Chapter 755: 越走越宽

"I've practiced to this extent, and the 'Connecting Sprawling Chambers' technique is still only seven-tenths complete?" Li Banfeng had already linked his Portable Residence and the Jadeite Pavilion, feeling he had pushed this technique to its limit.

Jiang Ling'er shook her head slightly. "One of your residences entered another, and you just built a bridge between them. That's essentially taking a shortcut."

As soon as she finished speaking, Li Banfeng heard a burst of laughter: "Hehehe!"

The laughter came from the Portable Residence.

Then he heard two coughs, and a woman's voice resonated in his ear: "Girl, that's not how you say it. His method isn't considered 'entering'."

This was the Jadeite Pavilion speaking.

After all these days, the Portable Residence and the Jadeite Pavilion seemed to have become well acquainted.

Li Banfeng considered it and agreed. If the Portable Residence and the Jadeite Pavilion were connected, passing through them indeed offered a significant advantage. He told Jiang Ling'er, "I'll go back to the courtyard. If I can still travel between the two houses from there, it proves I've mastered it."

Jiang Ling'er shook her head. "The courtyard isn't far enough."

"I'll leave the Marquis's Mansion then."

"Still not far enough."

"What if I leave Boundless City?"

"Still not far enough."

Li Banfeng couldn't understand. "How far is 'far enough' then?"

Jiang Ling'er said, "Do you remember when I made a cloud for you in the sky?"

"I remember!"

"Go up to that cloud and build a house there. If you can use 'Connecting Sprawling Chambers' to link the Jadeite Pavilion with the house on the cloud, then you'll have learned more than seven-tenths of its essence."

Li Banfeng considered the distance and shook his head repeatedly. "That's a bit too difficult."

Jiang Ling'er sighed, "That's why I said you've only learned seven-tenths of this technique. You can only scare amateurs with it."

Her words were harsh, but they were the truth.

He thought of the Peddler's house on the cloud, which could transport him directly to the Dark Star Bureau. If the opponent truly used 'Connecting Sprawling Chambers,' then his current skill might indeed only be seven-tenths complete.

Li Banfeng asked, "If I can connect to the house on the cloud, shouldn't I have almost mastered it completely?"

Jiang Ling'er shook her head. "Still far from complete mastery. That would only be eight-tenths."

Li Banfeng's eyes widened. "That's only eight-tenths?"

Jiang Ling'er replied, "Although you're on the cloud, you're still within the territory of the Shang Kingdom. Eight-tenths is already quite a lot."

Thinking it over, it made sense.

The Heavenly Maiden's 'Connecting Chambers' technique could cross the borders between Prole Prefecture and the Outer Prefectures. "So if I could fly from the Inner Prefecture to Prole Prefecture, would that be complete mastery?"

"Not yet," Jiang Ling'er still shook her head.

Li Banfeng was confused. "How can I ever achieve complete mastery then? Is this technique endless?"

Jiang Ling'er put down her needlework. "Just linking two residences certainly won't get you to complete mastery. There's an old saying you might not have heard: 'For all other cultivation paths, the road narrows the further you go, but for dwelling cultivation, the path widens.'"

Li Banfeng thought for a long time. He seemed to recall it but couldn't remember who had said it.

It was actually Hong Lian who had said it. At the time, Li Banfeng was focused on using his technique to control Mr. Kong Fang's money, so he hadn't paid much attention.

Now that Jiang Ling'er brought it up, Li Banfeng was curious: "What does that saying actually mean?"

Jiang Ling'er thought for a moment, then gave Li Banfeng an example: "Take the most detestable of all traveler cultivators as an example—"

Li Banfeng drew out his feather duster.

Jiang Ling'er didn't know what to say.

Suddenly, the Jadeite Pavilion spoke up: "My son-in-law, don't make it difficult for my daughter. She's not good with words, so please be more understanding.

"Let's take our closest Daoist path, the traveler cultivators, as an example. Traveler cultivators emphasize journeying across the world, reaching every corner, no matter how remote.

"This is the fundamental principle of their cultivation.

