The Second Battle of Feng and Qing

Li the Seventh, Ma the Fifth, and Feng Daiku rode together in a carriage toward the newland. Li the Seventh believed He Jiaqing was going to make a move on Ma the Fifth's territory, and Ma the Fifth found Old Seven's reasoning sound. He dared not delay a single moment. Without even packing his luggage, he grabbed only a few weapons and numinous treasures before immediately setting off with Li Banfeng. Ma the Fifth truly needed to go to the newland as well. As the local spirit, his absence from the territory had left the land reclaimers with no one to respond to them, stalling progress significantly. Li Banfeng cautioned him, "Once you're back on your land, don't rush to answer the reclaimers, or He Jiaqing won't come." Feng Daiku asked, "Young Master Li, are you actually hoping He Jiaqing comes?" Li Banfeng replied, "You don't fear a thief stealing from you as much as you fear a thief constantly watching you. If he never shows up, the matter will remain hanging over our heads, which makes it even harder to guard against." Ma the Fifth felt anxious. "Old Seven, you still remember where I buried my covenant deed, right? In that peach blossom grove halfway up the slope, right by..." Li Banfeng said, "Exactly a hundred paces east of the spring. Old Five, I've never forgotten. Rest easy." Feng Daiku was also a bit worried. "If we only had to watch out for He Jiaqing alone, that would be one thing. But there are so many reclaimers on the newland, it's hard to say if any of them are He Jiaqing's accomplices." Li Banfeng turned to Ma the Fifth. "Don't you investigate the backgrounds of the reclaimers?" Feng Daiku shook her head repeatedly at the question. Ma the Fifth let out a dry laugh. "Old Seven, you know my temperament. When it comes to certain matters, I don't fuss over too many details." Ma the Fifth acted decisively, but he lacked vigilance—the exact opposite of Chu Huaiyuan. He and Chu Huaiyuan had acquired their territories at the same time. Chu Huaiyuan used only the three-headed people Li Banfeng had assigned to her. Unless an outsider's background had been investigated down to the last detail, she refused to hire them at all, which was why she had only cleared half her territory so far. Ma the Fifth, on the other hand, turned no one away. Reclaimers could clear land for themselves, accept employment under him, or even take jobs from strangers; Ma the Fifth interfered with none of it. Consequently, over ninety percent of his territory was already reclaimed. If his energy hadn't been consumed by business matters, Ma the Fifth might have finished reclaiming his land even ahead of He Yuxiu. Along the way, Ma the Fifth talked continuously about his feud with He Jiaqing, describing every factory and shop he had smashed. Even a newly opened restaurant at Huangtu Bridge hadn't been spared, simply because it was run by He Jiaqing's subordinates. These matters were so petty that Ma the Fifth usually felt too embarrassed to bring them up around others. Even Feng Daiku thought it sounded rather small-minded listening to it. Yet before Li the Seventh, Ma the Fifth opened the floodgates. The more he talked, the more thrilling and satisfying it felt. Halfway through the journey, Ma the Fifth finished his tale, and Li Banfeng stepped out of the carriage. The carriage was a Travel Cultivator numinous object. It required no horses, could eat and drink on its own, and ran swiftly. Even so, it was far too slow compared to the speeds Li Banfeng was accustomed to. Before departing, Li Banfeng gave repeated reminders: "Once you two reach the territory, do not make a scene under any circumstances. Find a place to stay near the peach grove, and let no one know you're there." Ma the Fifth asked, "Old Seven, do you really think he'll steal my covenant deed?" Li Banfeng answered, "I can't say for certain that he will, but other things can be replaced. The covenant deed is something we cannot afford to lose." Leaving the carriage behind, Li Banfeng walked for less than twenty minutes before reaching Ma the Fifth's territory. He bought a new fur coat from a hunter, had the clock pendulum mix some pigments, and coated the fur until it took on an oily sheen, making it look as though it had been worn for over a decade. The clock pendulum then applied disguise makeup, adding wrinkles, blemishes, and a scruff of untidy stubble, painting a face battered by wind, frost, snow, and