The Overlord of Puluo

Daboinsky closed the hidden door and said to Xiao Zhenggong, ”Gang Leader, the Inner Provinces sent me to bring you a message.”

”What message?”

”After it’s done, if you are willing to go to the Inner Provinces to cultivate for a while, we can offer you more.”

Xiao Zhenggong smiled. ”How much more?”

Daboinsky said, ”Within a year, we will raise your cultivation by one level.”

”One year?” Xiao Zhenggong shook his head. ”Not fast enough.”

Daboinsky reminded him, ”This is cultivation at the Cloudborne Layer, you know.”

Xiao Zhenggong thought for a moment and said, ”The price can still be negotiated. We will discuss it once this matter is settled. For now, get some rest and think through everything that needs to happen the day after tomorrow. Don’t make any mistakes.”

Daboinsky said no more, made a deep bow, and returned to the secret room.

After leaving the basement, Xiao Zhenggong called over Yao Zhiyi, who was guarding the entrance, and asked, ”Is that corpse ready?”

Yao Zhiyi nodded. ”It’s ready. We have checked it from the top of its head to the tips of its toes, and there’s not a thing wrong with it. No matter who examines it, they won’t find anything wrong. Even the blood is exactly the same as yours. No matter how they look, that corpse is you.”

”Bah!” Xiao Zhenggong spat at him.

Yao Zhiyi didn’t know a better way to put it. ”What I mean is, sir... the corpse looks very much like you. Extremely like you...”

They went back to the main building and found a quiet room. Yao Zhiyi brewed a pot of tea, and Xiao Zhenggong took a small sip. ”Have all the invitations gone out?”

Yao Zhiyi nodded. ”Every last one. The Great Families didn’t show us the slightest bit of respect. They sent the invitations straight back. Great Golden Seal Shen Jinzhong of the Three Heroes Sect was the worst of the lot. He tore his up right in front of our man. And He Yuxiu? She tossed hers straight into a spittoon.”

Xiao Zhenggong smiled. ”Just as expected. Not a single person showing up is exactly what we want. That way, when the Jiangxiang Gang disappears, everything will look perfectly reasonable.

”Have someone tell Xie Mengjiao to get in touch with Shan Zhumei. Tell her to run a story with the headline, ’The Jiangxiang Gang Stands Alone. Why Are the Sects and Families Standing By and Watching?’”

Yao Zhiyi mulled over the headline for a moment. Somehow, it didn’t sound quite right.

”How about we change the first line to, ’The Jiangxiang Gang’s wicked deeds have caught up with them, leaving them isolated and without support’? What do you think?”

”’Their wicked deeds have caught up with them.’ Listen to you, using fancy expressions now.” Xiao Zhenggong nodded, then promptly kicked Yao Zhiyi. ”Do you even know what that means? Have you ever read a damn book in your life?

”Forget it. You don’t need to worry about this. Think about tomorrow night instead. Keep everyone who needs to stay, and clean up everyone who doesn’t. Don’t let anyone get out and start running their mouth. And tell the brothers that are keeping alive that they should call me Chief Commander after tonight. All those old gang titles need to be changed too.”

While they were talking, one of the followers asked to see them and whispered a few words to Yao Zhiyi. Yao Zhiyi stepped forward. ”Cedric, the foreigner, is coming to the banquet tomorrow night.”

Xiao Zhenggong frowned. ”You sent him an invitation?”

Yao Zhiyi scratched his head. ”He runs a hospital and has treated several of our brothers. I also heard you two were good friends, so...”

Xiao Zhenggong rubbed his forehead. ”What did you invite him for? Have a table set with food and wine tomorrow night. I will sit down with him for a quick meal. It’s just that eating with him is a little frightening.”

A little while later, another gang member came to report. This time, Yao Zhiyi was taken aback by the news. He then reported to Xiao Zhenggong, ”Something unexpected happened with our invitation to Li Qi.”

Xiao Zhenggong frowned and said, ”What was unexpected?”

”He replied that he’s coming to the banquet tomorrow night too.”

Xiao Zhenggong froze. ”Why is he coming?”

Yao Zhiyi shook his head. ”I don’t know what he’s after either. It’s hard to tell what that man is thinking.”

