Zhong Huairen soaked in the barrel for three days, battling the illness he contracted from Green Flower for a full three days. In the end, he lost the fight and died inside the barrel.
Old Xu, looking at Zhong Huairen’s body, sighed repeatedly, "What a pity. What a pity for this fine barrel, what a pity for this batch of excellent Golden Juice."
Old Xu had never held a good impression of the disciples from Sage Peak, but out of respect for the deceased and unwilling to let Zhong Huairen die in a foreign land, he grew two Eggplant People and fashioned a stretcher to send Zhong Huairen’s body back to Sage Peak.
In raising Eggplant People, Old Xu and Zhang Wanlong had slight differences. Speaking of looks, Old Xu really couldn’t match Zhang Wanlong; his Eggplant People all bore the same appearance—thick eyebrows, large eyes, a wide nose, square lips, and dark skin—a visage of rough men weathered by the elements. But when it came to combat ability, these two Eggplant People were extraordinary. Carrying Zhong Huairen’s corpse, they traversed New Land, crossing mountains and wading through waters, and indeed, they managed to deliver Zhong Huairen back to Cheap Person Ridge.
Inside the grand residence, a Saint was in deep cultivation. At a critical moment, a strong odor drifted into the bedroom, causing him to lose control and his desire to continue his practice. After sending away the women from behind his bed curtains, the Saint stepped outside his residence and saw Zhong Huairen’s corpse.
A group of people was kneeling before the door, waiting to become disciples of the Saint. Now, they were feeling quite conflicted with the arrival of Zhong Huairen. They had been kneeling for many days, and now they weren’t sure whether to stand up or not.
A few of the Saint’s disciples from other houses also caught wind of the smell. They came forward to see the resplendent Zhong Huairen and, covering their mouths, tears streamed down their faces. They covered their mouths not because they were afraid to cry out loud, but because it also conveniently covered their noses. The tears were genuine, for the odor was truly eye-watering.
The Saint turned his gaze to the two Eggplant People, still with the stretcher, obviously the ones who had brought Zhong Huairen back. Having delivered the body, and to carry out their intentions, the two Eggplant People looked towards the Saint and sang a little tune, as a send-off for Zhong Huairen:
"HEY! HEY! HEY! HEY!
You silly clod, HEY! You silly clod, HEY! You you you you, You silly clod, HEY!"
The tune was thick with local accent, and the Eggplant People sang with booming voices in perfect harmony. After singing it twice, the Saint’s veins started to throb.
The disciples shivered in fear, knowing full well the consequences of the Saint’s wrath. These two strangers of unknown origin were definitely doomed.
With a raise of his eyebrow, one of the Eggplant People exploded on the spot! Golden Juice spurted out from the body of the Eggplant Person, spraying the Saint from head to toe! The consequences were indeed dire—now the Saint’s clothes were soaked through.
The disciples were not spared either, each of them glistening with varying degrees of gold. One disciple, called Gong Ziming, had considerable prestige among his brothers. He first wiped his own face with a Silk Handkerchief, then took out a new one, ready to clean his Master’s face.
When the Saint lifted his hand, Gong Ziming dared not approach, and no one else dared to make a sound. But the remaining Eggplant Person did not heed him and continued to shake its head at the Saint, singing in a local accent, "You silly clod! You silly clod..."
The disciples and those who had come to seek apprenticeship watched from the side. A surge of oppressive aura forced the fringe crowd to retreat, leaving only a few trusted disciples who followed the Saint into the residence.
Standing in the center of the courtyard, the Saint spoke in a hoarse voice, "Xu Han must have some ulterior motives for such provocation. Who is willing to go to Medicine King Valley and check on that old thief’s actions?"
All the disciples bowed their heads in silence until the Saint looked at Gong Ziming. "This is your expertise. You shall undertake this task."
Gong Ziming didn’t know how to decline. Scouting for information wasn’t difficult for him; he had ventured into the Inner State for intelligence before. But investigating Xu Han and returning unscathed was a different challenge altogether.
Bowing deeply, Gong Ziming said, "Master, I have heard that our junior brother was injured by the Greenwater Beggar."
This was legitimate. Since Zhong Huairen died at the hands of the Greenwater Beggar, any investigation should focus on the Greenwater Beggar. Gong Ziming would much rather deal with the Greenwater Beggar than seek trouble with Xu Han.
The Saint had considered this as well and entrusted his disciple Xing Zhongquan with a trip to Greenwater City. "Once you arrive in Greenwater City, find your senior brother Bai Jin first and take care of the matters arranged by Chu Shaoqiang.
"As for the Greenwater Beggar’s issue, follow Chu Shaoqiang’s orders. Temporarily suspend contact with the Outside Provinces to avoid arousing Chu Shaoqiang’s suspicion, and particularly, don’t cause misunderstandings in the Inner State.
"Medicine King Valley will still be Gong Ziming’s responsibility. Xu Han must be monitored closely to prevent any actions in Medicine King Valley..."
The Saint continued to assign tasks while the Eggplant Person’s singing outside the door persisted: "You silly clod..."
The Saint glanced at Gong Ziming. "You go take care of him."
Looking at the Eggplant Person outside, Gong Ziming was uncertain how to proceed.
At the Defense Agency, Liao Zihui was listening to Deputy Envoy General Tang Huanjie’s investigation report. The four people sent to Xiaoyao Lodge had been found dead. An examination of the corpses revealed only that the four had died of limb fractures and excessive blood loss; as for who was responsible and what means were used, that remained uncertain.
Tang Huanjie said, "I suspect this is Chu Shaoqiang’s doing, but as of now, there is no concrete evidence."
