Chapter 59: Writing an IOU

Do I really need to pay a price to use a magic treasure?Does "price" mean there's a cost involved?Do all magic treasures come with a cost?What's the cost for the copper lotus flower?

Li Banfeng wanted to talk more, but the record player didn't respond; she was tired.

This wasn't a crucial matter; it was just makeup. The important thing was that he had gained a layer of Dwelling Cultivation. Not only had his strength significantly increased, but he also didn't have to worry about Traveler Cultivation suppressing Dwelling Cultivation in the short term.

Li Banfeng was in high spirits. He stopped bothering his wife and decided to visit Qin Xiaopang.

After leaving the Portable Dwelling, Li Banfeng went to the riverbank and washed off the heavy makeup from his face, watched by a group of women doing laundry.

The women whispered among themselves:

"Is that person a man or a woman? Why are they dressed like that?"

"Could they be a 'rabbit' from Honeycomb Alley?"

"Look at those perky buttocks! Definitely from Honeycomb Alley!"

Honeycomb Alley was known for its male courtesan houses. A "rabbit" was slang for a male courtesan.

Li Banfeng couldn't be bothered to explain himself to such superficial people. He strode quickly towards the Yu Family Cloth Store. Before he had even reached it, still half a street away, a horse carriage stopped him.

The coachman asked, "Sir, did you call for a carriage?"

Li Banfeng was surprised. "No, I didn't."

Ignoring Li Banfeng's reply, the coachman continued, "The fare for this route is twenty."

Li Banfeng was confused. 'I'm not taking the carriage, so why are you telling me the fare?'

The coachman paid no mind to Li Banfeng's thoughts, lifting the carriage curtain. "Please, step inside."

Li Banfeng looked up and saw someone inside.

The person was dressed in a black suit and a flat-topped black fedora, pulled low over their face. Although Li Banfeng couldn't see their features, he sensed they were a person of conscience. Though heavily disguised, certain tell-tale curves were apparent, not escaping Li Banfeng's keen observation.

It was a woman.

The woman raised her head, and Li Banfeng immediately recognized her: Yu Nan, the owner of the cloth store.

No wonder people called her "Manly Granny." When she wore men's clothes, anyone without a keen eye would genuinely struggle to tell her gender.

Li Banfeng got into the carriage, the coachman lowered the curtain, and they immediately set off.

"Boss Yu, where are you headed?"

Yu Nan lit a cigarette. "I'm going with you, Seventh Master, to visit Boss Qin."

Li Banfeng asked seriously, "Are you dressed like this because you're trying to escape?"

Yu Nan choked on her cigarette, coughing several times. "According to Jianghu rules, there must be reciprocity. We made a move against Rong Jinan yesterday, and now it's the Geng Family Pharmacy's turn to retaliate against us."

Li Banfeng asked, "He's certain you did it? Does he have proof?"

Yu Nan shook her head. "No evidence is needed. The Geng family knows very well that Rong Jinan and I are feuding. Even if I didn't do it, they'll assume I did. That's how it is in the Jianghu. We struck at Rong Jinan discreetly, so the Geng Family Pharmacy will undoubtedly retaliate in kind. Covert attacks are difficult to guard against, so I need to go to my hometown, Baixiang Village, to lie low for a few days."

"Until when?"

"Until the Geng Family Pharmacy is willing to bring the matter into the open and discuss it properly with me."

Li Banfeng was surprised. "This can still be negotiated?"

Yu Nan lit another cigarette and took a deep drag. "We all do business in Ligou; the Geng family can't afford to make a mortal enemy out of me. Covert attacks are met with covert attacks, overt aggression with overt aggression. If you show me an inch of respect, I'll show you ten feet. It's about reciprocity; that's the Jianghu rule."

Whenever Jianghu rules were mentioned, Yu Nan always exuded an air of inherent superiority. Yet, Li Banfeng still didn't fully grasp what she meant by 'Jianghu'.

"If this can be negotiated, why didn't you talk to the Geng family sooner?"

Yu Nan sighed. "The Geng family has a strong flag (meaning powerful influence). I invited them for tea to clear the air, but they wouldn't grant me that respect, so I had no choice but to make a covert move."

Li Banfeng was curious about the true extent of the Geng Family Pharmacy's influence. "Does the Geng family control all of Medicine King Gully?"

