Chapter 593: Two Wars

Today, Li Banfeng heard a new term: the Second Puro War.

When mentioning the concept of the "Second Puro War," Shen Jingye was very cautious, continuously observing Li Qi's reaction.

Seeing Li Qi's surprise, Shen Jingye felt a slight regret; he hadn't intended to disclose so much top-secret information.

"Director Li, you don't know about that war from over forty years ago?"

How was he supposed to answer that?

According to the Security Department's understanding, Li Qi was a native of Puro State. If he didn't even know about a war from forty years ago, his identity would be questionable.

How could he provide a reasonable explanation?

In haste, Li Banfeng couldn't come up with a suitable reply, so he merely prevaricated: "I've heard some things from older generations, but they were always vague."

To Li Banfeng, this wasn't a reasonable explanation, merely a brief delay. If Shen Jingye pressed further, Li Banfeng might reveal many flaws.

But who could have imagined that was indeed the reality?

Shen Jingye nodded and said, "That's characteristic of the Second Puro War, very different from the First Puro War. Although the Second Puro War lasted longer and involved fiercer battles, the individual engagements were very scattered. Many Puro State residents knew there was a war, but they couldn't clearly explain how it was fought or against whom. This has created significant obstacles for our investigation."

Shen Jingye's words revealed two important pieces of information.

Firstly, the outer states had very limited knowledge of the Second Puro War, suggesting their contact with Puro State during the war phase was also very limited. Secondly, there was indeed a First Puro War.

Li Banfeng couldn't possibly ask about the First Puro War; doing so would only expose his ignorance further.

It didn't matter. As long as he held onto Comrade Xiao Shen, all these questions would eventually be answered.

Shen Jingye continued, "The recording you just heard is from Nieliaishaf, an early member of the Birch Hermitage Society. Although his status wasn't particularly high, he personally experienced multiple battles during the Second Puro War. He was keen on documenting his life, leaving behind many valuable materials, including notes, recordings, and videos, which provided us with numerous clues for researching the Second Puro War. We once believed he had lived through the entire war, but this recording suggests Nieliaishaf likely died in that battle. He didn't mention a date in the recording, so we can't infer the exact time this battle took place."

Li Banfeng re-read the translation: "According to his description, he and all those who remained died at the hands of an opera singer named Huang. In that era, there shouldn't have been many opera singers in Puro State."

This deduction was certainly correct. Forty years ago, even Yue State had few opera singers.

Shen Jingye shook his head and said, "This is a translation issue. Our translators try to be as literal as possible to prevent misinterpretation. What the Rafsha people refer to as Puro State opera is actually our traditional opera. This actor named Huang is likely the famous missing performer Huang Yuxian, also known as the legendary Ghost Minstrel of Puro State."

"The Ghost Minstrel participated in the Second Puro War?"

Shen Jingye nodded, "This is one of the biggest gains from our current investigation. We are very eager to know Huang Yuxian's ultimate whereabouts; through her, we might gain a deeper understanding of Puro State."

Shen Jingye left, and Li Banfeng began sifting through the materials he had left behind.

The Birch Hermitage Society's files were extremely valuable, containing extensive member records, financial statuses, and some confidential letters.

But Li Banfeng couldn't focus on them.

Huang Yuxian's name lingered in his mind.

The thought of Huang Yuxian made him think of his wife.

He called for Tangyuan.

"I've been promoted; I'm a fifth-level Scholar now."

Li Banfeng asked, "How did you rise so quickly?"

"There have been many tasks lately, and Director Shen changed his management approach. The Bureau issued a lot of conciliators. At first, I was a bit worried they wouldn't work, but then I found it was the same for me too—"

Li Banfeng interrupted Tangyuan: "Why wouldn't conciliators work?"

Tangyuan whispered, "Lightbulb always complained that conciliators were useless, and I actually took him seriously."

Li Banfeng shook his head, "Lightbulb is special; his introductory powder is a family heirloom. He's different from you all."

