Chapter 55: Oil Maintenance

As night fell, Tail Alley became virtually deserted. Whether Qin Xiaopang would get his first bite of food that day depended entirely on the man in the riding jacket.

The man in the riding jacket was enjoying a bowl of lamb noodles. The broth was half meat stock and half lamb fat, brimming with bright red chili flakes, causing him to sweat profusely.

The rich aroma of lamb and chili wafted into Xiaopang’s nostrils, slowly eroding his last vestige of dignity.

"Kowtow to me. Just once, and I'll give you a mouthful of this soup," the man in the riding jacket said, holding the bowl of noodles in front of Qin Xiaopang.

Kowtowing was out of the question.

The man in the riding jacket slurped a mouthful of the scalding noodle soup. "You've been kneeling here all day," he scoffed, "are you still afraid to kowtow?"

He was kneeling because he was under a spell; his lower body was immobilized, and only some of his upper body joints could move. Otherwise, even with his last breath, he would have fought the man in the riding jacket to the bitter end.

The man in the riding jacket sighed. "I know how you 'food cultivators' are," he said. "If you don't eat for a day, your stomach and intestines start to burn, flames licking up to your throat, consuming your vital organs inch by inch. Just thinking about that sensation is unbearable."

As he spoke, the man in the riding jacket slurped another mouthful of noodles. "I truly pity you," he continued. "Just sincerely kowtow to me, and I'll immediately give you some soup, guaranteeing you'll live another day. Come on, kowtow quickly. Don't think you can simply die today; if you refuse this soup, I'll make you eat something else. See that latrine over there? Soon, I'll scoop you a bowl. If you don't eat it, I'll force it down your throat. The Young Master said you must stay alive for at least three days."

Xiaopang closed his eyes. The man in the riding jacket was right; his stomach and intestines were ablaze, consuming his internal organs.

The man in the riding jacket was truly capable of scooping food from the latrine for him; that bastard would do anything.

But Xiaopang would not kowtow.

Just then, a man walked through the alley. Dressed in a red suit and a red top hat, he carried a bag of fried dough twists and glanced in Xiaopang's direction.

He pulled out a fried dough twist and held it out to Xiaopang. "Here, eat this," he offered.

The fragrant scent of the fried dough twist made Xiaopang open his eyes. He lifted his head to look at the man.

Backlit, he couldn't make out the man's face, yet his figure seemed vaguely familiar.

As Xiaopang reached for the twist, the man in the riding jacket suddenly raised his hand and swatted it away.

This outcome was exactly as Xiaopang had expected, and he closed his eyes once more.

The man in the red suit, however, was quite surprised. "What are you doing?" he exclaimed. "I was just giving a beggar some food..."

"Who told you to give him anything?" the man in the riding jacket asked, smiling at the suited man with his characteristic rogue'ish grin.

The man in the red suit blinked, confused and frightened. "What's wrong?" he stammered. "He's a beggar, I'm just giving him a little food. What's wrong with that?"

"I don't want you to give him anything. Is that a problem?" The man in the riding jacket's smile vanished.

"I, I just wanted to give him some food, that's all! What, what did I do wrong giving food to a beggar? We, we should be reasonable, shouldn't we?" The man in the red suit was so terrified his words tumbled out indistinctly. Despite his fear, he still tried to reason.

The man in the riding jacket absolutely detested people like him.

"So you're the one who understands 'reason'? How much reason is there in this world anyway? What gives you the right to lecture me about it? I'll beat the crap out of you and make him eat it. Would that be reasonable enough for you?"

The man in the riding jacket slowly began to rise, intending to teach the suited man a harsh lesson.

From a squat, he was halfway to standing.

His center of gravity was extremely unstable, and his height was perfectly opportune.

He had expected to further provoke the man in the riding jacket to make him stand, but unexpectedly, the man was remarkably cooperative, rising after just two sentences.

Li Banfeng had been waiting for this precise moment. He raised his foot and kicked the soup bowl.

The scalding noodle soup, along with the chili oil, splattered all over the man in the riding jacket’s face.

The man in the riding jacket had believed he was dealing with someone reasonable and easily intimidated.

Such a person was perfect for venting his frustration.

He had no defense whatsoever. It wasn't until the hot soup splashed onto his face that he even registered what was happening.

"Ahhh!"

The scalding soup made him scream, and the chili oil that had gotten into his eyes caused tears to stream down his face in agony.

Despite the ambush, the man in the riding jacket remained composed. A layer of oil immediately seeped from his skin.

