A Great Opportunity

Literary Cultivators and Martial Cultivators were easy enough to understand.

Literary and martial arts could both be considered cultivation.

Poison Cultivators and Medicine Cultivators also dealt in skills, which was understandable too.

But what were Smoke Cultivators and Wine Cultivators?

Li Banfeng asked, "Smoking and drinking count as cultivation too?"

"Of course they do! Why wouldn't they? Whether it's smoking or drinking, as long as you can cultivate a realm, it counts as cultivation!" Qin Xiaopang said proudly. "Liu Erbo from our village had to drink five jin of liquor every day. Only later did we find out he was a second-layer Wine Cultivator!"

Ma Wu was skeptical. "What did this Liu Erbo of yours do for a living? Could he afford to cultivate wine?"

Wine cultivation really was not something just anyone could afford. Five jin of liquor a day—how much money would that cost?

Qin Xiaopang said indignantly, "Liu Erbo was a liquor brewer!"

Ma Wu remained doubtful. "Even if he brewed liquor, how many jin could he make in a day? He drank five jin himself every day. Was the liquor he brewed enough for him?"

Li Banfeng felt Ma Wu was being a bit too nitpicky. What if Liu Erbo owned a distillery?

Yet unexpectedly, Ma Wu really latched onto the matter. "Wine Cultivators aren't common. I'd like to meet this Liu Erbo of yours. Where is he?"

Qin Xiaopang puffed out his chest. "Dead!"

Ma Wu frowned. "How did he die? Don't tell me he drank himself to death!"

A Wine Cultivator could not possibly drink himself to death.

Qin Xiaopang scratched his head. "It had something to do with drinking, but you can't exactly say he died from drinking.

"That day, Liu Erbo got completely drunk, jumped into the river, and drowned."

Ma Wu gave a nasal laugh. "Brother, it's not that I don't believe you, but that makes no sense. How could a second-layer cultivator drown so easily?"

Qin Xiaopang answered very seriously, "He didn't drown easily. After Liu Erbo jumped into the river, he swam around joyfully. It wasn't a big deal at first.

"The villagers told him to get ashore quickly, saying there was a river mouth ahead where the current ran swift.

"Liu Erbo said he wasn't afraid no matter how swift the current was. He said he had seen the Patriarch, and the Patriarch had changed his cultivation path, turning him into a Water Cultivator."

"A Water Cultivator..." Ma Wu pinched his chin and pondered for a long while. "That cultivation path does exist, but it isn't common. Did Liu Erbo really become a Water Cultivator?"

"Who knows?" Qin Xiaopang shook his head. "I didn't believe it, and neither did the villagers.

"To prove it to us, Liu Erbo deliberately swam to the deepest spot at the river mouth, where the current was fiercest, then plunged headfirst into the mud at the riverbed. By the time we hauled him out, his mouth and nose were packed with silt, and he had long since stopped breathing."

Hearing this, Ma Wu let out a long sigh. He seemed to believe Qin Xiaopang now. "Wine cultivation is far too perilous a path."

Li Banfeng asked, "How much did Liu Erbo drink that day?"

Qin Xiaopang replied, "They said twelve jin."

No wonder he had seen the Patriarch.

"Twelve jin? Could anyone even drink twelve jin of water?" Li Banfeng sincerely found it absurd, but then he remembered this chubby fellow needed to eat twenty jin of food. This place itself was absurd.

"Does a Wine Cultivator have to desperately drink liquor?" Li Banfeng wanted to understand the ins and outs better.

"Of course they have to drink desperately. Otherwise, how would they earn time?" Qin Xiaopang looked at Li Banfeng with a solemn expression.

"What does earning time mean?" Li Banfeng still did not understand.

The chubby boy looked down on Li Banfeng even more. "Why don't you know anything?"

Ma Wu was patient and explained to Li Banfeng, "No matter which cultivation path you enter, once you pass the gate and gain a layer, you must continue cultivating afterward.

"But if you cultivate step by step, each layer takes ten years. In other words, going from the first layer to the second takes ten years. To cultivate from entry all the way to the Tenth Layer takes ninety years. Can you wait that long?"

Li Banfeng did not know how to answer.

He did not know how great the gap between the first and second layers was, how much benefit it brought, or whether it was worth ten years.

Ma Wu continued, "If you don't want to wait, then you have to earn that time back. I don't know the rules for Wine Cultivators, but I've seen a first-layer Food Cultivator. Eating five jin of food a day was called following the usual course. If he ate less than that, his cultivation would regress.

"Eating ten jin a day was called earning time. The extra five jin helped him earn one additional day of cultivation. If he kept eating ten jin every day, he could rise to the second layer after five years!

"If he kept eating twice as much, he wouldn't need ninety years. In forty-five years, he could cultivate to the Tenth Layer."

"What are the benefits of reaching the Tenth Layer?"

Ma Wu said, "In all of Medicine King Gully, there has never even been a sixth-layer cultivator. Once you reach the seventh layer, you'll be the boss of Medicine King Gully.

