Chapter 182: Portal

Granny Ku personally plucked a bitter herb and handed it to Li Banfeng. "Eat this," she commanded.

At least the leaf was clean, so Li Banfeng ate it.

Granny Ku seemed satisfied. She didn't force Li Banfeng to eat any more, and then her figure vanished.

The Free Meal Hall returned to its quiet state.

Li Banfeng sat beside Chu Er and asked, "After this meal, can we go back?"

Chu Er shook her head. "It's still early. We eat a free meal once every ten days, and each session lasts for three days."

"Three days of eating this? How can you stand it?"

"Whether we can stand it or not, we have to. We must eat the free meal, otherwise, they won't give us food next month."

"If they don't give you food, can't you grow your own? Do you have to rely on charity?"

Chu Er was genuinely afraid of Li Banfeng. "Seventh Master, please don't cause trouble. I don't have bones as hard as yours. I'm truly afraid of being beaten to death!"

Li Banfeng thought about going outside for some fresh air and perhaps returning to his personal dwelling for a nap, but the meal-serving uncle wouldn't allow it.

"No one is allowed to leave before noon. Those are the rules."

"What if someone needs to relieve themselves?"

"Hold it! Rules are rules. Why do you have so many questions!"

Chu Er stepped forward and pulled Li Banfeng, urging him to stop arguing.

Li Banfeng looked at Chu Er before him.

Chu Er in Bitter Herb Village was a completely different person from Chu Er in Greenwater City.

"When did you become such a coward?"

"Isn't this all for cultivation?"

"You're a young lady of means. Why would you choose such a sect? Why do you have to endure this suffering?"

A shadow of gloom crossed Chu Er's face. She turned her head, rolling her eyes upwards as she looked at Li Banfeng. "Why are you asking that?"

Li Banfeng pushed Chu Er's face away. "When I ask you a question, answer properly. What's with that expression? It doesn't work on me. Save it for scaring others later."

Chu Er lowered her head, speaking in a very low voice. "I originally intended to cultivate through scholarship. The year my father died, I hadn't yet entered a sect. After he passed, my mother followed him. To contend for the position of family head, everyone in the family fought fiercely until death. My two younger brothers died at the hands of their own older brother."

"What is kinship? Even sworn enemies aren't this ruthless. I have a tough fate; I've survived until today. There are more people in this world hoping for my death than for my life. Aren't people born into this world just to suffer? To live a life of suffering, to cultivate through suffering—isn't that the strongest path to cultivation? Don't you think that's true?"

"What kind of logic is that?"

"That *is* the logic," Chu Er insisted. "When no one in this world cares about you anymore, you'll understand it."

Li Banfeng chuckled.

For most of his life over the past twenty-odd years, no one had ever cared about him.

"If others don't care, don't you care about yourself?"

Chu Er gave a bitter laugh. "What good does it do for me to care about myself?"

"It's of great use. In fact, it's the most useful thing."

As they were arguing, they suddenly saw three more people enter the Free Meal Hall.

Had these three arrived late?

"Do they still have food?"

Chu Er nodded. "Yes, they do. They are people preparing to join the sect. The Free Meal Hall always saves some food for them, but not much."

There was a man, a woman, and the woman was holding a child's hand.

Were they a family?

An entire family planning to become ascetics?

The meal-serving uncle gave them three bowls of rice, each only half-full, and without any bitter herb leaves.

The man was starving. He devoured his half-bowl of rice in an instant.

The woman looked at the child, worried he wouldn't be full. She spooned out some of her own rice and gave it to him.

There was too much sand in the rice, and the child couldn't swallow it.

The woman softly comforted the child, "Chew slowly, eat slowly. Don't waste a single grain."

The man grew impatient. He stepped forward and snatched the child's bowl. "If you don't want to eat, then don't! If you can't even endure this little bit of hardship, how can you be an ascetic?"

The woman watched from the side, tears welling in her eyes. She wanted to stop the man but dared not.

Chu Er gritted her teeth. She couldn't stand people like that.

She was about to help the child get his rice back when she realized Li Banfeng was gone.

The man picked up his chopsticks, just about to eat, when Li Banfeng stepped forward and kicked him in the face.

The man fell backward, his rice bowl shattering. He covered his face and looked at Li Banfeng. "Why did you hit me?"

Li Banfeng looked coldly at the man. "If you can't take a beating, then get lost! If you can't endure this little bit of hardship, how can you be an ascetic?"

The man, tears in his eyes, looked at the meal-serving uncle. "He hit me, aren't you going to do anything?"

