The chill was bone-deep, yet the Peddler, dressed in only a blue cotton vest, drilled a hole in the ice and dove in headfirst.
Over two minutes later, the Peddler erged from the ice hole, grabbed a towel to wipe his face, and said to the "Local Deity," "The entrance at the bottom of the lake is blocked. All other entrances are blocked too. Only Liu Xia Hui’s entrance remains open."
Liu Xia Hui—Liu Xia with the character "Hui."
Li Banfeng was quite startled. "Who ca up with such a creative entrance?"
The Peddler replied, "Murong Gui thought of it. After he beca the Local Deity, he left this entrance. He said the thod to open the door shouldn’t be too complicated, for fear he wouldn’t rember it, nor too simple, lest others guess it. So, he took the na Liu Xia Hui and changed one character—easy for him to co up with, but hard for others to guess."
Li Banfeng looked at the Judge’s Pen and praised, "Ah Gui, you are so talented!"
The Judge’s Pen was asleep and didn’t respond.
The Peddler sneered. "Talent? What talent? He’s just too lazy to think things through.
"I even asked him, ’This is the thod to open your own door, so why tell ?’
"He said it was to guard against intruders, so if anything happened to him, I could serve as a backup.
"I actually believed him and morized the thod. But thinking about it later, didn’t I just beco his family’s designated backup?
"That kid’s too lazy; he wanted to house-sit for him. In fact, I should have guessed back then that he’d beco a Lazy Cultivator."
The Peddler took out two large Ink Blocks and gave them to the "Local Deity."
The "Local Deity," slling the strong fragrance of ink, cradled them lovingly for a while, regaining much vigor. Its previously dull face brightened, and its writing speed increased significantly.
Two Ink Blocks were enough to satisfy it, appease it, and fill it with fighting spirit. This pen was too easy to fool.
Li Banfeng asked the Peddler, "You only give ink and no paper. What if the paper runs out?"
The Peddler picked up a written scroll and inquired, "You an this?"
Li Banfeng nodded.
The Peddler explained, "This scroll isn’t sothing I can give; it’s produced by the Ink Shop."
Saying this, the Peddler unfurled the scroll. It was densely filled with the three orders of the Ink Shop, but Li Banfeng suddenly noticed that the characters at the beginning of the scroll were disappearing one by one.
"What’s the reason for this?" Li Banfeng asked, turning to the Peddler.
The Peddler sighed. "Because too many people don’t want to study, the orders written down are quickly erased."
Li Banfeng understood the principle. "Promoting learning is a very difficult thing."
"That’s why being the Local Deity of the Ink Shop is tough," the Peddler said. He watched the scroll until the writing completely vanished, leaving a blank sheet, then handed the scroll to the "Local Deity."
The "Local Deity" took the scroll, dipped it in so ink, and continued to write the rules.
"Truly a diligent and excellent Pen!" the Peddler praised, then turned to look at Li Banfeng. "Your cultivation level must be approaching Above the Clouds, right?"
Li Banfeng shook his head. "I only Entered the Path a few days ago. I’m far from Above the Clouds."
"If you’re that far, how did you beco a Local Deity?"
"I haven’t!" Li Banfeng flatly denied.
The Peddler snorted. "I saw it all. Murong Gui was flying you all over the New Land, and you even dealt with Pioneers there."
Li Banfeng still shook his head. "I have a ntal illness. I just wanted to fly at the ti. You wouldn’t understand what I was thinking."
The Peddler frowned. "You don’t have to hide it from . Wanting to be a Local Deity and not wanting to go to the Inner State—that’s a good thing, sothing only a person with guts could achieve. However, your piece of New Land only has half of the Contract Book; the other half is still in the Inner State. If you’re not careful, you could get outmaneuvered by the Inner State. The Ink Shop is a completely different place. The Contract Book here is complete. It’s a great opportunity for you."
Li Banfeng looked at the "Local Deity," who was writing furiously, and shook his head. "I don’t think this place is suitable for . I’m not a Literature Cultivator."
"Not being a Literature Cultivator isn’t important! What’s important isn’t the Taoist Sect, it’s your ntal State. As long as you have the heart to learn literature, no difficulty is insurmountable!" The Peddler straightened his back, his figure suddenly appearing much taller.
