Mister Kongfang had told Li Banfeng to name his price, but Li Banfeng remained silent for a long time.
He wasn't thinking about a price. He was wondering how Mister Kongfang had found him.
Across such a vast sea, Li Banfeng hadn't revealed his identity before boarding, and he had even swapped identities once on Soil Nurturing Island. How could Mister Kongfang happen upon this exact vessel with such uncanny timing?
Had the boatmen slipped away to send word?
What method could they have used to get a message to Mister Kongfang?
It probably wasn't them; they had neither the ability nor the nerve.
Mister Kongfang urged him, "Name your price already. Neither of us has time to waste."
Li Banfeng pondered for a moment, then actually gave him a number. "Of the Under-City's three domains, give me the Mortal Market and the Sea Market, and we'll call the matter settled."
Mister Kongfang chuckled. "How generous of you, leaving the Earth Market for me."
Li Banfeng hadn't said he was leaving the Earth Market to him. "I haven't visited the Earth Market yet, so I don't know the situation there. Once I've had a look, we can talk again."
Mister Kongfang shook his head. "No need to go, and don't ever return. Let me make myself crystal clear: not a single inch of the Under-City will be ceded to you. I came looking for you to make sure you leave the Under-City forever. Whether you want money, goods, or to run some business up on the surface, I can grant all of that."
Li Banfeng smiled faintly. "I don't lack money, I have plenty of goods, and you don't need to trouble yourself over my business on the surface."
"Then what you mean is that we can't agree on a price." Beneath Mister Kongfang's bamboo hat, the strings of copper coins jingled in rapid succession.
Li Banfeng pressed down the brim of his hat. "Don't be in such a rush. Let's talk a little longer."
Dozens of dark shadows surged out from behind Li Banfeng, swarming Mister Kongfang in a direct assault.
Against any other opponent, Li Banfeng wouldn't deploy his shadows so casually. But Mister Kongfang was entirely different from anyone else; Li Banfeng had to go all out right from the start.
Banfeng C charged first, his silhouette flickering back and forth as he tried to divert Mister Kongfang's attention.
Banfeng D and Banfeng E flanked from the left and right, sharing an unspoken synergy as their techniques dovetailed seamlessly.
Banfeng F struck with stealth, leaning more heavily into the traits of a homestead cultivator; he had already circled behind Mister Kongfang, preparing to launch an ambush.
Banfeng Two was a figure of standing. During this first wave of attack, he basically refrained from making a move.
Seeing the swarm of dark shadows closing in, Mister Kongfang showed not the slightest hint of panic.
Banfeng C struck alongside the Tang dao, only for Mister Kongfang to flick out a single copper coin to meet them.
The Tang dao had originally been a local spirit. Having lived the high life alongside Li Banfeng, its cultivation had climbed steadily. Even against an above-the-clouds cultivator, a single slash from it was more than enough to split skin and cleave bone.
Yet as that strike came down, sparks flared. The copper coin split into two halves and dropped to the deck.
The edge of the Tang dao chipped, leaving a notch!
Banfeng C was terrified, and the Tang dao was in agony.
Banfeng D and Banfeng E unleashed Treading Ten Thousand Rivers, stomping two gaping holes into the deck, yet neither managed to harm Mister Kongfang.
Mister Kongfang hadn't even dodged. The two halves of the copper coin that had fallen to the deck rose to his left and right, shielding him from Treading Ten Thousand Rivers.
Of those two coin halves, one shattered completely into dust, while the other was reduced to fragments.
Banfeng F first chopped with the pendulum, but Mister Kongfang parried with the coin fragment. Just as Banfeng F moved to employ Viewing Flowers from Horseback, Mister Kongfang flicked the fragment from his fingertips, striking Banfeng F squarely in the ankle.
Taking that blow left Banfeng F limping. When he attempted to use Viewing Flowers from Horseback again, he couldn't break free of Mister Kongfang's gaze.
