Boss Lu wrote the character "Restrict" on Du Wenming's back and tossed him in front of Yu Yaoming.
Don't underestimate this single word. After Boss Lu had subdued Du Wenming, he had to write it out several times himself before making it take hold.
With just this one character, Du Wenming's cultivation was thoroughly suppressed. He could not use any techniques or leverage his physical advantages; he could not even manage the most fundamental dance steps of his pathway. Retaining only his sensory perception, he was virtually no different from a raw beginner.
Yu Yaoming stared at Du Wenming, completely stunned for a long while.
The two of them knew each other. After Yu Yaoming was arrested by the Dark Star Bureau, it was Du Wenming who had rescued him.
Although mutual exploitation played a part, Du Wenming had undeniably saved Yu Yaoming's life. Du Wenming stared intently at Yu Yaoming; this was his only hope of survival.
Yu Yaoming had not forgotten their shared history. He turned to Boss Lu. "Du Wenming and I conducted research on wormholes together. He still has his uses."
Du Wenming looked at Boss Lu, his expression brimming with hope.
Boss Lu asked Yu Yaoming, "What use is he?"
Yu Yaoming explained in detail: "The mechanics of a wormhole are extraordinarily complex. Not just here in Puluo Province, but even out in the Outer States, very few people grasp the basics of wormholes. Du Wenming doesn't just know the basics—his research has reached quite a high level. In many respects, my own graduate students couldn't hold a candle to him."
Du Wenming nodded vigorously at Boss Lu.
Boss Lu also trusted Yu Yaoming's judgment. "You mean we should keep him as an assistant?"
Yu Yaoming nodded as well. "Our current experiment happens to require his assistance."
Du Wenming turned his gaze back to Yu Yaoming, his eyes filled with gratitude.
Boss Lu expressed some concern: "Since this man is an expert, if he learns any core secrets, it might work against us down the road."
Yu Yaoming was already prepared for that. "Don't worry. We'll blindfold him so he won't see a thing, ensuring no secrets will leak."
Boss Lu still hesitated. "If his eyes are covered, how is he supposed to assist with your experiment?"
"We'll send him into the wormhole. With his understanding of wormholes, he's sure to find an exit."
Boss Lu hesitated no longer. "Our thoughts are essentially aligned."
Du Wenming expressed his heartfelt thanks to Yu Yaoming: "Yu, you bastard, may you die a terrible—"
Before the words were out of his mouth, Boss Lu wrote another "Restrict" on Du Wenming's face. Du Wenming could no longer see, hear, or speak, and even his sense of smell vanished. Taking their equipment and Du Wenming, the two left the bookstore together and reached Black Rock Slope. Setting off from Axle Road at Black Rock Slope, they arrived at the border of Qishuiyao.
Boss Lu opened a copy of *Tianxiang Cihua* and released the cannon from its illustration.
After several modifications by Yu Yaoming, the cannon was significantly larger and the apparatus far more intricate than before.
Having adjusted the parameters, Yu Yaoming placed Du Wenming at the designated position before the muzzle. Boss Lu wrote the character "Open" beside Du Wenming's ear, restoring his hearing.
Yu Yaoming instructed, "Old Du, don't wander aimlessly once you're inside. In most parts of the wormhole, you can determine direction. Head in a straight line away from the entrance, and you're bound to find the exit. Do you understand?"
Du Wenming did not respond. Yu Yaoming said to Boss Lu, "Let him speak."
Boss Lu wrote "Open" over Du Wenming's mouth, and Du Wenming could speak: "Yu, you bastard, may your whole family die a terrible—!"
Yu Yaoming fired the cannon, and Du Wenming vanished.
Boss Lu was somewhat displeased. "There's a blast sound. You should have warned me beforehand."
Previously, there hadn't been any blast; this was an effect of the recent modifications. Yu Yaoming didn't care much. "That blast isn't even as loud as a double-bang firecracker."
***
Du Wenming was launched into the wormhole. Before long, the restrictive arts on his face dissipated; he could see and hear again.
