Li Banfeng lay in the Pocket Dwelling for most of the day before he finally recovered. Throughout that time, the Gramophone held him tightly with the steam.

This was why Li Banfeng had returned to the Pocket Dwelling. He had known that once the episode struck, he would likely lose control completely.

He was at level five for both his Daoist paths. If he were to truly let loose, not a single person in the entire inn would survive. Fortunately, his wife could still restrain him.

He sat beside the bed and calmly asked the Gramophone, "Wifey, there's this ability. Give someone a push, and they go flying. You can fly. The other person can fly too. What is that ability called?"

Li Banfeng's enunciation was still a bit unclear, and it was clear from the way he spoke that his thoughts were still quite muddled.

The Gramophone gently soothed him and asked, "My dear, why are you asking about this?" 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

"That's my enemy's method. I'm going to find him and take revenge!"

Li Banfeng stood up to leave, but the Gramophone pulled him into a tight embrace.

"My dear, you can't go."

"Why can't I go?!"

Right now, Li Banfeng truly wanted to return to the Outer Provinces and get a clear answer from He Jiaqing.

Hong Ying let out a cold laugh. "What you just described is a level-nine Wanderlust ability, A Parting Across Ten Thousand Miles. If your enemy is a level-nine Wanderlust Cultivator, then how could you possibly be his match with your current cultivation level? Wouldn't going there just be seeking death?"

A level-nine ability. Jiaqing has already reached the ninth level. If he's at level nine, there was no way he could have been injured by Lu Xiaolan. Then why did he ask me to make that phone call? And why did he fly into my dorm room and land on my bed? Was it just to drag me into this mess? What benefit did he gain from pulling me in?

The Crimson Lotus. The Crimson Lotus was hidden in the campus convenience store, using my face as the key to unlock the security measure. He wanted me to safeguard the Crimson Lotus for him.

He told me to make that call, and because of it, Lu Xiaolan planted a hook on my phone. To save herself, Lu Xiaolan would have no choice but to contact me and ask me to go to Puluo. And she also wanted the Crimson Lotus, which meant she would use me to bring it back to Puluo. He had calculated that I would take the Crimson Lotus to the He Family's old residence.

How did he know I could definitely defeat Lu Xiaolan? Why did he have so much confidence in me? What if I couldn't beat Lu Xiaolan? Wouldn't the Crimson Lotus have ended up in her hands then?

If Lu Xiaolan escaped successfully and I ended up trapped in the He Family's old residence, unable to get out... what then? What if I were trapped there until I died?

After thinking for a moment, Li Banfeng figured it out.

Jiaqing didn't know whether I could defeat Lu Xiaolan. But that wasn't important to him. It didn't matter to him whether Lu Xiaolan or I lived or died. What mattered was that the Crimson Lotus was brought back to Puluo.

But why did he have to use me to bring it back? At that time, I was still just a Bleater. He was already a level-nine cultivator. So why didn't he take something so important back to Puluo himself?

Li Banfeng still couldn't figure out He Jiaqing's true intentions, but he could more or less make sense of what had followed.

Among them, the most important was the matter of the Ling Family.

The Ling Family holds such a high status, yet they've been targeting me all along. Looking at it purely from their perspective, it makes no sense no matter how I look at it. But if Jiaqing is the one behind them, then things are starting to make a lot more sense.

He wants to take back the Crimson Lotus. Initially, he had me bring it here, and now he wants to retrieve it personally. What exactly is his true intention behind all this?

Li Banfeng carried the Crimson Lotus into the main room and asked with a soft and gentle voice, "Crimson Lotus, let me ask you something. What did you plan with He Jiaqing? Why couldn't the two of you return to Puluo together?"

The Crimson Lotus didn't respond.

Li Banfeng turned his head and asked the Gramophone, "Wifey, did Crimson Lotus say anything?"

Pop... crackle... pop...

"Oh, my dear husband, that wretch didn't say anything, but I want to ask, who exactly is He Jiaqing?"

"Oh, my dear wife, He Jiaqing is a close friend of mine. In the past, he said I was the only close friend he had. But now I've realized he seems to have schemed against me. I was betrayed by my close friend! You have no idea how bitter this betrayal tastes!"

Pop... crackle... pop...

The Gramophone fell silent for a long moment, deep in thought.

Then Hong Ying snapped, "You heartless man, if you have something to say, say it outright. Don't make veiled insults!"

