Through the thick fog, two figures sped along.
Sun Tiecheng, the hunter, was moving briskly, covering over seventy li in half a day. But for a tier-three journey cultivator, that speed was frankly far from what it should have been.
"Are you really a journey cultivator?" Li Banfeng asked, growing a bit impatient.
Sun Tiecheng answered honestly, "Sir, we can't go too fast. If we move too fast, we won't be able to find the oldland."
"Why is that?"
"I can't say why, either. All I know is that you have to take this road slowly to find the gate to the oldland."
The oldland had a gate?
The more Li Banfeng listened, the more curious he became.
After walking for another half day, the thick fog gradually dissipated, and the faint outline of a city appeared ahead.
Unlike Lüshui City, this wasn't a modern metropolis, but an ancient walled town with battlements, crenels, and gate towers.
Sun Tiecheng said, "Sir, that's Yuren City. Cut through Yuren City, keep heading south, and you'll reach Iron Sheep Mountain."
"Yuren City? Lots of fishermen?"
"Not that kind of yu for fishing—it's that other yu. I don't know my letters, so I don't rightly know how to explain it."
A city suddenly appearing in the middle of a boundless wilderness made Li Banfeng uneasy. It gave him an unpleasant feeling, as if danger lay in wait for him.
Seeking good fortune and avoiding calamity was the fundamental rule by which a journey cultivator survived.
Li Banfeng said to Sun Tiecheng, "We won't go into the city. Let's skirt around it."
"You can't skirt around it. We'll get lost."
Li Banfeng looked at Sun Tiecheng in surprise. "Have you been to Iron Sheep Mountain before?"
"I have."
"You're a journey cultivator and you've walked this path before, yet you could still get lost?"
"You can get lost. This city is cursed. You can only pass through it; you definitely can't bypass it."
Li Banfeng grew even more puzzled. "Even if we hug the city walls, we can't make it around?"
With a troubled expression, Sun Tiecheng said, "Sir, you paid me, so I wouldn't dare lie to you. You really can't get around this city. If you don't trust me, I'll give you your money back."
"That won't be necessary," Li Banfeng said, waving a hand. "Let's head in."
Once inside the gates, Li Banfeng looked around.
In truth, the city was quite sizable. The streets were broad, paved with stone slabs, and rows upon rows of buildings lined both sides, though years of neglect had left them somewhat dilapidated.
Despite the run-down structures, there were quite a few people: some strolling the streets, others tending stalls along the curbs, while shops large and small kept their doors open, with people wandering in and out from time to time.
An oldland became an oldland because a proper land had lost its human vitality. According to his wife, across an expanse of a hundred li, there wouldn't even be a hundred people.
Yet why were there so many people in this city?
Anyone else would have found it incomprehensible, but Li Banfeng didn't find it strange at all, because these people were peculiar—their faces had a faint green glow.
To be precise, they were not people, but ghosts.
A city full of departed souls wandering about, and just as Ma the Fifth had said, they considered themselves human, entirely lacking the caution and taboos ghosts ought to possess.
These souls were unlike the ones Li Banfeng usually saw. The flesh and blood on them looked real and whole, feeling almost comparable to the flesh of a local spirit.
Were they all local spirits?
Impossible!
They lacked that commanding aura.
Then where did this flesh come from?
Could it be the result of living in the oldland for many years?
The two hadn't walked far down the main street when they heard someone hawking by the roadside up ahead:
"A pain is a pain, a wound is a wound! Blood flows like the Yangtze, surging and bound! A chill turns minor ache to sickness profound; hot blood turns a scratch to a festering mound!"
What was this about?
Stepping closer to take a look, Li Banfeng saw a man carrying a wooden chest on his back, pitching medicinal wares to the gathered onlookers:
"This is an ancestral secret formula of mine, specially made for aches and pains in the waist and legs!
"Each medicinal plaster contains twenty-one herbs. There's no pearl or ginseng, no ox bezoar or canine gallstones—just humble herbs of little worldly value!
"Folk remedies cure grave ailments; common herbs put renowned physicians to shame! Our medicine isn't dear: two dollars a plaster. For severe sickness, two plasters will surely do the trick; for mild cases, one plaster is all you need!"
Li Banfeng chuckled. "This fellow is interesting."
He certainly was—selling medicated plasters to ghosts.
Did ghosts need plasters? Would they even work if applied?
Perhaps on these souls with intact flesh and blood, they actually might.
At his side, Sun Tiecheng clicked his tongue. "Sir, he's a skin-picker, a stove-gnawer. It's all a scam, nothing worth watching."
'Skin-picker' was underworld cant for an itinerant medicine seller.
A 'stove-gnawer' was a peddler of medicated plasters, so called because in the old days, plasters had to be warmed over a fire before application.
These street hawkers couldn't possibly be genuine. It was just surprising that even after becoming a ghost, this man was still using charlatan tricks to deceive people.
