Soul

In Green Water City, Yuanzhu Ward, Li Banfeng returned to his Second Residence.

The so-called "Second Residence" is where he hid the Green Water City contract. It looks like a house on the outside, but Li Banfeng actually entered the Dark Dimension Space.

He dug out the Local Earth Seal and placed it on his head.

Li Banfeng was never disappointed by the popularity of Green Water City. He sat by the wall and slowly enjoyed the atmosphere. It took him a full twenty-eight minutes to drain the popularity of the city.

Li Banfeng is now a cultivator at the second level of the Cloud Realm. He absorbed human energy for 28 minutes without feeling any obvious discomfort and was able to get up after resting for a while.

Green Water City is too popular and has too much stock, but the key problem is that the amount of popularity needed to upgrade from level two to level three is astonishing. Even after using up all the popularity of the Local Earth Seal, the quantity is still not enough.

Fortunately, the difference wasn't too great, so Li Banfeng went directly to Ye Song Bridge to attract a second wave of popularity.

Ma Wu was overwhelmed with work; he had too many things to do, and coupled with his resentment towards Ye Song Bridge, he didn't put much effort into the business.

He Yuxiu also disliked Ye Song Bridge, and she was currently busy managing her own territory.

Only Xiao Yeci was obedient enough. Li Banfeng told her to manage the business well, and she did a decent job, but there were no immediate results. Ye Song Bridge remained lukewarm, and his popularity was very limited.

After draining the Local Earth Seal, Li Banfeng hadn't even scraped together a fraction of the money. Besides Ye Song Bridge, there were other places to go, so Li Banfeng went to Sleepless Town.

Sleepless Town is a Proper Land piece of land, belonging to Exhortation Cultivator Wang Zimian. After killing Wang Zimian, Li Banfeng originally wanted to use Wang Zimian's land to save Shui Yongquan, but until now, he has not found a suitable way.

He dug up the contract, buried it again, and used the Local Earth Seal to gather the energy of the Sleepless Town.

After Exhortation Cultivator was expelled from Sleepless Town, order gradually returned to normal. People worked during the day and rested at night, at least living like normal people again.

However, the popularity of this place has not changed much. Even after Li Banfeng drained the Local Earth Seal, he still couldn't reach three levels.

He also has Proper Land, Flower Immortal Manor, a place where Hua Manchun.

This place is too special. There are only a group of women in the Flower Immortal Manor, all of whom were left behind by Hua Manchun. Apart from them, there are no other permanent residents in the vast area, which makes Flower Immortal Manor very unpopular.

In an environment with such limited resources, how can Hua Manchun achieve widespread prosperity?

According to the group of women, Hua Manchun's popularity mainly came from business. Based on this, it can be inferred that he obtained medicinal powder by refining corpses, and then used it to exchange for money and popularity.

After Hua Manchun died, the business naturally stopped, and Li Banfeng could only find a very limited number of customers there.

All the Proper Land has been found; only new land remains.

How much popularity can Sun Hung Kai Properties attract? Li Banfeng is not optimistic about it.

Besides attracting customers from his own territory, Li Banfeng could also borrow some from others, and the first place he thought of was the Ink Fragrance Shop.

Ink Fragrance Shop is a large city with a high population density. The Local Earth God is hard to define; it can be understood as someone who is lazy and unambitious, or someone who is always writing by the lake.

No matter which pen it is, they don't need popularity, so all that popularity shouldn't be wasted.

Li Banfeng went to the Ink Fragrance Shop and then headed straight for the Willow Garden.

Several snowfalls have blanketed the city in silver, making the atmosphere of the Ink Fragrance Shop even more inviting.

Upon reaching the garden gate, a woman called out earnestly, "I knew you would come, because you can understand my longing."

Xiao Yeci?

Li Banfeng was startled and almost slipped on the snow.

Xiao Yeci's cultivation has improved; he recognized me from this far away.

Impossible.

In Li Banfeng's memory, Xiao Yeci was a second-level literary cultivator. She had received a lot of resources from the Lu Family during this period, but even if she could keep up with the pills and her cultivation, she could only rise to the third level at most.

How could a cultivator on the third floor of the earth possibly notice House Cultivator on the Cloud Above Second Layer?

