Chapter 799: Hand Alliance Leaders

Li Banfeng arrived on the cloud, started a fire next to the Western-style house, invited the peddler back, and told him about the Great Totem.

"The Great Totem is seventy percent repaired?" The peddler still found it hard to believe. "Isn't that thing beyond repair?"

Li Banfeng didn't know the background. "Why can't the Great Totem be repaired?"

"Friends from Wansheng State told me this, and they are very reliable," the peddler said, sitting down in the courtyard and drawing a circle on the ground. "This is the Great Totem; you should have seen it on a Territory Seal."

Li Banfeng nodded. "I've seen it. I think I've also seen similar things in some foreign theories and equipment related to boundary research."

The peddler, holding a twig, pointed to the circle and said, "The outer ring can absorb, and the inner ring can transform."

"The Great Circle's working principle is simple: it can absorb energy and convert it into other forms. Do you understand that?"

Li Banfeng shook his head. "I definitely don't understand that."

The peddler then said, "Aren't you highly educated?"

Li Banfeng replied, "What you're describing doesn't sound like a totem; it sounds more like a machine."

"You could say it's a machine," the peddler said, giving Li Banfeng the most familiar example. "Just think about the use of a Territory Seal; it can collect all the popularity from the region. That's the function of the Great Totem's outer circle."

Li Banfeng thought the peddler might be mistaken. "I'm not talking about the Great Totem on the Territory Seal. I'm talking about that huge thing in Neizhou, which should be similar to the Great Melting Pot." "It's the same," the peddler clarified, "we're talking about the same thing. The Great Totem on the Territory Seal has the same shape as the Great Totem in Neizhou. With the same shape, they can sense each other, allowing the Territory Seal to function through the Great Totem.

"The Territory Seal only exists because of the Great Totem. If the Great Totem in Neizhou were gone, the Territory Seal would become useless."

With the peddler's explanation, Li Banfeng became even more confused.

"It can create a connection without needing techniques, engineering methods, or foreign state scientific technology?"

The peddler nodded. "As long as it has the same shape as the Great Totem, it can establish a connection with it. That's why only Neizhou can produce Territory Seals."

Li Banfeng was completely bewildered, feeling that the peddler's words today lacked all logic. "Why can only Neizhou make Territory Seals? Couldn't we just carve a ring out of an iron lump and call it a Territory Seal?"

The peddler shook his head. "You can't carve it."

"What's so hard about carving a circle?"

"It's not a perfect circle," the peddler said, pointing to the circle he had drawn. "The distance from the edge to the center isn't entirely equal."

Li Banfeng thought carefully. "You're talking about an ellipse, right? That's easy; couldn't someone just calculate the eccentricity?"

The peddler said, "It can't be calculated. I've had many calculation-cultivators try to figure it out, and I've also had engineering-cultivators measure it repeatedly.

"The proportions, width, and depth cannot be calculated. Any imitation Territory Seals that were made turned out to be useless."

Li Banfeng, a graduate of the College of Science, truly couldn't fathom who could have designed such an abstract circle. "Who made this thing?"

"Wansheng State and Shang Nation collaborated to make it."

"They actually collaborated?"

The peddler sighed. "Everyone scurries about for profit. Wansheng State is fractured among many powers; some have good relations with Puro State, while others have formed alliances with Shang Nation.

"They spent years of effort creating this thing, but it was damaged as soon as it was delivered to Shang Nation."

Li Banfeng asked, "Who damaged this thing?"

"I did!" the peddler said, standing up. "If this thing had been intact, Puro State would have been consumed by Shang Nation long ago.

"I investigated in Wansheng State. The Great Totem cannot be recreated or repaired because neither Neizhou nor Wansheng State possesses the conditions to recreate it. How could it possibly be seventy percent repaired? Is your information reliable?"

Li Banfeng said, "Judging from A Yu and Yuan Youshang's descriptions, this information is reliable."

The peddler bit his cigarette, not smoking it, nor extinguishing it. He was very tense.

