Chapter 719: Planting Soil

The Catfish Envoy, Nian Shangyou, emerged from the east courtyard, his face dark, with veins bulging in layers. His eight long, thick whiskers quivered wildly around his mouth.

Luo Yanjun and Luo Shaojun were waiting at the entrance, and Luo Lijun also rushed over. Seeing Nian Shangyou's state, they knew the discussion had failed.

Luo Lijun quickly stepped forward to console him, "Scholar Nian, what happened? Please tell me first, and I will discuss it thoroughly with the Prince."

Nian Shangyou gritted his teeth and said, "How can one be so disrespectful? How can one be so audacious!"

After uttering these words, Nian Shangyou left without looking back. He summoned his subordinates outside the manor and departed Boundless City directly.

Luo Lijun grew anxious, "Li Qi is too unreasonable! He ruined things after only two meetings. I need to go ask him what conditions he really wants!"

Luo Yanjun stopped Luo Lijun, "Sister, don't rush. There's still room for reconciliation in this matter."

Luo Lijun pushed Yanjun away, saying, "He's stormed off in anger, what reconciliation are you talking about?"

Luo Yanjun lowered her voice, "If Li Qi is still helping us, there's hope for reconciliation. If he turns against us, then there's truly no hope."

Luo Lijun understood Yanjun's meaning, but the impatience in her heart was impossible to suppress.

"Shao Jun, Li Qi is familiar with you. Go ask him what he said. Why did he make Scholar Nian so angry that he left?"

Luo Shaojun remained silent. She didn't care about Nian Shangyou; her only concern was Brother Qi.

As soon as she saw Brother Qi emerge from the courtyard unharmed, Luo Shaojun quickly went up to him, asking if he was hungry or tired, ignoring everything else.

A significant part of Li Qi's trust in the Luo family stemmed from Luo Shaojun. Seeing Luo Shaojun and Li Qi so intimate, Luo Yanjun couldn't quite figure out which of the two, her elder sister or younger sister, was more intelligent.

However, the current situation was indeed difficult to handle. Nian Shangyou had left in a huff, and Li Qi might not be willing to compromise. How would the Luo family find an opportunity to turn things around?

Li Banfeng chatted briefly with Luo Shaojun, instructing her to continue having people guard the back garden gate. He then went alone to Jade Green Pavilion. The three women were waiting on the second floor: his wife and Hong Ying were learning needlework from Jiang Ling'er.

Li Banfeng sat and watched for a while. Jiang Ling'er looked up and said, "Heartless man, now that business is done, are you leaving again?"

Hong Ying was startled, "Done with what? Qilang, did you just do something? Already so quickly?"

If it weren't for Jiang Ling'er's presence, Changji would have really wanted to hit Hong Ying with a plank.

However, judging by Li Banfeng's expression, he indeed wanted to leave.

Changji was reluctant to leave Jiang Ling'er, and besides, just leaving like that would truly hurt Jiang Ling'er's feelings.

"Husband, my sister and I have had a wonderful chat. Can you allow your servant to stay here for two more days?"

Hong Ying added, "I also think Miss Jiang is very nice. Qilang, call out Jiu'er, and we sisters can get a mahjong game going here."

Changji pleaded, "It's rare for us sisters to come out together. Please let us enjoy ourselves for a few days, Husband, Husband~"

With just those two calls, Hong Ying felt her bones go limp. "Xiaowan, don't call anymore. You'll make Qilang wash his pants again."

At the mention of this, Li Banfeng actually paid attention, "Wife, call out again!"

His wife brewed up the perfect moment, pouring all her feelings, sweeter than honey, into that single call: "Husband."

Jiang Ling'er and Hong Ying both couldn't help but shiver upon hearing that sound.

Li Banfeng did not shiver.

He lowered his head and looked for a long time, then raised his head to look at Changji, asking, "Wife, why didn't I react?"

"Well—" his wife stammered slowly, unable to answer.

Hong Ying looked at Jiang Ling'er, who kept her head down, concentrating on her needlework.

Li Banfeng's face turned pale, and sweat poured down. "Just tell me the truth, what exactly happened?"

Jiang Ling'er spoke, "Your 'human qi' is insufficient, so you can only compensate with 'yang qi'. When 'yang qi' is overused, your masculinity diminishes."