rain. Tucking both hands into his sleeves, Li Banfeng walked with an honest, down-to-earth demeanor straight into a crowd of land reclaimers. "Are you folks short-handed? I'm pretty good in a fight." A reclaimer glanced at him. "What's your cultivation?" Li Banfeng said, "Tier-two Poison Cultivator." "We don't take Poison Cultivators," the reclaimer said, waving a hand. "Go ask somewhere else." Poison Cultivators could easily injure their own allies, so taking one on required caution. Some reclamation squads did employ Poison Cultivators, but only those they knew well. Li Banfeng moved to another spot, this time changing his claim. "I'm a tier-two Martial Cultivator. Need anyone here?" The reclaimer asked, "What's your rate?" Li Banfeng hadn't taken part in land reclamation for a long time and was unfamiliar with current wages, so he gave a rough estimate: "Five silver dollars a day." The reclaimer deliberated for a good while. "You'd better check with the other squads." Reclamation was a trade where men risked their lives, so five silver dollars a day was by no means an overcharge. The main issue was that the squad already had enough hands. One more would certainly be helpful, but they were reluctant to shell out five silver dollars. Li Banfeng went to another group, drastically lowering his rate this time: "Tier-two Martial Cultivator, just three silver dollars a day." The leader of this group waved him off. "Try someone else. We're not in the same line of business as you." What did he mean, not in the same line of business? Li Banfeng grew annoyed. He was being so proactive, yet not a single soul was willing to hire him. "Aren't you here to reclaim land?" The leader snapped impatiently, "We already have a patron. We take money and do the job; we don't hire people!" Li Banfeng had seen plenty of reclaimers who worked for pay, usually led by a chief who gathered men from all over. What made this group so special? Standing nearby and listening for a while, Li Banfeng soon pieced together the reason. This group already had a complete roster. Previously, they had worked on someone else's territory without getting paid, and an intermediary had introduced them to Ma the Fifth's land. Travel Cultivators possessed an uncanny sense of direction, remembering every place they had ever visited. From their descriptions of the terrain, Li Banfeng deduced that they had originally been clearing land on He Jiaqing's territory. Their presence on Ma the Fifth's land meant they had essentially been poached from He Jiaqing. Who was this intermediary they spoke of? Had Ma the Fifth sent them? Poaching laborers was indeed a classic tactic of the older generation. But had Ma the Fifth done it, he certainly would have mentioned it to Li Banfeng; after all, he hadn't even left out the petty squabble over the restaurant. Li Banfeng stroked the Judge's Brush. "I suspect this intermediary was sent by the Hundred Flowers God." The Judge's Brush corrected him: "The fake Hundred Flowers God. He's stirring up trouble on purpose." Li Banfeng had already uncovered his first clue from these reclaimers, though the intermediary they mentioned was unlikely to show his face again. Just as Li Banfeng was pondering whether this lead held any further use, the corners of his mouth uncontrollably curled upward. The Judge's Brush asked, "What are you smiling about?" Li Banfeng did not know why he was smiling either, but an uncontrollable wave of joy suddenly surged in his chest. He gazed into the distance, where many people were digging foundations and building houses. A newland over ninety percent reclaimed would soon transform into proper land. Those who had succeeded in their reclamation sought to establish homes and livelihoods here. The wail of a suona drifted from afar as two reclaimers were wed. It was hardly an elaborate, proper wedding—there wasn't even a bridal sedan chair. The couple had merely scraped together enough to lay out a single banquet table, ready to share their lives from that day forth. Thinking of his own wife, Li Banfeng's cheeks flushed slightly. He had never even hosted a wedding feast, though thankfully he had provided his lady with plenty of fine food and drink. That delight surged into his heart once more. Li Banfeng tucked his hands into his sleeves and stood there, smiling for a long time. The Tang dao swayed slightly. "Master, when Qiqiu City turned into proper land, you smiled like