Walking on the main street of Pillow City, Li Banfeng and Zhao Lanmeng chatted casually, with Zhao Lanmeng around, Li Banfeng didn't feel tired, which should be due to the influence of his technique.
The two hadn't walked far when suddenly someone behind them shouted: "I saw it, saw the peddler having an accident!"
Ye Haolong rushed out from the mansion, sprinting madly along the street.
This person just wouldn't calm down.
Li Banfeng asked: "Is he dreaming, or is he awake?"
Meng De replied: "He should be awake."
Ye Haolong approached Zhao Lanmeng, panic-stricken: "Mr. Zhao, the peddler had an accident, a big one."
Li Banfeng was astonished: "Another accident?"
Ye Haolong was taken aback: "Who are you? What do you mean by another accident? This time's incident is different from before, the peddler lost his life!"
Ye Haolong was extremely anxious, but Li Banfeng remained calm.
Zhao Lanmeng looked indifferent, which made Ye Haolong feel disappointed.
Pillow City is like this; they simply can't understand how important this is.
Ye Haolong dashed all the way, planning to immediately deliver the news outside the city.
This was not his first time leaving the city to deliver news; the information received by Liao Zihui was sent just like this, and the whole Puluo State received news in this manner.
Ye Haolong was a cultivator from Above the Clouds, so naturally, his words carried some weight; after being passed around, the information becomes true, even if it originally isn't.
Li Banfeng looked at Zhao Lanmeng: "You're not intervening?"
Zhao Lanmeng shook his head: "No killing, no stealing; you can come and go as you please in Pillow City."
Li Banfeng sighed: "He means well, but can't distinguish between dreams and reality; I'll go persuade him."
As soon as the words landed, Li Banfeng had already caught up with Ye Haolong, pressing him to the ground, persuading him earnestly.
"You're spouting nonsense, do you know the big trouble you've caused? You shouldn't be going without proper sleep..."
After a dozen minutes, Ye Haolong was silent, and Li Banfeng carried him back to the mansion, fixed his bones, wiped the blood stains, covered him with a quilt, and locked him with an iron chain, turned and said to Zhao Lanmeng: "He's sleeping soundly; don't let him wake up again."
Zhao Lanmeng understood Li Banfeng's meaning; Ye Haolong can't be allowed to run outside again as he's already created a mess, threatening the safety of Puluo State, and Li Banfeng had already considered taking lethal action against him.
"I'll keep an eye on him." Zhao Lanmeng agreed to break the rule for once and personally controlled Ye Haolong.
Li Banfeng returned to the street, sighing: "Such a large Pillow City, all big and small matters have to be managed by you alone, even encountering a thief requires you to personally handle it; it must indeed be tiring."
"Not tiring." Zhao Lanmeng slightly shook his head, turning his gaze to a small courtyard.
What's special about this courtyard?
Li Banfeng gazed towards the courtyard and saw a black cat quietly opening a jar at the foot of the wall, taking out a dried fish from it.
This black cat leaped onto the wall and was about to escape when suddenly its feet slipped, and it lay down on the wall to sleep.
"Humph!" Zhao Lanmeng looked disdainfully at the black cat, without making a move, leaving the black cat that had stolen something sleeping on the wall.
This cat appeared to have come from nowhere, seemingly resistant to the overwhelming drowsiness, came to steal dried fish, but as long as it is in Pillow City, having stolen, it won't leave, this seems like some unbreakable rule.
Li Banfeng looked at Zhao Lanmeng earnestly, hoping he could provide an explanation.
Zhao Lanmeng indeed gave an explanation: "Dream realized doesn't deceive, technique realized doesn't cease."
What does it mean?
Li Banfeng didn't quite understand, Zhao Lanmeng waved his hand, and the eight characters he just said appeared in the air.
The meaning of these eight characters, Li Banfeng still didn't fully grasp, but he was somewhat concerned about the situation.
Zhao Lanmeng could casually write words in the air, was this a dream or reality now?
Li Banfeng touched Meng De, who also couldn't quite tell.
Zhao Lanmeng could see Li Banfeng's doubt and replied: "If you distinguish it so clearly, what's the point?"
He sent Li Banfeng out of the city, and his originally solid physique gradually became ethereal.
Li Banfeng looked around Pillow City, thinking it would vanish along with Zhao Lanmeng.
Yet Pillow City remained vividly in place.
"The city is real, I'm not." Zhao Lanmeng left a sentence and then completely disappeared.
What had been talking with Li Banfeng wasn't Zhao Lanmeng's physical form but his dream.
This was much like the situation of a certain person earlier, Li Banfeng thought of Grandpa Train.
Then pondered over the eight characters Zhao Lanmeng previously mentioned.
Dream realized doesn't deceive must be some kind of technique.
Technique realized doesn't cease refers to that once a technique is established, it won't stop.
Could the rules-like existence of Pillow City be Zhao Lanmeng's certain technique?
Could a person's technique constitute the rules of a territory?
What level is Zhao Lanmeng?
This gives Li Banfeng a new understanding of the Local Deity.
According to past understanding, a Local Deity should have Cloud Top cultivation, significantly less than figures Above the Cloud.
But Zhao Lanmeng seems to be an exception, he shouldn't be inferior to cultivators like Gui Jianchou, Ye Jianhuang Above the Cloud, and might be even stronger.
The cultivation system in Puluo State doesn't appear so simple.
Leaving Pillow City, Li Banfeng headed towards Jiaoqi River.
Attached to Zhao Lanmeng's note was a map, crudely drawn with no place names but only a general direction.
Walking halfway, the magical treasures awoke, each feeling refreshed as if they all had a good sleep in Pillow City.