Chapter 581: Snow Cream (High Energy)

The person standing behind the peddler was none other than Face Not Big!

This was Elder Face Not Big, the ancestor of Oil Cultivators, who had been trapped in the Nameless Land, his face larger than a city!

Li Banfeng truly hadn't expected to meet him at Yellow Earth Bridge today!

“You—” Face Not Big nodded, “The peddler rescued me!”

“I—”

Face Not Big’s face was filled with gratitude: “Thanks to your message for the peddler, he was able to find me.”

“Hold on a moment,” Li Banfeng said, still eager to chase the coachman.

The peddler waved his hand. “No need to chase. Someone has already gone, and they’ll bring him back soon.”

Talking with these two was surprisingly easy; they understood Li Banfeng's meaning as soon as he spoke.

“Who went after him?”

“The coachman, Elder Train’s disciple,” the peddler replied, referring to the true coachman.

Li Banfeng looked at Face Not Big, then at the peddler. “This is the smaller manifestation of Elder Face Not Big, right?”

Face Not Big nodded. “A part of the full Face Not Big has emerged, but not completely.”

Li Banfeng asked the peddler, “How did you find that place?”

The peddler sighed. “It took a lot of effort. The last time you mentioned Face Not Big, I went to ask friends for clues. A while ago, when I passed by Iron Gate Fortress, I received news from a friend. I immediately put my business aside and went to find Face Not Big. I found clues, but the place was difficult to enter. I used many methods to open a path, but it was too narrow; I could get in, but Face Not Big couldn’t get out. I was prepared for this, though. I found another spot and opened a different path for him—this one wide enough. However, it was too perilous, and he couldn’t traverse it on his own. I needed to find a Journey Cultivator to guide him. I even discussed it with you back at the Ink Fragrance Shop, about needing your help when the time came to rescue Face Not Big.”

Li Banfeng nodded. “I remember that, but you never came to me.”

The peddler said, “I actually did go looking for you, but you were out selling at the time, and I didn’t want to interrupt your business.”

Li Banfeng retorted angrily, “What do you mean, ‘interrupt my business’? My selling out there was all for you!”

“Exactly,” the peddler nodded repeatedly. “With you covering things outside, the Inner State people wouldn’t dare to make a move, which allowed me to work with peace of mind. Besides, the path I opened might have been too difficult for you to traverse. I know your cultivation as a Journey Cultivator is significant, but that path was not only dangerous but also very long. I doubt you would have had the endurance to lead Face Not Big out.”

Li Banfeng was very curious. His endurance was excellent; he traveled back and forth between the Outer State and Prosperous State regularly. Who could possibly have better endurance than him?

“Brother Lang,” Li Banfeng asked, “tell me, who possesses such endurance?”

“The coachman! I went to Medicine King Gully, found the coachman, made a deal with him, and entrusted the task to him.” The peddler poured Li Banfeng a bowl of fruit syrup, urging him to rest.

Li Banfeng drank and pondered. No wonder he hadn’t found the coachman when he went to Medicine King Gully; the coachman had gone with the peddler to rescue Face Not Big.

Li Banfeng’s basic footwork was learned from the coachman, whose endurance was indeed impressive. However, Li Banfeng still didn’t quite understand the peddler’s description. The path he could enter, Face Not Big couldn’t exit. The path he opened required the coachman to lead Face Not Big through it. What kind of process was this?

While he was pondering, the coachman returned, having dealt with the last remaining ‘fake coachman.’

Tang Shijiang also caught up. When the two brothers met, there was still a bit of awkwardness between them.

Ma Wu, Little Genzi, and Little Chuanzi also arrived. The peddler looked at everyone, then called Li Banfeng aside. “There’s something I want to discuss with everyone, but I specifically don’t want you to know about it.”

Li Banfeng was taken aback. “Only I can’t know?”

The peddler nodded. “Exactly. So many Inner State people died here. If I don’t discuss things with them, how will you collect the bodies?”

Talking with the peddler was indeed effortless; many things were unspoken understandings between them.

Li Banfeng happily went to collect the bodies. Out of more than eighty fake coachmen, only one was taken by the true coachman; all the rest belonged to Li Banfeng. His Portable Abode couldn't even fit all the people and their carriages.