Tangyuan nodded, "I know that. Actually, I'm different from them too. I took the introductory powder when I was in Puro State. Now I'm no longer a Dark Energy user; I'm a cultivator."

"You took the powder in Puro State? Did you go to the peddler?"

"No, not really. The peddler isn't easy to find, and at the time, I was conducting research for the Security Department, so without the department's arrangements, I couldn't leave Greenwater City freely. I obtained the powder at Xiaoyaowu. Back then, Fifth Master heard I had some connection with you, so he sent someone to ask if I had any requests. Xiaoyaowu provided me with better accommodation and increased my salary. I couldn't think of any other requests, so I asked for the scholarly cultivation powder, and Fifth Master sent someone to deliver it."

Li Banfeng was surprised: "You never told me about this?"

Tangyuan lowered her head: "At that time, I didn't trust Seventh Master all that much. Later, when I thought about telling you, I was afraid you'd get angry and punish me—"

Ma Wu had mentioned to Li Banfeng that the new young woman had become a scholarly cultivator.

Li Banfeng had misunderstood, as he already knew Tangyuan was a scholarly cultivator.

"You were a fourth-level Scholar, but after taking the scholarly cultivation powder, you weren't affected?"

Tangyuan answered earnestly, "There were effects; it hurt, it really hurt. You know I have quite a bit of flesh there, but it still hurt so much I couldn't walk."

"I'm not talking about the pain. Scholarly cultivators and Scholars are actually two different things; you should know that."

"I know. That's why I wanted to truly become a scholarly cultivator. After taking the powder, there were no changes at first, and I thought I had suffered for nothing. But recently, I've noticed things are different. Many of my techniques have changed, and I can now control some things I couldn't before."

Tangyuan spoke excitedly, describing all the subtle changes. Li Banfeng understood clearly that Tangyuan's control over her cultivation had strengthened, and she did indeed resemble a scholarly cultivator more now.

In this situation, the conciliators still worked, allowing Tangyuan to reach the fifth level. There truly were intricate connections between guiding agents and introductory powders, and conciliators and elixirs.

Just listening to Tangyuan talk about cultivation, Li Banfeng almost forgot about other matters.

"Have you heard of the two Puro Wars?"

Tangyuan looked up at Li Banfeng, then lowered her head again.

Her eyes darted around, seemingly concerned about the surveillance equipment in the room.

"Don't worry, the surveillance is off."

Tangyuan sighed with relief, "Seventh Master, this is top-secret information. I've only seen it once before. Puro State experienced two major wars. The First Puro State War's exact timing is unknown, but the Second Puro War occurred over forty years ago."

"Who were the combatants in these two wars?"

"The First Puro War was an internal conflict within Puro State, likely between the Puro State royalty and its common people. The Second Puro War was extremely complex, with many factions involved. Besides the Puro State royalty and common people, some external forces also participated, such as the Light-Chasing Group from Rafsha and the Birch Hermitage Society. They were all participants in the war."

"Did Huan State not participate in the war?"

"To my knowledge, Huan State didn't participate in the war itself but was involved in post-war reconstruction. It was precisely from the Second Puro War onwards that Huan State and Puro State officially established a cooperative relationship. As for future developments, I'm not entirely clear; I only saw this top-secret document by pure chance."

"Do you know where one can view similar top-secret documents?"

"You'd have to go to the archives and use a very high level of authorization to access them."

"Archives?" Li Banfeng still didn't know how many archive rooms the Dark Star Bureau had, or which one contained genuine records.

To fully clarify the matter, he apparently needed to carefully consider his options.

Returning to his residence, Li Banfeng went to the north-facing room on the first floor.

The Alluring Actress was dancing in the room, and a group of departed souls watched attentively.

Truth be told, whether it was his face or figure, the Alluring Actress was flawless. Even Li Banfeng wanted to look more... What was he doing looking at that? He was a man!

