The World's Misunderstanding Runs Too Deep

"We've already given them all, so let's give them some more..."

Hong Ying chopped off one of the beggar's hands and stuffed it into his mouth. "Is that enough?"

Li Banfeng was very curious how Hong Ying, who couldn't see, could still insert the filling so accurately.

Perhaps because he had been beaten so many times before, Qi Xiu was indeed resilient. He spat out the hand from his mouth and even tried to use his technique. "I've given it all..."

A cloud of steam rose from his feet to his head, peeling away a layer of skin from the beggar. In excruciating pain, the beggar gave up resisting.

"Spare my life! I'm Local Earth God! I was sent by someone! I didn't mean to harm you!"

Hong Ying was stunned for a moment upon hearing this, and then said to Li Banfeng, "Seventh Son, this is not Thin Donkey Yuan."

Li Banfeng feigned surprise. "Oh, really not?"

Hong Ying shook the gun barrel. "Although Thin Donkey Yuan escaped, he's not a spineless coward."

Upon hearing this, Tang Blade straightened his back.

The record player asked, "Who sent you?"

"I, I..." The beggar coughed repeatedly.

"Not going to talk?" The record player sneered, puffs of steam washing over the skinless beggar's body.

"Uh, uh..." The beggar was still coughing; he seemed to have lost the ability to speak.

Hong Ying shouted, "Wicked Woman, don't hit me so hard! We haven't gotten any answers yet!"

"It seems we can't get any more information out of him," the record player said, probing the beggar's throat with the stylus. "He can't speak anymore; someone has tampered with him."

"If you can't say it, then write it!" Hong Ying shouted angrily. The beggar dipped his finger in his own blood and tried to write on the ground.

His fingers festered instantly.

"Something's wrong!" The record player steamed the beggar alive. "Husband, stay away from him!"

Li Banfeng scratched his cheek, seemingly indicating that something was wrong.

In the wilderness, Cui Tike was still searching for the beggar's trail when he suddenly heard Li Banfeng call out from behind, "Dr. Cui Tike, it's so late, are you here for a walk?"

Cui Tike slowly turned around and smiled at Li Banfeng, "You can see me."

He possesses the power of the Green Water Beggar, so Li Banfeng shouldn't be able to see him.

But with his Golden Eyes Autumn Down Technique, Li Banfeng saw it.

In Cui Tike's view, this was Li Qi's strength.

Cui Tike shrugged and said, "Looks like I underestimated you. To tell you the truth, I'm here to see that beggar."

Li Banfeng deliberately asked, "Which beggar?"

Cui Tike laughed, "It's pointless to talk about this anymore. Judging from the current situation, he's probably already dead at your hands."

"Li Qi, I've never understood why you hid from us when we first met in Medicine King Gully. Dabo Ensi's and I both wanted to capture you, even though neither of us was a match for you."

Li Banfeng certainly wouldn't say that he couldn't beat them back then; he put it another way. "Because I really wanted to be your friend."

Cui Tike nodded. "Your feigned sincerity has deeply moved me. If I'm not mistaken, the beggar I was looking for is already dead at your hands."

I've arrived at the wrong place at the wrong time. Your task now is to kill me to silence me.

"But I don't want you to kill me. Can we find a compromise?"

Li Banfeng pondered for a moment and said, "That depends on how deep our friendship is."

"I don't trust friendship, but I do trust business. How about we make a deal?"

Tell me about it.

Cui Tike said, "I really don't know where that beggar went. I'll just assume you killed him."

I need to tell someone very important about his murder, but I won't say it was you. I'll say it was someone wearing White Clothes, and that I saw it with my own eyes. Can you accept that?

The person in White Clothes refers to Cantaloupe Hong Ying, who is wearing White Clothes.

It is indeed difficult to associate this with Li Banfeng.

After thinking for a moment, Li Banfeng replied, "Whether I can accept it depends on what kind of bargaining chips you can offer."

Cui Tike said, "I can cure your illness. Do you feel a little itchy on your face?"

He was right; Li Banfeng really did feel an itch on his face.

No one in the family showed any abnormalities, including Hong Ying, whose flesh and blood had already grown back.

Only Li Banfeng's face was itchy so badly that it was the reason he temporarily left Portable Abode.

Cui Tike told Li Banfeng about it, "This is an illness from my Dao Gate Ancestor. It's very deadly, but much better than the boils I had before."

"I can cure your illness. Do you think that's enough?"

"Your Dao Gate Ancestor? The Green Water Beggar?" Li Banfeng was very nervous, but he didn't show it on his face. His expression remained calm. "As far as I know, there is no way to cure the Green Water Beggar's illness except by consulting him personally."

Qiu Zhiheng once told Li Banfeng that even Yao Lao couldn't crack the Green Water Beggar's techniques.

But Cui Tike was confident. "I have the strength I need now. You can distrust me, or you can kill me immediately."

Perhaps you have other ways to heal yourself, but that takes time. However, as long as the patriarch's illness is with you, he can pinpoint your location and could find you at any time.