Li Banfeng remained calm and stared at Xiao Yeci for a moment.

Xiao Yeci sighed a few times in the snow and wrote down the sentence she had just heard in her notebook.

You Tao tugged at Xiao Yeci's sleeve. "Sister, that's enough already! Why do we have to come here to recite poetry? I'm freezing!"

Xiao Yeci said sadly, "Winter is here, it's cold everywhere."

You Tao laughed and said, "It's not cold in bed, is it?"

Xiao Yeci said nervously, "Don't do anything reckless! We're here to cultivate!"

"What kind of good cultivation is there here? You have to use classical Chinese phrases to even speak. When will you be able to cultivate properly? Let me tell you, I'll stay here with you for a month. Next month, you'll come with me to Belt Ridge."

"I really don't want to go down that Belt Ridge!"

"You have to go, whether you want to or not. It's something we agreed on."

Li Banfeng did not say hello to the two of them. He went to the willow forest alone. In the forest, he found the special willow tree and wrote the word "wisdom" under the tree with its branches.

The willow tree did not react.

Is it because the handwriting is messy, or is the writing style incorrect?

Li Banfeng took out the judge's pen and asked him to write the word "wisdom" one stroke at a time.

The willow tree remained unresponsive.

"It's been changed," the Judge's Brush said.

Someone changed the entrance.

"Is the Local Earth God in trouble again?"

"Peddler," the Judge's Brush replied with two words.

His guess was probably right. The person who changed the entrance was most likely Peddler. After the incident at the Ink Fragrance Shop, the Peddler would definitely have to take some precautions.

But he changed the entrance, how am I supposed to get in?

Li Banfeng was racking his brains. The Local Earth God's dwelling place was a lake, which might be Dark Dimension Space. He figured he could get in with Green Flower's Beggar Bowl, but was the entrance still in this forest?

As he was pondering, the Judge's Brush floated up from Li Banfeng's hand. "I'll do it."

"The entrance has changed, will you still be able to find it?"

"Yes." The Judge's Brush had a special affinity for this area. After searching the surroundings for a moment, it moved to a willow tree, wrote two characters for "wisdom," and then moved to the familiar lake surface.

It slowly came into view.

In early winter, before the lake froze, Li Banfeng could vaguely see the figure of the Local Earth God in the watchtower by the lake.

He was called Local Earth God, but he was actually a calligraphy brush, though Li Banfeng had fought him before.

When this calligraphy brush gets going, it can be quite formidable.

"A'Bi," Li Banfeng asked the Judge's Brush, "Do you know where the Local Earth Seal?"

Li Banfeng didn't want to clash with the calligraphy brushes directly; if he broke one, it would be difficult to maintain order at the Ink Fragrance Shop.

"Remember."

The Judge's Brush led the way quietly, while Li Banfeng followed stealthily behind.

After walking along the lake for a while, the Judge's Brush lifted a stone on the shore and opened a hidden compartment behind it.

Li Banfeng looked down into the hidden compartment and found it completely empty.

What about the Local Earth Seal?

The Judge's Brush was also somewhat confused. Could it be that someone had come by recently and taken away the Local Earth Seal?

How is the calligraphy brush?

Li Banfeng quietly approached the watchtower and peeked inside.

But the brush was still dressed as a scholar, holding the brush in his right hand and writing quickly on the white paper, while his left hand held Local Earth Seal on his head.

He can absorb human energy now?

Li Banfeng was deeply shocked, and even the Judge's Brush was somewhat surprised.

The scholar suddenly turned around and saw Li Banfeng and the Judge's Brush.

He quickly hid the Local Earth Seal behind his back and dipped the brush in ink.

Be prepared to fight Li Banfeng at any time.

The Local Earth Seal is in his hands; are you going to try and take it from him?

If it really came down to a fight, Li Banfeng was confident he could beat the scholar with the calligraphy brush, but Li Banfeng didn't want to do that.

Whether he was a scholar or a calligraphy brush, ever since the Judge's Brush handed him the position of Local Earth God, he had been fulfilling the duties of the Local Earth God, and the popularity of the Ink Fragrance Shop originally belonged to him.

