At dawn, Xiaoyaowu was completely still. The visitors had dispersed, the dancing girls had retired, and the entertainers were all fast asleep.
The peddler slipped into Li Banfeng's room through the window, where Li Banfeng was waiting inside.
"I intended to gather the sunflower seeds for you, but an urgent matter came up at the last minute, so you'll have to collect them yourself." The peddler handed Li Banfeng a map, a tin of cooling balm, and seven packets of Soul-Returning Decoction. "Rub the cooling balm over your eyes, and you'll be able to see where the sunflowers are. The map explains it quite clearly; you'll definitely find them."
Li Banfeng took the map and medicine packets, asking, "What urgent matter did you run into?"
The peddler glanced at Li Banfeng's condition. "Never mind that for now. Get your own affairs sorted out first."
Li Banfeng looked over the map. "So many places?"
"Didn't I tell you? Plenty of people remember you."
Li Banfeng also noticed two place names not marked on the map itself, only given written descriptions. "There are some in these places too?"
"Yes! Those two places are crucial—you must go there."
Li Banfeng was still puzzled. "Whom did you have go plant the sunflowers in those places?"
"I have undercover agents there. Starting today, you must drink one packet of Soul-Returning Decoction every day." Without another word, the peddler hurried off.
Having to take a packet a day meant Li Banfeng's condition had grown even more perilous.
Li Banfeng took the map and began searching in every direction for the sunflowers.
The sunflower in Lanyang Village had produced a divine statue resembling a man dressed in black hacking at someone with a blade. The folkways here remained simple and unvarnished, and their impression of Li Qi had never wavered.
Zhengjing Village had one and a half statues. One was fully formed, while the other was still half-grown, depicting a man in black shooting someone with a gun.
Li Banfeng was thoroughly dissatisfied. After spending so much effort managing Zhengjing Village, was this the only image he had left behind?
Sheqiao Village had eight divine statues.
Every time Li Banfeng rescued three-headed people, he settled them in Sheqiao Village, where more than ten thousand now resided as permanent inhabitants.
The popular aura here was actually higher than at Daogui Ridge?
The statues in Sheqiao Village were quite amusing—they depicted a man in black wearing a fedora, driving a locomotive.
Most of the popular aura in Qiqiu City also came from the three-headed people, but the statues were distinctly different from those in Sheqiao Village. Here, Li Banfeng stood before a wooden house, seemingly guarding it.
Even though fewer than three thousand three-headed people lived in Qiqiu City, Li Banfeng harvested five divine statues from there.
Qingyan City had one and a half statues, depicting Li Banfeng cradling a child.
Wumian Town had one divine statue, showing Li Banfeng clutching a pillow. Ever since Li Banfeng took over as its local spirit following Wang Zimian, the people here had finally been able to get a proper night's sleep.
Haichiling yielded six divine statues. Since it wasn't the temple fair season, Lord Seven's popular aura was limited. Five statues came from the Lord Seven temples across various villages, and another came from Erdaoling, while Toudaoling only had half a statue, not yet fully grown.
The statues in Santoucha were more scattered, but their number was staggering: Li Banfeng found sixteen in total.
These statues came in all shapes and sizes, but most possessed three heads. The three-headed people longed for Li Qi to rescue them, yet they had no idea what Li Qi looked like.
One statue among them was exceptionally peculiar: Li Banfeng holding a basket and dancing.
This statue came from Baiji Commandery. The peddler had retrieved it ahead of time and stashed it on a desolate island in the underground city of the Sea Market.
Seeing this statue, Li Banfeng felt a twinge of shame. The little he had done for the White Peregrine Capital fell far short of what they had given.
Then there were Huangtu Bridge, Baihua Manor, Qishuiyao... Indeed, a great many places remembered Li Qi.
Li Banfeng collected the divine statues from each location one by one. After absorbing their popular aura, he made a rough estimate: it came to about fifty percent.
The good news was that he had gathered nearly half the popular aura.
The problem was, where would he find the remaining greater half?
Hong Ying didn't think it was a big deal. "Didn't the peddler give you plenty of Soul-Returning Decoction? Husband can drink it first, and once half a month has accumulated, go harvest another round of popular aura. Wouldn't that make up the count?"
