Steam Era: The Lord of 'Puluo' Chapter 1234 597: The Ever-Changing Hidden Form Space

Li Banfeng sat in the office, reviewing the documents of Gourd Village, while Shen Jingye was unwell and had taken a day off to rest.

From the documents, it seemed that Gourd Village was a nightmare for the Dark Star Bureau. From the branch office to the headquarters, this was a topic that every member of the Dark Star Bureau was reluctant to bring up.

Through the analysis of the files, combined with Li Banfeng's understanding, Gourd Village was a Hidden Form Space with special attributes. Whether it was a Dark Dimension Space remained undetermined, as the Dark Dimension Space was merely one type of Hidden Form Space, and Li Banfeng wasn't too familiar with the other kinds.

The most notable feature of this Hidden Form Space was its ability to have a shifting entrance. Li Banfeng had experienced this before in Puluo State, where the entrance to Fool's City could also shift.

If he could master this technology, he could not only build a secret lab for his wife but even construct a hidden city unknown to others.

This is the crucial foundation!

This technology must be learned; Gourd Village must be found.

But why would such a strange Hidden Form Space appear in the Outside Provinces instead of Puluo State?

It was precisely because Gourd Village was in the Outside Provinces that Little Shen was anxious about the matter, fully supporting all of Li Banfeng's investigation work.

According to the records, every year from December to the following January, around the eve of the Lunar New Year, the entrance to Gourd Village would appear, which was what Shen Jingye referred to as opening for business.

The specific manifestation of the entrance was two to ten incredibly beautiful women standing at the entrance of the Hidden Form Space, attracting passersby to enter it.

Incredibly beautiful women.

Li Banfeng patted the Wine Gourd: "Sister, do you really not know about this?"

The Wine Gourd sighed: "Little brother, stop patting; you've made it red. I really don't know, or maybe I knew before but can't recall it now. If I remember, I'll surely tell you. If you still want to pat, switch sides; don't always target this side."

Ever since the contract was terminated with Elder Yao, the Wine Gourd had been very loyal to Li Banfeng. If she knew anything about the matter, she would not have kept it from him.

Moreover, this was originally the Outside Provinces' territory, and since the Wine Gourd was from Puluo State, it indeed wasn't appropriate to ask her.

Li Banfeng continued to review the files.

Last year, Gourd Village appeared in the north, causing thirty-one people to disappear, twenty-five of whom were male and six female.

Females?

Were they lured away by handsome men?

The files contained no record of handsome men.

The year before last, Gourd Village appeared in the neighboring Min Yue Province, leading to fifty-five disappearances, seventeen of whom were female.

The ratio was even more striking.

Why would incredibly beautiful women still attract so many females?

Li Banfeng continued flipping through the files, troubled by one persistent question: "Why call this place Gourd Village? Just because the girls standing at the village entrance have gourd-shaped figures? Even if that's the case, why not call it Gourd Shop or Gourd Tower, or Gourd Garden?"

Dumpling produced a document and said: "Because there are survivors."

"Gourd Village has survivors?"

"Yes, the name Gourd Village comes from the survivors' accounts."

"Such crucial information, and you didn't give it to me sooner!" Li Banfeng grabbed the folder.

Dumpling stuck out her tongue: "Actually, these documents aren't terribly valuable."

Li Banfeng opened a document. The survivor was named Wu Nianping, a resident of Changle City, Min Yue Province. He went missing on December 16 the year before last and returned home on January 21.

Wu Nianping was a delivery man, and according to him and witnesses, he picked up a delivery from a restaurant. As he got on his e-bike, he saw two women at the restaurant entrance inviting him inside.

He thought there was an issue with the delivery, so he followed the women inside, only to find out the restaurant interior was a village. The women told him it was Gourd Village.

Dumpling explained: "Seventh Master, those are his only memories of Gourd Village. It was determined that Wu Nianping developed a severe mental disorder due to extreme shock; he went mad and his memory was severely impaired..."

Li Banfeng interrupted Dumpling: "Having a mental disorder doesn't mean the person is mad; be precise with your words!"

Dumpling nodded and continued: "The other survivors are in similar states. They can only mention the name Gourd Village and did not provide effective descriptions in other areas."

Li Banfeng meticulously reviewed the survivor information, with Dumpling assisting in analyzing some key documents.

The focus of Chuuni's investigation was not on these documents; instead, he concentrated on the people involved in the cases.

The man who went missing at the pharmacy was named Zhang Peiwen, twenty-six years old, unemployed. Chuuni noticed something unusual about his address: "Zhang Peiwen's address is only a street away from the pharmacy; after buying medicine, he could walk home in fifteen minutes, so he had no reason to take a cab."

Preserved Fruit disagreed: "Some people just don't like walking; a fifteen-minute walk isn't exactly nearby."

Chuuni produced the store owner's statement: "According to her account, Zhang Peiwen once waited a long time at the pharmacy entrance for a single yuan; he's an introverted and frugal person and wouldn't choose a cab for a fifteen-minute walk."

Light Bulb frowned: "That's too presumptuous. Being frugal doesn't mean they don't understand indulgence."

Chuuni didn't argue further. Given his family background was much less privileged than Light Bulb's, they had markedly different views on taking a cab.