Moreover, this is most likely not the first time he has absorbed popularity; the popularity stored in the Local Earth Seal should be almost depleted.

Li Banfeng left the watchtower with the Judge's Brush. As they traveled away, the projector spoke:

"That person was originally covered in a fearful green, but after we left..."

It turned a relaxed, pale yellow. We left, and he wasn't afraid anymore. Actually, we didn't mean to hurt him.

Li Banfeng shook his head and said, "Actually, we shouldn't have bothered him."

Since the Ink Fragrance Shop is out of the question, where else can I borrow some cultivation power?

Seven Autumn City?

Qiu Luoye are also hoping for a surge in popularity, so there can't be too much stock.

Black Stone Slope?

Tang Shijiang probably stopped using popularity a long time ago, but popularity is so valuable, it must have other uses, so it's really not easy to bring this up.

Try your luck at your new plot of land. Every little bit helps, and besides, you have more than one plot. If you really can't raise enough, go talk to Brother Tang again. But Brother Tang won't give you any.

We can borrow some more from Old Xu.

Li Banfeng first returned to his earliest piece of new land, which originally belonged to the Mountain Pulling Master's Territory.

He no longer needed to rely on Hong Ying's power; he could Unimpeded Travel on his own.

They could easily squeeze through the rock wall and enter the mansion of the Mountain Pulling Master.

Although he hadn't been back for a while, the blind Mountain Wolf could still recognize Li Banfeng's scent and trotted over to greet him.

"Master, you're finally back! We thought you'd abandoned us!"

Li Banfeng patted the Mountain Wolf's head. "You're not lacking anything in terms of food and drink, are you?"

"We don't lack anything. Those guys in the mountains are quite disciplined; they bring us food every three to five days."

Li Banfeng reminded, "Keep the accounts in the ledger. If anyone doesn't come for a long time, let me know."

Upon arriving at the backyard, Li Banfeng went down into the tunnel to retrieve the Local Earth Seal.

Looking at the Local Earth Seal, Li Banfeng didn't have much hope. This desolate place had some human activity, which was only supported by Strange Monsters. He estimated that one bite wouldn't even fill a gap between their teeth.

Li Banfeng placed the Local Earth Seal on his head, first separating the chaotic cultivation within it to one side, and then rapidly infusing his body with Qi.

Wait a minute, this quantity is unusual.

Li Banfeng used his Local Earth Seal to absorb the crowd for more than seven minutes, which was not only enough to fill a gap between his teeth, but also filled the space for advancing to the third floor.

Where does all this popularity come from?

Li Banfeng moved all the Strange Monsters from the Qiu Luoye area here. Could they all have been given by these Strange Monsters?

Impossible. If Strange Monsters were that efficient, Qiu Luoye would have already reached the Third Layer Above the Clouds.

Where else can this popularity come from?

As he pondered, Li Banfeng suddenly felt a tremor in his heart; someone wanted to reclaim wasteland right here on this piece of land.

Who is this person? How did they time it so perfectly?

Zhang Wanlong set up the offering table and placed the offerings on it. Little Genzi said, "Brother Zhang, do you really think the Local Earth God has returned? I don't feel anything at all."

"Brother, your cultivation is still a bit lacking. Cultivate for a few more years, and you'll start to understand." Zhang Wanlong squatted beside the offering table, waiting for the Local Earth God to respond. He waited for more than half an hour, but there was still no movement.

"That's strange. Is it because we didn't prepare enough offerings?" Zhang Wanlong looked at the offerings, counting on his fingers. "They should be about right. We're asking for the Mikasa territory, and I think we should have more than enough. Could it be that the Local Earth God hasn't returned—"

+

Zhang Wanlong pondered for a moment, then slapped his forehead and quickly ran to the Bamboo, where several bamboo shoots had just sprouted.

"It's my fault for being negligent. Luckily, the Local Earth God hasn't come yet. If he had seen this, it might have caused a lot of trouble." Zhang Wanlong sprinkled some moss, which quickly grew and covered the iron veins on the bamboo shoots.

Zhang Wanlong wanted to go back to the offering table to take another look, but suddenly he saw someone walking towards the bamboo forest in the distance.

"Who is this person?"