Zhao Xiaowan raised her wooden board and struck her twice. "If you can't count, don't butt in! The peddler said to take one packet a day, and there are only seven packets. How could that last half a month?"
Besides, this smaller half of popular aura included what Li Banfeng had drawn from the various local spirit seals, and those seals could not accumulate much popular aura in a short time.
Hong Ying rubbed her sore spot for quite a while, pouting. "The peddler is stingy too, not even giving a bit more decoction."
Ninth Sister nudged Hong Ying's waist, signaling her to drop it.
The peddler had given seven days' worth of medicine, and the implication was clear: if he failed to complete the advancement within seven days, the Soul-Returning Decoction likely wouldn't help anymore.
There were still two places on the map without precise locations marked, only written descriptions.
The first place was Kucaizhuang. He truly didn't want to go there, but right now he had no room to be picky. Gritting his teeth, Li Banfeng said, "Fine, I'll go to Kucaizhuang!"
The gramophone looked at the map. "There's still one last place. When will Husband go?"
Li Banfeng held down both of his legs, struggling with all his might to control their trembling. "I've already agreed on a time. I'll go to that place last. Once I get there, I must advance."
Reaching the edge of Kucaizhuang, Li Banfeng took a deep breath and muttered under his breath, "Granny, let's make a deal: bestow a little blessing upon me, and skip the tempering, all right?"
Granny Ku gazed out over the desolate territory and asked He Jiaqing, "All thirteen territories belong to you now?"
He Jiaqing produced the covenant deed. "This was signed by Shu Wanjuan."
After examining the covenant deed, Granny Ku praised, "Good boy! To wrest a covenant deed from that old bastard's hands—this deed was truly well done!"
He Jiaqing surveyed his surroundings. "We still need to find a way to develop the territory. I took stock of the Brotherhood Alliance's manpower, and we're currently falling far short."
Granny Ku also knew manpower was a major problem. "I'll help you think of a way. Pick the right moment to make a trip to the Inner States and retrieve the covenant deeds for all these territories."
He Jiaqing said, "This can't be rushed. Right now, security in the Inner States is tight. If I go, I'm afraid it will be hard to succeed. Even if I did, it would startle the snake and force Shu Wanjuan to turn against us completely."
Granny Ku nodded. "I wasn't rushing you, just reminding you to keep it in mind. During this time, recruit more strange-monsters. Don't wait until it's time for land reclamation and find you can't even carry out the appraisal—"
Before she could finish, Granny Ku abruptly stopped.
Seeing her brows knit tightly, He Jiaqing asked, "Granny, what happened?"
Granny Ku suddenly broke into a faint smile. "Good news. My nephew has come home."
He Jiaqing had no idea where Granny Ku had gotten a nephew, and Granny Ku offered no explanation. In the blink of an eye, she vanished.
Inside Kucaizhuang, Li Banfeng was harvesting divine statues. The land here was vast and sparsely populated, and the peddler had planted the sunflowers rather far apart. Li Banfeng found three sunflowers: one held a fully grown statue, while the other two were not yet mature.
Li Banfeng had once turned Kucaizhuang into Huanlezhuang, so the sentiment remained, but there were simply too few people here.
According to the map's directions, two more sunflowers remained. Truth be told, if he could find even one divine statue between those two sunflowers, it would already be fortunate. Taking this risk here really wasn't worth it.
Just as Li Banfeng prepared to leave Kucaizhuang, he suddenly shivered uncontrollably.
Sensing something was wrong, he hurried against the base of a wall and stood motionless.
A chilling wind carrying a bitter tang blew past, and Granny Ku walked slowly right in front of Li Banfeng.
Against an ordinary person, Li Banfeng could rely on his Cloud Tier 4 Dwelling Cultivator talent to wander about at will, or even dance and wave his arms, without attracting notice.
Granny Ku, however, was no ordinary person. Right now, if Li Banfeng moved even a fraction of an inch, she would spot him.
Don't move. Absolutely don't move.
Li Banfeng pressed his body tight against the wall, nearly merging into it.
Yet his legs refused to obey. Despite his desperate restraint, they still twitched twice.