"Forget Medicine King Gully—even in all of Pro State, Tenth Layer cultivators can be counted on one's fingers. They are true regional powers!"

Li Banfeng had little interest in becoming a boss. "By the time you reach the Tenth Layer, you'll be seventy or eighty years old. What good is being a regional power then?"

"What's wrong with being seventy or eighty?" Ma Wu smiled. "Upon reaching the Tenth Layer, your life itself changes. Your lifespan triples.

"If you could originally live to a hundred, now you can live to three hundred. Seventy or eighty, converted by that factor of three, is only in your twenties. That's the very prime of life!"

Reaching the Tenth Layer meant a tripled lifespan!

That was immensely tempting!

Qin Xiaopang slapped his chest. "Ever since the day I was born, the neighbors all said I was blessed. I'll definitely attain Tenth Layer cultivation!"

Li Banfeng looked at Qin Xiaopang. "So, Brother Xiaopang, you'll have to eat five jin of food every day from now on?"

"Once I reach the second layer, that still won't be enough..." Qin Xiaopang grew worried as he said this.

He was not worried that he could not eat it. He was worried that he could not afford it.

But he had already made his choice, because he knew that aside from eating, he had no other talent.

Li Banfeng asked, "If you cultivate to the Ninth Layer, how many times longer does your lifespan become?"

"The Ninth Layer doesn't extend it at all!" Ma Wu waved a hand. "Only by reaching the Tenth Layer can you change your fate. At the Ninth Layer, you still have an ordinary person's lifespan. If you cannot reach the Tenth Layer in your lifetime, all your previous efforts will have gone to waste."

That was rather harsh. Before the Tenth Layer, one could not extend one's life at all.

If one cultivated step by step, reaching the Ninth Layer required eighty years. Even if one started cultivating at ten, one would be ninety upon reaching the Ninth Layer. Would there still be strength left to continue cultivating then?

That was probably why cultivators all wanted to desperately earn time and shorten their cultivation period. They all wanted to charge at the Tenth Layer within their lifetimes.

"Is every cultivation path like this?"

Ma Wu nodded. "Every cultivation path is like this. If you want to change your fate, you must cultivate with all your strength and charge toward the Tenth Layer.

"Martial Cultivators must train desperately every day. Literary Cultivators must study desperately. Food Cultivators must eat desperately. Joy Cultivators must do it desperately.

"Of course, there are shortcuts: eating medicinal herbs, drinking medicinal soup, swallowing pills. But those things are too expensive and cannot sustain you for long."

Li Banfeng thought for a moment and asked, "What about Farming Cultivators?"

Qin Xiaopang froze. "Why choose Farming Cultivation? You aren't trying to save money, are you?"

Li Banfeng really was trying to save money.

He only had two thousand yuan on him. He could not afford medicinal powder.

When Monkey Qiu had left, he had promised to pay for whichever medicinal powder Li Banfeng chose. Li Banfeng could choose any cultivation path.

But Li Banfeng was not shameless. Two boxes of instant noodles had earned back a life. That was enough. Why should he make someone else spend so much money on him?

Ma Wu shook his head. "Brother Li, you must be careful with this. You can't covet this bargain. Medicinal powders have no hierarchy of value; they all embody the wisdom of our predecessors. The reason Farming Cultivator powder sells cheaply is because no one buys it, because Farming Cultivation is the most grueling path."

"How so?"

Ma Wu said, "I don't know what things are like in the Outer State, but there should be farmers there too, right? You should know how hard farmers work.

"Sowing in spring and harvesting in autumn, laboring every day without rest—this only counts as ordinary, step-by-step cultivation.

"Exhausting your heart and strength to seek out fine seeds and grow strange flowers and exotic plants—that is how you earn time.

"Brother Li, think about it. When you're seventy or eighty, will you still be able to farm?

"If you encounter wind disasters, floods, droughts, or locust plagues, and one year's harvest falls short, not only will you fail to earn time, your cultivation may even be damaged.

"If you encounter enemies or villains who come to steal, rob, or set a fire, you may end the year without a single grain to show for it. That would not merely damage your cultivation—it could endanger your life.

"Brother Li, this path is too arduous. Be cautious, exceedingly cautious!"

It seemed Farming Cultivation could not be chosen. Ma Wu was right; that path was truly too difficult.

Li Banfeng roughly understood Joy Cultivators and Food Cultivators now.

"Then how do Travel Cultivators cultivate?"

"They just travel everywhere!" This was something the chubby boy could answer. "The more places they go, and the farther they travel, the faster their cultivation grows and the more time they earn.

"People with no fixed abode all like Travel Cultivation!"

"What about House Cultivators?"

"They lie around at home. The longer they lie there, the faster their cultivation grows!"

Li Banfeng was stunned. "You can cultivate just by lying at home?"

"Yes, that's why House Cultivator powder is so expensive!" Qin Xiaopang looked regretful. "If I'd saved up enough money, I would have chosen House Cultivation. Ma Wu, you look rich. Why didn't you choose House Cultivation?"

