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墨書 Inktalez
This time, the overall teleportation of Earth caused quite a stir, even attracting the attention of the realms beyond, who sent people to investigate the situation. Fortunately, the various sects on Earth had connections with those in the Earth Immortal Realm, and they quickly accepted the newcomers from Earth, arranging for them to join their sects. Elder Brother Li and Hanno watched the commotion for a while before leaving together to explore this new world. The Spiritual Energy in this realm was abundant, making their cultivation much smoother.
One day, Hanno and Elder Brother Li arrived at Yuzhou City. Yuzhou City was bustling with activity, home to a mortal force known as the Tang Family Fortress, which had guarded the city for generations. Unfortunately, there was no girl named Tang Xuejian in the Tang Family Fortress, nor any disciples practicing Rogui Dao.
Hanno and Elder Brother Li entered the largest restaurant in Yuzhou City. The decor was impressive, and judging by the number of patrons inside, the food should be quite good. Hanno licked his lips and pulled Elder Brother Li inside.
“Would you like to sit in the main hall or a private room?” asked a cheerful attendant.
“The main hall is fine,” Elder Brother Li replied, tossing a silver coin to the attendant. While a private room would be quieter, the main hall had more atmosphere and allowed them to overhear local gossip and information—after all, they were still using their Divine Sense when not eating or resting.
“Great!” The attendant was thrilled with the tip and became even more attentive, leading Hanno and Elder Brother Li to the best available table.
“Bring us your signature dishes,” Hanno said eagerly, noticing that the dishes on other tables looked delicious and swallowing hard.
“Sir, our restaurant has at least twenty signature dishes.”
“Then bring us twenty! Each one on a plate,” Hanno laughed. “Even if we can’t finish them all, we can take some away. Are you worried we can’t pay?”
The attendant shook his head vigorously. Although he didn’t understand what “take away” meant, he didn’t ask further and hurried off to order the dishes.
Yuzhou Cuisine is famous for its spiciness and freshness, making it very suitable for Hanno’s taste. As he enjoyed spicy chicken and grilled fish, he found it incredibly authentic and praised it repeatedly. He even rewarded the attendant with another silver coin to pass on to the chef.
“The Shen Family was exterminated?”
“Yes, all ten members of their family were killed.”
“What about the officials?”
“They say they were involved with bandits.”
"We have the Tang Family Fortress protecting us in Yuzhou. Where would the bandits come from?"
"That's right, that's right."
"It can't be bandits from outside!"
"Bandits from outside? Why would they kill members of the Shen Family?"
"Because of the crime of possessing treasures!"
"What do you mean?"
"Just figure it out quickly."
Hanno perked up his ears.
"Do you know why the Shen Family went from being a poor family with only two acres of land to becoming the wealthy magnates of Yuzhou City?"
"Isn't it because Shen Wansan dug up a chest of treasures left by his ancestors in his own fields?"
"Pfft. The Shen Family is not local to Yuzhou; they fled here from elsewhere. That two acres of land was bought from someone else. Where would their ancestral property come from?"
"Then where did these treasures come from?"
"I'll tell you—" the speaker lowered his voice, "what Shen Wansan dug up was indeed treasure. It's said to be a Treasure Basin, which automatically produces gold, silver, and other precious items."
A collective gasp filled the air, followed by the sound of people swallowing hard.
"That explains it. With such a treasure, how could Shen Wansan possibly keep it safe? Instead, he has dragged his older brother, sister-in-law, and the brothers who follow him into trouble."
"Hmph, Shen Wansan is no good. His older brother, sister-in-law, and those brothers of his are no good either. They have money but do nothing good with it, only engage in immoral deeds. They deserve to die."
"Do you think this was the work of the Tang Family Fortress?"
"Shh, be quiet! If the Tang Family Fortress hears you, we're done for!"
"…"
Hanno turned to Elder Brother Li. "After we finish eating, shall we go check out the Shen Family?"
Elder Brother Li agreed. "Are you suspecting that the treasure basin Shen Wansan picked up is part of the Eastern Emperor Bell?"
Hanno nodded. "I have a feeling it is."
"If it is, that would be great. It would make our journey with Nan Fengning worthwhile." Elder Brother Li said. In fact, before Nan Fengning's Slay the Dragon Vein event, they had the chance to leave this world, but they wanted to explore this so-called 'immortal realm' a bit longer.
Hanno smiled, a shallow dimple appearing on his cheek. "What a pleasant surprise. But speaking of which, there must be some connection between this world and the one where the Ming Dynasty exists. Otherwise, why would there be a Shen Wansan here if there's one over there? And there are also legends of Shen Wansan and the Treasure Basin in the Ming Dynasty."
"Maybe there is," Elder Brother Li said uncertainly. "But even if there is, it has nothing to do with us. We're just passersby in this world."
