Corpse Retriever.

Chapter 299

This is the true Emperor of Fengdu.

Without the mythical filter or far-fetched embellishments of various legends, the Great Emperor was clearly and directly revealed to the young man.

Any description used to describe towering height becomes pale and powerless at this moment. The oppression and shock it brings have long exceeded the scope of directly striking the soul. It is more like a ruthless crushing from top to bottom on a life level.

Most importantly, He wasn't targeting you intentionally.

It's like an ant struggling to climb a hill, just to get a better view of an elephant, but the elephant doesn't even notice you.

Inside the hall, the clanging of chains could be heard, but it stopped some distance from the entrance and then faded into the distance.

Yin Meng, who had originally intended to see him off at the palace gate, turned back.

A reluctant farewell doesn't fit the team atmosphere under Xiao Yuan's leadership. Meaningless words of advice and concern are omitted as much as possible, and everyone is restraining themselves from putting on too much of a show or being overly sentimental.

Yin Meng sat down at the table and looked around the room. She deliberately didn't let herself vent too much emotion and had to use them sparingly because she would have to rely on them to survive here.

Outside the hall, the shadowy figure manipulated Li Zhuiyuan's hand, grabbing the boy's neck once more.

Will you come back to take her away?

Given the revelation of the Emperor's true form, the shadowy figure's question carried a hint of threat and amusement.

Li Zhuiyuan replied:

"I will come back and take her away."

Li Zhuiyuan emphasized the word "捞" (lao, meaning to fish or scoop).

"So confident?"

"The first thing I learned was how to get people out of trouble."

“I noticed that after the formal apprenticeship ceremony, you stopped calling me ‘Master’.”

"teacher."

The shadowy figure did not respond.

"Teacher, can I choose a different way to die? It's a bit of a shame to have my neck broken like this after all the time I get to experience death."

"How do you want to die?"

"Teacher, I want to fall from here and plunge into the endless hell."

At this moment, in the deepest part of hell, resides the Bodhisattva.

"No."

"Then, let's get started."

"Crack!"

The boy's neck was snapped, perhaps to prevent him from dying completely immediately and to spare him further pain. With the residual force, the boy's body shattered.

Li Zhuiyuan,
died.

……

Whether there is sufficient preparation or it is rushed before death, when death truly arrives, it is a moment of solitude.

As the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, if something dies here, something else should live there.

However, in this transition between life and death, Li Zhuiyuan encountered a turning point.

The sound of water rushing in was in my ears, "glug glug," accompanied by a jumble of auditory hallucinations.

All around me were countless sticky, tentacle-like things that clung to every corner of my body, constantly wriggling.

If you shift your perspective upwards, you will see:

In a newly opened fishpond, the boy floated on the surface of the water, surrounded by a dense school of fish.

They were excited, they were frantic, as if they were desperately searching for something to devour in the boy.

Deep within my consciousness, in the basement of my great-grandfather's house.

The figure stands in front of a long wooden table, holding a carving knife.

Those skilled at carving all sat there, neatly and quietly.

For pieces that are difficult to carve, they are all placed on the table, adjusted slowly, and carefully outlined.

"Click."

A cracking sound came, and first a sculpture with newly carved Buddha halo patterns behind it broke and scattered on a table.

Immediately afterwards, the sculpture behind him, whose crown had only been carved in time, first cracked all over, and then completely collapsed.

The main body remained expressionless, seemingly unsurprised by the situation.

However, from among the seated "crowd," a sinister sculpture made a "click-clack" sound.

The main body walked up to "Yin Meng" and looked at her intently.
She did not crack, but the exquisitely detailed paint layer either changed color or peeled off, as if it had been stripped of all its spirit.

On the long table, the broken materials of the Emperor and the Bodhisattva were collected by their original forms.

The faded, gloomy sculpture itself wasn't cleaned up; it was still left to sit in the center of its vibrant "partner."

Using a cart, we pushed the materials out and went straight to the fishpond.

Lift the cart and dump the waste materials in; the fish that would usually swarm in didn't appear this time.

The main body clapped its hands, walked to the other side of the fishpond, and looked at Li Zhuiyuan who was still floating on the surface of the water.

One on the water, one on the shore, a wisp of wind blows past the two identical boys.

The main body spoke up, urging, "Come and 'come'."

Li Zhuiyuan opened his eyes in the water.

