The Overlord of Puluo

When did this Black Glove appear in my home?

Li Banfeng did not bother asking a single question. He just grabbed his sickle, charged straight at the Black Glove, and swung the sickle at him.

The Black Glove ran around him until he reached the White Glove. Hiding behind the White Glove, the Black Glove yelled, ”Don’t be rash! I have some good stuff here, stuff that belonged to Xiao Zhenggong. Let me leave, and I’ll give them to you!”

Li Banfeng moved around the White Glove, raised his sickle, and swung it down again. However, the Black Glove suddenly vanished.

The White Glove shouted, ”Boss, watch out!”

Li Banfeng sensed a malicious attack coming toward him and ducked to dodge it. The Black Glove had thrown a dagger at him, but it failed to make contact. The finely crafted dagger struck the table instead. It cut the table cleanly in half, sending the sleeping Judge’s Brush rolling onto the floor.

There should not have been a dagger that fine in the Pocket Dwelling. That meant the White Glove’s earlier deduction had been correct. This dagger had likely come from Xiao Zhenggong, whose belongings had all been taken by the Black Glove.

Li Banfeng turned and swung his sickle at the Black Glove, but the Black Glove vanished again. The White Glove quickly detected the Black Glove’s location in the room and charged over to fight him.

The Black Glove shouted, ”Even if you kill me, you still won’t get his things.”

Li Banfeng swung his sickle at the Black Glove once more, but the Black Glove vanished yet again. The sickle nearly cut the White Glove instead; Li Banfeng had to quickly pull back to avoid him. The Black Glove took advantage of that moment and appeared right in front of Li Banfeng.

Dodging Li Banfeng’s attacks, the Black Glove said, ”Rather than fighting until we’re all injured, why don’t we make a deal?”

The White Glove raised his trowel and swung it at the Black Glove, but the Black Glove kept circling around Li Banfeng, making it difficult for the White Glove to attack him. While the White Glove was hesitating, the Black Glove slipped behind him and dragged a finger across his back, ripping open a large gash.

The White Glove shuddered and nearly collapsed from the pain. The Black Glove raised two fingers, intending to snip off the White Glove’s fingers.

Li Banfeng rescued the White Glove just in time. He turned and swept his sickle toward the Black Glove, but the Black Glove narrowly evaded it and vanished again.

What ability is this Black Glove using?

Li Banfeng and the White Glove were both incredibly fast, and the battle was occurring in Li Banfeng’s dwelling. As a Homebound Cultivator, Li Banfeng had a tremendous advantage here. Yet, the Black Glove kept appearing and disappearing, always managing to find something to hide behind. He was up against two opponents, but he had somehow managed to hold out for so long.

The Black Glove was this formidable, so why did he not make a move when Li Banfeng killed Xiao Zhenggong the day before?

Hong Ying wanted to end the Black Glove, but the Gramophone stopped her.

”Wench, don’t act rashly.”

Hong Ying was puzzled. ”What’s rash about what I want to do? I’ll shred him with one stab!”

”That fellow is too cunning. He keeps staying beside my husband. I’m afraid you’ll accidentally hurt him instead of that fellow.”

”Don’t worry. I know what I’m doing. If I slip up, you can smack my butt.”

”What’s the point of that? Would it bring my husband back to life if you kill him by accident? You haven’t fought anyone in years. I can’t trust you!”

The Black Glove was certainly troublesome, but he lacked any lethal moves, so it would be difficult for him to seriously injure Li Banfeng. The Gramophone patiently watched Li Banfeng contend with the Black Glove, waiting for the right opportunity to subdue him.

The Black Glove appeared from the floor. Yet, in the next second, he had flown up to the ceiling.

He said to Li Banfeng, ”I know you’re all ruthless people, but killing me won’t be that easy. I can hide in your house for another ten days or even half a month, and you might not even be able to find me. I’ll definitely find a chance to escape, and when that happens—”

The Black Glove suddenly fell silent. He was wondering about one thing. How did I end up flying this high?

