"Welcome to the Land of Peach, a hospitable paradise."

 

A sign, about the size of an ordinary household wall, was wrapped in a pale light strip. Seven scarlet characters and exclamation marks were printed on it, creating a strong contrast with the text content.

 

In just an instant, the atmosphere of the underworld was brought to its fullest.

 

How should the city's image be portrayed?

 

Land of Peach tells you that there is no need for any fancy decorations.

 

Just a sign and a sentence are enough to let visitors know that this is not a city of baths or a city of great swords, but a real ghost city.

 

The timid ones turn back directly, and even the brave ones have to think twice.

 

This is the city's image.

 

"But why not use a different sentence? Isn't it better to directly plagiarize Qilu's advertising slogan?" Chronicle couldn't help but comment as he got off the sedan chair with the crowd.

 

There is no direct bus to the street where the Gu Family Mansion is located.

 

A hundred years ago, Taochi Road was still the most prosperous place in this city.

 

But with the occurrence of that incident, even the brave people of Land of Peach dared not live there.

 

The once bustling street gradually became a deserted place.

 

It was also one of the few existences that could make people in Land of Peach feel fear, apart from the expenses of the motorhome in Chronicle's memory.

 

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but take a deep breath.

 

He wasn't nervous at all, that was fake.

 

But with four card spirits by his side, he had the determination to face his fears.

 

So, after sufficient psychological preparation, he came to the roadside to hail a taxi.

 

But after hailing several taxis in a row, as soon as the drivers heard the destination, their expressions changed and they stepped on the gas pedal, speeding away.

 

Chronicle had no choice but to continue reaching out to hail a taxi. He stood in the cold wind for a long time until he finally encountered a young driver who was willing to go to Taochi Road.

 

"Brother, are you a Card Craftsman?" the driver asked with a smile.

 

"Yes," Chronicle replied with a smile.

 

The other party was stating the obvious.

 

With his attire and his beautiful yet lifeless face, he didn't look like a human girl who enjoyed cosplay.

 

He was clearly a "ghost".

 

And how could Chronicle, who accompanied her, be an ordinary person?

 

"I knew it, only Card Craftsmen would go to such a dangerous place," the driver said familiarly. "Brother, do you want me to wait outside for you? If you don't come out for a while, I'll call the Card Craftsman Association."

 

"Sure, thank you, brother," Chronicle said, feeling warm inside.

 

Ghosts are heartless, but there are still many good people in this world, even though they live in this cold ghost city of Land of Peach.

 

Although he didn't have any money living in Land of Peach, the words spoken by this driver were very warm and full of humanity.

 

"No need to be so polite," the driver grinned, showing two rows of white teeth. "It's all paid service…"

 

He paused for a moment and smiled even brighter. "It costs extra."

 

Chronicle couldn't help but cough twice at his words.

 

"Damn it, give me back my touched feelings," he cursed in his heart, but he forced a smile on his face. "No problem."

 

"Card Craftsmen are really generous. They have money in their pockets, and they are indeed different," the driver casually said, poking at Chronicle's heart.

 

He didn't have any money at all.

 

This "talkative" driver seemed to realize that something was wrong and didn't say anything that would hurt Chronicle for the rest of the journey.

 

Instead, he started talking about gossip he had heard from somewhere.

 

For example, "After a certain old general in Zhenyuan Army retired to the second line, he became the principal of a high school and continued to exert his influence."

 

Or, "The famous genius Bai Ziliang in our city didn't actually fall. After seclusion, his strength has made a breakthrough and is no weaker than the provincial runner-up who defeated him multiple times."

 

And also, "The first card played by Chairman Xie of our city was only a white-grade card, with low talent. It's inexplicable how he suddenly rose to power and occupied the position of vice chairman that should have belonged to Su Wen, who is in charge. What's even more outrageous is that Su Wen, who is the same as before, was the first to come out in support."

 

Chronicle listened patiently, occasionally agreeing, but silently held the cards like "Colorful Play – Fairy Rope" in his hand.

 

– These are not things that an ordinary taxi driver would know. The other party is definitely not an ordinary person and has some purpose in telling him these things.

 

Although Su Wen, Fan Lei, and others were definitely lurking nearby at the moment, Chronicle was somewhat worried about their reactions and abilities, so he decided to make more preparations.

 

He took out his phone and left the screen on the chat interface with Uncle Dong.

 

After seeing Chronicle's natural performance through the rearview mirror, the driver didn't say anything and just smiled.

 

About two minutes later, he said, "We've arrived."

 

"Brother, I'll wait for you here. Hurry back, I'm a bit scared," the driver's voice trembled slightly as he lit a cigarette.

 

Chronicle, who was supposed to cooperate with his act, didn't ignore him and smiled naturally, saying, "Okay."

 

"Who is he? What is his purpose in saying these things? Who instructed him to say these things?" Summoning Seven Brothers and Eight Brothers, walking on the road, one question after another appeared in Chronicle's mind.

 

But these questions were obviously not something he could figure out right now.

 

He could only shift his attention to the building not far away.

 

It was a magnificent and ancient mansion with carved beams and painted rafters.The red-painted gate, though somewhat faded, still exuded an imposing aura.

 

However, what caught the eye most were the two gargoyle stone sculptures placed in front of the gate.

 

Chronicle looked up and saw them slightly hunched over, supporting their faces with one hand, their heads slightly tilted forward, each looking in a different direction. Their eyeballs moved with the wind.

 

Even with his courage, seeing this scene made him frown slightly.

 

Fortunately, he had Seven Brothers, Eight Brothers, and Ying Tai by his side, and he guessed that there were experts from the association hidden in the dark, so he wasn't too scared.

 

After a brief thought, he stepped on the stone path covered with rotten paper money, shattered white silk, and overgrown with weeds and moss, and headed straight for the mansion without a plaque.

 

"Uncle, I've told him everything you asked me to," he said.

 

Meanwhile, in the taxi, the driver leaned back in his seat.

 

He held a secure phone to his ear with one hand and rested the other on the window, a cigarette still burning between his fingers.

 

"What was his reaction?" the person on the other end asked.

 

"No reaction," the driver chuckled. "If I could read his reaction, he'd be a genius."

 

"Good," Bai Longfei on the other end of the phone praised, then reminded:

 

"Ah Mang, after you drop off the kid, hurry back. Although Lao Fan and Lao Su, who are currently responsible for covert protection, are easy to fool, no one can guarantee whether there are spies or means from Xie Wenyuan around them."

 

"Do I need to say anything else to Chronicle when he gets in the car later?"

 

"No need. The kid is smart. What you just said is enough for him to ponder. Saying more might not be good. By the way, where is he going tonight?"

 

"The Gu family's old mansion."

 

Bai Longfei fell silent for a while upon hearing this, and then said:

 

"The Yin energy field of the Gu family's old mansion is illusionary, which greatly affects the 'Bride' type units."

 

"It's very likely to generate some specific scenes and enemies based on its background story."

 

"If I remember correctly, the kid has a card made with 'Studious Girl'. If a fight really breaks out, the situation could be very complicated."

 

"Pay more attention later. If Lao Fan and Lao Su can't make a move in time, throw out the card I gave you yesterday."

 

"But with their strength, there shouldn't be any problems. Make sure you see clearly before you make a move, and don't expose yourself easily."

 

"Got it, Uncle."

 

The young man known as "Ah Mang" replied, flicking off the ash from his cigarette.

 

(End of Chapter)