Pathway

The Tang dao trembled at Li Banfeng's waist. Li Banfeng moved to a secluded spot and inquired, "What's the matter?" "My lord, this subordinate only felt a sudden, piercing chill." Why a chill? Had Lü Huazi arrived? It couldn't be Lü Huazi. If he wanted to disrupt things, he would simply spread a plague, and none of the workers would escape. Moreover, given his status and strength, there was no need for him to target a mine, and it was especially unthinkable that he would cause trouble in such a petty, low-grade manner. The adversary's methods were indeed very petty—risking a clash with the local spirit just to play these cheap, underhanded tricks. Ma the Fifth asked, "Where did that rickshaw puller go?" Normally, Ma the Fifth treated local spirits with great respect, but having run into a barrage of chaos today, his tone was a bit irritable. When he finally saw the coachman, Ma the Fifth's attitude wasn't great either: "Eldest Brother, we're doing business here to bring life and popularity to your territory. Could you show a little care?" The coachman said, "I do care, I truly care! I was pulling my cart, making several rounds around the mine, but the moment I set the cart down, someone stole it! "I rushed off to look for it, searched for over an hour, and finally managed to get it back. Who would have thought that in just that short time, something would happen at the mine?" Ma the Fifth said nothing and walked down the mountain alone. He really could not comprehend why a local spirit would pull a rickshaw, and why that rickshaw had to remain by his side at all times. Fortunately, Ma the Fifth restrained himself and did not have a falling out with the coachman. The next day, Ma the Fifth went to arrange for spare parts to repair the train, and he also had to contact the buyers to push the delivery date back even further. At the train operations section, Ma the Fifth showed the list of parts drawn up by Xiao Chuanzi to the section chief. He didn't want to make purchases in Heishipo—that would waste too much time—so he directly gave the section chief some gifts, hoping to buy a few parts here for immediate use. In a place like Huangtuqiao, extra income was rarely to be made. With Ma the Fifth taking the initiative to present gifts, the section chief was overjoyed and hurriedly summoned a mechanic to prepare the items. The mechanic searched the warehouse for the entire morning, yet did not find a single item Ma the Fifth needed. The section chief frowned. "That can't be! Just two days ago, we stripped an old set of connecting rods that should be compatible with the town's small trains." The mechanic nodded. "I was looking for that set of connecting rods too. The warehouse keeper insisted they were in storage, but no matter how I search, they can't be found." The section chief quickly apologized. "Fifth Master, my people are careless with their work. I'll go take another look myself. Please, don't worry." How could he not worry? Half a day had been wasted here without accomplishing anything; it would have been better to go procure them in Heishipo from the start. Straining to suppress his irritation, Ma the Fifth exchanged a couple of pleasantries with the section chief and headed to the Renfu Inn. This was the only inn in Huangtuqiao. The buyers from Lüshui City had sent a representative to stay there specifically to liaise with Ma the Fifth on business. Ma the Fifth went to the inn to apologize. The man was not new to business either; when dealing with someone of Ma the Fifth's stature, even if he were displeased in his heart, he ought not to damage cordial relations on the surface. Yet when he saw Ma the Fifth today, he happened to speak without any sense of propriety: "Fifth Master, coal isn't hard to buy. There's plenty in Heishipo, Qingyancheng, and Qishuiyao. "We only came here to buy coal to give you face, Fifth Master. You constantly fail to deliver the goods—what is the meaning of this? "If you don't want to do business, just say so directly! It's not like we came begging you. Stop jerking people around back and forth!" Ma the Fifth's cheek twitched. He raised his eyes and swept a glare across the man. The corners of the man's eyes split open, oozing blood. "Wh-What are you doing?" The man clutched his face, staring at Ma the Fifth in terror. Ma the Fifth stood up, cold glints flashing in his eyes. …… On the mining mountain, a crowd of workers was shouting in commotion: "Yesterday I hauled out six buckets of coal, and that's not a word of a lie! If you calculate the pay as five buckets, this job can't be done!" "You can't bully people like this! Yesterday, just to haul out one extra bucket of coal, I didn't even bother eating! Now you tell me the ledger burned up? As far as I can see, you just want to welsh on paying us!" "We're not working today! You must give us an explanation!" Li Banfeng slipped away from the crowd without a sound. Finding a secluded spot, he concealed his key and returned to the Portable Abode. Sitting on the bed for a moment, Li Banfeng tried to sort through his thoughts. Leaving them unsorted was one thing, but once he tried to organize them, his thoughts seemed completely out of control. Banfeng B: "Digging five buckets of coal is basically the limit for a single person. We gave them more than enough pay, yet these people give an inch and take a mile. Such people must be severely punished!" Banfeng C: "That's not how it works. Some only dug three buckets and received pay for five, while others dug five and also received pay for five. Naturally, they won't be happy about it!" Banfeng D: "Even so, we can't let them cause trouble! The ledger is lost, so this is the only way the money can be paid out, and this is the only way matters can be handled!" Banfeng E: "What do you mean 'the only way'? 