"Do you know where the Great Totem is?"

"I don't know," Li Banfeng shook his head. "You damaged the Great Totem back then; didn't you know its location?"

The peddler spit out some tobacco crumbs. "The Great Totem used to be in Chaoge. After I damaged it, Shang Nation moved it to a different location for safekeeping. I don't know where they moved it, and I haven't been able to find it after all these years of searching.

"Let's investigate this, you and I. We'll use every means available. If we can't find it, Puro State will be in danger!"

Where should they start investigating this matter?

Currently, the most crucial clue still lay with Yuan Youshang.

Li Banfeng went to Iron Gate Fortress and invited Song Qianhun to Leisurewood.

Song Qianhun was a leading figure among cultivators, and he also had the renowned physician Kang Zhenchang under him, so he should be able to find a way to restore Yuan Youshang.

Upon seeing Song Qianhun, Yuan Youshang became very tense. This was a wraith's instinctive fear of a demonic cultivator.

Song Qianhun recognized Yuan Youshang. More than a decade ago, Yuan Youshang had visited Song Qianhun as a junior.

After examining the soul, Song Qianhun called Li Banfeng outside the room and spoke to him privately. "Yuan Youshang's condition is tricky. His soul is extremely incomplete; he must have used the Soul Dispersion and Reaggregation technique."

Li Banfeng hadn't heard of this technique. Song Qianhun explained, "Demonic cultivators can learn the Soul Dispersion and Reaggregation technique once they ascend to the clouds. It's a life-saving technique used when pushed to a desperate situation.

"When this technique is truly used, life itself can't be preserved. It only allows for a sliver of hope to remain before complete annihilation."

"The key to Soul Dispersion and Reaggregation lies in dispersing one's own soul and the souls of one's ghost servants, then reaggregating them."

"The extent of reaggregation depends on one's cultivation level, the number of ghost servants, and one's luck."

"Yuan Youshang's cultivation wasn't low, and his luck was decent, but the number of ghost servants was a bit small. At that time, he only had about a hundred ghost servants around him.

"As a result, the reaggregated soul was very limited, leading him to remember very little."

Li Banfeng wasn't very familiar with demonic cultivators. "Are a hundred ghost servants considered few?"

Song Qianhun smiled modestly. "It depends on who you're comparing to. For me, it is indeed a bit few."

Li Banfeng asked, "Can we make up for it afterwards, and help him reaggregate his soul again?"

Song Qianhun thought for a moment. "You'd have to ask Gui Jianchou about this. He's the expert; I don't understand the essentials of the Soul Dispersion and Reaggregation technique."

Li Banfeng was startled. "Brother Song, you don't know how to use this technique?"

Song Qianhun said, "Techniques on the cloud are all very precious. I really don't think Soul Dispersion and Reaggregation is of much use.

"This technique comes at too great a cost, and it can't be refined through practice. When it's actually needed, it's better to seek a quick end. What's the point of living like Yuan Youshang?"

Li Banfeng went to Fool's City and invited Gui Jianchou. Upon seeing Yuan Youshang, Gui Jianchou shook his head repeatedly. "His condition is difficult to remedy. His soul is damaged like a torn rag. If it's shattered again, I fear it won't be able to be mended. It's better to let it recover slowly."

Song Qianhun felt Gui Jianchou wasn't being truthful. "Senior Brother, is it truly irreparable, or are you unwilling to exert yourself?"

Gui Jianchou gave Song Qianhun a sideways glance. "This concerns Old Seven; how could I be hiding anything? Am I not afraid that Sun Tiecheng would tear out my heart? Soul Dispersion and Reaggregation definitely cannot be used. Help me nourish his soul!"

Song Qianhun and Gui Jianchou used soul-nourishing techniques to help Yuan Youshang repair his soul, but Li Banfeng couldn't just wait there indefinitely.

The Great Totem was already seventy percent repaired. If they waited a few more days, it might be completely fixed.

