Chapter 16: Myriad Paths Under Heaven

Till Cultivators, Happy Cultivators, Dietary Cultivators, Travel Cultivators, Home Cultivators.

These were terms Li Banfeng had never encountered before.

Yet now, he was being forced to choose between them.

Monkey Qiu gently lowered Li Banfeng, propping him against a tree in a semi-reclined position. “He can’t move right now.

First, give him a bowl of Soul-Returning Soup.”

“Give?” The Peddler shook his head. “I don’t believe in giving things away for free.”

Monkey Qiu felt around in the inner pocket of his suit. “I’ll pay for the soup. I don’t have much cash on me today, so I’ll owe you.”

The Peddler retrieved a clay pot from the lower section of his wooden cabinet. He mixed in some herbs, added water, and set it over a charcoal fire to simmer.

“Monkey Qiu, what’s this kid to you? Why are you being so good to him?” The Peddler took up a fan, leisurely fanning the charcoal embers.

“He gave me food,” Monkey Qiu answered simply.

The Peddler pressed, “Who’s paying for the entrance medicinal powder?”

Monkey Qiu replied, “I’ll cover it. He can choose whichever Sect he likes.”

With that, Monkey Qiu produced something from his pocket: a left hand, half-eaten.

So it was him!

It dawned on Li Banfeng. This man, Monkey Qiu, was the one who had begged him for food on the train.

Back then, the man’s voice had been muffled, making it impossible for Li Banfeng to discern his tone.

Li Banfeng had given him two boxes of instant noodles. He never imagined that this act would lead to the man saving his life.

“Got any medicine? Help me reattach my hand,” Monkey Qiu said, handing the left hand to the Peddler.

After examining the state of the hand, the Peddler seemed reluctant. “Isn’t that divine physician from Yaowang Gulch well-acquainted with you? Go see him; his methods are superb.”

Monkey Qiu had originally planned to seek out that divine physician to reattach his hand. But since he had run into the Peddler, he didn’t want to owe the physician another favor.

Favors were hard to repay, and the Peddler’s prices were much more reasonable.

Monkey Qiu smiled. “I’m already here; I’ll just have you do it.”

“Your hand is in this state, and you still insist on coming to me!” The Peddler grumbled, rummaging through his cabinet for plasters. “How many plasters will this take? Next time, tell your wife to chew on some meat and trick her stomach. Don’t let her eat the tendons too…”

Li Banfeng lay half-reclined against the tree, watching as the Peddler produced several plasters.

For the first time, Monkey Qiu retrieved his left hand from his trouser pocket.

To be precise, he didn’t have a left hand. All that was tucked into his pocket was a bare left wrist.

“Align it yourself first!” The Peddler heated the plasters over the fire. Monkey Qiu, with his right hand, held the severed hand, aligning the broken ends to his wrist.

Once the plasters were heated, the Peddler stepped forward and wrapped several layers of them around the break in the wrist, as if gluing the hand back on.

Attached?

Could this really work?

Li Banfeng had witnessed many incredible scenes on his journey, but this method of treating a severed hand seemed far too casual.

To reattach a hand, one should at least apply a bit of saliva!

This made Li Banfeng worried about his own condition. He was currently breathing only four or five times a minute, and his heart was barely beating twenty times.

Wait, Monkey Qiu’s little finger seemed to twitch.

Was it just his imagination?

It wasn’t.

Not only the little finger, but all five fingers of Monkey Qiu’s hand, including the ring finger, which was reduced to bone, were moving slightly.

It really worked!

“Don’t rush to move it; it’s just been reattached!” the Peddler cautioned. He then retrieved some medicinal powder and applied it to Monkey Qiu’s left hand before wrapping it tightly with gauze.

“Don’t get it wet for ten days, and don’t remove the plaster for a month. When we meet next month, remember to bring the money to settle the bill!”

Monkey Qiu nodded in response, hopped onto a rickshaw, and departed.

He left!

What about him?

Li Banfeng anxiously watched the Peddler.

The Peddler checked the heat of the fire, grabbed a rag to protect his hand, and lifted the clay pot off the charcoal. He poured the broth into a bowl.

“Young friend, time for your medicine.” The Peddler produced a funnel, placed it in Li Banfeng’s mouth, and held it steady with one hand while pouring the broth down his throat with the other.

A warm current surged through Li Banfeng’s stomach. He felt his eyelids grow heavy and soon fell asleep.

An hour later, Li Banfeng opened his eyes, his body now capable of movement.

The Peddler was busy with business. A young man of eighteen or nineteen was buying medicinal powder.

The young man stood about 5’7″, weighed around 170 pounds, and possessed a face as round as his figure.

Squinting with his small eyes, he made his decision with a solemn expression.

