"You bitch! Don’t you believe I’ll really strike you down?" The Phonograph raised her long sword.
Hong Ying extended the barrel of her gun, unmoving. "Go ahead. Make it quick."
The Phonograph shouted angrily, "You feel no remorse at all?"
Hong Ying laughed. "There’s nothing to regret. If I had to choose again, I would still kill you!"
"You bitch!" The Phonograph struck Hong Ying with the hilt of her sword, causing her to stagger.
Hong Ying steadied herself and said slowly, "I’m not a bitch. The bitchiest thing I’ve ever done in my life was to trust you. From the day I met you, I followed your every order. Even when it meant entering the death cells, walking through the gates of hell, and then, after getting out, going to the battlefield, I still listened to you. I listened until you said we should send troops to Sand Goose Plain. I knew then I couldn’t follow your orders anymore. The Peddler and the Madman Craftsman were all there. You were leading us to our deaths."
"I said I could win!"
Hong Ying burst out laughing. "So what if you win? Cong Shixiang has an Imperial Edict. It clearly states that if you lose, he will force us to die in battle. And if you win? He’ll immediately read the Imperial Edict, capture us, and drag us back to the Capital to be thrown into the death cells, awaiting execution!"
"Who told you this?"
"This news came from Prince Chun. He saw the Imperial Edict with his own eyes! We’re dead either way, do you understand now? If it were you sending me to my death, I wouldn’t even blink. But to die for *them*? I can’t do it. I’m not that contemptible. Zhao Xiaowan, I’m not a bitch—the biggest bitch is *you*! You walked out of the death cells and showed no remorse. I desperately tried to persuade you, but you refused to turn back. A bitch like you deserves to die!"
The Phonograph calmed down a little. "What were you planning to do then? Kill me so you wouldn’t have to die?"
Hong Ying nodded the barrel of her gun. "Yes. After killing you, I planned to surrender to the Peddler immediately. I wouldn’t have to die, and neither would the soldiers! Unfortunately, you were too difficult to deal with. In trying to kill you, I also lost my life. I failed to save them."
The Phonograph scoffed. "How foolish you are! I come from an Actor’s background; for me, death ends all troubles. You kill me, then surrender? Your whole family is in the Capital. What about them?"
Hong Ying said with hatred, "Considering the situation back then, do you think I could still care about them?"
The Phonograph asked again, "You wouldn’t care about your own family, nor the families of the soldiers?"
Hong Ying replied calmly, "I couldn’t manage it. That was the extent of my ability."
"No ability, yet such grand ideas!" The Phonograph swung her long sword, striking Hong Ying with the hilt again. "I sent troops to Sand Goose Plain because I had already discovered that the Peddler was going to lead his troops through Iron Vast Valley. As long as we reached Sand Goose Plain, we wouldn’t encounter any enemy forces!"
Hong Ying was shocked. "Impossible! The Peddler had already decided to fight you at Sand Goose Plain. That was the message from the Spies."
The Phonograph said, "That was a feint the Peddler put out. His target is the Capital; he didn’t want to waste his forces on Sand Goose Plain either. Iron Vast Valley, though treacherous, is a shortcut. He always planned to bypass us, fearing we would block him there. The Peddler released false information, and the Spies were fooled. But I saw through it because I have an informant by the Peddler’s side.
"The day you killed me, the Peddler had already led his troops to Iron Vast Valley. If you hadn’t killed me, I would have taken you to Sand Goose Plain, and we would have found it empty. That could have been chalked up to my command error. I would have kept the army at Sand Goose Plain. No matter how many Imperial Edicts came, I could have stalled. If Cong Shixiang dared to touch me, I would have killed him immediately."
Hong Ying said in astonishment, "You knew Cong Shixiang was going to harm you?"
The Phonograph snorted coldly. "That Bird Person, Cong Shixiang—did you think I couldn’t tell what kind of creature he is? Yao Xin was incited by him; did you think I didn’t know? I was counting on our battle being over once we reached Sand Goose Plain. If the Peddler passed through Iron Vast Valley and struck straight at the Capital, whether he could win or not was up to his own abilities. If he won, you could have surrendered to him later. If he lost, all the blame would fall on me. If the Imperial Court blamed me, I would simply flee for my life. At the very least, I could have saved all of you.
"But you, you treacherous bitch! You colluded with other Generals to strike me down first. You didn’t save your own life, and you handed the entire army over to Cong Shixiang. This blood debt is on your head! Tell me, are you not a bitch?"
Hong Ying was silent for a long moment, then shook her head repeatedly. "You’re lying to me. You never mentioned this before."
"The entire army is filled with Cong Shixiang’s Spies! Every move you made was under his surveillance. How could I have discussed it with you? If the news had leaked, could the plan have succeeded?"
"I... I don’t believe you..." Hong Ying’s voice trembled.
The Phonograph shouted angrily, "It doesn’t matter if you don’t believe me! You’ve been deaf and blind for so many years; you probably know nothing. There are still people alive. Go ask them which route the Peddler ultimately took!"
"I... I can’t get out... I can’t ask..." Hong Ying trembled all over.
"You don’t need to go out. Ask our Portable Residence. Which route did the Peddler take then?"
Silence filled the Portable Residence.
After a long pause, an aged voice finally spoke, "I remember. It was Iron Vast Valley."