Li Banfeng coughed, and all the departed souls returned to their jars. These souls were bought from Madam Yin Si and usually stayed in the room. As long as they didn't cause trouble, Li Banfeng didn't bother to control them much.

Li Banfeng called the Alluring Actress out of the room alone, took him to the living room, and turned on the TV. He carefully selected a TV series and pointed to a scene, saying, "This is how procurement works in the outer states: you have to inquire about prices, negotiate, and sign contracts. Can you understand the process?"

The Alluring Actress nodded, "I understand this. I often watch TV when you're not home."

Alright, he was quite honest.

"Now I want you to help me buy something. Do you know how to operate according to this process?"

The Alluring Actress thought carefully about the whole process: "Acting is easy, but I don't understand the market. If I buy something too expensive or the wrong item, I can't be sure about it."

This couldn't be forced. The Alluring Actress hadn't even read much, so it would be too difficult to expect him to grasp physics knowledge.

Moreover, the Alluring Actress had another concern: "I saw on TV that for large-scale procurement, you need a company backing you, otherwise suppliers won't trust us."

"You know quite a bit," Li Banfeng felt much more relieved that the Alluring Actress was so thorough. "Leave the company matters to me. Just make sure you play your role well."

That evening, Li Banfeng found Tang Changfa and asked, "Do you have connections in the black market to set up a company for me? I need to buy some things under its name."

Tang Changfa laughed, "What connections do you need? We already have a company!"

Li Banfeng rolled his eyes at Tang Changfa: "Do you even know what a company is?"

"What's there not to know? When doing business, we need our own storefront. With a company as backing, we can get involved in large-scale deals."

Li Banfeng was stunned for a long time. After not seeing him for a while, Tang Changfa's demeanor was completely different from before.

"We really have a company?"

"Yes! I paid Lin Fo Jiao to set it up for us; the procedures are all complete. Shopkeeper, just tell me what you want to buy?"

Li Banfeng said, "I want to buy some scientific research equipment."

Tang Changfa thought for a moment and asked, "Scientific research equipment, for studying science, right? That's within our business scope, so we can just buy it directly! It's just that I don't know anything about science, so we'll need to find someone knowledgeable to negotiate the deals for us."

Li Banfeng nodded, "I have someone ready to negotiate. Try to keep yourselves out of sight. Also, help me keep an eye out for one more thing: see if you can find any information on Nieliaishaf in the black market."

"Who, who-shaf?"

Li Banfeng wrote it down for Tang Changfa.

After reading it, Tang Changfa scratched his head: "This name is too difficult to pronounce. I'll have Yan Hong'er go inquire; she's quick-tongued."

Li Banfeng asked, "A-Fa, over forty years ago, Puro State had a war. Do you know about it?"

Tang Changfa thought for a moment and said, "War? Doesn't Puro State have wars every day? I don't recall."

Fool's City was secluded from the outside world. It was estimated that by the time of the Second Puro War, it had already become isolated.

Tang Changfa said no more and quickly went to handle the task.

Li Banfeng took out the Old Teapot. Being old, it should know more things.

"Forty years ago, did Puro State have a war?"

"Forty years ago... When was forty years ago? Was I still at Bitter Greens Village?"

This was a common problem with magical artifacts; their concept of time wasn't very clear.

Despite several hints, the Old Teapot still couldn't recall. Li Banfeng then turned to the Gloves.

"Forty years ago, I don't think I was even the Gloves yet. Did I join the Ghost Hand Sect back then?" The Gloves had suffered severe trauma, and its memory also had significant blind spots.

The Pendulum, Luo Yuni, had some recollection: "I was considered a talented woman back then, and I think I wrote some manuscripts about war, though I don't remember the specifics."

It was likely that the talented woman had written some anti-war poems and essays. Luo Yuni might know some things, and once her memory recovered, information could be gleaned from her.