With that single copper coin, Mister Kongfang had repelled the assaults of four shadows.
He produced a few more coins to casually parry and fend off blows, offering running commentary from time to time: "Li the Seventh, so you cultivate both the Travel and Shadow pathways. Shadow Cultivators are a rare breed these days. If you die here, your pathway might just go extinct. Even if our Lord of the Pu still has the medicinal powder to rekindle your pathway's lineage, once all its cultivators are dead, more than half your pathway's techniques will be lost to history. So many pathways have incomplete arts simply because their practitioners grew too scarce."
Talking while fighting was a blatant display of contempt.
If Li Banfeng lost his head in a rush of anger, he would play right into Mister Kongfang's hands.
Since he wanted to chat, Li Banfeng indulged him. "You just mentioned your Lord of the Pu. I'm actually curious—who is this lord of yours?"
Mister Kongfang gathered a handful of copper coins. "The Peddler is the Lord of Xuehuapu; that is common knowledge across the world. Were it not for your ties with our Lord of the Pu, I would have taken your life long ago."
Li Banfeng chuckled. "You truly have thick skin. What does Xuehuapu have to do with the Peddler? Why even call it Xuehuapu? Why not just call it Cheekpu? Go find the Peddler and call him your Lord of the Pu, and see if he acknowledges you."
Mister Kongfang didn't take offense. Refusing to follow Li Banfeng's train of thought, he remarked, "Speaking of fort lords, I hear Iron Gate Fort has a lord who goes by Fort Lord. Do you know him?"
Li Banfeng adopted a solemn expression. "Of course I do! He's a great hero who roots out villains, protects the innocent, and guards his domain!"
Mister Kongfang laughed. "Your own skin is plenty thick as well!"
While the two bickered, Mister Kongfang raised a hand, and copper coins suddenly rained down from above.
Midair, the coins abruptly pivoted, streaking horizontally in all directions. Each coin cut like a razor-sharp blade. Banfeng C, who was charging at the very front, was instantly sliced into more than a dozen segments.
The other shadows fared little better. The coins struck from every angle without a blind spot, sweeping back and forth until many of the shadows were wounded.
Banfeng Two shouted, "Do not panic, everyone! Maintain tactical formation!"
Li Banfeng planted a kick on Banfeng Two's backside. "Get in there and charge! No one needs you barking orders here."
Banfeng Two circled Mister Kongfang twice, keeping his distance. Mister Kongfang regarded him with admiration. "To wield Shadow Cultivator arts with such finesse—it seems your pathway has found a worthy successor after all. Name your price and leave the Under-City at once. Once you become a grandmaster of the Shadow pathway in the future, you may come find me again!"
Even as he spoke, the shadows that had collapsed from severe wounds stood back up, one by one.
Most astonishing of all, Banfeng C, who had been cleaved into more than a dozen pieces, transformed into over a dozen individual shadows that all rose simultaneously.
Mister Kongfang had clashed with Shadow Cultivators before. A Shadow Cultivator controlled their shadows at the cost of their own vitality; shadows could die, and losing too many would gravely injure the cultivator. If every shadow died, the cultivator perished alongside them.
Yet Li the Seventh's shadows didn't die, and the more they were struck, the more numerous they became. What kind of logic was this...?
A Heaven-accorded technique?
Mister Kongfang stopped bantering with Li Banfeng. Whenever a Heaven-accorded technique was involved, one had to tread with extreme caution.
The fluttering coins swirled for a moment before returning to Mister Kongfang's hand. When he struck again, he bypassed the shadows entirely and hurled them directly at the ship's lanterns.
There were more than thirty lanterns across the deck and cabin. With a single fling of copper coins, every last lantern was snuffed out.
Shadows feared light, yet they also relied upon it. In total absence of light, most of the shadows vanished. Even Banfeng C, who had multiplied into over a dozen shadows, melted into the pitch-black darkness. Only three shadows remained: Banfeng Two, Banfeng D, and Banfeng E.
