The Dried-Up Oil Cultivator

The Steam Restoration Faction a non-governmental scientific organization established at the beginning of this century. Its most prominent feature is its dedication to steam revival activities.

The so-called steam retro movement involves using technology from the steam age to create products of modern technology. They've built steam-powered cars, steam-powered airplanes, steam-powered computers, and steam-powered radios...

Li Banfeng had seen steam cars and steam airplanes in some historical documents, but what was a steam computer?

Tangyuan explained the principle of the difference engine to Li Banfeng. This mechanical computer, which had failed to be built in history, was successfully manufactured by the Steam Restoration Faction.

This reminded Li Banfeng of the retro craze that was popular during his university days, when many teachers and students in the mechanical engineering department were keen on restoring ancient mechanical equipment, the most typical of which was the famous wooden ox and flowing horse.

Steam-powered computers are understandable, but how do you explain steam-powered radio stations? "If it's a radio station, why mention steam?"

Chen Changrui explained, "Steam radio is a general term for steam communication equipment. Unlike modern communication equipment, this type of communication equipment is implemented through a steam pipeline network." Tangyuan took out the blueprints for the steam radio. The signal transmitter uses a mechanical regulating valve to control the steam pressure, and the signal is transmitted through changes in pressure.

For modern technology, this bulky, complex, and fault-tolerant communication method is almost worthless, but it is a very important achievement of the Steam Restoration Faction.

After reviewing all these achievements, Li Banfeng concluded that "their technological level is absolutely incapable of manufacturing complex mechanical devices as spherical life forms."

Tangyuan disagreed. "These are all historically confirmed research findings of the Steam Restoration Faction. In the past three years, we have had little information about them, so it is difficult to speculate on the extent of their technological progress."

Li Banfeng asked, "Have you not investigated this organization for the past three years?" "Our investigation has never stopped. These are the clues we have obtained over the past three years."

Li Banfeng reviewed the archives and found that two years ago in Wu-Yang Province, an abandoned machine processing plant was put back into operation, with production efficiency exceeding that of many surrounding enterprises. It was once listed as an advanced model by local media and reported on.

"Because this machine processing plant purchased a large amount of coal, it attracted the attention of colleagues from the Wu-Yang Branch Bureau. They sent people to conduct an undercover investigation of the factory and discovered that the main equipment of the factory was all powered by steam."

This unusual technical method attracted the attention of the Wu-Yang Branch Bureau of the Public Security Bureau. When they were about to conduct an in-depth investigation of the factory, everyone inside had vanished. Li Banfeng didn't quite understand Tangyuan's meaning. "Are you saying the boss disappeared, or the workers disappeared?"

"They've all disappeared."

"How many workers do they have? Surely so many workers can't just run away with the boss?"

Tangyuan produced another document. "According to the relevant registration information of this company, their person in charge is named He Yunfei. He is indeed an entrepreneur, and his file and information can be found."

The identities of several key personnel at the factory were also found, but their whereabouts were not discovered at the time.

Besides them, the identities of more than one hundred other workers registered at the factory remain unconfirmed. The identity information registered at the factory is all falsified, and the families of these workers are also untraceable.

Based on our speculation, these workers should belong to a type of artificial intelligence, what we commonly call robots. "Steam-powered robots?"

"We cannot yet determine the specific type of robots, but since they were created by the Steam Restoration Faction, these robots are most likely steam-powered, according to news reports from that factory at the time."

Li Banfeng looked at the newspaper. In the photos, busy workers stood next to machine tools, their jobs and expressions varying depending on their occupation. "These can't be steam-powered robots," Li Banfeng shook his head and put the newspaper aside.

According to Li Banfeng, the "dummies" made in Inner State represented the limit of steam technology, but these dummies required external equipment, including fans, teapots, rickshaws, and the like.

Looking at the workers in this newspaper, many of them are working by hand, with no trace of external equipment. Could it be that three years ago, the Steam Restoration Faction already had technology that surpassed that of the Inner State?