Yet, his eyes still burned excruciatingly from the chili. Watching the man in the riding jacket grimace in pain, Li Banfeng felt a pang of worry.

What could be done?

He couldn't rub his eyes with chili in them, and there was no water nearby to wash it out. Should he just let him suffer indefinitely?

Li Banfeng flicked a sickle from his sleeve, stepped forward, and, digging out the man in the riding jacket's left eye, he offered a strange consolation: "Doesn't hurt now, does it?"

With the eye gouged out, Li Banfeng figured he shouldn't be in pain anymore.

The man in the riding jacket was a first-level cultivator with a formidable physique; he didn't pass out.

He stared at Li Banfeng with his one remaining eye, unable to fathom how Li Banfeng knew his weakness.

The sickle was useless elsewhere on him; his oily layer was incredibly slick. An ordinary knife would simply slide off, leaving no cut whatsoever.

The 'Lightbulb' from the Dark Star Bureau also exuded oil, and he had previously used this very technique to defend against Li Banfeng.

Such individuals are known as 'Oil Cultivators,' relying on their slick, oily techniques to overcome opponents.

He could exude oil from his entire body, but his eyes were slow to produce it. Coupled with the chili injury, his cultivation techniques were ineffective, allowing Li Banfeng to gouge out his left eye with a single strike.

When Li Banfeng moved to gouge out his right eye, the man in the riding jacket blocked with his arm. The sickle struck his forearm, slid away, and indeed left no mark.

If knives were useless, what about fists and kicks?

Fists and kicks were even more useless; they simply slid off the Oil Cultivator.

This was precisely what made Oil Cultivators so formidable; those encountering them for the first time found themselves completely unable to attack.

But how did an Oil Cultivator attack others?

If his hands were covered in oil, wouldn't his punches slip too? And how could he even hold a knife himself?

An Oil Cultivator could retract and release their oil at will. The man in the riding jacket withdrew the oil from his right hand, drew a machete, and slashed it towards Li Banfeng's forehead.

Li Banfeng was already prepared and dodged with ease.

While Li Banfeng was dodging, the man in the riding jacket immediately made a run for it.

Losing an eye was a severe injury, and he couldn't continue fighting.

Oil seeped from the soles of his shoes, and he glided forward as if ice skating.

Li Banfeng took off in pursuit, sprinting behind him.

The man in the riding jacket’s heart tightened; he realized Li Banfeng might be a 'Travel Cultivator.'

Confronting a Travel Cultivator head-on was ill-advised; one had to bide their time for an ambush.

Li Banfeng quickly caught up, but instead of attacking, he simply ran alongside, denying him any opportunity for a counter-ambush.

Panicked, the man in the riding jacket quickly changed tactics, trying to negotiate with Li Banfeng as they ran:

"Friend, where are you from? I'm a guard from the Geng Family Pharmacy. You'd do well to inquire about their reputation. Since we're here in Yaowang Ditch, instead of fighting in the dark, let's meet in broad daylight. We can share a meal, then discuss things. What do you say?"

His intention was to call off the fight for the night, meet at a restaurant tomorrow during the day, and he would treat Li Banfeng to a meal to resolve the conflict.

This was clearly a delaying tactic. Li Banfeng had gouged out one of his eyes; such deep animosity wouldn't be easily resolved.

Nevertheless, since Li Banfeng was there to rescue someone, the man in the riding jacket assumed he wouldn't deliver a fatal blow. He figured it was best to speak softly, escape this predicament, and then later seek revenge on the suited man.

"Friend, is it a deal or not? Give me an answer!" the man in the riding jacket urged, waiting for Li Banfeng's reply.

Li Banfeng replied, "I don't understand."

The man in the riding jacket nearly tripped.

"You're not part of the underworld?"

"What 'underworld' are you talking about?" Li Banfeng asked, looking utterly bewildered.

"Let me explain this to you. I'm with the Geng Family Pharmacy, and our shopkeeper belongs to the Jiangxiang Gang. If you intend to make enemies with us, you'd better think twice. Or, you could just take that fat man, and we'll consider tonight's incident resolved. What do you say, is that negotiable?"

Li Banfeng nodded. "Negotiable," he said. "Do you prefer to negotiate standing still, or while we run?"

The man in the riding jacket was speechless. Li Banfeng intended to wear him down!

Whether standing or running, prolonging the chase was unacceptable to him.

What he truly meant was for the matter to end then and there, and for Li Banfeng to stop pursuing him.

