Steam Era: The Lord of 'Puluo'

This vile woman was not only cruel but also damned poisonous.

Li Banfeng felt a tingling itch on his back and hurried back to his Portable Residence.

Once inside the house, he took off his clothes, ready to ask his wife to treat his wounds, but she suddenly burst out roaring, "Hey you madman, where did these scratches on your back come from?"

Li Banfeng explained, "They were made by a woman."

"Hmph! So you admit it! She scratched you so deeply; it looks like you didn't hold back either!"

Li Banfeng pointed at his back. "I've been poisoned."

"You two even used poison? What other elaborate games did you play?"

Li Banfeng picked up his clothes. "My clothes are torn too."

"The clothes are torn..." his wife echoed thoughtfully.

CLANG CLANG CLANG—

The Phonograph calmed a bit, spewing out a puff of steam that caressed Li Banfeng's back.

If his clothes hadn't been torn, and only Li Banfeng himself had been injured, the situation would have been far more serious. But now that both his clothes and Li Banfeng were damaged, it proved he was at least wearing clothes at the time.

Under the steam treatment, Li Banfeng sweated profusely. Once the sweat evaporated, the itching misery vanished, and the poison was completely cleansed.

Li Banfeng lay on the bed, his back wounds quickly scabbing over. His recovery ability as a Home Cultivator within his residence was astonishing.

The steam continued to gently stroke his back, while the Phonograph softly sang, "Such a spiteful woman. Leave her to Little Servant to deal with. Little Servant will avenge Master."

Li Banfeng snorted coldly. "Is it revenge you want, or just a meal?"

"Hee-hee... Little Servant cherishes Master so dearly; how can you speak to me with such sarcasm?"

The Phonograph felt wronged and used steam to lift Li Banfeng's clothes, meticulously sewing the tear.

CLACK CLACK CLACK!

With its integrated sewing machine function, the Phonograph's needle could be threaded, making repairs exceedingly fast.

Once the clothes were mended, his wife asked, "But tell me, that vile woman must be human, right?"

"Of course, she is human. Why do you ask that?"

"Well now~ You have your Golden Gaze Autumn Hair to discern Yin and Yang, and your Hundred Flavors Delicate nose. Master, it seems you were so dazzled by that woman today that you forgot to use these Techniques! And there's a scent of incense on you."

"Really?"

Li Banfeng picked up his clothes and took a sniff. The scent of cosmetics was extremely strong on them, but upon careful distinction, there was indeed a faint scent of incense.

How could he have overlooked this smell?

It wasn't that Li Banfeng had been negligent. In the dance hall, the scents of smoke, alcohol, and cosmetics were too numerous and overpowering, masking the faint scent of incense. Li Banfeng truly hadn't been able to distinguish it.

Could Chu Er be a ghost?

That shouldn't be the case.

Li Banfeng had always been on guard against Chu Er. If she were a ghost, Li Banfeng would have at least seen Ghost Fire.

...

The dance was nearing its end. Chu Er got up to bid farewell. Ma Wu had a carriage ready to take her to the village entrance, after which he returned to the dance hall to calculate the day's expenses.

Watching the carriage carrying Chu Er and her companions drive away, Liu Liangyi's figure appeared at the village entrance.

In his hand, he held a stick of incense. The smoke curled upwards, drifting all the way to Mengchun Garden.

In the dance hall, Ma Wu was tallying the accounts. On the opening day, all the guests had been invited, and the expenses were not small.

As he was calculating the critical figures, he suddenly heard a dancing girl exclaim, "What are you doing? Don't you watch where you're going?"

Following the sound, a man stepped into the dance hall, bumping into the dancing girl and causing her to stumble.

The man wore a jacket and a round felt hat, his face obscured by a scarf, making his features unclear.

Xiao Chuan stepped forward, helped the dancing girl up, and said to the man, "We're closing now. If you want to dance, come back tomorrow."

The man didn't respond and continued to walk forward.

Xiao Chuan frowned. "Didn't you understand what I said? We're closing!"

The man suddenly drew a sword and slashed at Xiao Chuan.

Xiao Chuan was a Craftsman Cultivator who hadn't yet attained a level, so he didn't react in time.

Ma Wu reacted a step faster. He pushed Xiao Chuan aside, dodged the sword, and kicked the man.

CRACK!

It sounded as if the man's bone had broken.

But this didn't affect his attack in the slightest; he raised his sword and chopped at Ma Wu again.

Ma Wu dodged with ease. Others tried to step forward to help, but Ma Wu stopped them.

His opponent's moves weren't particularly fast, but his body was exceptionally strong. He must be a Body Cultivator without a level, Ma Wu surmised.

This guy is probably just a ruffian, Ma Wu reasoned. A good beating should take care of him. There's no need to spoil the good fortune of our opening night over him, and certainly no reason to let my men get hurt.

He glanced at the man, intending to use his Technique of Confusion to subdue him.

The man showed no reaction, continuing to slash at Ma Wu, one strike after another.

He can resist the Technique of Confusion? Ma Wu wondered. Could this man actually have a level?

It was an auspicious opening day, and Ma Wu truly didn't want to see blood.

But this opponent clearly couldn't be underestimated.

Ma Wu drew the short sword from his back, intending to sever one of the man's arms.

CRACK!

The arm came off, but the man didn't bleed.

Looking at the stump on its shoulder, Ma Wu's eyebrows knitted tightly.

The stump was hollow; he could see the bamboo framework inside.

This is a paper man! Ma Wu realized.

His first thought was of Liu Liangyi, the shopkeeper of Liu's Paper Horse Shop.

Liu Liangyi was a Fourth Layer Nightmare Cultivator, and this paper man was his signature Technique.

He's here for revenge!

Xiao Chuanzi also realized it was a paper man. He took out a box of matches and shouted, "Young Master, get out of the way! I'll burn it!"

"Don't be rash!" Ma Wu shouted, stopping Xiao Chuanzi.

Burn it with fire? Ma Wu thought. Paper men don't feel pain. It would just charge at people while engulfed in flames.

Ma Wu swung his short sword, hacking the paper man to pieces. Just then, a sinister gust of wind blew through the window, extinguishing all the candles inside.

"Quick, let's go!" Ma Wu ordered everyone to leave the dance hall immediately. But when they reached the door, he found they couldn't get out.

The doorway was densely packed with hundreds of people, and more were continuously rushing over from the surrounding fields.

The dance hall was surrounded.

Even Ma Wu couldn't break through, let alone the attendants and dancing girls who had no cultivation.

After striking down two paper men, Ma Wu retreated back into the dance hall and ordered two attendants to barricade the main door.