Old-time musicians

In the night, the van passed through the Lenya District and headed south, and had already passed the wharf bridge across the Pshor River.

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Although this place belongs to the South Wharf District, it is still quite a distance from the city boundary area full of docks and docks in the south.

The sparse gas lamps made it difficult to illuminate the figures of people. Although the vehicle was not driving fast, it was always forced to brake suddenly by pedestrians with weak safety awareness.

Fanning was particularly unaccustomed to the car chassis with almost no shock absorption effect. The appearance of the bad road was always unexpected, causing everyone in the car to fly up and fall down. He felt that all the undigested food in his stomach was about to be vomited.

On the relatively prosperous and lively main road, the orange-brown signboards extending from the side of the street shops retreated for a while in Fanning's field of vision, and then the car pulled over.

"It's not easy to drive in here." The driver turned off the engine.

Fanning looked at the large areas of muddy roads in the dim field of vision, and then turned back to look at the clean and bright streets, and suddenly a sense of magic emerged.

The biggest feature of Uvransell's urban planning is that there is no planning. Schools, railways, factories, warehouses, commercial areas, slums and other blocks can be piled together in any arrangement and combination that can be thought of.

Perhaps only the boundaries of the rich area can be slightly clearer.

The large courtyard-style workers' housing in this side street area has been demolished in pieces. The coal transport trucks and steam rollers that are still in operation make sharp creaking sounds, and the pungent smell of glue and gasoline wafts.

"The three of us will just walk in." Dupont said.

Several neatly dressed gentlemen stared at the ground without blinking, carefully avoiding the unknown lumps mixed with ice water, mud, oil and moss. They would burst or split when stepped on, and bulge out smelly and sticky bubbles, showing a strange chrome green color under the not very bright light.

In the past few years, the Empire has successively promulgated the "Employed Housing Law" and the "Public Health Management Law", which stipulate the maximum density of urban population and block layout, and planned the public toilets, water supply and drainage, and sewer systems in such areas, aiming to improve the filthy living environment and curb the spread of epidemic diseases such as tuberculosis and cholera.

However, the progress of most areas of work has stopped at the scene in front of them.

"Exchange information about each other's abilities." Dupont, who was walking in front, did not look back. "I am studying the phase of 'Pool'. I have been promoted to the middle level for 5 years. The inspiration strength is about the fifth level. My 'First Light of Knowledge' can selectively extract part of the sensory intensity of others and transfer it to myself."

When Dupont said the last sentence, Fanning felt that his vision in front of him suddenly blurred severely, and his feet lost the stable touch of "stepping on the ground".

The change lasted for a short time and returned to normal.

"The abilities of the knower are really unpredictable. If they are potential opponents, this information should be the core secret." Fanning was secretly shocked. "And Dupont's ability to weaken the senses seems to restrain me. After all, using spiritual perception is to transform the 'transcendental revelation into the conventional five senses'."

The book "The Translation of the Seven Lights Treasures" that he studied before systematically summarizes the general positive abilities that the knower may obtain after being promoted in seven phases.

Among them, the phase of "Pool" may enhance vision, hearing, taste, touch, and smell. In some positive cases, the promoted person may have improved physical functions, or become a beautiful figure and appearance, or become a gourmet and cook. A small number of people have enhanced fertility or acquired blood-related abilities.

From an artistic point of view, this phase actually greatly improves the performance or dance function.

Fanning knows that communication between members of the Guidance School is necessary, and Dupont and Monroe should have known each other. This round of sharing is actually focused on informing themselves.

He spoke the second time: "The phase I studied is 'candle', well... I have just been promoted for a few days, and the intensity of inspiration should have reached the late third stage. My 'light of first acquaintance' is that I can exchange the temperature of two places almost instantly."

"Rare talent, rare gift, seems to have unexpected room for development and growth." Lawyer Monroe's tone was a little surprised, "The phase I studied is 'ash', the intensity of inspiration is third level, as for the light of first acquaintance..."

He quickly pulled out a gray pistol, aimed at Fanning's forehead in an instant, and pulled the trigger directly!

"Swish--" The sound of the silencer was a little harsh.

