Chapter 373: Great wisdom in laziness

Li Banfeng's lapel was caught on the Judge's Brush, and he flew proudly, waving his arms. He firmly believed he was the local deity, a flying local deity. The Judge's Brush wanted to scold him but couldn't be bothered; flying him was already hard enough.

Under the cover of the projector, Li Banfeng silently flew to the offering table. He picked up a bottle of peach blossom wine from the offering table and gulped it down. Nectarine couldn't see Li Banfeng, but she saw the wine being drunk and was overjoyed.

Soon after, Yellow Butterfly and Red Butterfly returned. Li Banfeng frowned slightly and said, "This seems complicated now. Can we find an obedient strange creature to act on my behalf?"

Li Banfeng didn't answer; instead, he asked another question, "Do you know how to divine?"

Xiao Feng nodded, and just as she was about to prick her palm with a knife, she suddenly felt an imposing aura approaching, pressing down on them both so they couldn't lift their heads.

They had spread the news, and in Meng Yuchun's territory, strange creatures, whether they intended to go or not, had to give them a serious reply. The Judge's Brush snorted, "Give me back my capital."

Nectarine let out a long breath and said to Xiao Feng, "Next time you encounter a snake, tell me sooner. You have cultivation too; why couldn't you even cry out?"

Influenced by Li Banfeng, many pioneers came to Meng Yuchun's territory. She had accumulated much experience and learned a great deal from the experienced strange creatures in the area. Nectarine lowered her voice and said, "The local deity seems not to want you to sprinkle blood." This explanation was reasonable, but the subsequent battle made Meng Yuchun even more confused.

Meng Yuchun took Li Banfeng, flew in mid-air, concealed their forms, and silently watched the battle. This moment was very important for Li Banfeng. If Nectarine passed the test, his territory would usher in its first ray of heavenly light.

A small number of strange creatures who knew them ignored Meng Yuchun. "You're not going to acknowledge it, are you?" Li Banfeng yawned. "We signed a contract, remember? I saved your life, remember? Ingratitude brings retribution, do you know that?"

Winning would earn them cultivation, and losing wasn't scary. As long as they weren't too reckless, they wouldn't get hurt or lose their lives. There would generally be no losses, unless they encountered special types like Ma Wu and Gen Zi.

Next, blood needed to be sprinkled. Home cultivators didn't have many friends, and they were very sincere with those they did have. But never trample on that sincerity; a home cultivator's wrath might only be experienced once in a lifetime.

Li Banfeng yawned again, seemingly unconcerned. "Don't worry, it's a no-lose business; someone will always come to try their luck."

Upon arriving at Li Banfeng's territory, Meng Yuchun called her two best sisters, Red Butterfly and Yellow Butterfly, to help her spread the word among the strange creatures of the territory: someone was coming to clear land, and those interested in being tested should leave their names with her to receive a reward after the task was complete.

Nectarine's cultivation hadn't advanced much; she was still at the first level, and this bamboo was roughly at the same level. "Whoa!" Li Banfeng roared, scaring the two of them into trembling. Li Banfeng was too lazy to answer; he just nodded.

By noon the next day, the first strange creature to be tested arrived near the boundary. Once he relaxed, the Foolish Cultivation technique dissipated, and Li Banfeng became much more clear-headed.

If she couldn't fight, couldn't this girl at least dodge? "Clumsy as she looks, I'd say she's at most at the first level."

Two novices pecking at each other wasn't really a spectacle for Meng Yuchun, but the more she watched, the stranger she found it. Meng Yuchun said in surprise, "You suspect those two are faking it?"

Xiao Feng pointed to the corner of the tent and stammered, "There really is a snake here. Is this here to test us?" Xiao Feng looked bewildered, "Something like this actually exists?"

Li Banfeng sighed, wanting to say something, but then felt too lazy to speak. There was one day left until the test would begin. "Can a first-level home cultivator use divination techniques to avoid bad luck, evade powerful enemies, and escape hundreds of miles?"

