The Inner Ghost Reveals Itself

The second passenger was to teach the mole a technique.

Zhao Xiaowan wanted to hear the techniques, but there was no sound from the second room.

The key points don't need to be explained; the mole understands them perfectly well. He and the passengers in the second room have a natural understanding of each other.

Zhao Xiaowan has already figured out the source of their tacit understanding: the second wife is a shadow cultivator, and the mole is Li Banfeng's shadow!

Is this the shadow that you often refer to as "Banfeng Yi"?

We can ask him later if it's him or not.

Zhao Xiaowan returned to the record player's body. Two records were placed on the tray. She was confident she could capture the shadow alive once it emerged.

We must capture him alive and find out where the key is, otherwise my husband won't be able to get home.

As for the passenger in the second room, Zhao Xiaowan couldn't yet determine his level. She decided to exchange a few blows with him first, and if necessary, wake up Hong Ying to work together to eliminate this Evil Spirit.

Everything was ready, the record player kept the flame steady, and waited quietly by the bedside.

The second room opened a crack in the door, and a shadow peeked out.

The firelight flickered slightly, and the first record, which should have flown out, remained firmly on the tray.

The record player was startled; the tray spun rapidly, but the record remained still.

What happened? Did the second wife intervene? Did she break the spell on the record?

That shouldn't be the case.

There was no movement from the second room; the Evil Spirit probably hadn't noticed yet.

Shadow did not leave Portable Abode. He rummaged through the bookshelf for a while and took away a test tube.

The record player tried to spew steam to trap the shadow, but the flame on its chest could not be ignited because the steam pressure was too high.

Who was behind this? They managed to suppress the fire from the record player.

Shadow left the Portable Abode, and just like that, he got away!

The ability to render the phonograph technique invisible twice is something only one person in the Portable Abode can do.

Old man!

The record player couldn't understand why he would make a move at this time, or why he would let the mole go.

Faintly, the record player heard Portable Abode's voice. "Girl, don't worry."

After a moment's thought, the record player understood the old man's intention.

She went to the bookshelf and found that her newly prepared potion was missing.

That was the Fighter Guiding Agent she had created after cracking the Dark Star Bureau's formula; she didn't know if it would work.

It doesn't matter if it doesn't work; at most, this stuff will be less effective, but it won't kill anyone.

But what does Shadow want to do with this potion?

At eight o'clock in the morning, Li Banfeng woke up Liang Wucai.

The two sisters rubbed their eyes and looked at Li Banfeng with resentment.

In the bathroom, the Liang Cai washing their faces, Liang Wu brushed their teeth. They were still upset about what happened last night.

"Seventh Master is really something, he slept all night and didn't even touch us!" Liang Wu rinsed his mouth and wiped the toothpaste foam off his lips.

"Perhaps that's what we like about him—that gentleness beneath his coldness, that ruthlessness beneath his integrity!" Liang Cai rinsed the soap scum off his face with water and dried it with a towel.

Liang Wu wiped his body with a towel again. "He's really cold, I feel cold all over myself."

Liang Cai sniffed his own body and said, "It's not only cool, but it also has a unique fragrance. Don't wipe my body; that fragrance belongs to him, and it belongs to me too."

The projector disagreed.

That aroma belongs to a cantaloupe.

Should we tell them the truth?

It's best not to tell them, as the truth could cause them serious harm.

Record this part as well. After proper editing, this story will become art in different styles in the eyes of different viewers.

Li Banfeng asked the restaurant owner, Chen Yongnian, to cancel his reservation.

Chen Yongnian took out eight hundred yuan from the large wooden box on his back, which he had borrowed from various places. "Sir, I still owe you fifty yuan. Please give me another half day."

Li Banfeng confiscated Chen Yongnian's money. "Bao Yaocheng and I are friends. At first, we didn't recognize each other. But after we recognized each other, he returned the money to me. Your rent this month won't increase, so don't worry."

"Sir, please don't joke like that. You've done me a great favor, I can't take advantage of you. Please accept this money."

Li Banfeng retorted angrily, "I told you, Bao Yaocheng paid me back, why don't you believe me? Go and get back to business!"

