The Overlord of Puluo

Li Banfeng raced across the mountainside while the Judge’s Brush flew low beside him, trying to carry him away.

The mountainside was choked with thick forest, branches and foliage crowding the air. The Judge’s Brush was having a hard time flying by himself, so imagine how difficult it would be to fly while carrying Li Banfeng.

Li Banfeng held his breath and kept running, waving for the Judge’s Brush to leave him and go on ahead.

Pfft!

A Toilblade Ghost spat a cloud of black mist at Li Banfeng. He dodged with Traceless Quick Step, then struck back with Treading Through Ten Thousand Rivers, blasting holes all over the creature. To his surprise, the Toilblade Ghost still did not break apart. It was much tougher than he had expected.

Two Toilblade Ghosts blocked the path ahead. Li Banfeng locked his gaze on them, ready to use Passing Flowers on Horseback, but two more were weaving through the trees above him, moving back and forth as they waited for a chance to ambush him.

To guard against every Toilblade Ghost around him, he could not keep his eyes fixed on any one target for long. And if one of them managed to spray him with that black mist, what would be the consequences?

Based on Li Banfeng’s deduction, the painter Fu Taiyue had ended up in that state after being sprayed by a Toilblade Ghost.

The woods ahead were thick and difficult to push through, so Li Banfeng used Severing Paths to Forge a Way and forced the trees apart, opening a path through the brush. The moment he broke through to the other side, he felt his throat tighten and a dull ache spread through his chest.

After holding his breath for so long, sprinting at full speed, and using one ability after another, Li Banfeng was starting to reach his limit.

The terrain ahead opened up slightly. The Judge’s Brush watched the surroundings for a moment, then called out, ”Take a breath.”

Li Banfeng had barely drawn in a breath when a Toilblade Ghost lunged at him from the left, spewing black mist.

Weird. Why didn’t I sense the incoming danger?

The Liquor Gourd sprayed a cloud of liquor mist over the Toilblade Ghost. Li Banfeng flicked a match at it, setting the creature on fire.

Even with its entire body ablaze, the Toilblade Ghost seemed completely unaffected at all as it continued chasing after Li Banfeng.

Li Banfeng had no intention of stopping to fight. He charged straight down the mountain, only to see more than a dozen Toilblade Ghosts bounding toward him from up ahead.

The Teapot splashed out a stream of tea and raised a barrier to hold them back. Li Banfeng veered around them and kept running.

Rumble!

Thunder rolled overhead, and rain came pouring down.

More and more Toilblade Ghosts closed in, filling the area with black mist. Li Banfeng could no longer risk taking a breath, and soon he barely had room to dodge. One path after another was cut off as the Toilblade Ghosts surrounded him, leaving him in an increasingly dangerous position. If he had the key to the Pocket Dwelling, he could use Hermit’s Lockdown and probably wipe out a large number of them at once.

With his life on the line, Li Banfeng suddenly thought of the mud pit outside the inn in Kinless Township. It was deep and soft, and anyone who stepped into it would sink almost at once.

He used Intent Travels a Thousand Mountains to bring the mud pit over. When a Toilblade Ghost leaped into the air, Li Banfeng placed it directly beneath where the creature was about to land.

Squelch!

The Toilblade Ghost landed squarely in the mud pit and quickly began to sink.

Taking advantage of the brief opening, Li Banfeng stepped on the creature’s head and used it as a foothold to break out of the encirclement.

When the effect of the ability wore off, the mud pit disappeared with it. The Toilblade Ghost was left stuck in the ground, unable to pull itself free.

This worked!

In the New Land near Blue Poplar Village, there was a place called Red Clay Ridge along the road to the Orange Grove. The marsh there was just as soft and treacherous. Li Banfeng had passed through Red Clay Ridge many times and knew the area well. Summoning every last bit of strength, he brought over a vast stretch of marshland, trapping dozens of Toilblade Ghosts around him in the mire.

The move worked perfectly, buying him precious time and room to escape. However, it came at a steep cost. Moving such a large expanse of marsh had nearly drained him of all his strength.

Li Banfeng stumbled and staggered his way down the mountainside, but he had not forgotten what Fu Taiyue had told him. Reaching the foot of the mountain did not mean he was safe. He still had a few more kilometers to go.

With no black mist around him for the moment, Li Banfeng finally drew another breath and pushed himself into a desperate sprint.

Miss Chu was on the plot of land, preparing for the final battle, when she spotted Li Banfeng charging toward them from a distance.

What happened? she thought.

Li Banfeng waved frantically at her, signaling for her to take everyone and leave at once.