His strategy had been to stay as close to Li Banfeng as possible, making it difficult for either the White Glove or Li Banfeng to attack. But now that he had flown up to the ceiling, the situation was no longer favorable for him.

There’s no wind in the room, so what exactly interfered with my movements?

Then the Judge’s Brush, lying on the floor, let out an amused snort. ”Hmph.”

The Black Glove was stunned. He had not even noticed the Judge’s Brush. The previous night, the Judge’s Brush had been too lazy to eat and had simply lain still on the table. The Black Glove had assumed the Judge’s Brush was an inanimate object.

When did I fall victim to an ability of this Judge’s Brush? And why did he want me to fly up here?

Just then, Li Banfeng leaped up, holding his sickle up high. The Black Glove was about to disappear again.

However, the Judge’s Brush yelled, ”Give me back my payment!”

The Black Glove’s movements instantly slowed.

Li Banfeng hooked his sickle onto the Black Glove, pulled him down from the ceiling, and pinned him to the table.

The Black Glove cried out in pain. ”Let me go! Otherwise, I’ll destroy all of Xiao Zhenggong’s good stuff!” 𝖋𝙧ⅇ

Li Banfeng nodded. ”Go ahead. I don’t care about those things.”

The Black Glove was startled. He had plenty of life experience and knew the difference between an empty threat and a real one.

Seeing that Li Banfeng was serious, the Black Glove quickly changed his tune. ”I was anxious just now and spoke without thinking. Master Qi, I’ll work for you from now on. Whatever you ask me to do, I’ll do it.”

Li Banfeng smiled. ”You’re too kind. But we’re not that close.”

”Master Qi, hear me out. You’ve got all kinds of capable people around you, and you’re bound to accomplish great things in the future. But that White Glove of yours isn’t good enough. He’s not too bad at flipping open a skylight[1] and digging a tunnel[2]. But when it comes to charging into a kiln[3] and putting up shelves[4], his skills are far inferior to mine. Master Qi, if you don’t believe me, use me for a while. If I can’t outdo that White Glove, you can do whatever you want with me afterward.”

The White Glove stood on the floor. Threads hung loose from the long gash running across his back. He lowered his index finger without saying a word.

The Black Glove was right. The White Glove was well aware of it; he was indeed inferior to the Black Glove.

He had once hidden in the Pocket Dwelling for quite some time without Li Banfeng noticing. But the one who had not noticed him back then had been Li Banfeng. This time, the Black Glove had hidden in the Pocket Dwelling for an entire day, yet the White Glove and even the Old Man had not noticed him. Even more impressively, the Black Glove could open the front door of the Pocket Dwelling, which was something the White Glove could not do.

When people were compared, some were bound to fall short, and when goods were compared, some were bound to be discarded. The difference between the White and Black Gloves was glaringly obvious; there was nothing more for the White Glove to say.

The White Glove lowered his head and walked to the corner of the room.

Yet, Li Banfeng suddenly pointed at the Black Glove and said, ”Wifey, take his soul.”

The Black Glove cried out in alarm, ”Why?!”

The Gramophone did not hesitate for a moment and drove her stylus straight into the Black Glove.

Having been the commander of three armies back in her prime, what sort of people had she not seen? The White Glove might be difficult to tame, but the Black Glove could never be tamed. The Gramophone could see that at a glance.

The Black Glove shouted, ”Master Qi, I’m more capable than that White Glove. Why won’t you keep me?”

Li Banfeng said expressionlessly, ”Because you hurt my brother.”

Brother? The Black Glove did not understand. Isn’t it just an enchanted artifact? When did it become his brother?

Even if he understood, it would not have helped him. The Gramophone’s stylus trembled, and she took in the Black Glove’s soul.

Li Banfeng picked up the White Glove and looked at the gash on his back. ”Bear with the pain. I’ll have Wifey stitch it up. At worst, it’ll leave a scar.”