Ma Wu shook his head. "I can't bear that loneliness. Spending most of every year shut inside a house would bore me to death.

"To be honest with you both, my favorite thing in life is the word 'joy.' Without women by my side, I can't last a single day."

Li Banfeng said, "That's simple. Bring women into your house."

Ma Wu sighed softly. "You can't just bring anyone in. House Cultivation works differently from the other paths. Cultivation isn't earned by one person alone; it is gained together with a Home Spirit."

"What is a Home Spirit?" Li Banfeng had heard rather too many new terms.

That question stumped Ma Wu.

"What exactly a Home Spirit is, I can't explain either. House Cultivators rarely show themselves, especially after gaining layers. House dwellers are exceedingly difficult to encounter.

"I only know that a House Cultivator must buy a good house. It cannot be too conspicuous, or people will disturb it; nor can it be too secluded, or food and drink will become a problem.

"The house itself must possess spiritual energy. Nurture that energy until it becomes a Spiritual Object, and it becomes a Home Spirit.

"What that Spiritual Object truly is, I do not know. But if House Cultivators want to advance in layers, they must have a Home Spirit. This hurdle is extremely difficult to cross.

"Home Spirits have temperaments. If a House Cultivator can please a Home Spirit, the Home Spirit can help the cultivator earn a vast amount of cultivation.

"If they cannot please it, their cultivation will not advance. If they anger it, there have even been cases of Home Spirits killing their masters—killing the cultivator outright."

Li Banfeng listened with wide eyes, and Qin Xiaopang listened just as intently. House Cultivation truly was a mysterious path.

Li Banfeng asked, "Why would a Home Spirit become enraged? How could it go so far as to kill its master?"

Ma Wu said, "I've only heard of that happening once, and it happened right here in Medicine King Gully.

"Home Spirits love cleanliness. When they encounter something unclean, they try to clean it up. Thus, House Cultivators must diligently maintain their homes.

"There was a House Cultivator in Medicine King Gully who was incredibly filthy. Never mind neglecting his house—he didn't wash his face, bathe, wash his hair, wash his clothes, or groom his beard and hair. He was always covered in grime.

"The Home Spirit endured it and often helped him wash his clothes, wipe his face, and cut his hair, tidying him up a little.

"But the man never repented. Not only was he filthy himself, he brought a whole group of filthy friends to live in the house for many days.

"Outsiders could not stay in the house without the Home Spirit's permission, yet those people turned the entire place into a complete mess. The Home Spirit became enraged. One night, it killed the cultivator and all his friends. Not one was spared!"

Qin Xiaopang shuddered. He was usually rather sloppy himself. "What happened to that Home Spirit afterward?"

"It remained in the house and became an Evil Spirit. It's still harming people even now."

"No one dealt with it?"

"Who would? There are Evil Spirits everywhere. Who has the time to bother with this one?"

As he listened to Ma Wu and Qin Xiaopang chatting idly, Li Banfeng sank into thought.

Which cultivation path suits me?

Is this important?

It was very important, because it concerned saving his life.

According to the Peddler, once one had been exposed to heavenly light, failing to enter a cultivation path meant certain death.

But as long as he casually chose some cultivation path, wouldn't his life be saved?

Wasn't the purpose of my trip to save someone? Is choosing a cultivation path really important?

Of course it was important!

How rare is this opportunity?

I offended those people from the Dark Star Bureau. They said they would shoot me dead. If I want to live, I must learn real skills to protect myself!

More importantly, there was the grand dream of Tenth Layer cultivation!

"Good is good, bad is bad. The truth is that simple," Li Banfeng murmured.

Qin Xiaopang did not hear clearly. "Brother Li, what good thing and bad thing did you say?"

Li Banfeng did not answer.

What lay before him was a good thing. No matter how many additional factors there were, gaining extraordinary power and an extraordinarily long life was a good thing.

Choosing a cultivation path suited to him would be the best of good things.

But which cultivation path suited him?

I know far too little about these cultivation paths.

"What abilities do cultivators of each path possess?"

"That gets complicated," Ma Wu said. "Martial Cultivators can fight, Literary Cultivators can curse, Travel Cultivators can run, and Food Cultivators eat their fill and have both techniques and strength."

Qin Xiaopang added, "Joy Cultivators can go ten times a day without breaking a sweat!"

Ma Wu smiled. "That's far from all they can do. Joy Cultivators excel at disturbing people's minds."

"What about House Cultivators?"

Ma Wu said, "House Cultivators can both attack and defend. The specifics depend on the temperament of the Home Spirit. Outside their house, their combat power is average among cultivators of the same layer. Inside their house, their combat power is unmatched among those of the same layer. They can even cross one layer and still have the strength to fight!"

House Cultivators were that powerful?

Should I choose House Cultivation?

He could repay Monkey Qiu later, but where would he buy a house?

(End of Chapter)