this too." "Did I?" "You did!" the glove testified. "Back then, when the three-headed people came to treat Qiqiu City as their home, the master of the house smiled for the longest time, just like this!" Why did he feel so compelled to smile? Li Banfeng squatted down, drew his hands from his sleeves, and scooped up a handful of earth, vaguely sensing a faint spiritual resonance. It was a perception unique to Home Cultivators. The joy residing within the soil flowed gently into the palm of his hand. A snatch of singing drifted to his ears. Li Banfeng looked toward the sound. "I pluck willow threads as strings, Singing my heart out, yet who pities me? By night I count each watch-drum beat, Needle and thread tangle the twin lotuses." A young woman sat playing a pipa, singing for money. Reclaimers encircled her, cheering and applauding from time to time, occasionally tossing a few coins into her basket. The girl was lovely, and her singing sweet, but Li Banfeng could tell she was not a living human. Was she an Artisan Cultivator's puppet? Or a Home Cultivator's charming beauty? She seemed to be neither. It appeared an expert had settled on this piece of land. And that expert seemed to be an acquaintance— "Freshly hunted pair of bears! Come take a look, folks, and make an offer!" A loud hawking interrupted Li Banfeng's train of thought. Disguised as an old hunter, He Jiaqing carried a bear on his back and walked into the midst of the reclaimers. Seeing the old hunter return, the reclaimers stepped up to tease him. "Old man, back to swindle folks again?" He Jiaqing put on an indignant face. "What kind of talk is that? When have I ever swindled anyone?" "You've clearly got only one bear on your back! How can you say you're selling a pair?" He Jiaqing set the two-headed bear onto the ground. "This bear has two heads! Are you blind, or are you trying to rile me up on purpose?" "Riling you up on purpose, of course!" The reclaimers roared with laughter and crowded around to haggle. Some wanted the bear gall, some wanted the pelt, and others wanted the heads. Many preferred buying from the old hunter because his prices were quite reasonable. He Jiaqing was indeed well-acquainted with them by now. This was his sixth time scouting Ma the Fifth's territory. He had already determined the approximate location of the covenant deed and mapped out a portion of the traps surrounding it. It was precisely because of these traps that He Jiaqing had returned to scout time and again. Every trap in the peach grove had been crafted by master hands, with several originating from Tang Shijiang and Bai Qiaoniang. Any of them could prove fatal to him. Thus, He Jiaqing was exceedingly cautious. Without absolute certainty, he would not act rashly. Late at night, He Jiaqing slipped into the peach grove. Drawing a patch of bear hide from his robes, he plucked a tuft of fur and tossed it into the wind. Thief Cultivator technique: No Treasure Left Behind. The bear fur would automatically seek out valuable objects. A covenant deed possessed immense value, so by tracking where the fur settled, He Jiaqing could pinpoint its burial site. The fur drifted on the wind for a good while before falling evenly all around He Jiaqing. No Treasure Left Behind had activated, but it proved useless. Ma the Fifth had buried countless valuables beneath the peach grove. The bear fur had simply followed these scattered treasures to the ground—a countermeasure designed specifically against Thief Cultivators. He Jiaqing sneered. "Clever Ma Junyang. You truly prepared thoroughly." An ordinary Thief Cultivator might have run out of options, but He Jiaqing had his own ways. Relying on experience, he selected several locations throughout the grove, produced a thin iron wire from his robes, and began probing the ground one spot at a time. Thief Cultivator technique: Golden Thread Suspends the Pulse. Though both were treasure-hunting methods, Golden Thread Suspends the Pulse was noticeably slower than No Treasure Left Behind, yet far more precise. He probed the first spot; what lay buried beneath was not the deed, but gold. He Jiaqing withdrew the wire and moved to the second location. Probing revealed silver coins beneath. Both were fine treasures, but neither could be touched—they were thoroughly laced with traps. At the third location, buried beneath was a suona. Could this suona count as a valuable? The wire trembled slightly. The suona had