You probably don't want him to find you, so this deal is a good option for you, don't you think?

Using his talent for House Cultivator, combined with the power of the house and its Home Spirit, he might be able to counter Green Water Beggar's techniques, but Cui Tike is right, it will take time.

Li Banfeng nodded and said, "I think this deal is very reasonable."

Cui Tike walked up to Li Banfeng, staring intently at Li Banfeng's face. "Don't worry, I won't ambush you, that would be too foolish. Give me some time, and the problem will be solved soon."

After a few minutes, Li Banfeng felt the itching stop.

Cui Tike's face contorted in pain, and his cheeks broke out in a dense rash. He had transferred the disease left behind by the Green Water Beggar onto himself.

"The taste of the patriarch's food is truly different..." Cui Tike said with difficulty, "I have fulfilled my promise, can I leave now?"

Li Banfeng nodded. "Before you leave, could you reveal some of your ancestor's intentions? Was this beggar sent by him?"

"He sent him; he's very concerned about your land reclamation."

"Why does he mind my land reclamation? Is it because I gathered a large number of people in Green Water City?"

Cui Tike shook his head and said, "I don't know the specific reasons yet, but my advice to you is to continue doing what you want to do."

Why do you say that?

"Because that's the kind of person the Green Water Beggar is. Even if you want to stop now, he won't let you go."

Goodbye, my friend. Don't touch that beggar's corpse again.

There's no need to worry about that. The beggar has already been eaten by his family, and the few remaining corpses have been disposed of by Red Lotus. After everyone finished eating, they were all disinfected by the Wife with steam.

What really worries Li Banfeng is what the Green Water Beggar will do next.

Upon returning to the hospital, Cui Tike immediately prayed to the Green Water Beggar: "Great Ancestor, I have been monitoring the beggar's movements as you instructed, and now he is no longer in this world."

A short while later, the Green Water Beggar appeared before Cui Tike: "Explain yourself clearly, is he dead?"

"Yes." Cui Tike nodded.

"Where's the body?"

"I destroyed it."

"Why?"

"Because his body contains the power of the patriarch, if others discover his body, they might be able to find the patriarch's whereabouts."

Green Water Beggar smiled, "You did a good job. Do you want to know who that beggar is?"

"The premise is that the Grandmaster is willing to tell me, and that it is something I can know."

Green Water Beggar laughed and said, "It's still hard for me to understand what you're saying, but what you say is quite pleasant to hear. This beggar is called Dogtail Grass, and he's the Local Earth God next to Blue Poplar Village."

I've fought him several times over the years, and I've taken over 70% of his territory. His cultivation level is about to plummet to rock bottom.

Now that he's dead, there's no need to leave him the rest of the land; I'll take it all.

"If you are fortunate enough to cultivate your way to the clouds in the future, you can also come to me for a piece of land."

"Thank you for your blessings, Master."

The Green Water Beggar shook his head and said, "Don't thank me yet. The matter isn't over. Did you see who killed him?"

Cui Tike answered truthfully, "I didn't see the fight, I only saw a figure in White Clothes."

Green Flower laughed, "That bitch on the Bastard Slope actually made Zhong Huaien and that piece of clothing take action in order to protect Li Qi. What level is that piece of clothing at that that it was able to kill Dogtail Grass?"

Looks like I can't just sit idly by; I have to give them a response.

Cui Tike bowed deeply and said, "I am willing to do everything in my power to help the founder win this war."

"War? I'm not used to hearing these words from you," Green Water Beggar chuckled. "I've already made my move. I bet Chu Shaoqiang can't withstand it, just like back then."

In a Western-Style House next to Goat Horn Garden, Chu Shaoqiang, the former head of the Chu family, was sitting on the sofa wearing a gray-white overcoat, listening to Zhong Huaien, a young man in White Clothes, report the results of his investigation.

"Mister Chu, Li Qi has returned to Green Water City. He has contacted the He Family and seems to have a very close relationship with He Yuxiu. He has recruited more pioneers. Shouldn't we make a move against him?" Zhong Huaien stroked his chin.

Chu Shaoqiang shook his head. "This matter isn't urgent. I'd really like to talk to Qiu Luoye, since his contract is still under the control of the Inner State."

I heard that the Guanfang Envoy has made some moves, seemingly aimed at me.

Zhong Huaien knew about this and was about to tell Chu Shaoqiang: "General Envoy Liao sent someone to find the Qingshou Association, hoping to meet with you."

"I won't see him," Chu Shaoqiang refused outright. "I also advise you not to have too much contact with him. You should have heard about my past."

Zhong Huaien scratched his cheek and said, "But Master said that if we want to regain our country, we can't do without the support of the Guanfang Envoy."

Chu Shaoqiang shook his head and laughed, "The Guanfang Envoy won't support you; only the Inner State can help you."

"But Master said..." Zhong Huaien scratched his cheeks vigorously, and one by one, glistening blisters slowly rose on his face.

Chu Shaoqiang frowned, got up, and hid at a distance. "Have you seen the Green Water Beggar?"

