"Take deep breaths, hold on. You'll be fine!"

Geng Zhiwei had suffered a fatal wound, and blood was gushing from his neck.

"Stay with me. You can do this!" Li Banfeng said, pressing the blood-soaked pendulum into Geng Zhiwei's neck to stem the bleeding.

Geng Zhiwei was struggling to breathe. He didn't want to die. He was riddled with wounds and wracked with pain, but he truly did not want to die.

𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

Seeing that Geng Zhiwei's condition was worsening, sweat formed on Li Banfeng's brow. "Keep breathing. You must hold on. Think of your vast family fortune. You don't want to hand it over to someone else, do you? Think of your countless assets. You don't want them to be divided among your family members, right? Think of all your concubines. You don't want them crawling into another man's bed, do you? Breathe deep, hold on! You can't die yet!"

Hearing Li Banfeng's goading, Geng Zhiwei's breathing suddenly became strong and rushed.

He refused to accept it. He refused to lose everything he possessed.

Driven by rage and an unwillingness to lose everything he possessed, his desire to live surged to a whole other level.

Li Banfeng glanced over at the gramophone.

The first Martial Cultivator's soul had already been devoured.

The second Martial Cultivator's soul was more than halfway devoured.

After ten or so more minutes, the second soul was fully consumed as well.

Li Banfeng wiped the sweat from Geng Zhiwei's face. "You've suffered, Zhiwei. But it's all right. It's your turn now. You'll be free soon."

Li Banfeng had made Geng Zhiwei last this long because his dear wife wanted a taste of a fresh soul.

It was like hotpot. Frozen sliced meat and freshly sliced meat each had a different flavor.

Geng Zhiwei felt a thin slice of his left hand being ripped off.

In truth, his hand was unscathed. What had been ripped off was a part of his very soul.

The damage to his soul only made Geng Zhiwei's weakened body even frailer.

However, the searing pain kept him conscious.

Droplets clung to the gramophone's horn, though it was unclear whether they were beads of sweat or saliva.

Li Banfeng asked, "My dear wife, how does it taste?"

"It's fresh, extremely fresh! How could aged souls compare to this delicacy? My dear husband, you truly cherish me!"

By "aged souls," she meant the resentful spirits she had consumed back at the house of the old woman—that Homebound Cultivator.

Those spirits had been dead for countless years;their flavor could never rival that of a freshly reaped soul.

Slurp!

The gramophone slurped up another strand of Geng Zhiwei's soul.

Li Banfeng possessed yin-yang eyes, and unlike when Rong Jin'an had died, he could clearly see a thin strand of Geng Zhiwei's soul being pulled out, flying into the gramophone's horn like a strand of rice noodle.

Geng Zhiwei's expression contorted hideously.

His eyes fixed on Li Banfeng, and Li Banfeng felt his heartbeat quicken.

Contrary to the rumors, Geng Zhiwei wasn't a Bleater. He was a level-one Hedonism Cultivator.

So why had a level-one Hedonism Cultivator with two level-one Martial Cultivator guards fallen to Li Banfeng?

Because they had stepped into Li Banfeng's dwelling.

***

Inside the dwelling, his might as a Homebound Cultivator had astonished even Li Banfeng himself.

The two Martial Cultivators, though skilled in close combat, had been no match for his speed and strength.

Geng Zhiwei's Hedonism abilities did have some effect, but under the dwelling spirit's suppression, they only made Li Banfeng's heart race a little faster.

The three of them had only one chance to counterattack. Geng Zhiwei conjured an illusion, making Li Banfeng see Ms. Song in her skirt and glasses.

Li Banfeng faltered for a moment, and the two Martial Cultivators prepared to strike him down together.

However, Li Banfeng slipped into another room to hide, making good use of his homeground advantage to resolve his crisis.

The gramophone unleashed a ferocious blast of steam, bringing the fight to an abrupt end.

It had been a total wipeout. If not for fear of harming Li Banfeng, the gramophone would have ended the battle even faster.

***

Half of Geng Zhiwei's soul had already been sucked away, yet he still clung to life, even using his Hedonism abilities to disrupt Li Banfeng's state of mind.

Li Banfeng struggled to restrain himself, rubbing and groping the gramophone restlessly.

"Oh… Ohhh, my dear husband~ what are you feeling around for?"

"My dear wife, we are already husband and wife. Why don't we consummate our union tonight?"

Pfft!

Cough, cough, cough!

The gramophone had been in the midst of happily slurping up her meal, and when she heard what Li Banfeng said, she choked. Several spurts of mist sprayed out of her horns as she coughed several times.

The large bronze horn turned red in an instant.

"This, this… my dear husband, it is not that I don't understand my duties, nor that I'm unwilling to serve you wholeheartedly. But this body of mine is not of much use. I fear it would ruin your pleasure. Let me recover for a few days. I shall find a better vessel. I will devote myself fully then and be sure to let you enjoy yourself. Ohhh, please listen, my dear husband~"

Seeing the gramophone's distressed state, Li Banfeng hastily pulled back his hand in shock.