Tan Jinxiao offered some advice. "Old Chen, if you can't trust others, can't you trust me? Bao Yaocheng is a decent person, but yesterday he was in a rush to collect rent and acted a bit rashly. Don't take it to heart; he knows he was wrong."

Does Bao Yaocheng know he was wrong?

Chen Yongnian looked at Tan Jinxiao in surprise, not knowing what he meant by those words.

Bao Yaocheng staggered as he led his men into the Green Garden Mansion.

The name of this place is awkward. A garden is a garden, and a building is a building. What's the point of mixing them together?

There's really a reason for this.

Because the Underground City has a limited height, only about five meters from the ground to the ceiling, from the outside, you can only see one floor of the Green Garden Mansion. The building is surrounded by blue bricks, and there are many flowers and plants planted outside, making it look like a garden, hence the name Green Garden).

In reality, this building has more than one floor; there are Tenth Layer hidden on the roof, invisible to outsiders, so it is indeed a large building.

As Bao Yaocheng entered the first floor of the building, the doorman greeted him, "Boss Bao, you're back!"

"Headman" is Bao Yaocheng's identity in the Underground City, which can also be understood as his position in the Green Garden Mansion.

The doorman's voice was a bit nasal, not because he had a cold, but because he deliberately held his breath while speaking.

The smell on Bao Yaocheng is a bit intoxicating.

Bao Yaocheng pressed the elevator button, and the steam-powered elevator took everyone up to the eighteenth floor.

After exiting the elevator, Bao Yaocheng entered the second room in the corridor. This room was divided into three suites, and it was the office of Zhu Yugui, the Human Market the Underground City and the First Boss of Zhu YuGui Green Garden Mansion.

Zhu YuGui didn't see anyone, but he smelled the aroma first. He looked up and saw Bao Yaocheng greeting him with a smile, "Brother Gui, I'm back! burp glug!"

Bao Yaocheng let out a burp.

This smell almost killed Zhu YuGui.

"What did you eat? Are you drunk?" Zhu YuGui was very unhappy. "What time is it? I asked you to do important business, and you still dare to drink?"

"You've certainly drunk quite a bit!" Bao Yaocheng let out another burp. "Master Gui, we've taken care of everything!"

"Have you collected all the rent?"

"I've collected it, take a look!" Bao Yaocheng took out two lumps of "gold" from his pocket and placed them in front of Zhu YuGui.

Zhu YuGui took three steps back and looked up at Bao Yaocheng.

Bao Yaocheng pointed at the "gold" and said, "Sir, look at the size, the color, the weight, the thickness. This gold is yellowish-green, and it's exactly the right weight!"

Zhu YuGui stared at Bao Yaocheng for a long time before asking, "You've consumed the Golden Fluid Jade Liquid?"

"Yes!" Bao Yaocheng nodded vigorously.

"Eating while smiling?"

"Yes!" Bao Yaocheng is still smiling.

"You ran into Tan Jinxiao?"

"Tan Jinxiao?" Bao Yaocheng shook his head. "I didn't run into him!"

Zhu YuGui recognized that this was Tan Jinxiao's technique.

"It really was Tan Jinxiao who did it! I knew this guy was unreliable!" Zhu YuGui's expression was gloomy, and he had someone call Nie Congyang over.

Nie Congyang also a foreman under Zhu YuGui. Yesterday, he didn't collect enough rent, and he didn't force those shops that couldn't pay. In his opinion, it was unreasonable to suddenly increase the rent.

He thought Zhu YuGui was going to scold him, but to his surprise, Zhu YuGui called him over and first assigned him a task, "Congyang, go to the Guanfang Hall and tell Cai Shi that Tan Jinxiao, that bastard, has betrayed us. Tell him to prepare for the worst."

Nie Congyang was a cautious man. After thinking for a moment, he asked, "Master Gui, you said Tan Jinxiao has turned against us. Whom has he turned to? We need to know who's on the other side before we can talk to the Guanfang Hall."

Zhu YuGui pondered for a moment, then looked at Bao Yaocheng: "Who are Tan Jinxiao's accomplices?"