Li Banfeng ignored Hong Ying and continued stroking the Crimson Lotus. "You don't want to talk, is that it? That's fine. We've got plenty of time. Even if you won't tell me today, you'll tell me eventually!"

After resting in the Pocket Dwelling for half a day, Li Banfeng's mood improved. He had to pull himself together.

I already feel shitty about He Jiaqing's betrayal. If I let it keep eating at me, wouldn't that mean I've lost to him completely?

No more brooding. I have to smile. I have to find something to be happy about, something I can enjoy.

Li Banfeng wandered around Guangming Town, treating it as part of his cultivation.

When he reached the center of town, Li Banfeng saw a crowd gathered in front of a Western-style building. He thought there was some kind of sale, but when he got closer, he realized the crowd was there to buy movie tickets.

Guangming Town has a movie theater, sure. But why are there so many people here to watch a movie?

A single ticket cost five Huan yuan. By Puluo's standards, that wasn't cheap. Even in Greenwater City, going to the movies was considered a luxury for most families. Yet, today, the crowd was massive, almost like the holiday rush in Yuezhou City during the Spring Festival[1].

Li Banfeng walked closer and saw two posters hanging at the movie theater entrance.

Movie posters in Puluo were different from those in the Outer Provinces. They didn't feature large photographs; instead, they painted posters that were unique to Puluo.

One poster featured the back view of a man. He was holding a short saber as he walked alone into the wind. Ahead of him lay a stretch of bloodstains, and there were several figures with grim faces, seemingly plotting something.

On the right side of the poster were four bold words: The Legendary Bloodblade Detective.

Li Banfeng looked at the other poster. It also depicted a man walking alone, this time through a field of flowers. Several women stood among the flowers, gazing at him with eager eyes and pink cheeks.

In the center of the poster were four bold words: The Legendary Bloodspear Detective.

The Legendary Bloodblade Detective had been produced by the Ling Family's film production company. Li Banfeng had once visited the set and even set the film reels on fire.

Back then, Zhou Changhong had said on the train that the movie needed to be wrapped up as soon as possible. Li Banfeng had thought it was just a trick to lure him into getting off at Kinless Township.

However, it now appears that Zhou Changhong had been telling the truth! A grand project of ten movies in total, and they actually finished it this quickly?

The other movie, The Legendary Bloodspear Detective, had obviously been filmed by Ma Wu. He had worked fast, managing to rush out a full-length film in such a short time.

Ma Wu had done well. This movie would definitely make Ling Miaoying uncomfortable, and He Jiaqing, the mastermind behind him, would feel it too.

But how much would it hurt them? That would have to be seen!

Li Banfeng had funded Ma Wu's movie.

To compare them properly, Li Banfeng called Xiao Yeci and the others over and bought two tickets for each of them. He decided they should watch the Ling Family's movie The Legendary Bloodblade Detective first.

The movie theater wasn't small. It had two floors, and the tickets Li Banfeng bought were all for the upper level. Everyone sat together in a row. Before the movie began, a vendor came by selling roasted melon seeds[2], and Li Banfeng bought a pack for each person.

After a while, a soda vendor came by.

Li Banfeng said to the group, "Pick whichever flavor you like."

Some chose orange, and others picked honeydew.

Xiao Yeci knew the rules and reminded everyone, "Listen, after you finish your soda, don't throw the bottles away. You need to return them to get your refund for the bottle."

After waiting a bit longer, the movie theater filled to about sixty percent capacity. Two clerks drew the curtains on both sides and extinguished all the gas lamps. A young man carried two large boxes of film reels into the projection room, and the movie began shortly after.

The Legendary Bloodblade Detective's runtime was one hour and eight minutes. It followed the detective Liang Chunjie as he investigated a murder case, only to be repeatedly obstructed by Lu Guina, the leader of a mysterious organization. After a series of intense confrontations, he gradually uncovered the truth.

The male lead was played by the famous star Sheng Xijun. Zhou Changhong, as expected, had not taken part in the movie.

The female lead was still Xiao Xiufei. In this movie, her relationship with the male lead appeared ambiguous on the surface, but they were actually enemies. This dynamic was portrayed extremely well, down to the subtle details.

In Puluo's movie industry, Ling Miaoying was the best in the business. The movie's tone and pacing were delivered perfectly.

The movie's ending did not reveal the true culprit. Detective Liang Chunjie fell into a trap and was surrounded by members of the mysterious organization, his fate uncertain.

It left the audience wanting more. Ling Miaoying had done this deliberately to build suspense for the sequel.