THUD. Hong Ying collapsed to the ground.
She tried to get up but failed; every joint in her body was shaking.
"Kill me," she pleaded, extending the gun barrel towards the Phonograph. "Out of pity, kill me."
The Phonograph snorted coldly. "You think chopping off a gun barrel is killing you?"
"Can’t you eat Souls? Eat my Soul!" Hong Ying groped for the Phonograph. "Eat me! Now! Right now!"
"So you can’t bear to live? And you think that means you can just die?" The Phonograph scoffed. "Life isn’t that cheap! Stretch out your hand!"
Hong Ying didn’t know what the Phonograph intended to do, but she still extended her hand.
The Phonograph pricked the center of Hong Ying’s palm with her phonograph needle, drew some fresh blood, and dripped it onto the seeds Li Banfeng had recently brought back.
In the midst of the desert, Li Banfeng looked at a lizard covered in wounds and chuckled. "Are you willing to work for me now?"
Gasping for breath, the lizard replied, "Hero, first tell me what I need to do. And please, stop hitting me."
Li Banfeng took out a Contract Book. "Do you recognize this person depicted here?"
"I recognize him. That’s Diao Nengsou, a monkey. I know where he lives; I’ll take you to him."
The lizard led Li Banfeng to a pond, where they found an old, white-haired monkey living beside the water.
Li Banfeng asked, "Are you Diao Nengsou? Do you recognize this?" He shook the Contract Book in front of Diao Nengsou. It was a contract Diao Nengsou had signed with the Local Deity, so he naturally recognized it.
Diao Nengsou inquired, "How did this come into your possession?"
"Bei Wushuang sold you to Meng Yuchun. You’ll need to find another place to live."
Diao Nengsou nodded. "Okay."
Li Banfeng thought.
"Did you not understand me?" Li Banfeng pressed. "The Local Deity sold you. You need to sign another Contract Book and serve a new master."
"Where’s the contract? I’ll press my handprint right now," Diao Nengsou said, preparing to cut his palm.
Li Banfeng wondered. He had expected a fight.
He handed Diao Nengsou a Contract Book he had written himself, one that did not mention the Local Deity’s name. Li Banfeng expected Diao Nengsou to ask questions, but he was surprised when the monkey said nothing and immediately pressed his handprint on it.
Li Banfeng then took out another Contract Book left by Bei Wushuang. "Do you recognize this person?"
Diao Nengsou nodded. "I recognize him. I’ll take you to him."
"Is he willing to change masters?"
"He should be. I’ll help persuade him."
"Can he fight? If he doesn’t agree, I might have to get rough."
"He’s not much of a fighter. I’ll beat him for you."
Li Banfeng mused.
But Diao Nengsou had no ulterior motives. With his help, Li Banfeng brought over thirty Strange Monsters into his territory. He couldn’t bring too many at once, as that would be hard to explain; Bei Wushuang surely wouldn’t sell *all* his Strange Monsters. However, some intelligent beings didn’t need much explanation, and Diao Nengsou was one such clever individual. After observing him for a day, Li Banfeng found him to be practical and capable.
Li Banfeng handed Diao Nengsou two Mysterious Red Pills. "I have quite a few Contract Books here, all sold by Bei Wushuang to Miss Meng. I don’t want to handle this task anymore. I’ll leave it to you. Is that okay?"
"Rest assured, leave it all to me."
"Do well. Once it’s done, there will be an extra reward!" Li Banfeng gave Diao Nengsou a hundred Contract Books to gauge his efficiency.
Diao Nengsou accepted the Contract Books. Following Li Banfeng’s instructions, he started transferring Strange Monsters from Bei Wushuang’s territory to Li Banfeng’s at a rate of twenty to thirty per day.
With that matter settled, Li Banfeng prepared to return to Qiu Luoye’s territory to repair the train station.
He first went home to discuss his itinerary with his wife and tell her to prepare.
His wife took out a seed. "Beloved husband, plant this seed. Wait for the fruit to ripen before you leave."
Sitting before the mirror, combing her hair, Hong Ying dropped her comb.
Li Banfeng looked at the seed. "Wife, what’s special about this seed?"
The Phonograph laughed. "You’ll find out once it’s grown. It can yield someone useful."
Li Banfeng raised his eyebrows, grabbed a shovel, and went out to plant it.
Turning her head, Hong Ying looked at the Phonograph. "Xiaowan, are you going to..."
The Phonograph snorted coldly. "I’m just testing the seed. Don’t overthink it."
Li Banfeng sowed the seed, added a medicinal solution, and watered it with clean water. Soon after, the seed sprouted, growing branches and leaves.
It grew more slowly than cabbage. Zhang Wanlong had added an outer shell to the seed, making it look like a pitch-black bean. Li Banfeng had no idea what kind of fruit it would bear.
After two hours, the fruit finally ripened—a white and faintly green Sweet Melon.
Fragrant. Truly fragrant.
The tempting aroma made Li Banfeng want to take a bite.
The Sweet Melon grew progressively whiter until it was fully ripe and burst open. Out walked a woman dressed in a white gown.
The Tang Sword emerged from Li Banfeng’s waist to take a closer look.
The Projector crawled out from his chest, focusing its lens.
The Gloves wriggled out of Li Banfeng’s pocket, all five fingers wiggling.
"Boss, she’s stunning!"