It was as if Li Banfeng could see the Peddler offering him a pie in the sky.
"Thank you for your kindness, but I really don’t fit in here."
The Peddler looked at Li Banfeng sincerely. "I asked you to co here to be the Local Deity, not just to save my pen. I truly an well for you!"
Li Banfeng nodded. "I believe you an well, but for a Traveling Cultivator like , being cooped up here writing all day just isn’t suitable."
The Peddler’s expression darkened. "Fine, don’t co then! Don’t be ungrateful. Do you have any idea what kind of place the Ink Shop is? So many people want to co here but don’t have the ans!"
Li Banfeng was just about to ask about this. "The Ink Shop is an important place, right?"
The Peddler was taken aback. "You don’t know this? Then why are you fighting so hard here?"
Li Banfeng replied, "Why should Puluo State’s territory be handed over to the Inner State?"
The Peddler laughed. "That’s right! Any other reason?"
Li Banfeng continued, "I slled the fragrance of ink here. In Puluo State, this fragrance of ink is incredibly rare."
The Peddler smiled. "You an the sll of ink?"
Li Banfeng shook his head. "Not the ink. It’s the territory, the people, the books, the customs, every word and deed, every stroke and drawing, the teahouses, the Poetry Societies, the restaurants and inns..."
He spoke of whatever ca to mind, sharing with the Peddler all that he had seen these past few days.
The Peddler listened to every word and then asked, "What do you think of the people at the Ink Shop?"
Li Banfeng recalled the people he had t at the Ink Shop. "Affected, arrogant, stubborn, old-fashioned. Quite annoying, but also quite likable."
The Peddler laughed. "Right? Quite likable, aren’t they!
"You’re correct, the Ink Shop does have the fragrance of ink, and this fragrance is indeed very precious. People from Outside Provinces can almost all read, and Inner State People can all read too. Puluo State lags far behind. In Black Stone Slope, barely half the population is literate; in Greenwater City, less than thirty percent. In other areas, you’d be hard-pressed to find even one literate person in a hundred."
Why do so many people in Black Stone Slope know how to read? Even more than in Greenwater City?
Li Banfeng did not interrupt the Peddler, who continued, "Only in the Ink Shop does everyone read. Knowing one more character lets a person see one li further into the territory.
"A person who knows a hundred characters can clearly see what’s around them. Soone who knows a thousand can see what’s outside. And one who knows ten thousand characters can see how the past and present, the internal and external, all connect.
"Those who stay in the Ink Shop know how to look and think. Whether they think correctly or not, they think anyway.
"Those who leave the Ink Shop, no matter how they do it or how affected they are, can still convey their thoughts to others."
Li Banfeng asked, "But can others understand them?"
The Peddler shook his head. "Most can’t. Ninety percent won’t get it. But at least the remaining ten percent will think along with them.
"If the Ink Shop, this piece of territory, is lost, then no one in Puluo State will be willing to think anymore. In the future, we can only wait to be completely devoured by the Outside Provinces and the Inner State."
Li Banfeng nodded. "So, no matter what, the Ink Shop must not be lost."
The Peddler nodded vigorously. "That’s why we need a responsible, brave, and spirited young man to beco the Local Deity of the Ink Shop!"
Having said that, the Peddler looked sincerely at Li Banfeng.
Li Banfeng responded politely with a "Hmph."
...
As the two left the Local Deity’s residence, Li Banfeng asked, "Based on the previous tiline, you should have been at Hai Chi Ridge and Pants Belt Pit during this period. I sent people to look for you. Why couldn’t they find you?"
Upon ntion of this, the Peddler’s face darkened. "I was about to ask you, is your madness contagious?"
Li Banfeng puffed out his chest. "I’m not mad. A doctor has seen ."
The Peddler retorted angrily, "Then what madness possessed your n? Why did they get the radio station to find ?"
Luo Zhengnan used the radio to find the Peddler? This was news to Li Banfeng.
"Were you listening to the radio at that ti?"
The Peddler shook his head. "I wasn’t. One of my sweethearts heard it and found ."
Li Banfeng cautiously asked, "Where did she find you?"