Mister Kongfang praised, "You even possess lightless shadows? Your attainments in the Shadow pathway might actually surpass your Travel pathway."
Banfeng D asked, "Lord Jia, is that true?"
"Stop babbling and light a fire, quick!"
Li Banfeng had no idea what a "lightless shadow" was, but he knew three shadows stood no chance against Mister Kongfang.
Mister Kongfang's adaptability was astounding. Li Banfeng had the three shadows step up to hold him off while he scrambled for an opportunity to ignite a flame.
Having just extinguished the lights, how could Mister Kongfang allow Li Banfeng to rekindle them? Refusing to waste more time tangling with the shadows, he lunged straight for Li Banfeng's true body.
Li Banfeng didn't fear close quarters either. Pricking his fingertip, he prepared to unfold his homestead cultivator Boundary and clash head-on with Mister Kongfang.
*Splat!*
A wad of thick phlegm dropped from atop the cabin, landing squarely on Mister Kongfang.
The phlegm was extraordinarily thick, wrapping Mister Kongfang up tight. Looking up toward Tan Jinxiao, Mister Kongfang said, "Old Tan, we know each other so well—could you perhaps pick a fighting style that isn't quite so disgusting?"
"You think green is disgusting? How about I serve you some gold?" Tan Jinxiao waved his arm, and roaring flames blazed to life across the passenger vessel.
Tan Jinxiao's adaptability was remarkable as well. Having only just discovered that Li Banfeng was fighting Mister Kongfang, he didn't yet know what effect firelight had for Li the Seventh.
Not knowing didn't matter: if Mister Kongfang put out the fires, Tan Jinxiao would light them. That was the most effective counterstrategy.
Li Banfeng glanced at the source of the fire: gold.
It turned out dry gold could burn.
Under the glare of the flames, all the vanished shadows reappeared from the darkness. With Mister Kongfang restrained by thick phlegm and unable to move freely, victory seemed assured.
The flock of shadows surrounded Mister Kongfang, unleashing their various techniques. Trapped within the phlegm, his body could barely move, yet relying solely on a few copper coins maneuvering around him, he kept the entire pack of shadows from laying a finger on him.
Li Banfeng closed in directly, aiming to finish this swiftly with Five Horses Dismembering a Body.
*Whoosh—*
The chaotic battlefield abruptly fell dead silent. The shadows turned around in unison, fixing their eyes on Li Banfeng.
*Ding-a-ling—*
Mister Kongfang reached a hand out from the thick phlegm, holding a golden coin, and gave it a flick.
The coin sailed into the air, and every single shadow pounced toward Li Banfeng.
Banfeng D was closest. Drawing a dagger, he thrust it straight at Li Banfeng's chest, while Banfeng E slashed with a knife toward his neck.
"Lord Jia, run!" yelled Banfeng G, raising a club and swinging it down at Li Banfeng's skull.
It was obvious Banfeng G felt helpless, yet his strike was vicious and blindingly fast.
They had fallen under Mister Kongfang's control; the shadows Li Banfeng knew best were already dealing lethal blows against him.
The unfamiliar shadows were even worse. Taking advantage of Li Banfeng's distraction, one shadow attempted to use Sever the Path to Forge a Way, nearly bisecting him on the spot.
What technique had Mister Kongfang used? How could he bring so many shadows under his command so quickly?
"The coins! In every shadow struck by his copper coins, the coins sank into their bodies. If we rush in blindly, we'll probably end up controlled too." Banfeng Two struck a posture, looking as though he were brawling with Li Banfeng, but in reality he was parrying blows on his behalf.
Among all the shadows, only Banfeng Two remained free of control.
Banfeng Two continued, "You see it now, don't you? He's the most ruthless of the ruthless. Even against our Heaven-accorded technique, he defused it effortlessly. Someone like him is beyond our ability to beat."