Li Banfeng was dumbfounded, "Are you saying I'll be useless in the future?"

Seeing this, Hong Ying quickly tried to reassure him, "Qilang, don't worry. You weren't very useful before either!"

Changji, unable to bear it, hit Hong Ying with a plank, then turned to Li Banfeng and said, "Yang qi disperses, but it can be restored with human qi. Husband, there's no need to worry about this."

Li Banfeng remained silent, feeling an unpleasant taste in his mouth.

He stood up to leave when the music box suddenly appeared before him.

When Li Banfeng was promoting, the music box kept him asleep. It had been on his bedside table the whole time, and he had almost forgotten about her.

Li Banfeng left with the music box. Changji felt worried, but Hong Ying didn't seem to mind much, "Qilang is capable; getting some human qi is no problem for him. But then again, Qilang's little trick is really just a blink of an eye. What does it matter if he has masculinity or not?"

Changji grabbed a plank and said, "When my husband returns, don't you dare say such things again, or I'll beat you to death, you wretch!"

Li Banfeng found the sunflowers in the back garden and saw many sunflower seeds still growing on the flower heads.

Getting some human qi was indeed not difficult, but Li Banfeng wasn't sure how much could be restored. What if he couldn't regain his former prowess?

The little figure on the music box quietly spun on the tray. She played a tune for Li Banfeng.

The melody was calm and gentle, a hypnotic tune. The magic artifacts he carried all fell into a deep sleep one after another.

Following Li Banfeng's travels and adventures these past few days, constantly anxious, the magic artifacts were indeed exhausted.

Yet Li Banfeng felt no fatigue. He found the tune pleasant and was listening intently when the music suddenly stopped.

The little figure on the tray also stopped spinning. She looked up, gazing at Li Banfeng, seemingly wanting to say something. Li Banfeng thought the spring had run down, but then he heard a conversation coming from inside the music box.

"Have you been to the Smelting Furnace?" It was Jiang Ling'er's voice.

"Coming to Neizhou this time and seeing you, Sister, reminded me of some things. I've been to the Smelting Furnace, but I can't remember what it looked like. I only remember being tempered for three whole years." This was his wife's voice.

"Everyone who has entered the Smelting Furnace can't remember its appearance. I was also tempered for three years, but how did you get out?"

"Out from where? The Smelting Furnace?"

"Not the Smelting Furnace, but Puro Province. First-class weapons cannot go to Puro Province."

"I've never remembered this, and even now, I don't know why. Perhaps it's—"

"Don't say anymore, that woman is here."

"Sister, Hong Ying is one of us, and my husband is also one of us. There's no need to be on guard."

"This is Neizhou. Even if you don't want to be on guard, you must be."

The recording ended there. The tray resumed spinning, and the music started playing again.

The music box had secretly recorded a segment of Jiang Ling'er and his wife's conversation. Previously, it had also recorded conversations between his wife and Hong Ying, revealing some hidden details from back then to Li Banfeng.

The content recorded today greatly surprised Li Banfeng.

According to the story his wife had told, Jiang Ling'er was her older sister from the opera troupe. Both were beaten to death by the troupe leader, and their souls went to Neizhou, entering the Smelting Furnace.

But why did their souls enter the Smelting Furnace? Was it because they possessed cultivation before death?

Two unfortunate girls from an opera troupe actually had cultivation?

From the current situation, Jiang Ling'er was refined into a first-class weapon by the Smelting Furnace. Was his wife also a first-class weapon?

Li Banfeng also had the same question as Jiang Ling'er: If his wife became a first-class weapon, why was she able to return to Puro Province? And become a famous general of her generation?

Numerous questions swirled in his mind when two small idols fell to the ground, interrupting Li Banfeng's thoughts.

These weren't his small idols; they belonged to Jiang Mengting. In Li Banfeng's memory, Jiang Mengting's small idols should have been kept in the Portable Residence. Why did they fall out now?

"Master, I dropped them." The Glove woke up. He had been sleeping too soundly just now and couldn't hold onto the two small idols.

Li Banfeng said, "What are you doing with these?"

This was Jiang Mengting's exclusive human qi. For both Li Banfeng and the Glove, these two idols had little value.

