Chapter 27: Inquiry

When Liu Bang returned to the tavern.

Lu Wan, Fan Kuai, Zhou Bo and a few others were already seated around a table, with wine jars piled halfway across it. Seeing him enter, Fan Kuai immediately shouted in a loud voice, "Big brother! Why are you so late? The wine's already gone cold!"

Liu Bang laughed heartily, strode over and sat down, grabbed a bowl of wine, tipped it back, wiped his mouth and said, "What's there to fear about it being cold? Cold wine, warm heart!"

Everyone roared with laughter, and another round of heavy drinking began.

"The number of conscripted men has increased; now we need three hundred."

Liu Bang, emboldened by the wine, spoke up about increasing the conscription numbers.

"Three hundred?" Lu Wan widened his eyes. "Isn't that a death sentence?"

"Regardless of whether Pei County actually has that many people, whether they're willing to go is another matter!"

Liu Bang sighed, shook his head and said:

"Xiao He agreed to add another fifty, and with those prisoners, we'll have at least two hundred, no matter how we count."

Fan Kuai slapped the table:

"He just sees you, big brother, as an easy target, bringing every problem to you!"

"If that lousy pavilion chief won't work, fine!"

Liu Bang waved his hand, his gaze sweeping over the group, and said slowly:

"Brothers, I've taken responsibility for this, but… those who want to go, come with me; those who don't, stay behind and look after your families for me."

The tavern fell silent for a moment.

Fan Kuai lowered his head, took a sip, then suddenly looked up and said:

"If big brother goes, I'll go too."

After a brief silence, Lu Wan also nodded and said:

"Exactly, we can't leave you alone and lonely—that wouldn't be brotherhood."

Zhou Bo, thinking of his mother at home, clenched his teeth and said:

"Big brother, I'll go back and settle things, and give you an answer tomorrow."

Liu Bang's eyes grew slightly moist as he lifted his wine bowl, his voice a bit hoarse:

"Good! Big brother thanks you all!"

"Let's drink!"

He said so and drained his cup in one gulp.

The others likewise raised their bowls and drank it all down.

The wine was enjoyed heartily, the atmosphere grew lively, but as they kept drinking.

Liu Bang suddenly slapped his head, sprang up and shouted, "It's ruined!"

The others were startled: "What's wrong?"

Liu Bang complained, "It's already this late and I still haven't gone to the master's place to cultivate!"

Lu Wan laughed:

"Big brother, you're having fun today; missing a day of training shouldn't matter, right?"

Liu Bang shook his head: "No, no."

"Let's go!"

He said so, rose hurriedly, and while heading out, circulated the Qi within his body to dispel the alcohol's effect.

Fan Kuai called from behind, "Big brother, about the conscription matter…"

Liu Bang waved his hand without turning his head:

"Tomorrow morning we'll go together!"

Night fell.

After a brief afternoon lesson teaching Liu Bang some movement techniques, Yu Lin let him continue practicing the basics.

To be honest.

Liu Bang truly had good talent.

His meridians and dantian were naturally far stronger than an ordinary person's.

One day of cultivation for him equated to three days for a normal person.

By then, cutting the snake should pose no problem.

We'll discuss the rest later.

Yu Lin turned his head toward the Dragon Elder perched on his shoulder and smiled:

"Dragon Elder, get ready; we're leaving."

"Hm? How are we leaving?"

"Just like this."

Swish.

The scene before them shifted instantly, and Yu Lin found himself back inside the dormitory.

The Dragon Elder stared, his mouth forming an "O", and exclaimed:

"Whoa, where is this?"

"A few thousand years later."

Yu Lin walked to the bedside and sat down.

"This is my ability; I can travel to any point in history."

He never intended to hide it from the Dragon Elder.

After the mission ends, he'll bring it back together; there's no point in keeping it secret.

Dragon Lord looked around, his eyes full of curiosity, and said, "Tsk tsk tsk, your ability is actually quite good."

"The world after several thousand years has actually become like this........."

"Can I choose where to go myself?"

It withdrew its gaze from the Computer and turned its head toward Yu Lin:

"You want me, Dragon Lord, to see Lao Yu again?"

"Consider it a request from me."

"Sorry." Yu Lin shook his head.

"I can't choose; it's random."

"Maybe later I can go to that era and meet Yu Di."

"I see........." Dragon Lord didn't press further, just said casually:

"Indeed, when one's lifespan reaches its end, one should obediently die. Living so long without any relatives or friends is meaningless."

"We'll talk about future matters later."

"Then."

It changed the subject: "Who is the current emperor?"

Yu Lin shook his head again: "There is no emperor now, nor any emperor........"

"Dragon Lord, you look for yourself."

He casually took a book from the bookshelf and tossed it to Dragon Lord.

Dragon Lord reads the book without using his eyes.

He simply opened his mouth, swallowed the book, and the knowledge instantly flooded his mind:

"Hiss, striving for universal harmony? Pursuing common prosperity? The people being masters of themselves?"

"That's very difficult."

"If people's hearts differ, these may........... hmm, I still appreciate them; it's better than doing nothing."

Dragon Lord spat the book out again and opened his mouth toward Yu Lin:

"Give me more."

"Alright."

Yu Lin directly threw all the books from the bookshelf over.

World analyses of various countries, philosophical theories, artistic aesthetics, human medicine, foundational cultivation knowledge...........

Seeing Dragon Lord was like being intoxicated.

He went to the Computer, turned it on, and logged into the Civil Affairs Bureau's internal website.

After entering his personal code, he entered a knowledge base.

Inside were all knowledge not open to the public; even with Yu Lin's current rank, he could only access the Yellow Level, with the Heaven and Earth Mysterious Level 3 beyond that.

He now just wanted to see whether the Civil Affairs Bureau had any Heavenly Bestowed Artifacts of the Nine Tripod Cauldrons level.

The Civil Affairs Bureau has seventy‑two Heavenly Bestowed Artifacts, also divided into the four levels: Heaven, Earth, Mysterious, and Yellow.

The Heavenly Level has only six items.

【First Emperor's Sword, Dharma Relic, Solomon's Ring, Book of Life and Death, River Diagram and Luo Book, Heaven's Gate】

The specific abilities cannot be viewed with Yu Lin's current rank.

However, after he finished the rest, there was no Nine Tripod Cauldrons among them.

It seems they are still buried somewhere.

Yu Lin turned his head toward Dragon Lord:

"Dragon Lord, can you sense the existence of the other Eight Tripod Cauldrons?"

"Burp." Dragon Lord let out a big belch, as if the millennia of knowledge had overwhelmed him, and shook his head:

"Cannot."

"The Nine Tripod Cauldrons share a common origin yet differ; at least I'm not like those guys, I am a dragon."

"But whether they are dead or not, I can sense that."

"If you're lucky, you might be able to find them."

"Alright." Yu Lin nodded, glancing at the time.

About half an hour passed.

It should now be the second day's dawn.

He shut the Computer and said to Dragon Lord:

"Dragon Lord, I'm going back now; you can read the book later."

Without waiting for Dragon Lord's reaction, Yu Lin immediately took it back to the mission.

As soon as they stepped out, Xiao He's voice sounded from outside:

"Mr. Yu, where exactly did you go? You don't even inform us..............."