However, the restriction on his body remained, leaving his combat strength unrestored.
Walking through the pitch-black wormhole, he attempted to locate an exit using the method Yu Yaoming had taught him.
And he truly found one. At the edge of the wormhole, he sensed a slight spatial misalignment—amounting to a fissure in the inner wall of the wormhole. During his past experiments with Yu Yaoming, Du Wenming had detected similar fissures.
The critical problem, however, was: how was Du Wenming supposed to get through such a narrow fissure?
Clearly, Yu Yaoming had not thought things through when designing the cannon. If Du Wenming still had his cultivation, he could tear open an entrance through the gap with his dance steps. But now his cultivation was restrained; he couldn't even perform the basic steps of a normal stage dancer.
The problem stemmed entirely from the character "Restrict" on his back. As long as he rubbed it off, his combat strength would return. Du Wenming tried several times, but he couldn't wipe it away.
Boss Lu had written it in such an awkward spot that Du Wenming couldn't even reach it.
If only he still had his dancer's physical gifts—right now, he didn't even possess normal bodily flexibility. He repeatedly felt along the fissure in the wormhole. Hope lay right before his eyes, yet he was powerless.
In despair, Du Wenming lay on the ground. Worms from the moss crawled onto him one after another. His constitution had also been compromised, and he could no longer resist the hunger.
After holding out for a long time, he finally couldn't bear it anymore. He snatched a few worms and stuffed them into his mouth...
***
Boss Lu waited outside the Boundary for over half an hour without seeing Du Wenming emerge from the wormhole. He looked at Yu Yaoming, who shook his head repeatedly. "There's no rushing this. Du Wenming has to find the exit before he can come out. If he gets lost, we'll have to wait a bit longer."
"No need to wait. I left a mark on him. If he manages to come out, I'll definitely sense it." Boss Lu was still bothered by the sound of the cannon earlier, so he led Yu Yaoming away from the border as quickly as possible.
***
Li Banfeng was supervising the land reclamation assessment in the newland. He had accommodated Zhang Wanlong and provided plenty of favors, but the rules for reclaiming ten li could not be altered, nor could the bounties offered to the anomalies be reduced. Across the entire territory, capable anomalies brought out their best tricks to wage a bloody battle against Zhang Wanlong.
After a day of preparation, Zhang Wanlong had planted the entire ten-li territory with baby bok choy.
Genzi didn't quite understand. "Brother Zhang, are we only planting this one thing?"
Zhang Wanlong replied, "I wanted to mix things up too, but with only one day, we had to plant something that grows fast and survives easily."
"Can this bok choy fight?"
"Whether it can fight depends on who it's up against. As long as the quantity is large enough, we can hold out."
On the first day of the assessment, Old Ox led a swarm of anomalies aggressively into the plot. The bok choy swung their leaves and clashed with Old Ox in a brawl.
Back when he served under Qiu Luoye, Old Ox had been renowned far and wide for his thick hide and tough flesh. The blows landed by the bok choy didn't even feel as strong as an itch to him. Swinging his horns, he rooted through and smashed the bok choy before him into a pulp, plowing a road forward and leading his crew toward Zhang Wanlong.
Zhang Wanlong sat right in the middle of the plot, sipping tea and munching on flatbread. Genzi held his bucket, ready to face the enemy.
Hovering midair, Li Banfeng silently watched the battle unfold, relying on the homestead cultivator's innate gift of imperceptibility.
He was somewhat worried for Genzi. As anomalies went, Old Ox and his veteran companions were far from weak in cultivation. Relying on Genzi alone, how long could they hold out? But Li Banfeng could not speak up at this moment, nor should he.
Zhang Wanlong reminded Genzi, "Brother, don't be too ruthless, and don't use too much night soil. We don't want the local spirit looking down on us."
The moment his words landed, Old Ox slaughtered his way through the bok choy patch and charged right in front of Genzi.
Composed and unhurried, Genzi swung his ladle, opening with Flickering Golden Light.
