Infinite Puzzle City

Chapter 756 The two of us brothers...

"Gentle breeze, bright moon!"

Xiao Ran remembered the two chubby figures, the two flesh puppets that always followed behind the Yinshan Taoist.

"Yes, I don't know the specific reason, but I remember that they had a fight once, a really fierce one, and Dun Gui used those two fat guys to threaten Yinshan Daoist."

Mo Ju squinted as she recalled the scene. Yin Shan Dao Ren had red eyes and looked ready to fight, but after Dun Gui's knife was placed against Qing Feng and Ming Yue's heads, Yin Shan Dao Ren's face twitched, and he forced out a sentence: "We are all brothers, why resort to knives and guns?"

"These two chubby guys are definitely Yinshan Daoist's Achilles' heel. Instead of going to great lengths to kill Yinshan Daoist, you should take care of these two first. Then Yinshan Daoist will only have two options: either he will fight you to the death with bloodshot eyes, or he will be severely injured and his vitality will be greatly depleted. Perhaps both will happen, but either way, it will be extremely advantageous for you."

Hearing Mo Ju's analysis, Xiao Ran agreed wholeheartedly. Although she didn't get much information, this little bit made the trip worthwhile.

"I see."

Xiao Ran stood up, took out a packet of tea leaves and a bottle of water from the Siqin River from her spatial storage, and placed them on the table.

"This is the water from the Siqin River. When used to make tea, it has the ability to send messages through dreams. If you need anything, just send me a message through a dream, and I will come to help you as soon as possible."

Having asked all the questions that needed to be asked and said all the things that needed to be said, Xiao Ran had no intention of staying. She cupped her hands in greeting and said, "I'm leaving!"

After saying goodbye, Xiao Ranren turned and walked to the front door.

At this moment, Mo Ju suddenly called out to Xiao Ran, "Wait a minute."

Xiao Ran stopped walking.

As Mo Ju watched Xiao Ran's retreating figure, her expression gradually became complicated. Her lips parted slightly: "If, I mean if, one day I need you to kill me, would you do it?"

Upon hearing Mo Ju's question, Xiao Ran's mind went blank.

His body swayed slightly, but the confusion in his eyes lasted only a moment. He turned to look at Mo Ju and nodded to her: "Yes!"

After saying that, he walked out the door without looking back.

Just as I stepped out the door, I heard Mo Ju's cursing voice behind me: "Pah, you heartless little thief, you really had the heart to do that! Remember to come visit me often!"

"Will do!"

Xiao Ran waved his hand. This time, he didn't need Mo Ju to see him off. A gentle breeze seemed to run through his feet, and in a moment, he was out of the archway gate of Hongcun Village...

The matter of Hongcun Village and the six-legged centipede has been resolved.

After Xiao Ran returned to the Amazing Pavilion, she asked Li Botong to inform Bai Shatang and the others to speed up the project.

It's worth noting that less than two hours have passed since the meeting ended. Bai Shatang and the others were quite surprised when they received the news, not expecting Xiao Ran to act so swiftly.

Subsequently, news from the company also came through, further confirming Xiao Ran's statement.

Now, Bai Shatang and the others, who were originally quite dissatisfied with Xiao Ran's domineering style, wisely put away their little schemes.

Little did they know that Xiao Ran's actions went far beyond that. After clearing the obstacles at the bus stop, Xiao Ran barely lingered in the Amazing Pavilion before rushing off towards the bus terminal.

After landing in the Lost City, places like the Mountain God Temple and Bone Spirit Street changed locations, forcing Xiao Ran to travel day and night to catch up.

Fortunately, his mental strength was strong enough to maintain a low level of consumption, allowing him to stay in a low-altitude flight state. Occasionally, when he encountered some ignorant evil spirits on the way, Xiao Ran would raise his hand and throw a piece of ghost money to send them away, which could be considered as eliminating harm for the people.

But Xiao Ran didn't intend to interfere in any more matters.

He could save one person, but not the whole city.