Li Banfeng quite liked the movie. However, the people around him were not satisfied.

One viewer remarked, "What kind of movie is this? The ending is left open, and nothing's been explained. I watched the whole thing, but I don't get it."

Another viewer said, "Aren't we here to watch Xiao Xiufei? Everyone said there was a lot of depth to her acting this time."

"What depth? All we saw was her back throughout the entire movie. We didn't see anything."

"This one shows the back. The next one will show the front!"

"Watch the next one too? I don't think it's worth it."

"They're free tickets anyway. Just watch it. Why make such a fuss?"

Hearing that, Li Banfeng couldn't stay calm. He turned around and looked at the people talking behind him. "Your tickets were free?"

The person who had mentioned the free tickets was stunned. "Don't tell me you actually bought yours?"

"I really did!" Li Banfeng replied, feeling very vexed.

Aren't they just taking advantage of outsiders?

Someone else spoke up, trying to calm Li Banfeng down. "Brother, don't get mad. The tickets aren't exactly free. This is your first time watching a movie here, right?

You have to watch three movies at this movie theater in a month. Only then can you exchange the stubs for one ticket to watch The Legendary Bloodblade Detective. That's a new rule they just introduced this month."

Hearing that, Li Banfeng understood what was going on. The Legendary Bloodblade Detective had actually become a promotional giveaway at the movie theater, or perhaps this was a special marketing tactic.

"Watch three movies, and you can exchange the stubs for a free ticket. And it can only be used for The Legendary Bloodblade Detective?"

"You can exchange it for other movies too but not The Legendary Bloodspear Detective. That one's special. If you want to watch it, you have to buy a ticket!"

Ma Wu's movie is that special...? But I've already bought so many tickets. It would be a waste not to exchange them for free tickets.

Li Banfeng asked another question. "Aside from The Legendary Bloodspear Detective, are there any other good movies?"

That viewer shook his head. "I wouldn't know."

"Haven't you watched three movies? Didn't you exchange stubs for a free ticket?"

The viewer nodded. "Yes, I watched three movies, but I only watched The Legendary Bloodspear Detective."

"Only The Legendary Bloodspear Detective? You watched it three times?"

The viewer looked completely serious. "Three times isn't enough! I'm going to watch it again soon!"

Li Banfeng was stunned. Then he bought everyone more soda and waited for the next screening.

Half an hour later, The Legendary Bloodspear Detective began playing on the projector screen.

The number of people in the movie theater doubled. Every seat was taken, and there were even people standing!

In the film Ma Wu made, the male lead was named Song Chunjie. While investigating a murder case, he was hindered by Zhang Guina, the leader of a mysterious organization. To uncover the truth, Song Chunjie chose to use his spear and subdued Zhang Guina.

The leader of the organization yielded, but the second-in-command refused to submit and began a new round of conflict with Song Chunjie. After the second-in-command was subdued, the third-in-command appeared...

The scenes and plot became increasingly explicit.

"Oh, my. They're really going at it~" Xiao Yeci muttered. She flushed red and didn't dare to keep watching, covering her eyes with her hands.

Lu Chunying said, "Mom, if you don't want to watch, then don't. Cover your own eyes, not mine."

Niu Guangda was very excited. It was his first time watching a movie. He said to his companions, "The folks from Greenwater Bay sure have a lot of guts."

Fang Lianfu nodded. "A lot. A looot of guts!"

An old man nearby chided angrily, "How indecent! This corrupts public morals!"

The young man beside him quickly tried to calm him down. "Dad, please calm down. You got quite angry when we watched it yesterday, and you still felt unwell even after we went home."

***

"This movie makes me sick!" He Cunshou, an elder of the He Family, shook his head in anger as he watched the The Legendary Bloodspear Detective. "They actually filmed something like this. Just look at how the fifth son of the Ma Family has degraded himself!"

Beside him, He Yuxiu said to He Haiqin, "Uncle is really angry. He was furious during the last showing, and even angrier at the one before that."

He Haiqin nodded. "He was the angriest during the first showing. He got so mad he almost walked out halfway through!"

The Legendary Bloodspear Detective became a huge hit, but Ma Wu made it a standalone movie. He did not want to make a sequel.

At the wine table, Ma Wu looked at Lu Yuanshan and Lu Yuanhai with a serious expression. "Elder brothers, the three of us made that movie together. I can't be the only one bearing this notoriety!"

1. To celebrate Lunar New Year. ☜

2. This was—and still is for many Chinese people—the equivalent of popcorn. ☜