124 Empty Room

In Ganlu City’s downtown, heavy incense burned in the fire. Smoke rose, snaking into the air of the hall, along with the sound of drums and the singing of dancers. Bare-chested men rested on the couch smoking hookah, their eyes drunk. Beautiful performing girls laid in their arms, rubbing against the mens’ chests. They were dazzling and intoxicating. Tanned servants in turbans shuttled through the hall with wooden platters, working fervently to provide each guest with wine, piper betel, betel nuts, and oyster powder.

"My esteemed guests, please enjoy these delicacies from my home." The servants poured wine for the guests. Then they cut the betel nuts, dipped them into oyster powder, and used piper betel to wrap them into triangular shapes. The servants practically hand-fed the guests.

Two young men stood behind the table, one tall and one short. They looked like brothers. Both were dark-skinned and clad in a long robe. Their black curly hair was wrapped in a turban, and a gold pendant hung from their necks. They looked just like every other Indian in Avalon, and complemented this Indian brothel.

Yes, this was an Indian brothel. Ganlu City, also known as the sea of milk and drugs, was the biggest goldmine for Indians in Avalon. It apparently made one bushel of gold per day. Other than the women, they also had other more aggressive businesses in the beneath the surface, such as dealing opiates and soma wine. All of them were connected to Ganlu City.

The elder brother smiled, tossing a piper betel wrap into his mouth. Patting his brother’s shoulder, he said in a heavy Indian accent, "Shah, try one and stop being so down. We’re here to entertain ourselves! Ladies, come and sing for this unhappy boy!" With that, he threw a handful of money onto the table.

The performers giggled sweetly and began dancing and singing before the table.

‘Shah’s’ expression twisted instantly. He asked in a low voice, "Hey, cousin, your so-called bargain is to bring me here to look at prostitutes?"

"Patience. The good stuff hasn’t come yet,"‘cousin’ patted his shoulder and waved for the steward. He gave the man a thick wad of money and leered, "My brother Shah can’t wait any longer. Please send the girls over."

Seeing the cash, the steward smiled instantly, "Of course, of course."

In a blink of the eye, the smell of heavy perfume rushed in from all directions. Bai Xi could hardly breathe. Amidst sweet and delicate voices, dozens of haughty and sexy girls appeared out of nowhere. The enthusiastic girls practically squeezed onto Bai Xi’s lap, hugging her arms and cooing.

Bai Xi just wanted to throw up. Thankfully the dark oil on her skin hid the greenness.

"Master, are you satisfied?" the steward asked Ye Qingxuan, rubbing his hands together. Ye Qingxuan glanced at the girls and furrowed his brows. "My cousin, Shah, doesn’t like them. Give me another group!"

Bai Xi’s expression changed quickly. Seeing more girls rushing over, she cried in panic, "I like them! I really like them! No need to change!"

"Tsk," Ye Qingxuan shook his head and stated in the Indian accent, "Shah, this place is blessed by the gods. You’ll be able to find your type of girl. If you’re shy, let me look for you…"

Before Bai Xi could refuse, Ye Qingxuan turned to the steward and said sternly, "He likes girls like this, this, and this…"

He gestured with his hands. The steward’s face practically turned green, "Isn’t that a f*cking ball?"

"Oh?!" Ye Qingxuan pretended to be furious.

"No, no, no, beautiful! Beautiful!" the steward lied through his teeth.

"Do you have this type?"

"Yes!" the steward replied, clenching his teeth. "But…your request is a bit unique. The person might not be able to serve you well."

Ye Qingxuan shrugged, "It’s okay as long you have it!"

Soon, the floorboards began trembling. A fat and dark woman appeared. She shook her butt and smiled, and opened her giant mouth. Two splotches of blush had been applied to her cheeks. She looked as terrifying as the Black Bull King of Indian myths! After asking who her client was, the ball smiled and rushed forward.

Bai Xi’s face was practically green with terror.

"Cousin!" Ye Qingxuan coughed. Things would really get out of hand if they kept playing, so he reached out to stop the Indian ball.

He grabbed Bai Xi, who had almost passed out in the woman’s arms, and laughed. "They’re all beauties. My brother likes them a lot. Where’s the room…we can’t wait!"

The steward froze. Studying them, his facial muscles twitched, "The two of you want to be together?"

"My relationship with Shah is as close as the sacred mountain and the sacred woods. We’ve sworn to never part. We eat together, sleep together, and of course we have to be pleasured together!" Ye Qingxuan laughed weirdly, looking at the steward aggressively, "What, is it not allowed?"

"No, no, it is!" The steward felt his shattered worldviews crumble to powder. Peering at the ball that had been washing plates in the kitchen a few moments ago, he felt like he had really run into the devil today. Watching the drunken man walk away, one hand on his cousin, the other on the ball, he shook his head. He sighed, "Young people nowadays really know how to have fun!"

--

In the room, Bai Xi stared at the dancing ball. She had never felt the need to wash her eyes so strongly before. In fact, she had the urge to perform Pomp and Circumstances and wash the entire room with blood.

"Cousin, how much longer are you going to play for?" she grit out between clenched teeth as she pinched Ye Qingxuan’s waist. The corner of Ye Qingxuan’s lips twitched in pain.