Other magical artifacts either had no concept of time or no memory of the war. Tang Dao seemed to have heard news of the war, but he had mostly wandered the martial world and hadn't been on a battlefield.

Only one magical artifact was an exception.

The Wine Gourd.

"Little brother, I've been in a war. I don't remember the time, but I did fight alongside Old Yao."

Tang Dao interjected, "Occasional skirmishes between local gods aren't that rare, are they?"

"This wasn't an occasional skirmish. I was on a real battlefield. Back then, Old Yao still had soldiers. Those soldiers weren't originally in Medicine King Gully; when they knew there was a war, they all came. After the war, no one knew where they went."

Li Banfeng asked, "Who did you fight against?"

"A group of foreigners. At first, they went to Old Yao's residence and talked about many things, which I didn't pay much attention to at the time. Old Yao became very angry; those foreigners caused trouble at his residence, and Old Yao killed two of them. The rest were scared off. A couple of days later, a group of soldiers arrived. They didn't say much and directly set up camp on the mountain, taking all their orders from Old Yao. That's when I learned that war was a complex matter, completely different from ordinary disputes. Old Yao had to find food and weapons for these soldiers and deploy forces according to the terrain of Medicine King Gully. When the actual fighting began, I remember there were over thirty battles, and I went to all of them. Unfortunately, I never made it to the front lines. Many soldiers were wounded back then, and I was responsible for mixing medicinal wine for them. Some soldiers drank the medicinal wine and pulled through, some didn't, and some were gone before they even had a chance to drink it. At first, I wanted to charge onto the front lines with Old Yao, but later I became truly terrified. Just hearing about a battle made me tremble all over. That day, after the last battle was fought, Old Yao told me we had won. He brought out all the good wine from the courtyard and held a victory banquet. Everyone drank themselves into a stupor, and when they woke up, these people were gone. Old Yao went back to his old ways, singing opera, drinking wine, and collecting herbs on the mountain, as if nothing had ever happened."

Was this the Second Puro War?

Which side was Old Yao on during the Second Puro War?

And which side were these foreigners on?

The only inference that could be made now was that Old Yao and Huang Yuxian should belong to the same faction, and the Rafsha people were likely their common enemy.

First, he needed to go to Puro State and investigate for clues.

Li Banfeng took out paper and pen and wrote a list. The people on this list should have experienced the war and thus have some understanding of the situation at the time.

However, finding a coherent thread from a mass of fragmented information wouldn't be easy.

To uncover the truth, he needed at least a general outline.

He still needed to figure out a way through Xiao Shen.

The Alluring Actress put on a suit and went with Tang Changfa to conduct business.

Tang Changfa even found an expert in the black market. Meeting venues, office locations, mobile and landline phones—a series of matters were all arranged perfectly. In just one week, the electromagnetic instrument was purchased and brought back.

This piece of equipment cost over thirty-nine million. Compared to other devices in the lab, it was considered relatively inexpensive.

Li Banfeng wasn't short on money, but this sum still surprised him. No wonder Snow Lake Port had been drained; scientific research truly was a money pit.

His wife received the new equipment and joyfully went to the lab. Once she went in, it was uncertain how many days it would be before she was willing to come out.

The Portable Abode warned him, "A-Qi, you've been running back and forth to Seven Autumn City too frequently lately."

"There's no other way; the lab is in Seven Autumn City."

"It's precisely about this laboratory. Don't assume you can rest easy just because you have a nameless place. There are many ways to enter such places in this world, and many people want to know the secrets of the boundary. You absolutely mustn't be overconfident."

The old man's reminder was correct. He needed to devise a more secure way to hide the laboratory.

What other way could there be?

A magical array!

Should he set up a Three-Gate, Three-Opening Array in front of the laboratory?

Firstly, this array's duration was very limited.

Secondly, if someone passed by the laboratory entrance, they would be directly sent away, which clearly signaled that there was something valuable here.

This array wouldn't work; he needed to learn a new one.

