Steam Era: The Lord of 'Puluo'-Chapter 753 - 482 Bloodbath _4

They’ve barely finished eating, and already their minds turn to such base desires... Cui Tiq lamented inwardly. Such creatures, so lacking in the drive to improve! If they were to rule this world, how could they possibly be superior to humankind?

I’ll see how they perform when we reach the next village.

Li Banfeng, leading more than ten thousand people, arrived at Worry-Free Plain.

To lead these people out, Li Banfeng had sacrificed over sixty Clones, scouring every corner of Cheap Person Ridge. The people he brought were those who could be saved; for those beyond help, Li Banfeng didn’t have the time to waste on them.

More than ten thousand people—it sounds ordinary, but one wouldn’t realize how astonishing that number is until personally experiencing it.

Walking in the middle of the group, one could neither see its beginning nor its end.

Dozens of carts, used for transporting food, followed behind the group. It was thought that these provisions would last a while. However, with just one meal a day, after three whole days of travel, hardly anything was left.

Where to go next?

Li Banfeng took out a map, a gift from Prince Chun, which detailed the roads leading to various places.

If it were just Li Banfeng alone, he could go anywhere he wanted; not even Boundaries could stop him.

If he took a few dozen people with cultivation levels, although it would be slower, the difficulty wouldn’t be too great.

But leading more than ten thousand people with hardly any cultivation level would not be an easy journey. Worry-Free Plain offered many destinations, but all required passing through a portion of New Land. How could these people brave the New Land?

CLANG, CLANG, CLANG!

Deep in thought, a man approached Li Banfeng, shaking a rattle. "Brother, wherever you want to go, I’ll take you there."

Li Banfeng smiled. "Brother Lang, where’s your cargo cart?"

The Peddler spoke in a hushed tone, "I’m not pushing the cart anymore. Being recognized wouldn’t be too good."

"Afraid of what? You’ve saved their lives. Don’t you want to leave a good name among them?"

The Peddler scoffed. "What good name can be left among them? It would be good enough if they don’t curse me later. In the entire Puluo State, probably only you and I would pity this bunch of lowlifes."

In Greenwater City, Wan Jinxian had just stepped out of his residence when he saw a beggar standing at the entrance.

Old Wan did not hesitate and, with a thud, knelt on the ground.

Green Flower smiled. "Why are you kneeling to a beggar like me, sir?"

Wan Jinxian kowtowed repeatedly. "Disciple pays respect to the Ancestral Master!"

The Greenwater Beggar said, "I can’t bear such a title. Aren’t you a member of the Brotherhood Alliance?"

Wan Jinxian waved his hands frantically. "Disciple was only paying lip service to others, but my loyalty to the Ancestral Master is honest and true!"

The Greenwater Beggar nodded. "Alright, I’ll trust you one more time. Call He Jiaqing to see me immediately."

Wan Jinxian didn’t dare to delay. He tried to contact He Jiaqing right away but couldn’t reach him.

"Ancestral Master, I’m not lying. I haven’t been able to contact He Jiaqing for several days."

The Greenwater Beggar looked at Wan Jinxian and smiled faintly. "Perhaps our Taoist Sect really does have one too many disciples."

In Medicine King Valley, Qiu Zhiheng entered the Lu Family Bookstore. He initially wanted to buy a few newspapers but was instead attracted by a landscape painting on the wall.

"Boss Lu, is this painting by Mu Yuejuan?"

Boss Lu nodded repeatedly. "Boss Qiu has good taste. This is indeed an authentic piece by Mu Yuejuan. A friend sold it to me."

Qiu Zhiheng praised, "Among Mu Yuejuan’s paintings, this one is superior. Boss Lu, do you have any plans to sell it?"

Boss Lu smiled. "Boss Qiu, you should know that there are considerations when bringing home Mu Yuejuan’s paintings. Aren’t you afraid your Sister-in-Law will blame you?"

Qiu Zhiheng did not explain. He wanted the painting not for a secret rendezvous with Mu Yuejuan but for another purpose.

Boss Lu sighed. "Boss Qiu, I’m not trying to snub you, but this painting has already been reserved, and I’ve received the deposit. Next time I come across such treasures, I’ll inform you first."

Without asking further, Qiu Zhiheng bought the newspapers and left the bookstore.

The sky was getting dark as Boss Lu closed the shop for the night.

Under the candlelight, as he tidied the books, the painting on the wall trembled, and Mu Yuejuan stepped out of it.

She stood beside Boss Lu and smiled faintly. "How was my performance? Convincing?"

Boss Lu, still arranging the bookshelves without looking up, said, "Miss Mu has worked hard. On the top of the third row of shelves, I’ve prepared a token of gratitude for you."

Mu Yuejuan went to the third row of bookshelves and took down a wrapped package from the top.

The package contained eleven Magical Treasures. Before leaving the Sage’s Residence, the Drachma Calligrapher Zhou Wencheng had divided the treasures into several parts, and these eleven pieces were his share—the finest among them.

Mu Yuejuan accepted the eleven Magical Treasures and said to Boss Lu, "I want to ask one more thing: did you get the Jade Seal, that old thief’s head, or did you manage to get both?"

Boss Lu finished arranging the books and smiled at Mu Yuejuan. "Miss, our shop is closed. If you wish to buy books, please come back tomorrow."

Mu Yuejuan’s brow furrowed slightly. Without saying more, she leaped back into the painting, which then vanished completely.

Luo Zhengnan returned to Greenwater City. At the original site of the Jiang Xiang Gang’s headquarters, he invited a few old friends to discuss their next move.

The Jiang Xiang Gang Hall Entrances elsewhere had been almost entirely eradicated. Unexpectedly, however, a gang of Mountain Bandits emerged in Greenwater Bay, comprised mainly of Jiang Xiang Gang remnants.

Changing their name and attempting a revival?

Luo Zhengnan couldn’t tolerate this. He and his old friends formulated a plan to root out this group of bandits within the month.

After discussing serious matters, they engaged in idle conversation. One of them, urgently needing to relieve himself and unfamiliar with the Jiang Xiang Gang headquarters, couldn’t find the latrine and went by a rockery instead.

He wasn’t sure if he had misheard, but he thought he detected some noise coming from under the rockery.

He hadn’t misheard. There indeed was some commotion below the rockery.

The secret chamber beneath was soundproofed extremely well. Li Banfeng, even using his Silk-pulling Earrings, couldn’t hear anything from outside.

But now, this chamber had been tampered with, albeit very slightly.

He Jiaqing, gaunt as a skeleton, was in the chamber, using his fingernails to scrape at a wall brick.

If he could remove this brick, he would be able to escape from the basement. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

But at the moment, he had only managed to clear out a single crack in the brick. The goal of prying out an entire brick was still far off.

He Jiaqing’s hands were trembling. He was nearly at his limit.

After a short rest, he gnawed at his fingernails and continued scraping at the brick’s crevice.

PS: Hang in there, Jia Qing!