Looking at the man's silhouette, Little Genzi recognized him at a glance. "Seventh Master is here."

Zhang Wanlong quickly stepped forward to greet him, "Seventh Master, it's been a while since I've seen you. What brings you here?"

?

That sounds awkward. Li Banfeng is Local Earth God here, but to Zhang Wanlong...

He became the guest instead.

"Brother Zhang, I've come to ask you to do business. Do you have any good seeds lately?"

"Yes, my business here is all thanks to Seventh Master's patronage. As long as Seventh Master asks, I'll bring out all my best stuff. Let's sit on the estate for a while and chat."

J

Zhang Wanlong led Li Banfeng toward the village, which was a village they had specially built for the vegetative state patient he had cultivated to live in.

Just as he arrived at the village entrance, an old man was smoking. Upon seeing Zhang Wanlong, the old man greeted him first, "Uncle Zhang, you're back! My wheat harvest is almost done, but we're short-handed at home. I'll need your help, Uncle Zhang."

Zhang Wanlong nodded and said, "Don't worry, I've already spoken to them. In a couple of days, some migrant workers will come to your house to work. Be good to them, make sure they have enough to eat and drink, and don't skimp on their wages!"

Early winter is not the time to harvest wheat, but of course, this is not a difficult task for Zhang Wanlong. With his skills, he can have a harvest all year round.

The wheat isn't the point; the point is that the old man from earlier was a bit unusual.

Li Banfeng stared at the old man carefully for a few moments, then lowered his voice and asked, "Is this person real?"

"What do you mean 'really'?" Zhang Wanlong laughed and shook his head. "This is a loofah man I grew. If you look closely at his throat, you can even see the loofah seeds!"

"Does this person speak so fluently?"

Zhang Wanlong sighed, "I'm sorry to have made you laugh. This old man only knows a few phrases all year round, and I taught him them word by word."

Actually, he doesn't understand what these words mean. It's like a parrot mimicking speech. I'm going through all this trouble to teach him just for fun. Otherwise, in this desolate place...

"Won't this suffocate us two brothers?"

The question and answer went so smoothly, just for fun?

As they walked on, a pretty girl, about sixteen or seventeen years old, came towards them. She smiled sweetly at Little Genzi and said, "Brother Genzi, didn't you say you'd teach me to read the day before yesterday? I've been waiting for you at home for two days."

Little Genzi grinned sheepishly. "I'll go, I'll go in a bit."

The girl blushed and left. Little Genzi turned to Li Banfeng and said, "Seventh Master, the girl wants me to go over there. What do you think, should I go or not?"

Li Banfeng looked at the girl and didn't know how to answer. Zhang Wanlong frowned and said, "Brother, you're wrong about this. Aren't you making Seventh Master misunderstand?"

This girl is made of persimmons. I made it especially for Genzi. She's about my age.

He's stopped thinking about those trivial matters. Genzi is still young; he needs a girl to talk to.

Genzi looked at Li Banfeng and said, "I think this girl is sincere."

His words were simple and honest, but his expression carried a different meaning.

Looking at the passersby in the village, Li Banfeng couldn't help but exclaim, "Brother Zhang, your skills are truly superb!"

"How dare I say it's superb?" Zhang Wanlong shook his head and said, "You haven't seen what my master made. It not only looks like the real thing, but it can also fight. That's real skill."

Li Banfeng had seen the eggplant-shaped figures that Old Xu grew, but whether they could be used was another matter. In terms of appearance, they were not as delicate as those made by Zhang Wanlong.

Upon arriving at Zhang Wanlong's courtyard, two women brought basins and towels to help Zhang Wanlong wash his face and change his clothes.

A girl used a coin to wipe Zhang Wanlong's face and even kissed him on the cheek.

Zhang Wanlong pinched the girl's cheek, and the two looked very affectionate, which made the other girl very angry.

Li Banfeng laughed and said, "Brother Zhang, did you also cultivate these two confidantes? Didn't you say you weren't going to think about it anymore?"

Zhang Wanlong sighed, "I'm not thinking about romance anymore, but I can't forget about daily life. I work so hard on the farm, I need someone to do my laundry and cook for me."

