Steam Era: The Lord of 'Puluo'

Chapter 548 - 381 Bei Wushuang

The Mountain-Uprooting Master had lost to Bei Wushuang in the past, losing ten miles of territory in the southeast.

Li Banfeng knew that Bei Wushuang’s territory should be to the southeast, but he hadn’t expected to encounter him so soon after entering it.

Was he here to find me?

From the attitude of that peddler just now, he indeed harbored the intention to kill me.

If it came to an outright confrontation, I had no chance of winning, but if I only thought of escaping, perhaps there was still a chance.

If push came to shove, I could enter the Portable Residence, ideally luring him in as well. Even if I couldn’t, it would serve as a temporary hiding place.

The key was not knowing which Taoist Sect he belonged to, and whether I would even have the chance to produce the key.

This battle was too difficult. It would be best to avoid clashing with him.

The territory was his, and the opponent came prepared, whereas Li Banfeng knew too little about Bei Wushuang; had he not seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn’t have even known Bei Wushuang was a camel.

Tough as it was, Li Banfeng remained calm, and that very calm made Bei Wushuang somewhat worried.

The man was forthright and directly made his point clear to Li Banfeng, "You came from Meng Yuchun’s territory. Someone told me that you are her admirer."

No need to think; it must have been Ah Xia who told him.

Ah Xia probably couldn’t imagine that only she and Xiao Feng had heard the claim that I was Meng Yuchun’s admirer.

The camel continued, "The sudden arrival of Meng Yuchun’s admirer on my territory is very upsetting to me. According to my temper, regardless of what you intended to do, I should kill you to eliminate any future trouble. But now it seems killing you won’t be so easy. I’ve once seen a Ninth Layer Traveling Cultivator; his Passing Glance was not as ruthless as yours. I don’t know what your cultivation level is like, so I’m not very keen on fighting you. I’ll ask you a few things. If you’re willing to tell the truth, we can forget about today’s matter."

Li Banfeng nodded and said, "Let’s hear it."

"First thing, did you come from Hai Chi Ridge?"

Li Banfeng shook his head.

Bei Wushuang said, "Old Pan from Hai Chi Ridge is my friend. If you’re on good terms with Old Pan, we can turn the page on this matter right now."

Am I acquainted with Pan Dehai?

Is this person truly friends with Pan Dehai?

In such a situation, it’s best not to rashly claim connections. Li Banfeng shook his head and said, "I know Pan Dehai, but we’re not acquainted."

His direct reference to Pan Dehai by name made Bei Wushuang even more cautious.

"I’ll ask you one more thing. What do you intend to do in my territory?"

Li Banfeng answered truthfully, "I came in search of the Heavenly Spring Delighted Earth."

"What do you need Heavenly Spring Delighted Earth for?"

Li Banfeng earnestly fabricated, "For Meng Yuchun."

Bei Wushuang stuck out his tongue at Li Banfeng, as if smiling at him. "You’re so young, yet you’re already having trouble in that department?"

The camel always liked to stick its tongue out at people; it was unclear whether this was mockery or simply a habit.

Li Banfeng smiled as well. "It’s hard to say if I’m young or not, but everyone has moments when they can’t quite manage."

Bei Wushuang asked again, "How did you know I have Heavenly Spring Delighted Earth here?"

"I found out from the Three Joyous Worms." This statement was the truth.

"You can understand the language of the Three Joyous Worms?" Bei Wushuang expressed deep skepticism, as even he couldn’t understand their speech.

"I can’t claim to understand everything, but I could make out a few phrases amidst the vagueness and followed those worms here," Li Banfeng pointed into the distance. "You saw one of the Three Joyous Worms earlier; it was scared off by you all."

Up to this point, the logic in his words was faultless.

Bei Wushuang nodded his camel head. "I trust you. I’ll take you to find the Heavenly Spring Delighted Earth. You may take as much as you can carry."

Li Banfeng thanked him and followed Bei Wushuang deeper into the territory.

After walking for more than twenty miles, they came upon a cave. The camel led Li Banfeng inside. After navigating numerous twists and turns through over a dozen side passages, they arrived near a pit in the ground.

Bei Wushuang snorted. "The Heavenly Spring Delighted Earth is below. Go take it yourself."

Li Banfeng looked at the pit and then back at the camel.

