Counting the parts, there were two hundred and forty more. The on-board engineer said that these specific components were small, used in critical positions, and subjected to significant stress. Despite using advanced materials, they were estimated to be prone to damage.
It seemed the engineer had guessed the purpose of these components, but he worried unnecessarily. The power of hellfire gunpowder was not great, so the recoil of the cannons was limited. Dai Lu's daring to use such small components was definitely based on calculations of the pressure from the gunpowder, ensuring it met the requirements.
The Judge proactively came out to greet them, even dismantling part of the Ghost Gate to allow the vehicle entry. However, Fan Wujiu was nowhere to be seen. The Judge hadn't seen him either, perhaps he was waiting inside. Bingbing and I drove the vehicle into the Ghost Gate. Bingbing had also learned basic Qi sensing, acting as a human navigator, so I didn't need to be distracted by finding the Naihe Bridge while driving.
However, she said she still hadn't seen any purple-hued Yin officials.
Upon reaching the Naihe Bridge, we asked Meng Po, but she also hadn't seen Fan Wujiu. I got out to examine the angle of the bridge. This time, we didn't need to lift the car; the Mercedes G-wagon's approach angle was sufficient, a true off-road beast, allowing us to drive directly onto it. Descending to the ground on the other side might scrape the front bumper, but it didn't matter. We weren't planning on keeping the car anyway, so who cared about a plastic bumper?
But we couldn't cross the bridge lightly; we had to wait for Fan Wujiu.
After waiting for about ten minutes, we finally saw a streak of purple energy approaching from the distance, followed by the sound of hooves.
Soon, a figure in black, riding a white horse, appeared on the bridge, looking down at Bingbing and me. Upon seeing the person's attire, Bingbing blurted out, "Holy hell, Black Wuchang!"
If she could recognize him, it had to be Black Wuchang. His uniform was similar to White Wuchang's, a fitted ancient robe with a tall hat. However, the color was black. The hat, collar, belt, cuffs, and hem were adorned with vibrant red patterns, which I thought looked better than the golden patterns on White Wuchang's uniform. Next time, I'd suggest Xie Bian try red patterns.
Since we were entering the underworld, Bingbing and I were also wearing Wuchang uniforms, making us clearly colleagues at first glance.
However, his face was covered by a full-face mask, like a Peking Opera facial makeup, colorful and obscuring his features.
"Are you Lord Fan? I am Wu Chengfeng," I said, cupping my fist in greeting.
"Zheng Bingbing."
Fan Wujiu dismounted and circled us, Bingbing and me, once, before affirming, "Not bad, quite good."
"What's not bad?" Bingbing whispered, "The clothes?"
"I said, you two are not bad. I've heard for a long time that under the White Wuchang Commander, there are two living Yin officials. I thought they were useless..."
Fine, I'll take that as a compliment.
"G-wagon, you should be able to keep up with my White Dragon Horse. Let's go," Fan Wujiu said, then spurred his horse across the bridge.
Bingbing and I quickly got into the car and, with a lot of sputtering and roaring, followed. As we descended from the bridge, the front of the car dug heavily into the ground. It felt like the headlights were smashed, but it should be fine. It's never dark in the underworld, so we don't need headlights.
Fan Wujiu was already far ahead. The fog here was still dense. Thankfully, we had the Qi sensing technique. Fortunately, the Mercedes had strong horsepower, and we quickly caught up to Fan Wujiu's White Dragon Steed. I asked through the window how long it would take, as we only had a tank of reserve fuel and didn't know if it would be enough.
Fan Wujiu turned his Peking Opera-masked face and extended a pale, slender finger.
"An hour?" I asked. That wasn't much different from traveling from Shengjing.
However, Black Wuchang shook his head.
"A... day?" I asked again.
Black Wuchang still shook his head.
"It won't take a month, will it?" I said with a wry smile.
"Just keep going, no need to ask too much," Fan Wujiu said, then urged his horse forward, quickly leaving us behind again.
"Her personality is so strange," Bingbing whispered.
"She's probably the Commander of the Black Wuchang department, with a very high position, so she's aloof. She thinks we're just two low-ranking officers, not worthy of talking to her?" I analyzed.
"Even Little Yama treated you with courtesy. What's her deal..." Bingbing pouted.
"That's different. Little Yama likes... values, no, values, trusts me. And we're both under White Wuchang. We have nothing to do with the Black Wuchang department, right?"