"Seventh Master, it's lunchtime. I don't have any delicacies here, just a simple home-cooked meal. Would you do me the honor of having a couple of drinks with me?"

Li Banfeng nodded, and Zhang Wanlong quickly invited Li Banfeng to the living room, where a variety of dishes, both meat and vegetables, were laid out and were very exquisitely prepared.

"Seventh Master, since you don't have any female companions with you, please make do with me serving you." Little Genzi helped Li Banfeng hang up his coat and poured wine for the two of them.

After a couple of drinks, Zhang Wanlong asked, "Seventh Master, what kind of seeds do you want this time? Seeds for carrying water and chopping wood, or seeds for charging into battle?"

"What kind of person carries water and chops wood?"

"I have a group of celery workers here. They are hardworking and can endure hardship. You can take them home and let them do all the hard and tiring work. Just give them plenty of water and let them bask in the sun. They can easily last for a year or two."

"And those who charged into battle?"

"Those celery people won't make it; they're too fragile. I have a group of Winter Melon people here; they're big and strong. They can carry a tree stump and follow you to attack the city!"

Of course, the Winter Melon man isn't too tough either. I also have a batch of walnut men here. They're not very big, but they're naturally covered in a layer of hard armor, able to withstand cuts and axe blows. They're just a bit delicate, though; they need special fertilizer to maintain them. If the oil in the walnut kernel dries up, they won't be useful anymore.

Li Banfeng nodded and said, "I like everything you've said. Do you have any seeds that don't require blood?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"Using your seeds always involves spilling a drop of blood, which is a bit of a hassle. I'm looking for seeds that don't require spilling blood."

Zhang Wanlong shook his head slightly and said, "Seventh Master, this is putting me in a difficult position. If you're just talking about farming, then there's no need to shed blood. But if you're talking about turning seeds Shapeshifting humans, then you can't do it without shedding blood."

"Impossible," Li Banfeng turned around and looked at the two pretty girls in the room. "Whose blood did these two sisters-in-law spill?"

,

Zhang Wanlong patted his chest and declared, "It's my own blood!"

Li Banfeng laughed, "Brother Zhang, forgive my bluntness, but you're not that pretty."

"Take your time to refine them," Zhang Wanlong explained earnestly. "My two wives are made of peach and apricot, respectively. Although they are both based on me, I put a lot of effort into cultivating them."

As soon as it sprouts, it needs to be cared for bit by bit. Its eyebrows, eyes, lips, and teeth—how it grows, how much water it needs, how much fertilizer it needs, how many branches and leaves it needs to prune—all of this needs to be carefully considered.

Zhang Wanlong explained very carefully, and Li Banfeng listened very attentively. "Brother Zhang,

"Looking at everyone in this village, they all look different. Could it be that you cultivated them one by one?"

Zhang Wanlong said with a serious expression, "Of course! This is for us brothers to live on. If we all looked the same, wouldn't we go crazy?"

"That's right!" Li Banfeng picked up his wine glass and toasted with Zhang Wanlong.

Zhang Wanlong was a master at interrupting, Li Banfeng asked about the feasibility: how much time would it take to train so many people one by one?

Zhang Wanlong answered with necessity, saying that people you live with shouldn't all look the same, which made sense, but he avoided Li Banfeng's question. After drinking and chatting, Li Banfeng got up to leave after the meal, but Zhang Wanlong quickly tried to persuade him to stay, "Seventh Master, what's the rush? It's a rare opportunity for you to come, stay for a couple of days before you leave."

"I'm not staying here. I have urgent business to attend to. I'll come another day." As he spoke, Little Genzi brought Li Banfeng his coat and draped it over his shoulders.

There's something inside the clothes.

Li Banfeng remained silent. Zhang Wanlong and Little Genzi escorted him to the village entrance, where they said their goodbyes.

Little Genzi said to Zhang Wanlong, "Brother Zhang, have we forgotten the important matter? The offering table is still there, but we don't know if the Local Earth God has responded. I'll go and take a look."

Zhang Wanlong waved his hand and said, "No need to look. The Local Earth God has something to do, so he definitely didn't agree."

Little Genzi: "Something's wrong with the Local Earth God? How did you know?"

