The Portal

Granny Bitter picked a stalk of bitter greens herself and held it out before Li Banfeng. "Eat this." At least the leaves were clean. Li Banfeng ate it. Granny Bitter seemed reasonably satisfied. She pressed him no further to eat the rice, and her figure vanished without a trace. Calm returned to the Free Food Hall. Li Banfeng sat down beside Chu the Second and asked, "Once we finish this meal, can we go back?" Chu the Second shook her head. "Far from it. We come for free food once every ten days, and each visit lasts three days." "Three whole days of eating this? You can actually endure that?" "We have to, whether we can endure it or not. The free food is mandatory. Otherwise, they won't give out next month's grain." "If they don't give you grain, can't you grow your own? Do you have to depend on charity?" Chu the Second was truly terrified of him. "Seventh Master, stop stirring up trouble! My bones aren't as tough as yours—I'm terrified of getting beaten to death!" Li Banfeng wanted to step outside for some fresh air and slip back into the Portable Abode to catch up on sleep, but the food server uncle barred his way. "No stepping outside before noon. That's the rule." "What if someone needs to relieve themselves?" "Hold it! Rules are rules. Why do you have so much fuss?" Chu the Second stepped forward and tugged at Li Banfeng, urging him not to argue any further. Li Banfeng looked at her. The Chu the Second in Kucaizhuang and the Chu the Second in Lüshui City were two completely different people. "When did you become so cowardly?" "Isn't this all for cultivation?" "You're a pampered young lady from a wealthy family. Why choose a pathway like this? Why must you suffer this kind of torment?" A flicker of gloom crossed Chu the Second's face. She turned her head, rolled her eyes upward, and glared at Li Banfeng. "Why do you care?" Li Banfeng pushed her face aside. "If I ask you a question, answer properly. What's with that face? It won't work on me. Save it to frighten someone else later." Chu the Second lowered her head and dropped her voice to a whisper. "I originally intended to cultivate as a Literary Cultivator. The year my father died, I hadn't yet entered any pathway. After he passed, my mother soon followed him to the grave. "To fight for the position of family head, the entire household slaughtered one another until the river ran red. Two of my younger brothers died—killed by their own elder brother. "What does flesh and blood even mean? Sworn enemies couldn't be any worse. My fate was stubborn, so I survived to this day. There are more people in this world praying for my death than wishing me alive. "Aren't people born into this world just to suffer? Suffer for an entire lifetime, bitter to the very end—isn't cultivating amid suffering the most powerful pathway of all? Tell me, doesn't that make sense?" "What kind of sense is that?" "That is the truth of it," Chu the Second said stubbornly. "When no one in this world cares about you anymore, you'll understand." Li Banfeng smiled. For most of the past twenty-odd years of his life, no one had cared about him either. "If others don't care, do you not care about yourself?" Chu the Second gave a bitter laugh. "What good is caring about myself?" "It does plenty of good. In fact, it's the only thing that matters." While the two were arguing, they suddenly saw three more people enter the Free Food Hall. Had these three arrived late? "Is there still food for them?" Chu the Second nodded. "Yes. They're prospective initiates preparing to enter the pathway. The Free Food Hall always keeps some food for them, though not much." A man, a woman, and a child held by the woman's hand. Were they a family? An entire family seeking to become Ascetic Cultivators? The food server uncle handed them three bowls of rice, each filled only halfway, without a single leaf of greens. The man was starved half to death; the half-bowl of rice disappeared down his gullet in the blink of an eye. The woman looked at her child. Afraid the boy wouldn't have enough, she scooped some from her own bowl and gave it to him. There was too much sand in the rice, and the child couldn't swallow it. The woman softly comforted him, "Chew slowly, eat slowly. Whatever you do, don't waste it." The man grew impatient watching them. He lunged forward and snatched the child's bowl. "If you don't want to eat, then don't! If you can't even stomach this bit of hardship, how do you expect to become an Ascetic Cultivator?" Tears welled in the woman's eyes as she watched from the side, longing to stop him but not daring to. Chu the Second ground her teeth. She detested people like this most of all. Just as she moved to help snatch the food back for the child, she realized Li Banfeng had vanished. The man picked up his chopsticks and was just about to eat when Li Banfeng stepped forward and planted a kick square into his face. The man fell flat on his back, the bowl shattering on the floor. Clutching his face, he stared up at Li Banfeng. "Why did you hit me?" Li Banfeng looked down at him coldly. "If you can't take a beating, get the hell out! If you can't even take this bit of suffering, how do you expect to become an Ascetic Cultivator?" Tears