”It’s not important. It’s not—” the White Glove said, choking up midway. All five of his fingers trembled, and he was unable to say another word for quite a while.

The Gramophone brought over some silk thread and stitched up the gash in the White Glove’s back while saying to Li Banfeng, ”There’s still a bit of spirit essence left in the Black Glove. Some of his abilities could come in handy.”

Li Banfeng shook his head. ”No need. Our family only needs one Glove.”

He went to the ninth room and carried the Crimson Lotus over to the Black Glove. ”Take it in.”

The Crimson Lotus spread open her petals and pulled the Black Glove into the lotus core.

Just then, the White Glove suddenly said, ”Third Madam, wait a moment.”

The Crimson Lotus spat at the Glove, ”Who are you calling Third Madam?”

The White Glove fell silent for a moment, then he leaped straight into the lotus core.

Shocked, Li Banfeng yelled at the Crimson Lotus, ”Spit him out! Hurry and spit him out!”

The Crimson Lotus quickly closed her petals. ”Too late. He and the Black Glove have both been turned into lotus seeds.”

”How did they turn into lotus seeds so quickly? Why didn’t you work this fast when you were making pills? Hurry up and let him out!”

Li Banfeng tried to pry open the lotus petals.

However, the Gramophone dissuaded him. ”Husband dear, Crimson Lotus doesn’t consume living things. Our Glove has a soul, so she won’t refine him completely. But his physical body will undergo major changes, and it’s hard to say whether his soul will be damaged. Husband, don’t disturb her for now. As long as that wretch doesn’t deliberately try to hurt the Glove, he should be fine.”

Li Banfeng quickly let go of the Crimson Lotus, cleared a table in the second room, and quietly placed the Crimson Lotus on it.

Then he returned to the main room. The table there had been split in half, so Li Banfeng was about to throw out the broken pieces of wood. That was when he found the Judge’s Brush still lying on the floor.

He quickly picked up the Judge’s Brush and said admiringly, ”You did a great service today. I didn’t see you touch that Black Glove. How were you able to make him fly?”

The Judge’s Brush gave a one-word reply. ”Light!”

Li Banfeng thought about it for a moment. ”Because the Glove was light enough?”

”Mmhm!”

The Judge’s Brush could make relatively light objects fly without touching them.

Li Banfeng remarked in surprise, ”I’ve never seen you use that ability before.”

”Hmph!”

The Judge’s Brush was filled with contempt. He had actually used this ability before. Few people had noticed it, but the ability was very important to him.

And why was it important? This was why.

Li Banfeng placed the Judge’s Brush on the storage shelf. The Judge’s Brush rolled over, intending to go to sleep, only to find that it was a little cold on the shelf. He glanced at the newspaper beside the bed. Without moving, he made the newspaper on the table fly over and land on top of him. With that, he did not feel cold anymore.

Li Banfeng sat beside the Crimson Lotus and waited for the result of the refinement.

The Gramophone said, ”Heyaaa~ Husband dear, there’s no rushing this. Settle down and get some sleep first.”

Li Banfeng could not sleep, so he went to the third room.

The Old Man was awake as well. He was deeply bothered by the incident with the Black Glove.

”Someone opened my door, and even I failed to notice. This is the first time I’ve encountered anything like it. That Black Glove must have an extraordinary background.”

Li Banfeng was also a little shaken by that. ”It’s fine. That Black Glove is gone now anyway.”

”But Glove refined himself too. He must have wanted to learn the Black Glove’s abilities. We’ll have to be more careful around him from now on.”

Li Banfeng frowned. ”He’s one of our own.”

The Old Man chuckled twice. ”I don’t trust him. Even if he took a blade for you, I still wouldn’t trust him.”

***

By dawn, the Crimson Lotus still had not opened her petals. Li Banfeng left the Pocket Dwelling, intending to take a look around outside.