Moreover, he was no savior. If the karma of Ghost City hadn't been so great, even affecting the entire Ruzhou, Xiao Ran wouldn't have chosen to fight those demons to the death.

Along the way, Xiao Ran would occasionally stop, not because she was tired, but because there were some places ahead that made her wary.

He remembered that it seemed to be Deng City, but the area was now filled with a gray, deathly aura, and the wind blew in, accompanied by desperate howls.

Xiao Ran stood at a distance and watched for a while, but she didn't see a single living person.

Just then, a strong sense of being watched came from behind the mist and locked onto Xiao Ran.

Seeing this, Xiao Ran's expression turned cold. She raised her hand and held a piece of joss paper between her fingers. The intense yin energy emanating from the joss paper made the figure behind the mist hesitate slightly. After staring at Xiao Ran for a moment, the figure finally withdrew its gaze and disappeared into the depths of the mist.

"That beast, I'll come back and kill you sooner or later!"

Xiao Ran snorted coldly, put away the joss paper in her hand, and turned to take a detour.

Fortunately, situations like those in Dengshi are rare; it just took a detour and a bit more time.

The highways have long been closed. After the arrival of the Lost City, many highways are no longer passable. Who knows if you might accidentally stumble into one of the Lost Citys while walking?

On the national highway, you can only see a few cars slowly passing by occasionally.

Xiao Ran walked along the edge of the national highway. Because she was unfamiliar with the road conditions and did not have a map, she wanted to find a signpost to see the direction of the nearest city.

"Beep! Beep beep!!!"

Just then, a van approached from behind and honked its horn three times. Xiao Ran stepped aside to let the van pass, but unexpectedly, the van slowed down. Inside, three heads were pressed against the windows, carefully examining Xiao Ran. The van slowly passed by Xiao Ran, its brake lights came on, and the van came to a stop.

After Xiao Ran slowly walked over, the passenger window was carefully opened a crack.

Xiao Ran looked closely and saw that it was an elderly woman who looked to be around sixty years old, while the driver's seat was occupied by an elderly man.

Behind the car, there were two more children, who were about seven years old.

This looks like a grandfather and grandson.

“Young man, we’re heading to Xiping County ahead. If it’s on our way, we can give you a ride. It’s too dangerous for you to travel alone.”

The old lady rolled down the car window and spoke to Xiao Ran.

Xiao Ran initially wanted to refuse, but she was just looking at a road sign; if she wanted to get somewhere quickly, she could walk.

But before he could speak, the old man in the driver's seat lowered his head and called out, "Get in, young man. We're not bad people. It's about to rain. It's not safe for you to walk alone on the national highway, and you'll get wet in the rain."

"Crack!"

As he spoke, the safety lock on the rear door popped up.

After the old man pressed the open button, the back door of the car opened.

Seeing this, Xiao Ran stopped refusing and quickly sat in the back seat.

"Xiao Bei, Xiao Nan, please come in and sit down."

"Oh!"

The two children obediently sat down to the side, making room for Xiao Ran.

"So nice."

Looking at the two innocent-looking children, Xiao Ran turned to the two elderly people in the front row and couldn't help but ask, "Grandpa, Grandma, the world is not peaceful these days, why are you still going out?"

In the current situation, even truck drivers dare not drive recklessly.

There were very few cars on the national highway.

It's puzzling that two elderly people, whose combined age is over 100, would run away with a child. Even if they were fleeing, they should have headed towards Ruzhou.

"Ugh!"

The old man sighed and didn't say anything, but the old lady beside him was very talkative. She turned around and explained to Xiao Ran, "We're going to take the child to school."

"Sending the child?"

“My son and daughter-in-law live in the city, and our two children are with us. We plan to send them back to their hometown.”

"But in the city..."

Xiao Ran realized something halfway through her sentence and didn't know how to continue.

Seeing that Xiao Ran's expression was strange, the old lady generously took over the conversation: "We know it's dangerous in the city, but the countryside isn't safe either. We two old folks can't lift a finger or carry anything. If we don't make it through one day, how are these two children supposed to live?"