Miss Chu was about to rush over to help him when someone beside her stopped her. ”Miss Chu, you can’t go. We are still activating the land. If we step out of this plot of land, the activation will fail.”

Just then, the earth beneath them heaved. Several Toilblade Ghosts burst out of the ground at once.

Li Banfeng was thrown to the ground as the earth erupted beneath him. One Toilblade Ghost lunged straight at him, but he rolled aside just in time. Another was waiting nearby, and Li Banfeng kicked it away before it could close in.

A third Toilblade Ghost stood off to the side with black mist gathering in its mouth, ready to strike. This time, Li Banfeng had nowhere left to dodge.

He yanked off his fedora and raised it in front of himself, hoping it might block the poisonous mist, though he had no idea whether it would actually work.

The Toilblade Ghost opened its mouth and was about to spew another cloud of black mist when Miss Chu rushed over and kicked it aside. She grabbed Li Banfeng and pulled him up from the ground.

As soon as Li Banfeng was back on his feet, Miss Chu suddenly shuddered. Still, she gritted her teeth and continued running. Seeing how slowly she was moving, Li Banfeng hoisted her over his shoulder and sprinted ahead.

They ran for more than half a kilometer before the remaining Toilblade Ghosts finally stopped chasing them. The creatures clearly did not want to stray too far from Ghostblade Ridge.

Once they were far enough away, Li Qi set Miss Chu down and was about to thank her when she collapsed on the ground and started trembling all over.

”What’s wrong? Are you hurt?” Li Banfeng reached out to help her, but Miss Chu hurriedly crawled away.

”Don’t touch me. You might get it on you.”

Black fluid was dripping from the back of her head, mixed with streaks of fresh blood. She had been struck by the Toilblade Ghost’s black mist!

Miss Chu endured the pain and asked quietly, ”Those were Toilblade Ghosts just now, weren’t they?”

As expected of a young lady from a prominent family. She knew her stuff.

Li Banfeng nodded.

A healer stepped forward. ”Miss, you should sit down and rest first. The poison hasn’t spread too far yet. We can still think of something.”

Miss Chu gave a cold laugh. ”And what exactly can you do? There’s only one way to deal with Toilblade Ghost poison. You cut off whatever part of the body was poisoned.”

Li Banfeng suddenly remembered the conversation between Fu Taiyue and his portrait. Fu Taiyue had fled down the mountain after his right hand was poisoned. If he had cut the hand off in time, he might have survived. However, Miss Chu’s injury was on the back of her head.

Miss Chu pulled out a curved saber and tossed it to Li Banfeng. ”Come. Do it.”

Li Banfeng froze for a moment before asking, ”Do what?”

”Cut my head off,” Miss Chu replied calmly.

”Are you crazy?”

”What else am I supposed to do? End up like them?” Miss Chu pointed toward Ghostblade Ridge in the distance.

That was what happened to anyone poisoned by a Toilblade Ghost. Once the poison fully took hold, the victim would become one of them.

Feeling completely at a loss for words, Li Banfeng stared at Miss Chu. Her head was tilted down, but she kept her eyes raised to look back at him. At this point, the back of her head was swelling at a visible rate.

After staring at each other for a moment, Miss Chu’s mouth grew unbearably dry and she wanted to swallow when another Healer hurried forward.

”Miss Chu, don’t swallow! The saliva in your mouth is just poison water now. Endure for a bit and don’t eat anything or drink anything. We will figure out something together. I remember reading in a medical text that Bitter Greens Manor has a kind of Heartshatter Orchid. If you crush it up and hold it in your mouth, the poison will clear up within three days.”

Li Banfeng turned to Miss Chu. ”Wait here. I will be back soon.”

Miss Chu shook her head. ”Don’t bother. Heartshatter Orchid doesn’t work.”

”But Miss Chu,” the Healer protested, ”I really did read it in a medical book...”

”Throw that medical book away. It’s lying to you,” Miss Chu responded. She knew the Bitter Greens Manor well. ”I once saw someone go to the Bitter Greens Manor to find Heartshatter Orchids. That person wanted to get the cure for the Toilblade Ghost poison. He kept dozens of them in his mouth and managed to hold on for five whole days. In the end, he still turned into a Toilblade Ghost.”

Another Healer spoke up. ”There’s a kind of Three-Eyed Bamboo over in the New Land at Soda Kiln. If you wrap the leaves around the wound, it can neutralize the poison!”

Li Banfeng was about to head for Soda Kiln, but Miss Chu stopped him with a shake of her head. ”That thing is useless too.”

”You have seen a Three-Eyed Bamboo before?”