'Worry not about scarcity, but about inequality!' You're being irresponsible!" Banfeng F: "Then come up with a responsible solution! Don't just stand there talking cheap when your back doesn't ache!" Banfeng G: "Can't speak like a civilized person, can you? Want to switch to another way of communicating?" Banfeng A: "Maintain order! Mind your manners! No striking people on the assembly floor!" The gramophone offered comfort from the side: "Maintain order, no striking people. Everyone listen to my husband alone." Hong Ying chuckled. "Aren't all of them your husband? Still, come to think of it, usually I only hear two or three Sevens arguing. How did so many pop out today?" The gramophone found it strange as well: "Not only are there more than before, but it's also more chaotic than ever, without a shred of rhyme or reason. It feels like an affliction from a technique, yet it's hard to tell which pathway it belongs to." Li Banfeng asked the wife, "Is there such a thing as a Chaos Cultivator?" The wife was taken aback for a moment. Li Banfeng seemed to have returned to normal, but his recovery was a bit too swift. *Da-da-da-tai!* "A Chaos Cultivator? This humble servant has never heard of such a pathway." "Perhaps it isn't called a Chaos Cultivator; perhaps it's another pathway." As he spoke, Li Banfeng's cheek contorted violently. The gramophone grew a bit nervous: "Husband, do not worry. Take your time and plan carefully." "I'm not worried," Li Banfeng rubbed his cheek, "it's just that order on the assembly floor is a bit chaotic." …… That evening, Ma the Fifth had the cook prepare a few hearty dishes and joined Li the Seventh for drinks. "Old Seven, I feel terrible inside." Li the Seventh asked, "Over the mine's troubles?" Ma the Fifth shook his head. "Actually, what happened at the mine isn't a big deal. If the sheds collapse, we build new ones; if the train breaks down, we have people who can repair it. "But business matters should be resolved through business—that's a rule I've never broken all these years. Yet today of all days, I beat up the buyer." Li Banfeng smiled. "I heard about that. You hit him pretty hard." Ma the Fifth rubbed his forehead. "I truly don't know what came over me!" Just as they were speaking, Chuanzi pushed open the door and entered. "The workers are causing a ruckus again." Li Banfeng frowned. "What are they causing a ruckus about? Weren't their wages compensated? Everyone was paid the maximum amount. What could they still be unsatisfied with?" "They say a few slackers took advantage and made out like bandits, and they insist on demanding an explanation." Ma the Fifth gave a bitter chuckle. "Either they complain they got too little, or they complain someone else got too much. There's never a moment of peace. I'll go take a look." Li Banfeng waved his hand. "No need to go. Let them cause a fuss." Ma the Fifth was stunned. Li Banfeng said to Chuanzi, "I had the cook prepare plenty of food and wine. Take it over to the workers shortly. If they care to eat, they can eat; if not, they can keep causing a fuss. "Chuanzi, don't fret over this either. Set up a table over at your place in a bit, and have the brothers eat and drink to their hearts' content." How could Chuanzi possibly set his mind at ease? He went along with the cooks to deliver the food and wine. Before long, Chuanzi came running back: "With food and drink, things improved quite a bit, but quite a few workers don't want to sleep out in the open and are shouting about leaving." Li Banfeng said, "For those who want to sleep in an inn down the mountain, I'll pay for their rooms. For those who find the walk back and forth too troublesome, they can stay on the mountain. And for those who don't want to work anymore, let them leave. "Chuanzi, listen to me. Go have drinks with the brothers, and don't worry about anything else." Ma the Fifth was startled. "Old Seven, how are you taking it so lightly this time?" Li Banfeng downed a cup of warm wine and shook his head. "I'm not taking it lightly. I simply haven't figured it out at all." "What haven't you figured out?" Ma the Fifth only felt that things were not going smoothly, but didn't think there was anything incomprehensible. "Chaos. It's so chaotic that I don't even know where to begin!" Li Banfeng had the cook bring several extra pairs of chopsticks and arranged them one after another in a straight line. "We came to Huangtuqiao to do business. From the start, you wanted to get into the coal business, and then such a massive mining mountain was just waiting right here for us. That's true, isn't it?" Ma the