"That's true." Hanno stopped dwelling on the issue as they leisurely finished their meal—after all, how could they possibly be full? A cultivator can convert food into energy through their cultivation techniques—both looked at the empty plates in astonishment; they had consumed enough food for ten people between just the two of them, one of whom was a delicate young lady. Uh-oh, these two are definitely not ordinary people!
The Shen Family was desolate; although a mourning hall had been set up, no one came to pay their respects because the Shen Family had a terrible reputation in Yuzhou City. The common folk disliked them greatly; the mourning hall was constructed by local officials using what remained of the Shen Family's wealth.
Hanno pushed open the large door and walked into the Shen Family with Elder Brother Li. A head peeked out from next door; upon seeing them enter, it immediately dashed out from behind the door and ran off to who knows where.
Hanno and Elder Brother Li exchanged smiles, ignoring the man. The air in the Shen Family residence was foul, thick with the stench of blood, and the bodies laid out in the hall had begun to emit a faint odor due to the lack of refrigeration.
The two opened the coffin to take a look inside, where all the occupants had been killed by knives.
"This wasn't done by a Cultivator," Hanno remarked.
Elder Brother Li nodded. "It shouldn't be the work of any skilled martial artist either. The strikes are brutal, but it's clear their martial arts skills are not high."
Hanno said, "That rules out the Tang Family Fortress. But if it was truly someone unknown, where do we go to find the Eastern Emperor Bell?"
Elder Brother Li replied, "There's no other way but to ask those involved if they know any clues about the Murderer."
Hanno added, "Fortunately, these souls haven't been taken by the Underworld yet."
Elder Brother Li formed a hand seal, and a cold wind swept through the stuffy room, causing the temperature to drop. He then shouted, "Show yourselves!"
The light in the room dimmed immediately as dozens of figures—no, they were more like ghostly shadows—appeared out of thin air. Initially, these newly deceased spirits were confused about their situation, but as memories of their last moments flooded back, they erupted into chaos, wailing and crying out, which made Hanno frown.
"Shut up!" Hanno barked. "If anyone dares to scream again, I'll make sure you can't even be a ghost!"
Instantly, all noises ceased. This group of spirits had been bullies when they were alive and now that they were ghosts, they couldn't shake off their old habits. The fact that Hanno and his companion could summon them meant they were likely some sort of divine beings; how could they not be afraid?
Hanno scanned the group of spirits and noticed two of them with shifty eyes who clearly had something to hide. He chuckled lightly. "I initially thought your Shen Family suffered misfortune due to envy from outsiders because of your wealth. I didn't expect it to be caused by an internal traitor bringing wolves into your home."
"What? A traitor?" One tall male spirit in his thirties rushed forward without regard for Hanno and Elder Brother Li's presence and shouted loudly, "Is someone betraying me?"
Hanno shot him a disdainful glare. "Who do you think you are calling 'me'?"
The male ghost trembled in fear and quickly bowed to Hanno, apologizing, "It was a slip of the tongue. Please forgive me, great one. Shen Wansan pays his respects to you."
"You are Shen Wansan?" Hanno looked him up and down. "You seem like a decent person, yet I hear you do nothing good?"
Shen Wansan's face turned awkward. "Well, I may not have done anything particularly good, but I haven't committed any major crimes either. I might have bullied some old folks and children, stolen a bit here and there, and when I had money, I lent it out at high interest... but I've never killed anyone!"
Hanno replied, "If you had killed someone, there would already be a spot for you in the hell below the tenth level."
Shen Wansan gasped in shock. "Is there really an eighteen-layer hell?"
Hanno sneered, "If deities exist, then why wouldn't there be an eighteen-layer hell?"
Shen Wansan shivered and suddenly knelt down, hugging Hanno's leg tightly. "Great one, please help me! I don't want to go to the eighteen-layer hell!"
Hanno kicked him away. "It's too late."
He reached out and pulled out two ghosts with flickering eyes. "If I'm not mistaken, you two must be Shen Wansan's elder brother and sister-in-law? Can you explain to me why you conspired with outsiders to harm your own brother?"
"What? They betrayed me?" Upon hearing this, Shen Wansan lunged forward again, but Hanno kicked him away once more.
"Great one, we were wrong! We shouldn't have been greedy; we harmed our brother and brought ruin upon ourselves!" The Eldest of the Shen Family and his wife cried bitterly, filled with regret. Hanno and Elder Brother Li pieced together the truth behind the Shen Family's misfortune from their fragmented accounts.
Indeed, as the people of Yuzhou said, none of the Shen Family were good people. They had fled to Yuzhou decades ago. From their father’s generation onward, they had never been diligent workers; they were idlers who barely managed to raise the two brothers. Shen Wansan was even worse; relying on his tall stature and strength, he bullied others and became a tyrant in Yuzhou City. If it weren't for their poverty and lack of connections, Shen Wansan might have truly faced dire consequences.
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