Granny Ku walked up beside Li Banfeng and chuckled. "When did you arrive? Come on in and sit at home."
Li Banfeng gave a stiff smile. "I was just passing through and thought I'd drop by to take a look. I've got an urgent matter—"
"What urgent matter requires you to leave right this second? Come have a meal at my place first, and let's settle our past accounts." Granny Ku dragged Li Banfeng, trying to haul him home.
Struggling as he walked, Li Banfeng cried out, "Second Aunt, I truly have urgent business! I'll come pay my respects another day! Second Aunt, listen to me, this is a matter of life and death! You were the one who sent me to Puluo Province in the first place, and it wasn't easy for me to scramble and stumble my way here. Now that I've hit a tribulation, you can't give me a hard time right now—"
While he was busy speaking tart and bitter, Granny Ku countered, "What happened to you?"
How could he explain this?
If he told her directly about the cultivation backlash, she might dig out the fact that he was dual-cultivating the Dwelling and Traveling pathways.
Yet if he didn't tell the truth, his physical condition couldn't be hidden.
After walking several li, Li Banfeng found he simply couldn't break free. Left with no choice, he considered revealing part of the truth.
Before he could speak, however, a voice sounded by their ears: "What are you doing? An old woman grabbing onto a young lad and refusing to let go—don't you feel any shame?"
Hearing that voice, Li Banfeng's heart settled.
Granny Ku glanced back. A man with his hands tucked into his sleeves was squatting meekly behind them.
Granny Ku narrowed her eyes, a cold glint in her gaze. "Sun Tiecheng, what are you doing here?"
Sun Tiecheng looked up and said, "You grabbed my brother, so haven't I come to ask you for him?"
Granny Ku's eyes widened, and she pointed at Li Banfeng. "He's your brother?"
Sun Tiecheng nodded. "Yeah, what of it?"
Granny Ku looked at Li Banfeng and smiled. "My, aren't you blessed! Come, dear nephew, come see your older brother!"
Li Banfeng shouted to Sun Tiecheng, "Older Brother, save me!"
Sun Tiecheng spat toward Granny Ku. "From where do you figure he's your nephew? You shameless old crone, release my brother this instant!"
Granny Ku shook her head. "He's your brother, but he's also my nephew. I have an important matter to discuss with him; I truly can't let him leave today."
"If he doesn't leave, I'm not leaving either." Sun Tiecheng remained squatting on the ground, staring at Granny Ku before him, without the slightest intention of standing up.
Granny Ku frowned slightly. "Old Sun, you're not what you used to be. You're nothing more than a living dead man now. This is my territory—do you really think I'll tolerate you running wild?"
Sun Tiecheng maintained his smile. "They say a wretched life is cheap, but I don't even have a life anymore, so what if I run wild? If you don't release my brother today, I'll turn Kucaizhuang upside down. Care to test me?"
Half an hour later, Sun Tiecheng led Li Banfeng out of Kucaizhuang.
Li Banfeng lowered his voice and asked, "Senior Brother, how did you get here?"
"Why didn't you mention anything to me when you ran into trouble?" Sun Tiecheng chided. "If the peddler hadn't tracked me down, I wouldn't even know something happened to you. Here are the sunflower seeds that grew in the City of Fools. Collect them first."
The City of Fools had produced only one divine statue. Li Banfeng was the City Lord's junior brother and had fought to the death to defend the city, driving off Smiling Thousand Hands. By right, that popular aura should have been higher.
However, the City of Fools had no living people, so the quality of the popular aura was clearly far lower than elsewhere.
Once Li Banfeng collected the statue, Sun Tiecheng produced a local spirit seal and handed it over. "This contains the popular aura from the City of Fools' territory. There isn't much in the oldland, but after accumulating for so many years, it ought to be of some use."
The popular aura inside a local spirit seal was purely piled up by population count; it wasn't refined, but it had no directional bias, meaning anyone could absorb it.
Li Banfeng capped the local spirit seal over his head. Popular aura surged forth, uncontrollable even when Li Banfeng tried to hold back.
After a long while, when the popular aura was completely drained, Li Banfeng made a rough calculation: cumulatively, it should now reach about seventy percent.
