Infinite Puzzle City

Chapter 369 continues
After coming out of the Li family, Xiao Ran walked upstairs and headed straight for the Zhou family's old house.

They all live in this area, and the Zhou family’s home is not far away. It’s about a 20-minute walk from Mashi Street along the moat.

It's getting late now, and it's not right to disturb Mr. Zhou Er at this time.

But Xiao Ran couldn't wait. Besides, this matter could be discussed at night. It would be bad if there were too many people around during the day and any noise might be made.

Standing in front of the door, Xiao Ran pressed the doorbell. After a while, Zhou Shen's voice came from the door: "Who is it?"

As he spoke, he opened a corner of the iron door and looked out. When he saw Xiao Ran standing outside the door, Zhou Shen was a little surprised: "Xiao Ran, why are you here?"

As he spoke, Zhou Shen opened the iron door.

"Sorry to bother you, Uncle Zhou. I'm looking for the old man."

"Looking for my dad?"

Zhou Shen looked Xiao Ran up and down suspiciously: "What's your matter?"

"Well, it has something to do with the old man."

This made Zhou Shen even more confused: "What uncle? Who is it?"

"Let him in."

At this time, Zhou Shang's voice came from behind the door. Although he was old, his hearing and eyesight were sharp, and he was not inferior to that of young people at all.

Mr. Zhou Er heard the conversation just now clearly.

Seeing that his father had spoken, Zhou Shen let Xiao Ran in.

When I arrived in the yard, I saw the old man sitting by the charcoal stove, leaning against the fire and making tea. When he saw Xiao Ran coming, he waved to him to sit next to him.

"Go prepare some snacks."

Without waiting for Xiao Ran to sit down, the old man spoke to Zhou Shen.

"No, no, no, don't bother. I'll be gone soon."

Xiao Ran quickly waved her hand to signal Zhou Shen not to go through so much trouble, but Zhou Shen just grinned and walked straight to the kitchen without paying any attention to Xiao Ran.

"You came here so late at night, I'm afraid it's not a simple matter, so tell me the main points."

"Ugh."

For these old people who have struggled in the world for a lifetime, they have seen more people than you have eaten salt. Just speak honestly and there is no need to beat around the bush.

Didn’t I just get called out by Uncle Zhao?

So Xiao Ran went straight to the point and took out the black ghost pomegranate from his pocket and handed it over.

"This is what Uncle Zhao asked me to give you in exchange for something from your family."

Looking at the ghost pomegranate handed over by Xiao Ran, the expression on Zhou Erye's face was particularly rich.

She was surprised at first, then her eyes gradually became moist. Finally, she took a deep breath, took the pomegranate and held it in her arms. She was silent for a long time, as if she had figured something out, and then she looked up and asked, "He's home?"

"Well, he should have come back last month."

Although the bald old man had repeatedly told Xiao Ran not to tell anyone the news of Zhao Qingming's return.

But it depends on the situation. When you take out the ghost pomegranate, Zhao Qingming's affairs can no longer be hidden. At least you can't hide anything from Mr. Zhou Er.

"This old guy didn't come to drink with me after he came back. Is he waiting for me to wish him a happy new year?"

Mr. Zhou Er started to complain.

"This one……"

Xiao Ran didn't know whether he should explain or not. Seeing that he was hesitant to speak, Mr. Zhou Er frowned and said, "Speak, don't hide it and make people unhappy."

"Grandpa Zhou, it seems that Grandpa can't come. His situation... is quite special."

Zhou Shang, as the second oldest of seven brothers and a good brother who grew up with Zhao Qingming, how could he not guess what the special situation Xiao Ran mentioned meant.

Suddenly, a strange look appeared on his face. He looked at the ghost pomegranate in his hand and said angrily, "He really took that path in the end."

After saying that, he looked at Xiao Ran unhappily and said, "Tell me, what did I ask you to get?"

"It's not what the uncle wants, it's what I want." Xiao Ran explained the matter first. The blame cannot be put on Uncle Zhao, otherwise it would be difficult to explain later.

"you?"

Mr. Zhou Er looked at Xiao Ran, a gleam of brilliance flashed in his cloudy eyes, and he leaned back in his chair and asked, "What do you want?"

"I have a problem and I need to use something from your family, a paper-making seal. If it's convenient, I would like to borrow it."

Xiao Ran's voice was not loud, but every word he said was firm and powerful.

Mr. Zhou Er looked at Xiao Ran in surprise: "You answer it?"

Without waiting for Xiao Ran's reply, Zhou Erye shook his head: "No, no, this is not possible."

Facing Zhou Erye's refusal, Xiao Ran was not in a hurry, but just asked: "Grandpa Zhou, are you planning to pass it on?"

The Zhou family has long since stopped being in the paper-making business. Zhou Shen still has the skill, but he only knows the basics.

Now the Zhou family's entire focus is on the farmers' market. Unless the Zhou family is secretly planning something, otherwise, this seal is of little use if kept in their hands, and it cannot be sold even as an antique.

Seeing that Xiao Ran seemed to have misunderstood his meaning, Zhou Erye waved his hand and said, "I can't give you this seal. It's not because I want to pass it down, but because I don't dare to pass it down, let alone to you."

Mr. Zhou Er took a sip of tea and said, "This seal is not only the lifeblood of the paper-folding craftsman, but also a kind of contract with the underworld. Although you have the ability to pay the underworld messenger, you can't print as much money or as many copies as you want. That requires a lot of good deeds to support it."

Having said that, Zhou Erye slapped his thigh and spoke to Xiao Ran earnestly.

"Your grandfather certainly never told you that when we brothers were tracking down Li Jingqi, we entered an ancient tomb and narrowly escaped death.