Banfeng Two was right. With Li Banfeng's current strength, defeating Mister Kongfang was far too tall an order.
Moreover, their current predicament was exceedingly thorny. These shadows couldn't be driven off or dispersed; when cleaved in two, they simply split into pairs.
Only when swarmed by his own shadows did Li Banfeng truly realize just how terrifying a Heaven-accorded technique could be.
Banfeng Two warned, "Cancel the technique, quick! Otherwise, neither of us can hold out!"
Li Banfeng was about to do so, but hesitated.
If he recalled Body and Shadow Comforting Each Other right now, he had no idea how many copper coins would be recalled along with them.
Would those coins fuse into his shadows or into his own flesh? Li Banfeng couldn't be sure. If even he fell under the coins' control, there would be no turning the battle around.
Banfeng Two offered another suggestion: "Retreat to the companion dwelling for now and purge the copper coins from all the shadows."
Retreating to the companion dwelling wasn't difficult; with Li Banfeng's current speed, he could easily bring the shadows back home.
Yet if he went inside, what would happen to the people aboard this ship?
Extracting the coins wasn't something that could be done in a short span of time.
If Mister Kongfang decided to leave no survivors, he could slaughter everyone on the vessel with a wave of his hand. Apart from Tan Jinxiao, none of them would even have a chance to resist.
He couldn't retreat to the companion dwelling now; he had to find a way to repel Mister Kongfang.
Li Banfeng formed a tactic. "Buy me an opening. I'll use Sever the Path to Forge a Way to part these shadows first, then charge straight at Kongfang to fight him hand-to-hand."
Banfeng Two listened intently. "And after you close the distance?"
Li Banfeng said, "Then I'll deploy my homestead cultivator Boundary. First, I'll trap him with Close the Doors and Bar the Gates, then fight him with Open Frontiers and Expand Territory!"
"And if you can't beat him?"
"If we can't beat him, we retreat."
"Will you even be able to retreat?"
While Li Banfeng deliberated with Banfeng Two, he maneuvered against his own shadows. Meanwhile, Tan Jinxiao had fallen into a desperate struggle.
With copper coins swirling through the air, Tan Jinxiao could barely hold his ground. But once Mister Kongfang broke free of the phlegm and reached Tan Jinxiao's side, Old Tan suffered terribly.
Every move and stance from this Mister Kongfang was entirely flawless, each strike aimed squarely at vital points.
Even more terrifying was his staggering speed. Li Banfeng was a second-tier above-the-clouds Travel Cultivator, yet in terms of raw speed, he was barely any faster than Mister Kongfang.
Tan Jinxiao held on with immense difficulty, life and death hanging by a thread.
Li Banfeng said to Banfeng Two, "Get ready, I'm charging in!"
Banfeng Two was still arguing. "If you charge in and can't get back, what then? If you run, he's sure to pursue. He strikes so fast that you won't even be able to execute a technique. How could you possibly shake him off?"
Li Banfeng said, "There's one technique that takes no time at all."
"Which one?"
"Hundred Steps Traversal. Run while planting sticks. Once two are planted, victory is ours."
Banfeng Two laughed in exasperation. "A technique you haven't even mastered, and you dare use it now?"
"Try it first! What if it works? As long as Hundred Steps Traversal succeeds, we dictate the distance—far when we want, near when we want! We can wear him down to death with the Boundary, and he won't be able to run!"
Banfeng Two refused to agree. "What are you dreaming about? What kind of situation is this, and you're still aiming to win?"
Li Banfeng snapped furiously, "If I don't fight to win, am I supposed to fight to lose? Carve out a path first!"
Li Banfeng and Banfeng Two fought tooth and nail, finally carving out a sliver of an opening to execute a technique. Li Banfeng used Sever the Path to Forge a Way to part the swarm of shadows and surged toward Mister Kongfang.
According to the original plan, he intended to activate Close the Doors and Bar the Gates midway before closing in on Mister Kongfang.
