Infinite Puzzle City

Chapter 608 Crush Technique (Two chapters combined)

When the void space in front of them was torn apart again, the raccoon dog, as big as a calf, quickly crawled out of it carrying Xiao Ran. Then, it rolled over and placed Xiao Ran on the ground while also returning itself to its original form.

Xiao Ran shook off the incense ash, stood up, and with a wave of his hand, the green raccoon landed in his hand.

"You know the secret technique of lighting incense with life-giving fire, yet you're not a member of the Zhao family. Could it be that you're a son-in-law of the Zhao family?"

Like a squirrel, the green raccoon climbed up Xiao Ran's arm and onto her shoulder, asking curiously.

After all, this technique was a closely guarded secret of the Zhao family, passed down exclusively to the eldest son's branch of the family. It was only during the generation of Zhao Qingming's grandmother that something went wrong, and Zhao's grandmother had no choice but to take on the responsibility, thus managing to preserve the Zhao family's lineage amidst the turmoil.

Even in such a turbulent era, the Zhao family refused to pass on these things. Now that this technique has fallen into Xiao Ran's hands, it's no wonder that Qinghao is curious.

"Bullshit, this technique was passed down to me by Grandpa Zhao. I have no interest in becoming a live-in son-in-law of the Zhao family."

"Zhao Qingming passed this on to you?? Has he gone mad?? He's actually disregarding ancestral rules and family traditions??

Xiao Ran's lips twitched upon hearing this. After a moment's hesitation, she still didn't respond. What ancestral laws? The ancestors have all been thrown into the underworld. Why would they care about your family laws?
As the two were talking, Xiao Ran glanced around.

But the fifth floor had completely changed. If Xiao Ran hadn't been sure she hadn't gone to the wrong place, she might have wondered if she had already left the hospital.

The buildings in front of them had disappeared, replaced by a chaotic and disorderly mass grave.

There was also a cracked coffin next to it, through which you could see the mangled corpse that had been gnawed by dogs.

"Oh no, that evil spirit has probably already succeeded."

Looking around, Qinghao's fox-like face showed a deep sorrow: "Although this place is a dream, it is also real. We have entered her dream. It is not too late to leave now, otherwise, if we go deeper and deeper, I am afraid that we will not be able to get out."

"I don't think so!" Xiao Ran's opinion was completely opposite to Qing He's: "If she had really succeeded, why would she be making such a fuss?"

Xiao Ran had no intention of leaving. If the hospital hadn't been completely eradicated, it wouldn't have been difficult for the Changchun Association to regain control of it.

Moreover, this riot will only last one night. In other words, after tonight, all the negative stars will disappear, and without the support of the negative stars, all of this is just a dream.

If the other party has already succeeded, why waste time like this? They should just kill them directly. Otherwise, even if she isn't forced back to her original form after tonight, her strength will definitely be greatly reduced.

As for whether this place is a dream or an illusion, real or fake, Xiao Ran's gaze shifted: "We'll find out by asking someone."

As she spoke, Xiao Ran walked to the cracked coffin next to her and gently tapped the coffin lid: "Bang bang bang bang, hello, I'm just dropping by. If you don't say anything, I'll take that as your agreement."

After saying that, he reached out and pulled open the already cracked coffin lid, took out the [Suppressing Calamity Token] and activated its privilege on the entity inside the coffin, which had been gnawed apart, using the Spirit Book.

If this is a dream, an illusion, then a grimoire could not possibly have an effect on a corpse.

However, the result was unexpected for Xiao Ran.

A magical book actually appeared on the corpse in front of them.

"Could this really be true??"

But upon further reflection, Xiao Ran dismissed the idea. As the saying goes, there are countless techniques and methods, but in essence, they are all just illusions.

Xiao Ran picked up the spiritual book, flipped through it, and found that it was exactly what he had thought.

According to the information in the spiritual book, the owner of this corpse was named Gao Songming, a cleaner responsible for the fifth floor. This poor fellow had no idea what had happened and went to meet the King of Hell in a daze.

According to the spiritual texts, there were more than twenty cleaners like him on the fifth floor who were responsible for the rough work.