Bei Wushuang stuck out his tongue at Li Banfeng. "What? Afraid? You’re a Traveling Cultivator, skilled in the art of Seeking Fortune and Avoiding Disaster. If I meant to harm you, wouldn’t you be able to tell?"

Li Banfeng truly didn’t perceive any malice, but Bei Wushuang’s cultivation level was so much higher than his own that it was understandable he couldn’t sense any ill intent.

However, if I don’t go down now, I’ll likely reveal that my cultivation level is far inferior to Bei Wushuang’s, and I might even make him suspicious of my motives.

If I went down now, at worst, I might fall into Bei Wushuang’s trap. I could then hide in my Portable Residence and even use it to escape Bei Wushuang’s territory. As for how to retrieve the key, I’ll discuss it with my wife later.

After weighing his options, Li Banfeng descended into the pit, which wasn’t very deep—just three to five meters. He took a pouch from his waist, shoveled half a bag of soil with a spade, then turned and returned to the mouth of the cave.

Bei Wushuang looked at the bag in Li Banfeng’s hand and asked, "Is that enough? You can take more if it’s not."

Li Banfeng shook his head. "Thank you for your kind offer. This is sufficient."

If I were to use this to repair the station, this amount of soil would be far from enough.

But if it were used as a medicinal ingredient, according to my wife’s description, this amount was indeed sufficient.

The reason I’d only taken this much was to avoid arousing Bei Wushuang’s suspicions.

And as for the soil required for constructing the platform, I didn’t need to fetch it myself; I had experience with this from my time at Oil Lake.

Li Banfeng thanked Bei Wushuang again. The matter should have concluded there, but unexpectedly, Bei Wushuang made another request. "Considering the hour, Meng Yuchun must be waiting for you to come back and sleep. Since you have obtained the Heavenly Spring Delighted Earth, why not eat a pellet now? When the medicinal effects kick in after you return, you’ll have the chance to impress Meng Yuchun."

Li Banfeng held the half-filled bag and asked, "Eat it just like this?"

"How else? Heavenly Spring Delighted Earth is a medicinal ingredient meant to be consumed directly. Are you planning to take it home and stew it in a soup? Or does this thing have another use for you?"

Bei Wushuang is certainly suspicious.

Li Banfeng laughed. "Alright, I’ll eat it right here."

He pinched a clump of soil, rolled it into a pill, and swallowed it.

Bei Wushuang snorted again. "If you’re ever short of Joy Soil again, just come and take some from me, but it’s best to let me know in advance. Consider today’s matter settled. We shall meet again. I won’t see you out."

Li Banfeng cupped his fist, shouldered the half-filled bag, and left Bei Wushuang’s territory.

He had killed Bei Wushuang’s subordinate right in front of him, expecting an inevitable fierce battle, yet the incident had surprisingly blown over.

Once past the boundary and not far off, Meng Yuchun came to meet him. "Li Qi, I’ve been looking for you everywhere. The Cook has found out some information: Ah Xia and Bei Wushuang may be colluding."

Li Banfeng’s expression grew tense. "So that’s how it is."

"He also found out something else—Bei Wushuang might have a conflict with Pan Dehai, the Local Deity of Hai Chi Ridge, and the two might go to war."

Li Banfeng’s breath quickened. "Is something like that actually happening?"

Meng Yuchun sighed. "I didn’t expect this either. Let’s go to my place first and discuss what to do."

"I can’t go to your place right now; I have something urgent." Li Banfeng quickened his pace, leaving Meng Yuchun behind. My intuition tells me it’s best not to visit Meng Yuchun’s home right now.

After finding a suitable place to hide the key, Li Banfeng hurried back to his Portable Residence.

Something is wrong.

Short of breath, heart racing, pins and needles all over my body... It feels like I’ve been poisoned.

What on earth did I eat just now?

No matter. Once I return to the Residence, I can detoxify.

The moment he entered the house, the Phonograph exclaimed joyfully, "Husband, we’ve done it! We have enough Heavenly Spring Delighted Earth!"

"We have enough?" Li Banfeng opened the Third Room. The last time he had stolen oil from Lian Bud, he had stored it in the Third Room.

Upon opening the door, he saw the room was packed full of soil.

The Gloves remarked admiringly from the side, "When it comes to quick hands, it has to be our Old Man. Even I can’t compare."

"Enough of your nonsense!" the Portable Residence trembled, barking sharply. "I am not like you!"