The Peddler, his face grim, said, "At another sweetheart’s house."
One sweetheart found him at another sweetheart’s house. What on earth did the Peddler go through?
Li Banfeng took a deep breath.
What a stroke of luck, truly. It was a good thing the Portable Residence had stayed calm and hadn’t tracked the Peddler. If it had found him under the covers, things would have really blown up.
"Brother Lang, that was reckless of !" Li Banfeng hastily apologized.
Reaching the edge of the forest, the Peddler handed Ge Junma and He Caiyuan over to Li Banfeng.
"These two are still alive but unable to move. Take them back for a al."
Li Banfeng smiled tactfully. "Brother Lang, you jest. The toad, maybe... but that old man is a person. How could I possibly eat him?"
The Peddler also smiled. "If you can’t eat them, isn’t there soone in your house who can?"
Li Banfeng glanced at the Peddler. He seems to know everything.
The Peddler began tidying his cart, preparing to leave.
Li Banfeng quickly asked, "Brother Lang, do you know soone nad Lian Bud?"
The Peddler set down the cart and turned abruptly to look at Li Banfeng, his expression extrely sinister. "When did you et him?"
"It’s been a while. One day, I dread I was rowing a boat on the sea. My house misunderstood sothing and sent to Lian Bud’s Oil Lake."
The Peddler asked, "Your house sent you there? Did you get to the railroad tracks?"
Li Banfeng nodded.
The Peddler then inquired, "What did Lian Bud say to you?"
"He said he suffered a lot in that place, and he wanted you to save him."
"Oil Lake," the Peddler frowned. "I know the place you’re talking about; that’s his face. But even if I went there, I wouldn’t be able to save him."
Li Banfeng remained silent. He didn’t know how to deal with matters of this level.
After a long silence, the Peddler said, "I’ve always wanted to save him, but I’ve never found a good way. When I do, I’ll tell you. You might need to help with this."
I might need to help with this? Li Banfeng was taken aback. He knew his own limitations. With his current cultivation level, helping the Peddler would be incredibly difficult. Perhaps he ant he needed the Portable Residence’s help. But if the Portable Residence was so valuable, why had the Peddler given it to him?
This was a question Li Banfeng had always wanted to ask, and the timing seed appropriate. "Brother Lang, why did you give that house to ? There must be many people in the world who desire that house."
The Peddler looked surprised. "Haven’t we already talked about this? It’s because you were at a disadvantage when you were Entering the Path Gateway, and I had to compensate you."
"Just because I was hit once? With your ans, you could have definitely made avoid your cart."
The Peddler’s expression turned serious. "That’s not certain. There’s always the possibility of accidents; there are always things one can’t guard against."
It seed the Peddler didn’t want to say. Li Banfeng never pried into matters others didn’t wish to discuss.
The Peddler began to push his cart. "Anything else you want to ask? If not, I’m leaving. I’m in a good mood today, that’s why I’ve told you so much. Next ti we et, it might not be so easy to talk."
Li Banfeng had many questions, but he could see the Peddler’s patience was limited.
After careful consideration, Li Banfeng asked the question he most wanted an answer to: "Brother Lang, where is Demon Land?"
The Peddler fell silent.
This seed like a question he shouldn’t ask, but it was critical for Li Banfeng. His wife and Hong Ying had both battled Demon Land and had also fought against the Peddler. So, what was the relationship between the Peddler and Demon Land? In Li Banfeng’s understanding, Demon Land was supposed to be the Inner State—the invaders. But which side were the Peddler and Grandpa Train on? Judging by their attitude towards the Inner State People, they couldn’t be in the sa camp. Perhaps Li Banfeng had misunderstood sothing about Demon Land. Would the Peddler be willing to talk about this?
The Peddler, leaning against his cart, thought for a long ti, as if recalling sothing. "Now that you ntion Demon Land, you’ve really stumped . That’s ancient history, isn’t it? That place hasn’t been called Demon Land for a long ti."
Li Banfeng was startled. "Then what is it called?"
"It’s called Puluo State."
CLANG, CLANG, CLANG!
The Peddler pushed his cart, shaking his rattle-drum, and vanished into the night.
PS: Demon Land is Puluo State? Does Shala have so ntal issues?
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