With a gentle lift of his hand, the surrounding fish dispersed a short distance before quickly gathering again.

They gather because they sense emotions.

But they didn't get to eat anything, which means that the emotions that made them craving remained in the boy's body and did not overflow as before.

The desertification control efforts, starting with sand fixation, have finally yielded real results; the soil is now able to retain moisture.

The foundation of human nature has been solidified, though it is only at a minimum at present.

Li Zhuiyuan lowered his hand and looked up at the sky. The sky was cloudless and so blue it seemed unreal.

I remember at the beginning, the environment deep in my consciousness was very detailed. Standing on the terrace of my great-grandfather's house, you could see wheat waves in the wind, dancing dandelions, flowing clouds, and wisps of smoke rising from the chimneys.

Now, all of these have been cut.

There are only two truly exquisite places: one is the fishpond, and the other is the great-grandfather's house. The scenery along the road from the great-grandfather's house to the fishpond looks like it was set in a film studio; you can't look too closely, or you'll see a mistake if you're even slightly observant.

Li Zhuiyuan: "How did you get so sloppy?"

The original body said, "Isn't this to save you some energy? I'm afraid that if you die out there, I'll be dragged down with you."

"Did the energy I saved really go to me?"

With the fish swimming around him, it felt like he was on a soft bed, if not on flat ground. Li Zhuiyuan looked up at the clods of earth still floating in the water on the other side of the fishpond.

Li Zhuiyuan knew that the original body had deliberately brought this out so that he could see it.

The original body: "Are you feeling sad because you couldn't bring out the gloomy cuteness?"

After carefully examining his own feelings, Li Zhuiyuan gave his answer: "Yes, but not much, far from enough to make me sad."

The original body: "Then what are you still doing lying here? Why don't you hurry up and get to work?"

Li Zhuiyuan: "Mainly, I felt that it was difficult to explain to her, to my great-grandfather, to Aunt Liu, to her deceased grandfather, and to Runsheng. All of these combined made me experience a feeling called 'loss'."

The main body tilted its head, looked at Li Zhuiyuan, and asked, "Are you... showing off to me?"

Like a child who gets a new toy or a new snack, they go up to their friends and explain how to play with it or what it tastes like.

Li Zhuiyuan thought about it carefully again and replied, "Yes, when I described it to you, I felt a little bit happier."

Ontology: "Childish."

Li Zhuiyuan: "You don't understand."

The original body: "So you understand?"

Li Zhuiyuan: "Go on, I'm listening."

The true form: "The Emperor's shadow explained to you twice why Yin Meng had to be left there. Both explanations were correct, but the true intentions were concealed."

Li Zhuiyuan: "It seems you're not going to play dumb this time."

If the person in question is only giving a perfunctory response, they would probably say:
Since you've already gained the Emperor's official approval, Yin Meng's value has greatly diminished, and her strength is increasingly making it difficult for her to cooperate with the team. Leaving in this dignified way without hurting the team's feelings is a good thing.

The true form: "The Great Emperor of Fengdu, who obtains merit by suppressing all ghosts, by suppressing himself, by suppressing Bodhisattvas, and by suppressing the Fengdu Project."

By altering the lock, you forcibly obtained the apprenticeship gift from Him, which is a threat to Him because Heaven is watching you closely.

Therefore, even if it was just to create another causal relationship outside of the 'master-disciple relationship' to counteract it, He still had to leave Yin Meng behind.

The most likely scenario is... that one day, when Heaven deems your sword useless and intends to break it, the Great Emperor can use the Yin Meng thread to force you to come to Fengdu again. At that time, He will suppress you to gain merit.

Your master is always ready to purge the entire sect; what a loving master and disciple pair!

Li Zhuiyuan: "You don't object to me agreeing to go back and pick up Mengmeng in the future, and you're directly acknowledging this new cause-and-effect relationship?"

The subject: "I don't object."

From an immediate perspective, taking Him as your teacher is the right thing to do. It will not only significantly improve your current strength, but also allow you to more easily leverage His influence to choose the next wave of challenges.

From a long-term perspective, your master is already prepared to sell you out for merit, but you can also choose to 'betray your master and ancestors'.

Control your growth rate, and at the same time, grasp how Heaven will treat you in the future.

When the time is right, and Heaven reveals its intention to break your sword, you take the initiative to unleash a wave of 'betraying your master and ancestors'.

Let the Way of Heaven do its own thing.
Choose between the Emperor of Fengdu and you, Li Zhuiyuan.