Unfortunately, all these coachmen were dead. While others in his family had food, his wife could only deal with the senior coachman’s wife. His wife wasn’t in a hurry to eat; she took the senior coachman’s wife to the Seventh Room and interrogated her thoroughly. It wasn’t long before she extracted the whereabouts of Miss Xiao Qin.

“Husband,” she said, “Miss Xiao Qin is still alive, locked in a mine shaft on Coal Mountain. The entrance is sealed by a formation. The formation isn’t very sophisticated; you can break it using the Path Severing technique. Miss Xiao Qin hasn’t eaten in a long time, so please bring her some food and drink, but be careful not to let her eat too quickly.”

Leaving his Portable Abode, Li Banfeng didn’t immediately go to find Miss Xiao Qin. Some cleanup work needed to be done first.

He brought some paper money and returned to Coal Mountain, where he sincerely wailed twice: “You died terribly! You perished into ash! You left no bones behind!”

After crying for about ten minutes, a significant amount of black ash fell from above the coal yard, confirming that these coachmen were thoroughly dead.

There were over eighty people in total, but the amount of black ash seemed a bit scant.

But Li Banfeng could only do so much. He went to the bamboo grove and cried for a while longer. When he saw the flying ash again, he considered the cleanup work properly handled.

He found the mine shaft his wife had described, used the Path Severing technique to break the formation at the entrance, and had his gloves unlock the chains, rescuing Miss Xiao Qin.

The girl was resolute; she had gone two days without food or water, intending to starve herself to death so as not to burden her father.

Fortunately, Li Banfeng arrived early. He gave her some water and two biscuits, which helped her regain some vitality.

He carried Miss Xiao Qin on his back to North Bridge and found Qin Bulou. Seeing his daughter returned, Qin Bulou climbed out of bed and knelt on the ground, kowtowing to Li Banfeng.

Li Banfeng disliked this intensely. He stepped forward and pulled Qin Bulou up. “Stand up straight if you have something to say. First, find someone to look after your daughter.”

Shortly after, the peddler arrived at North Bridge.

Qin Bulou had just laid down, but upon hearing the peddler had arrived, he quickly scrambled out of bed and stumbled into the street. He bowed deeply to the peddler and said, “This old man has painstakingly delved into errant cultivation for decades, and now has achieved some minor success. I humbly request, Sir Peddler, that you grant permission for my Daoist sect to expand.”

This was the first time Li Banfeng and Ma Wu had witnessed such a scene. Qin Bulou was applying to the peddler to establish a new Daoist sect.

The peddler smiled. “I told you before, to establish a sect, you must first be able to stand on your own. If you have that capability, then a Daoist sect will naturally form.”

Qin Bulou remained silent, standing rooted to the spot with his head bowed.

Li Banfeng, standing nearby, said, “Old Qin can actually hold his own too.”

The peddler looked at Li Banfeng and said, “Brother, are you joking?”

Li Banfeng wanted to put in a good word for Old Qin but didn’t know how to begin.

The ‘fake coachmen’ had led people to forcefully seize Yellow Earth Bridge. In that battle alone, Qin Bulou had performed miserably.

He hadn’t managed to defeat a single coachman and had sustained serious injuries himself.

Ma Wu also bowed to the peddler. “Old Qin held the territory steadfastly and didn’t yield to those scoundrels. His character and courage are beyond reproach.”

The peddler shook his head. “That has nothing to do with character or courage.”

The meaning was clear: to become a sect ancestor, one needed to demonstrate tangible combat prowess. Qin Bulou’s current combat ability clearly did not meet the standard for an ancestor.

Ma Wu was about to intercede, but Qin Bulou stopped him. “Fifth Young Master, there’s no need. This old man knows shame. With my meager abilities, I dare not shamelessly try to found any Daoist sect. I only ask that you all keep this matter private, and allow this old man to save some face. Your kindness, this old man has no way to repay. If there is ever a need for my services in the future, I will go through fire and water without hesitation. Please, accept this old man’s bow.”

Qin Bulou was about to kowtow again, but everyone quickly stopped him. The peddler, uninterested in these formalities, pushed his cart, preparing to leave. The coachman stepped forward and said, “Let me vouch for him.”

The peddler paused, surprised. “You’ll vouch for him?”

The coachman nodded. “I put in a lot of effort for you, didn’t you say you’d reward me? I ask that you give me face in this matter. I know that with his current ability, he cannot be an ancestor of a sect, but I only ask that you give him a chance, and not let him lose hope.”