The bullet passed through Fanning's head silently, as if he didn't exist.

A few meters away from the back of his head, sparks burst out, and smoke filled the street lamp pole.

Fanning touched his forehead in disbelief.

I don't know if it was because everything happened too fast, or Monroe didn't have any real malice, his spiritual perception had no warning, and even the startle reflex didn't have time to appear.

"The hot weapons used by me can save myself or my companions from any substantial harm. The definition of companions is determined by my spirit." Lawyer Monroe explained.

Dupont immediately added: "I think Monroe can also try grenades after he is promoted to the middle level."

Fanning recalled that studying the "Amber" phase may enhance the strength or speed of the knower to a certain extent, giving him the talent to use cold weapons or hot weapons, and he has the potential to become a fighting master or a sharpshooter. They are also good at finding the enemy's physical or psychological weaknesses, provoking conflicts and causing disputes. In some cases, the knower seems to have gained the ability to control the storm.

However, this lawyer has such strange and mysterious abilities...Fanning has learned something new.

If he is fighting with an enemy at close range, and there is such a helper standing in the distance...

He will just pick up a shotgun and start shooting?

Thinking carefully, it is really good to have such a helper on his side.

"If a fight between knowledgeable people occurs, you should put self-protection first and don't use too much force." Dupont finally reminded Fanning.

After briefly sharing information, the three people walked through this muddy belt and arrived at the area where the demolition work had not yet been carried out. There were sparse lights in front again.

"Hey, be careful!"

Fanning was almost knocked down by the laughter of several skinny children. They chased and played with each other holding blackened broken wood, and their clothes could no longer see their original colors.

"Take this alley, and you can take a shortcut to the factory area faster later." Lawyer Monroe pointed the way.

"Can this be called an alley?"

Fanning looked at the rows of low houses built back to back in front of him. The two rows of houses shared a back wall, and there was a narrow passage in front of the door.

A resident who had just finished work received potatoes cooked in salt water from his neighbor in the opposite row without stepping out of the door.

These houses have no sanitary facilities. About ten households share a public toilet and two faucets. There are two deep trenches on the ground of the narrow passage, and the sewage and dirt from each household accumulate in them. Even some animal carcasses that have begun to rot have not been cleaned up, and they are mixed together into a black and smelly solid-liquid mixture.

"The experience of coming here in winter is relatively good. I came here once in May this year and was almost suffocated by the smell of sweat and feces." Dupont said.

"It is not the authorities' obligation to provide housing, and few employers think they have the responsibility to provide housing for workers. Well... the only ones interested in this work are private builders, who will scientifically analyze the relationship between workers' bids and land rent, taxes, interest rates, and maintenance costs, and then give the 'optimal solution'."

The lawyer curled his lips when he said this: "This double-row house group built close to the factory is their iconic work."

Several people walked in a line, and Fanning's relatively narrow shoulders were slightly away from the walls on both sides, but he still had to turn sideways from time to time to avoid those residents who squatted at the door and used coarse cloth dipped in water and tooth powder to clean their mouths.

Many workers in tattered clothes looked at the three gentlemen with awe, numbness, vigilance, or curiosity, but the greedy and fierce eyes that were often seen in the slums rarely appeared here.

Compared to those tramps and thieves, or those who worked part-time in the poorhouse and lived from day to day, the workers at least had their own families, homes, and a relatively stable job.

Besides, Monroe, who was walking at the end, was holding the gray military automatic pistol in his hand.

Dupont said as he walked: "The family I chose to investigate today is the one where someone has dreamed of a strange man recently and a family member has died tragically in the past few days. This is more efficient and may also find some connection between the two."

"Tragic death?" Fanning frowned.

"Liangka, a 21-year-old female factory worker, has had bleeding gums for nearly three months. Because it has become more serious in the past week, she decided to seek medical treatment, but it did not improve after treatment. Yesterday, she went to the clinic for the third time. The doctor touched her mouth, and the whole jaw collapsed and fell off. Not long after, she died of continuous vomiting blood."

After Dupont finished his story slowly in a melancholy voice, he reached out and knocked on the wooden door of the house in front of him.

Then he sighed: "This is the one. Let's get to know the details first."