Miss Chu thought for a moment. Her eyes were losing focus and she seemed to be falling into a daze. ”Have I seen it before? I think I have. Where have I seen it before? Was it at Soda Kiln? Have I been to Soda Kiln...”

The Healer said, ”Miss Chu, don’t panic. If you have forgotten a few things, then let it be. Just don’t forget the things that really matter.”

Miss Chu looked at him. ”What do you mean by ’the things that really matter’?”

”I mean... the most important things in your life...” The Healer trailed off. Even he wasn’t quite sure how to explain it.

Cedric spoke up. ”Once you have been poisoned by a Toilblade Ghost, you have to remember who you are. The moment you forget yourself, you will turn into one of them.”

That was why Fu Taiyue had painted so many portraits of himself, from his younger years all the way into old age. He had been trying to remember who he was.

Miss Chu suddenly gave a small laugh. ”Sooner or later, I will turn anyway. Why put myself through all this suffering? Oh, right. I am an Ascetic Cultivator. I remember now. I am good at enduring hardship... but why am I enduring it?”

Her memories were slipping away fast.

Li Banfeng touched the Judge’s Brush. The Judge’s Brush sighed; he didn’t know how to cure the poison either. Li Banfeng then tapped the Liquor Gourd and the Liquor Gourd sighed and said, ”Even when Old Mister Yao was here, he couldn’t cure poison from a Toilblade Ghost.”

Li Banfeng looked at Miss Chu. ”Keep reminding yourself who you are. Don’t drink anything, and don’t eat. Wait here for me.”

If Fu Taiyue could endure for so many days, Miss Chu could surely do the same. As long as she could endure and hold onto it, there would definitely be some way to save her. The only question was who could treat her.

He could ask his wifey first and then the Old Man Pocket Dwelling. If no one in his home knew, then he would head to Bitter Greens Manor and ask Granny Bitter for help.

Surely, Granny Bitter would not watch her disciple die, but could she even cure her?

Miss Chu had just said that someone had gone to Bitter Greens Manor for treatment and still ended up turning into a Toilblade Ghost, so it was likely that Granny Bitter wouldn’t have any way to cure her.

In that case, he would seek out the Peddler for help. If the Peddler couldn’t help, he would go to Sun Tiecheng. And if Sun Tiecheng had no way either, there was still Old Mister Xu...

He couldn’t just let Miss Chu die like this. He couldn’t let himself owe her a life.

”Don’t go!” Miss Chu shouted through clenched teeth. ”I saved your life. The least you can do is see me through to the end!”

Li Banfeng didn’t answer. He just kept walking.

Miss Chu snatched a knife from one of her subordinates. ”Forget it. You already can’t stand me while I am alive. If I die and turn into one of those ugly things, you will hate looking at me even more. I might as well end it myself.”

She tried to kill herself, but Li Banfeng wrestled the knife away from her. When he was about to grab a rope to tie her up, Miss Chu shouted, ”If you dare tie me up, I will die right now. All I have to do is swallow the saliva in my mouth and poison myself to death.”

Li Banfeng put the rope down.

Miss Chu called out to the others, ”Leeaave! All of you! I need to talk to Li Qi alone. While I can still remember, I have to say everything I need to say.”

Cedric spoke from the side. ”Before you send me away, could you let me try treating you?”

I almost forgot about this foreign devil. Miss Chu looked over at Cedric, a glimmer of hope in her eyes.

Li Banfeng had serious doubts. Cedric knew how to treat illnesses, but he was not very good at neutralizing poison. Was he planning to experiment on Miss Chu?

Cedric answered very honestly. ”I have read descriptions of Toilblade Ghosts in a few books, but I have never actually encountered one myself. Every medical book I have come across says there is no antidote for their poison. I want to try something, but I can’t say how likely it is to work. What I can promise is that it won’t take much of your time. Even if I fail, Li Banfeng will still have plenty of time to try another treatment, and you will still have time to tell him everything you want to say.”

Miss Chu looked at Li Banfeng and nodded. She had made up her mind to die if it came to that, but she had not given up her desire to live.

Li Banfeng had no reason to stop Cedric, so the treatment began at once. Cedric first asked everyone else to move away, leaving only Miss Chu and Li Banfeng

Cedric said to Li Banfeng, ”Her wound is too close to the brain. During the treatment, I can’t let Miss Chu lose her memory and trigger the poison. If that happens, not only will all my efforts be wasted, but my own life could be in danger as well. And so, I need your help. While I am treating her, you have to keep her conscious and aware of who she is at all times. Simply put, don’t let her forget who she is.”