Li Banfeng went to the Ninth Room, where the room was in disarray.

"What happened here?"

The Ninth Room Maiden pouted prettily, "Junior Brother, I was chatting with Sister Honglian, and she suddenly got an urge to spar with me. I thought, I've been here for so many years without moving my muscles and bones, so I exchanged a couple of moves with her. Who knew Sister was so heavy-handed; she injured me."

Honglian angrily retorted, "Where are you injured? Show me!"

The Ninth Room Maiden was very wronged: "This room is my flesh and blood. Look at that wall, that's my back. Look at that brick, that's my bone. Look at that table, that's my arm."

"Nonsense!" Honglian gritted her teeth. "That table was just bought back. Are you saying you didn't have arms before?"

Ninth Maiden sighed, "Junior Brother, you heard it too. How unreasonable this person is. I try to talk to her nicely, and she immediately starts arguing."

Honglian angrily said, "Who wants to talk to you? I live here for peace and quiet. Who can stand you talking non-stop all day?"

Ninth Maiden snorted, "Oh, my mouth is on my face, and I don't need to eat. Besides talking, what else is this mouth for? Why are you stopping me from talking?"

Honglian was almost exploding with anger. Li Banfeng moved her to the Eighth Room.

When he returned to the Ninth Room, Ninth Maiden was still somewhat displeased: "Junior Brother, she was the only one to relieve my boredom. You moved her away; do you want to bore me to death or something?"

Li Banfeng said, "Aren't I here to relieve your boredom? I've been practicing magical arrays recently; I've become very proficient in the Three-Gate, Three-Opening Array."

"Junior Brother, learning one is enough. You're not thinking of trying to gain something from me again, are you?"

Li Banfeng pulled up a chair, sat in the middle of the room, and patiently explained, "Ninthy—"

"Call me Senior Sister! What's with 'Ninthy'? Anyone who doesn't know might think I'm your little wife."

"Senior Sister Ninth, among the living disciples of our Daoist sect, I'm the only one left. Daoist arrays are ultimate skills. If this ultimate skill isn't passed on to me, who else would it be passed on to?"

"Junior Brother, it's not impossible to teach you, but teaching a student means starving the master. If I were to teach you all my true abilities, and one day you turned against me, thinking I'm useless, and sent me to oblivion with an 'Ironclad Evidence' move, where would I go to seek justice?"

"What happened back then is in the past. Are you still holding a grudge, Senior Sister?"

"I really am a petty person. I'm afraid I'll never forget this little matter."

"But you were the first to attack my wife back then, so you were at fault first, weren't you?"

"That's right. Your wife is family, so why should I, an outsider, butt in? Go learn array formations from your wife instead!"

"Senior Sister Ninth," Li Banfeng sighed softly, "To be honest, I'm a person who values my dignity, and I really don't want to get into a tangle with you here. But what else can I do? To protect Fool's City, I've offended countless people, and now I'm hiding outside, barely able to guard my own home. I was hoping to set up an array at my doorstep to at least hold off any enemies for a while, but when I beg you for a few pointers, you just won't agree. If you won't agree, then forget I even mentioned it. Talking more won't earn me any sympathy. I'll just figure it out myself."

Li Banfeng stood up to leave, but an invisible hand touched his back, gently urging him to sit back down.

"Junior Brother, I was just teasing you. How could you take it seriously? Tell me what techniques you want to learn, and I'll teach you."

"Are you really willing to teach me, Senior Sister?"

"You're so good at using emotional appeals, how could I bear not to teach you?"

She saw through him.

It didn't matter if she saw through him, as long as she was willing to teach.

"Senior Sister Ninth, I want to learn the Array of Appropriate Pace."

This array was good. Like Fool's City's array, its entrance could only be found at a specific speed; too fast or too slow wouldn't work. It was perfectly suited for the laboratory.

The Ninth Room Maiden pondered for a moment: "Junior Brother, this won't work. It's not that I'm trying to put you off, but you haven't mastered the knack of 'tight and loose' yet."