As long as you grasp the rhythm well, you can make Heaven more inclined to choose the Emperor of Fengdu.

At that time, the Great Emperor will be the ladder you use to shield yourself from the Heavenly Dao and continue climbing upwards during your growth.

Li Zhuiyuan: "Unless the Great Emperor takes the initiative to use Yin Meng to blackmail me or target me, I will not take the initiative to do something that betrays my master and ancestors."

The main body: "Giving the choice of firing the first shot to the Great Emperor is very good. To a certain extent, the Great Emperor actually has a better timing option, which can also reduce the difficulty and risk of you controlling the intentions of the Heavenly Dao."

Li Zhuiyuan: "Think what you want."

The original entity: "You do have emotions now. In my eyes, you're even a bit hypocritical."

Li Zhuiyuan did not respond.

The original body said: "You called the Emperor's shadow 'teacher' instead of 'master' because you wanted to test him. You wanted to see if he had been influenced by Elder Zhai throughout his life, and whether studying him could become a breakthrough point for you when you are at odds with the Emperor."

In addition, you tried to soften him up and get him to grant your request so that you would fall to your death.

Your goal is to go down to the lower realms and make contact with the Bodhisattva.

Because you understand that things have entered a new phase, and former adversaries can now form alliances.

Li Zhuiyuan: "The Great Emperor is dead. I am very curious about the true form of the Bodhisattva."

The original body said: "The Bodhisattva has been suppressed by the Great Emperor. This matter is still a secret. There are two things we can do next."

One is the Zhenjun Temple at the bottom of Zhoushan Sea. You can try going in again to help Sun Baishen break the seal.

Since the true Bodhisattva has already entered hell, whoever sits on the lotus throne next will be the 'true Bodhisattva'.

Another matter is the head of the officials. This time, the Yin gods suffered great losses, but the main framework represented by the two generals of increase and loss is still intact. Most importantly, because only the Yin gods appeared this time and there were no spirit mediums, the human lineage of the head of the officials is still very complete.

You can reorganize the official's position, replace the Bodhisattva's, and receive a continuous stream of merit.

Li Zhuiyuan: "I would not do such a thing."

This time, the original entity remained silent.

Li Zhuiyuan: "I can go and rectify the officials and generals, but from now on, the spirits of the underworld cannot be above the spirit mediums, and I will not treat spirit mediums as subordinates, nor will I follow the old practice of the Bodhisattvas to suck their merits and blood."

At most, we'll finalize the contracts for the two generals to work temporarily for me, to refine my puppetry techniques.

Before, when the Bodhisattva was around, it wasn't convenient for Li Zhuiyuan to do this so openly. Now that the Bodhisattva is gone, things are much simpler.

The two generals, Zeng and Sun, suffered severe damage to their souls this time and probably need more merit to replenish them. There's no need to threaten them; just releasing this intention will make them rush down on their own.

When the time comes, I can create two puppets myself, and the two generals will be able to quickly respond to the spirit medium's descent, which can greatly alleviate my current predicament of not being able to practice martial arts.

The original entity: "There is a third thing."

Li Zhuiyuan: "Didn't you say there were two items?"

The main body says: "You have the initiative in these two things, but you don't have the initiative in the third thing."

"explain."

“You can support Sun Boshen as your agent, but I would suggest removing the first thing. You yourself have a perfect grasp of the Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva Sutra and are also proficient in Feng Shui. You can completely disguise yourself as a Bodhisattva.”

In this way, when you and the Great Emperor need to stand on opposite sides in the future, you can present a 'Bodhisattva' as a figurehead. The true Bodhisattva, who is being suppressed by the Great Emperor, has a certain probability of voluntarily acknowledging your identity as the Bodhisattva in order to escape. This could potentially trigger a coordinated attack from within and without.

"Is there a fourth thing? The initiative is also in our hands."

"us?"

“You can be that ‘Bodhisattva’.”

"My future may only have one thing to do, and that is to suppress my inner demons and become the real Li Zhuiyuan."

"Okay, I got it. I have to go. Life is catching up with me."

Li Zhuiyuan slowly descended and soon completely disappeared into the water.

The school of fish surrounded him, making it pitch black all around him.

Occasionally, a gap would appear, and through the churning belly of the fish, Li Zhuiyuan would see a little oriole in a black cheongsam walking underwater, dancing gracefully, and singing melodiously.

