Gifts (Part One)

What Li Qi really wanted to say was that if the world is not working, then let's change the world.

Unfortunately, it's impossible.

Everything has a reason. The reason why Baiyue was so chaotic was the conflict between humans and shamans. As a buffer zone, it was itself subjected to the clash between two different principles.

Furthermore, due to the special existence of the 'King,' a large number of frustrated cultivators have gathered here.

Li Qi wants to 'change the world,' but that's incredibly difficult. He would need to be able to suppress the entire Baiyue before he'd even have the right to say that.

Therefore, he decided to leave and sent the Wave-Pushing Gang members to the Song Kingdom.

Song Kingdom is now under the rule of the Human Path. Although it has not been directly incorporated into the territory, the Human Path is thriving. The original Shaman have been mostly driven away from the Song Kingdom, but other Dao Lineage, including the divine way, are still preserved.

Send them to the Song Kingdom, to see another world.

Then... once Li Qi returns from the East China Sea, we'll send them to Annam.

In this way, the members of the Wave-Pushing Gang will naturally make their own choices.

They became this way because that's how the world is.

Therefore, Li Qi decided to show them different worlds so that they would have choices.

If anyone wants to return to the Great Deer Kingdom, Li Qi will send them back.

If anyone wants to stay in the Song Kingdom, Li Qi will not force them.

They wanted to continue following Li Qi to Annam, which was fine too.

The most important thing is that Li Qi will give these old brothers a gift, a gift that Li Qi considers invaluable, yet also the most suitable.

It's not some Law Treasure, not Cultivation Method, not some wealth, and not some beautiful woman.

Rather, it is an opportunity to choose.

This is actually a very precious thing.

How many people in this world have the opportunity to make choices at crucial moments in their lives?

Even Li Qi himself didn't have a choice.

Experience more of the world, and then choose your own path. That way, even if you return to the Great Deer Kingdom, or something else entirely, it's all fine.

Li Qi didn't expect all his old brothers to make the right choices, but he only hoped that they could all walk their own paths instead of being constantly swept up by the world and becoming people they didn't even recognize.

This is the most precious gift Li Qi could give.

It is more precious than any Law Treasure or Cultivation Method.

Even Li Qi himself wanted this gift.

He also wanted a choice, but no one would give him one, no one had the ability to give him one.

From the moment he provoked the Heavenly Demon, Li Qi had no other choice.

My mind was filled with complex thoughts, and I was also pondering many Daoist practices. Before I knew it, dawn had broken.

Before dawn, the entire mountain gate was already filled with shouts of "Hey-ha-hey-ha," the sounds of people practicing martial arts.

Even the members of the Wave-Pushing Gang got up to practice their skills. Even though they were drunk yesterday, no one dared to stop practicing in the morning.

This is the foundation of one's character and the basis for all martial artists.

Practice boxing every day, through the coldest days of winter and the hottest days of summer, without ever slacking off.

If you slack off for even one day, you'll have wasted three days of practice, so naturally no one will be lazy.

Even playing mobile games and doing daily tasks can motivate so many people to do them every day, let alone practicing martial arts. As long as you have even a tiny bit of a martial artist's perseverance in your heart, you won't be ambiguous about practicing martial arts.

Li Qi waited quietly for their daily lessons to finish.

After it was over, they saw that Uncle Liu had dismissed the ordinary disciples and only brought his most trusted brothers.

Most of them were original members of the Wave-Pushing Gang, with only a few being newcomers who had recently gained their trust.

Uncle Liu urged everyone to hurry up and said to them, "No one is allowed to leak what happened today, understand?"

Uncle Liu didn't reach the rank of Master, and in fact, his Carp Flowing Intent wasn't very well practiced either. Almost everyone present could easily defeat him, but no one would question Uncle Liu's authority, even though he was weak.

As the leader of the Wave-Pushing Gang, his actions have always been remarkable.

He is impartial, does not seek personal gain, and even now, he has never married.

Actually, Uncle Liu used to have a wife, but after she died, he never remarried and still has no children.

In many people's eyes, if you don't even have children, what is there to be biased about? After all, you can't take anything with you when you die, and without children there are no heirs, so it's useless to be greedy.

With this connection, coupled with the trust that the elders of the Wave-Pushing Gang had in Uncle Liu, he became the undisputed leader of the gang.

Therefore, upon receiving Uncle Liu's warning, everyone immediately cupped their hands and said, "Understood!"

"I've already dismissed anyone irrelevant, so do you know why I called you here?" he asked the others.