Sun Tiecheng had handed over all the popular aura the City of Fools had accumulated over the years.
Li Banfeng didn't know how to express his gratitude, but Sun Tiecheng waved his hand. "You're the only living cultivator left in our pathway. Everything in the City of Fools belongs to you. That move you just used on Granny Ku—that was Speaking Tart and Bitter, wasn't it?"
"That was a technique I comprehended on my own. Did it look like Speaking Tart and Bitter to you?" Li Banfeng tried to gloss over the matter.
Sun Tiecheng shook his head. "If you learned it, you learned it. I'm not asking who taught you. It's just that you missed the core essence of the technique."
Speaking Tart and Bitter had been taught by Jiu'er, and it really had lacked a bit of punch.
Li Banfeng humbly asked for guidance: "Could Senior Brother please give me some pointers? Where does the key to this technique lie?"
"The key lies in..." Sun Tiecheng smeared a handful of medicinal powder across Li Banfeng's face.
Li Banfeng had actually been on guard; he had just been smeared once by Ayi in Hulu Village.
Even with his guard up, however, Sun Tiecheng still managed to smear his face.
Ayi was right: the Fool cultivator's medicinal powder stung terribly. Who knew what method Sun Tiecheng had used to bluff his way through back in the day?
Once the pain subsided, Li Banfeng asked, "Did I grasp the essence this time?"
"You did." Sun Tiecheng nodded. "One or two techniques don't matter, but you must take the cultivation backlash seriously. The peddler said there's popular aura elsewhere. If you can scrape together enough, that's best. If you can't, make sure to come to the City of Fools to find me. I have another way."
Judging by Sun Tiecheng's expression, that 'other way' was a measure of absolute last resort.
As they parted, Sun Tiecheng cautioned Li Banfeng, "The peddler is a fair-minded man, and doing business with him isn't wrong, but be sure to keep your guard up. Being too fair-minded isn't necessarily a good thing."
Parting from Sun Tiecheng, Li Banfeng headed to Qishuiyao. Ma the Fifth and Luo Shaojun were already waiting at the factory. Li Banfeng had arranged the time beforehand: today he would travel to Boundless City.
On the map the peddler had provided, two places could not be marked with precise coordinates: one was Kucaizhuang, and the other was Boundless City.
Li Banfeng had never imagined the peddler would plant sunflowers inside Boundless City.
He harbored little hope for Boundless City. Even if there were twenty divine statues here, they wouldn't suffice to provide the remaining twenty-odd percent of popular aura.
Li Banfeng's sole hope was to rely on special means to force his advancement through despite insufficient popular aura.
And that sole hope could only rest on Jiang Ling'er.
Following Luo Shaojun into Boundless City, Li Banfeng choked on quite a bit of water due to his frail physical state.
Walking along the street, Li Banfeng tried his best to disguise his unsteady gait, but even Luo Shaojun noticed something amiss. "Brother Seven, do your shoes not fit?"
"They fit fine. I'm just a bit tired from walking." Li Banfeng looked up ahead, where a single-story building with white walls and a domed roof stood.
Li Banfeng recognized this place. It was a coal yard, which served as a restaurant in Boundless City where many commoners came to eat.
Li Banfeng saw an octopus crawling into the coal yard.
Behind the octopus, Li Banfeng saw two worms follow inside.
The first time he had seen this coal yard, Li Banfeng had encountered Bondservant Xi peeking inside.
Luo Shaojun had once said that the coal in the yard was coarse and poor, so only commoners were willing to eat such fare, while even scholars rarely visited.
Yet even an eatery of that sort would never allow bondservants to enter.
Li Banfeng turned back to Luo Shaojun and asked, "Can they go inside now?"
Luo Shaojun nodded. "They can now. In the past they couldn't, but Brother Seven said we must abolish the bondservant system. Sister Lijun didn't dare make a move, fearing the high ministers and grand masters would rebel.
"Later, I discussed it with Sister. We decided to issue a decree in the name of Prince Pingyuan, collecting all the deed contracts of the city's bondservants and burning them to ashes.
