Steam Era: The Lord of 'Puluo'

The Phonograph, Big Beard, the master's overcoat. Could it be…

Huang Guangshi looked up at Li Banfeng. "You are..."

He didn't dare continue.

The person in front of him might really be Li Banfeng. Could Li Banfeng have killed the master? Impossible. With the master's high cultivation level, no one in Puluo State could kill him.

Li Banfeng, not bothering with idle talk, hooked Huang Guangshi's chin with the Sickle and said to the Phonograph, "My dear, let's eat."

HISS~

"Thank you for your affection, My lord, but Little Servant isn't hungry at all."

Li Banfeng was taken aback. "My dear, say that again. I didn't hear you clearly."

"My lord, Little Servant is truly not hungry."

Li Banfeng suspected something was wrong with the Phonograph. Or perhaps the stab wound to his stomach had impaired his hearing. My dear said she wasn't hungry? Such a thing had actually happened! It seemed his previous injuries hadn't healed yet. If the injury hadn't healed, he should eat more!

"My dear, I've bought all the groceries. Why don't you have a few bites, just as a snack?"

"Oh my~ My lord is so affectionate towards Little Servant, it would be rude to refuse~ But let me first ask this man, what Taoist Sect are you from?"

A cloud of Steam enveloped Huang Guangshi's face.

Huang Guangshi answered truthfully, "I am a Traveling Cultivator..."

"Traveling Cultivator? HUMPH, HUMPH, HUMPH~"

The drums and gongs started up, the Phonograph's laughter growing more and more ferocious.

"The Ninth Layer Husband brought back before was a Traveling Cultivator, and this one is too. Why are there so many Traveling Cultivators?" The Phonograph's song grew increasingly fierce.

Li Banfeng was startled. Why did my dear have such great hostility towards Traveling Cultivators? What did she mean by saying I brought back a Ninth Layer? Where did this Ninth Layer Traveling Cultivator come from?

Before Huang Guangshi could answer, the Phonograph stripped away a layer of his soul.

"All the Traveling Cultivators in this world should be cut into a thousand pieces!" The Phonograph roared and began Soul Sucking.

Li Banfeng was puzzled. "Why should Traveling Cultivators be cut into a thousand pieces?"

The Phonograph laughed while eating. "Because they deserve to die, Husband. You are of Home Cultivation; don't you hate Traveling Cultivators?"

Li Banfeng laughed dryly. "Hate them? I indeed hate them. I hate them a lot..."

That's not right. Just because of the conflicts between Taoist Sects, my dear hated Traveling Cultivators? That didn't seem right. There seemed to be some other reason.

"He is also..." In the midst of intense pain, Huang Guangshi wanted to shout out that Li Banfeng too was a Traveling Cultivator.

Li Banfeng broke out in a cold sweat. Then he saw the Copper Lotus Flower spit out a dewdrop into Huang Guangshi's mouth, preventing him from finishing his sentence.

The Copper Lotus Flower and the Phonograph were old acquaintances; she knew it was best not to mention Traveling Cultivators frequently in front of the Phonograph.

The Phonograph angrily shouted, "No manners! I haven't finished eating, yet you're grabbing the chopsticks!"

The Copper Lotus Flower spat at the Phonograph, and the two of them started fighting, temporarily moving past the matter of Traveling Cultivators.

Li Banfeng sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the yellow tweed overcoat on the floor, feeling as though he had seen it somewhere before.

There were many strange things happening today. The Phonograph didn't want to eat, and she mentioned something about a Ninth Layer Traveling Cultivator. Now, she reluctantly takes a bite, but she's not focused, busy fighting with the Lotus Flower.

"My dear, what on earth did you eat that made you so full?"

"Oh my, Husband, you've just returned from buying groceries. Have you forgotten that quickly?"

Groceries? Li Banfeng didn't remember buying groceries. He just remembered bringing back three phonographs, which the Copper Lotus Flower had transformed via Refining into a toothed-gear elixir and fed to the Phonograph. He wasn't sure if he should mention it, but the Refining effect was quite good… Wait a minute.

"Where's the person I saved?" Li Banfeng finally remembered where this yellow tweed overcoat came from.

"Eaten," the Phonograph admitted calmly. "We sisters ate him together."

"How could you just eat him like that? Do you know who he was? He was a person who could bring fortune!"

HAHA~

The Phonograph, while playing merry drums and gongs, sang loudly, "Fortune was indeed had! The whole family benefited."

A cloud of Steam drifted over, and two old newspapers entered the Phonograph's casing.

CLICK. The mirror inside the casing rotated, projecting the light into the horn of the Phonograph.

A beam of light shot from the horn and projected onto the wall, and the screen hanging on the wall opened up.

The Phonograph had inherited the functions of a Projector.

The screen showed a photograph from the news of the Lu Family successfully clearing new land, with many key members of the Lu Family present. The Phonograph had specifically circled Lu Dongliang's face.

The second photo was of the Lu Family purchasing two Medicine Shops in Medicine King Valley, again with a circle drawn around Lu Dongliang.

The third photo was of the Lu Family's acquisition of Hundred Joy Gate from the Chu Family.

The fourth photo showed the Lu Family's acquisition of the He Family Bank.

The fifth photo was of the Lu Family's acquisition of the Ma Family's land.

The sixth photo showed Lu Dongliang covered in mud and water, lying inside the Portable Residence.

Li Banfeng watched the screen in horror. "The one I brought back just now, was it Lu Dongliang?"

"Little Servant doesn't know who he is. I only know that he's identical to the man in these newspapers. He was a Ninth Layer Traveling Cultivator, a rare level of cultivation in Puluo State.

"He died well! Traveling Cultivators deserve to be killed!

"Little Servant is full from this meal. That wench Blood-Thirsty is also satisfied, and Red Lotus, that bitch, is still eating. This meal will probably last them several days."

Full, they were all full...

Li Banfeng was momentarily at a loss for words.

Suddenly, he heard sobbing nearby; it was coming from the Silk-pulling Earrings.

Li Banfeng listened carefully, only to hear, "My lord, my life is so hard, so hard..."

The Silk-pulling Earrings had always accompanied Li Banfeng, but they missed this meal.

The Earrings had limited expressive ability and could only cry continuously. Li Banfeng had yet to understand where exactly her misery lay when he suddenly heard a mournful, indignant sigh:

"Despite the talent to reach the clouds, I've never had the chance to unfold my aspirations. Such a good opportunity, and now it's just slipped away."

The Tang Sword wept, weeping pitifully.