Li Banfeng kept staring at the Coachman from mid-air. The Coachman, on the ground, merely trembled a little; he didn’t take flight.
To his surprise, the Thousand Mile In A Step Technique hadn’t even sent him flying. The Coachman’s strength was terrifying.
Li Banfeng flew a great distance. Because he couldn’t sense any direction, he had no idea where he would end up. When the technique dissipated, Li Banfeng plummeted into Yanyun Lake with a splash.
Being in the lake wasn’t a major issue for Li Banfeng, as he could swim. With a stroke of his arms and a kick of his legs, he was about to surface when an intense chill washed over him, making him shiver involuntarily.
Having just escaped from the old Coachman, falling into the hands of these Bird People now would be disastrous.
Li Banfeng dove back to the bottom of the lake and opened his Portable Residence.
WHOOSH.
The moment Li Banfeng opened the door, lake water poured into the main room.
He reacted quickly and slammed the door shut. Fortunately, not much water had entered.
The Phonograph sounded shocked. "My beloved husband, where on earth have you been?"
Li Banfeng replied, "I’m at the bottom of the lake."
"Come quickly, husband. Change your clothes so you don’t catch a cold."
Li Banfeng shook his head. "There’s no point. I’ll still be underwater when I go out again."
The Portable Residence said, "Don’t be in such a hurry to leave. That Coachman has followed you."
Li Banfeng had used the Thousand Mile In A Step Technique to fly here. He had flown in a straight line, ignoring all obstacles, at a speed so great the scenery on either side was just a blur.
"Where is he now?" Li Banfeng was worried that the Coachman had discovered the key.
The Portable Residence sighed. "I can’t keep watching outside all the time; I have to watch the road."
Li Banfeng was burning with anxiety. He wanted to go out and investigate, but the Projector spoke up, "Seventh Guide, this opponent is too formidable. We shouldn’t be reckless. We have another way to see what’s happening outside."
The Projector did indeed have a method. He headed to the Fifth Room.
A cold, murderous aura permeated the Fifth Room. The Projector felt nervous but quickly composed himself. He first played a tune on the hand-cranked phonograph—"Unchanging Heart": "You are my soul, you are my life, inseparable as mandarin ducks, harmonious as phoenixes..."
As the song reached its climax, the Projector said with deep emotion, "My dear lady, I think of you every single moment."
The Lady of the Fifth Room, upon opening her mouth, asked a soul-piercing question: "Then where have you been all these days?"
The Projector replied decisively, "I was pursuing art."
"Then continue your pursuit. Why come looking for me?"
"I encountered danger on my path of pursuing art."
"What has that got to do with me?"
"The danger is outside, and only you can see it."
"Why should I help you?"
"Only if you help me can I survive."
"And why should I let you survive?"
The Projector answered with profound feeling, "Because my art is born for you."
Li Banfeng found the Projector’s declaration of love exceedingly cheesy, but to his surprise, a Light Halo actually appeared on the walls of the Fifth Room.
Above the Light Halo, some blurry lines appeared. They gradually sharpened, as if viewing through a layer of white gauze, revealing the scene at the bottom of the lake.
In Yanyun Lake, there were fish, crabs, various insects, and aquatic plants—and a Coachman swimming back and forth.
Based solely on the scale of their territories, Bridge Yesong and Medicine King Valley weren’t too different. A Local Deity’s cultivation level stemmed from human energy, so this Coachman’s cultivation level should be about the same as Elder Yao’s.
Li Banfeng, with his nine-plus-eight cultivation level, was utterly powerless before this Coachman. He had no strength to fight back, no ability to parry, and even the chance to escape was extremely rare.
And this Coachman didn’t even seem to be using his full strength; there was a hint of playfulness in his attacks during their fight.
This sense of being utterly crushed was too intense. The Coachman hadn’t made the first move, nor had he launched a sneak attack, yet he held the upper hand in offense, defense, advances, and retreats—even in speed. Li Banfeng had fought Cultivators Above the Clouds before, but this was the first time he had encountered such a situation.
While Li Banfeng was pondering, the Coachman surfaced and vanished from sight.
Just as Li Banfeng was wondering whether to go out, the Projector suggested they observe a little longer. However, the Lady of the Fifth Room seemed unable to sustain it. "Let me rest for a bit," she said, "and you can tell me more about your art."
The Projector then presented his imagined films on the wall, scene by scene, interweaving them with his recent experiences.
Because he hadn’t visited the Fifth Room for so many days, the Lady of the Fifth Room was filled with resentment towards him.
But as she watched the Projector’s films, the chilling, murderous aura that filled the room significantly dissipated.
Lowering his voice, the Projector said, "Seventh Guide, the following scenes go beyond the realm of realism. Please excuse yourself for a moment."
Li Banfeng instructed, "Be very careful. Call me immediately if anything goes wrong."
The Projector seemed quite confident about handling the current situation. Li Banfeng left the Fifth Room and returned to the main room, where his wife asked, "Husband, what kind of enemy did you encounter?"
Li Banfeng didn’t quite know how to describe him; he couldn’t discern the Coachman’s Taoist Sect. "I encountered an opponent who is faster than me, fiercer than me, and tougher than me—stronger than me in every aspect. I suspect he’s the Local Deity of Bridge Yesong."
The Phonograph exclaimed, "Faster than you, husband? Is this Local Deity a Traveling Cultivator?"