The gap closed, and when it reopened, the little oriole disappeared, replaced by a huge and majestic seated figure.

Having walked such a long stretch of river, it feels like I've gone from one dead end to another.

The school of fish gradually dispersed, and with each fish that left, a sense of security was taken away from the boy.

Li Zhuiyuan lay down before Him without any concealment.

One is extremely large, and the other is extremely small.

Between the two, a white spot of light appeared, growing larger as it spun, like a ball of fire that consumed everything completely.

His physical senses and mental awareness began to return. Although he hadn't opened his eyes yet, Li Zhuiyuan knew...

I survived.

……

"call!"

Zhao Yi, open your eyes.

The truck was parked in an alley adjacent to Ghost Street, with large red "demolish" characters painted on the surrounding walls, and full circles drawn on them.

It was very quiet around, and the fog was gradually dissipating.

"Huh...huh...huh..."

My neck tilted back, and my head slammed heavily against the backrest.

When the incense sticks burned three times, Zhao Yi experienced death once due to the curse of the "Book of Life and Death." Even experiencing it again, the impact was still intense.

But in any case, the recovery is at least faster than when it "died" for the first time.

"You, surnamed Li, made the right bet!"

Excitedly, he turned his head to look at the passenger seat. The boy's eyes were closed, and he was still asleep.

Seeing that the man surnamed Li was completely naked, Zhao Yi realized that he himself was also naked.

He turned around and looked at the back of the carriage.

Everyone was awake, but they all looked numb, sitting or lying down, their eyes lifeless. Clearly, they had not yet emerged from the shadow of death.

At this time, they are unaware of their own existence, as if they are asleep, and are in a state of complete isolation from their surroundings.

Zhao Yi got out of the car and went to the back of the vehicle, intending to look for his clothes, but found that Tan Wenbin and the others' hiking backpacks were not in the car, nor were his own luggage.

Zhao Yi rolled up the plastic tarpaulin in the back of the truck and covered the Liang sisters with it to conceal their bodies.

Then, naked, he jumped off the truck and sped into the street.

When he returned, Zhao Yi was already dressed, wearing leather shoes, jeans, and a blue shirt, with a gold Rolex on his wrist, and he had also tucked his hair back with his wet hands.

They're all brand-name items, but they're all fake. However, Young Master Zhao is a natural clothes hanger; with just a little dressing up, he looks absolutely fresh and fashionable these days.

In addition, Zhao Yi was also carrying a large bag.

First, they went to the back of the car and threw the three sets of clothes belonging to Tan Wenbin and the other two in front of them: shorts, vests, and slippers.

He then took out two more sets of women's clothing, and Zhao Yi personally helped Liang Yan and Liang Li change into them.

The people in the truck were still in a daze, like plastic mannequins displayed in a clothing store.

When Zhao Yi dressed the two sisters, he made a special check. Hmm, they were fine. Not only had their lifespans been restored and they had become young again, but their injuries had also completely healed, leaving not a single scar.

Back in the driver's seat, as he was about to toss the clothes to the boy, he discovered that the man surnamed Li was already awake.

Li Zhuiyuan took the clothes from Li Zhuiyuan and put them on.

Zhao Yi suddenly recalled that the first thing he did after regaining consciousness was to turn his head to look at the person surnamed Li, who had his eyes closed.

Everyone's still wide awake and confused, so being able to close their eyes means...

Zhao Yi: "Were you already sober a long time ago?"

Li Zhuiyuan: "Mm."

Zhao Yi: "You were pretending to be asleep just now because you didn't want to go out and find clothes for everyone?"

Li Zhuiyuan: "I don't practice martial arts, and my skills aren't as good as yours. You're the most suitable person to steal clothes."

Zhao Yi: "I'll make up for it at the store once I get the money. But I can't make up for it based on the price tag. Can you imagine how much this outfit would cost if it were priced according to the tag?"

In the small county town, half of the streets are decorated with signs saying "Clearance Sale," and every piece of clothing inside is incredibly expensive.

Li Zhuiyuan: "Just remove two zeros and then halve it."

Zhao Yi: "You really have experience. By the way, do you think your clothes are too big?"

Li Zhuiyuan: "It is a bit big."

Zhao Yi: "I couldn't find a children's clothing store in that area, otherwise I would have really liked to pick out a set of denim overalls for you, which would definitely suit you very well."