Just then, a burly man came out.

His Liu Bo. He is a Xiantian martial artist in the Wave-Pushing Gang. Moreover, he is not a veteran of the Wave-Pushing Gang, but a newcomer who joined the gang with prior skills.

"Uncle Liu must have a reason for calling us here, but why make such a big fuss, even bringing along the inner sect deacons and the elders... Is it because of that person who came yesterday?" Liu Bo asked.

Liu Bo had a rather rugged appearance, with a large, thick body and broad shoulders. No muscles could be seen, only layers of fat. His skin was fair and oily, as if he had just climbed out of the water.

His face was round and chubby, his long hair was tied in a ponytail, he had two small mustaches, squinty eyes, and thick lips. He was a pampered, fair-skinned fat man.

However, if you were to fight him, you would know that beneath that fat body lies a rock-hard muscle. His physical training surpasses that of everyone in the Paibo Sect. If it weren't for the double burst of power from Carp Flowing Intent, no one in the Paibo Sect could contend with him. Even now, his combat strength is firmly among the top three in the Paibo Sect.

"Yes, it's the person who came yesterday. His name is Li Qi. He used to be one of our disciples, and he held a very high position. He's from the Paibo Sect." Uncle Liu raised one index finger.

This is considered slang; in the local context, it means something similar to a "brain trust."

"I see, I understand now. No wonder there was such a commotion yesterday. It turns out that Mou Suanzi has returned. Please invite him out quickly so I can meet him. There were so many people and the roads were so crowded yesterday that I didn't have a chance to see him!" Liu Bo said with a smile.

Uncle Liu patted his fat belly and said, "Celestial Person and came back suddenly. Everyone was so happy that they forgot about these things. We didn't mean to neglect you. Don't take it to heart. Look, today, you were the first person they came to. Everyone treats you like family."

Uncle Liu had already figured it out: Liu Bo was sulking because of yesterday's lavish banquet. He thought he was already one of the Paibo Men's own people, but suddenly someone he didn't recognize appeared.

But this person was very familiar to all the old gang members, and they suddenly had the feeling that "it turns out that everyone in the Paibo Gang had been keeping it from me in a tacit way."

Having this feeling, no matter what you say, there will be a lingering resentment in your heart. Uncle Liu saw this, so he spoke frankly and directly, so that people wouldn't overthink things.

As it turned out, Uncle Liu had already said so, Liu Bo was too embarrassed to say anything more. He simply nodded and stepped back.

He secretly hid his resentment, wanting to see what kind of 'schemer' Paibomen was like.

"Now that everyone knows why we're here today, keep your mouths shut and watch carefully. Think about who brought us this good life. Also, keep an eye on what Li Qi says next," Uncle Liu instructed the crowd.

Then some rough-looking men shouted, "What are you thinking about, Uncle Liu! Isn't Brother Li smarter than us? He has a plan, we'll just listen to him!"

"That's right!"

"Does this even need reminding? Everyone keeps it in mind every day when they practice!"

A chorus of agreement rang out. Now, everyone in the Paibo Sect knew that the Cultivation Method they practiced every day was brought back by Brother Li at great risk. Moreover, after handing over the Cultivation Method, Li Qi left in a hurry, probably because he was afraid that they would be implicated.

Now that Brother Li is back, everyone is overjoyed and has no intention of causing trouble at all!

"That's good. Then let's go see Li Qi. Remember what I just said," said Uncle Liu, before leading everyone into the courtyard.

Listening to the previous conversation, Liu Bo became even more curious.

He was well aware of the strength of the Paibomen gang, and they were all a bunch of brave and ruthless thugs who would risk their own lives to kill their opponents. Calling them vicious and wicked was definitely an understatement.

What kind of person could earn the respect and admiration of the people in the "Paibomen" group?

Filled with this curiosity, he followed the others into the courtyard.

In the courtyard, the original chunks of meat, grease, and leftover food from the banquet had been cleaned up, but Li Qi was seen standing in the middle of the courtyard, looking at them.

Li Qi smiled and said, "You've arrived? Uncle Liu, is this all that's left?"

Although he was mentally prepared, he was still somewhat disappointed to see that the Wave-Pushing Gang was now down to just over a third of its original size.

Dozens of brothers, even in death, waited for a chance to choose.

"Such a large family fortune, did it come for nothing? We've taken care of their wives and children, and kept their lineage. Even those who were single have found nephews to continue the family line. For those who didn't have nephews, we found orphans to take their surnames." It was Uncle Liu who stepped forward to comfort Li Qi.