Droplets of night soil fell like fine rain, not missing a single mark as every last one landed squarely on Old Ox.
Li Banfeng was somewhat surprised. He had seen the Flickering Golden Light technique before. When Xu Han used it back then, it was primarily aimed at the pus coating Lühuazi's body; its main attribute was density. Yet Xiao Genzi managed never to miss, controlling the precision so impeccably that it genuinely exceeded Li Banfeng's expectations.
This showed that Genzi's cultivation had improved tremendously.
Another thing that caught Li Banfeng off guard was Old Ox's condition. He was only charging ahead, completely defenseless against Genzi's technique.
When Genzi reclaimed land under Qiu Luoye back then, Old Ox had seen him. Having spent so much time together in this territory, Old Ox ought to know the terrifying power of night soil. Why wasn't he dodging at all?
It wasn't that he chose not to dodge—he couldn't. Something was wrong with Old Ox.
His footing was chaotic. While his charge seemed imposing, his fighting was completely devoid of form.
He had fallen victim to a ploy.
Having lived through plenty of violence and slaughter, Li Banfeng quickly identified the source. In addition to droplets of night soil, Old Ox was smeared with a great deal of greenish juice. That sap came from the bok choy. From rampaging through the field, Old Ox was drenched in bok choy juice. He had been poisoned.
Xiao Genzi dodged several charges from Old Ox, stirred the bottom of his bucket with his ladle, and prepared to scoop out the solids.
Li Banfeng had seen this move as well—Flooding the Golden Mountain. He intended to conjure an erupting golden mountain beneath Old Ox's feet.
In Old Ox's current state, the mountain wouldn't even need to erupt; once he sank in, he would be done for.
Zhang Wanlong stopped Genzi from the side and shouted to Old Ox, "Brother Ox, we're on good terms usually. Just leave—you won't earn anything from this job!"
Old Ox stormed off in a huff, but he didn't go far. He ran to a corner of the plot, sprawled on the ground, and began munching on bok choy leaves.
The reason he didn't leave was that he didn't want to miss out on the merits of this assessment. Several dozen anomalies were charging right behind him, bearing down on Xiao Genzi.
With a wave of his ladle, Xiao Genzi unleashed Cascading Golden Waterfall. The night soil rose into midair, transforming into a splendid golden curtain that poured downward. The cascade splashed across the group of anomalies; under intense corrosion, their flesh and hides burned and sloughed away.
Similar to Old Ox, none of them knew to dodge or put up any defense. As if they had lost their minds, they could only charge mindlessly forward.
After a few clashes, the anomalies could barely keep their footing. Zhang Wanlong again cautioned Xiao Genzi to spare their lives.
Most of the anomalies retreated, scurrying over to Old Ox's side to eat bok choy along with him.
Li Banfeng gave a wry smile inwardly. After all these years, these anomalies hadn't grown an ounce of sense. *How dare you eat such poisonous bok choy?*
A few tree spirits still refused to surrender. As anomalies, their resistance to night soil and poisonous bok choy was noticeably much stronger. Nourished by the night soil, the peach tree spirit and the willow tree spirit grew increasingly invigorated the more they fought.
Zhang Wanlong was still sipping his tea with relish. Seeing that Xiao Genzi was genuinely struggling to hold off these tree spirits, Zhang Wanlong finally made his move.
He added some medicinal powder to his teapot and stirred it with a chopstick. Once the powder dissolved, Zhang Wanlong flicked his wrist and poured the entire pot of tea into Genzi's bucket.
Genzi swung his ladle and cast Flickering Golden Light once more. When the night soil landed on the tree spirits, the situation shifted.
The branches and leaves of the tree spirits grew at a furious pace, while their trunks and roots showed no change at all.
After fighting for a while, their canopies grew so massive that their trunks and roots could no longer support them. One after another, the tree spirits toppled to the ground.
They dragged themselves along using their roots, slowly crawling off the battlefield toward the edge of the territory.
This was the tactic Old Ox had laid out beforehand: losing a clash didn't matter, but they must not easily abandon the plot. They would rest for a night and resume the fight tomorrow.