Then again, the crowd buying the medicine were all ghosts too. Li Banfeng wanted to see just what tricks a ghost would use to swindle other ghosts.
The man glanced at Sun Tiecheng and continued his pitch: "Just now, someone claimed I was a fraud. We've never met before, so I haven't the foggiest where you get off saying that!
"I'm an honest man. At home I honor my parents; abroad I make friends far and wide. Reputation is what I hold dearest! Hearing words like that makes my blood boil!
"I'm standing on my pride, and I'm defending my honor! Today, just to spread my good name, I'm throwing caution to the wind—not a single penny will I take! I'm giving these away for free!"
Giving them away for free?
Li Banfeng rubbed his chin, watching with growing fascination.
If you give them away for free, how are you going to swindle any money?
Sun Tiecheng urged him from the side, "Sir, don't watch. He's just baiting the hook to reel people in. It's an old busker's trick."
Li Banfeng still refused to leave.
The man spoke again: "Though my herbs are cheap, they still cost me money to make. Handing one out to every soul present is something I truly can't afford.
"I've got ten slips of paper here. I'll toss them out into the air, and you can catch them as you will. Whoever catches one gets a free plaster! Those who catch a slip get one; those who don't, won't."
The man began tossing out paper slips, and Li Banfeng actually caught one.
Quite the stroke of luck!
Let's see how he twists this around.
The man went on, "Yesterday, someone took a plaster from me, went home, and because he hadn't spent a copper, he didn't value it and tossed it right in the rubbish!
"A gentleman is easy to treat, but a scoundrel is hard to guard against! Those who caught a slip, do me a kindness and cover the cost price—just one dollar, that's all."
Li Banfeng called out, "Didn't you say it was free? How come you're asking for money again?"
The man said, "This brother here is right! A man must keep his word—every word like an iron spike driven home! If I said give it away, then give it away I must!
"One dollar covers the base cost for one plaster, and I'll give you a second plaster for free! If it doesn't work, come find me for a full refund. If it does work, all I ask is that you spread my good name!"
Li Banfeng shook his head repeatedly. Using a trick like this to con money—who would fall for it?
...
Five minutes later, clutching two plasters, Li Banfeng followed Sun Tiecheng down the street.
"Sir, I told you he was a fraud. How did you still fall for it?"
"It's fine. One dollar isn't much; think of it as paying for entertainment. Besides, my leg really has been hurting a bit these past two days."
Li Banfeng's leg truly did ache, though not from injury—it was because his Dwelling Cultivator tier suppressed his journey cultivator cultivation.
So what good could buying these plasters possibly do?
Well, what was bought was bought.
They hadn't gone much further when they heard an elderly man calling out:
"Few have come to read their fortunes today, yet many troubles are afoot! Fortune, misfortune, auspiciousness, and doom are all written across the face!
"Yin and yang shift in boundless mystery, the whole world held in the palm of a hand! With a single glance, I have already glimpsed the signs:
"Some have suffered calamity at home; some have fallen prey to malicious gossip behind their backs; and someone has stepped out seeking vengeance, with a bloody disaster written plain upon his brow!"
Li Banfeng halted in his tracks.
What did this man mean?
Was he talking about me?
Sun Tiecheng whispered beside him, "He's a fortune busker, a charlatan running a con. Don't fall for him."
Li Banfeng didn't stop and continued walking forward. Before long, the old man caught up from behind.
"Young man, I'm not looking for your business. I chased you half a street purely to give you a warning:
"Today you run afoul of a sinister star. Put this vengeance of yours on hold! Every injustice has its perpetrator, every debt its debtor, and heaven's cycle is predetermined. There's no rush for this single moment!"
Li Banfeng stared at the old man for a long time, pulled out a one-hundred note in Huan Country currency, and stuffed it into the elder's hand.
The old man sighed. "Lad, I'll take this money. Looking at your face, I can tell you have a benevolent heart. I will teach you a way to break the curse:
"Stay in the city for one night. Under no circumstances must you leave the city. Come morning, return to me so I can examine your face once more, and then I'll teach you how to handle it."
With that, the old man walked away.
Sun Tiecheng stamped his foot in exasperation. "Sir, how did you get fooled again?"
Li Banfeng pondered for a long time before saying, "What he said was actually quite accurate."
"Let's not waste time fooling around here. Let me hurry and get you up Iron Sheep Mountain."
Li Banfeng waved his hand. "We won't go up the mountain tonight. I'll stay in the city for one night and see tomorrow."
"You really believe him? I sure ain't staying here!" Sun Tiecheng shook his head. "Sir, I've told you what needs telling. Tomorrow, head south out of the city, and you'll see Iron Sheep Mountain."
Li Banfeng gave Sun Tiecheng another twenty silver dollars, totaling fifty silver dollars as compensation.