to be a numinous object. It was remarkably sensitive; having been poked by the wire, it seemed to stir from its slumber. The awakened suona was somewhat peeved, but it would not act immediately. After all, this was a peach grove on a mountain; insects and snakes frequently burrowed here, so an accidental nudge was completely normal. As long as the suona was not provoked further, he could still withdraw unscathed. Through the vibrations transmitted along the wire, He Jiaqing roughly estimated the suona's zone of control. Once awakened, the suona held dominion over an area tens of meters across. Within this range, any further anomaly would bring dire consequences. He Jiaqing made sure not to let the suona detect another anomaly. His feet moved lightly across the ground, leaving no tracks and making no sound as he distanced himself from the suona's location. Thief Cultivator technique: Tread Snow Without a Trace. As he advanced, He Jiaqing calmly pondered why this suona was buried here. Common sense dictated that burying such an exceptional numinous object in this spot could only be meant to protect the covenant deed. Therefore, Ma the Fifth's deed had to be right beneath it. Naturally, it could also be a trap, with Ma the Fifth creating a facade to lure an intruder in. Yet using such a precious numinous object merely as a decoy seemed excessively wasteful. Thus, He Jiaqing concluded— *Thump!* He Jiaqing crashed to the ground. Had he tripped on a root? Stepped into soft mud? He Jiaqing had no idea why he had fallen. And that fall thoroughly enraged the suona. *Waa-waa-waa—* The blare of the suona echoed across dozens of li in all directions. Lights flickered on in numerous wooden cabins nearby as reclaimers jolted awake from their sleep, bewildered by the commotion. The singing girl, who had been sitting quietly in her room, picked up her pipa upon hearing the suona and began strumming the tune *Ambush from Ten Sides*. None of the people around could hear her music, but Mu Yuejuan, high above the clouds, heard it loud and clear. She immediately woke Ai Yeqing. "The fighting has started! In Ma the Fifth's territory!" Ai Yeqing sprang out of bed, stepped onto the second-floor corridor, plucked a string of copper coins from his bamboo hat, and pressed them against the wall. The coins shifted and slithered across the wall, outlining the shape of a doorway. Ai Yeqing pushed the door open, revealing a hidden chamber inside. Mu Yuejuan peered in from the doorway and saw copper coins piled high as a mountain, roughly estimated to number in the hundreds of thousands. "Well, well, Ai Thousand Knives! You hid this much? Even I didn't know!" "Without capital, how can one achieve great things?" Ai Yeqing waved his hand, and hundreds of thousands of copper coins converged into a single line, boring into the crown of his head. Once the last coin merged into his body, Ai Yeqing rolled his neck and followed Mu Yuejuan into the painting. "Ai Thousand Knives, with this kind of capital, you could go toe-to-toe with Shan Chengjun, couldn't you? Aren't you sworn enemies? Didn't we nearly die at his hands? Why didn't you reveal your capital back then?" Ai Yeqing shook his head. "Without revealing it, I only nearly died. Had I brought it out, I wouldn't have lived to see today. Besides, I can't carry this capital on me at all times. We had best make quick work of He Jiaqing!" Back on Ma the Fifth's land, the suona continued to blare relentlessly. He Jiaqing sprinted, desperate to escape the peach grove. Before long, he spotted the figures of Ma the Fifth and Feng Daiku. Anywhere else, He Jiaqing could have easily taken on the two of them at once, but this was Ma the Fifth's home ground, and he refused to take unnecessary risks. Leaning against a peach tree, his form vanished in an instant. Thief Cultivator technique: Evade Shadows, Conceal Form. At this moment, He Jiaqing had melded seamlessly into the peach tree. Even a Scrying Cultivator from beyond the clouds would struggle to discern his location. Feng Daiku manipulated her passion threads, searching all through the peach grove, while Ma the Fifth readied his joy fire, poised to ignite He Jiaqing the moment he showed himself. Yet the passion threads circled the grove twice without discovering a trace of him. Ma the Fifth said in a low voice, "Did he flee the grove?" Feng Daiku was uncertain as well, and discussed searching elsewhere with Ma the Fifth. Watching