However, Tan Jinxiao was right beside Mister Kongfang, enduring a relentless beating. If Li Banfeng activated the technique and charged straight over, the Boundary would inevitably pass right over Old Tan. In Old Tan's current state, taking a hit from the Boundary would leave him critically injured if not dead.
Activating it after closing in would still be in time. Once he deployed Open Frontiers and Expand Territory, Li Banfeng would be the sovereign within the Boundary. When he traded blows with Kongfang then, with Old Tan backing him up from the side, Li Banfeng genuinely felt they stood a fighting chance.
Yet when he arrived before Mister Kongfang, Mister Kongfang flicked his sleeves, and thousands upon thousands of copper coins poured out like a deluge, engulfing Li Banfeng and Tan Jinxiao together.
Li Banfeng wanted to close the distance, but closing the distance was precisely what Mister Kongfang had hoped for. Once up close, Li Banfeng found himself at an even worse disadvantage.
The copper coins fell thicker than raindrops, every single one aimed at vital spots. Exhausted from dodging and parrying, Li Banfeng had no chance to execute any technique whatsoever.
Still holding back the pack of shadows, Banfeng Two felt his heart sink at the sight.
Li Banfeng was trapped.
Tens of thousands of copper coins moved so fast their outlines blurred. Did Li Banfeng have any hope of escape?
He couldn't even use Unimpeded Passage.
And he had talked about Hundred Steps Traversal! If he couldn't even use the techniques he knew, how could he pull off one he hadn't mastered? Was there anything more absurd in this world?
He couldn't tag along with this lunatic's madness; he had to find a way out for himself.
Busy trading blows with Li Banfeng, Mister Kongfang's control over the shadows loosened slightly, and the shadows were resisting his hold with everything they had. This gave Banfeng Two an opening.
After a brief clash, Banfeng Two spotted a gap and similarly used Sever the Path to Forge a Way to carve a path, cleaving the shadows to either side. He resolved to exert everything he had ever learned to win himself a chance at survival.
While Li Banfeng dodged the copper coins, he parried blows for Tan Jinxiao. Gaining a brief moment of respite, Tan Jinxiao suddenly spat out a massive glob of phlegm.
The phlegm expanded midair, transforming into an enormous sheet that engulfed most of the copper coins.
Li Banfeng was overjoyed. Old Tan was dependable after all; he had finally bought them a breath of air.
He prepared to slice his left palm open and activate his homestead cultivator arts.
Right before slicing his left palm, Li Banfeng hesitated slightly.
Left... which side was left again?
In that split second of hesitation, Mister Kongfang launched a kick toward Tan Jinxiao.
Li Banfeng tried to grab Tan Jinxiao, but unable to distinguish direction, he grabbed nothing.
Tan Jinxiao shouted, "I'll stick to you!"
If he could execute his technique, the thick coating of phlegm over him really could stick to Mister Kongfang's foot.
Yet Mister Kongfang was simply too fast. Before Tan Jinxiao could bring the technique out, he was booted straight into the sea.
Once in the water, Tan Jinxiao tried to climb back aboard, only to discover he couldn't move.
Whatever technique Mister Kongfang had embedded in that kick, it sent Tan Jinxiao's entire body into convulsions, curling him into a ball as he sank toward the ocean floor.
Li Banfeng lunged at Mister Kongfang, but having lost all sense of direction, he crashed straight into the deck railing.
Banfeng Two charged up as well and launched a kick, but his kick also lacked direction and was effortlessly dodged by Mister Kongfang.
Why had Banfeng Two lost his sense of direction too?
Li Banfeng understood now: this was Parting by Ten Thousand Li.
Banfeng Two had used Parting by Ten Thousand Li!
Banfeng Two's strategy was crystal clear. He had rushed to Mister Kongfang's side while Li Banfeng and Tan Jinxiao were present, aiming to use Parting by Ten Thousand Li to shove Mister Kongfang away.