Besides Yuan Youshang's lead, who else could Li Banfeng find?

Back home, Li Banfeng sought out Bronze Lotus. "You must have seen the Great Totem. Do you know where it is?"

Bronze Lotus swayed its lotus leaves and said, "I only saw it once in Chaoge, but at that time, the Great Totem had already been damaged."

Li Banfeng asked, "Have you not investigated the Great Totem since then?"

"I did, but Puro State's information flow is restricted, so I didn't find any results."

Li Banfeng said angrily, "Puro State's restricted information flow, isn't that all your doing?"

Bronze Lotus's leaves trembled, and it snorted. "That's an unreasonable thing to say. The local customs of Puro State are like this; what does it have to do with me, a pill refiner?"

Zhao Xiaowan, beside them, reminded, "Since the Celestial Maiden investigated the Great Totem, A Yu must surely be involved, right?"

Bronze Lotus feigned surprise. "Is that so? Bring A Yu here, and I'll ask her."

Li Banfeng suddenly realized!

The last time he went to see A Yu, she was playing mahjong and drew a 'moji' tile. She said she had discovered a female disciple who had been reborn twice.

How could this be such a coincidence?

It just so happened that when Li Banfeng went to see her, she had made such an important discovery.

A Yu was trying to discreetly warn Li Banfeng that there was more to this matter than met the eye.

His wife was right. When it came to investigation, A Yu was a top-notch expert. The Celestial Maiden couldn't possibly leave such an expert unused; she must know about the Great Totem.

This woman was too cunning; she never liked to speak straightforwardly about anything.

Li Banfeng set off to find A Yu, but he didn't rush to Gourd Village. Instead, he first went to Xiao Yeci's furniture store and bought some furniture. These items weren't for his portable residence, so they didn't need to be custom-made; he simply bought ready-made pieces.

His wife and Jiu'er bought another batch of household goods. Only then did Li Banfeng use the "Connected Vast Chamber" technique to go to the residence in Gourd Village.

Arriving at the residence, Li Banfeng summoned a group of shadows to first add some furnishings to each room.

The elderly lady on the third floor liked old artifacts, so Li Banfeng placed a rosewood screen with seasonal flowers and birds in her room.

The woman next door loved fashion, so Li Banfeng gave her a black walnut and glazed dressing table.

The little girl downstairs was the family's small princess, so Li Banfeng bought her a Western dollhouse, along with a set of high-end dolls made in Inglitch Country.

The middle-aged man living in the iron house on the first floor diligently guarded the home, a plain and upright person. Li Banfeng gave him five hundred silver dollars.

With the ten rooms properly arranged, Li Banfeng entered A Yu's room and directly asked, "Sister, do you know where the Great Totem is?"

A Yu was about to speak when she heard creaking sounds from upstairs, downstairs, and from the partition walls and beams.

Pairs of eyes stared at A Yu, seemingly able to see through her flesh directly to her internal organs.

All the houses were reminding A Yu not to lie to their master.

"Little brother, if I say I don't know, will they skin me alive?"

Li Banfeng shook his head. "Sister, I won't make things difficult for you. Just tell the truth."

A Yu looked around, then turned her face to stare at Li Banfeng, saying seriously, "If I say I *might* know, will you believe me or not?"

As soon as she finished speaking, reprimands came from all around:

"What do you mean 'might know'? That's clearly a deceitful lie!"

"The master has been so good to us; how could she be so ungrateful!"

"This time, she really deserves to suffer a bit!"

Cold sweat streamed down A Yu's face. Usually, a few words were fine, but today these residences were serious about dealing with her. "Little brother, if they really go after me, I'll truly suffer. These residences have so many ways to deal with house spirits.

"But if I tell you that what I just told you was the truth, would you believe me?"

Li Banfeng nodded. "I believe you."

A Yu nodded. "Alright then, I'll tell you the whole truth. Back then, the Celestial Maiden asked me to investigate the Great Totem. I did, and to this day, I've been investigating it.