"Accomplices? What accomplices?" Bao Yaocheng asked with a smile, seemingly aroused by the sight of the gold nuggets on the table.

Zhu YuGui then asked, "Do you know who Tan Jinxiao works for? Who did you have a conflict with when you were collecting rent yesterday?"

Bao Yaocheng couldn't answer, and his subordinates were in the same boat, unable to explain it either.

We can't get any information out of this, and we can't investigate it. Zhu YuGui suddenly raised the rent, and Bao Yaocheng was so ruthless yesterday. There are so many people who have clashed with him. Who knows which one is Tan Jinxiao's accomplice?

Zhu YuGui told Nie Congyang to take the gold nugget away. Nie Congyang held his breath, found some paper, wrapped the gold nugget in it, and took it outside to throw it away.

Bao Yaocheng was upset to see the gold gone and started arguing with Zhu YuGui: "Master Gui, give me the gold back. That's the rent I collected."

Zhu YuGui waved his hand and instructed Nie Congyang to send Bao Yaocheng and his men away so that a healer could treat them.

The smell on them almost made Nie Congyang vomit his breakfast. After finally getting everything settled, Zhu YuGui also came up with a solution.

"Congyang, take the brothers and go to the streets Yaocheng is in charge of, and cut off all their cigarette pipes."

Zhu YuGui had three gang leaders under his command, one of whom was Bao Yaocheng, and the other was Nie Congyang. They each had their own territory.

Nie Congyang didn't rush to leave. He first reminded Zhu YuGui, "Master Gui, I heard that Yaocheng collected all the rent yesterday. Most of the shops have paid in full, and those who couldn't pay, they paid every penny they could. It's unreasonable to cut off people's pipes after they've paid their money, isn't it?"

"How is it unreasonable?" Zhu YuGui glared at Nie Congyang quickly lowered his head.

Zhu YuGui continued, "You keep saying you collected the money, but where is it? Were those two lumps of gold you took money?"

Nie Congyang didn't want to argue with the boss, but he had to make this clear. "Master Gui, it's not the shop owner's fault that the money wasn't brought back; Yaocheng lost it himself!"

Snap!

Zhu YuGui slammed his teacup down. "You think you can reason with me? You think you can teach me how to do things?"

Nie Congyang shook his head and said, "I dare not."

"You dare not? If you dare not, why are you still talking so much!" Zhu YuGui slammed his fist on the table. "When the boss needs money, we have to find ways to raise it for him. Who am I raising the rent for? For myself? Do you even care about the boss? Do you have any vision in your actions?"

Nie Congyang dared not speak.

Zhu YuGui continued his reprimand, "Something's happened in Yaocheng now, Yaocheng has been ruined like this. I sent you to cut off their pipes so that we could force Tan Jinxiao out, and also force out who was behind him."

You're something else! You don't understand my intentions, fine, but you're trying to reason with me. How many reasons do you have? Why are you so nosy? What's your relationship with those shop owners? If you're so kind-hearted, why don't you open a charity shed?

Get this done right now! I need the news by noon today!

Nie Congyang was silent for a moment, then raised his head. "Master Gui, I really can't go today. My mother is sick, and I was planning to ask you for leave today anyway."

"What do you mean?" Zhu YuGui's eyebrows furrowed.

Nie Congyang said calmly, "I didn't mean anything by it. I'm just telling the truth. My mother is sick."

Zhu YuGui slammed his hand on the table again, then remained silent for more than a minute.

Because Nie Congyang kept watching him.

Zhu YuGui was the head of the gang, Nie Congyang was the leader. In terms of status, Zhu YuGui was higher.

However, Nie Congyang is a seventh-level martial arts cultivator, Zhu YuGui is a seventh-level cold cultivator, so the two are currently quite close.

Zhu YuGui pointed to the door. "Go back and see your mother first."

Nie Congyang thanked him and left.

As soon as he stepped out the door, Zhu YuGui smashed the teapot and tea tray.

The two people hanging by the door whispered to each other:

"What's wrong with Chief Nie today? Why is he insisting on going after Chief Piao?"