"Don’t worry, don’t worry…soon!" With that, he clapped his hands, telling the ball to stop bouncing on the ground. Smiling, he pulled out a rope from his pockets. "My lady, would you like to play something new?"

"…" The ball froze. She collapsed before she could reply.

Behind her, Bai Xi put her hands down coldly. "Why a rope? Just get it done like this."

"Cousin, you’ve totally ruined the atmosphere." Shaking his head, Ye Qingxuan sighed and tied the ball up. Then he poured anesthetics into her and finally let go.

"Okay, she’ll sleep until morning."

Bai Xi kicked him fiercely, "Where’s the great bargain? Is it this ball? Did Old Phil eat your conscience? You took an underage girl to a brothel!"

"You were the one who wanted to come so badly," Ye Qingxuan replied helplessly. "And Cousin, you don’t count as underage. In a few years, you’ll be the young master of downtown! Don’t tell me you’ve never seen this stuff…"

Bai Xi kicked him again, "I don’t care. I’m angry!"

"Don’t be so impatient." Ye Qingxuan took off his long robe, revealing the tight black robe inside. He took off his wig as well and wiped off the oil on his face. Putting on his hunting hat and opening Jiu Xiao Pei Huan, he transformed back into the man who stirred trouble in downtown—the dark gentleman, Holmes.

Bai Xi did the same, but she put on a cloth over her face. Then she pulled a bunch of stuff from her pocket, finally turning it into a bow—it was her reward from the Pyramid Scheme, along with Medusa’s Mirror.

"Okay, where do we start?" Bai Xi projected her anger of being harassed by the Indian women. She spat out, "I want to empty these currys’ treasure storage!"

"Very good, very powerful." Ye Qingxuan snickered behind his hand.

--

In the giant commotion that swept through downtown a few days ago, the group that suffered the most losses was not only the Pyramid Scheme. There was also the Indians who had thought themselves to be clever. They had wanted to catch Ye Qingxuan and use him as bait, but did not expect the Black Hands to be even dirtier. They hired a musician from a criminal family, chopped up their leader and a bunch of skilled men, and threw them into the sewer.

The Indians’ power consisted of several illegal trade systems. Shahrukh dying itself did not have much effect, but the other gangs had taken advantage of their momentary weakness and took over one-third of their business and territory. It was a giant loss.

To make a comeback, the merchants who traveled between India and Avalon decided to increase their strength. They spent a fortune to buy ninety percent of the alchemy material and precious items on the black market. They even transported am important treasure from India: the saint’s relic.

According to the police force’s hypotheses, they collected all the items such as rune stones and ancient silver so the Indian musician in their care could enter the Resonance level.

The old Pusoptkata had been stuck on the third Musician level for decades. He was close to death, but still could not make a breakthrough. Due to various reasons, he decided to take a risk and perform the Resonance Ceremony. He planned to sign an agreement with the Holy Spirit and forcefully break through the Barrier of Knowledge.

According to the estimates of other musicians, the saint’s relic that Puspotkata had found matched well. He had more than a ninety percent chance of success at a breakthrough.

The Indians kept this secret well. If not for the police force’s spy, this plan would still be unknown. And according to the news Ye Qingxuan had received, the ceremony would either be tonight or tomorrow.

But there was a problem. Should he wait for Puspotkata to be bathing and fasting, take advantage of his weakest moment, and…do something major? Only an idiot would not! Ye Qingxuan loved to bear grudges, and he had amazing memory! He would never let his enemies become stronger. After calculating that he had more than a seventy percent chance of succeeding, Ye Qingxuan slapped his thigh, and exclaimed, "Let’s do it!"

He had spent the entire day collecting information. Lestrade had also gotten some intelligence on the Indians. Using all this, Ye Qingxuan hatched an entirely new plan called "Empty Room."

"So basically you just want to act cool." Bai Xi rolled her eyes with expertise, expressing her scorn, "Why don’t you just call it ‘Research of Blood Words’?"

"But there aren’t any words written in blood, and there isn’t research," Ye Qingxuan shrugged in regret. "But that’s a good name. Save it for the Professor."

"Wow, cousin, you have great fantasies."

"You flatter me. I need to work on them more." Ye Qingxuan acted shamelessly, just like how he had learned from Charles. "Wait a second." He pulled out a thick stack of white paper onto the table, as well as an aether ball. After gazing around, he brought a chair over and pushed Jiu Xiao Huan Pei to the ceiling. "Wait for me to make a map."

Clang!

The zither’s strings twanged, shattering the silence, spreading like flowing water. The clear and crisp sound echoed through the room, bouncing against the walls without fading. The echoes snaked up the beams in the ceiling…yes, the echoes went up the beams!

As the strings thrummed, invisible strength poured into the beams. It spread instantly along the entire structure of Ganlu City like water. For a moment, the entire building trembled as if the illusionary music went through the beams, ceiling, walls, and foundation. The entire structure resonated softly. It seemed to be responding to the instrument’s calls. The distant and lonely music transformed into dreamy murmurs, echoing throughout the building.

The music was like chimes but also the roaring of a dragon. It was a weapon which could control life and death.