He picked up an earthworm from the ground and said seriously, "This is a big deal, understand? We're about to clear land, understand? We're about to have a bright future, understand?"

Sleeping deeply into the night, disoriented and unsure of the time, he suddenly heard Xiao Feng muttering softly, "It's really there, I'm not lying, it's really here..."

This was the Blackfin Snake, unique to the New Land, and highly venomous. The snake was clearly red, so why was it called a Blackfin Snake? That was because the red body was a puppet; the black-patterned part was the snake's true form. If one didn't know this and attacked the body directly, the snake wouldn't be harmed and might even seize the opportunity to counterattack.

After three full hours of fighting, the bamboo was finally driven away by Nectarine.

Meng Yuchun was startled. "You want to help them? You can, yes. There are hard methods and soft methods. The hard method is to secretly intervene and directly drive away the strange creatures who come to be tested, but this must be done discreetly. Otherwise, next time someone wants to clear land, no strange creatures will be willing to help. The soft method is to give the strange creatures some benefits, making them just go through the motions."

This palpitation didn't make Li Banfeng feel fear; instead, it made him even more excited. He was more certain than ever that he was the owner of this land. However, Nectarine had no advantage against the bamboo.

But in Li Banfeng's territory, the strange creatures paid little attention to them. "What happens if the contract is violated?" She used her Joy Cultivation technique, and the Blackfin Snake's blood rushed to its head. Feeling threatened, it quickly left the tent.

Xiao Feng lowered her head, eyes red-rimmed, and said aggrievedly, "I'm just a useless person, always dragging you down." Nectarine sighed and pulled Xiao Feng into her embrace. "Why are you crying? Can't I even say a couple of things to you? It's all my fault for spoiling you. Go to sleep quickly; we have many tough battles to fight over the next three days."

Meng Yuchun shook her head, "That won't do. There's a contract between the local deity and the pioneers. If you lay hands on them, it's equivalent to violating the contract."

Seeing Li Banfeng's solemn expression, Meng Yuchun also realized the situation was unusual. "If this woman can truly hide her cultivation so deeply, we'll indeed need to find a ruthless person to deal with her. I have two wandering strange creatures under my command. They've signed contracts with me, so they can't cause trouble in my territory, but in other territories, they are still free from the rules of land clearing."

Li Banfeng found Meng Yuchun, who looked troubled and said, "I'm actually not very familiar with your territory. I'm afraid those strange creatures won't listen to me..."

"That's possible, but the strange creatures' levels can't be too high. They only want a one-li plot of land, and the strange creatures we send are generally at the first or second level of cultivation. Some local deities particularly dislike a certain pioneer and will send third-level strange creatures to test them. Some strange creatures who barely reach the fourth level can also try."

Li Banfeng then asked, "What if I don't fight the strange creatures?"

Nectarine, having some knowledge, stared intently at the black pattern. This was a bamboo, with stalks and leaves, hopping and jumping into the plot of land. Xiao Feng couldn't help and was a constant burden. Several times, Nectarine fell into hard battles while trying to save her.

Meng Yuchun frowned, "This child should be at a higher level; perhaps her combat power is lacking because she's been away from home for too long." "Have you ever seen a home cultivator who can divine?"

Most strange creatures didn't recognize them. "Not two, but one. I trust Nectarine," Li Banfeng said. "So I'm asking you, can a local deity make a move against a pioneer?"

"Is this woman a home cultivator?" Meng Yuchun pointed at Xiao Feng.

"I can't say exactly what the consequences would be, but you'd better not do something like that. And once the news gets out, no one will ever come to clear land in your territory again."

Li Banfeng prepared to gather all living beings in the territory and then select suitable strange creatures to test Nectarine and Xiao Feng. Li Banfeng looked at Meng Yuchun and asked, "Did you hang her in the house?" Nectarine was panting, sitting on the ground, unable to stand up.