“Dietary Cultivator! I choose that!”

“Good!” With a wave of his hand, the Peddler opened a drawer on the upper level of his cabinet. Using a distinctive wooden spoon, he scooped out a small spoonful of medicinal powder, placed it on a piece of parchment, wrapped it up, and handed it to the plump fellow.

The plump fellow handed six *Huan Yuan* to the Peddler. He was about to open the powder and pour it into his mouth when the Peddler called out, “Hold on!”

The plump fellow glared. “What is it? I paid! Are you trying to increase the price on the spot?”

The Peddler sized up the plump fellow, offering no response.

Behind the plump fellow stood a well-dressed man, also there to buy medicinal powder, who chuckled at the plump fellow. “You really don’t know anything. The Peddler is trying to save you!”

The man appeared to be in his twenties, wearing a top hat, a suit, a vest over his shirt, and a tie. He was handsome and dashing, followed by five attendants and a rickshaw driver, clearly of high status.

The plump fellow turned around and said, “I paid, so why can’t I take the medicine?”

The man looked at the plump fellow with disdain. “Can that medicine be eaten? This is a Guiding Agent, concocted with countless efforts by generations of sages. Its medicinal properties are extremely potent. If you just swallow it like that, your intestines will be torn apart!”

The Peddler tidied up his cabinet, saying, “This medicine is to be applied to the body, not eaten.”

The plump fellow, taken aback, held up the packet of medicine and asked, “Where do I apply it?”

The Peddler replied, “As long as it touches the flesh, anywhere will do, wherever you find it convenient.”

The well-dressed man behind him offered a reminder, “Choose a fleshy area; this medicine is very painful.

I once saw a sister who applied the medicine to her fat peach. Her fat peaches were over a foot thick, but it still hurt so much that she couldn’t walk!”

“I’m not afraid of pain!” The plump fellow lifted his clothes, revealing his snow-white belly, and said to the Peddler, “If I apply this, will I be a Level One Dietary Cultivator?”

The Peddler shook his head. “You’ve misunderstood again. This medicine can only guide you to the threshold; it can’t take you to the first level.”

The plump fellow retorted angrily, “Isn’t that a scam? Such expensive medicine, and I can’t even reach Level One?”

The Peddler closed the drawer, unwilling to explain further.

The wealthy man behind him grew impatient. “If you don’t understand anything, find someone who does and ask them. Don’t embarrass yourself here!

This is the entrance medicinal powder. Reaching Level One isn’t that easy; you have to pass the level!”

The plump fellow looked puzzled. “Pass what level?”

The wealthy man couldn’t quite remember. “Dietary Cultivators, I think they have to eat a lot…”

The Peddler interjected, “Dietary Cultivators need to eat twenty *jin* of food in one sitting to reach Level One.”

“Twenty *jin*…” the plump fellow said, sounding a bit nervous. “How long do I have? Does eating for a whole day count as one sitting?”

The Peddler shook his head. “What are you thinking? One sitting is just an hour. If you go over an hour, it doesn’t count.”

Hearing this, the plump fellow was troubled. How could he eat twenty *jin* of food in one hour?

Seeing the plump fellow hesitate, the Peddler waved his hand, and the six thousand *Huan Yuan* reappeared in his palm.

“If you regret it now, there’s still time. I’ll return the money to you.”

The plump fellow gritted his teeth and slapped the medicinal powder onto his belly.

The powder disappeared quickly upon contact with his skin. The plump fellow’s face turned green, and he staggered to the tree, sitting down next to Li Banfeng.

“It hurts, it really damn hurts!”

“How painful is it?” Li Banfeng asked out of curiosity.

“More painful than being burned by fire. I can’t take it anymore!” The plump fellow’s face twitched in pain.

The wealthy man looked at the suffering plump fellow, his expression somewhat complicated.

“One way or another, I’ll have to endure this pain. Let’s do it!” The wealthy man approached the Peddler. “I want the Happy Cultivator’s medicinal powder.”

The Peddler looked at the wealthy man and asked, “You don’t seem like someone who lacks money. Why choose the path of a Happy Cultivator?”

The wealthy man replied, “That’s the Sect that suits me best.”

The Peddler chuckled. “Why not cultivate as a Home Cultivator, lying at home and increasing your cultivation base?

The wealthy man shook his head. “I can’t stay still. Enough said, I want the Happy Cultivator!”

The Peddler cautioned, “I must remind you, to reach the first level as a Happy Cultivator, you need to do it ten times a day, without interruption, for two months straight.”

Ten times a day?

Li Banfeng was dumbfounded!

What kind of activity was this?

Was it what he was thinking?

Ten times a day for two months!

This wealthy young master was quite vigorous!