Tang Shijiang stared at the coachman, bewildered for a long time. “What exactly are you thinking? Qin Bulou is the enemy who seized the coachman’s territory. Now, instead of seeking revenge, you’re stepping forward to vouch for him. Tang Shijiang couldn’t understand it no matter how he thought about it.”

The coachman squatted on the ground, lit a hand-rolled cigarette, and took a couple of puffs. “This battle was strange. If it were me, I might not have been able to win. If it were really me, I might have just decided not to fight, or perhaps even abandoned the territory here. Instead of handing this territory over to others, it’s better to let Old Qin help me guard it. If he can’t hold it, then I’ll charge forward. Even if I die, I’ll take him down with me. Isn’t that quite good?”

Tang Shijiang turned and walked away. He didn’t want to look at the coachman again.

The coachman called out to Tang Shijiang’s retreating back, “Senior Brother, don’t hate me. Everyone has their own way of living. This is all the ambition your Junior Brother has.”

The peddler adjusted the lantern on his cart, and with a sigh and a smile, said, “Words must be kept, and what I promised you must be done. I’ve granted you this favor. Old Qin, I’ll come find you again this time next year. As long as you can demonstrate some decent ability, I will still reserve this errant cultivation Daoist sect for you.”

Old Qin first thanked the peddler, then the coachman.

He took out his Territory Seal, intending to share half of its accumulated energy with the coachman.

The coachman chuckled. “What does this mean? Is it a thank-you gift?”

Qin Bulou shook his head. “There isn’t much accumulated energy in this Territory Seal right now; Yellow Earth Bridge only has this much foundation. From now on, whatever energy is collected, regardless of amount, we’ll split it evenly. We’ll be the local deities of Yellow Earth Bridge together.”

The coachman stomped out his cigarette butt. “Being partners is fine, but let me make one thing clear: when there’s a battle, you go first.”

Qin Bulou nodded. “You can rest assured about that. As long as I have a breath left, you won’t need to intervene.”

The coachman liked hearing that, and he took the Territory Seal, accepting half of the accumulated energy.

After annihilating the Firewheel Gang, North Bridge was overjoyed and busy celebrating.

The peddler looked at Li Banfeng, seemingly having something to say.

Li Banfeng understood. He followed the peddler out of Yellow Earth Bridge to a new area. When no one was around, Face Not Big revealed his form beside the peddler.

The peddler looked at Face Not Big. “I’ve rescued you, and your injuries are mostly healed. Shouldn’t we go our separate ways now?”

Face Not Big rubbed his face. “The weather’s been dry these past two days. I’d like to ask you for some vanishing cream.” Hearing him ask for vanishing cream, the peddler’s face sank. “How much do you want?”

Face Not Big smiled. “Not much, just enough to cover my face.”

“Nonsense! My two buckets of vanishing cream wouldn’t be enough for half your face!” The peddler took a spoon and gave Face Not Big a bottle of vanishing cream.

Face Not Big complained it wasn’t enough and asked the peddler for another bottle.

Recalling Face Not Big’s oily face, Li Banfeng truly didn’t understand why he would need vanishing cream.

When asked about his future plans, Face Not Big pondered for a long time. “First, I need to re-establish my Daoist sect. I heard that the Medicine King Gully disciple died, and now there’s only one Oil Cultivator left, and they’re in the Outer State. Can you arrange for me to meet them?”

Li Banfeng nodded. “A meeting is easy enough to arrange, but whether they want to stay in Prosperous State depends on their own will. We can’t force them.”

Face Not Big nodded. “Don’t worry, I won’t make things difficult for them.”

He left Li Banfeng a note stating that there was a new area east of Ye Song Bridge, which used to be his territory, and he planned to return there temporarily.

“The local deity of Ye Song Bridge is an old friend of mine. That fellow loves to argue. It’s been so many years, I wonder if his temper has changed?” Face Not Big wanted to catch up with the sedan chair carrier.

Li Banfeng quickly advised against it. “I saw him a few days ago. His temper hasn’t changed one bit. You’d better not go looking for him; he’ll only infuriate you and might even try to ambush you.”

Face Not Big sighed. “I don’t want to look for him either, but the key is that the Profound Life Red Lotus is in his possession. I need to find him because I want to borrow the Red Lotus to refine some pills.”

Borrowing the Profound Life Red Lotus from the sedan chair carrier? That idea didn’t seem very wise.