Some strange creatures knew that the Mountain-Puller Lord was gone, but they considered this land ownerless and didn't regard Meng Yuchun as their local deity. Li Banfeng had also encountered this type of strange creature while clearing land. He hadn't paid much attention to them then. Bamboo is hollow in the middle; as long as there's a passage, Ma Wu could easily take it down.

That evening, Nectarine went to sleep early in the tent, preparing for the upcoming land clearing. Nectarine was startled and looked at the corner. There was indeed a snake in the tent, two fingers thick and over two feet long, blood-red all over, with a black pattern coiled around its middle.

Li Banfeng nodded. Meng Yuchun had improved a lot. Li Banfeng kept staring at Xiao Feng.

Originally, Little Butterfly was seduced by the Playful Enchantress and revealed some of Meng Yuchun's secrets. Taking advantage of Little Butterfly cocooning into a butterfly, the Playful Enchantress disguised herself as Little Butterfly and found out Meng Yuchun's residence.

"That's too difficult," Meng Yuchun was startled for a moment, then asked, "You shouldn't be asking me this. Isn't seeking good fortune and avoiding disaster a technique of you traveler cultivators?" "Not hung in the house, but at the entrance of the cave, where it's windy and drier."

"But these benefits are hard to calculate. Strange creatures care most about cultivation. Giving too much would be unfair to those who truly put in effort, and giving too little means they won't easily admit defeat, as it concerns their reputation after all." Meng Yuchun shook her head and said, "I don't."

Li Banfeng asked Meng Yuchun, "Can a local deity interfere with land clearing?" Meng Yuchun would have to help him with this matter.

After over an hour of fighting, Nectarine and the bamboo were evenly matched. For strange creatures, when testing pioneers, if they could win, they fought; if not, they left. Their expressions were awkward; the strange creatures here didn't show them much respect. They were friends of the local deity, so matters of face and propriety couldn't be lacking.

Meng Yuchun repeatedly shook her head, "Higher-level strange creatures entering the plot would be a violation of the contract." Li Banfeng pointed at Xiao Feng and said, "How many layers of cultivation do you think she has?" He couldn't go find strange creatures to test the pioneers; if he did, his identity would be immediately exposed.

Meng Yuchun shook her head and sighed, "With this caliber, they dare to clear land? I'm afraid they might not even last until tomorrow." The earthworm struggled non-stop in Li Banfeng's hand.

Li Banfeng shook his head and said, "It's difficult, truly difficult. Relying solely on seeking good fortune and avoiding disaster, I'm afraid I can't achieve this. The one pursuing Xiao Feng is precisely her Home Spirit, and her Home Spirit is definitely better at divination than she is. It can surely calculate where they are fleeing to. Neither home cultivators nor joy cultivators are skilled at escaping. How did they manage to flee all the way here?"

Nectarine opened her eyes, "What is it?" Meng Yuchun sighed, "She was young and naive, just transformed into a butterfly. For the sake of sisterhood, I left her a complete corpse." Meng Yuchun's face turned red. "I'll go..."

"Let me sprinkle it then; we're usually not apart anyway." Nectarine pricked her palm and sprinkled blood, and Li Banfeng felt another palpitation. "I've seen that before. I know a Home Spirit who is particularly good at divination. She once taught divination techniques to her home cultivator, but how much the home cultivator learns depends on their own cultivation level."

Therefore, Li Banfeng wasn't worried about strange creatures not showing up; he was worried about something else. Nectarine said to Xiao Feng, "This is the plot of land you're using for refuge. You should sprinkle the blood."

Li Banfeng rubbed his eyes, suppressing his drowsiness, and asked, "Where's Little Butterfly?" Meng Yuchun was stunned. "Then who do you want to fight? Are you going to fight these two girls?" "Third and fourth-level strange creatures might not be enough."

Some strange creatures were unaware of past events and still thought that the local deity of this territory was the Mountain-Puller Lord. Li Banfeng looked at the earthworm in his hand and suddenly couldn't be bothered to talk to it anymore. Li Banfeng smiled. "I think I know those two."