"I don't understand either. It's just a broken pipe. It's such a small thing, nothing difficult at all."

"Chief Nie is a smart man. I think something really happened to his family, and he's so worried he's lost his mind."

"No matter how urgent things get, you can't talk back to the boss. You'll see, this time, the boss definitely won't let him off easily."

"I reckon he won't be able to keep his job as head chef, and he won't be able to make a living at Green Garden anymore."

As the two were discussing this, they suddenly heard Zhu YuGui shout from inside the house, "Call Lü Qingfu here!"

Lü Qingfu was also one of the three leaders.

He hadn't collected all the rent yet and was expecting to be scolded when he came in, but when he heard that he was only being asked to cut off the pipe, Lü Qingfu went off happily.

This job is simple, easier than collecting rent. Just open the tin box and turn off the valve.

As for whether the shop owners had any complaints, Lü Qingfu didn't care. What could they do if they did? At most, they'd cry a little. Lü Qingfu was happy to see them cry, and besides, this wasn't his territory.

No sooner had Lü Qingfu left than Du Zhihuan, Zhu YuGui's advisor, received the news and came to Zhu YuGui's office. "Master Gui, I heard yesterday that Foreman Bao was quite ruthless. Today you had Foreman Lü cut the pipes again. I'm afraid something bad is going to happen."

Zhu YuGui laughed and said, "You're here to teach me how to do things too?"

"No, no," Du Zhihuan waved his hands repeatedly, "I was just giving you a heads-up!"

Zhu YuGui shook his head and said, "I don't need you to remind me. I know this perfectly well. Those shop owners won't cause any trouble."

If you don't believe me, let's wait here. It's 9:30 in the morning now, let's wait until 6:00 in the evening and see if these shop owners dare to mess with me!

If they cause trouble, I'll resign as the boss. Let's find a suitable replacement together, and I'll step down!

"Sir, please don't say such hurtful things. That's not what I meant at all..."

Zhu YuGui laughed and said, "I still don't understand what you guys mean. Old Du, you've been with me for quite a while now, haven't you? I just want to force Tan Jinxiao and the person behind him to come out. Do you understand?"

"I understand, but Tan Jinxiao is a cultivator from the clouds, and our master is not here right now. If we go head-to-head with him, we won't gain any advantage."

Zhu YuGui sighed, "There are some things I shouldn't have told you. I didn't send Lü Qingfu alone; I sent Huan Wuchang with me."

"Huan Wuchang?" Du Zhihuan thought for a moment. "Master Gui, does he listen to us?"

"He has the master's mark on him, he can't ignore it. And let me tell you, Tan Jinxiao also carries a mark. If he dares to come to me, I can catch him. I'll make him confess to me in person what he was behind!"

As he spoke, Zhu YuGui squeezed the teacup.

The tea in the teacup had frozen into a lump of ice.

Underground City, Human Market, White Beard Alley.

Tan Jinxiao and Li Banfeng looked at the young man lying against the wall.

This alley is inhabited by elderly people. Because of their advanced age, they cannot find work and rely on their meager savings to buy some food to barely make ends meet. Once their savings are exhausted, they will have to pass away.

Saving energy saves food. The old man living in White Beard Alley rarely goes out. This young man lay in the hutong for more than an hour, and no one noticed.

"Just hang in there," Tan Jinxiao sighed. "If we can endure it for another hour or so, the other two heads will grow back, and then we'll be fine."

The young man's shoulder was covered in blood and gore, a sign that he was about to grow three heads.

Li Banfeng asked, "What kind of person will grow three heads at the Three Heads Junction? And what kind of person will enter the path of body cultivation?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yeci quickly took out paper and pen and carefully wrote it down.

Tan Jinxiao shook his head and said, "No one can say for sure about this. Some people say that those with good physiques become body cultivators. I've seen a sickly guy who could barely walk. He stayed in Three Heads Junction for two and a half years, but instead of becoming Three-Headed People, he became a spider. That's a proper body cultivator."