Li Banfeng suspected it was fake, but everyone who investigated the case believed it to be true. Tangyuan then listed several other cases:

Two years ago, in the Amikan Country, there was an underground clothing workshop whose production efficiency surpassed that of regular factories. After being investigated and raided, it was discovered that the person in charge of this clothing workshop was He Yunfei.

Last year, in the Au Tui Li Country, a construction company purchased hundreds of thousands of tons of coal. An investigation revealed that the person in charge of this construction company was also He Yunfei.

A series of clues laid out before them all proved one thing: He Yunfei was the leader of the Steam Restoration Faction, an organization with formidable technical capabilities and a wide reach. Tangyuan presented a recent case. "This year, the Steam Restoration Faction was active in Min-Yue Province, but we didn't conduct an investigation at the time."

"Why wasn't an investigation conducted?"

The Chuunibyou replied, "Because there was going to be a war at the time."

That period coincided with the war at Ruirong Textile Factory, and the case of the Steam Restoration Faction was temporarily shelved. When the Minyue Branch Bureau investigated the matter afterward, the Steam Restoration Faction had just disappeared without a trace, just like before.

With so many clues, yet not a single trace could be found; such ingenious methods are truly admirable.

Now that the Steam Restoration Faction has dealt a heavy blow to the special operations team, this case, which has remained unclear and unresolved, has finally been placed in a position of utmost urgency. The detectives are all excited, including Chen Changrui.

Such a sophisticated method of committing the crime, and such abundant investigative clues, would tempt anyone with a background in detective reasoning to try their hand at it. Chen Changrui suggested suspending all work and focusing all efforts on investigating the Steam Restoration Faction.

That's not wrong. This case involves the lives of nearly a hundred people in the special operations team, so its importance is certainly greater than that of other cases.

After the meeting, the Chuunibyou asked the Light Bulb, "Are you still investigating that matter? I made an appointment with the lab to do the experiment tomorrow morning." The Light Bulb rubbed its face and said, "What time is it? Still investigating that crap? What are you thinking?"

.

Li Banfeng had no formal training in criminal investigation, but seeing such a challenging case, he also had the idea of starting an investigation.

He started by sorting through past cases to find clues, and it wasn't until the next morning that Li Banfeng realized he hadn't slept all night. Although he was a cultivator with three skills plus two in the Cloud Realm, Li Banfeng was still somewhat exhausted from the intense mental exertion.

He took the case files back to his Portable Abode, intending to catch up on some sleep. Before going to bed, he was still reviewing the chain of clues, feeling like he had overlooked something. His Wife, seeing his distress, quickly urged, "My dear husband, get some sleep; your eyes are bloodshot."

Li Banfeng rubbed his eyes and went to sleep.

After sleeping for less than fifteen minutes, Li Banfeng sat up and muttered to himself, "Something's not right. It's like something's missing!" After saying that, Li Banfeng continued to look at the clues.

The record player asked in surprise, "What's this wonderful thing? It's so beautiful!" "A case, would you like to take a look, my Wife?"

"I don't have time to look at this, and I'm still thinking about the tracking device. Husband, let Hong Ying take a look."

Hong Ying glanced at it and shook her head repeatedly, saying, "Seventh Son, don't make things difficult for me. I really can't understand this thing. Just tell me where this guy named He Yunfei is, and I'll go out and kill him for you."

Li Banfeng gave a bitter smile, "If I could find him, I would have killed him long ago."

The Wife suggested, "Husband, why don't you take it to Eighth House and let him see? He likes it."

"Isn't the Eighth House Calculation Cultivator?"

"Calculation Cultivator have clear minds; many high-level Calculation Cultivator are skilled at solving cases."

Li Banfeng took the information to the Eighth House. After reviewing the information and pondering it for more than half an hour, the Eighth House exclaimed repeatedly, "It really is this. I never thought that I would still see this thing today."

The Eighth House actually saw through some of the secrets, and Li Banfeng was very happy.

But the Eighth House didn't intend to reveal the secret directly. "You came to me for advice, is it appropriate to come empty-handed?" This was nitpicking.

What they said makes sense; it's really not good to ask someone for a favor empty-handed.