Li Zhuiyuan looked at the bag in Zhao Yi's hand that wasn't completely empty.

"Cough cough..."

Zhao Yi coughed and stuffed the bag under the driver's seat.

Actually, the denim overalls are inside. There's a giant panda in the front and a cute grizzly bear in the back. The straps are elastic, and there are two clips at the front that can be pinched together to open.

In addition to this outfit, there is also a pair of air-cushioned shoes with higher soles than ordinary ones. When you wear them and step on the ground, they light up in various colors.

If the boy surnamed Li hadn't woken up, Zhao Yi would have personally changed the clothes and shoes for him.

But when Li was in a conscious state, Zhao Yi didn't even dare to take out his clothes and shoes, let alone give them to him.

Li Zhuiyuan said, "Go and pick up the things again."

Zhao Yi nodded: "Okay."

All the equipment was left behind in Ghost Street. The living supplies inside, including cash, weren't important. The main things were things like Li Zhuiyuan's little compass and Yin Meng's poison jar—these absolutely couldn't be lost. If those things fell into the wrong hands and were opened by unsuspecting ordinary people, it would cause a disaster.

Zhao Yi lit a cigarette, got out of the car, and ran to Ghost Street.

Not long after, Zhao Yi returned, carrying a heavy carrying pole with a full load of goods on both sides.

Zhao Yi tossed the car into the back, sat back in the driver's seat, and said:

“Zhang Xiuxiu retrieved all our belongings. I checked them and nothing was missing.”

It's definitely not just about helping to pick things up; it's like cleaning up a battlefield. In the eyes of the Zhang siblings, the talismans here are absolutely high-end goods.

However, as soon as Zhao Yi entered Ghost Street, he went straight to the Zhang siblings.

When Zhang Chi saw Zhao Yi appear, he was completely terrified, and his guilty conscience was written all over his face.

Zhang Xiuxiu cried and said, "Thank God, you're still alive."

Zhao Yi took out two pills from his bag, broke off the poisoned part, gave one to each of the siblings, and then carried everything back.

At this moment, the first person to regain consciousness appeared in the back compartment: Runsheng.

After sitting up, Runsheng looked around, frowned slightly, and began searching a second time.

Li Zhuiyuan: "Runsheng, please look after them."

"Mm." Runsheng responded, dressed himself first, and then went to help Tan Wenbin and Lin Shuyou get dressed.

Zhao Yi started the truck and drove towards the guesthouse.

During the journey, Tan Wenbin regained consciousness, and then, as if he were carsick, he quickly climbed to the back of the truck and began to vomit.

After vomiting for a long time, he turned over, put his arms on the partition, and gasped for breath as his chest heaved.

Runsheng handed him a bottle of water. Tan Wenbin took a sip, then poured the rest over his head.

Zhao Yi, who was driving, suddenly stepped on the brakes, and everyone in the car moved slightly.

The Liang sisters, who had been sitting together, fell to either side of each other, showing no signs of waking up.

Lin Shuyou rolled around in the carriage, eventually reaching Tan Wenbin's side. Tan Wenbin instinctively reached out to support him, only to find that Lin Shuyou's body was burning hot, and steam was still rising from his head.

"Ayou's body temperature..."

Runsheng picked up Lin Shuyou and made him sit properly, saying, "It's so cold."

Upon hearing this, Tan Wenbin looked more closely and noticed that Lin Shuyou's originally reddish skin was now bluish-black, and the steam rising from his head was no longer hot, but rather like the cold air that rushed out after a freezer was opened.

After a bumpy ride, Lin Shuyou's vision cleared amidst the constant shaking. His first reaction was to hug himself and curl up on the ground.

"It's so cold..."

After a while, Lin Shuyou started tearing at his vest again:

"Hot, so hot..."

Li Zhuiyuan: "Let's not rush back to the guesthouse. Let's park the car in that open space up ahead."

"Ah."

Zhao Yi turned the steering wheel, and the truck drove to a platform on the side of the road. At the end of the platform was a slope with a significant drop.

However, the truck, which should have slowed down earlier, showed no signs of slowing down.

Li Zhuiyuan looked at Zhao Yi and found that another face had appeared on Zhao Yi's face.

It was Su Luo, the owner of the tomb. He looked at the steering wheel in his hand, then at the scenery outside the car window, and murmured:

"How exactly should we stop this carriage?"

