I Have 10 Equipment Slots-Chapter 116 - 98: Demon Creation

"Baihua Building? The one that runs brothels and gambling dens?" Tao Liu’s interest was piqued. "The master of the Baihua Building is from Lesheng County? And he’s a wealthy local. Tsk, who would’ve thought."

"Is that the point?"

An Xiaoxue shot him a look. "Shouldn’t the point be what gave the master of the Baihua Building, Yu Chengjun, the audacity to come after us?"

"Exactly. What’s he relying on?" Zhang Ning chimed in.

"That... I don’t know."

Wu Chunlin said awkwardly, "I only know that Yu Chengjun has backers. They’re all connected and control the entire Wulong Mansion."

"They control the whole mansion?" Tao Liu was stunned.

An Xiaoxue’s eyes widened in disbelief.

Zhang Ning murmured to himself. Just as he was about to ask another question, Gu Zheng suddenly spoke. "What use did Zhao Fang have for our names?"

"...Right!"

Zhang Ning’s eyes lit up. He pressed on, "What did he want with our names?"

"...I don’t know."

Wu Chunlin looked awkward again. Seeing Tao Liu glare at him, he quickly added, "But my guess is that it has something to do with a certain treasure!"

"A treasure?" Gu Zheng raised an eyebrow.

"Yes. Yu Chengjun has a sinister treasure."

Wu Chunlin swallowed hard and explained, "I’ve never seen the treasure myself, only heard about it. But its power is terrifying. You just shout a person’s name, and they’ll freeze in place, then collapse!"

"What kind of Marvel is that powerful?" Tao Liu’s eyes widened.

"Powerful? It’s more than that. It’s basically a death sentence for anyone whose name is called!" An Xiaoxue looked tense.

"Good thing Mr. Gu... Ahem."

Zhang Ning coughed, glanced at Gu Zheng, and chuckled awkwardly before falling silent.

’Just one shout and they collapse?’

Gu Zheng found that a little odd. "Don’t they have to respond? Is just shouting their name enough?"

"Well..."

Wu Chunlin scratched his head, thought for a moment, and said awkwardly, "Actually, I think they do need to respond."

"...Damn it, you could get someone killed by not being clear!" Tao Liu cursed.

"I was just..."

"That’s enough," Gu Zheng interrupted. "If we want to know the details, we’re better off asking Yu Chengjun in person."

"Let’s go. We’ll pay a visit to this master of the Baihua Building!"

Huh??

’Go see Yu Chengjun?’

Tao Liu, Zhang Ning, and An Xiaoxue were stunned for a moment, then they all nodded.

"He’s right. All the wild guessing in the world won’t beat asking him face-to-face," Zhang Ning agreed.

"Huh?"

Wu Chunlin, on the other hand, was stunned. He quickly cried out, "Um, Lord Ning, Lord Chen, I don’t know where Yu Chengjun is! After the Demon Fiends appeared, he vanished, and the Yu Family Mansion has been sealed off."

"The Yu Family Mansion is in South City, near the center of town, isn’t it?" Gu Zheng asked calmly.

"Y-Yes, it is." Wu Chunlin was confused.

"Yu Chengjun is in the estate right next door."

Gu Zheng answered as he strolled toward the door. "Tao Liu, you stay here and keep watch. Chief Wu, you also stay and await developments. You chose the right side tonight, turning from the darkness to the light. I can’t make any grand promises, but I can guarantee that your family will be allowed to live when this is over."

"Th-Thank you, Lord Chen!"

Wu Chunlin’s body trembled, his voice thick with emotion as he kowtowed, prostrating himself fully on the floor.

"An Xiaoxue, Zhang Ning, with me."

With a wave of his hand, Gu Zheng opened the door and strode out first.

Once outside, he tapped his toes, soared into the air, and bounded from the courtyard wall to the rooftop, then flew off toward South City.

An Xiaoxue and Zhang Ning hurried after him.

...

...

「South City.」

「The estate next to the Yu Family Mansion.」

"I got the information."

Zhao Fang wiped the sweat from his face and said in a low voice, "The Hundred Households in charge is named Chen Qi. The other three are a woman named Xie Xiaoyue, a tall, thin man named Ning Dahu, and the last man, Liu Debiao."

"Are you certain?" Yu Chengjun’s expression was grave.

"Certain!"

Zhao Fang nodded emphatically. "I had Wu Chunlin get it out of a few of the Warriors under him. He questioned them one by one, separately. All four names match up."

"Excellent."

Hearing this, Yu Chengjun clapped his hands, stood up, and said excitedly, "Knowing their names means the job is half done. Now we just have to see if that Chen Qi, that Mr. Chen, can withstand the treasure’s ’remodeling’."

"What kind of treasure? Why don’t you let me have a look at it first?"

Gu Zheng’s calm voice drifted in from outside.

As he spoke, three figures dropped down from the roof and calmly walked into the brightly lit hall through its wide-open doors.

THUD~

Before Yu Chengjun could even react, Zhao Fang fell to his knees, collapsing limply on the floor. Sweat poured down his face as he mumbled and wailed, "It... It wasn’t me... I... I was forced! Aaaahhh—!"

The second cry echoed, piercing the silence of the night.

Hearing the cry, Yu Chengjun spun around and dove for the corner.

While in mid-air, he whipped out a miniature red gourd, about the size of a child’s palm. As he landed, he faced Gu Zheng, aimed the mouth of the gourd, and roared, "Chen Qi! You’re dea—"

VMMMM!

Space rippled as if it were water.

Gu Zheng used his Divine Wondrous power, freezing Yu Chengjun in place from across the room. At the same time, he telekinetically snatched the miniature red gourd from Yu Chengjun’s hand and began to examine it.

’So this is the evil artifact. Shout a name, get a response, and down they go?’

Yu Chengjun didn’t respond.

He stood dumbfounded for a moment before snapping out of it with a shudder. He shrieked, "Dong Xuan’Er! Liu Ming! Lin Lang! Kill the three who are still standing!"

WHOOSH~

"ROAR!"

"HISS~!"

A foul wind kicked up. Accompanied by guttural, beast-like growls, three bloated, hideous figures charged out from the back of the hall.

Moving with incredible speed, they lunged at Gu Zheng, An Xiaoxue, and Zhang Ning from three different directions.

"Demon Fiends!?"

An Xiaoxue cried out in alarm, but her hands were swift. She drew her sword to meet the bloated Demon Fiend covered in foul-smelling tumors that was lunging at her.