the two prepare to leave, He Jiaqing was just about to cancel his technique when a strand of passion thread shot directly toward his face. Caught completely off guard, he relied on his agile footwork to barely dodge, yet a large chunk of flesh was sliced from his cheek. Passion Cultivator technique: Love Stronger Than Gold! Before He Jiaqing could fathom how Feng Daiku had discovered him, the passion thread swept around the peach tree and wound firmly around his waist. Glancing down, He Jiaqing suddenly understood. The reason Feng Daiku could see him was that he was glowing. His body was shimmering with bright light, though he had no idea where the illumination came from. Had he been struck by Ma the Fifth's joy fire? There was no time to ponder that now. Feng Daiku's passion thread was coiled around his midsection; the moment she exerted force, he would be sliced clean in two. *Whoosh—* Just as Feng Daiku moved to tighten the thread, she found it slackening uncontrollably, slipping straight into He Jiaqing's grasp. Empty-Handed Steal! He Jiaqing had actually stolen Feng Daiku's passion thread. Losing a single thread mattered little. Feng Daiku flicked her long sleeve, and another passion thread darted out, lunging toward He Jiaqing's neck. He Jiaqing lashed out with the thread in his hand, tangling it with hers. Pulling with sudden force, he jerked Feng Daiku off balance. Gritting her teeth, Feng Daiku wrestled with He Jiaqing. Passion threads were the foundation of her survival; how could she let He Jiaqing gain the upper hand? Yet He Jiaqing truly held the advantage. His wrists and footwork were far more agile than hers, moving back and forth with effortless grace. Not only was he unhindered by the threads, but he also dictated Feng Daiku's steps. Closing in twice, the ring upon his finger left several bloody gouges across Feng Daiku's delicate cheek. While the two were locked in combat, Ma the Fifth hurriedly unleashed his joy fire. He Jiaqing smiled, and the fire ignited—not upon himself, but on a neighboring peach tree. Thief Cultivator technique: Steal the Beam to Swap the Pillar. The peach tree caught fire instantly, its branches and leaves sprouting frantically to entangle the surrounding trees. Seeing the flames spread, Ma the Fifth hastily retracted his technique. His covenant deed was buried here; he had no desire to burn the peach grove to ash. Completely unscathed, He Jiaqing traded blows with Feng Daiku while casually chatting with Ma the Fifth: "Ma Junyang, they said your leg was broken, but it looks perfectly fine to me." Ma the Fifth tried to employ his Flirt and Tease technique against He Jiaqing, but the speed of his activation could not keep up with He Jiaqing's movements. Feng Daiku released the passion thread in her hand, refusing to entangle any further. Spreading her sleeves wide in midair, she invoked a Passion Cultivator technique: Net of Parting Sorrow. Tens of thousands of passion threads wove into an immense web, swooping down upon He Jiaqing all at once. With so many threads, let's see how he steals them! He Jiaqing did not flinch in the slightest. As the web descended, he smoothed and reeled in strand after strand, gathering all ten thousand threads into his hands. In the blink of an eye, the entire Net of Parting Sorrow had been stolen by He Jiaqing. Brandishing the net, he moved to cast it back over Feng Daiku. Alarmed, she dodged immediately. In truth, it was a feint. This was a net crafted by Feng Daiku herself; how could it ever trap her? Yet with He Jiaqing's feint and Feng Daiku's dodge, Ma the Fifth was left entirely unguarded. He Jiaqing smirked. "Ma the Fifth, you falsely accused me of severing your hamstring. Today, I'll snap it for real and show you!" Feng Daiku tried to block He Jiaqing's path with her threads, but He Jiaqing slipped past them in one step, closed the distance to Ma Junyang in two, and on the third step, soared into the air— Ma the Fifth was terrified! Why did He Jiaqing fly up? What was he trying to do? Not only was Ma the Fifth baffled, but He Jiaqing himself had no idea what was happening. His third step had been meant to steal Ma the Fifth's hamstring; why was he suddenly airborne? Flying was bad enough, but He Jiaqing's body fell completely out of his control, as though a nearby vortex of air was relentlessly dragging him. Feng Daiku's passion threads swept in. Unable to evade, He Jiaqing took three deep