"But first I was trapped in the Dark Star Bureau, and then in Gourd Village; I couldn't even leave the door. There were some things I couldn't investigate myself, so I had to find people to help me."

Li Banfeng naturally thought of this. "You're talking about the people from the Siblings Alliance."

A Yu nodded. "If they found out, then it's possible I would know about it."

"Why 'possible'? If they found out, is there a chance they wouldn't tell you?"

A Yu quietly looked at Li Banfeng, while the reprimands from around continued, "Still hiding things!"

"The master is asking you a question, why aren't you speaking up!"

A Yu whispered, "Little brother, do you have to force your sister to be so direct? The leader of the Siblings Alliance is the Celestial Maiden, that's correct, but this leader hasn't shown her face in many years."

The Celestial Maiden's control over the Siblings Alliance was not as complete as Li Banfeng had imagined.

If Li Banfeng wanted precise information about the Great Totem, he would have to investigate through the Siblings Alliance.

Li Banfeng knew many people in the Siblings Alliance. Who would be the most suitable person to investigate through?

"Sister, who do you think is relatively reliable within the Siblings Alliance?"

"Reliable?" A Yu laughed. "If you want to find reliable people, you shouldn't go to the Siblings Alliance.

"See if there's anyone you can trust in the Siblings Alliance. If you can find one person who won't betray you, consider yourself lucky."

Li Banfeng was also considering this question.

Within the Siblings Alliance, who could guarantee not to harm him?

After leaving Gourd Village, Li Banfeng called Teacher Song. Cell phones from outside states couldn't make calls in Puro State, but Teacher Song's number was an exception.

"I have something urgent; I'd like to meet you," Li Banfeng said simply, setting a time and place, and then hung up.

Teacher Song was a little nervous about meeting Li Banfeng.

She speculated that Li Banfeng might have changed his mind and wanted to join the Siblings Alliance, but then reconsidered, realizing this speculation was a bit too optimistic.

According to the information she had, Li Banfeng had taken over the railway, abolished Puro State's travel permit system, and there were also reports that he had infiltrated Shang Nation and inflicted heavy damage on it.

In Song Shu's opinion, Li Banfeng's achievements in Puro State already surpassed those of the entire Siblings Alliance. There was no reason for him to join the Siblings Alliance.

Was he trying to persuade her to leave the Siblings Alliance?

Song Shu was distraught, unsure how to choose at that moment.

They arranged to meet at Black Rock Slope. After meeting, Song Shu realized she had been overthinking things.

Li Banfeng only wanted to know the whereabouts of the Great Totem.

Song Shu hesitated slightly. To her knowledge, the Great Totem was the Siblings Alliance's most crucial secret.

But after less than a minute of hesitation, Song Shu told him the truth.

"The Siblings Alliance does indeed have information about the Great Totem, but most people only possess fragmented pieces of it.

"The information I have is that the Great Totem has transformed some individuals and sent them to Puro State to carry out special missions.

"Their combat power is very high, and they are not restricted by passages or boundaries. After being transformed by the Great Totem, these individuals' appearances undergo significant changes, making it very difficult to investigate their true identities."

Li Banfeng was aware of this; Lu Xiaolan was an example.

But Li Banfeng's main concern was not this.

"Teacher Song, do you know the location of the Great Totem?"

Song Shu shook her head. "I don't know who is responsible for investigating the Great Totem's location, but I know there's one person who has complete information about it. I used to report my investigation progress to this person."

"Who is this person?"

"I don't know his exact identity, but I know he has a residence in Wild Greens Village. Every time I reported my work, I went to Wild Greens Village to find him."

Li Banfeng stood up. "I'll go ask Granny Ku."

Song Shu stopped Li Banfeng. "You cannot go to Lucky Star. If she knew you were looking for that person, she wouldn't let you enter Wild Greens Village.

"This involves many secrets of Wild Greens Village.

"You'll have to find a way to get her out of Wild Greens Village first, and then enter. Otherwise, you won't be able to meet that person."