Unsurprisingly, the fifth floor is the core and most important place, but it also has a lot of miscellaneous tasks that need to be done. You can't expect the Ghost Doctor and the others to clean and mop the floor themselves.

These cleaning staff have all signed many contracts with the Ghost Doctor, and unless something unexpected happens, they will never be able to leave the fifth floor in their lifetime.

To help these cleaning staff do their jobs better, the Ghost Doctor also gave each of them a job, making them beginners.

Take the cleaning staff in front of us, for example; their profession is apprentice and worker.

Xiao Ran quickly flipped through Gao Songming's memories. There wasn't much content, and some key information was completely blurred, as if it had been pixelated.

It seems that after Beast Master's death, the memories of all members of the Changchun Guild were loaded with a firewall to prevent Xiao Ran from peeking into the key information within.

But this information was irrelevant to Xiao Ran.

At least it was confirmed that the space in front of them was just a smokescreen disguised by Zhang Qi and his group.

"Squeak!!"

Just then, the sound of suona horns drifted from afar.

Xiao Ran looked back and saw a procession making a lot of noise, with gongs and drums, passing through the cemetery. Seeing this, Xiao Ran raised an eyebrow and walked straight towards the procession.

The group was dressed in bright red clothes, but all of them wore mourning cloths on their heads. Even the sound of the suona horn was sometimes cheerful and sometimes mournful.

The two flower girls at the front of the procession kept taking out handfuls of gleaming white money from their bamboo baskets and scattering it out.

"This team is quite interesting."

When Xiao Ran saw that the back of the procession was carrying a coffin, she couldn't help but twitch her brow, wondering if she should take the opportunity to snatch the coffin.

Just as this thought arose, dark red blood characters suddenly appeared in front of Xiao Ran.

Discover Main Quest 1: Death's End

Mission Requirements: Attend the funeral banquet and rescue the imprisoned Dream Weaver. (Note: Mission failure occurs if the Dream Weaver dies!)
Task difficulty: ?
Task reward: ?

Mission failed: Annihilation!

Seeing the main quest appear before him, Xiao Ran was taken aback. Then, the nonchalant attitude on his face gradually disappeared. The main quest itself wasn't the problem, but the consequence of failing the quest was direct annihilation, which forced Xiao Ran to take it seriously.

The Lost City rarely issues missions where failure means certain death.

But if it happens, it means the task is definitely not just ordinary.

"Dong dong dong..."

As the group drew closer to Xiao Ran, Xiao Ran's gaze suddenly sharpened as she realized that Pumpkin and the others were also in the group.

When Xiao Ran saw them, they naturally noticed her as well. Their faces immediately showed panic, as if they wanted to move but dared not.

Xiao Ran noticed that Pumpkin and the others were all carrying an oil lamp without a lampshade. They walked carefully with each step, as if afraid that if they moved too fast, the lamp would go out.

As the saying goes, enemies are especially hateful when they meet. Seeing that Pumpkin and the others seemed to be under some kind of special restriction in the group, Xiao Ran immediately revealed a sinister smile.

"Dong Dong!!"

The sound of gongs grew closer and closer.

"No, leave quickly!"

Just then, the raccoon dog perched on Xiao Ran's shoulder suddenly sensed something and screamed, urging Xiao Ran to run faster.

Upon hearing this, Xiao Ran, though unaware of what Qinghao had discovered, immediately leaped into the air and quickly distanced herself from the group.

After Xiao Ran and the group had distanced themselves, Qinghao exclaimed, "This is really weird! How can this thing be so strange?"

"what?"

Xiao Ran was confused and didn't know what Qinghao was referring to. Just as she was about to ask, her face suddenly froze. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a handful of talisman ash.

Xiao Ran's expression immediately turned ugly. Without saying a word, she retreated again and used half of the Yin-Yang technique to transform her aura into that of a dead person.

"What on earth attacked me?"

Xiao Ran asked as she retreated.

The talisman he pulled out was the substitute death talisman that Jin Chanzi had given him. Calling it a substitute death talisman was a bit of an exaggeration, but it could give him a warning if he suffered any special attack.