However, when it came to things it liked, the Portable Residence truly was quick—not only was the Third Room filled, but the Sixth Room, the Seventh Room, and Bafang were also full, squeezing Red Lotus into the Fifth Room.

Assessing the quality of the soil, it was identical to what was in Li Banfeng’s bag.

Bei Wushuang hadn’t lied; what Li Banfeng had eaten was indeed Heavenly Spring Delighted Earth.

He felt waves of heat course through his body and a touch of dizziness in his head. He lay on the bed, gasping deeply.

The Phonograph touched Li Banfeng’s forehead and cried out in alarm, "Husband, how are you burning up like this?"

Li Banfeng said, "I ate some Joy Soil."

"Why would you eat that?"

"I ran into Bei Wushuang. I couldn’t get away without eating it."

"How much did you eat?"

Li Banfeng gestured the size of the pill, and the Phonograph sucked in a breath of Steam.

"Husband, just sleep for now, just sleep." The Steam gently caressed him, and Li Banfeng slowly drifted off to sleep.

But the Phonograph knew he wouldn’t sleep for long.

The dose in that one pill was too large; serious trouble was brewing.

Not only was Li Banfeng in serious trouble, but she was too. If Li Banfeng had his way, she would surely fall apart tonight.

"Ying Ying," the Phonograph called out tenderly, "go fetch some water for your master. He’s burning up."

The water was in the Second Room. Hong Ying, accustomed to being ordered about, set down her eyebrow pencil and lipstick and went to the Second Room to fetch water with a bucket.

The Phonograph used Steam to lift herself off the ground and silently approached Hong Ying from behind.

Hong Ying sensed danger and turned around abruptly, but it was too late.

She hadn’t expected the Phonograph to launch a sudden attack. Two stylus needles pierced her flesh, and as they vibrated, Steam was injected into her body, rendering Hong Ying immobile.

"You wretched woman, what are you trying to do?"

The Phonograph didn’t respond. She folded Hong Ying’s body—knees and hands underneath, head forward, Peach behind—and stuffed her into a wooden cabinet.

She took three horns from other phonographs, attached them to the cabinet, and adjusted the size slightly.

Then she applied varnish to decorate the cabinet, and thus, a fake Phonograph that was a ninety-percent likeness of herself was created.

"Ying Ying, you’re a proper young lady, with all the necessary openings, front and back. Today, I shall grant you fulfillment."

"What fulfillment are you granting me?"

Two jets of Steam shot into Hong Ying’s body, silencing her.

Even though the Phonograph had the advantage of a surprise attack, Hong Ying hadn’t anticipated that the Phonograph’s power had recovered to such an extent.

With everything arranged, the Phonograph sent the "fake Phonograph" to the main room, then quietly hid away in the Second Room.

Before long, Li Banfeng’s eyes fluttered open. His face was flushed as he looked at the "Phonograph" beside the bed.

In the wooden cabinet, Hong Ying heard the rustling but couldn’t move her body.

What does this madman want to do?

Why is he behind me?

Why is he opening this cabinet?

What is that smell?

Machine oil?

So greasy... Is this what machine oil is like?

Why is he applying machine oil *here*?

There’s only the front passage and the back passage... How could he get the place wrong?

He... he... he’s really... really in the wrong spot...

Having machine oil applied like this... it’s agony!

Hong Ying shivered in pain but couldn’t cry out.

The Phonograph sighed to herself in the Second Room.

Hong Ying, you cheap slut! You got off easy this time. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t angry. But with Husband having eaten so much Joy Soil, I definitely couldn’t handle him. Since you have both a front and a back passage, you can take it first...

Suddenly, all sound from the main room ceased. The Phonograph heard Li Banfeng mutter to himself, "This doesn’t feel right."

The Phonograph shivered, then saw Li Banfeng opening the door to the Second Room.

"My Lady, I knew that wasn’t you!" Li Banfeng said, approaching with the Oil Pot in hand and a predatory look on his face.

The Phonograph wanted to flee but was embraced by Li Banfeng from behind.

Amid the sound of gongs and drums, a piercing singing voice rose, "Husband! Make do! Just make do with her for now! Husband, oh, Husband~"

PS: Ban Feng once said that one must recognize his wife in bed and recognize his shoes when he gets out of it. This is a fundamental skill for Home Cultivation.