Zhong Huaien shook his head blankly. "I haven't seen him. I've been hiding from him as you instructed."

"Looks like you didn't manage to dodge!" Chu Shaoqiang prepared to leave the Western-style building immediately.

Zhong Huaien then realized that he might have fallen victim to the Green Water Beggar's technique.

He quickly caught up. "Mister Chu, please tell me what to do? Is there any way to cure the illness caused by the Green Flower seed?"

Chu Shaoqiang offered the following advice. "Steam it in boiling water for a few hours, and it should be fine."

"Steaming or boiling?" Zhong Huaien shook his head and said, "I can't withstand steaming or boiling; my cultivation level isn't high enough."

Chu Shaoqiang tried to keep his distance from Zhong Huaien: "I'm talking to the clothes you're wearing."

The White Clothes immediately left Zhong Huaien and ran to the kitchen to boil water.

Wan Jinxian contacted He Jiaqing: "Jiaqing, Green Flower wants to join forces with us."

"Green Flower? Isn't he the henchman of Inner State? How could he possibly team up with us?" He Jiaqing was delivering food on his electric scooter, and the nearby residential areas were quite lively.

"He's fallen out with Inner State, and Inner State sent Chu Shaoqiang over, apparently wanting to fight him."

"Wasn't Chu Shaoqiang dead?"

"He didn't die. His cultivation has reached the Cloud Realm, and he even has some dealings with Li Qi."

"How could Li Qi possibly have any dealings with Chu Shaoqiang? What has he been busy with lately?" He Jiaqing suspected that Wan Jinxian's information was incorrect.

"Li Qi has been busy reclaiming wasteland recently. He returned to Green Water City last night, and someone saw him enter the He Family. He Yuxiu personally welcomed him in, and he didn't come out until the next morning."

Clang!

He Jiaqing bumped into the curb, overturned the takeout box, and spilled the takeout all over the ground.

Wan Jinxian was still waiting for a reply, "Jiaqing, what's the story about Green Flower?"

"Let's stall for time and not give him a definite answer. Let me find out the truth first."

He Jiaqing cut off the contact and stood beside the electric scooter, cursing, "Shameless! Two shameless people! Don't they know they're from different generations? They're fucking shameless!"

My phone kept ringing with urgent messages. "Your order has expired."

Zhong Huaien arrived at Medicine King Gully, deep in the mountains, at Yao Lao's residence.

He knew that Yao Xin had gotten into trouble, and he also knew that Xu Han lived here.

This was Chu Shaoqiang's idea to him: if he wanted to live, he should go find Jin Xiuzhi's ancestor. If Xu Han was willing to help him, there might still be a glimmer of hope.

Seeing Zhong Huaien covered in blisters, Old Xu frowned and said, "Child, have you fallen victim to Green Flower's technique?"

Zhong Huaien cried, "I'm just an ordinary citizen of Green Water City. That day, I met a beggar covered in sores, and I even gave him some money. As a result, I turned into this when I got home."

Later, a wise man told me that if I came to Medicine King Gully to find you, I might still be able to save my life, so I...

Xu Han interrupted Zhong Huaien: "Child, don't rush, make yourself clear first. You say you're an ordinary person, but I don't think that's quite right. If I'm not mistaken, you should be a disciple of Sage Peak, right?"

Upon realizing his identity had been exposed, Zhong Huaien didn't dare to argue. "Old Xu, I know you and my master have some past grievances."

I truly knew nothing about what happened between you two. Please, have mercy and save my life.

Zhong Huaien knelt on the ground. He was very familiar with this procedure on Sage Peak and could kneel for days and nights without any problem.

Xu Han quickly helped Zhong Huaien up. "What does our older generation's business have to do with you, a child? You've come all this way, how could I just stand by and watch you die?"

"Stay here for a couple of days. Once I've finished what I'm doing, I'll get you some medicine."

Zhong Huaien knelt on the ground and refused to get up. "Old Xu, I can't wait any longer. I'm so itchy all over, I can hardly go on living."

Left with no other choice, Old Xu immediately set to work and prepared a large bucket of golden juice for Zhong Huaien.

"Come, child, soak here for three days, and you'll be cured."

Here, soak...

Zhong Huaien felt it was somewhat difficult.

Xu Han frowned and said, "Child, you're here to get treatment, why are you being so picky? If you can't even tolerate this, how can you save your life?"

Zhong Huaien gritted his teeth, stripped off his clothes, and went into the tub, immersing his entire body in the golden liquid.

"That's right. Lower your head a little further and immerse your mouth and nose in the water. When you need to breathe, stick your nose out, but make sure your mouth doesn't come out."

With a strained, bubbly voice, Zhong Huaien asked, "Will this really cure the illness?"

"You came to me, don't you trust me? Child, you stay here and soak for a while, I'll go up the mountain to find you some more medicinal herbs."

Old Xu stepped out of the courtyard, sighed softly, and muttered to himself, "The world misunderstands me so much. Why does everyone think I'm a good person?"

PS: Zhong Huaien, the most arrogant disciple under the Sage, succumbed to his golden dreams.