”Then why did you send him an invitation?”

”Gang Leader, Li Qi is a major figure in Puluo Province now. The He Family, the Lu Family, and the Chu Family all listen to him. We couldn’t very well leave him out.”

Xiao Zhenggong fell silent for a long moment. ”What sort of man is this Li Qi, exactly?”

”He’s ruthless, vicious, and used to getting his way. He started out in Blue Poplar Village, making a bit of money with Ma Wu from the New Land business. I thought he would spend the rest of his life scraping together just enough to keep his footing there. But then, he had hardly settled in before he killed the boss in Blue Poplar Village and took the village for himself. Once he took over Blue Poplar Village, he continued on and expanded his business into Greenwater City. Then, he expanded to Blackstone Slope. After that, he activated a whole plot of New Land and managed to turn it into Proper Land. It’s what we call Qi Qiu City right now. Neither the Inner Provinces nor the Outer Provinces could keep him under control. He’s now one of the most powerful men in Puluo Province.”

Xiao Zhenggong had heard of Li Qi, but now that he put all these things together, he could see just how extraordinary this man was. He then asked, ”What’s his cultivation level?”

”Not that high. He’s supposedly a level-five Wanderlust Cultivator. He ventured into the Three-Headed Fork in his early years and even studied in the Outer Provinces.”

”Has he ever been in our line of work?”

”Not that I have heard.”

The longer Xiao Zhenggong thought about it, the less sense it made. ”Then why is he so determined to come here for this meal? Nobody else dares to come. Is he a friend of ours?”

Yao Zhiyi shook his head. ”Not as far as I know.”

”Then does he have a grudge against us? Is he coming to have a laugh at our expense at a time like this?”

”I haven’t heard of any grudge, but he’s an ambitious man. He killed the Three Heroes Sect’s Great Golden Seal, and I hear he had quite a hand in the Second Golden Seal taking over.”

Xiao Zhenggong paused in surprise. ”So he’s taking advantage of my predicament? He thinks he can use this chance to bring the Jiangxiang Gang under his control?”

Yao Zhiyi nodded. ”It’s possible.”

Xiao Zhenggong laughed. ”Fine, let him. I will sign an alliance contract with him tomorrow night and put the Jiangxiang Gang at his command. If he doesn’t mind ruining his reputation, the gang is his. After all, once the day after tomorrow is over, there won’t be a Jiangxiang Gang anymore.”

***

The next day, Li Banfeng told Little Chuan to prepare some gifts. Little Chuan looked distinctly unwilling. ”Master Qi, going to a banquet at the Jiangxiang Gang is like putting on your best shoes to step in dog shit. A man of your standing, mixing with scum like them? What if word gets out?”

Li Banfeng smiled. ”Haven’t I told you? Gang Leader Xiao is an old friend. We have been through life and death together.”

By noon, He Yuxiu, Lu Chunying, and Chu Huaiyuan had arrived. He Yuxiu took one look at Li Qi and got straight to it. ”What’s all this, Old Qi? You are keeping company with the Jiangxiang Gang now? I would feel sick just sitting at their table.”

Li Qi smiled. ”Hard times show you who your real friends are. The Jiangxiang Gang is in trouble, and somebody should lend them a hand.”

He Yuxiu snapped, ”Why should you lend them a hand? Have you forgotten they nearly killed me?”

”How could I forget? I remember every bit of it.”

He Yuxiu grew angrier with every word. ”Then why are you doing this? You are trying to make me sick!”

Lu Chunying stood beside them without a word.

After a moment’s silence, Miss Chu spoke up. ”Big Bro Qi, are you really going tonight?”

Li Banfeng nodded. ”I am.”

”All right. I am coming with you.”

”What for?”

”I would like a word with the Jiangxiang Gang about our friendship, too.”

Li Qi shook his head. ”What friendship do you have with the Jiangxiang Gang?”

”None, but I can always strike one up. Big Bro Qi, whatever you do, I am with you. I trust you, and so does the Chu Family.”

Lu Chunying spoke up. ”Then I will go with Big Bro Qi, too.”