“I understand the rules!” The wealthy man had his men bring five thousand *Huan Yuan* and handed them to the Peddler, who took the money and wrapped up a packet of medicine for the wealthy man.

An attendant at his side said, “Young Master, apply it to your fat peach; that medicine really hurts!”

The wealthy man snorted. “Taking off my pants in front of so many people? What kind of man do you think I am?”

The wealthy man unbuttoned his collar and slapped the medicinal powder onto his chest.

As soon as the powder touched his flesh, the wealthy man’s legs went weak, and he almost fell to the ground.

Several attendants rushed forward to support him, but the wealthy man waved them away. “I don’t need you; I can stand.”

He stumbled to the tree, sat down next to Li Banfeng, and though sweat poured down his face, he bit his lip and didn’t utter a sound.

Li Banfeng was truly perplexed. “Friends, if this medicine is so painful, why not wait until you get home to apply it? You could have someone to take care of you.”

The plump fellow had recovered a bit. Seeing someone even more ignorant than himself, he was filled with a sense of superiority and couldn’t help but laugh.

“You really don’t know anything. These are the Peddler’s rules.

If you buy entrance medicine from the Peddler, you must use it in front of him. If there are no abnormalities within half an hour, you can leave. Otherwise, the Peddler is not responsible for any problems.”

The wealthy man looked at Li Banfeng’s clothes, enduring the sharp pain as he asked, “Friend, your clothes don’t seem to be from around here?”

The plump fellow also looked at him strangely. “Did you get off that train? I heard that people who get off that train have all been to the Nine Heavens Immortal Realm!”

The wealthy man shook his head. “Not the Nine Heavens Immortal Realm, from another prefecture. I haven’t been to another prefecture, but my family members have.

My surname is Ma, and I’m the fifth child in my family. Acquaintances call me Ma Wu. May I ask how you two are called?”

This young master came from a wealthy family, but he wasn’t arrogant.

The plump fellow clasped his fist. “My surname is Qin, and I’m the ninth child in my family. Acquaintances call me Qin the Plump.”

Qin the Plump?

What did that have to do with being the ninth child?

Li Banfeng said, “My surname is Li, and I’m the seventh child in my family. Acquaintances call me Li Qi.”

“Five, Seven, Nine?” Ma Wu paused for a moment.

Qin the Plump smiled. “Consecutive odd numbers, this can be considered fate!”

Perhaps he really saw the significance of this fate, Ma Wu began to converse more openly, “Brother Li, may I know which Sect you have chosen?”

“Sect?” Li Banfeng didn’t quite understand.

Ma Wu was taken aback for a moment, and then he comprehended Li Banfeng’s confusion. “I remember now, in other prefectures, they don’t call the path of cultivation a Sect, but rather a profession. And they don’t call cultivators Cultivators, but rather Dark Energy Users.”

Dark Energy User!

Li Banfeng had heard of this concept before. Those who were chasing him from the Dark Star Bureau were all Dark Energy Users.

That big-eyed man who could secrete oil from his body, what was his profession?

It should be Dietary Cultivator, right?

He must have eaten a lot of oil beforehand, so he could secrete oil from his body.

He Jiaqing was likely a Dark Energy User as well.

He was able to monitor remotely, so what was his profession?

So, the so-called entry was becoming a Dark Energy User.

The medicine being sold by this Peddler was the agent to become a Dark Energy User.

He seemed to sell more than just medicine, he also sold daily necessities.

An old man came to buy candles.

A child came to buy rock candy.

And a woman brought her own porcelain jar to buy snow cream. The woman gave him a silver coin, which the Peddler verified, and then he scooped a large spoonful for the woman.

While the Peddler was busy with business, Ma Wu asked again, “Brother Li, which profession have you chosen?”

Li Banfeng shook his head. “I haven’t decided yet.”

Ma Wu took a water bottle from an attendant, took a sip, and as the pain eased slightly, he advised Li Banfeng:

“If you haven’t decided, don’t act rashly. The Peddler only carries five types of medicinal powder. If you don’t like any of them, wait until next time. Once you’ve chosen a Sect, there’s no going back.”

Li Banfeng was even more surprised. “Till Cultivator, Happy Cultivator, Dietary Cultivator, Travel Cultivator, Home Cultivator, besides these five Sects, are there other choices?”

“Yes, there are!” Qin the Plump said with a hint of excitement, “Literary Cultivators, Martial Cultivators, Poison Cultivators, Medicine Cultivators, Peeping Cultivators, Thought Cultivators, Insect Cultivators, Herb Cultivators, Smoke Cultivators, Wine Cultivators, Emotion Cultivators, Sleep Cultivators… There are hundreds of Sects in the world, and myriad paths under Heaven!”

End of Chapter