In the early days of the Wave-Pushing Gang's business, they were not daring to fight or take risks. How did they manage to have such a good life now, with so many servants and wives?

So many brothers died, wasn't it all for this moment?

"Alright, let's leave it at that then." Li Qi nodded, walked past Uncle Liu, and looked at the people from the Wave Gate.

He cleared his throat and cast a Technique Method, using the wind to make his voice travel farther and louder.

"Brothers, there is something I would like to tell you all."

Everyone listened quietly, and even Liu Bo didn't speak at this moment. He wanted to see what kind of skills this strategist named Li Qi had.

"I want to take everyone to the Song Kingdom for a while. If you are not satisfied, you can come back. If you are happy in the Song Kingdom, then I will send you to Annam. This will probably take four or five years. After that, you can do whatever you want," Li Qi said.

Upon hearing this, everyone looked at each other in bewilderment.

Not to mention the members of the Wave-Pushing Gang, even Uncle Liu frowned.

"Brother Li, it's not that we don't trust you, but you need to give us a reason to abandon our families and careers, right?" At this moment, a Xiantian martial artist stepped forward.

In the martial arts world of Baiyue, the nine ranks are known as the Innate Rank.

Li Qi recognized this man; he was an old member of the Wave-Pushing Gang, known as Zhang Erdi. He hadn't been very prominent before, but now he had unexpectedly risen to the ninth rank.

The parents of the members of the Wave-Pushing Gang were not highly educated, so most of the Wave-Pushing Gang's names were numbers, such as Erdi (Second Brother), Huang Si, and the "Liu" in Uncle Liu) also came from their names.

"Zhang Er, when have I ever done anything without a reason? Don't be impatient, sit down and let me explain in detail." Li Qi waved his hand.

Zhang Erdi nodded, took two steps back, and waited for Li Qi to explain his reasons.

"Do you know how big the Great Deer Kingdom?" Li Qi asked the people around him.

The others, of course, had no idea and shook their heads.

But at this moment, Zhang Bo, an outsider, stepped forward. "The Great Deer Kingdom thirteen prefectures and one hundred and sixty-nine counties. We are in Li Prefecture. The entire Great Deer Kingdom spans more than one million li. I wonder why Brother Li is asking this?"

Li Qi heard the correct answer and was slightly surprised. He looked at Zhang Bo and said, "That's right, that's exactly it."

Li Qi had originally planned to wait until everyone shook their heads and said they didn't know before he could explain, but he didn't expect that someone would actually answer correctly.

So he looked at Zhang Bo with some surprise, and then said, "That's right, the Great Deer Kingdom spans over a million miles. Do you think it's big?"

"That's incredibly big, of course. The furthest I've ever gone is Yi County. I'd like to visit White Snake Prefecture later. I've heard that White Snake Prefecture is huge, and White Snake Mountain is as magnificent as the Li River!" Huang Si said immediately.

He has a free-spirited personality, just like his eagerness to find a wife. He also wants to travel and broaden his horizons after he becomes rich.

"Then look, that mountain." Li Qi pointed to a mountain about four or five miles away. It was a quarry. It seemed that a master had imprisoned the water and mountains there, turning it into a dead land that could be used exclusively for quarrying without worrying about the mountain god or wild beasts.

The crowd was puzzled by Li Qi's sudden change of topic, so they could only look at the mountain that covered two or three miles.

Someone immediately reminded Li Qi: "Brother Li, that's the Thousand Mechanisms Sect's quarry. What's wrong with that? What does it have to do with how big or small the Great Deer Kingdom is?"

"Watch closely," Li Qi said, reaching out his hand.

Suddenly, a Dharma image appeared behind him.

It was an extremely fragmented image, with its limbs not on its body, but barely attached together, like a puppet with dislocated joints, being lifted up by a strange force.

With his left hand, he radiates Buddha's light and holds up a flower; with his right hand, he uses demonic claws to

The head sits upright, representing the Shaman Primordial Spirit, with eyes radiating the light of the sun and moon.

His body exuded a myriad of Human Path, and his feet stood on a yin-yang symbol.

This image symbolizes Li Qi's severed Dao Path, but it is also a manifestation of his power.

When the Dharma Image appeared, the members of the Wave-Pushing Gang felt a sense of suffocation!

But then Faxiang reached out and turned his palm over.

A mountain covering two or three miles was flattened by a single blow!

Then, before anyone could speak, Li Qi said, "But if you ask me, this Great Deer Kingdom is too small."