He was gliding forward on the ground, which appeared less strenuous than running, but maintaining his body covered in oil was actually very draining on his stamina.

Given the man in the riding jacket's current cultivation level, he could only sustain this state for five more minutes at most; he was nearing his limit.

Travel Cultivators, however, possessed great stamina, and Li Banfeng's limit was still a long way off.

Whether they stood or ran, in just a few more minutes, the man in the riding jacket would be completely exhausted and definitely out of oil.

An Oil Cultivator without oil, facing a Travel Cultivator, could only await death.

To conserve energy, the man in the riding jacket secretly retracted the oil from his body, leaving only a thin layer on the soles of his shoes.

In this state, the man in the riding jacket could last for over half an hour, which was enough time to run back to the pharmacy.

Once at the pharmacy, with more allies, he would surely be able to deal with Li Banfeng.

After retracting the oil, the oily sheen on the man in the riding jacket's body would disappear, and his skin would lose some of its luster.

He had assumed Li Banfeng wouldn't notice this subtle change.

To his surprise, Li Banfeng did.

He had been closely observing the oily sheen on the man in the riding jacket's face. The moment he saw the luster diminish, he immediately hooked his sickle through the man's cheek.

"Ahhh!" the man in the riding jacket shrieked, quickly summoning his oil to slide his cheek off the blade.

What was wrong with this kid?

He knew a lot about Oil Cultivators!

A hole had been punched through his face by Li Banfeng, causing unbearable pain, and his mouth was now filled with cold air.

The man in the riding jacket was in unspeakable agony, and even worse was yet to come.

Ahead was the only route back to the pharmacy: a straight road over three li long, without a single fork.

Shaking off Li Banfeng on such a road was impossible, yet he had no other option but to take it. The oil on the man in the riding jacket's body was thinning, and he was nearing his breaking point.

Seeing Li Banfeng raise his sickle for another strike, the man in the riding jacket stopped short, ready to fight Li Banfeng to the death.

"You little bastard, since you're so eager to die, your grandpa will grant your wish today!"

With that, he completely retracted all the oil from his body and drew a machete from his waist.

"Come on, no more tricks, let's go at it head-on!" the man in the riding jacket challenged, intending to confront Li Banfeng directly.

This tactic seemed highly illogical.

Without the protection of his oil, an Oil Cultivator could never be a match for a Travel Cultivator in close quarters.

What good would this desperate tactic do?

Li Banfeng raised his sickle and roared, "Come on, let's go at it head-on!"

With that, Li Banfeng charged forward.

Suddenly, oil seeped from the soles of the man in the riding jacket's feet, and he began to spin rapidly in place.

As he spun, over a hundred hidden darts were flung from his body like bullets.

This was the man in the riding jacket's ultimate life-saving technique.

In desperate situations, he would first retract his oil, feign a desperate stance, and lure his opponent into close combat.

Once the opponent truly came close, he would swiftly release his oil and, by spinning rapidly, unleash a volley of darts from his body.

While this maneuver might not sound particularly sophisticated, the man in the riding jacket had successfully killed many masters with it in actual combat.

In a life-or-death struggle, who could think so far ahead? Opportunities were fleeting; one could hardly think so clearly.

But Li Banfeng, in contrast, thought very clearly.

The man in the riding jacket was a good actor; he declared he would fight Li Banfeng to the death.

Li Banfeng's acting was even better. He charged at the man, seemingly ready for a desperate fight, but after two steps, he abruptly changed direction and ducked behind a distant wall.

Clang, clang, clang!

The man in the riding jacket flung all the darts from his body in a single burst.

He stopped, intending to find Li Banfeng's corpse, but searched for a long time without seeing anyone.

Where had Li Banfeng gone?

Could it be that the darts hadn't killed him?

Startled, the man in the riding jacket quickly covered his body in oil, preparing his defenses.

Where did this young bastard come from?

How could he have blocked my killing move?

No, the oil couldn't be sustained much longer; he had to get back to the pharmacy immediately!

Just as the man in the riding jacket was about to flee for his life, he suddenly caught the scent of smoke, as if someone had already devised a plan for him.

This was the only route back to the pharmacy.

Someone had been waiting for him here for a long time.

Yu Nan took a drag from his cigarette and exhaled the smoke towards the man in the riding jacket.

The smoke swirled, enveloping the man in the riding jacket.

Covered in oil, the man in the riding jacket immediately burst into flames.

PS: Many thanks to Black Knife as Snow.Esteemed readers, please vote and leave comments for Salad.