In peacetime, it's fine for grandparents to help look after children in the countryside, but in this era, it may not be a good thing for children to live with their grandparents.

Besides...

The old man glanced at the family photo hanging in the rearview mirror out of the corner of his eye, and a hint of worry appeared in his eyes.

"Brother, have some candy."

The girl next to him took out a White Rabbit milk candy from her pocket and handed it to Xiao Ran: "Eat it, it's very sweet."

Looking at the little girl's tender face and innocent eyes, Xiao Ran did not refuse and accepted the candy.

"Big brother, are you also going to find your mom and dad?"

The boy next to her looked at Xiao Ran curiously.

"Yes, I'm going to find them too."

Xiao Ran reached out and rubbed the boy's head. Only when she touched it did she notice that the boy's destiny seemed to be wrong.

"Hmm!! Is there a flaw in your destiny?"

Xiao Ran raised an eyebrow, a strange look on her face. She was about to advance to the C-level executioner, but she didn't expect to encounter such a child as soon as she went out.

So I asked, "How old are you two?" "I'm nine, she's seven. I'm the older brother, and she's the younger sister."

The boy proudly raised his head and said.

The girl next to her pouted and said, "You're not. You were adopted by Grandpa, not my brother."

Upon hearing this, the atmosphere in the carriage became somewhat awkward. The old lady turned around and glared at the little girl: "Xiao Nan, you can't say that."

“But that’s what Mom said,” the girl said, her head down.

These words made the grandfather driving the car look even more unpleasant.

Fortunately, the boy didn't seem to mind. Instead, he put his hands on his hips and said, "You're my sister. Whether you acknowledge me or not, I'm still your brother. When I become stronger, I'll protect you, and also protect Grandpa and Grandma."

The girl pouted and turned her head away. Although she was unconvinced, she didn't argue about the matter anymore.

Grandma felt a little embarrassed, so she explained to Xiao Ran, "Their parents had been married for a long time without children. Xiao Bei was a child we adopted from an orphanage. We never expected that after Xiao Bei came, Xiao Nan would be born."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Ran immediately understood. He took Xiao Bei's hand and inserted a thread of destiny into Xiao Nan's body through Xiao Bei's sleeve. By catching the thread of destiny, Xiao Ran quickly figured out the child's fate.

Indeed, one of the pillars of destiny is missing.

This made the child's life very turbulent, and even after being adopted, he was not well received at home.

Fortunately, this child has a relatively optimistic personality.

"Yes, they're good kids, but their hair is a bit long. Let's stop and rest for a bit, and I'll give them both a haircut. I'm a hairdresser."

"A barber!" Upon hearing Xiao Ran's profession, the elderly couple were overjoyed: "That's great! We were worried too. Barbershops are all so eerie these days, we don't dare to go in."

"There's an open space ahead, and it doesn't look like anyone's around. Let's rest here for a bit."

The old man turned on his turn signal; they had been driving for several hours and could finally rest here.

"squeak!!"

The car slowly came to a stop, and the group got out and stretched. Xiao Ran found a large rock for Xiao Bei to sit on, and then took out a razor.

Upon seeing the gleaming knife in Xiao Ran's hand, the old couple's expressions changed slightly. The old man's heart tightened, and just as he was about to speak, Xiao Ran placed the knife beside Xiao Bei. He immediately fell silent.

He dared not speak, and even subtly pulled Xiao Nan aside, taking two steps back without a word.

Xiao Ran naturally witnessed this scene. She stepped forward, blocking Xiao Bei's view, and explained, "Grandpa, Grandma, don't worry. My family has been barbers for generations. Since this is the middle of nowhere, I can't use clippers. This razor is perfect."

The old man couldn't tell whether Xiao Ran was telling the truth or not, so he could only give a perfunctory reply: "Oh, okay, okay!"

Fortunately, Xiao Ran's next actions finally put the elderly couple at ease.