Some people say that those with good comprehension can become body cultivators. I once met someone with good comprehension; I explained the essentials of Phlegm Cultivator to him, and he learned them all perfectly. I planned to take him to the Peddler to get some medicinal powder, but who knew that he would turn into Three-Headed People in less than three days at Three Heads Junction.

Xiao Yeci felt a slight itch on her neck. "Turning into Three-Headed People in three days, is that considered fast?"

"That's not fast! There are faster ones. The fastest one I've ever seen was also a young lady. She stayed at the Three Heads Junction for five minutes, and then her two heads came out from her shoulders."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yeci's neck itched even more.

Tan Jinxiao chuckled and said, "Don't be afraid. You're not some innocent White Lamb. Anyone with cultivation can't become Three-Headed People once they arrive at Three Heads Junction!"

Xiao Yeci looked at the young man and asked in a low voice, "He's not moving at all. Is he in any danger?"

Tan Jinxiao shook his head slightly. "It's hard to say. Having two extra heads is like walking through the gates of hell; losing your life is a common occurrence."

This young man is lucky to have found the Underground City, but unfortunately, he was just one step short.

As he spoke, Tan Jinxiao glanced at Juanzi in the distance.

Juanzi lowered her head, Mengzi gritted her teeth, and Xiao Shan closed her eyes; they recalled extremely unpleasant memories.

Xiao Yeci turned to look at Li Banfeng Li Banfeng, who was holding a vial of medicine. He walked over to the young man, pried open the young man's mouth, and poured the medicine down his throat.

Tan Jinxiao was taken aback. "What are you giving him to drink? At this point, whether he lives or dies is entirely up to fate. Giving him any medicine won't help."

Li Banfeng didn't say anything, he just kept staring at the young man.

Blood kept spurting from the young man's shoulder, and the two human heads seemed to be growing back on their own.

After waiting for more than half an hour, the bleeding stopped, and Tan Jinxiao thought the young man had bled out and was dead.

But upon closer inspection, the young man was still breathing, and his breathing was very steady.

"Asleep?" Tan Jinxiao looked at Li Banfeng, then at the test tube in his hand.

Looking at the young man's shoulder, the swollen, outward-facing wound was gradually receding, seemingly showing signs of healing.

"Good heavens!" Tan Jinxiao was even more astonished. "They managed to keep that head from falling back?"

Juanzi also looked at Li Banfeng, her eyes filled with longing.

Mengzi was very nervous. "Sis, what are you trying to do?"

Li Banfeng asked Juanzi, "Do you want to enter the Daoist path?"

"Seventh Master, what do you mean?" Juanzi didn't understand.

Before Li Banfeng could explain, a cry came from afar, "Master Lü, I really have no money left! I paid the rent yesterday, not a penny less! You can't do this! You can't cut off our pipes!"

Tan Jinxiao looked at Li Banfeng: "Men, about yesterday's matter, should we stand up for what's right, or should we see it through to the end?"

Li Banfeng lowered his hat brim. "Can't these two things be put together?"

"Putting us together is fine, since Lü Qingfu also came from Green Garden. But let me make this clear: I'm your guide, but I can't take you to Green Garden. I have my reasons."

Li Banfeng didn't ask what the reason for the distress was; he simply walked towards the direction of the crying and shouting, "Can't we just find someone else to lead the way?"

As Li Banfeng walked out of White Beard Alley, he noticed a row of ceramic tiles suddenly appearing on the dirt road.

Where did these tiles come from in the alley?

Li Banfeng was taken aback; the surrounding scenery had changed.

The lights flickered, and the chaotic music was deafening.

Dark yellow wallpaper was laid on the earthen walls on both sides of the alley, and one after another, the doors to private rooms appeared on the walls.

Is this a karaoke bar?

Tan Jinxiao exclaimed in surprise, "Be careful! This is Illusion Technique!"

Liang Wucai touched the light switch on the wall. The switch clicked, startling Liang Wucai.

Tall Juanzi reached out and touched the lampshade on the ceiling. The sudden flashing light startled her, and she quickly pulled her hand back.

Xiao Yeci didn't dare touch anything. She looked at the wallpaper on the wall and asked Li Banfeng, "My Benefactor, is this from Outer State? I've seen it in some books."