He hadn't done anything, but the substitute talisman had quickly turned to ashes, as if something had attacked him and been blocked by the talisman.

“Look over there.”

The blue raccoon stretched out its paw and pointed to the front of the procession on the left. Two flower children led the way, and behind them was a man covered in mourning clothes, holding a flower banner in his hand.

The green raccoon was referring to this flower banner.

When Xiao Ran looked over, she immediately tensed up. She saw that the flower banner was covered with countless eyes, swaying left and right in the breeze, glancing at her from time to time. However, Xiao Ran had already distanced herself from the group, and the eyes on the flower banner reluctantly glanced at her before reluctantly turning their gaze away.

Behind the group, Pumpkin and the others watched as Xiao Ran quickly distanced himself from the group, and their faces immediately showed disappointment. They glared at Xiao Ran with resentment.

"What is that thing?"

As Xiao Ran watched the flower banners gradually disappear into the distance, she asked Qinghao with lingering fear.

Qinghao stared at the group, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "They look familiar. They resemble a kind of evil magic that I know, but they are different from what I remember."

"What kind of evil magic?"

Xiao Ran pressed for an answer.

"can not say."

Qinghao shook his head and explained, "The name of this evil technique cannot be revealed. If you say the name, you will be affected. This evil technique caused a lot of harm in the past. In the turbulent times, some people used this evil technique to wreak havoc on the area, and quite a few masters died at the hands of this evil technique."

Qinghao turned to look at Xiao Ran: "The waters here seem to be deeper than I thought. Are you sure you want to get involved?"

"You used to have a choice, but now you don't."

Upon hearing Xiao Ran's words, Qinghao's expression became very serious: "Then it will be difficult. It's a pity you're not from the Zhao family, otherwise you should have been carrying a few ghost pomegranates, which would have allowed you to escape unscathed."

Xiao Ran had seen the Zhao family's Ghost Pomegranate before; it was said to be evil, but it was also a kind of evil in disguise.

Xiao Ran had come into contact with it at least a few times, but she still couldn't figure out what this ghost pomegranate was.

"Heh, what a joke. Even if I don't have the Zhao family's methods, I still have the Zhou family, the Fang family, and the Xiao family's methods. Tell me, what exactly is this technique all about?"

Qinghao didn't take Xiao Ran's words seriously. Seeing his disbelieving look, he gestured for Xiao Ran to stay at the back of the group and not get too close.

The two then walked and talked.

"This technique is extremely evil. It caused a great deal of trouble back then. It is said that many famous masters in the martial arts world died because of this technique."

This technique has a name, which Qinghao cannot reveal; it can only be written down for him by Xiaoran.

[Finger's Claw Technique]

This art originated from a theatrical troupe during turbulent times. These people used it to amass a fortune, transforming themselves into incredibly wealthy individuals.

But wherever they went, the local gentry and wealthy families were all bewitched, throwing lavish banquets every day, exhausting their wealth, and then suddenly dying.

At first, people thought this group was a bunch of robbers, swindlers, or itinerant thugs, so no one paid them any attention.

But gradually, people started to notice that something was wrong.

It is said that some people saw their deceased patriarch in their procession.

When he tried to go forward to confirm, the person's face suddenly changed and became a different face.

Later, as the group grew larger and larger, people finally realized that something was wrong.

Back then, there were rules in the martial arts world. Even if they were bandits from the mountains, they still had to follow certain procedures when they came down to rob.

For example, wealthy gentry would rob people only for their money and not to kill them.

Or, as in the case of scholars not robbing and women and children not taking.

If it is someone from the martial arts world who commits a crime on local grounds, the stolen goods cannot be sold immediately; they must wait three days.

If the local bullies come knocking within three days, the item will be returned to its rightful owner.

These are rules that everyone agrees on.

But the appearance of this group was like a raging dragon, shattering the local balance and leaving chaos wherever they went.

At that time, there was a gang entrenched in northern Shanxi called the Jinbei Gang. This gang was known in the martial arts world for its ruthlessness and cunning, resorting to all sorts of tricks, deceptions, and thefts.

You're right to say they're robbers.