Li Banfeng returned to the main house and went to find gifts for the Eighth House. Hong Ying asked for details, grabbed a stick, and went into the Eighth House: "It's not appropriate to be empty-handed, I've brought a weapon."

"I just figured it out myself, you can't hit people!" The Eighth House respectfully saw Hong Ying off, then invited Li Banfeng back and gave the answer directly, "This is a problem with an Unsolvable Problem."

What is Unsolvable Problem?

"You've been to school, haven't you?" That's just how Eighth House Fang is; he's a bit aloof whenever Hong Ying isn't around. Li Banfeng didn't seem to mind. "I've been to school for quite a few years."

"When you were in school, did you ever encounter a problem that seemed difficult to solve, yet there were many ways to solve it, but in the end, you just couldn't figure it out?" Li Banfeng recalled for a moment and nodded, "Yes, I have."

"These kinds of questions are the precursors to the Unsolvable Problem. The Unsolvable Problem Questions are much more sophisticated because they contain a technique for Calculation Cultivator called Unsolvable Entanglement. This is a high-level Calculation Cultivator technique. I've only seen it twice before. These kinds of questions are definitely unsolvable. Don't waste your energy on this one."

Li Banfeng frowned and said, "Why do you say there's no solution? There are so many clues here."

"Having clues is useless because the story itself doesn't make sense. You all see the Steam Restoration Faction mysteriously and want to track them down, but have you ever considered what their purpose is in doing these things, or whether they have any value at all?"

"How could it be worthless?"

"Where is the value? You say they can make machine workers with steam engines. If they really had that technology, why would they open a machine shop? How much money do you think the machine shop can make for them? Can this factory recoup their investment costs?"

The Amikan Country is even more of a joke. Using such advanced technology to set up an underground clothing workshop, let alone how much profit they can make, even if it's just for showing off, what kind of reputation can an underground workshop earn them?

The superior skills and elusive whereabouts are merely a facade for this Unsolvable Problem, causing ordinary people to overlook the root of the problem and their true motives. You, however, are a high-rise House Cultivator with the skills to Carefree Sleep. Spend some time at home, and you'll be able to figure out the whole story.

Taking the case you just handled as an example, this steampunk group dealt a heavy blow to the special operations team, seemingly achieving a good result. However, no matter how advanced the technology or how sophisticated the methods, it cannot conceal the fact that this event did not hold sufficient value for them.

A precious Stealth Space combined with a suite of highly intelligent machines could accomplish so much. Why would they deliberately orchestrate such an attack? Don't tell me it's just for fame; the cost is simply too high.

Li Banfeng rubbed his cheeks vigorously, gradually becoming more awake.

Eighth House is right. Why are they doing this? Just to target the Special Operations Team? No.

Their initial target wasn't the special operations team; their first target was the Light Bulb. It was the Light Bulb that discovered the Stealth Space and locked onto it immediately.

Is it possible that the Light Bulb entered the Stealth Space at that time?

Even if it were possible, would it really be worth going to such lengths just to deal with a Light Bulb?

Is there something else going on with this Light Bulb?

The next day, Li Banfeng called Light Bulb and Chuunibyou to his office.

"You said yesterday you were going to investigate something, and you even mentioned the lab. What exactly is it?"

The Light Bulb rubbed his face and laughed, "It's not a big deal. This kind of thing shouldn't take up the bureau's resources. I know I was wrong and I'll correct it. I didn't use the lab."

Chuunibyou shook his head and said, "I think this is a big deal. Now we're investigating the Steam Restoration Faction, and once we're done with this busy period, we need to investigate this matter thoroughly as well."

Li Banfeng said, "Don't wait until things are over, tell me now, what exactly happened?"

The Light Bulb was a little embarrassed, so the Chuunibyou spoke for him, "We have a new intern here, and the Light Bulb took a liking to her. He asked her out for coffee that noon, and she agreed."

He's been taking too much of the Harmonizing Agent these past few days, and while he's cultivating his powers, his face is very oily and smells bad. I saw some face cream on Candied Fruit Sister's table and told him about it, so he took it and used it, hoping to cover up the smell.

After using it, Light Bulb face became very dry that very afternoon, extremely dry and uncomfortable, and it didn't recover for several days. I went to ask the candied fruit vendor what was wrong.