"However, there are some dangerous places in the world that are simply forbidden. Yet, traveler cultivators, in their quest to advance their cultivation, insist on venturing into these perilous areas. Eventually, they will reach a dead end in their practice.

"Other Daoist paths are the same. Poison cultivators consume all poisons in the world, inevitably poisoning themselves to death. Pleasure cultivators indulge in all worldly pleasures, eventually exhausting themselves to death.

"Food cultivators will eventually gorge themselves to death, wine cultivators will drink themselves to death, thief cultivators will be beaten to death, and gambler cultivators constantly court death. Scholarly and martial cultivators seem to have a path, but they endure years of grueling mental and physical training. Who can withstand that hardship? If they ever grow weary, they might be driven mad by their cultivation.

"Even lazy cultivators can't escape their fate. They become so lazy that they don't even want to breathe, eventually merging with the world and its objects, where life and death hold no distinction for them."

"Hmph!" The Judge's Brush hummed at his waist.

Li Banfeng asked, "Why are dwelling cultivators different?"

The Jadeite Pavilion explained, "Because dwelling cultivators have residences and residence spirits. These residences and spirits can protect the dwelling cultivators, bearing all sorts of dangers on their behalf.

"A residence can be cultivated to become larger and larger, and a dwelling cultivator might even possess more than one. Traveler cultivators wish to roam the world, while dwelling cultivators aim to possess the world. It's clear which path is wider."

Possess the world?

That was a grand claim.

Li Banfeng didn't dwell on world domination for now; he just wanted to fully master 'Connecting Sprawling Chambers.'

Following Jiang Ling'er's suggestion, he prepared to go up to the cloud.

He pushed open the door and went down the stairs, expecting to return to the Portable Residence's Thirteenth Chamber, but he actually found himself on the first floor of the Jadeite Pavilion.

This was no problem. On the first floor, he retrieved the key to the Portable Residence. Li Banfeng then had the Luo sisters control Boundless City to take him to the cloud he used during his promotion.

Using the Cloud Gate technique, he reached the cloud. Li Banfeng returned to the Portable Residence and tried to contact the Jadeite Pavilion.

Five hours later, Li Banfeng returned to the main room, his eyes bloodshot. He had failed.

Zhao Xiaowan advised, "My dear husband, you can't rush this. How can you expect to learn it easily by immediately attempting such a long distance?"

Hong Ying also tried to persuade him, "Seventh Brother, learning 'Connecting Sprawling Chambers' to seven-tenths is enough. After each chamber linking—"

"Doesn't it always dishearten Xiaowan?"

Li Banfeng thought about the connection. "My dear, do you think Happy Soil would work?"

His wife slapped Hong Ying with a board. "This hussy is leading you astray!"

Li Banfeng took out some Happy Soil from the cabinet, ate a bit, and then went to the Thirteenth Chamber to practice the technique.

This was an experience he had gained in school: on the day before an exam, even if he was too sleepy to keep his eyes open, he still had to read, focusing his energy on a specific point to effectively ward off drowsiness.

After another two hours of practice, Li Banfeng could barely stand.

His wife urged, "Husband, you can't use the technique anymore. Continuing like this is dangerous!"

Li Banfeng also sensed the danger, but he noticed that the technique's resonance was getting closer and closer to him.

Facing danger and pushing forward—wasn't that 'Going It Alone'?

Propelled by 'Going It Alone,' Li Banfeng's perception sharpened, and his control over the technique became more refined.

His fingernails repeatedly traced the wall until he finally found a crack.

His wife stepped forward to help, assisting Li Banfeng in pushing open the crack. Behind it, a staircase appeared.

The staircase was slightly blurry, appearing not entirely solid. Li Banfeng reinforced the technique and took a step onto the stairs.

Thump!

Li Banfeng's legs gave out, and he slipped down the stairs.

It wasn't the staircase's fault; Li Banfeng was simply too exhausted.

Zhao Xiaowan helped Li Banfeng up. "Husband, perhaps we should go home and rest for a bit first?"

