Chapter 230: Exploding Tiger Spear

A common spear, a belt that enhances presence, and a button that mimics sounds—could these combined become Hong Ying? Li Banfeng believed so, because cultivation is invisible. However, the basis for achieving all this was Red Lotus's intervention.

Li Banfeng moved the copper lotus from the side room to the main hall. Red Lotus was ready, covered in dewdrops. "A-Lian, I have something to ask of you."

Red Lotus gave Li Banfeng a dewdrop, spitting it right on his face. Li Banfeng wiped his face, not getting angry, but the Gramophone did. "You wretched hussy, how dare you spit at my husband? Who gave you such nerve?" Red Lotus then gave the Gramophone another dewdrop.

The Gramophone hissed steam, about to fight Red Lotus, when Li Banfeng called out, "Wife, if A-Lian won't help, I'll have no choice but to send Hong Ying away."

Panting, his wife adjusted her breathing. The large horn turned to Red Lotus and, playing the erhu, sang, "Oh, sister, we're family, let's not speak like strangers. Why are you still holding a grudge over past matters?" *Pfft!* Another dewdrop. "Sister, what I did before was wrong; please don't hold it against me."

Li Banfeng also chimed in, "I also had my faults before; let's just let it go."

After half a day of pleading, and being sprayed with dewdrops, Red Lotus finally agreed. The spear, button, and belt were all absorbed into the lotus heart. Red Lotus then spoke a few words to the Gramophone. The Gramophone used its needle to retrieve two poetry collections and a stack of newspapers, handing them to Red Lotus. After nearly two hours, a long spear was forged.

This spear was identical to Hong Ying, so much so that even an upper-level observer of cultivation might not notice any flaw. The Gramophone sighed with admiration, constantly praising Red Lotus's methods: "Well, what can I say, this wretch... sister, she's quite useful."

Hong Ying awoke, but her body was bound by steam and she couldn't move. She sensed a powerful aura, but unfortunately, only her ears had recovered; her eyes were still blind. She had no idea what had appeared before her.

*How could this aura be more powerful than hers?* Who was this? Had the enemy arrived? After Red Lotus's transformation, the belt's power was fully unleashed; in terms of presence alone, it surpassed the true Hong Ying.

Hong Ying spoke, "Wicked woman, is this aura yours? No, this presence isn't like you. What exactly is this thing?"

Li Banfeng held the spear, also unsure of what it was. Two high-level spiritual artifacts, reprocessed by Red Lotus, had been fused with an ordinary weapon. What should this thing be called? Li Banfeng named it "Tiger Blaster." What a powerful name!

Li Banfeng lifted the Tiger Blaster spear, and the spear let out a cry: "Snow darkens faded banners, wind mingles with drumbeats."

Hong Ying grew tense: "Where did this villain come from? Do you want to fight me?!"

Li Banfeng was even more nervous than Hong Ying. He looked at Red Lotus and asked, "A-Lian, did you refine the Tang Saber? That saber is still useful!" Red Lotus didn't respond, so Li Banfeng quickly rushed into the second room and found the Tang Saber peeking through the door crack.

The newly created Tiger Blaster spear could recite poetry, and its recitations greatly fascinated the Tang Saber. However, this spear's spirituality came from two spiritual artifacts, not from a magical treasure; the intelligence of spiritual artifacts is extremely limited. This spear could recite poetry, but only within the scope of the two poetry collections it had absorbed. Beyond that, it couldn't speak on its own. It could emit a powerful aura, even stronger than Hong Ying's own, and its voice was very similar to hers. Yet, it couldn't make overly complex responses or engage in autonomous combat; this was the insurmountable gap between spiritual artifacts and magical treasures.

Could this spear deceive Luo Zhengnan? That depended on how well the performance was executed.

Li Banfeng left his portable residence and called for Wu Yongchao, instructing him to prepare a banquet. Wu Yongchao didn't know the reason, but as the Fortress Lord didn't say, he didn't ask. With food and drinks purchased, Li Banfeng chose the grand residence as the gathering place, setting up over twenty tables on the first floor and specially arranging a tea room in the East Annex.

What was wrong with the Fortress Lord? Hadn't he previously declared the grand residence a forbidden area, especially the East Annex, which was absolutely off-limits? Li Banfeng explained that the issues with the grand residence had been resolved, and it would now serve as Iron Gate Fortress's official administrative building.

The resident cultivators were delighted. Previously, they had believed that demons and evil spirits haunted the fortress, and they had even seen someone nailed to the front gate, causing widespread panic throughout the fortress. Now that the evil spirits were gone, they were certain the Fortress Lord had eradicated them. Filled with respect, everyone raised their cups to toast the Fortress Lord.

Hu Fangyuan lifted his cup and said, "Fortress Lord, this cup is my token of respect for you. I don't usually drink, but today I'll have this one to show you deference. I'll finish it first; you drink as you please."

Li Banfeng looked at Hu Fangyuan and said, "If I don't finish it, will I seem ungrateful?"

After one cup, the female resident cultivator Li Zhijuan approached. "We women don't drink, but I respect the Fortress Lord, so I'll share a toast with you." After drinking, Li Zhijuan, flushed, looked at Li Banfeng. "Fortress Lord, I really did finish it."

"Alright..." Li Banfeng felt awkward not joining them.

After the second cup, Wu Yongchao came over with his own cup. "Fortress Lord, I also don't usually drink..."

Li Banfeng said with a stern face, "If you don't drink, then don't."

"No matter what, I must have a drink with the Fortress Lord today."

"I don't want to drink with you."

"When are you going to pay me back?"

Li Banfeng poured a cup of wine. "Chao, what are you talking about? What kind of friendship do we have..."