Banfeng Two knowing how to use Parting by Ten Thousand Li was an achievement the other shadows couldn't even dream of.
Yet his mastery of the technique was far inferior to Li Banfeng's; whether he could actually push Mister Kongfang away was entirely uncertain.
If Mister Kongfang got pushed away, everyone would rejoice.
If Mister Kongfang didn't get pushed away, at least Banfeng Two would have successfully escaped.
And if Li Banfeng left behind an intact corpse afterward, Banfeng Two could use the technique of Form and Shadow Following Each Other to take control of the body. He wouldn't have to wait another twenty years—by the very next day, he'd be his own man again!
That was Banfeng Two's plan, and that was how he executed it. There was just one thing he hadn't anticipated:
When Li Banfeng used Parting by Ten Thousand Li, his shadows lost their sense of direction.
When a shadow used Parting by Ten Thousand Li, Li Banfeng also lost his sense of direction.
This landed Li Banfeng in absolute agony.
Mister Kongfang closed in. Unable to land a blow, Li Banfeng could only turn and flee.
Fleeing was easier said than done. Li Banfeng couldn't tell left from right, near from far. Even when he took flight, he couldn't distinguish high from low or up from down. After only a few strides, Mister Kongfang caught up to him again.
Li Banfeng now had two options in mind. The first was to forcefully activate his homestead cultivator arts and fight Mister Kongfang head-on.
Setting aside whether he could even activate them, even if he did, fighting without a sense of direction meant he still stood no chance against Mister Kongfang.
Was there a technique that required no sense of direction whatsoever?
There was: Hundred Steps Traversal.
Hundred Steps Traversal required nothing of the sort—only two marks connected into a line, combined with running fast.
With Mister Kongfang chasing him from behind, Li Banfeng ran with blazing speed.
If he could pull off Hundred Steps Traversal, Li Banfeng could dictate the distance between them, giving him the freedom to advance or retreat while stalling until the effects of Parting by Ten Thousand Li wore off.
Without a shred of hesitation, Li Banfeng first thrust a wooden stick into the deck, then took off sprinting.
Mister Kongfang was right on his heels, and Li Banfeng was about to slam into the cabin wall.
Unable to avoid the cabin or shake off Mister Kongfang, he simply plunged a second wooden stick into the deck.
Both marks were set.
A line formed between the two marks.
Had it worked?
Li Banfeng seemed to feel a faint resonance, a sensation with an eerie touch of familiarity.
Could this be the resonance brought by the marks?
Mister Kongfang maintained his distance from Li Banfeng for the moment; he harbored some wariness toward Hundred Steps Traversal as well.
If he charged in and couldn't touch Li Banfeng for ages, only for Li Banfeng to counterattack with a single step, he would be hard-pressed to defend against it.
He tested the waters first with a copper coin.
A coin zipped toward Li Banfeng. If Hundred Steps Traversal had succeeded, the coin shouldn't have been able to reach Li Banfeng; so long as Li Banfeng controlled it, the distance between them could span ten thousand li.
The coin streaked across in an instant, nearly striking Li Banfeng before he narrowly dodged it using Carefree and Unfettered.
It had not only crossed the distance, it had almost hit him.
The marks hadn't taken effect.
Hundred Steps Traversal had failed to manifest.
"Li the Seventh, your Hundred Steps Traversal is lacking quite a bit of polish." Mister Kongfang chuckled, walking toward Li the Seventh. "My words still stand: for the Peddler's sake, I won't kill you. But you are a scourge. You've broken far too many rules, so I must teach you a lesson. I will strip away some of your culti—"
Before the word fully left his lips, Mister Kongfang vanished without a trace.
Li Banfeng looked toward Banfeng Two.
Banfeng Two had just thrust a wooden stick into the deck.
He had planted one, and Li Banfeng had planted two. There were three wooden sticks in the deck in total.