He Yuxiu grabbed the wine bottle and took a long swig. ”I don’t know what any of you are thinking! Fine, I will come along. But I threw their invitation into the spittoon right in front of the bastard who delivered it. How are we going to explain that?”

Li Banfeng said, ”Tell them you are coming for my sake. That way, the Jiangxiang Gang will owe me a favor.”

He Yuxiu frowned. ”Old Qi, is there something going on here?”

Li Banfeng nodded. ”Something big. Someone’s planning to fake their death and start a new life.”

***

By dusk, the Jiangxiang Gang was busy getting everything ready. They had only planned a simple dinner with Cedric, but with Li Qi coming, the food had to be a little better. Now that the He Family, Lu Family, and Chu Family were joining them, it was no longer suitable to set up one table.

Xiao Zhenggong asked Yao Zhiyi, ”How did Li Qi get so many people to come? Does he really have that much pull?”

”Gang Leader, he forced Commissioner Liao to cut his freight charges in half. That should tell you what he can do. Since he’s willing to show us some support, I think we could keep the gang going for another couple of days. Maybe the Outer Provinces...”

”Keep it going?” Xiao Zhenggong scowled. ”I will hand the gang over to him tonight, then. You can go work for him!”

Yao Zhiyi hurried to explain. ”Gang Leader, I didn’t mean that...”

”What do you think I have gone to all this trouble for?”

”To find a way out for our brothers,” Yao Zhiyi said quietly.

”Does the Jiangxiang Gang have a way out?”

Yao Zhiyi lowered his head and said nothing.

Xiao Zhenggong took a moment to calm down. ”Whatever conditions they ask for tonight, agree to them. We just need to get through the evening. Tomorrow’s plan stays the same. Tell the men to stay on guard, especially around He Yuxiu. If that woman goes wild, most people won’t be able to stop her.”

”Surely she wouldn’t?” Yao Zhiyi said. ”The He Family already knows the Flying General’s Battalion is going to attack us. If she wants to cause trouble, she might as well wait until tomorrow and join in.”

Xiao Zhenggong frowned. ”I told you to tighten security. Why do you have so much to say?”

Yao Zhiyi hurried off to pass on the orders. Xiao Zhenggong remained where he was, looking troubled. He was finding it harder and harder to work out what Li Qi was after.

That evening, Cedric was the first guest to arrive. He wore a white lab coat and a mask, with an iron canister strapped to his back. He approached the banquet table and cupped his fist in greeting. ”Gang Leader Xiao, long time no see!”

Xiao Zhenggong stared at Cedric. He looked him up and down and asked, ”What’s all this about?”

Cedric looked puzzled. ”It’s been a long time since we last met. I don’t think it was wrong for me to use the words ’long time no see.’”

”I am not talking about your choice of words. What’s with the outfit?”

Cedric explained, ”I have just come back from a house call. A patient on Qing’an Road has an infectious disease.”

Xiao Zhenggong backed away several steps at the mention of an infectious disease. ”Then what’s that canister on your back for?”

”It’s disinfectant. I disinfected the patient’s home to keep the disease from spreading.”

Xiao Zhenggong blinked. ”If you are that busy, you don’t need to come tonight.”

”Of course I must come out of respect for you!” As Cedric spoke, he tried to unbutton his clothes.

Xiao Zhenggong quickly waved his hand and said, ”Don’t do that. Sit down for a bit, and put down that iron canister on your back first.”

Cedric held up the canister and gave it a shake. ”It really is just disinfectant!”

”Are you afraid of losing it? Can’t you let my men look after it for you?”

Cedric held out the canister of disinfectant, but none of the men dared take it.

Xiao Zhenggong pointed outside the hall. ”Just leave it outside for now. Someone will keep an eye on it.”

Cedric shrugged and set the canister of disinfectant outside the door.

As the banquet was about to begin, Li Banfeng arrived with He Yuxiu, Lu Chunying, and Chu Huaiyuan following behind him.

Xiao Zhenggong stepped out of the hall to greet him and cupped his hands. ”Brother Li Qi, I have heard so much about you!”

Li Banfeng returned the gesture. ”A pleasure to meet you, Deputy Xiao.”

Deputy?

Xiao Zhenggong frowned slightly. In Puluo Province, few people outside the Border Control Office addressed him that way.

