Little Fatty was startled. Holding the Medicinal Powder, he asked, "Where should I rub it?"
The Peddler said, "As long as it touches your flesh, you can rub it anywhere you find convenient."
The well-dressed man behind him reminded him, "Choose a fleshy part. This medicine is very painful. I saw a sister who rubbed the medicine on her Fatty Peach. Her Fatty Peach was more than a foot thick, and she still couldn’t walk because it hurt so much!"
"I’m not afraid of pain!" Little Fatty lifted his clothes, exposing his snow-white belly, and said to the Peddler, "If I rub this on, I’ll be a First Layer Food Cultivator, right?"
The Peddler shook his head. "You’ve misunderstood again. This Medicinal Powder can only initiate you into the practice; it can’t take you up a layer."
Little Fatty said angrily, "Isn’t this a rip-off? Such expensive medicine, and I can’t even reach the First Layer?"
The Peddler closed the drawer, not wanting to explain.
The wealthy young man behind him said impatiently, "If you don’t understand anything, ask someone knowledgeable. Don’t embarrass yourself here! This is entry-level Medicinal Powder. Advancing layers isn’t so easy. If you want to reach the First Layer, you have to pass a challenge!"
Little Fatty looked confused. "What challenge?"
The wealthy young man couldn’t remember clearly either. "Food Cultivators... I think they need to eat a lot of food..."
The Peddler said, "For a Food Cultivator to reach the First Layer, they need to eat twenty catties of food in one sitting."
"Twenty catties..." Little Fatty was a bit nervous. "How long is ’one sitting’? Does eating all day count as one sitting, right?"
The Peddler shook his head. "What are you thinking? One sitting is just one hour. If you take longer than an hour, it doesn’t count."
Upon hearing this, Little Fatty was troubled.
Seeing Little Fatty silent for a long time, the Peddler waved his hand, and the sixty thousand Huan Country Banknotes reappeared in his palm.
"If you regret it now, it’s not too late. I can refund your money."
Little Fatty gritted his teeth and slapped the Medicinal Powder onto his belly.
As soon as the Medicinal Powder touched his skin, it quickly disappeared. Little Fatty’s face turned pale green, and he staggered to a tree, sitting down next to Li Banfeng.
"It hurts, damn, it really hurts!"
"How painful is it?" Li Banfeng asked curiously.
"More painful than being burned by fire! I can’t take it anymore!" Little Fatty’s facial muscles twitched from the pain.
The wealthy young man watched Little Fatty in agony, a complex expression on his face.
The wealthy young man approached the Peddler and said, "I want the Lust Cultivation Medicinal Powder."
The Peddler looked at him and asked, "You don’t seem like someone short of cash. Why choose the Taoist Sect of Lust Cultivation?"
The wealthy young man replied, "This is the only Taoist Sect that truly resonates with me."
The Peddler laughed. "Why not practice Home Cultivation? Lying at home and increasing your cultivation level, isn’t that good?"
The wealthy young man shook his head. "I’m not the type to stay put. Enough talk, I want Lust Cultivation!"
The Peddler said, "I must remind you, to advance a layer in Lust Cultivation, you need to do it ten times a day, without missing a single day, and persist for two months. Only then can you reach the First Layer."
Li Banfeng’s eyes bulged in disbelief.
"I know the rules!" The wealthy young man had his Servant bring over fifty thousand Huan Country Banknotes and handed them to the Peddler. The Peddler took the money, wrapped up a pack of Medicinal Powder, and gave it to the wealthy young man.
One of his attendants suggested, "Young Master, you should apply it to your Peach. This medicine really hurts!"
The wealthy young man snorted. "Take off my pants in front of all these people? Who do you think I am?"
He unbuttoned his collar and slapped the Medicinal Powder onto his chest.
As soon as the Medicinal Powder penetrated his flesh, the wealthy young man’s legs went weak, and he nearly collapsed.
Several attendants rushed forward to support him, but the wealthy young man waved his hand. "No need, I can stand."
He stumbled to the tree and sat next to Li Banfeng, sweating profusely yet biting back any sound of pain.
Li Banfeng was truly baffled. "Friends, if the medicine is so painful, why not wait until you get home to apply it? It would be better to have someone take care of you there."
Little Fatty had recovered quite a bit. Seeing someone even more clueless than himself, he couldn’t help but laugh out loud, a surge of superiority washing over him. "You, you know nothing! This is the Peddler’s rule. Once you’ve bought the initiation medicine from the Peddler, you must use it in front of him. You can only leave after half an hour if there are no adverse reactions; otherwise, if something goes wrong, the Peddler isn’t responsible."
The wealthy young man glanced at Li Banfeng’s attire and asked through his agonizing pain, "Friend, your clothes... you don’t seem to be from around here, do you?"
Little Fatty also found it odd. "Did you get off the train? I heard that those who come from the train have been to the Nine Heavens Immortal Realm!"
The wealthy young man shook his head. "Not the Nine Heavens Immortal Realm, but from the Outside Provinces. I’ve never been there, but someone from my family has."
He continued, "My surname is Ma, and I’m the fifth in my family, so acquaintances call me Ma Wu. How may I address you two?"
This young master came from a wealthy background but was unassuming.
Little Fatty clasped his fist. "My surname is Qin; I’m the ninth in my family, so acquaintances call me Qin Xiaopang."
Li Banfeng wondered.
Li Banfeng said, "My surname is Li; I’m the seventh in my family, so acquaintances call me Li Qi."
"Five, seven, nine?" Ma Wu paused for a moment.
Qin Xiaopang smiled. "Consecutive odd numbers! This must be some kind of fate!"
Perhaps charmed by this coincidence, Ma Wu initiated further conversation. "Brother Li, which Taoist Sect have you chosen?"
Li Banfeng didn’t quite understand.
Ma Wu paused for a moment, then understanding dawned on him. "Ah, I remember now. In the Outside Provinces, the path of cultivation isn’t called Taoist Sects; they’re called professions. And Cultivators aren’t called Cultivators; they’re called Dark Energy Users."
Li Banfeng had heard of this concept before. Those from the Dark Star Bureau who pursued him were Dark Energy Users.
An old man came to him to buy candles. A child came to purchase rock candy. There was also a woman who brought her own porcelain jar to buy Snow Cream; she gave him a Silver Yuan, which the Peddler verified before scooping her a full spoonful.
While the Peddler was busy, Ma Wu seized the moment to ask another question, "Brother Li, which profession have you chosen?"
Li Banfeng shook his head. "I haven’t decided yet."
Ma Wu took a water bottle from an attendant, took a sip, and as the pain eased a bit, he advised Li Banfeng, "If you haven’t decided, don’t rush into anything. The Peddler only brought five kinds of Medicinal Powder. If none suit you, then wait for the next time. Once you choose a Taoist Sect, there’s no going back."
Li Banfeng was even more astonished. "Aside from Farming Cultivation, Lust Cultivation, Food Cultivator, Traveling Cultivator, and Home Cultivation, are there other options?"
"Of course!" Qin Xiaopang replied, a hint of excitement in his voice. "Literature Cultivator, Martial Cultivator, Poison Cultivation, Medicine Cultivator, Peeping Cultivation, Mental Cultivator, Insect Cultivation, Grass Cultivation, Smoke Cultivator, Alcohol Cultivation, Emotion Cultivator, Sleep Cultivator... There are hundreds of Taoist Sects in the world and tens of thousands of Cultivations!"
PS: Thanks to Sun Zhibai. The glory of White Falcon County endures.
Three Chapters today, with another one at twelve o’clock.