The three wooden sticks formed a triangle.
That was the resonance the marks had given Li Banfeng, but it hadn't been Hundred Steps Traversal.
When executing Parting by Ten Thousand Li, planting three wooden sticks to form a triangle enclosing the enemy created a unique formation array.
He hadn't pulled off Hundred Steps Traversal, but the Three Gates Three Openings Array had been triggered.
With Mister Kongfang gone, the uncontrolled shadows froze in place, motionless.
Li Banfeng looked at Banfeng Two. "Were you the one who used Parting by Ten Thousand Li just now?"
"Yeah," Banfeng Two answered in a very small voice.
"Quite the skill." Li Banfeng rolled up his sleeves. "Shouldn't we have a proper chat about some things?"
Banfeng Two pointed toward the surface of the sea. "Old Tan is still down there. Let's save him first."
...
Mister Kongfang sat up, spitting out a mouthful of yellow grass.
Where was this?
How had he ended up here?
Where was the ship? Where was the sea? Where was Li the Seventh?
Mister Kongfang stood up and looked around. The surroundings were wide and open, with no mountains and no trees—only knee-deep yellow grass stretching across the ground, yellow and parched.
"So it's here... the Suihuang Plains..." Mister Kongfang sighed. "Caught in the Three Gates Three Openings Array again. That's the second time."
After walking across the grassland for a long while, he spotted a carriage resting among the clumps of grass. Lifting the door curtain of the cabin, he found an old man sleeping inside.
A gust of chilly wind swept into the carriage. The old man woke up and blurted, "Whatcha want?"
"Just a passerby. Could you kindly point the way to East Sea Bridge?"
The old man pointed eastward. "East Sea Bridge? Head east, where else? You need a ride? I can drive you there in my cart, and I'll give you a discount on the fare!"
Mister Kongfang chuckled. "You dare let me into your carriage?"
"Why wouldn't I dare? What, you gonna eat me?" The old man lit a candle and looked him up and down. "With all those strings and trinkets hangin' all over your clothes and hat, you look pretty spooky, I'll give you that. So what's it gonna be, you want a ride or not? If not, hurry on off, I'm still sleepy."
"I'll take the ride." Mister Kongfang boarded the carriage. The old man set the horse into motion, and after jolting along for several hours, Mister Kongfang caught the scent of woodsmoke and incense.
"Stop here." Mister Kongfang paid the fare.
The old man said, "You gettin' off right here? There's still quite a ways to go ahead!"
Mister Kongfang stepped down from the carriage and walked in the direction of the smoke.
When he caught sight of firelight, Mister Kongfang came to a halt. He saw Boss Lu.
Boss Lu was burning ritual paper, stack after stack, with a thick layer of ashes already covering the ground.
Mister Kongfang asked, "Do you often come here to burn paper?"
Boss Lu nodded. "At least once a month."
Mister Kongfang watched in silence. Boss Lu offered him a stack of joss paper. "Aren't you going to burn a few sheets?"
Mister Kongfang shook his head. "I don't owe them anything."
Boss Lu said, "The Peddler owes them. Since you go around swindling under the Peddler's banner, you ought to burn a few sheets on the Peddler's behalf."
Mister Kongfang looked at Boss Lu. "Did the Peddler truly owe them? I don't think so."
Boss Lu laid the yellow paper on the ground, signaling that he didn't care whether Mister Kongfang burned it or not.
Mister Kongfang hesitated for a moment, then picked up the yellow paper. Sitting on the wasteland, he burned it alongside Boss Lu.
As the paper neared its end, Boss Lu asked, "Do you still remember..."
Mister Kongfang waved a hand. "I don't remember. Don't bring it up. I'm getting old; I'm afraid I'll shed tears."
Boss Lu added, "I hear the founders of both our schools are returning soon."
Mister Kongfang sighed. "Let them return. I'll just stay out of their way."
Chapter 653