The meal-serving uncle, holding his spoon, asked, "What exactly are you trying to do?"

Li Banfeng turned and looked at the uncle, asking, "You're the one who mixes sand into the rice, aren't you?"

"It is!" the uncle admitted. "It's the rule of Bitter Herb Village. We eat this hardship!"

Li Banfeng nodded. "Alright, I'll let you endure a bit more hardship!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Banfeng suddenly appeared in front of the uncle and punched him in the stomach.

The uncle gritted his teeth, his eyes widened, and his gaze fixed on Li Banfeng.

Chu Er shouted, "Watch out! Shared Suffering!"

This was a second-level ascetic skill; the uncle was about to evenly distribute the pain onto Li Banfeng.

Li Banfeng's figure suddenly vanished. He had activated his Momentary Step again.

The uncle's gaze fell empty; he couldn't find Li Banfeng.

Li Banfeng reappeared, raised his hand, and punched the uncle, sending him sprawling to the ground.

This meal-serving uncle was a third-level ascetic cultivator. Logically, he should have been able to hold his own against a third-level traveler cultivator for a while.

However, Li Banfeng was still a fourth-level dwelling cultivator. With his "Unseen Presence" talent, he left no trace before striking, leaving the uncle completely helpless to retaliate.

This was the strength of multi-cultivation. A third-level ascetic cultivator was easily overwhelmed by Li Banfeng, but Li Banfeng had no intention of killing. He hadn't forgotten the old teapot's warning.

The uncle lay on the ground, wailing, "This man has broken the rules. He cannot stay in the village."

Li Banfeng kicked the uncle. "Do you think I want to stay here?!"

Several ascetics rushed forward to attack Li Banfeng. Li Banfeng stomped his foot, crushing a stone on the ground and sending up a cloud of dust. While everyone's eyes were obscured, Li Banfeng unleashed a flurry of punches and kicks, knocking down all those who had charged at him.

More ascetics charged forward. Li Banfeng pulled out his feather duster and dealt with them one by one.

The entire Free Meal Hall was thrown into chaos.

Chu Er was dumbfounded, unsure of what to say.

She never would have imagined that Li Banfeng, having just met Granny Ku and almost been tempered by her, would immediately cause such a disturbance in the Free Meal Hall.

Which hospital did he go to? Which doctor would dare say he wasn't crazy?

Wasn't Li Banfeng afraid of encountering high-level ascetic cultivators?

Besides Granny Ku, were there any other high-level cultivators in Bitter Herb Village?

According to Li Banfeng's estimation, none of the ascetic cultivators present had reached above the fourth level of cultivation.

Bitter Herb Village was indeed conducive to ascetic cultivation, but no one was a glutton for punishment. Once they reached the fourth level or higher, they would surely have other means of cultivation and no reason to come here seeking abuse.

Li Banfeng was confident he could handle cultivators below the fourth level, but now he was struggling a bit; there were simply too many of them.

After a brief, fierce battle, Li Banfeng shouted, "Those who want to fight me, stay! Those who don't, get out! Don't regret it if you're too slow!"

"Run!" Chu Er grabbed the newly arrived woman and, holding the child, also ran.

This was a smart move; one person leading the escape could encourage many others who wanted to flee.

The beaten man quickly followed, and in a short while, more than half of the people had run out.

The remaining half continued to struggle with Li Banfeng. Li Banfeng suddenly jumped onto the roof beam and pulled out his teapot.

Since these people didn't want to leave, he'd just have to give them a bath here.

Li Banfeng rubbed the teapot. The teapot sighed, "I didn't want to come here, but here we are. In the end, there's still a fight to be had."

"I told you, no killing here. How do you want to fight?"

"Just give them a lesson."

The teapot understood and caused the tea water to rise, submerging everyone up to their waists.

Walls surrounded them; there was no way out.

The water temperature was acceptable, not hot enough to kill them, but their bodies were sure to be covered in blisters.

They tried to lock their gaze on Li Banfeng to share the pain, but Li Banfeng leaped back and forth on the roof beam, impossible to pin down.

Ascetics could endure, but they still felt pain. Everyone thrashed around in the water. Some tried to climb onto the roof beam, but Li Banfeng kicked them down one by one.

The meal-serving uncle shrieked, "Just wait until Granny Ku arrives! She'll take your life!"

Li Banfeng chuckled, "Don't you all want to suffer? Letting you suffer more is helping you cultivate. Granny Ku won't blame me."

This was a joke, and Li Banfeng knew he was causing trouble.