"How can I not learn it? I'm quite good at grasping the balance between tight and loose."

"What have you grasped? Apart from anything else, just now, when you were complaining and appealing, you just kept pushing forward without considering whether I could handle it. Where was the 'tight and loose' measure in that? Your mind is too impatient. This array really isn't suitable. Listen to me, change to another one."

What should he switch to?

"Then I'll learn the Bewildering Floral Array." Sun Tiecheng had used this array; he just stuck two branches into the ground, and it could hide the location where Li Banfeng buried the contract. The array looked perfunctory, but it was quite effective; Ye Songqiao's contract had never had an issue.

But Ninth Maiden still didn't want to teach: "Junior Brother, I told you, the Bewildering Floral Array also requires solid skill. Without ten or eight years, you truly won't be able to learn it."

Li Banfeng became displeased: "You won't teach this, you won't teach that. What do you want me to learn?"

"Junior Brother, are you angry again? Fine, I'll teach you the Bewildering Floral Array. Do you remember how Sun Tiecheng set it up?"

"He just took two branches and stuck them in—"

"The key to sticking in those two branches is to select the right direction, use the appropriate depth and force to tear open a nameless fissure, and from that fissure, release nameless power to confuse others' vision. So, the essentials of the array are threefold: direction, depth, and force. Junior Brother, find something and try sticking it in."

Li Banfeng brought two wooden sticks over: "Where do I stick them?"

"Here."

A flowerpot appeared before Li Banfeng, containing a blooming rose in full splendor.

Inside the Portable Abode, which saw no sunlight all year, this flower could still bloom. These were seeds bought from Zhang Wanlong; even without sunlight in the new soil, crops cultivated by Zhang Fanglong could grow.

Ninth Maiden dipped a brush in cinnabar and made two marks in the soil of the flowerpot: "I'll choose the direction for you first. You control the depth and force. I'll close my eyes; tell me when you've placed them. If the array is successful, when I open my eyes, I shouldn't be able to see this rose."

Control the depth and force.

She hadn't clarified what principle to follow.

Li Banfeng could only grope by feel. After several attempts, the rose remained visible. Ninth Maiden then made a mark on the wooden sticks: "I've set the depth for you too. Just control the force and try again."

With the direction and depth set, controlling only the force should be easy.

After a few more tries, Ninth Maiden urged, "Are you done yet?"

Li Banfeng thought it was close enough: "Senior Sister, open your eyes and take a look."

The room was silent for a moment. Li Banfeng asked, "Senior Sister, can you see it?"

Ninth Maiden's tone was cold: "Do you take me for blind? I can't see such a large rose? What have you learned after I've taught you for so long?"

While Li Banfeng was called impatient, his Senior Sister's temper wasn't much better.

After a day of learning with no progress and being nagged by his Senior Sister to the point of unbearable frustration, Li Banfeng went to the laboratory.

His wife wasn't in a great mood either. She had encountered some difficulties, and several experiments couldn't proceed. "My dear husband, you must allow your humble servant to stay a few more days. If I don't fully understand this matter, my heart will remain unsettled."

Since his wife requested it, Li Banfeng naturally had to agree. For security, Li Banfeng also left Tang Dao and the Old Teapot in the laboratory, one for offense and one for defense, to jointly protect his wife's safety.

Li Banfeng returned to the outer state and went to the Dark Star Bureau.

He called Shen Jingye to his office and specifically poured him a cup of tea.

Shen Jingye didn't dare drink it: "Director Li, what exactly do you need me for?"

Li Banfeng sincerely asked, "Xiao Shen, just how many archive rooms does our Dark Star Bureau have?"

Shen Jingye was a bit awkward: "Director Li, this concerns classified information. Are you just going to ask me directly like that?"

Li Banfeng pushed the teacup closer to Shen Jingye: "Aren't we sincere friends!"