Face Not Big cupped his fists. “I will never forget your life-saving kindness. Gentlemen, I shall take my leave. We shall meet again.”

He hadn’t gone far when Face Not Big kept rubbing his face. “Strange, my face is really dry today.” Why was it so dry? Was it because the oil was gone?

After Face Not Big had gone some distance, the peddler looked at Li Banfeng. “Brother, you’ve truly worked hard during this period. When I rescued Face Not Big, I was afraid of leaking information, so I didn’t tell anyone. I don’t know which scoundrel spread the news that I fought a duel with a celestial being and lost my life. I was genuinely a bit panicked then because if the Inner State found out something happened to me, they would surely target Prosperous State. But if word got out from my side, Face Not Big would never see the light of day again. Thanks to you helping me out there, otherwise, it wouldn’t have just been Yellow Earth Bridge; who knows how many more Inner State people they would have sent.”

Li Banfeng said, “I think these coachmen at Yellow Earth Bridge are very peculiar. Apart from the senior coachman, the cultivation and combat power of the rest of them seem to be nearly identical, as if they were all carved from the same mold.”

The peddler thought for a moment, then slightly shook his head. “That’s not quite the right phrasing. They weren’t carved from the same mold; they were *birthed* by one coachman. The leading coachman has a very special bloodline; he can spawn offspring, and in large numbers. These offspring all have the same cultivation level and combat power, and they also share a special connection with their progenitor, which is why they fight in such a unified manner. If they were allowed to spawn even more offspring, things would become uncontrollable.”

These coachmen were indeed replicas, but how could the rickshaws in their hands be explained?

“Brother Lang, their rickshaws are actually part of a steam engine, you must know that, right?”

The peddler nodded. “I only just found that out myself. The Inner State people use external machinery to miniaturize their forms, and their external machinery is within those rickshaws. But I never imagined that this external machinery could also spawn offspring. They and this coachman are a pair of scourges. That’s why, after rescuing Face Not Big, I immediately rushed to Yellow Earth Bridge.”

The matter of this coachman and the rickshaws would require further investigation in the future; what kind of bloodline they possessed to have such strong reproductive capabilities.

But for now, Li Banfeng was very curious about Face Not Big.

“Who exactly trapped Face Not Big in the Nameless Land?”

“The Saint.”

“Why did he do that?”

“It’s very complicated; I don’t even know where to begin,” the peddler recalled carefully. “Because Prosperous State, like Inner State, couldn’t store fuel, all their machines ran on coal. So, as long as the Saint controlled coal, it meant controlling half the lifeblood of Prosperous State. But Face Not Big used his techniques to create oil. His Oil Cultivation techniques could not only be used for personal combat but also for the refinement and processing of fuel. This posed a great threat and challenge to the Saint. The Saint ordered Face Not Big’s arrest, but unexpectedly, Face Not Big didn’t stop; instead, he created an even greater threat. He and Elder Train together improved machinery, miniaturizing power equipment. This effectively created mobile transportation, even combat weapons, like the tanks and armored vehicles in the Outer State. This action completely enraged the Saint. He ordered a thorough investigation of Face Not Big, Elder Train, and their associates. Those courtiers acted ruthlessly, killing many people. Face Not Big was eventually captured, imprisoned in an unknown location, though there were rumors he was still alive.”

Li Banfeng thought for a moment and asked, “Since the Saint hated Face Not Big so much, why didn’t he kill him?”

“Because he wanted to keep Face Not Big and use his techniques to counteract Inner State.”

“Isn’t the Saint an Inner State person?”

That question wasn’t easy to answer. The peddler thought for a moment. “He is considered an Inner State person, but he’s different from true Inner State people. The earliest Saints were pure-blooded Inner State people; they were Saints of both Prosperous State and Inner State. But later generations of Saints lived in Prosperous State. Due to intermarriage with Prosperous State citizens, the Saints’ bloodline was no longer pure. By the later generations of Saints, their influence over Inner State was very small. The Saint had become an emperor exclusive to Prosperous State. The threat from Inner State to Prosperous State gradually became a threat to the Saint himself. The Saint hoped that Face Not Big’s techniques would not be mastered by the people of Prosperous State, but at critical moments, they could still be used by him. However, this Saint was not very astute and didn’t understand the true depth of the situation. The Face Not Big incident had too wide-reaching implications; the Saint almost exterminated all Oil Cultivators, then went on to kill Engineering Cultivators. After Engineering Cultivators, he killed Merchant Cultivators; after Merchant Cultivators, he killed Literary and Martial Cultivators, leading to mountains of corpses. Ultimately, he ignited the entire Prosperous State. Not long after, the Saint was driven from the throne. But where Face Not Big ended up was known to few. It’s said that Elder Train once found him, but before he could reveal Face Not Big’s whereabouts, Elder Train himself became trapped in Inner State. If you hadn’t found Face Not Big, who knows how many more years he would have been trapped.”