Li Zhuiyuan stepped into the driver's seat and stepped on the brake.

With a sudden stop, the car came to a halt at the edge of the platform.

Zhao Yi lowered his head, looked at the pedals below, seemingly memorizing the brake pedals, then glanced at the other buttons inside the car, shook his head, and sighed:

"I don't feel comfortable with these new and exciting things."

Li Zhuiyuan: "It's something we can learn from."

"It is not what I have studied, nor is it what I want to study."

Li Zhuiyuan: "So what do you like?"

"The arts of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting are my passions."

Li Zhuiyuan: "Do you like peach blossoms?"

Is it a place of beauty like the Peach Blossom Spring?

Li Zhuiyuan: "There is wine, flowers, and masters of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting. One can indulge in a carefree and unrestrained life all day long."

"But this body ultimately belongs to him, and I cannot make decisions for him based on my own preferences. Although I don't know why, I suddenly woke up and started driving this horse-drawn carriage."

Li Zhuiyuan: "I have a way to have the best of both worlds."

"Very good, thank you very much, Dragon..."

Su Luo had seen Zhao Yi's memories and knew that the Zhao family's greatest expectation for Zhao Yi was that he would become the Dragon King in the future.

He didn't know that there was only one Dragon King in each generation, so he used this "title" as a way of saying "Wishing you prosperity".

Zhao Yi faced Li Zhuiyuan, bowed halfway, and then stopped.

Li Zhuiyuan knew that the real Zhao Yi had returned.

Zhao Yi: "My God, I almost messed up!"

We're still competing on the river, and you're already admitting defeat to me?

Immediately, Zhao Yi frowned and said, "I didn't expect my condition to be this serious?"

Zhao Yi had previously inspected the people in the back of the carriage and naturally discovered the problem.

But he didn't expect that his problems would be so serious.

The car was driven for a while, and then suddenly a different person took over. Who could stand that?

Li Zhuiyuan: "Let's talk about your problem when we get back. Tell everyone else to get off the bus and we'll have a meeting."

Zhao Yi called everyone out of the car, including the Liang sisters who were still in a daze.

Li Zhuiyuan walked up to Tan Wenbin first. Tan Wenbin had just smiled and was about to call out "Brother Xiaoyuan" when he squatted down again, tilting his body as if he wanted to vomit.

The four spirit beasts were greatly enhanced, but their coordination and cooperation became problematic, which led to a distortion in Tan Wenbin's perception.

Li Zhuiyuan gathered blood on his right hand and drew a curse on Tan Wenbin's face. After finishing, the boy snapped his fingers.

"Snapped!"

As the red marks on his face faded, Tan Wenbin gasped in pain. After enduring that moment, he found that the world before him had finally returned to normal.

However, the world seemed blurry, and the sounds were somewhat "buzzing." Having grown accustomed to a clear and acute perception of the world, Tan Wenbin found it quite difficult to adjust when the amplification was suddenly removed.

"Brother Xiaoyuan, did you seal those four heads?"

"Let's seal them off for now. They need to rest and recuperate. We'll find a solution when we get back."

"OK, all right."

What Li Zhuiyuan placed was not a seal. When he drew the incantation, he did not use ink but his own blood. It was actually a kind of intimidation, temporarily making the four spirit beasts lie down quietly.

Zhao Yi squatted down in front of Lin Shuyou, giving him acupuncture.

As the needle was inserted, red and black blood flowed out continuously, and Lin Shuyou's alternating chills and fever finally subsided, allowing him to breathe a sigh of relief.

Li Zhuiyuan walked up to Runsheng.

Before the boy could do anything, Runsheng raised his fist and punched himself in the chest, smashing a crack in a stagnant energy vent and releasing some of the violent ghost energy within him.

The ghostly energy within him was too powerful, suppressing the malevolent energy and resentment, so Runsheng released his own energy.

Li Zhuiyuan took out a sealing talisman, handed it to Runsheng, and then turned to Zhao Yi and said, "Help Runsheng fix it."

"coming."

Zhao Yi used a special technique to insert the sealing talisman into Runsheng's acupoints with silver needles, suppressing his ghostly energy as much as possible and reducing its rampage within his body.

Li Zhuiyuan walked past the Liang sisters, glanced at them, did nothing, and then walked back.

Zhao Yi didn't say anything about it.

After briefly addressing everyone's issues, Li Zhuiyuan began to recount what happened after everyone's deaths.