Has he come to see me about something in the Outer Provinces?

Once everyone was seated, Xiao Zhenggong raised a toast to Li Qi, then another to He Yuxiu. ”Big Sis Yuxiu, thank you for coming.”

He Yuxiu smiled. ”You introduced Doctor Cedric to us when Haiqin needed treatment. I haven’t forgotten that kindness.”

Her words put Xiao Zhenggong somewhat at ease. He had spent years trying to maintain ties with the Great Families. Though none of them ever made him feel welcome, he liked to think he had at least some goodwill with the He Family. Of course, that was leaving aside He Haiqin’s attitude toward him and his own grudge against He Jiaqing.

He also knew nothing of what had happened to He Yuxiu at the Soda Kiln. The hall master there had captured her and planned to hand her over to the Border Controller to curry favor, all without reporting to Xiao Zhenggong.

By the time the hall master wanted to report it, he no longer had the chance. Li Banfeng and He Yuxiu had wiped out the entire sect hall.

Li Banfeng turned to Cedric. ”Doctor Cedric, why are you dressed like that? Have you just come back from seeing a patient?”

Cedric nodded. ”I was treating someone with an infectious disease.”

Everyone’s expression changed, and they hurried to put some distance between themselves and Cedric.

Cedric rose to his feet. ”I have already disinfected myself! The disinfectant is right outside. I will bring it in and show you.”

Xiao Zhenggong gestured for him to sit. ”Doctor Cedric, sit down and enjoy your meal. Stop fussing over your disinfectant.”

The canister stood outside the door, and Xiao Zhenggong couldn’t shake the suspicion that it contained some sort of disease pathogens. He had worked with Cedric many times and knew his methods well enough to remain wary of him.

As it turned out, he was right to be wary. There was indeed something inside the canister, though it wasn’t any disease pathogen.

The drain valve at the bottom of the canister opened, and the liquid inside trickled out unnoticed. It crept across the lawn and into the grove beside the lake, where it gathered into a pool and slowly took the shape of a man. The man was He Jiaqing.

Dressed as a Jiangxiang Gang member, He Jiaqing walked toward the rockery beside the lake. Two gang members stood guard there, keeping everyone else away.

As He Jiaqing passed the rockery, he twitched his fingers, sending two silver needles into the guards’ foreheads. Neither man moved. Both stood where they were, their faces blank, with no outward sign that anything was wrong.

After checking that no one else was around, He Jiaqing walked straight into the rockery. Neither guard reacted.

At the end of the cave, He Jiaqing found two stone awls set into the wall. With the talent that came with the Thievery Cultivation, it told him at a glance that they operated a hidden door. Opening it, however, would take some care. Both awls had to be turned to just the right angle.

He gripped the first awl and slowly turned it, sensing the shifts in the machinery and spirit essence behind it. In less than five minutes, he had it in position.

He could sense the machinery more clearly through the second awl. This one took less than three minutes to position, and the hidden door opened.

He Jiaqing studied the two stone awls. He could sense that they were extraordinarily rare treasures.

Should I take them? But if I took them, the hidden chamber would seal shut, and I would never be able to open it again.

He knew exactly what he had come for. His target was Flying General Zhao Xiaowan, who had taken the form of a spear. He intended to reclaim what he had lost.

He made his way silently down the stairs into the basement. Even through the wall, he could sense an overwhelming aura of power.

The door to the hidden chamber slowly opened, and a woman stepped out, spear in hand. She gritted her teeth at the sight of He Jiaqing. ”You?”

The corners of He Jiaqing’s mouth curved up into a smile. ”Xiaolan, we finally meet.”

Lu Xiaolan gave a short laugh. ”Surprised? You must have been certain that I would die in your family’s old house. Were you hoping you would never have to see me again?”

He Jiaqing shook his head. ”If I hadn’t written to Lu Chunying, you would never have had a chance to get out of the old residence. You really would have been trapped there until you died.”

”What are you saying?” Lu Xiaolan asked. ”Am I supposed to thank you?”

He Jiaqing nodded. ”Xiaolan, you were the one who harmed me first, and I spared your life. You really should thank me!”

