor laughed and said, "You've got it backwards. You should ask, how did an actor become a famous general?"

Zhao Xiaowan was originally a performer. She debuted on stage at the age of seven, became famous at ten, and when she was twelve, her troupe leader was imprisoned for colluding with the evil forces. Zhao Xiaowan was implicated and exiled to the army.

At the age of seventeen, Zhao Xiaowan distinguished herself in battle on the border, was pardoned, and was promoted to the rank of Colonel. At twenty-three, due to her accumulated military achievements, she returned to the capital and was appointed Swift Cavalry General.

Li Banfeng was very curious. "She was originally an opera singer. If she were exiled to the army, she would at most do menial tasks. How did she become a captain?"

The actor looked on with admiration. "Because of her extraordinary talent, her comrades in the army all say that Xiao Wan was born to lead troops into battle. She once led more than thirty laborers to fight against hundreds of enemy soldiers for a whole day. Such an extraordinary woman is one of a kind in the world."

"Have you seen her?"

"I've seen her!" the actress said proudly. "I've seen her fight in wars and heard her sing in operas. I still remember it vividly."

"What does she look like?"

"Beautiful, the most beautiful woman in the world!" The actor looked utterly infatuated. "This isn't just my opinion; many people in the court back then said she was an unparalleled beauty."

Li Banfeng had no doubt about this.

My Wife is just so beautiful!

Just one glance at that elegant and beautiful megaphone was enough to make Li Banfeng's soul flutter!

The actor sighed, "Someone once said that when they arrived at the front lines and saw the Swift Cavalry General, half of the enemy army was captivated by her and no longer wanted to fight."

Li Banfeng asked, "And what about the other half?"

According to the novel, the other half was directly intimidated by Zhao Xiaowan's imposing presence.

The actress's description differs from the novel. "The other half of the enemy army was terrified by her deputy general Hong Ying."

Is Hong Ying the Wife's deputy general?

"What does she look like that could terrify the enemy like this?"

The actress recalled for a moment and said, "Beautiful, very beautiful! A little less stunning than Xiao Wan, but still an absolute beauty."

To be honest, Hong Ying and I were supposed to have a marriage, but both she and Zhao Xiaowan ended up in prison, so that relationship just fell through.

Why were they put in jail?

"I can't say," the actor suddenly looked terrified, shaking his head repeatedly. "It's a grave offense of disrespect; you absolutely mustn't say it!"

Li Banfeng lowered his hat brim and stood up, saying, "You won't tell me, huh? I'm not selling you the record!"

PS: Does the feud between Zhao Xiaowan and Hong Ying have anything to do with this actress?

I don't think it's necessarily related; I wonder what other Salad think.