Li Banfeng waved his hand. "No, not home. Let's go upstairs first. I want Jiang Ling'er to see what kind of talent I truly possess!"

Zhao Xiaowan tried to dissuade him, "Ling'er speaks without guile, husband, don't take her words to heart!"

"Today, I'll make her see! Help me upstairs!"

Zhao Xiaowan helped Li Banfeng up the stairs, but something felt off about this staircase.

This was definitely not the Jadeite Pavilion's staircase, which had red carpets and exquisitely carved and decorated railings and handrails. This staircase had neither railings nor handrails, only bare wooden planks.

In fact, the first time Li Banfeng traveled from the Portable Residence to the Jadeite Pavilion, he didn't use the Jadeite Pavilion's main staircase either. That segment wasn't as refined as the Jadeite Pavilion's, but it wasn't as rough as the staircase before them now.

Li Banfeng believed that earlier staircase was a passage between the small train and the Jadeite Pavilion; the train's equipment was minimalist, while the pavilion's furnishings were relatively ornate, making that staircase a blend of both.

The current staircase was neither minimalist nor ornate. Its wooden planks were quite wide, creaking underfoot, and Zhao Xiaowan genuinely feared she might accidentally break a plank if she stepped too hard.

Upon reaching the second floor, they saw no doors, only an empty room.

The room contained no furnishings, only large patches of dust, as if it hadn't been inhabited for over a decade.

Zhao Xiaowan looked at Li Banfeng and asked, "Husband, where have you hidden Ling'er?"

Li Banfeng frowned. "The way you say that, it sounds like I harmed her!"

This was clearly not the Jadeite Pavilion, but Li Banfeng couldn't understand why his 'Connecting Chambers' technique had led him here.

Zhao Xiaowan knocked on the wall and then inspected the floor. Li Banfeng was somewhat speechless. "My dear wife, are you worried I hid Jiang Ling'er's head of household here?"

"Of course not!" Zhao Xiaowan gave a dry laugh. "I know my husband isn't that kind of person."

She ran her hand along the wall and pushed open the room's window. A beam of sunlight streamed in, making the room feel more airy.

"Although it's an old house, tidying it up could make it quite nice. And the courtyard is very spacious, with many trees.

"These trees are growing... Husband, these trees don't seem to be growing from the ground."

Li Banfeng went to the window and looked out.

Outside was a forest that looked quite familiar.

He jumped out the window into the forest and looked up at the entire building.

It was a three-story wooden house. The first floor had five wooden rooms (two large, three small), the second floor had three wooden rooms (one large, two small), and the third floor had two rooms (one large, one small). These ten wooden rooms were connected to each other, with varying architectural styles, clearly not built by the same person, but assembled using some technique.

This was indeed Li Banfeng's house, a nearly forgotten one.

Why had he ended up here?

"My dear, where's that big bunch of keys I brought home originally?"

Hearing this, his wife realized where they were. "Is this the house the Peddler gave you?"

Li Banfeng nodded.

Zhao Xiaowan tried to exit through the door to look around, but it was locked and wouldn't open.

"Husband, the keys to this house are all back at our home. I didn't bring them with me."

Li Banfeng said, "Then let's hurry home and get them."

"The keys to our home are still on the cloud in the Shang Kingdom."

Li Banfeng froze for a long time.

He then remembered something: he had come from the Shang Kingdom.

Zhao Xiaowan jumped from the third floor to Li Banfeng's side, her face filled with surprise. "I remember you saying, husband, that the house the Peddler gave you is in Gourd Village!"

Li Banfeng nodded. It was indeed in Gourd Village.

Zhao Xiaowan still found it hard to believe. "Husband, you're incredibly skilled! To think you could connect to Gourd Village using 'Connecting Chambers'!"

Connecting to Gourd Village was a completely different concept from connecting to Boundless City.

Gourd Village was no ordinary place; under A Yi's control, it could traverse between the Inner, Outer, and Prole Prefectures.

Currently, only the Portable Residence could achieve such a feat, and that was only after finding eight railway tracks.