Fifth nodded. "That's one of the few good things that happened since coming to Huangtuqiao." Li the Seventh said, "Yet with such a great opportunity, why didn't anyone else touch it? Why didn't the Lu family do it? Why didn't the He family do it?" Ma the Fifth blinked. "Didn't you ask about this before? I thought it was because they worried the costs were too high, which was why they didn't come to Huangtuqiao to do business." Li Banfeng nodded. "Yes, I asked back then. Back then, I wasn't so muddled. But after we took over the business, I started getting muddled too." Ma the Fifth was still confused. "What exactly is muddled?" "The day we were shipping out the coal, something happened to the tracks. The train overturned, and the coal was stolen. We suspected the coal mine boss from Beiqiao did it, so I tightened security. "Old Five, do you think tightening security sounds like something I would do?" Ma the Fifth was stunned for a moment, then quickly caught on. Li the Seventh was not one to take a loss lying down. Once he suspected Beiqiao had done it, he would have overturned Beiqiao long ago. How could he have had the mind to merely fortify defenses? Li Banfeng continued, "Yet because it happened so suddenly, at that time I really was thrown into chaos. "From then on, all of us fell into chaos. When the sheds caught fire, we immediately rushed to put out the fire. When the train broke down, we immediately rushed to repair the train. "The local spirit grew muddled too. When his cart was lost, he went off looking for the cart; once he found it, without even caring who had stolen it, he rushed back to guard the mine. "You were managing the business affairs, and when you truly couldn't hold it together anymore, you raised a hand and beat the man up—chaos piled upon chaos! "When trouble struck the business, we dealt with the business; when trouble struck the railway, we dealt with repairing the railway. Whatever blow the enemy dealt, we scrambled to parry, and the more we parried, the more chaotic everything became." "You're right!" Ma the Fifth rubbed his forehead. "Why is it so chaotic?" Li Banfeng gathered the chopsticks and lined them up anew. "Brother, in truth, the matter at the mine isn't so urgent, and you know this as well. "Even if the deal with the Lüshui City buyer falls through, given our current strength, finding another buyer wouldn't be difficult, would it? "Shouldn't we first deal with the person stirring up this mess, sweep the territory of Huangtuqiao clean, and only then consider doing business?" Indeed! Ma the Fifth suddenly woke up to reality. Why were they in such a rush to fuss over the coal mine? They should first deal with those wretched bastards from Beiqiao! Ma the Fifth poured Li Banfeng a cup of wine. "Old Seven, my temperament still pales in comparison to yours. I was in such disarray, yet you're completely unfazed." Li Banfeng was in disarray too—in even worse disarray than Ma the Fifth. However, after his disarray, he could hold a consultation with himself; once things were discussed properly, they could basically reach a consensus. Sometimes reaching a consensus was also very difficult. For instance, during this meeting, Banfeng B had been rather vehement in his speech, even resorting to violence on the assembly floor to vent all the dissatisfaction he had harbored against Banfeng A over the years. Banfeng A believed that speaking out one's dissatisfaction was a good thing, but striking people was wrong. Then he mobilized the other Banfengs and beat Banfeng B and his cohort into submission right on the spot. "Old Five, I suspect we've been struck by a technique." "A technique of which pathway?" "Is there such a thing as a Chaos Cultivator? A pathway specializing in making people fall into chaos?" Ma the Fifth searched his memory carefully, then shook his head. "I've never heard of such a pathway." Was there truly no Chaos Cultivator? Or was Ma the Fifth simply lacking in worldly knowledge? Li Banfeng had asked the wife earlier. She was knowledgeable and experienced, yet she hadn't heard of a Chaos Cultivator either. Perhaps it wasn't called a Chaos Cultivator; perhaps it was a high-tier technique from some other pathway. Since it could interfere with human thoughts, this technique ought to originate from pathways like Literary Cultivators, Virtue Cultivators, or Mind Cultivators. What tier was this expert? Probably Tier Nine? Why would a Tier Nine expert do something so absurd in a godforsaken place like Huangtuqiao? The Tang dao murmured a reminder by his ear: "Before the Lüshui Beggar seized Huaziwan, I had never heard of the Disease Cultivator pathway either, because at that time, that pathway did not yet exist in the world." "You mean... a new pathway?" Li Banfeng looked at the Tang dao in astonishment. The Tang dao replied, "Only when Huaziwan became Lüshuiwan did Disease Cultivators come to be." Li Banfeng gathered the chopsticks together and laid out another line. "We need to retrace this from the beginning." Ma the Fifth said, "Where else is there to retrace? Hasn't it already been traced back to Beiqiao?" Li Banfeng shook his head. "It must be traced all the way back to the Star of Mourning."