Song Shu drew a map for Li Banfeng.

Li Banfeng put away the map and found Chu Er.

"You want me to get Granny Ku out of Wild Greens Village?" Chu Er said with a bitter expression. "Brother Seven, you think too highly of me."

Li Banfeng thought about it and realized he was right; this was just making things difficult for Chu Er.

He decided to just go straight to Wild Greens Village. If he could talk his way in, he would; if not, he'd fight Granny Ku.

Just as Li Banfeng was about to set off, Chu Er stopped him. "Brother Seven, are you really going to Wild Greens Village for something urgent?"

"It's extremely urgent, a matter of life and death!"

"I believe you!" Chu Er looked up and said, "You can enter Wild Greens Village at ten tonight, but you must be out before dawn, alright?"

Li Banfeng asked in surprise, "You really have a way?"

Chu Er nodded. "Only tonight is it possible."

"What's the way?"

"Granny Ku has a secret technique she wants to pass on to me, but I've always been afraid of hardship and refused to learn it. If I contact her tonight and tell her I'm willing to learn, she'll definitely come to find me."

Hearing this, Li Banfeng felt a little uneasy. "What secret technique are you going to learn?"

Chu Er shook her head. "You can't ask; it's a secret of my Taoist sect. Don't worry, Granny Ku definitely won't suspect me."

Li Banfeng instructed, "If she suspects you, tell her the truth directly. If she doesn't forgive you, contact me immediately, and I'll talk sense into her."

That night, Li Banfeng went to wait at the entrance of Wild Greens Village.

At eight o'clock, Chu Er sat in the bedroom of the Chu family mansion and took out two boxes of Golden Yuan Pills.

Many of these pills were given to her by Li Qi, many by Chu Shaoqiang, and some were collected by Chu Er herself.

She counted out sixty pills, placed them on the table, and then brought a bitter vegetable, placing it next to the pills.

After a moment of hesitation, Chu Er took a deep breath, divided the sixty Golden Yuan Pills into five portions, and swallowed them with a pot of tea.

When she ate the fifth portion of pills, Chu Er, clutching the bitter vegetable, fell to the ground.

After waiting for over an hour, Granny Ku rushed into Chu Er's room. Seeing the pills still in her mouth that she hadn't swallowed, and glancing at the pill boxes on the table, she frowned and said, "You foolish person, how many did you eat?"

Chu Er was barely alive and couldn't speak. Granny Ku said with a cold expression, "You're trying to kill yourself; why are you looking for me?"

Li Banfeng, holding the map, entered Wild Greens Village.

The place hadn't changed much. After ten o'clock, not even a single light could be seen.

Li Banfeng had once transformed Wild Greens Village into Joyful Village, but now, upon arriving at this place, he couldn't even sense a trace of vitality.

Following the map, he walked deeper into the village. In the distance, there was only boundless wilderness; beneath his feet, only dry, yellowish earth; and the air was filled with a bitter taste that made one feel suppressed.

Li Banfeng truly didn't want to stay there long. With his speed, after walking for nearly an hour, the scenery began to change.

A mountain appeared ahead, with a few scattered trees growing on its slopes.

When he had visited Wild Greens Village before, Li Banfeng felt he had explored the entire village, but he had never been to this mountain.

Wild Greens Village was larger than he had imagined.

After crossing this mountain, he walked for another half an hour across the wilderness, and then an unexpected scene appeared before his eyes.

Cars, asphalt roads, telephone poles...

Had he reached an outer state?

Li Banfeng walked up to a car, touched the thick layer of dust on its hood, and then looked at the cobwebs inside the vehicle.

This car hadn't been moved in a long time.

Not far in front of the car was a freezer, completely empty, not even a drop of water visible inside. The freezer had two wheels underneath, indicating it was likely used as a cart for selling cold drinks.

Further ahead was a small convenience store, its shelves completely bare.

Next to the convenience store was a phone booth, a sight rare even in outer states.