The effect of this 'Connecting Sprawling Chambers' activation was no less impressive than directly transferring from Prole Prefecture to the Dark Star Bureau.

His wife looked into the depths of the forest. This cloud was vast, with streams and many unusual flowers and plants within the woods.

"The Peddler truly gave you a wonderful place to live, husband."

Li Banfeng nodded. "Let's consummate our marriage here tonight, my dear."

At the mention of consummating their marriage, his wife felt a stir of anticipation, but seeing Li Banfeng's condition, she guessed the Happy Soil's effect had worn off.

"Such a nice place, shouldn't we find a residence spirit for it?" His wife changed the subject.

Li Banfeng pondered, "Who would be suitable to be the residence spirit for Gourd Village?"

His wife suddenly remembered something. "Husband, since we're in Gourd Village, should we go visit A Yi?"

This was important. His wife was familiar with A Yi and knew her temperament. Entering A Yi's territory without greeting her could very well lead to a feud.

Li Banfeng was also considering the problem.

Greeting her was easy, but explaining how they had entered was difficult.

Li Banfeng had a jade token for entering Gourd Village, but A Yi was very cautious. Every time he entered the village, someone guided him.

This time, there was no guide, and Li Banfeng had just entered directly, which wouldn't make sense to her.

"My dear, perhaps we shouldn't go see A Yi."

Zhao Xiaowan understood his dilemma, but then how would they resolve the current problem? "Husband, if we don't see A Yi, how will we leave Gourd Village?"

To leave Gourd Village, one had to be escorted out by its residents.

In a difficult situation, Li Banfeng, with his wife, jumped back into the wooden house through the window. "We'll go back the way we came."

His wife looked at Li Banfeng with concern. "Husband, you're going to use the technique again?"

"My dear, is there any more Happy Soil?" Li Banfeng also felt he was nearing exhaustion.

Zhao Xiaowan punched Li Banfeng. "How could I carry that thing on me?"

Li Banfeng sighed, "Without Happy Soil, I'll just have to push through."

Sitting in the wooden house, Li Banfeng repeatedly visualized the Jadeite Pavilion, but due to extreme fatigue, his impression of the Jadeite Pavilion would become blurry every time he tried to use the 'Connecting Sprawling Chambers' technique.

"My dear, could you whisper some reminders to me?"

"What would my husband like me to remind him of?"

"Remind me of the Jadeite Pavilion's appearance."

"Well—"

This stumped his wife.

The projector was resting at home; she hadn't brought it.

If the phonograph's body were here, she could play a movie, but Zhao Xiaowan was using her puppet body and could only mimic sounds.

His wife's lips moved, and Li Banfeng first heard the sound of a needle threading.

Hiss, hiss.

Then he heard the sound of scissors.

Snip, snip.

Li Banfeng looked at Zhao Xiaowan. "My dear wife, you're being a bit too perfunctory."

Zhao Xiaowan looked helpless. "Husband, you can't blame me. Ling'er usually doesn't make much noise."

Jiang Ling'er was a quiet person, so his wife's range of imitable sounds was very limited.

Li Banfeng tried to use the technique several times without success and developed a headache.

He still found it strange. He was supposed to go back to the pavilion, but how did he end up in this wooden building? Were they very similar?

Looking around, there were indeed similarities: both were wooden structures, both were buildings. Although this wooden building was older, it was on a cloud.

How was being on a cloud a similarity? The Jadeite Pavilion wasn't on a cloud either.

But when he used the technique, Li Banfeng had gone to the cloud in the Shang Kingdom and entered the Portable Residence.

The environment!

The environment on the cloud was similar to the current environment.

The surrounding environment affected the 'Connecting Chambers' technique!

If he could create an environment similar to the Jadeite Pavilion here, the success rate of 'Connecting Chambers' would greatly increase.

"My dear, mimic the sound of threading a needle again."

His wife painstakingly recreated the sound's details, even perfectly mimicking Jiang Ling'er's subtle movements while threading and stitching.