The razor danced lightly on Xiao Bei's head, shaving off most of the boy's hair in a matter of moments.

Every single shaved hair was neatly arranged on the razor, not a single one was scattered. Xiao Ran took out a roll of cloth and wiped the hair on it.

Putting everything else aside, the old man could tell from Xiao Ran's technique that he was a truly skilled person, not someone who used haircuts as a pretext to extort money or even kill people.

Immediately, I felt completely relaxed.

He even sat down to watch with a smile and said, "Amazing! There used to be a barber in our village who spent half his life barbering. His skills... tsk tsk, they can't compare to yours, young man. How many years have you been practicing your skills?"

"It didn't take many years, mainly because of the good upbringing at home."

Xiao Ran smiled and raised the razor in her hand. She activated her Spirit Blade Technique, and a silver light appeared on the blade. Then, Xiao Ran slashed with her finger.

Xiao Ran shaved off a single strand of dry, yellow hair.

Suddenly, Xiao Bei felt a jolt, vaguely sensing that something had been added to her body, and she became more energetic, no longer feeling lightheaded like before.

Xiao Ran reached out and patted the boy's shoulder: "Alright, nice hairstyle. Don't grow your hair long in the future. A grown man shouldn't have long hair; it makes him look effeminate."

Xiao Bei nodded as if he understood, though he was young. As an orphan, he was extremely sensitive and could tell that Xiao Ran was reminding him of something. Although he didn't understand, he still remembered it.

Next is Xiao Nan. This child has a perfect destiny, but her luck is intermittent in this chaotic world. Xiao Ran gave her a braided hairstyle, which will give her an extra bit of luck to turn danger into safety.

After completing these tasks, the group got back into the car and continued their journey to Xiping County.

On the way, the old man hesitated, looking somewhat guilty, but ultimately did not speak. Xiao Ran only got out of the car when they arrived outside Xiping County.

"Young man, I was so embarrassed just now..."

The old man rolled down the car window, his face flushed, and tried to apologize to Xiao Ran.

"It's alright. When you're out and about, you can't be too careful. I was the one who was being presumptuous."

Xiao Ran didn't let the old man continue, and waved her hand: "I'm leaving, take care, you two."

"Sigh, sigh!!" The old man nodded, but before he could say "take care," Xiao Ran had already disappeared.

After saying goodbye to the two elderly people, Xiao Ran arrived at the northern suburbs outside Xiping County.

Xiao Ran had never been to this place before, but when she looked at the map before, she was certain that the bus terminal was located here.

The mental energy slowly spread out like a large net, and soon found the bus terminal sign at a scrap metal collection station.

Goodness, if it weren't for the dozen or so buses parked inside, Xiao Ran would have thought the markings on the map were wrong.

"Big Brother!" Xiao Ran called out, striding into the station gate.

As soon as I entered, I saw the driver pointing at several dejected drivers, cursing and swearing: "...How do you drive normally? Huh?! If you encounter those blind fools blocking the road, just floor the gas and ram them! What are you afraid of! Is that car made of paper? Idiots! Now look what you've done, sitting here in the sun, starving!..."

The smoky office was filled with the heavy smell of smoke. The driver's face, covered in a thick beard, was flushed red, and he was spitting so hard that he almost sprayed saliva onto the faces of the other drivers.

He paced restlessly among the rickety office chairs, like a trapped bear.

The scolding drivers didn't dare utter a sound, clearly indicating that the beating had been going on for quite some time. Behind them, in the large courtyard, several imposing but badly damaged buses were parked. Two of them had severely dented and deformed front ends, as if they had just crashed into a mountainside; several others had flat tires and were covered in a thick layer of dust.

Hearing Xiao Ran's shout, he turned around abruptly and saw Xiao Ran standing at the door. The fierce expression on his face was instantly replaced by surprise, followed by an undisguised joy.

His burly, bear-like physique almost immediately relaxed.