What's wrong with me?

Why do I suddenly want to do it with a gramophone?

Are the abilities of a Hedonism Cultivator really this powerful?

Li Banfeng glanced at the pendulum that had absorbed Geng Zhiwei's blood to its maximum capacity and thought,

Where am I supposed to put all this blood? Is there a way to preserve the blood?

When Li Banfeng said nothing, the gramophone quickly explained, "My dear husband, you've been struck by that scoundrel's Heart-Searing Charm of Desire. This is how vile the techniques of Hedonism Cultivators are. My dear husband, don't fret. I will avenge you."

Then the gramophone shifted her attention to Geng Zhiwei. "You wretched Hedonism Cultivator, don't you move. Watch as I devour you piece by piece!"

Watching the gramophone slurp away at Geng Zhiwei's soul, Li Banfeng once again started touching her, startling her into another coughing fit.

"

Cough, cough.

My dear husband, perhaps you should retreat to the outer room for now."

Just as Li Banfeng was about to step into the outer room, he suddenly realized that something in the main room was missing.

What's gone?

He thought for a moment before recalling. "The medicinal herbs and pills I brought back. Where did they go?"

Still slurping away at Geng Zhiwei's soul, the gramophone sang out, "Husband, I found the clutter of jars and bottles unsightly, so I sent them all to the outer room."

Li Banfeng hurried to the outer room.

Earlier, when he had been dodging attacks in the outer room, he hadn't paid attention to his surroundings. Now, under the light of a candle, he saw jars and bottles scattered everywhere, and the wooden box containing pills lay shattered.

My wife was far too rough!

Li Banfeng wanted to check if the medicinal herbs had been damaged, but when he picked up a few jars, he found them empty.

What's going on?

Where have the herbs gone?

He flipped over the wooden box lying on the ground and found the pills were missing too!

Where had all these precious things gone?

Li Banfeng turned to the Arcane Crimson Lotus. Its petals were closed tightly, radiating a halo of light. It was making pills.

The Arcane Crimson Lotus had swallowed the herbs and pills and was refining them into new pills!

Li Banfeng was furious. Leaving the outer room, he returned to the main room and groped the gramophone.

Startled, the gramophone sang out, "My dear husband, have you yet to calm your desires?"

"My dear wife~" Li Banfeng sang back. "Where is that peach beneath your waist now?"

The gramophone faltered, then she stammered in song, "My dear husband… your wife… I… still have no peach there."

"Once you grow that peach, stick it out at once, and let me give it a good smack!"

The gramophone stuttered, "W-why do you want to hit me, my dear husband?"

"You ruined the herbs and pills I worked so hard to obtain. Shouldn't you be punished for that?"

The gramophone sounded confused. "Th-that… I merely sent those things to the outer room. I didn't ruin them~"

"The things you sent to the outer room were all eaten by the lotus. There's nothing left now!"

"Th-this, this…" The gramophone stammered for a long while before breaking into song again. "If there's any blame, it lies with the Crimson Lotus. That wretch, that glutton… is the one that angered you. Please, my dear husband, don't be angry, don't be angry—"

"Enough, stop singing!" Li Banfeng glanced at Geng Zhiwei's corpse. "You've finished eating his soul, haven't you?"

The gramophone quickly responded, "Yes, I've eaten all of it. Thank you for your kindness, my dear husband."

"Since you're done, clean it up yourself. Send the corpse to the outer room and hand it to the lotus."

Hiss, hiss!

The gramophone let out two sharp hisses. She asked in a reproachful tone, "My dear husband, why do you favor that wretch Crimson Lotus so much?"

Li Banfeng let out a cold laugh and sang, "Because the lotus core has seven holes~"

Then he walked away.

The gramophone spat out a puff of steam and muttered to herself, "What's so good about having seven holes? Aren't three horns good enough? Forget it, that madman must have gone crazy again!"

***

Li Banfeng stepped out of the Pocket Dwelling and retrieved the key from a spot near the Geng Family's medicinal trading house.

The fire raging at the Geng Family's medicinal trading house had yet to die out. The Geng Family was busy trying to put it out, while their neighbors had run out of their homes to escape the disaster.

Nevertheless, all of it was unnecessary.

Old Mister Yao had said that his medicinal liquor could only be consumed within the courtyard and could not be taken outside.

This fire would not harm anyone else.

As for the Geng Family, their estate would surely burn to ashes, leaving nothing behind. It was pointless for them to fight the fire.

Li Banfeng slipped away silently from the Geng Family's estate and hurried down the main street.

He wasn't just trying to avoid the Geng Family;he had something urgent to do.

He had stayed at home all day, so he had met his daily cultivation requirement as a Homebound Cultivator. However, he was far from satisfying the daily cultivation requirement as a Wanderlust Cultivator.

Li Banfeng unfolded the note Yu Nan had given him and read the address written on it. Then he set off to find the newly formed land at Medicine King Gully.

He truly wanted to see what that newly formed land looked like.