As Old Ox chewed on bok choy, he reviewed the lessons of their defeat: "There's only one reason we lost today: we weren't united! I charged first, then you charged in a wave, and the few old trees charged last. What's the point of charging like that? Charging right into their faces just leaves us to be picked off one by one! We have to be united! When we charge, we must all charge together! Don't you dare let this cultivation chance slip away..."
Li Banfeng felt thoroughly embarrassed for these anomalies. *They're still thinking about gaining cultivation? If Zhang Wanlong hadn't shown mercy, they would have lost their lives long ago.*
Even if Zhang Wanlong intentionally spared them, Li Banfeng figured they wouldn't survive until tomorrow morning given the way they were eating. Yet to his surprise, Old Ox devoured dozens of bok choy plants without collapsing.
The other anomalies also ate plenty of bok choy, yet none showed any signs of poisoning. Something wasn't right.
Earlier during their charge, mere contact with the bok choy juice had poisoned them all, leaving them powerless against Xiao Genzi. Now that they had ingested so much bok choy, why hadn't they collapsed? What kind of logic was this?
Was the bok choy's poison only suited for external contact, but harmless when ingested?
Or had the bok choy withdrawn its own toxins, deliberately choosing not to poison them?
Zhang Wanlong had remained restrained all along; Li Banfeng wasn't surprised that he wanted to spare these anomalies' lives.
Yet having the intent wasn't enough on its own. Could bok choy really release venom and pull it back at will? Was that something a plant could do?..
***
At daybreak the next morning, Old Ox and the anomalies had recovered seventy to eighty percent. Gathering together, they helped the tree spirits prune away the excess branches and foliage from their canopies. Two leopards were reluctant to help: "Lord Ox, we don't eat grass."
Old Ox snapped angrily, "This is war, not a banquet! Who told you to actually eat it?"
After stripping off seventy to eighty percent of the new foliage, the tree spirits stood back up. The anomalies grouped together and charged once again toward Zhang Wanlong and Xiao Genzi.
The two brothers were not yet awake, lying inside their tent and snoring away.
Midway through his charge, Old Ox realized that the path he had plowed yesterday was gone. All the bok choy he had uprooted had grown right back. The newly grown bok choy looked no different from the old ones. A heavy fog hung in the air today, making it impossible to locate the path he had cleared yesterday.
Mid-thought, Old Ox shook his head. *Why am I looking for the path?*
*Can't I just plow another one and start the fight directly?*
These bok choy plants collapsed at the slightest nudge, standing frozen on the ground; dealing with them required practically no effort at all. *Wait, weren't these plants quite capable of fighting yesterday? Why aren't they moving today?*
Before he could finish the thought, a wave of dizziness overcame Old Ox, and he collapsed to the ground, unable to get back up. Behind him, dozens of anomalies tumbled down one after another.
The remaining tree spirits were relatively resilient, but they didn't dare advance rashly. The situation was essentially identical to yesterday; even if they charged forward, Zhang Wanlong could easily topple them with a single pot of tea.
Caught in a dilemma, the tree spirits decided to be practical. Dragging the fallen creatures along, they retreated back to the boundary of the plot.
The thick fog over the territory did not dissipate all day. Zhang Wanlong and Xiao Genzi enjoyed their food and drink, chatting and laughing. The second day of reclamation passed with utter ease.
Floating in midair, Li Banfeng had long since deduced the origin of the fog. It emanated from the leaves of the baby bok choy; droplets of moisture on the leaves continuously evaporated, blanketing the ten-li territory in dense mist.
Touching the juice poisoned them; eating the leaves did not. The mist released by the plants could poison enemies, yet the toxins took different forms and could be unleashed and reabsorbed at will. Most crucial of all, this poisonous mist selectively targeted enemies: Zhang Wanlong and Xiao Genzi were right in the heart of the vegetable patch, yet while Old Ox and the others were poisoned into paralysis, the two of them remained completely unaffected!
"My lady, do you think this can still be called bok choy?" Li Banfeng recounted the events outside to the gramophone.