Only then did everyone realize that Yin Meng had been left in the underworld.

Tan Wenbin: "Let's do as Brother Xiaoyuan said. From now on, we'll go pick Mengmeng up together."

Lin Shuyou: "Even if it means stealing, we'll take it back!"

Runsheng: "Hmm."

Runsheng's reaction was the most indifferent.

Li Zhuiyuan gestured for everyone to rest where they were, have some water and food, and then Zhao Yi pulled him to a corner.

"Hey Li, did you edit out any parts of this story?"

"No."

"But I still feel like you're hiding something from me. If it's not what happened... then it's your own analysis that you haven't shared?"

"Do you want to hear it?"

"Of course, if I don't listen, you'll later say to me, 'You didn't ask?'"

"It's better not to listen."

"why?"

"The matter of that lazy dog ​​has only just been forgotten. Do you want to go through it again?"

"How much later?"

"It's been quite a long time."

"I do still have some psychological trauma from being a lazy bum. So, I won't ask now, I'll ask later."

"Let's go back to the guesthouse, finish up the last bit of official business, and then we can go home..."

With people missing or absent, the word "going home" no longer carries the same meaning as before.

Back at the guesthouse, I spotted Xue Liangliang talking to several people in the tea room on the first floor from a distance.

Xue Liangliang stood up and waved to Li Zhuiyuan and the others.

The rest of the people went back to their rooms to settle in, and Li Zhuiyuan led Lin Shuyou and Tan Wenbin to sit down.

Xue Liangliang introduced the three middle-aged men as Xu Deng, Zhou Kuisheng, and Chen Xu, all of whom were key figures in the industry. However, they usually worked in different parts of the country and only got together because of this meeting.

"By the way, Xiao Yuan, Brother Chen and you are practically from the same hometown, he's from Suzhou."

Chen Xu: "Yes, fellow villager."

Zhou Kuisheng: "Heh, since we're from the same hometown, Lao Chen, why don't you and Ren Xiaoyuan greet each other in your local dialect? There's no need for us to speak Mandarin."

Chen Xu pointed at Zhou Kuisheng and said, "You've sown discord between them."

Zhou Kuisheng shook his head: "You don't have that atmosphere there. The real fellow countrymen are in Northeast China. Once you cross the border, no matter which province you're from, you're all fellow countrymen."

Xue Liangliang asked Li Zhuiyuan, "Xiaoyuan, how do you plan to get back?"

Li Zhuiyuan: "Let's take a plane."

The main issue is that everyone has health problems and needs to go back for adjustments and treatment. Since the risks on the way here have been resolved, flying back is naturally the fastest option.

As for the truck, Zhao Yi said he could contact Zhang Xinhai and have his factory send someone to drive the truck back and return it to Yongzi.

Xue Liangliang said to Chen Xu, "Then you and Xiao Yuan should go to Chongqing to take a plane back. After arriving in Nantong, you can transfer to a bus back to Suzhou. You can chat on the way and keep each other company."

Chen Xu: "Okay, of course."

Lin Shuyou: "Why not fly directly to Suzhou?"

Chen Xu replied, "We don't have an airport in Suzhou yet."

Lin Shuyou: "Huh? Suzhou has a great economy, so why doesn't it have an airport?"

Chen Xu touched his nose somewhat awkwardly.

Tan Wenbin said, "It will definitely be available soon, very soon."

The three of them had their own matters to attend to, so the tea party ended for the time being.

Xue Liangliang and Li Zhuiyuan went to see Engineer Luo together.

"Xiao Yuan, how did things go?"

"Yes, it went smoothly."

"That's good."

Luo Gong was also having a tea party, but it was in a room. As soon as the door opened, smoke filled the room. Xue Liangliang immediately opened the window to let the smoke out after he went in.

"Come on, Liangliang doesn't need an introduction, but I need to introduce Xiaoyuan in detail. He's my little apprentice and my last disciple."

"Stop introducing yourself, stop introducing yourself. I've heard you mention it several times since last year. You're the top scorer in the province, right?"

"He's still a prodigy. Every time we meet for a meal, the first half is about work, and the second half is about showing off."

It was clear that everyone relaxed after the meeting.

After sitting there for a while to keep him occupied, Engineer Luo had Xue Liangliang take him away.

After returning to his room, Li Zhuiyuan did not see Zhao Yi.