streamed down the man's face as he looked toward the food server uncle. "He's beating people! Aren't you going to do something?" The food server uncle gripped his ladle. "What on earth are you trying to pull?" Li Banfeng turned to the uncle. "You're the one who mixed sand into the rice, aren't you?" "That was me!" the uncle admitted readily. "That is the rule of Kucaizhuang! Eating this suffering is the entire point!" Li Banfeng nodded. "Fine. Then I'll let you taste a little more suffering!" The moment the words left his mouth, Li Banfeng flashed directly in front of the uncle and buried a fist into his stomach. The uncle ground his teeth, glaring fiercely, and locked his gaze onto Li Banfeng. Chu the Second shouted in alarm, "Watch out! Shared Pain, Divided Suffering!" A Tier 2 skill of an Ascetic Cultivator—the uncle intended to split his agony onto Li Banfeng. Li Banfeng's figure vanished in an instant as he activated Short Pace once more. The uncle's gaze fell on empty air, unable to find any trace of Li Banfeng. Li Banfeng reappeared, swinging a fist that sent the uncle crashing to the ground. This food-serving uncle was a Tier 3 Ascetic Cultivator. By all rights, he should have been able to hold his own against a Tier 3 journey cultivator for a time. Yet Li Banfeng was also a Tier 4 Dwelling Cultivator. Relying on his talent, Seen Yet Unnoticed, he gave away no intention before striking, leaving the uncle entirely powerless to fight back. Such was the strength of dual cultivation. A Tier 3 Ascetic Cultivator was crushed with ease. Even so, Li Banfeng had no intention of killing; he had not forgotten the old teapot's warning. The uncle lay on the ground, wailing, "This man broke the rules! The village cannot keep him!" Li Banfeng kicked him once. "You think I actually want to stay here?!" Several Ascetic Cultivators rushed forward to swarm Li Banfeng. Li Banfeng stamped his foot, shattering a pebble on the floor and kicking up a cloud of dust. While the grit blinded their eyes, he unleashed a flurry of punches and kicks, dropping every last one of the attackers. More Ascetic Cultivators charged in. Li Banfeng drew his feather duster and gave each of them a taste. The entire Free Food Hall descended into utter bedlam. Chu the Second stood dumbfounded, completely lost for words. Never in her wildest dreams could she have imagined that Li Banfeng, having just encountered Granny Bitter and narrowly escaped being tempered, would turn around and trash the Free Food Hall moments later. Which hospital had he gone to? Which doctor had dared declare him sane? Was Li Banfeng not afraid of running into high-tier Ascetic Cultivators? Other than Granny Bitter, were there even any high-tier cultivators left in Kucaizhuang? By Li Banfeng's estimate, the highest-ranking cultivator among those present was at most Tier 4. Kucaizhuang was indeed conducive to an Ascetic Cultivator's training, but nobody was a glutton for punishment. Once someone reached Tier 4 and beyond, they would surely possess other methods of cultivation; there was no reason to run all the way here just to seek abuse. Li Banfeng was confident he could handle anyone below Tier 4. Right now, however, they were becoming somewhat difficult to fend off simply because there were too many of them. After fighting for a while, Li Banfeng bellowed, "Whoever wants to fight me, stay! Whoever doesn't, get out! If you're too slow, don't regret it later!" "Run, hurry!" Chu the Second grabbed the newcomer woman, scooped up the child, and bolted for the door. It was a smart move. When one person led the charge, a great many hesitant onlookers were swept along with them. The man who had been beaten scrambled to follow. Before long, more than half the people had fled outside. The remaining minority continued to tangle with Li Banfeng. Li Banfeng suddenly leaped up onto the roof beams and pulled out the teapot. Since these people refused to leave, they could only be treated to a bath. Li Banfeng stroked the teapot. The teapot let out a sigh. "I didn't want to come here, yet here I am. In the end, a fight was inevitable. "I already told you, no killing here. How do you want to fight this?" "Just teach them a lesson." Understanding his intent, the teapot unleashed a surge of tea water that rose until it reached everyone's waists. Barriers sealed off every direction; there was no way out. The water was not hot enough to scald them to death, but a body full of blisters would be unavoidable. They tried to lock their eyes onto Li Banfeng to share their agony, but Li Banfeng bounded back and forth across the roof beams, giving them no chance to focus on him. Ascetic Cultivators were durable, but they still felt pain. The crowd splashed and jumped about in the water. When some tried to climb up toward the beams, Li Banfeng kicked them down one by one. The food server uncle screamed hoarsely, "Just you wait until Granny Bitter arrives! See if she doesn't take your life!" Li Banfeng chuckled. "Don't you all want to eat suffering? Making you suffer a little extra is helping your cultivation. Granny Bitter won't blame me." It was a joke; Li Banfeng knew perfectly well he was stirring up trouble. Yet he hadn't taken any