"Seventh Brother, how could that possibly still be bok choy? What you're describing is clearly a poison cultivator!" Hong Ying chimed in before the lady could speak. Comparing the bok choy with poison cultivators, she found them virtually indistinguishable. "Poison cultivators have a technique called Formless Yet Discerning, which directs lethal poison solely at enemies without harming allies. The bok choy can even use this technique now—what difference is there between it and a poison cultivator?"
The lady spoke more cautiously: "Precious husband, just because bok choy has learned a technique doesn't mean it has become a poison cultivator. I've looked through many case files you brought back from the Outer States; these bok choy plants actually resemble those Western cultivators somewhat."
They truly did resemble them: possessing combat power and techniques, yet lacking a structured system.
Could this be because the bok choy had not yet consumed medicinal powder?
Cultivators were proud and driven by their own motives; turning them into an army was exceedingly difficult.
Yet if the Peddler ever gave Zhang Wanlong that medicinal powder, wouldn't Zhang Wanlong be able to cultivate an entire legion of cultivators? Even if the legion consisted only of cultivators at the first or second layer of the Land Layer, with his production capacity, their combat strength would be terrifyingly high.
Li Banfeng recalled the bamboo Xiao Genzi had given him. Zhang Wanlong was currently researching iron-ribbed bamboo.
Even if the Peddler refused to give Zhang Wanlong the medicinal powder, he might well invent it himself.
***
By the third day, the bok choy across the plot had grown exceedingly dense. Halfway into their charge, the anomalies were all brought down by the poisonous juice.
Clearly, with Zhang Wanlong's current strength, his reclamation of the newland was an absolute rout of the anomalies. By the afternoon of the third day, Zhang Wanlong set up several banquet tables, inviting the surrounding anomalies into the vegetable garden for a meal as a gesture to bury the hatchet.
Old Ox was reluctant to attend. He was here to conduct an assessment; sharing a meal with the land reclaimer before the three-day assessment period had ended defied propriety and was embarrassing.
Under the persuasion of the other anomalies, however, he went anyway. Just as Old Goat put it: "When we're dealing with such a ruthless figure, who dares hold a grudge against him? Won't we have to live alongside him in peace from now on?"
With all the anomalies attending the banquet, the assessment had devolved into a spectacle. Li Banfeng recognized Zhang Wanlong's strength and knew he would surely pass, but now that the testers and the reclaimer were getting along in harmony, could the territory still acknowledge the outcome of the assessment?
Li Banfeng waited for the answer the next day. If the Boundary darkened and heavenly light descended from above, it would prove the assessment was successful. If the territory refused to recognize it, the testing would have to continue.
Beyond all expectation, at six o'clock that evening, the Boundary darkened, and light from above bathed the territory. The land reclamation had succeeded.
What kind of logic was this?
The three days of assessment weren't even up, yet the territory had acknowledged it early.
Because Li Banfeng had already recognized Zhang Wanlong's strength, the reclamation was deemed a success!
From the moment Li Banfeng learned about the concept of land reclamation up to this day, he had never seen anyone complete a reclamation ahead of schedule before the three-day limit had expired.
The anomalies dining in the bok choy garden were dumbfounded as well. Old Ox was the first to offer a toast to Zhang Wanlong: "Lord Long, setting aside the local spirit, you are the true master of this territory! The heavenly light even arrived ahead of time—it's plain as day, you are the master chosen by Heaven itself!
"I, Old Ox, was blind and caused you plenty of trouble these past two days, but we were both just doing our duties. Please don't hold a grudge against me in the future!"
"Nonsense! Having fought a round, our bond is only deeper!" Delighted, Zhang Wanlong drank several cups with Old Ox.
Having had too much to drink, the two went together to relieve themselves. Walking deep into the bok choy field, they spotted a man gazing toward the banquet.
Zhang Wanlong asked Old Ox, "Is that one of yours?"
Old Ox shook his head. "I don't know him."
