Chapter 185: Mental Manipulation Technique

The Six Meridian Divine Sword wasn't a difficult martial art to master. Even a half-hearted practitioner like Duan Yu could fully learn it once he memorized the manual.

Li Xiaofei's current cultivation at the eightieth stage of the Qi Refining Realm gave him a level of internal energy that could dominate the world in the original novels. It took him less than six days to cultivate the Six Meridian Divine Sword.

The Life and Death Talisman took even less time. In the original story, even a simple monk like Xu Zhu could learn it within a few days, so it was a breeze for someone as intelligent as Li Xiaofei.

The principle of the Life and Death Talisman wasn't complicated. It involved using alcohol, water, or other liquids to reverse the flow of qi in order to transform yang energy into yin. This made the qi emitted from one’s palm colder than ice, causing the liquid to freeze, which was then injected into the opponent's body with the help of qi.

Li Xiaofei mastered it in less than a day. Indeed, having high internal energy made learning anything quick. He spent the remaining time learning disguise techniques and mental manipulation techniques. Both required skill, and high internal energy had little use.

The former needed a lot of practice with makeup, which was a challenge for the straight-laced Li Xiaofei. The latter relied on mental strength, language guidance, and external aids, similar to hypnosis, and was also a technique that improved with practice.

Fortunately, the Secret Time Pavilion was perfect for learning and cultivation. Li Xiaofei devoted the rest of his time to cultivating the disguise and mental manipulation techniques. Ten days later, the Secret Time Pavilion closed and Li Xiaofei returned to reality.

At that moment, the Dragon Claw Gang called again.

"You reported gang matters to the police?"

Li Xiaofei was confused.

"As a warning, you'll receive a new gift in half an hour," Long Xiaotian said angrily in the video. "Additionally, the Cloudy Sky Gang must hand over the territories of Zhaofeng and Zhengda streets in the East District."

He hung up without waiting for Li Xiaofei's response.

Half an hour later, a package was delivered to the Cloudy Sky Gang headquarters. It had a severed leg and a head. The leg was from Yang Cheng's body, but the head belonged to a slum student named Xue Yu. He was one of the seven students, including Li Jie, who had been selected for schooling.

Li Xiaofei fell silent when he opened this gruesome delivery. Chu Yuntian, Li Junjie, and other Hall Masters and Incense Masters also remained silent.

"Find out what happened. Who called the police?" Li Xiaofei ordered.

Moments later, Chu Yuntian returned and reported personally, "Boss, everyone in the Cloudy Sky Gang followed your instructions and focused on their tasks. No one called the police."

"I understand," Li Xiaofei said grimly. "Tomorrow is the gang negotiation. Make sure everyone focuses on their tasks."

"Yes," Chu Yuntian replied quickly.

He could clearly sense that Li Xiaofei was in an extremely bad mood. The pressure emanating from him was like a volcano on the verge of eruption.

Li Xiaofei then asked, "How is the hacker's progress with the light core we seized from Cheng Yunlong?"

After making a phone call, Li Junjie answered, "Boss, the contents have been sent to your phone."

"Good," Li Xiaofei said, leaving the Cloudy Sky Gang and returning home.

"Little Aunt, are the preparations ready?" he asked urgently.

Little Aunt came out of her room holding a uniquely designed medicine box.

***

The winter sun had not fully set yet at 5:30 p.m. The Dragon Claw Gang headquarters was as bustling as usual. However, the level of vigilance had noticeably decreased compared to the past few days.

There were only four guards on duty at the main gate. Liu Bo, the guard captain on duty, had blatantly snuck off during work hours. He emerged from the massage and foot spa across the street, fastening his belt and humming a tune. He looked very pleased with himself.

Foot baths were a luxurious indulgence in an era of water scarcity. Given Liu Bo's stingy nature, he naturally wouldn’t invite friends along. He always went alone. He visited the foot spa every three days. It wasn’t that he particularly enjoyed foot massages, but masseuse No. 8 in the shop had exceptionally skilled hands.

Suddenly, a person hurriedly approached him. In the moment they brushed past, he bumped heavily into Liu Bo. Caught off guard, Liu Bo stumbled.

"Damn it, are you looking to die?" Liu Bo cursed, grabbing the person's collar.

"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry." The passerby apologized quickly, taking out a shiny crystal pendant. "Is this yours?"

Liu Bo paused, instinctively looking at the exquisitely cut crystal pendant.

"Look at it, isn't it beautiful?" The stranger said in a strange tone.

The last rays of the setting sun shone on the crystal, reflecting a dreamlike array of colors. Liu Bo only glanced at it, and his spirit was completely captivated. Li Xiaofei had successfully executed the mental manipulation technique. He had disguised himself as an unremarkable but handsome man.

"Take me to your headquarters dormitory," Li Xiaofei commanded.

"Yes," Liu Bo replied, his expression somewhat vacant. He turned and led the way.

"Hey, Captain Liu!"

"Ha, the captain's back."

The guards greeted him happily, but Liu Bo seemed not to notice and walked straight into the headquarters. Li Xiaofei followed quietly behind him. Since the captain seemed to be in a bad mood, the guards didn't dare to say much and allowed Liu Bo to lead Li Xiaofei inside.

The journey was smooth. Soon, they arrived at the Dragon Claw Gang's dormitory building. As a captain, Liu Bo had his own private room.

Bang.

When the door closed, Li Xiaofei pointed at Liu Bo and killed him without hesitation. He then stripped Liu Bo of his clothes and put them on himself.

He then took out a special type of clay and molded it according to Liu Bo's facial features. After some skillful manipulation, a delicate human skin mask appeared in Li Xiaofei's hands. Once he put it on, Li Xiaofei was instantly disguised as Liu Bo.

He dragged Liu Bo's body to the bathroom, laid down a layer of special plastic on the floor, and took out a special bottle containing Iron Dissolver. He dropped a few drops onto the corpse.

Liu Bo's body sizzled as it deflated like a punctured inflatable doll. It eventually turned into a mist and disappeared. Li Xiaofei turned on the exhaust fan, expelling all the mist. He then erased any other traces from the room. Then, Li Xiaofei confidently strode out of the room.

At this moment, he was indistinguishable from the real Liu Bo. Armed with the information obtained from Cheng Yunlong's light core, Li Xiaofei was now very familiar with the layout and structure of the Dragon Claw Gang's headquarters.

He didn't need to avoid any surveillance or cameras on the way. When he kept a cold expression on his face, no one dared to approach him. He soon arrived at the staff dining hall.

At that time, the chefs were preparing the meals. The internal management of the Dragon Claw Gang was very strict. Only elite members, who had passed rigorous tests, were qualified to enter the headquarters. Even the cooks had to provide proof of loyalty to get the job.

"Hey, Captain Liu, it's not mealtime yet. What brings you here so early?" A familiar chef greeted him with a smile.

Li Xiaofei simply nodded coldly without speaking. He stood at the kitchen door for a while, then turned and left. No one noticed the dozens of Qi Disperser pellets, wrapped in edible fast-dissolving wax, that had been silently and unobtrusively inserted into the seasonings and water by Li Xiaofei using the One Yang Finger technique.

Once he left the kitchen, Li Xiaofei continued his slow and deliberate observation. He soon arrived outside the Dragon Claw Gang's water storage facility.

"Hey, it's Little Liu. What are you doing here?"

The guard of the water storage facility was Chen Kun, known as Brother Dragon, one of the twelve Incense Masters of the Dragon Claw Gang. His seniority and rank were much higher than Liu Bo, the small team captain.

He stood confidently in Li Xiaofei's way.