The Glove said, "Master, when I first saw this human qi, I felt it was special. I could sense the human qi moving."

Li Banfeng shook his head, "Even if you can sense it, it's useless. This is Jiang Mengting's human qi; we can't use it."

"We can use it," the Glove said, holding the idol in his palm. "Other people's human qi can be stolen. Smile-of-a-Thousand-Hands knows this technique, but he never taught it to me."

"Human qi can be stolen?" Li Banfeng thought for a moment and recalled something.

He returned to the Portable Residence and took down a box from the shelf.

Inside the box were two magnets, two circuit boards, a pair of headphones, an antenna, and six nails.

In Huahu Park in Yuezhou, there was a connected new land, and within this new land, there was a cave.

Inside this cave were many items that He Jiaqing used to collect human qi.

When Li Banfeng was tracking Big Head, he had once entered the cave, emptied all the stored human qi, and brought back some of the qi-collecting equipment.

All this equipment was here, but his wife hadn't been able to figure it out. Li Banfeng had once wondered why such devices could collect human qi; it seemed they contained techniques of "theft cultivation."

Li Banfeng picked up a magnet and looked at it for a long time, "Theft cultivation, it's truly not simple."

Hearing this, the Glove looked quite proud. Standing on the shelf, he waggled his index finger and said, "First, eat; second, enjoy; third, steal. Theft cultivation is one of the oldest Taoist sects in this world. It is said that all things in the world can be stolen; there's a vast amount of knowledge in it!"

Li Banfeng sighed, "The key is, who can teach us this knowledge?"

He Jiaqing was hiding beneath the soil, quietly listening to the conversation between Nian Shangyou and "Liu Bufei."

This "Liu Bufei" was a theater cultivator disguised by He Jiaqing's subordinate.

The Nian Shangyou who resembled a standing fish was real. He was a scholar from the Hongwen Institute of Shang Kingdom and now served as a special envoy to inspect the new lands.

This made He Jiaqing feel somewhat strange.

As far as he knew, Shu Wanju had just returned to Chaoge to report, telling the court that all thirteen new lands were safe and sound. Shu Wanju held a respectable position among the feudal lords and had chosen the right side between the cabinet and the Sage. He had just reported everything was safe, and the court immediately sent an envoy to investigate. Wasn't that clearly a slap in Shu Wanju's face? It would have been better to wait a month or so before investigating, to save Shu Wanju some face.

Nian Shangyou spoke with great tact, and He Jiaqing was worried that "Liu Bufei" might expose himself.

Fortunately, after a long conversation, Nian Shangyou's words contained no excessive probing; he only spoke of matters concerning the management of the new lands.

"Liu Bufei" was prepared for these topics: "Your humble subordinate, as instructed by Lord Qiao, first recruited a group of strange beings in the territory. The land reclamation should not be rushed."

Nian Shangyou nodded repeatedly, "When I came from Chaoge, Lord Qiao repeatedly cautioned that you must be extremely careful in your actions. Recently, I heard that Puro Province has been frequently harassed by the Earth Kingdom, and the Peddler is constantly struggling financially, finding himself in a difficult situation. If you act ostentatiously, it will easily attract suspicion, and the Peddler might even kill you. Given the current circumstances, the matter of recruiting strange beings should also be put on hold for now."

As an imperial envoy, Nian Shangyou's words had to be acknowledged by "Liu Bufei," regardless of what he said.

But these words sounded problematic to He Jiaqing.

Not vigorously developing the land was to avoid the Peddler's scrutiny, but it shouldn't go so far as to be afraid of even recruiting strange beings, should it?

This was a normal method for a local deity to manage their territory.

Moreover, if nothing was to be done, what was the purpose of Chaoge taking the risk to let these thirteen local deities carry soil and receive their enfeoffments?

There was something suspicious about this imperial envoy.

Nian Shangyou chatted with "Liu Bufei" for over an hour, then went to other territories to meet several other local deities.

The next day, Nian Shangyou met the local deity Ji Yuren.

Ji Yuren was a body cultivator with blue skin, round eyes, and a body covered in colorful scales.

His original form was a crucian carp, which made him quite congenial with Nian Shangyou. However, He Jiaqing didn't know the purpose of Nian Shangyou's visit, as Ji Yuren was not among the thirteen local deities who had brought soil and received enfeoffments.

