Hu Bugui

Biodata

Feature	Details
Name	Hu Bugui (胡不归)
Alias(es)	Peddler Hu Bugui
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Beast Spirit Valley
Occupation/Role	Spirit-beast manure peddler and supplier; trader of young spirit beasts
Status	Alive; recovering from an arm injury sustained at Black Dragon Pool 50
First Appearance	Chapter 11

Background / History

Hu Bugui is a Beast Spirit Valley disciple who travels with a camel-like spirit beast loaded with trade bundles. He first meets newly promoted spirit farmer Xu Changqing while Xu is preparing a Grade-Two Spirit Field for winter planting. Identifying Xu's need for fertilizer, Hu offers century-old spirit beast dung and negotiates a first transaction of twenty-five jin of dung for ten jin of first-grade spirit rice 11.

He subsequently becomes a regular contact for Xu, returning with fertilizer and sharing news of the New Year Market in Red Maple Valley, where cultivators can exchange spirit rice for other resources 12. During the market, he sells young spirit beasts; Xu purchases a little yellow dog from him, and Hu gives Xu a spirit beast ring in response to Xu's sincerity 19.

As resource prices rise before the Formal Disciple Grand Competition, Hu changes his business model from simple peddling to fertilizer investment. He supplies century-old spirit beast dung to Xu's Grade-Two Spirit Field in exchange for one-tenth of its yield, while also investing in other spirit farmers to spread his risk 25. The arrangement produces substantial returns, including a share of Xu's spring harvest 28.

After receiving his agreed portion of Xu's harvest and tasting Xu's Second-Grade Spirit Rice Wine, Hu gives Xu a spirit beast ring containing a Pearl Hen that lays spiritually nourishing eggs 38. He later takes Xu fishing, where spilled Spirit Rice Wine unexpectedly proves highly effective as bait 42 43.

Hu seeks to use this discovery to catch a Dragonfish at Black Dragon Pool. His goal is to offer the rare fish to a Golden Core Realm fishing enthusiast in Beast Spirit Valley and potentially become that cultivator's disciple, allowing him to escape his life as a manure seller 43. The expedition with Foundation Establishment cultivator Zhao Ziyue attracts fish demons as well as Dragonfish; Hu is dragged into the water and suffers an arm injury before Zhao rescues him 50.

Appearance

Hu Bugui is a fat, prosperous-looking man with two noticeable rolls of cheek fat that jiggle when he smiles. He commonly arrives on a camel-like spirit beast carrying bundles of merchandise, accompanied by the jingling bell around the beast's neck 11.

• Plump build and fleshy cheeks 11 12
• Often wears a broad, eager smile while negotiating 11 19
• Travels with a heavily loaded camel-like spirit beast 11
• His fertilizer shipments carry a strong, lingering odor 11 38

Personality

Hu Bugui is shrewd, adaptable, and unashamed of pursuing profit. He markets himself as “a businessman on the rise,” bargains actively over prices, and carries unusual goods alongside his fertilizer stock, including monkey wine, unknown seeds, and a used paper figurine 11 12.

He is also practical enough to alter his strategy when peddling alone no longer seems sustainable. Rather than merely selling dung, he creates investment arrangements with multiple spirit farmers, accepting lower immediate returns in pursuit of larger long-term profits 25.

Despite his mercantile instincts, Hu values Xu Changqing as a friend. He gives Xu spirit beast rings, delivers manure to his remote field, shares leisure time fishing, and openly confides his wish to change his status through cultivation 19 38 42 43.

Business Activities

• Spirit-beast manure trade — Supplies century-old spirit beast dung as fertilizer for spirit fields; claims access to dung from five-hundred- and thousand-year spirit beasts as well 11 25.
• Yield-share investment — Provides fertilizer for a one-tenth share of a spirit farmer's post-mission harvest, diversifying investments across several farmers 25.
• Spirit-beast sales — Sells young spirit beasts at the Red Maple Valley market, including the little yellow dog purchased by Xu Changqing 19.
• Market information — Informs Xu of the New Year Market and its spirit-rice barter opportunities 12.

Equipment / Merchandise

• Camel-like spirit beast — Used for transport and to carry bundled stock; a bell around its neck announces Hu's arrival 11 42.
• Century-old spirit beast dung — His principal fertilizer product, used to improve spirit-field yields 11 25.
• Spirit beast rings — Gives Xu one ring for the little yellow dog and later another containing a Pearl Hen 19 38.
• Pearl Hen — A spirit beast gifted to Xu; it lays an egg containing trace spiritual energy every three days 38.
• Hundred-Year Monkey Wine — A wine he offers for sale that gradually replenishes spiritual power 12.
• Unknown spirit-plant seeds — Seeds expelled by a thousand-year spirit beast, offered at a price of three hundred jin of Second-Grade Spirit Rice 12.

Relationships

• Xu Changqing — Business partner and friend. Hu supplies fertilizer for Xu's fields, receives shares of the harvest, introduces him to market opportunities, and gifts him spirit-beast-related items 11 12 25 38.
• Zhao Ziyue — Foundation Establishment Water Spirit Root cultivator who invites Hu to fish at Black Dragon Pool and rescues him from a fish demon there 43 50.
• Sun Ban — Temporarily delivers Hu's fertilizer shipment while Hu recovers from his injury 50.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Spirit Field Trade

Hu introduces Xu Changqing to the practical economy surrounding spirit farming: fertilizer prices, spirit-rice barter, markets, and the value of long-term business relationships. His regular deliveries help Xu improve the productivity of his Grade-Two Spirit Field 11 12 24.

Fertilizer Investment Partnership

Facing rising costs, Hu proposes an investment arrangement rather than a one-time sale. Xu accepts a spring trial under which Hu supplies century-old manure for one-tenth of the harvest, establishing an ongoing partnership beneficial to both parties 25 28 38.

Fishing and Black Dragon Pool

Hu draws Xu away from farm work for a fishing trip, during which Spirit Rice Wine reveals its effectiveness as bait. Motivated by his ambition to become the disciple of a Golden Core fishing enthusiast, Hu later tests the wine at Black Dragon Pool with Zhao Ziyue; the venture confirms the bait's effectiveness but leaves him injured by a fish demon 42 43 50.

Notable Quotes

“You could put it that way, but more accurately, I am a businessman on the rise.” 11

“I don't want to keep selling filthy, foul-smelling manure forever.” 43