lives. Granny Bitter wouldn't demand his life in return. At worst, she would banish him from Kucaizhuang, which was precisely what he wished for. Sending him anywhere would be fine—he simply did not want to stay here. Yet after waiting for ages, Granny Bitter never intervened. She was watching from outside the Free Food Hall, never even stepping through the doorway. "That old teapot is still in this world," Granny Bitter chuckled. "What he said isn't wrong either. This truly is helping their cultivation." Granny Bitter walked away. After being scalded for over two hours, all the Ascetic Cultivators finally quieted down. Seeing that they had stopped fighting, Li Banfeng stowed the teapot and dropped down from the roof beams. He walked over to the food server uncle and ordered, "Go make lunch. Don't mix sand into it again. If I taste a single grain of sand, I'll beat you once." The uncle dared not say another word. Covered in blisters, he tottered shakily toward the kitchen. Li Banfeng walked outside the building, looked at the three prospective initiates, and asked, "Why do you want to enter this pathway?" The man kept his head down, silent. The woman bit her lip and said, "My child and I truly had nothing left to eat. We heard that if we entered this pathway, Kucaizhuang would provide meals. At least we could survive here." Li Banfeng glanced at the man. "Was this your idea for them?" "It wasn't me!" the man blurted out, shaking his head frantically. "I didn't know them before! We were just traveling the same way!" Li Banfeng realized he had misunderstood; they were not a family after all. "Not even a family, yet you snatched a child's food and ate it so greedily? You really are prime material for suffering. You stay." "I'm not staying! I don't want to cultivate this pathway anymore!" The man scrambled to his feet, trying to run. "Is that up to you?" Li Banfeng kicked the man to the ground, pulled out two silver dollars, and handed them to the woman. "Once you enter this pathway, nothing will remain in your life except suffering! Not only will you suffer, but your child will have nothing to look forward to for the rest of his life! "Go speak nicely with Granny Bitter and see if she is willing to let you leave. You haven't entered the pathway yet, so she won't force you to stay. "Once you leave, never come back. No matter how hard life gets, you must always strive to live toward comfort and happiness." *No matter how hard life gets, you must always strive to live toward comfort and happiness.* Chu the Second looked at Li Banfeng, staring silently for a long time. Li Banfeng tidied his clothes, pulled his hat brim down slightly, and walked off into the distance. He needed to return to the Portable Abode and take a hot bath. *** Late that night, the food server uncle led a group of Ascetic Cultivators to track down Chu the Second. "That bearded man from earlier today—did he come here with you?" Chu the Second nodded. "Yes. What about it?" "Who is he?" Chu the Second shook her head. "I don't know. Ran into him on the road." The uncle's cheek twitched, and he lowered his voice. "And who are you?" "A sufferer." That was the standard answer in Kucaizhuang. Chu the Second had never revealed her identity here, and according to the rules of the village, others were not supposed to pry into her background either. The uncle did not pursue the question. Pushing further would indeed break the rules. "I came to you tonight because I need your help. Troubling you to bring that bearded man over—we have matters to discuss with him." Chu the Second lowered her head, rolled her eyes upward, and glared at the crowd. "Want to ambush him in the dark? Look at what pathetic cowards you are." The uncle ground his teeth. "Just this one favor. Will you help or not?" "I won't! What are you going to do about it?" Chu the Second stared at the server with a ferocious scowl. The server took half a step back, somewhat frightened. Turning back to the crowd, he barked, "Get her!" Chu the Second drew a dagger from her sleeve and clashed with the mob. *** In the dead of night, Chu the Second was beaten half to death and hung from a wooden post in front of the Free Food Hall. The food server uncle looked up at her. "I'll ask you one more time: who is that bearded man?" "I'm not telling you," Chu the Second said with a faint smile, glaring at the crowd. "Come on, kill me! If you have the guts, kill me right now!" The raving Chu the Second was once again the Chu the Second of Lüshui City, terrifying the onlookers so badly that they shivered. A female Ascetic Cultivator grew frightened and whispered to the server, "If we do this, won't Granny Bitter be enraged?" "Don't worry, I know where to draw the line. Granny Bitter never interferes in matters of suffering. That bearded man was the first to break the rules; if Granny Bitter didn't care about him, she certainly won't care about me." Full of confidence, the uncle picked up a red-hot iron skewer and addressed Chu the Second. "This is used for disciplining the portal. Where that portal is, you know full well yourself. I'll ask you one final time: who is that bearded man? He is not an Ascetic Cultivator at all. Why did he come to Kucaizhuang?"