Bitter Granny personally plucked a piece of bitter vegetable and handed it to Li Banfeng. "Eat this."
At least the vegetable leaf was clean. Li Banfeng ate it.
Bitter Granny seemed satisfied and didn’t force Li Banfeng to eat any more. Her figure vanished.
Peace returned to Freeloader’s Inn.
Li Banfeng sat beside Chu Er and asked, "After this meal, can we go back?"
Chu Er shook her head. "It’s still too early. We eat this freeloader’s food once every ten days, and each time lasts for three days."
"Eat this for three days? How can you all stand it?"
"Whether we can stand it or not, we have to. We must eat the freeloader’s food; otherwise, we won’t get rations next month."
"If you don’t get rations, can’t you grow your own instead of relying on handouts?"
Chu Er was genuinely afraid of Li Banfeng. "Seventh Master, please don’t stir up trouble. I’m not as tough as you; I’m terrified of being beaten to death!"
Li Banfeng wanted to step outside for some fresh air and then return to his Portable Residence to catch up on sleep, but the Uncle serving food wouldn’t allow it.
"No one is allowed to leave before noon. That’s the rule."
"What if I need to relieve myself?"
"Hold it! A rule is a rule. What’s with all your questions!"
Chu Er stepped forward and pulled Li Banfeng back, urging him not to argue further.
Li Banfeng looked at Chu Er before him.
The Chu Er in Bitter Vegetable Manor and the Chu Er from Greenwater City were like two completely different people.
"When did you become such a coward?"
"Isn’t it for the sake of cultivation?"
"You’re a young lady from a wealthy family. Why did you choose such a Taoist Sect? Why must you endure this suffering?"
A shadow of gloom flashed across Chu Er’s face. She turned away, looking up at Li Banfeng, and asked, "Why do you ask that?"
Li Banfeng pushed Chu Er’s face to the side. "When I ask you something, answer properly. What’s with that expression? It won’t work on me. Save it to scare someone else in the future."
Chu Er lowered her head and spoke in a hushed voice, "I originally planned to be a Literature Cultivator. The year my father died, I hadn’t yet Entered the Path Gateway. After he passed away, my mother soon followed.
"To fight for the position of Family Head, the entire family fought to the death. Both of my younger brothers died, killed by their own older brother.
"What is the meaning of sibling blood ties then? Even sworn enemies wouldn’t go that far! I have a tenacious hold on life; that’s how I’ve survived to this day. In this world, there are more people who wish for my death than for my survival.
"Isn’t coming into this world simply to suffer? Live a lifetime, suffer a lifetime. Cultivating amidst suffering—isn’t that the strongest path in a Taoist Sect? Tell me, am I not right?"
"What kind of reasoning is that?"
"That *is* the reasoning," Chu Er said stubbornly. "When there’s hardly anyone left in this world who cares about you, then you’ll understand."
Li Banfeng laughed.
In the more than twenty years of his life, for the most part, no one had ever cared about him.
"If others don’t care, don’t you care about yourself?"
Chu Er gave a bitter smile. "What’s the use of me caring about myself?"
"It’s incredibly useful. In fact, it’s the most useful thing of all."
As the two were arguing, they suddenly saw three more people enter Freeloader’s Inn.
Li Banfeng wondered.
Chu Er nodded. "Yes. They are preparing to Enter the Path Gateway. Freeloader’s Inn always keeps some food for them, though not much."
It was a man, a woman, and the woman was leading a child by the hand.
Li Banfeng mused.
The Uncle serving food gave them three bowls of rice, each only half-filled, and without any vegetable leaves.
The man was starving and gobbled down his half-bowl of rice in an instant.
The woman looked at her child, worried he wouldn’t have enough, and pushed some of her own rice into his bowl.
There was so much sand in the rice that the child couldn’t swallow it.
The woman whispered soothingly to the child, "Chew slowly, eat slowly. Don’t waste a single grain."
The man, growing impatient, stepped forward and snatched the child’s bowl. "If you don’t want to eat, then don’t! If you can’t even endure this little bit of suffering, what kind of Bitter Cultivator do you aspire to be?"
The woman watched with tears in her eyes, wanting to stop the man but not daring to.
Chu Er clenched her teeth. She despised people like this the most.
She was about to help the child snatch back the bowl of rice when she realized Li Banfeng was gone.
The man picked up his chopsticks, just about to eat, when Li Banfeng stepped forward and kicked him squarely in the face.
The man fell backward to the ground, his rice bowl shattering. Clutching his face, he stared at Li Banfeng. "What gives you the right to hit people?"
Li Banfeng looked coldly at the man. "If you can’t take a hit, then scram! If you can’t even bear this little bit of suffering, what kind of Bitter Cultivator are you trying to be?"
Tears welled in the man’s eyes as he looked at the food-serving Uncle. "He hit someone! Aren’t you going to do anything?"
The food-serving Uncle, holding his ladle, asked, "What exactly are you trying to do?"
Li Banfeng turned to the Uncle. "You’re the one who mixes sand into the rice, aren’t you?"
"Yes, I am!" the Uncle admitted. "This is the rule of Bitter Vegetable Manor. We eat this bitterness!"
Li Banfeng nodded. "Good. Then I’ll let you taste some extra bitterness!"
As his words fell, Li Banfeng suddenly flashed in front of the Uncle and punched him in the stomach.
The Uncle gritted his teeth, his eyes wide, his gaze fixed on Li Banfeng.
Chu Er shouted, "Watch out! Share Pain, Share Bitterness!"
It was a Second Layer Technique of Bitter Cultivation. This Uncle was about to share his pain with Li Banfeng.
Li Banfeng’s figure suddenly vanished; he had used Short Step again.
The Uncle’s gaze found nothing; he couldn’t locate Li Banfeng.
When Li Banfeng reappeared, he struck out with his fist, sending the Uncle sprawling to the ground.
This food-serving Uncle was a Third Layer Bitter Cultivator. Ordinarily, he should have been able to hold his own against a Third Layer Traveling Cultivator for a while.
However, Li Banfeng was a Fourth Layer Home Cultivator. With his "Turn a Blind Eye" talent, his moves were untraceable before he struck, leaving the Uncle completely powerless to retaliate.
This was the strength of Dual Cultivation. The Third Layer Bitter Cultivator was easily crushed by Li Banfeng. However, Li Banfeng didn’t intend to kill, not having forgotten Old Teapot’s warning.
The Uncle, lying on the ground, wailed, "This man has broken the rules! He cannot be allowed to stay in the Manor!"