Walking further, Li Banfeng saw a restaurant. The restaurant was empty, and a person was sitting by the entrance.

The person wore a black jacket, blue jeans, a leather shoe on their left foot, and a sneaker on their right.

He had gray curly hair, which should have originally been black, and it was covered in dust.

A cold gust of wind blew past, and the person looked up at Li Banfeng. Li Banfeng used his Golden Eyes of Autumn Brilliance to examine him, confirming that he was still alive.

"What is this place?"

"Wild Greens Village."

"Where are you from?"

"Chunshen City."

"Why are you here?"

"To suffer."

The person lowered his head, not wanting to speak with Li Banfeng anymore.

Song Qianhun had once said that there were also Wild Greens Villages in outer states, but Li Banfeng hadn't expected to actually encounter one today.

Following the map, Li Banfeng walked to a residential building.

This was the end of the map, indicating that Li Banfeng had reached his destination.

But on which floor and in which apartment did the person he was looking for live?

Fortunately, the building wasn't tall, only six stories, with just three apartments per floor. Li Banfeng walked up the stairs floor by floor until he reached the sixth floor. After standing at the staircase for a moment, Li Banfeng turned right and stopped in front of apartment 603.

He knocked on the door.

In this building, all other apartments were empty; only this one was an exception.

After waiting a moment with no response, Li Banfeng had his glove open the door.

"Master, be extra careful." The glove felt that this place was eerie.

Li Banfeng pushed the door open and entered the living room. A distinctive scent of old furniture wafted towards him.

The living room wasn't large. To the left were a bathroom and a bedroom; to the right were another bedroom and the kitchen.

Li Banfeng pulled a feather duster from his sleeve, dusted off some dirt, and sat on the sofa.

Directly opposite the sofa was an old-fashioned television, with a large casing and a convex screen.

Above the television hung a picture frame, filled with many photos. Most were black and white, with a few in color.

Li Banfeng didn't recognize any of the men and women in the photos, which also had the typical style of the 1980s.

They all wore almost identical smiles, looked at the same angle, and their eyes shone with the same light.

Li Banfeng was not unfamiliar with this; old Mrs. Wu at the orphanage also had a similar frame filled with such photos.

He sat on the sofa for a moment, then suddenly spoke. "I've come all this way; shouldn't you come out and meet me?"

The photos in the frame blurred for a moment, and the people in the photos all turned their eyes to look down at Li Banfeng.

Li Banfeng looked up at the frame, and the people in the photos averted his gaze.

Li Banfeng gave them another look. The people in the photos gradually disappeared, leaving only the backdrop from when the pictures were taken.

A cup appeared on the coffee table, filled with steaming tea.

Li Banfeng didn't touch the cup. He looked at the reclining chair next to the sofa.

Oh, oh, the reclining chair moved, and a man slowly materialized on it.

The man appeared to be over fifty, with a gaunt face and refined features. He wore a white jacket with frog buttons and black trousers.

He looked at Li Banfeng and pointed to the coffee table. "Have some tea."

Li Banfeng didn't look at the coffee table; he looked at the man and asked, "Where is the tea?"

The man smiled, and the teacup on the coffee table disappeared.

To be precise, there was no teacup on the coffee table at all; the previous teacup and tea were all illusions.

A cup of tea appeared in his hand, which he offered to Li Banfeng. Li Banfeng took the cup and took a sip.

The man asked, "How does it taste?"

Li Banfeng tasted it carefully. "It's good tea."

The man asked, "Why have you come to find me? Have we met before?"

Li Banfeng said, "You've seen me, I haven't seen you, but I recognize your voice."

The man feigned surprise. "Is that so?"

Li Banfeng cleared his throat, changed his voice, and said, "Mr. Wang, would you like another drink? Just one!"

The man chuckled. "No wonder Granny Ku always talks about you; you truly are an unusual young man."

Li Banfeng put down the teacup, cupped his fists, and bowed. "Senior Phantom Wuchang, I am deeply grateful for your two previous instances of guidance."