After a few minutes of continuous imitation, his wife felt the sounds interweave and overlap, as if someone truly was threading a needle beside them.

Had she misheard?

With means to perceive spirit sounds, how could she possibly mishear?

Following the sound, she looked and saw Jiang Ling'er sitting beside them, embroidering.

Zhao Xiaowan was startled. "Husband, you've swapped Ling'er out of the pavilion?"

Li Banfeng didn't answer. The situation was very urgent; the 'Traveling Through a Thousand Mountains' technique had limited time.

"My dear, hold tight!" He embraced Zhao Xiaowan and jumped out the window again. When they landed, Zhao Xiaowan saw Jiang Ling'er once more.

The 'Connecting Sprawling Chambers' technique succeeded again. Li Banfeng returned to the Jadeite Pavilion from Gourd Village; this time, he was truly back.

Jiang Ling'er looked up at Zhao Xiaowan, then turned to Li Banfeng and said, "Being able to bring the residence spirit along is indeed skillful, but it's still only eight-tenths mastery."

Zhao Xiaowan jumped out of Li Banfeng's arms. "Ling'er, this isn't just eight-tenths mastery. I'm not boasting for my husband, but this time, it's definitely nine-tenths."

Jiang Ling'er didn't believe it. "I heard the old lady say that to master 'Connecting Sprawling Chambers' to nine-tenths, no matter how talented one is,

it takes about twenty years of practice."

Zhao Xiaowan hugged Li Banfeng and fiercely kissed his face. "That's because the old lady lacked talent. Don't always bring her up; my husband is far better than her!"

"My wife truly has good judgment!" Li Banfeng also gave Zhao Xiaowan's face a hearty kiss.

Jiang Ling'er's left cheek twitched, and her right cheek was slightly contorted. She wanted to retort, but couldn't think of a reason.

Qiu Luoye, her face flushed after two drinks, said, "When we caught Brother Wheel earlier, I didn't hold back. Brother Wheel and I have such a deep friendship, and for your sake, we almost fell out. What do you say we do about this?"

A Yi remained silent, her face heavy with worry, seemingly preoccupied.

Qiu Luoye frowned. "Are you listening to me? I've put in so much effort and invested so much for you. Shouldn't you let me go home now?"

A Yi snapped, "Why should I let you go home? Have you caught the person?"

Qiu Luoye retorted, "If you can't catch the person, it's because of your own incompetence. Why blame it on me?"

A Yi tilted her head back, raising an eyebrow. "Yes, I'm blaming you. What are you going to do about it if you don't like it?"

Qiu Luoye set down her wine bowl. "So you're not going to keep your word, are you? Do you think I'm easy to bully?"

A Yi said impatiently, "I don't have time to argue with you. It seems someone has entered Gourd Village."

Qiu Daxian was startled and asked, "Has someone gone hunting?"

Gourd Village regularly took in groups of people, a fact Qiu Luoye was aware of, referring to it as "hunting."

A Yi corrected him, "That's not hunting; that's rescuing people! And what just happened shouldn't have been a rescue, nor could the rescued person have left on their own."

Qiu Luoye also grew somewhat worried. "Could it be Brother Wheel coming for us?"

A Yi looked at Qiu Luoye. "Does he have that capability?"

"What do you think?" Qiu Luoye took a sip of wine. "If Brother Wheel were whole, there would be nowhere in this world he couldn't reach. Your aggressive behavior must have angered him."

A Yi lowered her head, a hint of grievance on her face. "How was I aggressive? I was genuinely sincere with him."

"Whether it was genuine or not, no one knows," Qiu Luoye sighed. "You should know Brother Wheel's temperament. When he's good, he's truly good, but when he's ruthless, he disowns everyone.

"Last time you chased him to the Outer Prefectures, I felt something was wrong. After Brother Wheel returned from there, his temperament changed significantly, and he could use many Artisan Cultivation methods. I'm truly afraid—"

Before he could finish, A Yi lowered her head, wiped away tears, and began to sob.

Qiu Luoye was stunned. "Why are you crying?"

