Chapter 50: City of the Undead

"This must be what Panlongcheng looked like before it was destroyed, right?" Since the three people's status was higher than his own, Mao Tao's voice was low. "I haven't met a single person since I walked here with the Young Master." "There's no one in the city either, at least we walked around nearby and didn't find anyone," Sun Fuping said slowly. "I was transmitted into the well, while Commandant Nian landed directly in the moat."

The four passed through the city gate, and behind the gate was a large square. It seems that in this period of Panlongcheng, it didn't have triple walls yet.

"It seems the year we are in is even earlier than before Panlongcheng fell," He Lingchuan looked around. "There aren't that many defensive works yet."

The Panlongcheng they saw in the desert was armed to the teeth, showing its muscles to the outside world at every moment; the Panlongcheng here looked quite gentle.

The same city, different times have different manifestations.

The group passed through the square; there was no water pool from the desert Panlongcheng here, but fortunately, the Black Flood Dragon totem was still there.

Nearby was a row of houses, with the post station and inn in front and various residential houses in the back.

"The layout of the houses is also different." Nian Songyu led the way into a tavern. "When I came in, the stove was still hot."

The tavern gate was open, with two hanging cloths, and six or seven tables were set inside, with chairs not very neatly arranged. He Lingchuan saw that three of the tables had wine jars on them, with leftover wine in the cups and a dozen peanuts in the dishes.

Behind the counter was an account book, with the word "wine" only written halfway, just a "sa," and the brush was thrown aside, the ink just dried.

Nian Songyu walked to the table and tapped it with his knuckles, making a thumping sound.

"It's all real objects; this is too realistic." After saying that, he picked up a wine cup and stuffed it into Mao Tao's hand. "Drink it."

Mao Tao was startled: "Ah, drink?" Who would dare eat or drink something unknown? Nian Songyu's eyes didn't look like he was joking.

Mao Tao had no choice but to tilt his head and take a small sip, carefully smacking his lips: "It's wine, but the taste is very weak. In Heishuicheng, a corner of this would be worth at most three big coins."

"Drink it." Not just taste it.

He Lingchuan didn't say a word, and Mao Tao had no choice but to drink the wine into his stomach under the gaze of the three.

"Finished drinking, now what do we... ah, my stomach hurts so much!" Before he finished speaking, Mao Tao let out a strange cry, dropped the cup, and ran to the back.

The latrines were all in the back.

After waiting for a good while, Nian Songyu gestured to He Lingchuan with his chin: "Go, see if he's dead." His attitude was extremely arrogant.

He Chunhua and the Heishuicheng army were not here, so he didn't need to be the least bit polite to He Lingchuan.

Nian Songyu even planned that if this kid dared to put on airs, he would beat him until he was looking for his teeth all over the floor, just to vent the frustration of the past few days.

Who knew He Lingchuan wouldn't be angry or shirk, turning and walking to the back of the building, not giving Nian Songyu a chance to act out at all.

Nian Songyu was stunned instead; this kid was quite sensible.

He Lingchuan walked halfway, the wind blew, and the leaves rustled.

He even felt a trace of force coming from behind him, subconsciously dodging and drawing his blade.

Oh, it was just a tree branch swaying in the wind, almost scratching his back.

He Lingchuan didn't rush to sheath his blade.

Ever since he walked into this city, he felt something was strange, as if he were always being stared at.

That feeling of being followed was too annoying.

At this time, Mao Tao came toward him, still pulling up his pants. Seeing him with his blade in hand, he couldn't help but be startled: "Young Master, are you alright?"

"I'm fine." He Lingchuan sheathed his blade and took half a step back. This kid not only had a dark forehead but also carried a foul odor, showing how earth-shattering it had just been. "How about you?"

"Not dead, just feeling very empty in my stomach." Mao Tao rubbed his belly and walked out with him.

They returned to the tavern, and Sun Fuping carefully observed Mao Tao's complexion, also looking at his eyelids and tongue, then said: "Poisoned."

Mao Tao was so scared he almost jumped up, but fortunately, the State Preceptor continued: "The toxicity is relatively weak; you won't die, but I'm afraid you'll have to run to the latrine a few more times."

Wasn't it because the one surnamed Nian forced him to drink? Mao Tao affectionately greeted the ancestors of these people for eighteen generations in his stomach, but had to pile on a smile on his face: "That's good, that's good."

"You ate something from a dead person." Sun Fuping picked up a peanut, crushed it, rubbed it, and rubbed out a handful of ash. "These were not prepared for the living; no wonder the city is empty."

Nian Songyu also understood: "Are you saying the residents in the city are those vengeful spirits that rushed out of the pool?"

"Very likely. After they left, this place became an empty city."

"Those vengeful spirits are the residents of this city?" He Lingchuan wondered. "That can't be right. I saw they were all very crazy. How come they became law-abiding citizens in this city?"

Although the Panlongcheng before his eyes was an empty city, everything was in perfect order, just missing people. The vengeful spirits he encountered outside were all bitter and deep-seated, wishing they could tear the world apart. If they lived here for a long time, how could the city be so tidy? "I'm afraid it's the Great Fang Hu at work," Nian Songyu said. "Panlongcheng was destroyed long ago; this place is the most abnormal."

Mao Tao whispered: "How do we find the Great Fang Hu?" He thought jumping into the pool would give them a clue, but who knew the pool was still a city? How could they handle this? He Lingchuan suggested: "Go to the Lady Mitian Temple. We found the entrance there before; maybe we can find new hints now."

"Been there, no temple," Nian Songyu flatly denied.

He Lingchuan was startled: "No temple, what do you mean?"

"There is no such temple, don't you understand?" Nian Songyu said lightly. "In that location, there are two taverns, a theater troupe, and two large shops, one selling jewelry and one selling silk."

Right, if clues were easy to find, would these two still be waiting for him? He Lingchuan thought for a moment: "General Hong's mansion?"

"Searched, none either."

"No mansion, or no clues?" He Lingchuan became even more patient.

"Neither." Sun Fuping smoothed things over. "General Hong is a demigod body bestowed by the Lady Mitian God. If there is no temple, naturally there is no General Hong."

No General Hong, no General Hong mansion.

"Then there's only one place left?" He Lingchuan scratched his head. "Zhong Shengquan's residence?"

Sun Fuping stood up: "Let's go."

The illusion restored the style of Panlongcheng. He Lingchuan never expected that one day he would tour the legendary city in this way. Judging from the markets, buildings, lakes, and rivers he passed, as well as the various utensils and machinery used in the market and by the river, Panlongcheng, which was burned by the flames of war, was once exceptionally prosperous, with a large population and developed commerce.

He even saw a waterwheel by the river; this wasn't for irrigating fields, but for supplying water to nearby shops, saving manual labor. To match this, there were even specialized bamboo pipelines connecting from the river to the water troughs of the shops.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 51 =====