The man hurriedly explained, "I came here to reclaim land. Hearing that your reclamation succeeded, I wanted to come learn a thing or two."
Zhang Wanlong waved a hand dismissively. "What skill could I have? It was entirely thanks to these friends from the territory looking out for me."
Old Ox quickly chimed in, "Don't be so modest! We gave it everything we had, but our meager tricks truly weren't enough before you!"
After trading pleasantries, Zhang Wanlong said to the man, "Come sit at the table and have a bite. It's a happy day; we can eat and chat."
The man waved his hands repeatedly. "I need to hurry back and prepare. I'm only reclaiming one li—small-time business. I won't disturb everyone."
After exchanging a few polite words, the man left. Zhang Wanlong thought nothing of it and returned to his drink.
This man was indeed reclaiming land under Li Banfeng's purview. Upon returning to his tent, he plugged a telegraph key into his navel, and with a clatter of dots and dashes, transmitted a message.
***
Black Rock Slope, Chain Road, Golden Gear Newspaper.
Editor Hu Yunqi finished his draft and promptly handed it to Song Shu.
Song Shu took the draft, switched on the microphone, and broadcasted in a sweet voice: "Dear listeners, this is Ah Hui. According to breaking news from our field reporter, following Zhengjing Village, another ten-li stretch of newland has been successfully reclaimed.
"This new territory is situated in a relatively remote area. The reclaimer is a farming cultivator who previously succeeded in reclaiming three li of newland nearby..."
Static distorted the signal. Hundred-Eyed Fish pulled the antenna out of his mouth, crouched on the ground, and dry-heaved for quite a while.
"Elder Pan, let's call it a day for the radio broadcast. This antenna has been jamming against the back of my throat—I really can't take it anymore."
Gao Shuxia let out a chuckle. "I truly don't understand why that antenna must be held in your mouth. Couldn't you shove it somewhere else?"
Hundred-Eyed Fish shook his head. "Other places are even worse. I've tried them all."
Pan Dehai was still pondering the news he had just heard: "Has Puluo Province produced any formidable figures among farming cultivators recently?"
Gao Shuxia thought for a moment and seemed to recall someone: "Xu Han! He should count as a formidable figure, shouldn't he?"
Pan Dehai rolled his eyes at Gao Shuxia. "What can I even say about you? After following me for so long, shouldn't you have made a little progress? What kind of status does Xu Han hold? Can he be compared to ordinary people? Would he ever run off to reclaim newland?"
Gao Shuxia shook her head. "When it comes to famous farming cultivators, I don't know many."
Pan Dehai was deeply intrigued by this matter. "Who could this person be? Anyone capable of reclaiming ten li of territory is certainly no ordinary figure."
A maidservant approached Hundred-Eyed Fish and whispered a few words into his ear. Hundred-Eyed Fish hurriedly relayed the message to Pan Dehai: "That new disciple you took in... he just ate another whole ox."
"He ate *another* one?" Pan Dehai shuddered.
Gao Shuxia sighed. "Even a mountain of gold and silver wouldn't be enough to feed him."
Pan Dehai counted on his fingers. "That makes no sense. With his level of cultivation, there's no reason he should be able to eat so much. Even at the ninth Land Layer, one wouldn't need to consume three oxen a day."
Gao Shuxia gave a bitter smile. "Three a day comes to more than a thousand a year. Elder Pan, you'd better put in some real effort to earn a few more silver dollars, or he'll truly eat you out of house and home."
Pan Dehai sighed softly. "That's not how you look at it. Qin Tianjiu is an extraordinary talent who will surely achieve great things in the future. Teaching him genuine skills not only gains me an outstanding disciple, but also earns me a solid friendship with Li Seven.
"Ah Xia, do you know Lady Wangyou on Iron Bowl Mound?"
Gao Shuxia nodded. "I do. That lady is wonderful—she cultivates both food and drink, achieving immense mastery in both!"
Pan Dehai nodded. "Go repeat what I just said to Lady Wangyou, and see if she would be willing to take Qin Tianjiu as her disciple."
Chapter 618