"Candy said I was a pervert for using her face cream. I told her it was for Light Bulb, and she said it didn't matter who used it, I was a pervert anyway. I think there's something wrong with this face cream, so I contacted a lab to have it checked."

The Light Bulb chuckled, "That Chuunibyou isn't very bright. Candied Fruit Sister has a crush on him, but he's the only one who doesn't realize it."

Let me tell you, you're such a chuunibyou. Chuunibyou it comes to looks, besides Tangyuan, who in our bureau can compare to Mijian? Tangyuan is already committed to Seventh Master, so Mijian is the prettiest one left. Aren't you going to seize the opportunity?

"Candied Fruit Sister got a promotion, her income is higher, she even has a car, and I heard she's going to buy a house in the next couple of days. If you're with her, you'll save yourself years of hard work! You should be secretly happy!" Li Banfeng frowned and said, "Let's not talk about that now, let's talk about face cream. Aren't you supposed to be an oil-based beauty salon? How come your face is dry?"

Chuunibyou nodded and said, "That's the problem. Honey said her face cream is an oil-control type, but it's impossible for it to control all the oil in an oil-repair cream. That doesn't make sense, so I helped him investigate."

Li Banfeng called Mijian: "Bring me your face cream so I can use it."

"Huh?" Mi Jian was stunned on the other end of the phone. "Director Li, you, you're going to...!"

"Chuunibyou 've got my eye on your face cream, but I'm too shy to ask!"

"Okay, I'll bring it over in a bit."

The Chuunibyou stared at Li Banfeng in astonishment. "Director Li, we can't do this..."

The candied fruit vendor brought over the face cream shortly after, rolling her eyes at the Chuunibyou as she left. "Pervert!"

Li Banfeng took the face cream and sent it directly to the laboratory. When the laboratory saw that Director Li had arrived, they put aside other tests and prioritized testing the face cream.

After testing, the lab technician made a preliminary assessment. "Director Li, this is a typical counterfeit product; there's nothing in it that can control oil production."

The Light Bulb shook its head and said, "That's nonsense. They even wiped the oil off my face, and you're saying they don't have the materials?"

"That can't be right, logically it should be..." Hearing what the Light Bulb said, the lab technician also became a little unsure.

Li Banfeng said, "Don't just talk about it logically, try it with oil!"

"Oil..." The lab technician thought for a moment, "Controlling oil on the skin means controlling fat. I'll go get some animal fat to try."

When animal fat was dripped onto the face cream sample, there was no obvious reaction. The lab technician shrugged. "Director Li, you see, it really doesn't work."

"Wait a little longer."

After waiting for more than twenty minutes, the animal fat suddenly decreased rapidly and disappeared in a very short time.

The lab technician was startled and quickly put the sample back on the lab bench, wondering what reagents to use for the experiment.

Li Banfeng looked anxiously and said, "Don't use the reagent yet, take a look under the microscope."

"This chemical change involves molecular structure, and it's difficult to distinguish even with an optical microscope."

"Then get an electron microscope and take a look!"

The electron microscope had been sent for repair, and Li Qi was pressing for its approval. The lab technician, at his wits' end, found a high-powered optical microscope and took a look. What he saw startled him. "It's alive! It's alive! There's a living organism!"

Li Banfeng peered through the microscope for a long time. "What kind of life form are you talking about? I can't see it!"

"Look here, there are cellular structures, Director Li. I really didn't see them before. I even used a microscope, and they weren't there then..." Li Banfeng waved his hand and said, "Let's not talk about that now. Try a different sample, some fat!"

The lab technician took a new sample and added animal fat to it.

Under the microscope, there were no changes at first, but after nearly half an hour, cell structures appeared in the face cream sample.

The lab technician applied a stain to the cells, Li Banfeng could see it very clearly this time. The cells grew rapidly on the surface of the face cream, dividing one by one, making Li Banfeng feel itchy all over.

Light Bulb was also terrified. "Candied fruit's face is like this too, is mine too...?" Li Banfeng told Chuunibyou to quickly find candied fruit and isolate it with Light Bulb.