The drinking continued late into the night, with over half of the three hundred resident cultivators getting drunk. The next day, when the market opened, the cultivators stayed at home, unwilling to come out. Luo Zhengnan was squatting by the roadside selling vegetables when an old oil vendor whispered to him, "They had a celebration feast yesterday and all got heavily drunk. A young woman just told me." Luo Zhengnan remained silent. He saw Li Banfeng strolling through the market. Without much conversation, Luo Zhengnan followed Li Banfeng directly into the residence where they had met before.

Host and guest took their seats. Li Banfeng got straight to the point: "I've sold the item. Have you gathered all the money?"

Luo Zhengnan smiled. "Yes, it's all here, and I've brought it to you!"

Li Banfeng was taken aback. "Eight hundred thousand silver dollars?" A large box held ten thousand silver dollars; how could he possibly bring eighty boxes?

Luo Zhengnan lowered his head and took a pouch from his waist. He untied the drawstring, but the pouch didn't open. This pouch was a spiritual artifact, and opening it required a verification process. Luo Zhengnan pressed the pouch against his forehead, communicating with it for a moment. Li Banfeng watched the entire process and tentatively asked, "What method is this?"

Luo Zhengnan, not at all secretive, replied, "This is called short-range wireless communication. In other provinces, they call it Bluetooth technology. I particularly like things from other provinces; even though I'm old, I still enjoy keeping up with the trends." Li Banfeng stared at Luo Zhengnan's head, carefully searching for a Bluetooth switch. This thing couldn't be kept on all the time; it must consume a lot of power.

After the Bluetooth verification, the pouch opened. Luo Zhengnan reached inside and pulled out a tray. The pouch twitched as if it were about to vomit. Luo Zhengnan cautioned, "Hold on." He placed the tray flat on the ground. Below the tray was a mechanical display showing a current reading of zero. This tray looked like a scale, but it was actually a mechanical counter. Each time the tray received a certain degree of impact, the counter would advance one number. The maximum display was 99,999, meaning it would reset to zero after counting 100,000. Luo Zhengnan inserted a tube into the pouch, and the pouch twitched again. This time, the pouch couldn't hold back and spat out silver dollars through the tube. *Clang, clang, clang!* Silver dollars fell onto the tray continuously. The tray clanged non-stop, and the counter kept jumping. Li Banfeng and Luo Zhengnan watched as the pouch, like a continuous line, discharged eight hundred thousand silver dollars. Eight hundred thousand silver dollars piled up on the floor, leaving almost no room to step in the house.

Luo Zhengnan smiled. "Fortress Lord, the money has been delivered. Is my sincerity enough?" Wasn't he afraid the Fortress Lord would double-cross him? However, Luo Zhengnan had a backup plan; there was something else in his pouch, which he wouldn't use unless absolutely necessary.

With the money delivered, Li Banfeng didn't delay. He went upstairs, locked the room, entered his portable residence, and brought out the long spear.

When the spear was placed before Luo Zhengnan, its formidable aura made him shiver, almost causing him to fall under the table. *It was this thing. No mistake!* Luo Zhengnan composed himself, and after two attempts, finally took the spear into his hands and placed it into the huge pouch. The pouch convulsed violently, struggling to swallow the Tiger Blaster spear.

Luo Zhengnan was terrified. Wiping the sweat from his forehead, he said to Li Banfeng, "Fortress Lord, I don't mean to be rude, but next time you transfer such an item, please at least find something to seal it with. You just handed it to me like that, and I almost lost my soul! My pouch probably won't last much longer either."

Li Banfeng sighed, "The only thing that could seal this spear was that annex building next door, but I broke its seal. Now, I can't think of anything that could contain it." Luo Zhengnan looked at his pouch. It was still convulsing, seemingly very weak. This was his most important spiritual artifact, and Luo Zhengnan felt a pang of heartache.

"It's getting late, and I should leave. We've become acquainted, so consider us friends. The road ahead is long; let's look out for each other in the future. Fortress Lord, until we meet again."

Seeing Luo Zhengnan about to leave, Li Banfeng politely offered, "Hall Master Luo, there's no rush. I've prepared some humble wine; why don't we have a couple of drinks?"

Luo Zhengnan waved his hand. "I'm a straightforward person, so let's speak plainly. With this item on me, I won't feel at ease for a moment. Once I've dealt with it, I'll come to pay my respects at your residence." With that, Luo Zhengnan left.

By the time he walked out of the fortress, Wan Jinxian was still at his street stall, telling fortunes. Seeing Luo Zhengnan hurry away, Wan Jinxian quickly sent a message to He Jiaqing. "Jiaqing, Old Luo has left the fortress. He seemed to be in a rush, so I assume the deal went through."

"Went through? So quickly?" He Jiaqing thought Luo Zhengnan shouldn't act so rashly.

"I don't think it's quick at all!" Wan Jinxian was very worried. "It's not just Luo Zhengnan who's left; others from the Jiangxiang Gang have also exited the fortress."

He Jiaqing was startled. "Are they pulling out?"

Wan Jinxian said, "Yesterday, Iron Gate Fortress held a celebration banquet, and a group of resident cultivators got half-drunk. The seals on the forbidden area were also torn off. Luo Zhengnan entered the fortress this morning and by noon he was rushing out. I'm worried the deal wasn't just made; it might already be *completed*!"

He Jiaqing gritted his teeth, nearly falling off his sickbed. "Old Wan, immediately keep an eye on Luo Zhengnan. Don't let him leave Iron Gate Fortress. If the item is in his hands, retrieve it at all costs!"

But could he really take this "great treasure" back?