Li Banfeng nodded. "It's from Outer State. This is an underground karaoke bar."

"Is it a place like Carefree Dock?"

"It looks a bit like..." Li Banfeng walked forward step by step. He had been to this karaoke bar before.

Tan Jinxiao shouted, "Hey brother, let's not go, okay? This guy using Illusion Technique is no pushover!"

Ignoring all advice, Li Banfeng continued walking forward. From a private room deep in the corridor came a woman's laughter. "General Wang, would you like another drink? Just one!"

"Who is General Wang?" Li Banfeng turned around and looked at Tan Jinxiao.

"You ask such a question, how could he be me?" Tan Jinxiao was very nervous, as he was preparing to deal with a very troublesome enemy.

Li Banfeng recalled for a moment and said, "You say it wasn't you, and he says it wasn't him either, so who could it be?"

The corridor lights flickered on and off, like the whispers of ghosts echoing in everyone's ears.

"General Wang, would you like to have a drink?"

"General Wang, I miss you so much."

"General Wang, how long has it been since you last came?"

"Who exactly is General Wang?" Li Banfeng asked again.

He stepped forward, wanting to go into the private room to see what was going on!

A sigh shattered the tranquility, creating ripples in the corridor. The dazzling lights distorted and shattered, the cacophony of singing faded into the distance, and the illusion vanished.

"Gone?" Tan Jinxiao breathed a sigh of relief. "I thought that old bastard wanted to fight me."

Li Banfeng looked up and saw the alley ahead again.

A restaurant owner clung to Lü Qingfu's leg, crying and wailing, "Master Lü, you can't cut off our pipes!"

Lü Qingfu grabbed the shopkeeper by the hair, kicking and hitting him. "Let go! Let go right now! Have I been giving you any face?"

Li Banfeng beckoned to Lü Qingfu: "Come here."

Lü Qingfu looked up and sized Li Banfeng up and down. "You're talking to me?"

"Of course it's you." Li Banfeng grabbed Lü Qingfu's head and slammed it to the ground.

Zhu YuGui glanced at his Pocket Watch and said to his advisor, Du Zhihuan, "See? It's already six o'clock. There's no one causing trouble outside."

Du Zhihuan quickly poured tea for Zhu YuGui: "Master Gui has a discerning eye; I am truly humbled."

Zhu YuGui picked up his teacup and laughed, "These people in the Underground City seem like they're protective of their food, but they don't have the guts to protect it at all."

They'd be squatting by the door, eating their rice with relish. If you snatched the bowl from them, they might dare to fight back, but if you took even a spoonful of rice from their bowl, they wouldn't dare utter a sound.

If they can take one spoonful, they can take two spoonfuls; if they can take half a bowl, they can take seventy or eighty percent. Leave them a little bit at the bottom of the bowl; as long as they don't starve, they can endure it.

Du Zhihuan nodded. "You're right, but we have to leave some for them. You also said we can't take it all."

Zhu YuGui lit a cigarette. "It's no big deal to go hungry once in a while. We can give them a spoonful of rice afterward, and they'll be grateful to us."

Du Zhihuan was unsure how to respond, "Yes, you're right..."

Knock knock knock!

Someone knocked on the door.

Zhu YuGui said, "Qingfu should have finished his business by now, and I reckon Tan Jinxiao should be here soon too."

Clang!

Lü Qingfu pushed open the door and walked in. "Master Gui, I've taken care of everything, hiccup~ glug glug!"

He let out a burp.

Just from the smell, Zhu YuGui knew something was wrong.

"Did you come back alone?"

"My brothers are all back." Lü Qingfu's men also followed him into the office.

Zhu YuGui looked for a long time but didn't see the expert he had sent out. "Where's Huan Wuchang? Haven't you seen him?"

"We didn't see you! We ate something good on the way and brought it to you specially!" Lü Qingfu opened his mouth, spitting out yellowish-green juice, and walked towards Zhu YuGui.

PS: The character General Wang appeared in chapter 535, which was called The Wraiths of the Underground City.

The mole has been exposed.