"Find out where the candied fruit and face cream were bought, gather everyone, investigate immediately, and find the manufacturer." "We've all gone to investigate the Steam Restoration Faction."

"Forget about that steampunk faction, everyone drop everything and focus on this one thing!" Chuunibyou was about to leave, Li Banfeng stopped him again.

During the transport of the tracking device, the Light Bulb discovered the Stealth Space. If he had acted impulsively and entered the Stealth Space, he might have lost his life.

Although he didn't go in, it was precisely because of the matter of the Stealth Space that the Steam Restoration Faction was brought into the picture, and the entire Dark Star Bureau's attention was diverted, so the matter of the Light Bulb's face not having oil was left unresolved.

This is all about the Light Bulb.

Someone knows that the Light Bulb used candied fruit in its face cream. Someone knows that the Light Bulb is investigating the face cream!

Someone is deliberately trying to distract us! There's a mole within the bureau!

The mole is likely in the Public Security Team, or possibly in the laboratory.

Li Banfeng said to Chuunibyou, "Don't notify the team, have the head of the investigation section come to the lab to find me." Chuunibyou nodded, and soon brought the head of the investigation section over.

Li Banfeng didn't mention the face cream at first. He asked the lab technician, "Is everyone in the lab on duty?" "Yes, everyone is today."

Li Banfeng said to the head of the investigation section, "Have all personnel in the lab hand over their communication equipment and jam the communication signals." The lab technician was taken aback. "Director Li, we here..."

"I didn't say there was anything wrong with you. Continue to do your experiments here in peace and figure out the properties of this face cream. Be very careful and don't get infected." The head of the investigation department immediately got to work, first blocking the signal, then cutting off the landline, and then collecting the communication equipment.

Li Banfeng explained the situation to the head of the investigation department, "You need to find absolutely reliable people to handle this. If the news leaks out, all the responsibility will fall on you alone!"

The head of the investigation department didn't dare to delay and immediately got to work.

A little while later, Chuunibyou called Mijian over. Upon hearing that she was to be quarantined, Mijian had no idea what had happened.

When asked about the face cream, Mijian replied, "I bought it online. This face cream is very popular; it has excellent oil control and the effects last a long time."

The Light Bulb, looking dejected, said, "How could the effect not be good? They're all alive! Our faces have become a breeding ground for them. Even I feel dry. How do you manage?" The candied fruit replied, "What's wrong with being a little dry? I have oily skin; my face feels awful when I sweat!"

Li Banfeng had the laboratory conduct tests on both of them as well.

The test results came back quickly: the surface of the candied fruit had a large number of microorganisms of unknown origin, which were the cellular structures they had seen under a microscope. The microbial density on the surface of the Light Bulb was more than six times that of the candied fruit.

The laboratory conducted a preliminary analysis of the results: this microorganism is similar to a fungus, initially hidden in the face cream in the form of spores, which are too small to be observed with an optical microscope.

When exposed to animal fat, the spores grow and multiply rapidly. The more fat there is, the greater the number of spores. Because of the huge number of microorganisms on the Light Bulb's face, they eventually devoured his oily face.

According to what "Face Not Big" said, the Light Bulb or "Light Bulb" can detect the anomaly. Someone is using face cream to spread this microorganism.

Li Banfeng had no idea what kind of disaster this microorganism would bring, but Li Banfeng could smell another scent in the face cream: war.

Li Banfeng has been on high alert for war recently, and what he is seeing now is very likely a war launched by Inner State, but it is not the kind of war Li Banfeng is familiar with! Fortunately, very fortunate!

Fortunately, the Light Bulb discovered this.

The head of the investigation team quickly traced the source of the face cream. "The manufacturer is in Yuezhou, and the person in charge is Han Xiaoxuan, a local from Yuezhou. As far as we know, this is the only manufacturer that produces this type of face cream. Director Li, shouldn't we take action immediately?"

"Yes, it's time to take action." Li Banfeng was somewhat worried that the current situation might lead to a leak.

The head of the investigation department was also somewhat worried. "I suggest that we cut off all communications of the Dark Star Bureau now and leave only one line for you."