He had been a local deity in the new lands for over a decade. Since Nian Shangyou was here to investigate the thirteen new lands, what use could Ji Yuren be?

Could Ji Yuren have discovered a flaw?

He Jiaqing was very nervous. If Ji Yuren truly discovered something suspicious, He Jiaqing planned to kill both him and Nian Shangyou to silence them, if necessary.

Nian Shangyou and Ji Yuren talked for a long time, also discussing the management of the new lands.

"Brother Ji, we are old acquaintances. I must warn you, the Peddler has been very irritable lately. Be extremely careful in your actions and do not provoke him."

"Don't worry, Brother Nian. I, Ji, always act according to the rules. Even if the Peddler wanted to attack me, he wouldn't find an excuse."

Nian Shangyou shook his head, "Brother Ji, don't be careless. I heard something happened to the Peddler recently."

"What happened?" Ji Yuren leaned in, listening very intently.

"It is this—" Nian Shangyou leaned close to Ji Yuren's ear, lowering his voice to a whisper, and threaded one of his whiskers through the crucian carp-man's ear.

The whisker went in through the right ear and came out through the left, with barbs on it, and a bit of brain matter clinging to the barbs.

Nian Shangyou pulled out the whisker, and Ji Yuren died on the spot.

After confirming Ji Yuren was dead, Nian Shangyou walked to a well.

The well was crudely dug, without even a wellhead, and one could easily fall in if not careful. It seemed to have been dug by hunters who successfully opened up new land.

Nian Shangyou transformed into a fish and entered the well. After searching for over half an hour, he found a contract and a local deity seal from the bottom of the well.

These were good items!

He Jiaqing genuinely wanted them, but he couldn't take them.

He was confident he could defeat Nian Shangyou, but Nian Shangyou had killed a local deity in the territory. If He Jiaqing took the contract and the local deity seal, it would be impossible to explain.

What exactly did he want to do? Had Ji Yuren betrayed Chaoge? Or had something offended him?

How should this matter be handled?

Telling the Peddler was a good method.

But was it appropriate to tell the Peddler directly? Or should he find someone else to relay the message for him?

In Jade Green Pavilion, Li Banfeng was learning embroidery from Jiang Ling'er, every stitch precise and well-formed.

Hong Ying watched, mesmerized, occasionally commenting to Changji, "You know, Qilang may have less yang qi, and Little Qilang isn't working as well, but his needlework is getting better and better."

Changji pinched Hong Ying, "Don't talk nonsense. When my husband recovers some human qi, his masculine prowess will return."

Hong Ying shook her head slightly, "This is Neizhou territory. Where would one find human qi here?"

She didn't know that this very place was where human qi accumulated fastest.

Li Banfeng stayed in Boundless City for a few days, and several small idols formed on the sunflower heads. After absorbing the human qi, his yang qi also recovered significantly.

There were still many things to do outside. Li Banfeng replanted two sunflowers in Boundless City and reminded his wife it was time to go home.

Though his wife was extremely reluctant, she could only bid farewell to Jiang Ling'er.

Back in the Portable Residence, his wife said to Li Banfeng, "Husband, Jiang Ling'er is an old acquaintance of mine and also your house spirit. In the future, please visit her often and don't neglect her."

"Since my wife said so, I'll definitely do it," Li Banfeng said, bringing out the tools He Jiaqing used to steal human qi. "These things have been at home for a while. Have you figured anything out about them, Wife?"

If Li Banfeng hadn't mentioned it, Changji would have almost forgotten about them.

"That's my fault, your humble servant. I haven't put much thought into these things. Let's wait until the old man is repaired, then I'll examine their mechanisms carefully."

Li Banfeng said, "These items contain techniques of theft cultivation, so their mechanisms might be difficult to understand."

His wife looked at the equipment, seemingly enlightened. "In the past, the techniques of theft cultivation were indeed hard to grasp. But coming to Neizhou this time, your humble servant has remembered many things. There are some things I don't want to hide from my husband. I once entered the Smelting Furnace, and I should have seen some of the methods of theft cultivation. Please allow me to think carefully. If I can thoroughly understand their mechanisms, these items could be of great use."