Just as he reached the entrance to Freewind Wharf, a steam automobile made Li Banfeng stop in his tracks. In Puluo, steam automobiles were a distinctive sign of one thing.

Li Banfeng turned around and saw Liao Zihui walking out of the breakfast shop beside Freewind Wharf.

”I came a little early. I didn’t mean to disturb you, so I had something to eat first.” Liao Zihui looked at Freewind Wharf. ”Shall we go inside and talk?”

Li Banfeng had someone open a private room. Liao Zihui had come alone, and he sat across from Li Banfeng.

”I read about what happened with the Jiangxiang Gang in the newspaper. There are some details I’d like to verify with you. Did you kill Xiao Zhenggong?”

Li Banfeng nodded. ”I did.”

Liao Zihui was not surprised by Li Banfeng’s attitude. ”The Jiangxiang Gang is a particularly vile gang. I have no objection to you eliminating that scourge, but Xiao Zhenggong was a Balancer. I assume you know about this special identity of his.”

Li Banfeng pretended to be surprised. ”What’s a Balancer? I really didn’t know about this.”

Liao Zihui explained, ”A Balancer is a special person capable of maintaining balance among different parties. More specifically, Balancers have a certain amount of influence in the Inner Provinces, the Outer Provinces, and Puluo, giving them the ability to resolve conflicts between various parties from the three sides.”

Li Banfeng smiled. ”Your judgment really isn’t that good. Why would you choose someone like Xiao Zhenggong? Did he really have much influence in Puluo? How many people in Puluo were even willing to pay him any attention?”

Liao Zihui tapped his fingers on the table and sighed. ”We would also like to find a more suitable person, but someone like that might not be willing to cooperate with the Outer Provinces.”

Li Banfeng asked with a hint of mockery, ”So you stopped being picky? Just any Tom, Dick, or Harry can become a Balancer? If there were a conflict between the Outer Provinces and Puluo, what exactly did you think Xiao Zhenggong could have resolved with those useless members of the Jiangxiang Gang?”

”If the conflict were to arise in Puluo, I think we would have an appropriate way to resolve it. But if the conflict were to arise in the Inner Provinces, having someone who could mediate would be extremely significant.”

Li Banfeng furrowed his brows slightly. ”Can you put that more plainly? Are you saying that the severity of any conflict with Puluo doesn’t really matter, and that the only thing that matters is the Inner Provinces, right?”

Liao Zihui was silent for a long while before shaking his head. ”I’m not the one who determines the basic principles, so this is the most I can explain. I came to tell you that Balancers are extremely important to us. Now that Xiao Zhenggong is dead, I need an explanation.”

Li Banfeng smiled. ”What kind of explanation do you want? Do you want me to bring him back to life? Or is there something you failed to make clear to him and now want to discuss with him face-to-face?”

”He had some extremely important documents and materials, as well as a seal. That seal is especially important, as it’s connected to his identity as a Balancer. I have to get those things back. I hope you’ll cooperate.”

Li Banfeng shook his head. ”I suppose I was a little too heavy-handed. Xiao Zhenggong was reduced to ashes, and nothing was left behind. You’d be better off asking people who knew him to see if they had happened to see his seal.”

Tap, tap! Tap, tap!

Liao Zihui kept tapping the table lightly with his fingers. ”Li Qi, by doing this, you’ve put me in a very difficult position.”

”Old Liao, you came looking for me, so you’re the one making things difficult for yourself.”

Liao Zihui got up and left. Li Banfeng did not see him out.

Instead, Li Banfeng remained sitting in the private room for quite some time.

Many people like tapping their fingers on the table while talking, but does Liao Zihui have this habit?

Li Banfeng recalled the occasions when they had eaten together. Liao Zihui seemed to have tapped the table before, but he had never done it as frequently as he had today.

***

1. Slang for: picking the pocket of an upper outer garment ☜

2. Slang for: picking a trouser pocket ☜

3. Slang for: burglary ☜

4. Slang for: obstructing someone’s line of sight ☜