Yu Nan scoffed. "The Geng family is far from that. In Medicine King Gully, the He family used to wield the most power. But in the last two years, the He family has declined while the Lu family has risen, taking over most of the business in the gully. I've heard that the He family's eldest son is marrying the Lu family's daughter, so in the end, Medicine King Gully will effectively belong to one combined family anyway."

The He family and the Lu family getting married?

Surely, they weren't talking about He Jiaqing and Lu Xiaolan?

He Jiaqing was confined to his bed. Lu Xiaolan was confined in her dwelling. Given their current situations, marriage seemed a bit difficult.

"In Medicine King Gully, after the He and Lu families, is the Geng family next in line?"

Yu Nan exhaled smoke. "Beyond those two major families, there are also the Han, Bai, Huang, Lu, and Liu families, all significant powers in Medicine King Gully. Compared to them, the Geng family is just a junior. They only started acting so brazenly after they allied with the Jiangxiang Gang last year."

"Which family does the Jiangxiang Gang belong to?"

Yu Nan chuckled at his question. "The families you're referring to are part of the 'white path' – the legitimate side of things. The Jiangxiang Gang is a 'black path' power. The 'black path' is the Jianghu."

Li Banfeng tried to clarify his understanding. "So, on the 'black path,' the Jiangxiang Gang is the most powerful?"

Yu Nan glanced at Li Banfeng. "Seventh Master, what was your previous profession? You strike quite ruthlessly, but you seem to know nothing about the rules of this 'path'."

Li Banfeng replied, "I used to run a legitimate business, and I'd say I'm still quite legitimate now."

To help Li Banfeng understand, Yu Nan used a vivid analogy. "The Three Heroes Gate, the Azure Cloud Society, the Hundred Flowers Gate – these are the truly massive gangs. These gangs are like towering figures; the Jiangxiang Gang is, at best, a dog. A desperate dog can still bite, but a person, when truly angered, can simply stomp it to death."

Li Banfeng was puzzled. "If they're just a dog, why are you still afraid of them?"

Yu Nan couldn't answer that question. Logically, Yu Nan should have admitted she was even less formidable than a dog. 'Why is this Li Qi so tactless!' Was he genuinely ignorant, or was he doing this on purpose?

"Boss Qin is in Baixiang Village; it will probably take half a day to get there," Yu Nan said, changing the subject.

There was a Baixiang Hall in Yuezhou that sold medicine. Based on the name, Li Banfeng assumed Baixiang Village was also a place that produced medicinal herbs. Since Baixiang Village was Yu Nan's hometown, she likely had some knowledge of pharmacology.

Li Banfeng took out a red pill and asked, "Boss Yu, do you recognize this elixir?"

Yu Nan took the elixir, stared at it for a moment, her eyes widening. "Seventh Master, where did you get this?"

Li Banfeng smiled. "A friend gave it to me, but didn't specify its purpose."

This excuse was a bit flimsy. Who would give such a valuable elixir without explaining its use?

Yu Nan didn't press the matter further. She gazed at the elixir for another moment before saying, "If I'm not mistaken, this is a Profound Blaze Elixir. One pill is equivalent to ten days of cultivation."

"Impressive eyesight, Boss Yu!" Li Banfeng exclaimed calmly, as if he already recognized the elixir and was merely testing Yu Nan.

Yu Nan shook her head. "I don't have particularly keen eyesight for elixirs; I'm far worse than Manager Feng in that regard. The only reason I recognized it as a Profound Blaze Elixir is because I once saw someone selling it. The market price back then was 150,000 for one. I'm not sure what the current price is."

With that, Yu Nan returned the elixir to Li Banfeng.

Li Banfeng promptly put it away.

'150,000 for one?'

'I was going to give you one, but now I can't just give it away casually.'

'Is this elixir really that expensive?'

Li Banfeng asked, "I recall that a Snake Mark Elixir costs 10,000 and grants one day of cultivation. A Profound Blaze Elixir accounts for ten days of cultivation, so logically, it should only cost 100,000. Why is it 150,000?"

Yu Nan paused, wondering if he was testing her again.

She explained, "All medicine is inherently toxic, and elixirs are no exception; in fact, their toxicity is even greater. Even cultivators specializing in poison, who are most resistant to it, wouldn't dare to consume too many elixirs. Consuming ten Snake Mark Elixirs means enduring ten times the toxicity, whereas consuming one Profound Blaze Elixir only incurs the toxicity of a single pill. When you factor that in, the Profound Blaze Elixir is naturally more valuable."