Li Banfeng smiled. His wife was still wholeheartedly with him, hiding nothing.

"There's no rush with this. Wife, you can research it slowly. I'll take Jiang Mengting's human qi to another friend to see. Perhaps he'll know how to use it."

Changji thought for a long time, "Husband, besides He Jiaqing, do you know any other theft cultivators?"

Li Banfeng shook his head, "No theft cultivators, but I do know an 'oil cultivator.' Everything can be stolen, and perhaps everything can be 'slipped'."

Leaving Boundless City, Li Banfeng went to Three-Headed Fork and arrived at the new monarch's residence.

Under the guidance of Luo Yujun and Luo Xiujun, the new monarch gradually developed a royal demeanor. Luo Lijun was very satisfied with this. She often exchanged information with the two sisters, deeply concerned about the new monarch's situation, and also informed them of some important matters in Neizhou.

And these important matters were all extracted by Xiaoshan from Luo Xiujun's mouth.

"Seventh Master, Sister Xiujun said that Qiao Yi won't be able to come to Puro Province anytime soon. The Ministry of Works in Shang Kingdom keeps saying that materials are incomplete, so the altar cannot be repaired on schedule. Qiao Yi is burning with anxiety, and his condition has worsened."

The altar issue had such a huge impact on Qiao Yi! The previous speculation was indeed correct; he truly put most of his efforts into the new lands.

Li Banfeng took out a Golden Origin Pill and gave it to Xiaoshan, "You've done well. Gather more information like this."

Finding Big Face, Li Banfeng showed him Jiang Mengting's idol.

Big Face exclaimed in surprise, "How can there be human qi inside this thing? Smelling it, it seems to have sunflower seed oil in it."

Li Banfeng nodded, "There's definitely sunflower seed oil because this *is* a sunflower seed. This is someone else's human qi. See if you can convert it into human qi that I can use."

Big Face studied the idol for three full days, then sent a message back to Li Banfeng: "This is owned human qi; it cannot be 'slipped' no matter what."

He was a practical person; if he couldn't do something, he simply couldn't.

"But this thing is too marvelous. A single sunflower seed actually possesses a technique. I still want to study it thoroughly."

Li Banfeng agreed, temporarily entrusting the two idols to Big Face.

Hearing from Qiu Zhiheng that the Customs and Defense Office had been frequently active in the Underground City's human market these past two days, Li Banfeng went to the market that evening and indeed saw several Customs and Defense Office personnel walking back and forth on the street.

Li Banfeng knew all these people; they were from the main office. What did they want to do in the Underground City?

He would wait until late at night and find a suitable opportunity to ask them.

Chen Yongnian's restaurant was by the street. Li Banfeng had a meal there and asked Chen Yongnian to prepare a room for him to rest for a while.

Usually, Li Banfeng slept in the Portable Residence, but Chen Yongnian was particularly hospitable to him today, constantly bringing wine, dishes, and charcoal to the room. If he suddenly found Li Banfeng gone, Old Chen would probably be startled.

Since he would only be staying for an hour or two, Li Banfeng didn't want to arouse suspicion, so he lay on the bed and slept for a while.

After sleeping for only half an hour, Li Banfeng suddenly opened his eyes to see Ai sitting on the bed, staring at him.

Li Banfeng stared back at Ai.

Ai let out an angry shout, "You scared me to death!"

Li Banfeng closed his eyes and said, "Shall I go back to sleep then?"

"Don't sleep yet. I have something good to show you." Ai handed Li Banfeng a cloth bag.

Li Banfeng opened the bag and saw that it contained soil.

"What kind of soil is this?"

Ai excitedly said, "It's seed soil! Soil that can generate new lands!"

Li Banfeng was pleased, "Did you make this?"

Ai nodded, "Yes, I made the altar! I used the stone that Old Seven brought back last time. You're really charming when you're crazy. If you hadn't gone crazy that one time, I don't know when I would have been able to make the altar."

"Wait a minute!" Li Banfeng wasn't as excited as Ai. He felt something was off. "You made the altar so quickly?"

Ai was displeased, "What do you mean 'shouldn't'? Do you think I shouldn't be capable?"

Li Banfeng shook his head, "I know you're capable, but Chaoge also has no shortage of capable people. Why are they repairing their altar so slowly?"