Li Banfeng returned to his Portable Residence and told his wife about the meeting scheduled for ten days later.
His wife pondered for a moment and said, "My dear, I think you should not meet him."
Li Banfeng shook his head and replied, "How can I go out if I don’t meet him?"
His wife’s tone was heavy as she said, "Beloved husband, let us think of another way."
The Red Lotus hissed, seemingly in agreement with the Phonograph.
Hong Ying snorted coldly and said, "You should know the caliber of someone who possesses Break Cocoon Chrysalis, and you should also have some idea of your own capabilities. However, this ten-day period they’ve given you is indeed quite long."
Back at Benefactor’s Stronghold, Li Banfeng ordered heightened vigilance, suspecting that the Saint would take advantage of the ten days to strike unexpectedly.
On the second day, the Saint did not appear, nor did his disciples. However, dozens of people came to seek refuge in Benefactor’s Stronghold.
Their reasons were more or less the same as others; they couldn’t tolerate the oppression from Sage Mountain and the bullying by the Sage’s Disciples.
One woman among them had suffered the most.
This person was a Farming Cultivation practitioner, a little over twenty, named Dong Qiaoqin.
She was an out-of-towner who joined a Taoist Sect of Farming Cultivation at the age of thirteen. At fifteen, she was abducted into Respect Virtue Village and sold to a family as a daughter-in-law.
At sixteen, she consummated her marriage, and she and her husband had two children.
Though only a First Layer Farming Cultivator, Dong Qiaoqin was adept at various techniques such as farming, sericulture, and animal husbandry. Her life was fairly fulfilling.
At the age of twenty, her husband offended one of the Sage’s Disciples, and together with their children, they were beaten to death in the village.
That day, she happened to be visiting the neighboring village to buy silkworm babies and narrowly escaped with her life.
By the time she returned to the village and received the devastating news that her family was gone, Dong Qiaoqin nearly took her own life.
Afterward, the attitude of the villagers towards her changed.
The reason was not her "nearly" taking her life, but the "nearly" part itself.
In particular, Dong Qiaoqin’s in-laws insisted that she had colluded with the Sage’s Disciples, deliberately causing her husband’s death.
They did not dare to confront the Sage’s Disciples and directed all their anger at Dong Qiaoqin.
For two full years, Dong Qiaoqin had her property looted and suffered countless instances of bullying and beatings.
First, it was her in-laws who beat her, then the villagers of Respect Virtue Village, followed by villagers from surrounding villages. Even Sage’s Disciples came to beat her.
Why did that Sage’s Disciple also beat her?
Just half a month ago, Dong Qiaoqin was besieged by a group of villagers. The last of her food was stolen, and she was so badly beaten that she couldn’t leave her bed for days. Life became unbearable, and Dong Qiaoqin fled into the mountains to seek refuge in Benefactor’s Stronghold.
Xiao Yeci sympathized with this unfortunate woman, even clearing out a bed in her own room for them to share.
Dong Qiaoqin was indeed a capable woman. After settling down, she chose a plot of land at the edge of the mountain forest, scattered a bag of fast-growing seeds, and began farming.
The plot was not small. Although Dong Qiaoqin had techniques, she couldn’t manage it all by herself, so Xiao Yeci called on many members of the stronghold to farm with her.
All these people had suffered hardships in the village, so their farming skills were beyond question.
These seeds were also very special, growing much faster than the ones at Hai Chi Ridge. The seeds were sown one day, sprouted the next, and by the third day, the crops were harvested with quite a good yield.
Xiao Yeci was very pleased and awarded Dong Qiaoqin thirty Ocean Dollars. As an important member of the stronghold, Xiao Yeci felt this was what she ought to do.
With the thirty Ocean Dollars, Dong Qiaoqin went to other villages and bought a considerable number of poultry and livestock.
She reared chickens, fed ducks, herded cattle, and shepherded sheep. Within three more days, chicken coops, duck pens, and livestock sheds were all set up.
Dong Qiaoqin then went to the village and bought some silkworm babies, gathered mulberry leaves, built a silkworm house, and led the women of the stronghold in raising silkworms.
"This is a good thing, a truly good thing..."
Dong Qiaoqin also felt wronged. "Sister Xiao, where did I go wrong?"
Xiao Yeci couldn’t pinpoint it and went to seek advice from Li Banfeng. "Benefactor, I always feel something is off about Miss Dong, yet I can’t quite put my finger on what it is."
Li Banfeng nodded. "I know something is off with her."
"Could she be someone sent by the Saint? Is her ordeal fabricated to deceive us?"
Li Banfeng shook his head. "I’ve checked in Respect Virtue Village. Her experiences are all true."
Xiao Yeci muttered for a long time, "Then if it’s true, it means I’m just being paranoid."
Li Banfeng still shook his head. "You’re not being paranoid. She is very likely sent by the Saint."
Xiao Yeci looked puzzled. "Then I really don’t understand."
Li Banfeng gave a wry smile. "I don’t understand either. She has suffered so much, why would she still work for the Saint?"
Xiao Yeci suggested, "We should just send her away, Benefactor. If it’s inconvenient for you to do it, I can handle this matter."
Li Banfeng sighed. "What can you do? If you drive away Dong Qiaoqin, what will you say to the others? Tell them that planting crops is wrong? Tell them that robbing for food is the right path?"
Xiao Yeci had no reply.
Li Banfeng looked at Xiao Yeci. "In the stronghold, aside from me, everyone has suffered more hardships than you and your daughter, right?"
"Yes, they’ve been here longer than us."
"Why do you think there are so many villages in this place?"
"I... I don’t know..."
"Who came first, the Saint or these villages?"
"I don’t know..."
"They’ve suffered so much, but as long as life can go on, they can forget all the hardships. Why do you think that is?"
