Li Banfeng sat in Elder Yao’s courtyard, watching a group of stone men barely over one meter tall carrying bricks, mixing mortar, and building a wall.
Outside the courtyard, a kiln had been set up, with several stone men firing bricks.
When Qiu Zhiheng came up the mountain, he had brought only a sack of stones.
After pouring two buckets of clear water onto this sack of stones, they transformed into craftsmen: masons, tilers, carpenters—all sorts of artisans with various skills.
"Big Brother Qiu, where did you find these things?"
Qiu Zhiheng replied, "I bought them from a high-level Craftsman Cultivation practitioner. I’ve always liked things from Craftsman Cultivation. If I hadn’t been forced into Lust Cultivation, I really would have liked to be a Craftsman Cultivator myself."
Li Banfeng did not inquire further about this matter.
"Brother, from now on, I’ll stay here guarding Elder Yao," Qiu Zhiheng said. "As long as the news doesn’t get leaked, outsiders won’t know that something has happened to Elder Yao, and they won’t dare to trouble Medicine King Valley. You don’t need to worry about the Medicine Shop; although it’s a bit far, the business can still be managed."
Li Banfeng asked, "What about your wife? Will she move here too?"
Qiu Zhiheng let out a soft sigh. This matter was indeed tricky.
He didn’t want his wife to suffer with him, but as a practitioner of Lust Cultivation, his wife had to stay close by.
"I’ll discuss it with her when I get back."
Li Banfeng nodded. "Tell your wife she can move over in a few days. By then, we can take turns guarding the mountain."
"You want to stay here and guard? That won’t do. You’re a Traveling Cultivator; you need to travel around. How can you always stay in one place?"
"Anyway, I have a plan."
These past few days, Li Banfeng had been pondering one thing: who exactly should look after Medicine King Valley.
In the end, he concluded that it wasn’t appropriate for any Local Deity to come to Medicine King Valley.
Medicine King Valley didn’t have many visitors, definitely incomparable to Greenwater Bay.
But this was Proper Land, prime Proper Land in Puluo State. Which Local Deity of New Land wouldn’t covet it? Even if he were to invite Feng Daiku, it was hard to say whether she would have other intentions.
A few days later, the house was repaired, and Li Banfeng had also become deeply familiar with the surroundings.
The mountain terrain was very complex, with intertwining paths that made it easy to get lost.
Elder Yao’s courtyard was in an accessible location that was nevertheless easy to defend and difficult to attack. Such a location was extremely rare, a testament to the vision of a renowned general.
Moreover, the place was extremely secluded. Li Banfeng couldn’t help but wonder how Deathgate Star had managed to find it originally.
As long as the news didn’t leak, Li Banfeng felt that it would be several years before anyone found this place.
But that very afternoon, while he was wandering in the mountains, he discovered an old man had found his way up.
The old man wore coarse cloth clothes, had a towel wrapped around his head, carried a basket on his back, and held a sickle in his hand, appearing to be an herb gatherer.
He followed the path all the way up the mountain. At this rate, he would soon discover Elder Yao’s courtyard.
Li Banfeng thought about stopping him, but doing so would only arouse suspicion.
Li Banfeng returned to his Portable Residence, brought out the paper maiden, and when he looked again, the old man had taken another mountain path.
Li Banfeng let out a sigh of relief and turned back to Elder Yao’s courtyard.
As Li Banfeng approached the courtyard, his Silk-pulling Earrings picked up a sound.
It seemed more than one old man had come.
Another old man had already entered Elder Yao’s house.
Upon hearing this old man’s voice, Li Banfeng broke into a cold sweat.
He recognized this old man.
"Old Yao, stop pretending! Do you think I don’t know? You just don’t want to see me, right? If you won’t get up, then you can’t blame me for being impolite. All these good things in your house, I’m taking them! This flag, this saber... where else could I find such fine things?"
"Where did you hide your Contract Book?" Pan Dehai said to Old Yao with a smile. "Not telling, huh? If you don’t speak up, I’ll dig. I’ll tear this whole place apart; I refuse to believe I won’t find it!"
Li Banfeng clenched his teeth.
He was now a Seventh Layer Traveling Cultivator, plus a Sixth Layer Home Cultivator.
Li Banfeng was contemplating his strategy when he suddenly heard voices in the courtyard.
"It seems we’ve arrived late."
"Not late, just in time."
A strong sense of danger washed over Li Banfeng, and he instinctively reached for his keys.
Using his knowledge of the terrain, Li Banfeng found a hidden spot to conceal himself. The vantage point was passable; he could just make out what was happening in the courtyard.
As luck would have it, the herb-gathering old man was headed towards the courtyard.
"Is anyone there? I’m just passing by and need some water to drink!" The old man stood at the entrance to the courtyard, peeking inside.