Taking elixirs came with a cost. A Profound Blaze Elixir had ten times the potency of a Snake Mark Elixir, but consuming one only granted ten days of cultivation.

One hundred pills would grant a thousand days of cultivation, and a thousand pills would grant ten thousand days.

Ten thousand days was less than thirty years, and in terms of cultivation level, it would only get him to the fourth layer.

One elixir cost 150,000, so a thousand would be 150 million.

150 million for a fourth-layer cultivation, and still enduring the side effects.

'Ten layers of cultivation for only three times the lifespan? The path of cultivation is too arduous!'

'Forget it. I'll just earn more money, figure out how to get a travel permit, and go back to Yuezhou to live freely.'

"Boss Yu, do you have any connections at the Frontier Office?"

Yu Nan thought for a moment. "I wouldn't call them 'connections,' but I do have some dealings there. If you need a travel permit, there's certainly a way, but it will incur some costs."

"Costs are no problem," Li Banfeng said, confident in his current financial situation. "I really will need your help with this, Boss Yu."

Yu Nan nodded. "Let's wait for things to calm down, then I can help you, Seventh Master. Where are you planning to go? If it's Green Water Bay, that's very easy to arrange. Even going to Kudai Gorge isn't difficult. But if you're aiming for Haichi Ridge, it won't be so simple."

'Haichi Ridge wouldn't be easy?'

Li Banfeng had been a bit too optimistic about the situation.

Seeing Li Banfeng remain silent for a moment, Yu Nan probed, "Seventh Master, are you perhaps thinking of going to Kudai Gorge for some recreation?"

She seemed confident about Kudai Gorge, but Li Banfeng had no interest in it.

"What if I want to go to another province?" Li Banfeng asked directly.

Yu Nan immediately shook her head. "That's beyond my capabilities. Not to mention another province, even the Three-Headed Fork isn't a place ordinary people can go. I can't help you with that."

Li Banfeng smiled. "It's fine, I was just asking."

After half a day, the coachman drove the carriage into Baixiang Village.

Li Banfeng had assumed Baixiang Village was a medicinal herb hub, but he was mistaken. It was named Baixiang Village because most of its inhabitants cultivated tobacco, filling every home with the scent of dried leaves.

It was a gathering place for Tobacco Cultivators.

Li Banfeng dismounted from the carriage and followed Yu Nan into a small courtyard. The courtyard contained three tiled houses and a storage room. Having traveled extensively through Medicine King Gully for his cultivation, Li Banfeng knew that such a compound was standard for a middle-class family in most villages.

Middle-class families typically didn't have many maids or servants, but they would hire long-term and short-term laborers, and sometimes one or two domestic helpers. Yu Nan didn't usually reside in this outlying property, so there were no servants there. The rooms had just been cleaned by her cloth store's assistants.

Xiaopang was in the east wing, attended by an assistant. The spell on him had not yet been undone, and he lay on the bed with his lower body still frozen in a kneeling position.

Yu Nan asked the assistant, "Has a doctor seen him?"

The assistant replied, "Yes, he has. The doctor said he'd been cursed and that medicine wouldn't help."

Yu Nan then said, "I'll go invite Mr. Yao tomorrow to lift the curse."

The assistant replied, "Madam, I went to invite Mr. Yao this afternoon, and he's already seen him. He said this matter can't be resolved without 200,000!"

Yu Nan looked at Li Banfeng.

The implication was clear: theirs was a partnership. Yu Nan sought revenge, and Li Banfeng sought to save someone. Each would get what they needed, owing nothing to the other. After everything was settled, Yu Nan agreeing to find Qin Xiaopang a place to stay was already a generous act; she wouldn't be paying for his treatment.

Qin Xiaopang lifted his head and looked at Li Banfeng, a faint smile appearing on his pale face. "Brother Li, you saved my life. This kindness is something I can never repay. I don't want to be a cripple for the rest of my life. Just give me a quick end, and I'll repay your kindness by serving you as an ox or a horse in my next life."

"Next life isn't impossible," Li Banfeng said, smacking his lips. "But even if you were to reincarnate immediately, you'd still have to wait eighteen years to repay me. That's too long; calculating the interest would be tricky. How about this: you write me an IOU first."