"Evidence is unimportant," Liao Zihui put down the report. "What concerns me now is Chu Shaoqiang’s intentions."
"Do you think he’s targeting us?"
Liao Zihui pondered for a long time before saying, "On the surface, it shouldn’t be the case. Chu Shaoqiang is from the Inner State, and the Inner State probably doesn’t want to openly break with us yet. But Chu Shaoqiang and our private grievances run deep. From his personal perspective, it’s hard to say what he might do."
Tang Huanjie also felt this was a difficult issue. "The Inner State doesn’t want to openly break with us, and we can’t start a conflict with the Inner State either, at least not take direct action against Chu Shaoqiang."
Liao Zihui reviewed the whole affair. "In Xiaoyao Lodge, these four men lost contact with us, and it has something to do with Li Qi."
"Do you suspect Li Qi is connected with Chu Shaoqiang?"
"I suspect Chu Shaoqiang was in Xiaoyao Lodge at that time, and I suspect they were accomplices all along!
"Li Qi isn’t officially from the Inner State, so taking action against him won’t be seen as turning against the Inner State. I also very much want to give this person a warning."
Tang Huanjie said, "But Li Qi is not easy to deal with either."
"We have to gather more manpower. Li Qi has caused us no small loss in terms of transport fees. Just for this reason, the higher-ups will also support our action this time. Once Li Qi is dealt with, Chu Shaoqiang will naturally show restraint. Then we can dispatch a Balancer via Sage Peak to ease the relationship with Chu Shaoqiang, and the whole incident will be quickly settled. You will be busy today. Draft a proposal first, and let’s have a meeting tomorrow to finalize the action plan."
The next morning, Liao Zihui was meeting with several Deputy Envoys General when secretary Ling Sujun entered the meeting room and reported an important situation to Liao Zihui. "There’s been trouble at the City of Sinners at the Three-way Fork. More than three thousand people have escaped to the outskirts of the city."
Liao Zihui furrowed his brow. "Is it still because of the Dark Matter flow?"
Ling Sujun nodded.
Deputy Envoy General Du Liyong said, "I sent someone to the City of Sinners a few days ago to take a look. The situation there is really bad; a significant number of people are dying every day."
Liao Zihui knew about the state of the City of Sinners, but that wasn’t what concerned him; he was concerned about the escapees. "How did these three thousand or more people escape? There’s a boundary line surrounding the City of Sinners."
Ling Sujun presented the report. "According to the current information, they should have escaped through the New Land."
Liao Zihui was relieved. "Let them fend for themselves; the New Land of the City of Sinners has no exit."
The others continued to discuss the action plan against Li Qi. By the afternoon, just as the plan was finalized, Ling Sujun entered Liao Zihui’s office.
"Envoy Liao, escapees from the City of Sinners have been spotted near Hai Chi Ridge."
Liao Zihui was startled. "Impossible! How did they get to Hai Chi Ridge? The New Land of the City of Sinners doesn’t lead to Hai Chi Ridge!"
Ling Sujun shook her head. "The reason is unknown."
Liao Zihui couldn’t sit still. "Arrange for key personnel to go to Hai Chi Ridge, and try to persuade the escapees to return."
"What about Li Qi..."
"Postpone the action. We’ll deal with the City of Sinners’ matter first."
Hai Chi Ridge, at the edge of Third Ridge, a person stood near the boundary line of the New Land, anxiously waiting for news. This person was neither clearly male nor female, over two meters tall, with incredibly broad shoulders. On these shoulders rested three heads: the middle head was a woman’s, the left a man’s, and the right a child’s.
The cold wind was biting, and the person shivered. The child on the right said cautiously, "Sis, I’m hungry."
The woman said, "Hold on a bit longer. Once we get to Hai Chi Ridge, there will be plenty to eat."
The man on the left said, "We only have so much money on us; what can we really eat?"
"If we eat by ourselves, it should be enough." The woman turned her head and looked at the forest behind them. There were still many people in the woods, also waiting for their meals.
The man sighed. He, or perhaps they, just stood quietly in the snow waiting.
After more than an hour of waiting, Pan Dehai’s figure slowly materialized before them. "Folks, you’ve suffered, you’ve toiled. I’ve brought you some food, just a small token, please don’t disdain it."
More than a dozen bags of grain appeared on the ground, roughly estimated to be over two thousand catties.
The child got excited upon seeing the food, while the woman looked up at Pan Dehai. "Master Pan, can we enter Hai Chi Ridge now?"
Pan Dehai shook his head. "Afraid not right now."
The man asked, "Then when can we?"
Pan Dehai fell silent for a moment before saying, "I am a man of virtue, and I don’t want to deceive you. Entering Hai Chi Ridge is out of the question, now or at any other time. After this meal, you all should look for another way out."
The woman was taken aback. "Master Pan, you gave us your word before..."
Pan Dehai sighed. "I made a promise earlier because I feared that you would despair if you found yourselves with no prospects. As a person of virtue, I really couldn’t bear it."
The woman, baffled, said, "Master Pan, what is this all about?"
"Because Hai Chi Ridge has just had a few days of peace and doesn’t want to start friction with the Outside Provinces again. Listen to me, go back where you came from. Nobody in Puluo State dares to shelter you."
The man clenched his teeth. "Old Pan, going back on your word is not right. We’ve been waiting here for two whole days; people are nearly starving to death. If you don’t give us an explanation, we absolutely won’t leave today."
Pan Dehai smiled. "You know you’ve been hungry for two days. Let me be honest, if you don’t leave, I can find a way to make you leave."
PS: The City of Sinners is part of the Three-way Fork. This three-headed person has appeared before.