"I... still don’t know..."
Li Banfeng lowered his hat brim and stood up. "I shall meet the Saint tomorrow. You and your daughter should discuss it. If I find a way out, decide whether you’re willing to leave."
Xiao Yeci remained silent.
Li Banfeng left the stronghold and found a secluded place, where he entered his Portable Residence.
"My husband, tomorrow is the appointed day—are you really going to meet that Saint?"
Li Banfeng was silent for a moment and didn’t answer. Instead, he brought up another matter, "Wife, does Hong Ying count as my House Spirit?"
His wife was somewhat angry, but she knew this wasn’t the time to be willful. "Since you, my husband, called out her name to her face, and that cheap woman also responded in person, she naturally counts as your House Spirit."
Li Banfeng asked again, "Will the Deep House Technique work on her?"
Hong Ying’s tone was chilly as she said, "Faithless man, wicked woman, what exactly are you plotting? I’ve made it abundantly clear to you. Do not attempt to scheme against me; I won’t fall for your tricks."
Li Banfeng said, "I don’t want to scheme against you. I just want to borrow something from you."
"What do you want to borrow? You want to borrow a Technique from me?"
Li Banfeng shook his head. "I don’t want to borrow a Technique, at least not for now. To deal with that Saint, relying on Technique alone is useless. I want to borrow some of your imposing presence."
The Phonograph pondered for a moment and said, "My husband, do you intend to intimidate that Saint?"
Hong Ying sneered. "So, you’re planning to use the classic trick of the fox borrowing the tiger’s might, you madman! Have you thought this through? If this is exposed by the Saint, will you be able to return alive?"
Li Banfeng replied, "Then lend me more of your imposing presence, enough so that he cannot expose it."
HISS.
"That could work," the Phonograph said, turning its horn toward Hong Ying. "Listen to my husband’s words and bring forth all the imposing presence you have from the battlefield."
"Wicked woman, that madman has lost his mind, and you’re following suit! Do you realize how risky this is? The slightest sign of weakness from that madman and his life is over! The best plan right now would be to avoid meeting him. That madman isn’t exactly a man of integrity—it’s just a verbal agreement, why must you care so much?"
"Avoid meeting him?" Li Banfeng asked. "Where shall I hide? Until when? This is his territory. Will I not eventually fall into his hands anyway?"
The Phonograph made up its mind and wrapped Hong Ying in Steam. "This matter is settled."
Hong Ying shouted in anger, "You say it’s settled and it’s settled? Why should I agree to your terms?"
The Phonograph replied, "We’ve known each other for many years; you should be aware of my temperament. If you help me out, I naturally won’t treat you unfairly. Regarding those matters between us, if you don’t wish to speak of them, I won’t press you—provided you genuinely and sincerely help my husband this time."
「The following day,」
Sixty-four disciples from Sage Peak descended, carrying a palanquin.
As they passed through each village, all the villagers would kneel at the village entrance an hour in advance to welcome the Saint. None dared to rise until the Saint had left. They would then continue kneeling for another hour as a sign of reverence for the Saint.
At ten o’clock at night, the palanquin arrived at Benefactor’s Stronghold.
Upon hearing that the Saint had personally come, everyone in Benefactor’s Stronghold hid in the caves, leaving only Xiao Yeci and her daughter bravely behind in the stronghold.
Li Banfeng was inside the wooden house, preparing tea.
The Disciple in White entered the house first, speaking to Li Banfeng, "Master is waiting for you outside the door; he says he wants you to come out to talk."
Li Banfeng shook his head. "That won’t do. Tell him to come in and speak."
The Disciple in White relayed the message accurately. The Saint laughed softly before descending from the palanquin.
From the moment his feet touched the ground, all the accompanying disciples knelt down, their foreheads pressing firmly against the earth.
Had it not been for Li Banfeng’s prior order prohibiting kneeling, it’s likely that many in Benefactor’s Stronghold would have also fallen to their knees.
The Saint entered the wooden house and sat opposite Li Banfeng.
Li Banfeng poured a cup of tea and drank it himself.
The Saint smiled.
He appeared to be in his forties, also wearing a round-topped hat, with gaunt cheeks, fair skin, and a pair of drooping mustaches.
Clearly, this was a man of great status, but he was completely different from the image of a Saint Li Banfeng had imagined.
The Saint asked Li Banfeng, "Have I made myself clear?"
Li Banfeng shook his head. "You haven’t said anything yet."
"You’re a smart man. You should have understood without me needing to spell it out."
Li Banfeng didn’t deny it. "I suppose I have."
The Saint nodded slightly. "Now that you understand, I have just one question: do you want to leave?"
Li Banfeng nodded. "I do."
The Saint took a teacup and poured himself some tea. "Then it’s simple. Leave tonight. I’ll let you go, and you should never come back."
Li Banfeng, holding his teacup, said, "That’s not enough."
"Not enough?" The Saint doubted his own ears. "What do you want?"
"I want to take some people with me. Anyone who wishes to leave with me, I want to take them all."
The Saint shook his head. "There’s no precedent for that."
Li Banfeng calmly replied, "Then I’ll trouble you to set one."
"You still don’t understand." A domineering aura surged from the Saint, causing the entire wooden house to shake slightly.
Lu Chunying, hiding in the distance, almost wet herself.
Xiao Yeci had already wet herself but was too embarrassed to say so.
The disciples kneeling outside trembled like chaff in the wind.
Li Banfeng did not tremble.
He slightly raised his head, his eyes firmly fixed on the Saint.
An imposing presence emanated from him, evenly matching the Saint’s domineering aura.
Li Banfeng calmly took a sip of tea. "I believe I see quite clearly."
The Saint furrowed his brows, the remaining half-cup of tea gently swaying in the cup.