gashes across his front and back. Seeing the threads strike again, He Jiaqing unleashed Steal the Beam to Swap the Pillar, swapping places with a rock on the ground. Ma the Fifth gritted his teeth. He had just missed a prime opportunity; He Jiaqing flying into the air had had no special purpose—he had simply been hanging there taking a beating. Landing on the ground, He Jiaqing lunged for Ma the Fifth once more. Two steps in, his feet suddenly trod on empty air, and he floated into the sky again. This time, Ma the Fifth and Feng Daiku showed no hesitation. Regardless of why He Jiaqing was flying, they would strike to kill first and ask questions later. Feng Daiku bound He Jiaqing securely with her passion threads, while Ma the Fifth ignited joy fire directly upon his body. He Jiaqing struggled just to maintain his balance while fending off the threads and joy fire; attempting Steal the Beam to Swap the Pillar now proved far beyond his reach. And without that technique, tied up in midair, he was left as nothing more than a punching bag! Ma the Fifth drew a short cudgel, a little over a foot long, from behind his back, leaped into the air toward He Jiaqing, and began swinging it with all his might. Feng Daiku watched in frustration. Given such a golden opportunity, why wasn't Ma the Fifth using a bladed weapon instead of that club? Yet this cudgel was far deadlier than any blade. It was a custom weapon Ma the Fifth had forged by melting several numinous treasures together, named the Wulang Staff. A sharp blade might not have broken He Jiaqing's defenses, but the Wulang Staff truly could. After a few blows, two of He Jiaqing's arm bones snapped, a leg bone broke, and both his shoulder blade and cheekbone were fractured. Under the excruciating agony, his concentration wavered. The passion threads bit into his bones, and the joy fire scorched through his flesh. In the blink of an eye, He Jiaqing was reduced to a lump of charred charcoal, crashing to the ground with a dull thud. Burned to death just like that? Ma the Fifth didn't believe it. Raising his staff, he delivered another strike straight to He Jiaqing's head. *Bang!* With that single blow, He Jiaqing's entire body shattered, bursting into a cloud of black ash. Feng Daiku sensed something was wrong. The black ash dispersed on the wind, blinding the eyes of both attackers. Amidst the ash, He Jiaqing stumbled to his feet and sprinted away. Thief Cultivator technique: Golden Cicada Sheds Its Shell. Though he had successfully shed the husk, his injuries remained. Dragging one leg, He Jiaqing fled for over a hundred li before finally shaking off Ma the Fifth and Feng Daiku. Ma the Fifth and Feng Daiku pursued with everything they had, but their speed fell far short of He Jiaqing's. Now beyond Ma the Fifth's territory, He Jiaqing pondered his next destination. Going to Green Water City meant he would likely walk into an ambush; Ma the Fifth's roots there ran too deep. Return to his own territory? Shu Wanjuan was on his territory and might provide some support. But what if Shu Wanjuan refused to help? What if he kicked him while he was down? For safety's sake, He Jiaqing decided to head to Bitter Herb Manor. The closest proper land to this location was Baiqiao Ridge. Once at Baiqiao Ridge, he could find the entrance to Bitter Herb Manor. It was over a hundred li away, a distance easily covered, and Ma the Fifth would never suspect that He Jiaqing had gone to Baiqiao Ridge. As for the bizarre occurrences that had plagued him today, he could puzzle them out slowly once he reached Bitter Herb Manor. After fleeing for more than thirty li, a shower of flower petals suddenly fell from the sky. He Jiaqing was startled. Had the Hundred Flowers God arrived? Could all the strange phenomena during the battle have been caused by the Hundred Flowers God? As the petals drew close, they abruptly transformed into copper coins, hurtling toward He Jiaqing. He Jiaqing dodged frantically, but hindered by his injuries, several coins pinned themselves squarely into his flesh. Copper coins? Kongfang? He Jiaqing looked all around, searching for the figure of Mister Kongfang. The mist in the night sky rippled, and He Jiaqing suddenly realized that an invisible scroll painting hung before his eyes. A great swarm of copper coins flew out from within the scroll, and He Jiaqing heard Mister Kongfang's voice: "Don't bother going anywhere else. Just stay right here."