But he hadn't killed anyone, so Granny Ku wouldn't make him pay with his life for it. At most, she would send him out of Bitter Herb Village, which was exactly what Li Banfeng wanted.

Anywhere else was fine; he just didn't want to stay here.

But after waiting for a long time, Granny Ku didn't intervene.

She watched from outside the Free Meal Hall, not even entering the building.

"That old teapot is still in this world," Granny Ku chuckled. "He has a point. This truly is helping them cultivate."

Granny Ku left.

After being scalded for over two hours, all the ascetics had calmed down.

Seeing that they had stopped fighting, Li Banfeng put away his teapot and jumped down from the roof beam.

He walked over to the meal-serving uncle and instructed, "Go make lunch. Don't mix sand in again. If I find a single grain of sand, I'll beat you."

The uncle didn't dare say more. Covered in blisters, he wobbled towards the kitchen.

Li Banfeng walked outside the building and looked at the family of three preparing to join the sect. "Why do you want to join this sect?" he asked.

The man lowered his head and remained silent.

The woman bit her lip. "My child and I genuinely couldn't find enough to eat. We heard that if you join this sect, Bitter Herb Village provides food, so we could at least survive here."

Li Banfeng looked at the man. "Was this your idea for them?"

"No, not me!" The man quickly shook his head. "I didn't know them originally; we just happened to be traveling the same path."

Li Banfeng had misunderstood; they weren't a family after all.

"Not a family, yet you snatched their food and ate it so eagerly. You're truly prime material for suffering. You stay here."

"No, I won't stay! I don't want to cultivate in this sect anymore!" The man stood up, intending to run.

"Is that still up to you?"

Li Banfeng kicked the man down, then took out two silver dollars and gave them to the woman. "If you enter this sect, all that will be left for you is suffering! Not only will you suffer, but your child will have no future in this life! Talk to Granny Ku respectfully and see if she's willing to let you go. You haven't officially joined the sect yet, so she won't force you to stay. Once you leave, never come back, no matter how difficult life gets. Always strive for a life of happiness."

No matter how difficult life gets, always strive for a life of happiness.

Chu Er looked at Li Banfeng, silently for a long time.

Li Banfeng straightened his clothes, pulled down the brim of his hat, and walked away.

He needed to go back to his personal dwelling and take a hot bath.

Late at night, the meal-serving uncle, along with a group of ascetics, found Chu Er.

"That bearded man from earlier today, did he come with you?"

Chu Er nodded. "Yes, he did. What's wrong?"

"Who is he?"

Chu Er shook her head. "I don't know. I just met him on the road."

The meal-serving uncle's cheek twitched. He lowered his voice and asked, "And who are *you*?"

"One who suffers."

This was the standard answer in Bitter Herb Village. Chu Er had never revealed her identity there, and according to the village rules, others shouldn't inquire about her background.

The meal-serving uncle didn't press further. Asking more would indeed break the rules.

"I came to you tonight because I need your help with something. Please fetch that bearded man; we have matters to discuss with him."

Chu Er lowered her head, rolling her eyes upwards as she scanned the group. "Thinking of doing something sneaky? Look at your pathetic ambition."

The meal-serving uncle gritted his teeth. "It's just this matter. Are you going to help or not?"

"No, I won't! What are you going to do about it?" Chu Er glared menacingly at the meal-serving man.

The meal-serving man took a half-step back; he was a little scared.

He turned to the others and said, "Attack!"

Chu Er pulled a dagger from her sleeve and began fighting with the group.

Late that night, Chu Er was beaten half to death and hung on a wooden stake in front of the Free Meal Hall.

The meal-serving uncle looked up at her. "I'll ask you one more time: who is that bearded man?"

"I just won't tell you," Chu Er said with a faint smile, looking at the group. "Come on, kill me! If you have the guts, kill me!"

The crazed Chu Er, still the Chu Er from Greenwater City, made everyone tremble with fear.

An ascetic woman grew scared and whispered to the meal-serving man, "Won't Granny Ku be angry if we do this?"

"Don't worry, I know my limits. Granny Ku doesn't interfere with matters of suffering. That bearded man broke the rules first. If Granny Ku doesn't care about him, she certainly won't care about me," the meal-serving uncle said confidently, picking up a red-hot iron rod. He then turned to Chu Er and said, "This is for dealing with transgressors. You know where the thresholds are. I'm asking you for the last time: who is that bearded man? He's not an ascetic cultivator at all. Why did he come to Bitter Herb Village?"