"Even though the deeds were destroyed, the various households were still unwilling to let the bondservants go. I gathered the bondservants of the Marquis Manor together and laid out the terms of staying or leaving. Those willing to remain and work for the Marquis Manor would receive wages going forward, while those unwilling to stay would be given silver to make their own living.
"With the Marquis Manor setting an example, we used it to pressure the high ministers and grand masters. Once they complied with the decree, the scholars and commoners naturally lacked the courage to resist. From then on, Boundless City abolished the bondservant system."
Li Banfeng praised repeatedly, "Well done! This deserves a grand reward. Whatever you want, as long as it's within my power, just say the word."
Praised like that by Li Banfeng, Luo Shaojun felt a bit shy. "Brother Seven, I don't want any reward. Whatever you say, I'll obey.
"I know you dislike people from the Shang State, but I regard you as family. Just don't look down on me as your sister in the future."
"How could I ever look down on such a good sister?" Li Banfeng walked forward, suddenly finding strength in his stride.
He saw worms buying sundries in a general goods shop—battered pots, chipped bowls, and worn pans.
He saw worms buying liquor in a tavern, purchasing the cheapest watered-down brew.
He saw worms looking for work. Even though it was all rough manual labor, they clearly posted their wage requirements on signboards.
They were living their lives.
They were human, and they were living like human beings.
Li Banfeng walked all the way to the Marquis Manor, growing stronger with every step. Just as he reached the main gate, Luo Yanjun came out to greet him.
"Brother Seven, you're finally here."
Li Banfeng looked at Yanjun, then turned his gaze to Shaojun.
Luo Shaojun was equally startled. "Sister, when did you arrive?"
She had waited two days for Li Qi on the shore, and during that time she truly hadn't known Luo Yanjun had come to Boundless City.
Ignoring Shaojun, Luo Yanjun leaned in close to Li Banfeng's ear and said softly, "Brother Seven, a friend from Chaoge wishes to see you."
"Which friend from Chaoge?" Luo Shaojun's tone was laced with wariness. She knew Li Qi's condition wasn't very good.
Luo Yanjun still paid Shaojun no heed, keeping her eyes fixed on Li Banfeng.
Li Banfeng knew Luo Yanjun would seek him out on her own initiative; he just hadn't expected her to come so quickly, and so coincidentally.
"Where is this friend? Please lead the way." Li Banfeng followed Luo Yanjun to the Eastern Courtyard. At a time like this, no matter how difficult it was, his spine had to stay straight and his steps steady.
When they reached the entrance of the Eastern Courtyard, Luo Shaojun tried to follow, but Yanjun stopped her. "The two of us sisters shouldn't go in. Don't worry, I would never harm Brother Seven."
Inside the hall of the Eastern Courtyard, Li Banfeng saw a man with thin eyebrows, round spectacles, and a broad bridge of a nose that took up most of his face. His most distinctive feature was his whiskers.
Two whiskers grew from his upper lip, and six from his lower lip, each one identical in length and thickness to a mung bean sprout.
He was likely a fish.
The fish-man bowed first. "Nian Shangyou, Scholar of the Hongwen Institute, greets Prince Pingyuan."
Nian Shangyou—judging by the name, he truly was a perch.
"What do you want with me?" Li Banfeng was in no mood for polite formalities; being able to stand firm and speak with him was already no easy feat.
Nian Shangyou bowed once more. "The Prince is a forthright man, so I dare not beat around the bush. My arrival this time concerns an important matter regarding my master."
"If it's your master's business, why didn't he come in person?"
"As a member of the imperial clan, my master cannot travel lightly."
"So he's royalty," Li Banfeng feigned surprise. "What matter could royalty fail to accomplish that requires coming to me?"
Nian Shangyou spoke slowly: "The bloodline of the imperial clan stems from one root with three branches. Three branches grow together, yet their aspirations diverge.
"The pine is vigorous and unyielding, the bamboo open-minded and modest, while the plum stands proud against frost and snow. Since each has distinct ambitions, it is difficult to plot together!"
Hearing this, Li Banfeng nodded repeatedly. "Don't speak in riddles."
Nian Shangyou smiled. "Your Highness is a man of direct temperament, so I shall speak even more plainly. My master wishes to turn 'one root with three branches' into 'each enjoying their own branch.'"