Zhang Wanlong laughed, "Brother, let's not bother clearing the land, let's just find a place to plant Bamboo."

"Isn't it a bit inappropriate to not consult with the Local Earth God?"

"I reckon the Local Earth God can't find fault, so just trust me."

As Li Banfeng walked on the new land, he could see people gathering herbs and hunting from time to time.

These people kept bringing things to the village.

Some could exchange a few words with each other, while others remained silent, preoccupied with their work.

These people seem to have all been cultivated by Zhang Wanlong. Are they really as heartless and mindless as Zhang Wanlong claims, just tools?

The projector provided the answer.

"Seventh Director, that old man at the village entrance, his clothes were originally light green. He was really worried that he wouldn't be able to harvest his wheat. But when Zhang Wanlong told him that the harvesters were coming soon, the old man's clothes turned yellow. He was very happy."

And that girl, after seeing Little Genzi, was covered in red; she genuinely liked Genzi.

Of the two girls in the room, one had a sweet red hue, she was favored, and the other had a sour orange-yellow hue, she was very jealous.

"What happened to the farmers and hunters of the past?"

"Some people have colored skin; some colors are very bright, while others are very light, so light that you can't even tell unless you look closely."

Others had completely blank skin; perhaps my eyesight wasn't good enough, or perhaps the colors on their skin were beyond my ability to distinguish.

A group of men carrying sickles entered the village; they must have been the wheat harvesters Zhang Wanlong had mentioned.

These people look very much like Zhang Wanlong. This is what the projector meant by "people with almost no color." These are the real "tools."

The other plant-based individuals with color possess a strong spirituality, close to that of humans; perhaps it could be called a soul.

No wonder this place is so popular.

No wonder Old Xu cares so much about this disciple.

Was what he did the right thing?

Pro State is not Outer State, and the standards for judging things are different. In this case, Li Banfeng cannot make a judgment.

After walking a distance, Li Banfeng quietly returned to his Portable Abode, took off his coat, and took out a Bamboo from the lining of his clothes.

This Bamboo stalk was inserted from Little Genzi.

Li Banfeng held the Bamboo for a moment and, by the light of the record player, he saw one bright iron bar after another.

!

The record player, belching steam, asked, "Husband, what is this?"

"My Wife, this looks like Iron Tendon Bamboo."

"That doesn't seem right," the Wife, using a needle to examine the Bamboo for a moment.

Iron Tendon Bamboo usually has ten iron ribs, but this Bamboo only has eight.

What is the use of Bamboo with eight iron ribs?

The record player shook its horn. "I've never seen anything like this Little Slave."

What exactly is Zhang Wanlong trying to do?

Is this an experimental sample of Iron Tendon Bamboo?

Li Banfeng now deeply understood Xu Han's feelings; Zhang Wanlong was an unpredictable person.

There's no time to deal with this right now. Li Banfeng said, "Wife, I've had enough popularity. I'm almost ready for a promotion."

Hong Ying was overjoyed. "Seventh Son, let's also upgrade our Travel Cultivator by three levels!"

Li Banfeng shook his head and said, "My popularity is enough to start a business."

Hong Ying objected. "Why can't a business be left to me? Does it have to be left to Xiao Wan?"

"Husband, what kind of Travel Cultivator is this!" The Wife slapped Hong Ying. This girl Hong Ying was too unreasonable. Li Banfeng was eager to advance to the third level in order to save the gloves with the "Carefree Sleep Technique". Travel Cultivator was not in a hurry. "Husband, let's steadily advance to the House Cultivator level first. Because of the time shortage, you need to take a whole Profound Essence Pill. After the effects of the medicine have stabilized, Little Slave help you advance."

"Eat a whole Profound Essence Pill?" Li Banfeng was afraid he wouldn't be able to handle it.

The record player was also worried that Li Banfeng wouldn't be able to hold on. "My Little Slave, if you're going to do as I say, it's not too late for you to wait another year or two. I can stabilize the glove's Curse Art. As long as Smiling Thousand Hands can't find him, his life should be fine."

Probably not.

A group of magical artifacts, including the Judge's Brush, were all watching Li Banfeng.

Li Banfeng took out a Profound Essence Pill and put it in his mouth.

"Come here, my Wife."