Xiao Ran glanced at the disabled buses in the yard, then at the few silent drivers, and said, "The buses are inanimate objects; the root of the problem is the evil spirits blocking the road. Crashing into them is the usual method, but if you run into a tough nut to crack, you can't blame them if you smash them to pieces."

Xiao Ran's words made the drivers who had been scolded subconsciously look up and steal a glance at him, their eyes filled with gratitude.

The driver waved his hand dismissively, like shooing away flies: "Get out of here! All of you, get out and check the car! Don't stand here in the way!"

He then walked over to Xiao Ran and patted him on the shoulder: "Brother, long time no see, you rascal... um!! You..."

The driver looked Xiao Ran up and down, and his eyelids suddenly twitched involuntarily.

Having not seen each other for some time, he realized that Xiao Ran in front of him had become unfathomable. The hand that had been on Xiao Ran's shoulder was suddenly jerked away, and his broad palm suddenly felt awkward and unsure of what to do.

Fortunately, Xiao Ran didn't care about this. She grabbed the driver's arm and said, "Brother, don't get too upset about the car. You can cooperate with a company. Didn't I introduce you to one last time? They provide the car, and you provide the labor. They would definitely be willing to do this business."

Seeing that Xiao Ran's expression towards him remained as natural as ever, the driver's honest face gradually relaxed.

"Right, right, I would have forgotten about that if you hadn't reminded me."

The driver was so excited that his face was trembling, and his fierce demeanor from before had completely vanished. He quickly pulled Xiao Ran to sit down.

"Brother, you came here for more than just to see me, right? Just tell me what's on your mind."

"Ah."

Xiao Ran didn't bother with formalities with this older brother. She took out the bus station blueprints the company had built: "I've already started working on the task you gave me last time. These blue-marked stations are the completed ones. Once I name them, we can officially start, right?"

"Correct!"

The driver nodded, took a pen out of his pocket and handed it to Xiao Ran: "Just write your name on this, and I'll take care of the rest."

"And one more thing."

Xiao Ran took out a sum of ghost money and placed it on the table; it was about 30,000 yuan.

"What is this for?" The driver's expression changed slightly, but his eyes were fixed on the ghost money on the table. This was not the small amount of ten or twenty yuan that he used to have.

"I recently opened a shop, so I want to place an advertisement. This is the deposit for the advertisement. Brother, if it's not enough, I can add more when it's settled."

Upon hearing Xiao Ran's intention, the driver's smile froze for a moment. His eyes, adept at spotting danger in the dark, narrowed as he scrutinized Xiao Ran's face several times. He neither immediately agreed nor objected, but instead reached for another cigarette, lit it, took a deep drag, and slowly spoke through the swirling smoke:
"Brother, are you looking down on your older brother? Do you think I would ask you for money for something as small as this?"

Xiao Ran smiled calmly and took out another 20,000 from his spatial storage and placed it on the table: "Brothers are brothers, business is business. The car dealership isn't just yours. The brothers down there also need to eat and make a living. How can I make things difficult for my brothers? I only have one request: I need to run this advertising business for at least three months. After three months, whoever can come up with more money than me will get the business."

"readily!"

Upon hearing this, the driver reached out and shoved the ghost money on the table into his pocket: "Brother, you're a true gentleman! From today onwards, your name will be plastered on the back of our car! Who dares to sneer..." He glanced at the group of drivers peering out the window with his copper bell-like eyes, "I'll wrench them back into their stomachs."

"Big Brother is truly impressive!" Xiao Ran gave a thumbs up.

"Is it hard?" The driver waved his hand, but his hand didn't stop there. He patted the outside of his bulging pocket as if he were digging out his heart. "Brother, 50,000 ghost money. Who dares to say anything? You're really rich and powerful."

Having said that, he picked up two wine glasses and handed one to Xiao Ran: "Brother! Let's drink!"

Xiao Ran took the wine glass and clinked it against the glass: "Big brother, tough!"

"We brothers are both thick and hard! Let's fuck..."

(End of this chapter)