Li Banfeng said, “You were worried about information leaking because you feared the Inner State people would target Face Not Big first?”

The peddler nodded. “Because the Saint is still alive, and he’s in Inner State. For the sake of the future, he definitely wouldn’t easily reveal Face Not Big’s whereabouts to Inner State. But if he learned I was going to rescue Face Not Big, that would be a different story. The Saint would join forces with Inner State to try every means to deal with me. Not only would I fail to rescue Face Not Big, but I might also get trapped myself. I just couldn’t figure out who spread the rumor that I fought a celestial being?”

“The person who spread the rumor has been identified,” Li Banfeng said. “It was Ye Haolong from Pillow Town. He has a condition where he takes his dreams for reality. He went outside the town, spoke nonsense, and spread the rumor.”

Li Banfeng briefly recounted Ye Haolong’s dream.

“Ye Haolong,” the peddler recalled the man. “That old fellow, he’s lived a life of continuous defeats, feeling stifled, so he tried to make up for it by boasting about me. It wouldn’t have mattered if he just exaggerated a bit, but how did so many people actually believe it?”

Li Banfeng said, “There were other reasons at the time. A lot happened at Snowflake Harbor, and many of its experts were killed. Inner State even specifically sent Zhang Gunli to fight Mr. Kong Fang, the second-in-command of Snowflake Harbor. And you, as the head of Snowflake Harbor, saw it repeatedly suffer heavy blows but never intervened. That’s why many people believed the rumor was true, thinking that a celestial being had indeed killed you.”

The peddler nodded. “Ah, this vanishing cream… first, you look at the craftsmanship, second, at the materials. Not just anyone can be in this business. If you say I’m the head, there’s some truth to that!”

Li Banfeng said, “We were talking about Snowflake Harbor. Why are you bringing up vanishing cream?”

The peddler paused. “What does Snowflake Harbor do?”

That single question made Li Banfeng cough. “Snowflake Harbor? You don’t know what they do? They’re… a group of masters who gather together to… to mint currency, they mint the Big Ocean coins!” It took Li Banfeng a long time to remember Snowflake Harbor’s function.

The peddler looked at Li Banfeng. “You’re saying the Big Ocean coins are minted by Snowflake Harbor?”

Li Banfeng nodded. “Yes, isn’t that what everyone says?”

“Have you seen it?”

“No.” Li Banfeng shook his head. Not only him, but it seemed few people in the entire Prosperous State had ever seen how Big Ocean coins were minted.

“That’s why I’m telling you, this vanishing cream, not only must the cream itself be good, but the processing also requires care. If it’s too thin, it won’t retain moisture. If it’s too thick, it feels uncomfortable on the face. The heating is especially difficult to control. And the fragrance shouldn’t be too strong or too faint—”

Li Banfeng was getting annoyed. “Why are you talking about vanishing cream again? Weren’t we talking about Snowflake Harbor?”

The peddler said, “Why talk about Snowflake Harbor?”

“To say they mint Big Ocean coins for Prosperous State, and that you’re their head!”

The peddler still didn’t understand. “Why would the Big Ocean coins of Prosperous State necessarily be minted by Snowflake Harbor?”

Li Banfeng took out a Big Ocean coin. “See? There’s a snowflake on the back. That’s the symbol of Snowflake Harbor.”

The peddler shook his head. “Why would that be Snowflake Harbor’s symbol? Why couldn’t it be the symbol of vanishing cream?”

“How could that be the symbol of vanishing cream? Can vanishing cream mint coins?”

“Why couldn’t it?” The peddler reserved a spoonful of vanishing cream and poured it onto his cart. The white cream flowed down the side of the cart.

The peddler grabbed a handful of medicinal powder and sprinkled it over the vanishing cream. The vanishing cream transformed into silver coins, falling onto the ground.