However, they were also the protectors of the local area, at least in the eyes of the security escort agencies and wealthy merchants. They paid the Jinbei Gang a tax every year, and the wealthy households could ask them for help if they encountered any trouble.

For example, as I just mentioned, if someone loses something, they can go to the Jinbei Gang, and the Jinbei Gang will help them find it.

As for the escort agencies, that goes without saying. Bandits and escort agencies have always been in cahoots, and they would even invite these bandits to visit brothels every month.

These bandits were fed by the local gentry and wealthy households, so they wouldn't rob ordinary people of their money. Sometimes they would even give some of their surplus grain to help farmers who were struggling to make ends meet.

Gradually, its reputation in the local area improved.

But after those people arrived, things went into chaos in northern Shanxi. The wealthy households suddenly went crazy, constantly giving away money, and eventually died mysteriously.

The Jinbei gang immediately realized there was something wrong. These wealthy households and gentry were their golden goose; they couldn't let them be slaughtered and eaten like this.

So the entire gang mobilized, intending to kill them all.

Who would have thought that the huge Jinbei Gang would disappear the very next day?

More than 130 people, armed with guns and knives, charged in, but the next morning, people discovered that all of them were dead.

They died silently, as if their souls had been ripped out.

Gang leader Yang Kaitai has disappeared.

This incident caused turmoil in the martial arts world, and people were filled with anxiety.

In the martial arts world, many experts have tried to find out the truth, and some have even gathered hundreds of people to hunt them down, but without exception, none of them have returned.

On the contrary, their group grew larger and larger, and wherever they went, it was like a procession of a hundred ghosts. Once someone was targeted, they would unknowingly become a member of the group.

But then the incident suddenly disappeared. Some say that the group had an internal conflict, others say that a martial arts master killed them, and still others say that the technique had reached its limit and, after gathering enough people, ascended to immortality with the help of everyone.

In short, there were all sorts of rumors, but in the end, everything was left unclear and nothing came of it.

Qinghao sighed as he recounted this story.

After all, this matter had become too big a fuss, but even spiritual beings like them couldn't find out the reason behind it. Therefore, the matter of [crushing technique] became a taboo in the martial arts world, and it was forbidden to talk about it, as doing so would surely bring misfortune.

Qinghao was surprised that he would actually see this evil technique again after so many years.

"It's not that mysterious. I think it's just a little better than ordinary soul-capturing or soul-calling techniques."

Xiao Ran was disdainful of the way Qinghao described this evil art.

In other words, these people just didn't catch the right time.

If it were back when the Plum Blossom Taoist planted the plum trees, there would probably be over a hundred more plum trees outside his estate.

As the two talked, they followed the group to the outside of a manor at a distance.

The manor's gate was wide open, with two large "longevity" characters written on white paper in black on either side.

The group walked straight inside.

The last two people in the line stood at the entrance, one on the left and one on the right, guarding the gate.

Seeing this, Xiao Ran immediately quickened her pace and strode into the house.

Just as she was about to enter, two men guarding the door immediately stopped Xiao Ran, their zombie-like, gaunt faces forcing ingratiating smiles.

"May I ask, esteemed guest, do you have any entry or exit credentials?"

"Yes, I have."

Xiao Ran smiled and reached out, patting the so-called evidence onto someone's chest.

Xiao Ran's gentle tap caused the two men's expressions to change drastically. They looked around to make sure no one else was there, and then quietly and discreetly removed the yin banknotes that Xiao Ran had stuck to their chests.

"Dear guests, please come inside."

He then turned and called out towards the door, "Distinguished guest has arrived!!"

Sure enough, no matter where you go, money is still the most useful asset.

Xiao Ran strode inside, and as soon as she entered, a man wearing a long gown and a small hat greeted her with a smile.

"Please come, esteemed guest, I am..."

Before the other person could finish speaking, they looked up and suddenly froze, exclaiming in surprise, "It's you!!"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Ran looked closely and immediately smiled, grabbing the other person's arm: "Of course it's me. How could I not come to the old lady's birthday celebration?"

The person in front of him was none other than Li Xuyin, who was hanging out with Zhang Qi.