Li Banfeng shook his head. Doing so would be tantamount to telling the bureau that something big must have happened, and any clever mole would find another way to send the message out. Fortunately, Li Banfeng had experience in preventing moles when he was in Pro State.

Issue orders on a small scale and focus on monitoring suspicious individuals.

The Chuunibyou is definitely believable. Li Banfeng told him to gather people, "Go and get the awl and the candied fruit... The awl went to Gourd Village, and the candied fruit is in the laboratory."

These two are used to it.

"Go and fetch the Crabapple."

The Chuunibyou said, "Crabapple and candied fruits used the same face cream." What a rip-off!

Since the most capable squad Team Leader couldn't go, we could only take Tangyuan: "Tell Tangyuan and Huajia to bring their men and come with me to raid this factory." "How many men?"

"Have Chen Changrui develop a plan. Sufficient combat personnel are essential, as the enemy will likely resist arrest. Sufficient bio-weapon personnel are also crucial; we must be prepared to handle large-scale bio-weapon attacks. Sufficient reconnaissance personnel are also necessary, with plenty of drones. In the event of bio-warfare, we cannot afford to sacrifice human lives. Bring plenty of Fire Cultivator personnel; post-war cleanup is imperative..."

Chuunibyou roughly calculated. "Director Li, there are quite a few people to take with us. It won't be easy to keep this a secret. We'd better keep an eye on the key personnel first." Keep an eye on the key personnel.

How many people know that Light Bulb uses face cream made with candied fruit?

Chuunibyou was a little embarrassed. "Back then, Mi-jian called me a pervert, and she was really loud; almost everyone in the team knew about it." Li Banfeng thought for a moment, "Was the person who was on the escort mission with the Light Bulb that day Star?"

"Yes," Chuunibyou nodded, "The two of them even had a little argument."

The dispute arose because the Star missed out on the credit.

The Star had gone to buy cold drinks at the time, and the Light Bulb parked its car and saw the Stealth Space —it was such a coincidence. Chuunibyou and Li Banfeng thought the same thing, "Director Li, should we take the Star into custody first?"

Li Banfeng shook his head. "This person might not be simple. While we're keeping him under control, he might still find a way to send messages out."

"Have him go to the archives to organize the relevant information about the steampunk 'pie,' give him a few assistants, and assign him plenty of tasks so he won't be able to finish tonight." A smart person doesn't need much explanation; Chuunibyou knows what to do.

The Star thought he would have to work overtime on the Steam Restoration Faction movement and complained a lot when he went to the archives.

Chen Changrui finalized the plan, Li Banfeng made revisions, all departments gathered their personnel, and logistics arranged transportation. Li Banfeng immediately led his team to the factory. Li Banfeng entered the workshop silently; the workers were still working, and no one noticed Li Banfeng.

His main purpose in entering the factory alone was to apprehend the person in charge. He walked through the Li Banfeng and into the office building, quickly traversing each floor. He found the general manager's office on the third floor and pushed open the door.

Behind the desk sat a dark-skinned, tall, and muscular man, holding a powder compact and touching up his makeup in front of the mirror.

The powder he used was very fragrant. He rubbed it on his face a few times with the Powder Puff and seemed quite satisfied. He turned to look at Li Banfeng and asked softly, "Who are you looking for?" The fact that he noticed Li Banfeng proved that this person's cultivation level was not low.

Li Banfeng smiled and asked, "Are you Han Xiaoxuan, the person in charge of the factory?"

"It's me, what brings you here?" Han Xiaoxuan closed her powder compact and looked at Li Banfeng with a smile. Hiss

Li Banfeng heard a crisp sound of steam escaping through the Thread-Pulling Earring.

"Are you the general manager of this factory?" Li Banfeng closed the office door. "I'm here to buy some face cream from you." "Buy face cream from me?" Han Xiaoxuan praised, "You have good taste! You're very good at business!"

"I wouldn't call myself a business whiz," Li Banfeng said, sitting down opposite Han Xiaoxuan. "My family is waiting for me to eat." PS: You've come to the right place; this guy is from Inner State.