After taking a shower, Li Zhuiyuan sat on the bed, playing with a small compass in his hand.

The return trip is tentatively scheduled for the day after tomorrow. Tomorrow, we have a survey mission to complete, which is the location where the survey team had the accident last time.

The boy gently fiddled with the compass needle in his hand, deep in thought:

The Bodhisattva was suppressed by the Emperor of Fengdu and sent to the underworld. Where did the severely injured Di Ting go?
Unfortunately, the opponent was either critically injured or too frightened to react, so the compass showed no reaction to them.

Tan Wenbin pushed open the door and said, "Brother Xiaoyuan, Runsheng went out to find a workshop to repair his Yellow River shovel."

"Brother Runsheng won't act impulsively."

“But he’s too much like a normal person. I’ve already told Ayou not to go and comfort Runsheng.”

"Ah."

Where is our unofficial team leader?

"Let's go to the Liang sisters' room."

"Oh, right, those two haven't woken up yet."

Li Zhuiyuan remained noncommittal.

After dark, Zhao Yi still hadn't returned, so Li Zhuiyuan went to sleep first.

In the Liang sisters' room, Liang Yan and Liang Li lay on separate beds, while Zhao Yi stood in the middle, the cigarette in his mouth glowing intermittently.

After finishing the cigarette, Zhao Yi stubbed it out with his fingers and flicked it into his teacup.

Then he rolled up his sleeves and raised his right hand.

"Snapped!"

He slapped Liang Yan across the face first.

"Snapped!"

He slapped Liang Li across the face again.

The two sisters, who had regained their youthful beauty, immediately had their cheeks swollen up.

"Still pretending, huh? Still unwilling to wake up, huh? Go ahead and kill, go ahead and kill. I'll go outside and set up a formation, you two go inside and duel, two in and one out, okay!"

The cloudiness in the sisters' eyes dissipated, and their vision cleared.

Given their physical condition, it's impossible for them to wake up so slowly; they were practically the first to do so.

The reason they kept pretending was that as soon as they regained consciousness, they realized what had happened to them and felt a terrible urge to kill their sister (or younger sister).

They're all pretending to be clueless, but in reality, they're giving each other a chance to kill each other.

Zhao Yi: "I have a suggestion, a compromise. Before you all plunder each other, take my man first. There's no need to be polite. Fighting with your sisters for a man is so exciting and fun!"

The two sisters sat up in bed and started crying.

In truth, they knew that although neither of them wanted to kill the other at this moment, and they were even willing to grant each other's wish, as long as this addiction existed, it would eventually become uncontrollable as time went by and they continued to grow stronger.

Zhao Yi: "Don't be afraid that day will come. At worst, before that day comes, I'll keep the one I like the most by my side, and the other will go to a sealed place to live, so that you can never meet."

Liang Yan: "How cruel."

Liang Li: "How heartless."

Zhao Yi: "Then how about we take turns sealing? One person serves the emperor for a quarter? A quarter is too long, it'll get boring. How about a month... no, a week?"

Sigh, I'm the one who got the short end of the stick. I finally got a pair of twins, and now they have to be separated.

Liang Li: "Shameless."

Liang Yan: "My man is really shameless."

Liang Li: "..."

After successfully calming the two sisters down, Zhao Yi returned to his room.

Seeing that Li Zhuiyuan was already asleep, he took a shower and went to his own bed.

"Hey Li, there's something I don't understand. Isn't hell basically empty now? So why didn't the Bodhisattva become a Buddha?"

Li Zhuiyuan, without even opening his eyes, said, "You can think of the Great Emperor as the only ghost."

"Pfft... Hahaha!"

After laughing, Zhao Yi lay down, covered himself with the blanket, and prepared to sleep.

While sleeping, Zhao Yi suddenly opened his eyes and sat up with a thud:

"Damn it, my entire Zhao family hasn't been stripped of its marquis title yet!"

"Ah."

"Brother Xiaoyuan, the underworld is empty now, isn't that exactly when we need underworld civil servants?"

"Yes, there will be a wide variety of job options."

"Could it be that the Emperor has forgotten about this matter?"

"maybe."

"Then what should we do?"

"There is a way."

Do you have a solution?

"Didn't we already agree to go to Jiujiang Zhao together?"

"Ancestor, what do you mean?"

Li Zhuiyuan opened his eyes, looked at Zhao Yi, and said calmly:
"I'll solve it myself."

(End of this chapter)