A Yi cried incoherently, "If I'm gone, you'll have to remain a widower for me."

Qiu Luoye coughed. "Don't say such depressing things."

A Yi cried even harder. "I was truly sincere with you; you can't forget me!"

Seeing her cry like this, Qiu Luoye felt uneasy. "Stop talking about this for now. Have some food, drink some wine. I'm just guessing; it might not even be Brother Wheel. Please stop crying."

A Yi sobbed, "You're leaving, what will I do? Eighteen Wheels definitely won't spare me!"

Qiu Luoye held a chicken leg to her mouth. "Please stop crying. What if I don't leave?"

"Okay!" A Yi stopped crying and ate the chicken leg with her wine.

Qiu Luoye sat silently for a long time.

Li Banfeng took out paper and pen and meticulously wrote down the key points of 'Connecting Sprawling Chambers' one by one.

There were actually only two key points.

First, the mental state must be clear. To enter the Jadeite Pavilion, its image must appear vividly in one's mind.

Second, the technique must have power, the strength and confidence that one's residence is in hand, ready to be manipulated at will.

Li Banfeng had been refining the technique with Jiang Ling'er for the past two days. He had perfected the precision of 'Connecting Sprawling Chambers,' but its power was lacking. To achieve transitions between different residences, sufficient technique strength was essential.

These two principles sounded simple, but if one were to cultivate them meticulously according to Jiang Ling'er's method, it would truly take about twenty years.

But Li Banfeng's training method was different.

To cultivate mental clarity, he used 'Traveling Through a Thousand Mountains.' He would move whichever residence he wanted to go to, ensuring his mental image was absolutely clear, though the time was limited, so his actions had to be swift.

To cultivate power, he used 'Going It Alone,' full of force and swift in execution. The only issue was that 'Going It Alone' was sometimes difficult to trigger.

His wife read Li Banfeng's notes and chuckled, "You're probably the only person in the world who uses traveler cultivation methods to practice dwelling cultivation techniques, husband."

Li Banfeng rehearsed it several times, mastering the technique with fluid control, which even impressed Jiang Ling'er.

"Ling'er, hand over the last tenth of the technique to me too," Li Banfeng said with a chuckle. "I won't treat you unfairly!"

Jiang Ling'er refused, and Li Banfeng became displeased.

Zhao Xiaowan persuaded her, "We're all family; why are you still hiding it?"

Jiang Ling'er shook her head. "I'm not hiding it. I don't know the last tenth of the technique myself. I only heard the old lady say that the final tenth can't be practiced in your own home; you have to practice it in someone else's home."

Li Banfeng was startled. "Practice 'Connecting Sprawling Chambers' in someone else's home?"

Jiang Ling'er nodded but couldn't offer further explanation.

Zhao Xiaowan seemed to realize something. "If you can use this technique in someone else's home, then it's truly powerful."

Li Banfeng was a bit worried. "I wouldn't want to harm other dwelling cultivators just to practice my technique."

Zhao Xiaowan also understood Li Banfeng's nature. "Of course, husband, you'll need to maintain proper decorum."

They discussed for several hours and decided on two possible destinations.

One was to find Meng Yuchun; her high cultivation level would yield more significant results when combined with Li Banfeng's practice.

The second was Iron Gate Fortress, which had many people and thus more cultivation options.

These two places were difficult to decide between. Li Banfeng weighed his options repeatedly, then decided to draw lots.

He turned off 'Perceiving Spirit Sounds,' 'Hundred Flavors Exquisite,' and 'Golden Eyes of Autumn,' asked his wife to make two paper balls, and then grabbed one with his eyes closed.

As he felt one of the paper balls, Li Banfeng shivered repeatedly.

He opened the paper ball and saw "Iron Gate Fortress" written on it.

Hong Ying, standing by, said, "Seventh Brother, you're trembling. Is it a premonition of good fortune or misfortune? You really shouldn't go to Iron Gate Fortress."

Li Banfeng looked at the paper ball in his hand, his brows tightly furrowed. "I have to go. I'm their fortress lord."