In order to find a way out for everyone, I had to ask the ghost soldiers to clear the way, and I led a few brothers to fight my way out. But I also burned up all the Yin De of the Zhou family, and I still owed a lot of Yin De.

I won't pass it on because the debt of this Yin De is too great. Now my family has started a business and it seems to be thriving, but in fact... Oh, it's just a superficial glory."

Mr. Zhou's words are not alarmist.

In the past, their Zhou family was known as the Paper Man Zhou, and they contracted the entire funeral business in Los Angeles.

But now, the Zhou family is really just a shell with a bright appearance.

The farmers' market seems to be booming, and even accounts for more than half of the import and export of fresh vegetables in Los Angeles. But in fact, the stall fees charged by the Zhou family are not high, and for vegetable farmers in difficulty, the Zhou family also spends money to subsidize them.

The money that ends up in your hands is often spent without being able to be kept.

To put it bluntly, the Zhou family is working to pay off their debt to the underworld. With such a huge karma owed, how could the old man of the Zhou family possibly give the seal to Xiao Ran?

"Child, it's not that I don't want to give this thing away. I don't feel bad even if you use it to crack walnuts. But if I give it to you, it will harm you. How can I face your grandfather?"

Xiao Ran was deeply moved by Mr. Zhou's heartfelt advice.

But no matter how touched he was, he still needed the seal. As for the good deeds he owed, he would find other ways to make up for it. It was not that he would not do it just because he knew it was difficult.

So Xiao Ran stood up and said, "Second Grandfather, I know you are doing this for my own good, but I really need this seal. Please give me a chance for the sake of my grandfather, Uncle Zhao."

"you……"

Mr. Zhou pointed at Xiao Ran, but he didn't say the words that were on the tip of his tongue.

"Forget it, kid. I've said everything I need to say. If you're still like this, I'll give you the seal. But you better think it through. If the seal falls into your hands, I have two conditions."

"Second Grandfather, please speak."

"First, this seal cannot be used to do anything that is harmful to the world."

"Secondly, I give this seal to you. No matter whether you will regret it in the future or not, this thing can never be returned."

The two requests raised by Mr. Zhou Er were reasonable and Xiao Ran certainly would not refuse.

After confirming again and again that Xiao Ran really wanted to take the seal, Mr. Zhou stood up and took Xiao Ran to the ancestral hall at the back.

Go through the corridor.

I saw many paper people standing under the eaves. These paper people were made so lifelike that if it weren’t for their conspicuous clothes, at first glance I would have thought they were a group of people standing there.

"When you get old, you have to find something to do. You can't throw away all your previous skills. It's nice to pick them up to pass the time."

Mr. Zhou Er said this as he led Xiao Ran into the gate of the ancestral hall.

There were many tablets of Zhou family members enshrined on it.

Uncle Zhou Er motioned to Xiao Ran to wait a moment, then he stood up and walked to the altar, lit some incense, knelt on the ground, and looked at the tablets of his ancestors in front of him.

"I am an unworthy descendant. I kowtow to my ancestors. This is the reality. If they find it strange, they can only blame me. From now on, our Zhou family will completely withdraw from the underworld and will not keep this seal."

After saying that, he took out a small box from under the table leg.

"This is the Soul Crossing Sutra, which has been passed down from generation to generation in our Zhou family. Since you have received the seal, this thing should also be given to you."

Then he walked to the table on the other side, picked up the seal on the table, wiped it a few times reluctantly, and turned around.

"Catch it!"

As he said this, he threw the seal in his hand towards him.

The direction and timing of the throw were wrong, and Xiao Ran was not even mentally prepared.

Fortunately, in reality, Xiao Ran's methods and speed are already among the best in the world. His figure leaped up like a monkey, and the next moment he grasped the seal in his hand.

The seal was just a small piece, but it felt like a thousand-pound weight in the hand. Xiao Ran's face changed and he hurriedly used all his strength to lift it.

Instead of being able to lift it up, he almost dropped it out of his hand.

You have to know that my strength has exceeded 50. Even the world's strongest champion may not be able to beat me in strength.

But now veins popped up on Xiao Ran's face, and he was holding the seal so tightly that he actually felt like he was about to slip out of his hands.

"Strange, is there something pulling this seal?"

"Yes, this thing is as light as a feather for Master Zhou Er to pick up. Not to mention that Master Zhou Er is old and frail, even when he was young, he could easily pick up this seal. Could it be that there is some special power on it that repels me?"

Thinking of this, Xiao Ran immediately came up with an idea. He silently chanted a spell in his heart, and a very cold corpse aura emerged from his body. This corpse aura enveloped Xiao Ran's entire body.

Corpse magic, half of the Yin and Yang.

As the corpse technique was activated, a strong corpse aura began to emanate from Xiao Ran's body, enveloping Xiao Ran's entire body and putting him into a state of suspended death.

In this state, the seal indeed became much lighter, but it still could not be lifted.

Seeing this, Xiao Ran had an idea and took out [Suppressing Evil Order: Corpse Collector] without making any noise.

Then, waves of yin energy surged in his body, and an aura different from that of this world appeared on Xiao Ran's body.

Privilege 1: Underworld

After activation, you will be blessed with the identity of Hades Messenger, and gain the unique skills of Hades Messenger, the Evil-Repelling Seal, and the Demon-Suppressing Spell.

As the effect of the underworld appeared, the seal in his hand, which was as heavy as a mountain, suddenly became light.

It was as light as a feather in Xiao Ran's hand.

At the same time, a piece of information appeared in front of Xiao Ran.

[Special cursed object discovered, seal of passage to the spirit world, should we activate it...]

(End of this chapter)