Lu Xiaolan retorted, ”And whose fault is it that I have ended up like this? Yours, isn’t it?”

”Xiaolan, you are lucky to be alive. If I hadn’t asked Ling Miaowen to put in a word for you, do you think you could have made it onto Iron Goat Mountain? You have been trying to harm me all along, while I have been helping you. Everyone else in this world has the right to hate me, but you don’t!”

Lu Xiaolan lowered her head and remained silent for a long while.

He Jiaqing had used the Folly Cultivator technique Seizing Upon a Weakness. Deep down, she felt guilty toward him. That guilt was her weakness, and he had seized upon it.

***

As the mood around the banquet table grew livelier, Xiao Zhenggong relaxed more and more.

His earlier guess had been right. Li Banfeng had asked plenty of questions about the Dark Star Bureau, so his visit really did have something to do with the Outer Provinces.

Xiao Zhenggong came straight to the point. ”Brother Li Qi, is there something about the Outer Provinces that you want to discuss with me?”

This slope that Li Banfeng had been laying was almost ready.

Li Banfeng raised a toast to Xiao Zhenggong and continued guiding the conversation down the slippery slope. ”Nothing gets past you, Deputy Xiao. I have come to see you about something in the Outer Provinces.”

Xiao Zhenggong drained his cup. ”If there’s anything I can help with, just say the word.”

Li Banfeng continued guiding the conversation down the slippery slope. ”A friend of mine has attracted the Dark Star Bureau’s attention.”

Xiao Zhenggong looked rather surprised. ”What did he do?”

”He doesn’t know himself,” Li Banfeng replied. ”In the beginning, people from the Dark Star Bureau questioned him. Then they started tailing him. I suspect there might be some misunderstanding.”

Xiao Zhenggong smiled and shook his head slightly. ”The Outer Provinces have rules, too. If the Dark Star Bureau has its eye on him, it’s probably not some misunderstanding. This friend of yours is likely a Dark Ability User, which is what we in Puluo Province call a cultivator.”

The slope was growing smoother and smoother. Li Banfeng asked, ”Is it against the law to be a cultivator in the Outer Provinces?”

Xiao Zhenggong smiled. ”Brother Li Qi, I hear you studied in the Outer Provinces. Surely you know the rules?”

Li Banfeng shook his head. ”When I was studying there, I really didn’t know there were any such rules.”

Xiao Zhenggong smiled. ”That’s because you were lucky. There are quite a few cultivators in the Outer Provinces, and every one of them has to register with the local Dark Star Bureau. Anyone who hasn’t registered is an illegal cultivator and a potential threat. Once they are discovered, they are lucky to get away with just being questioned and followed. If I found one, I might simply shoot them dead.”

Li Banfeng stared at him. ”You would shoot someone just for being a potential threat?”

”Little Bro, this is what you don’t understand,” Xiao Zhenggong replied. ”With threats like these, it’s better to kill a thousand innocent people than let a single guilty one slip away. Otherwise, if something does happen, the consequences could be unthinkable.”

He Yuxiu spoke up beside them. ”I don’t quite understand that term you used. What do you mean by shooting them dead?”

Xiao Zhenggong explained, ”It means pressing the muzzle of a gun against their forehead and ending their life with a single shot.”

Miss Chu smiled. ”Are guns really that reliable in the Outer Provinces?”

”The Outer Provinces are different from here,” Xiao Zhenggong replied. ”Gunpowder rarely fails there.”

Lu Chunying asked, ”What if one shot doesn’t kill them?”

Xiao Zhenggong smiled. ”With the barrel pressed against their forehead? If one shot doesn’t kill them, give them another two.”

”That makes sense.” Li Banfeng nodded, drew his pistol, pressed it against Xiao Zhenggong’s forehead, and pulled the trigger six times.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

His luck was good. Five of the six shots went off.

Li Banfeng had moved too quickly, and the attack had come too suddenly for Xiao Zhenggong to react. All five bullets passed straight through his head.

Author’s Note:

PS: Dismounting Along the Slope isn’t just useful for getting information out of people.

When Li Banfeng first obtained the bronze lotus flower, Xiao Zhenggong ordered Lightbulb to shoot him dead. See Chapter 6 for details.