Li Banfeng said, "What do you mean by 'each enjoying their own branch'? Spell it out clearly."
Nian Shangyou felt he had already been blunt enough, but with Li Banfeng pressing him, he could only be utterly direct: "It means turning a three-headed person into three separate people."
Li Banfeng came to a sudden realization. "So that's what 'each enjoying their own branch' means. But I can't do that."
Nian Shangyou smiled. "Your Highness is overly modest. Had I not received definite word beforehand, I wouldn't dare disturb Your Highness."
Li Banfeng asked, "What news did you receive?"
Nian Shangyou did not answer. "Trivial details aside, since I have the rare chance to meet the Prince today, we might as well discuss the price first."
Li Banfeng said, "Go ahead, I'm listening."
Taking heed of the earlier lesson, Nian Shangyou made his words as plain and straightforward as possible: "My master has prepared three offers for Your Highness to consider.
"The first offer is weaponry. My master can first present Your Highness with a first-grade weapon as a deposit. Once the matter is accomplished, he will present another first-grade weapon as compensation."
Li Banfeng said expressionlessly, "Keep going."
Nian Shangyou continued, "The second offer is territory. My master can grant Your Highness twelve pieces of newland. If Your Highness finds that insufficient, the price can be negotiated further."
Li Banfeng smiled. "That's somewhat interesting. What about the third?"
Nian Shangyou said, "The third offer is popular aura. Once the deed is done, Your Highness may cultivate in Chaoge for one year, during which vast amounts of popular aura will be made available for Your Highness to draw upon."
Li Banfeng's brow twitched slightly. "I'd have to go cultivate in Chaoge? Wouldn't that make me an officially enfeoffed local spirit?"
Nian Shangyou replied, "Your Highness misunderstands. Chaoge possesses techniques to gather popular aura, but that aura cannot be removed from Chaoge, which is why it can only be drawn upon there.
"Besides, Your Highness is an imperial prince of Great Shang; returning to Chaoge to cultivate is only natural and proper."
"Your offers are all fine, but I truly cannot accomplish this matter." Li Banfeng slowly rose, doing his utmost to keep his body steady.
Nian Shangyou bowed again, fully confident in the transaction. "I shall reside in Boundless City for some time. It will not be too late for Your Highness to reply after weighing the matter carefully."
Li Banfeng left the Eastern Courtyard and walked step by step toward the rear garden. The sunflower he was searching for was in the rear garden.
A single sunflower wouldn't solve the problem; he needed more popular aura.
Yet asking him to cultivate in the Inner States was something he could never do.
He knew very well what going to the Inner States entailed. If he truly went there to cultivate for a year, his spine would be broken.
And it wouldn't just be the spine of Li Qi; the spines of the Fort Lord, the Benefactor, Lord Seven, Boss Night, Director Li, and the Daolao God of War would all be broken.
Luo Shaojun followed behind Li Qi. Seeing his cold expression, she hurried forward to ask, "Brother Seven, what's wrong?"
Li Banfeng did not answer, only continuing to walk forward.
Luo Yanjun followed behind as well, suspecting the price hadn't been agreed upon.
If they hadn't agreed, they could keep negotiating, but this opportunity had to be seized. It concerned whether the Luo family could stage a comeback.
Li Banfeng smeared cooling balm over his eyes, circled through most of the rear garden, and came to an abrupt halt.
He saw a sunflower.
The sunflower's head hung very low, and its center was laden with divine statues—many divine statues.
The statues wore sapphire-blue brocade robes, gold-thread spider-pattern sashes around their waists, and gold-plated caps inlaid with jade upon their heads. This was presumably the image of an imperial prince drawn from someone's imagination.
Whose imagination had this come from?
Just how many divine statues were there?
Thirty? Fifty? More than fifty?
How could there be so many?
Could he be seeing things?
Li Banfeng asked Luo Shaojun, "How many bondservants are there in Boundless City?"
Luo Shaojun thought carefully. "Several hundred thousand. I can't remember the exact number."
Li Banfeng's spine straightened even more.
Turning to Luo Yanjun, he said, "Tell Nian Shangyou that this matter is open for discussion, but I set the price. Tell him to await my word."
Chapter 717