Li Xuyin's face flickered between light and shadow. He looked around, wanting to speak, but Xiao Ran's fingers pinched him, and a piercing pain shot through him, making Li Xuyin unable to utter a word.

"Old Li, that's not fair of you. We haven't seen each other for a while. Come on, let's find a place to have a good chat."

Without a word, Xiao Ran pulled Li Xuyin forward. Once they reached the corner and were sure no one was around, she released Li Xuyin's arm and said coldly, "Speak, where is Zhang Qi? What's going on here?"

"me……"

Li Xuyin looked miserable and didn't know what to say.

Seeing this, Xiao Ran softened her tone and said, "I'm not a member of the Changchun Association. If you tell me the truth, I won't make things difficult for you. I just want to know what's going on."

Upon hearing this, Li Xuyin's expression became even more conflicted.

"I……"

"Fine, don't say it then. Don't blame me for not warning you. You followed Zhang Qi to this place. Do you think she'll let you go? Once she's squeezed out the last bit of value from you, you'll probably never leave here alive. Your fate will be even worse than what you suffered at the hands of the Ghost Doctor and the others."

As Xiao Ran turned to leave after speaking, Li Xuyin's expression changed, and he quickly stopped her, saying, "No, no, no, let me tell you something."

Li Xuyin said with a mournful face, lowering his voice, "I've been tricked."

"Fooled?"

"Well, Zhang Qi... she's not even a living person. I was forced to come by her."

Li Xuyin squatted on the ground, his face full of regret.

He was brought in by the Ghost Doctor and was originally treated as an honored guest, but after the Ghost Doctor and his team figured out the technical problems, his status plummeted.

Having been trapped in this godforsaken place for so many years, he had thought about escaping, but there was never any chance.

It wasn't until one night during rounds that Zhang Qi suddenly grabbed him and told him he had a way to get him out of there, and that's how Li Xuyin gradually started hanging out with Zhang Qi.

After Xiao Ran led the Ghost Doctor and the others out, Zhang Qi immediately led him upstairs.

On the way, he was asked to wake up a few patients, and then several negative stars inexplicably appeared on his body, with the number of negative stars increasing as he went higher.

By the time he reached the fifth floor, the number of negative stars above his head had reached as many as twenty-eight.

Only then did Zhang Qi reveal her true colors. It turned out that she had been possessed long ago and was not the original Zhang Qi at all. Being with him was nothing more than using the negative star above his head to turn this place into this horrific state.

Even now, I am not in control of my own destiny.

Listening to Li Xuyin's words, Xiao Ran had already made a judgment in her mind. She had suspected Zhang Qi of having a problem from the beginning, but she did not expect the problem to be so big.

What exactly is she trying to do?

“This…” Li Xuyin lowered his head: “She captured a girl, and the girl was tortured beyond recognition. She lost her arms, eyes, and legs, and was only kept alive by a few machines. She said she was going to hold some kind of grand ceremony. I don’t know the specifics of how it was held, but she put the girl in a coffin and said she was going to take something from her body.”

"coffin!"

Xiao Ran roughly understood what Zhang Qi was going to do and asked, "Where is the coffin?"

"Isn't that it? It's right there. But there's something eerie around the coffin. I advise you not to go near it."

Li Xuyin stood up, walked to the corner of the wall, and pointed to the middle of the courtyard. Xiao Ran looked closely and saw that the coffin was placed in the middle just as he had said, but... around the coffin, there were four flower sails, with countless eyes on them scanning the surroundings.

Obviously, it's impossible to approach the coffin silently.

Seeing this, Xiao Ran's heart stirred, and he was already thinking of taking matters into his own hands and snatching it. At worst, he would invite Plum Blossom Taoist out. He didn't believe that Zhang Qi's little ability could turn the world upside down.

But the moment this thought arose, Xiao Ran suddenly felt something was wrong. She felt that this matter seemed a little too simple, so her eyes flashed with light, and she used the power of retrospection to carefully examine the area around the coffin.

Suddenly, the space around the coffin began to distort, and the coffin slowly disappeared. In the dim light, countless red lines could be seen weaving a large net around the coffin, quietly waiting for the bait to be delivered to it...

(End of this chapter)