Sun Tiecheng pressed his lips together. "Sir, you're a good man. If you insist on staying in the city, I'll take you to the Youlai Inn. That inn doesn't cheat folks."
Li Banfeng followed Sun Tiecheng to the inn. The innkeeper's face carried a green glow—not a person of the living realm—but his prices were fair: eighty a night for a private room.
That night, Li Banfeng settled into the inn.
Not long after Li Banfeng settled in, the innkeeper glanced at the waiter beside him and ordered, "Go to the backyard, round up the boys, grab weapons on the double, and let's feast!"
The waiter whispered, "Feast right now? Shouldn't we wait until he's asleep?"
The innkeeper snapped angrily, "Bah! You want me to wait so you can strike first and eat him while he's warm! You think I can't see right through your petty schemes?"
"Boss, what kind of talk is that? I was thinking of you. If we wait until he's asleep before moving, it's safer for everyone."
"Cut the fucking crap and call the others, now!"
Looking reluctant, the waiter headed to the backyard, preparing to gather the handyman, day laborer, and cook.
To his surprise, those three had already sharpened their cleavers and were getting ready to climb through the window.
The waiter scolded them angrily, "You ungrateful wretches! Without orders from the boss, you were planning to sneak a bite for yourselves? No rules at all!"
The cook covered the waiter's mouth. "What are you bellowing for? We were worried the brat might pull a trick, so we were scouting ahead for the boss."
The waiter shoved the cook aside and waved his hand. "Come with me to the lobby. The boss is waiting. We move together."
Reaching the lobby, they looked around, but the innkeeper was nowhere in sight.
The handyman asked, "Where's the boss?"
The waiter shook his head. "I don't know. He's the one who sent me."
The day laborer stamped his feet in fury. "That old bastard! He sent you away just so he could gorge himself alone!"
The crowd charged straight up to the second floor. Reaching Li Banfeng's door, they found it unopened.
Had the boss not arrived?
The cook grinned. Even better if he hadn't—they'd strike first.
The day laborer kicked the door open, lunging to pin the figure on the bed down.
The handyman flung a large quilt over him to muffle any cries.
The waiter barked an order: "Chop!"
The cook stepped up and brought her cleaver down with a heavy chop.
The innkeeper let out a howl of agony: "Why the fuck are you chopping me?!"
The handyman pulled the quilt away, only to find the innkeeper trapped beneath it.
The waiter asked in astonishment, "Boss, why did you come up first? Didn't we agree to strike together?"
Without missing a beat, the innkeeper replied, "I came up first to scout the way for you! Which bastard just chopped me?"
The day laborer pointed at the cook. "Her! The cleaver is still in her hand!"
The cook protested, "This cleaver of mine can only chop living folk, not beings of the underworld! Even if it chops an underworld creature, it doesn't hurt!"
"Doesn't hurt? Who the fuck are you fooling—a ghost? Ain't I made of fucking flesh?" The innkeeper rubbed his back furiously. "Doesn't hurt, my ass! Let me chop you once and see how it feels!"
Just as the innkeeper raised his cleaver to chop the cook, the waiter interjected, "Boss, where did the guest go?"
Holding the cleaver, the innkeeper thought for a good while.
He hadn't seen anyone from the moment he stepped through the door. Where on earth had the man gone?
...
Li Banfeng hadn't gone anywhere. He had left the key on the roof beam and was staying inside the Portable Abode.
Holding the two medicated plasters in hand, he sat before the gramophone, staring blankly in silence.
"Aiya, Husband, what is that sticky, disgusting thing you're holding?"
Li Banfeng said, "Bought it on the street. It cures leg pain."
"Does your leg hurt, Husband?"
"A little bit."
"And you'd treat it with that?" The gramophone could hardly believe her ears. "Husband, you may be a bit mad at times, but you're a clever man after all. How could you fall for a medicine peddler's trick?"
"I didn't just fall for a medicine peddler. I fell for a fortune busker too. It didn't cost much money, though, and I'm not short on cash." Li Banfeng tossed the plasters aside.
He truly wasn't short on cash, but right now, he was short on wits.
Looking at the gramophone, Li Banfeng said slowly, "Wife, I don't know what's come over me. Ever since I entered the city, my brain stopped working right. Whatever people say, I just believe it."
"What city did you enter?"
"Yuren City."
"On the oldland?"
Li Banfeng nodded. "On the oldland. I thought it would be full of fishermen, but who knew it'd be full of swindlers?"
"Aiya, Husband! That isn't the yu for fishermen, that's the yu for fooling! You entered the City of Fools, and you've run into Fool Cultivators!"
"Fool Cultivators? There's a pathway like that? And this pathway is that formidable?"
"Husband, the Fool Cultivators were once the greatest pathway under heaven. At the same tier, no one was their match."
Chapter 202