Chapter 120

Li Banfeng struggled to suppress his trembling leg as his wife described the third-level technique.

“Honey, the first two levels of Zhai Xiu don’t have techniques—they only have two innate talents: one is guarding the home, meaning their combat power increases once they enter the dwelling; the other is being invisible, meaning when they leave the dwelling, no one notices them.”

Li Banfeng nodded: “I can do that too. But aren’t Hundred Flavors Lustrous, Golden Eyes Sharp, and Soul-Listening Techniques techniques?”

His leg wasn’t just shaking—it felt like it was stretching.

“These are techniques, but they’re also my heartfelt gift—other Zhai Xiu may not even use them.”

This was the unique nature of Zhai Xiu—and why others avoided fighting them—part of their techniques came from the Dwelling Spirit, and the patterns were hard to fathom.

His wife continued: “But the third-level technique is different—it’s the same for every Zhai Xiu in the world: Return Heart Like an Arrow.”

“Once a Zhai Xiu feels the urge to return home, their combat power surges—but how much it increases and how long it lasts depends on your own ability.”

Li Banfeng punched his thigh: “I can hold it for a long time—you know that.”

Chii~

The Singing Machine chuckled slightly: “The Return Heart Like an Arrow technique depends on two things: your cultivation base, and how urgent your desire to return is. The higher your base, the more urgent your longing, the stronger and longer-lasting the technique.”

“So that’s how it is—I’ll go test it out.” Li Banfeng rose and bolted outside—he couldn’t hold back anymore.

He wanted to run, uncontrollably, as if his legs would sprint off on their own even if his upper body stayed still.

The Singing Machine warned: “Husband, Zhai Xiu have no levels—daily time at home must be at least two hours; once you reach level one, at least three hours; level two, at least four hours; now that you’ve reached level three, you must stay home at least five hours.”

“I never minded when you came home early or late due to your work—but now that you’ve reached level three, you must pay closer attention to the rules.”

“I don’t mind what I endure, but the dwelling won’t be so easy to appease.”

Li Banfeng replied and immediately left the Suishenju.

In the outer chamber, a dewdrop formed on the copper lotus.

She wasn’t spitting—she was sweating cold sweat.

He sprinted like the wind, bursting out of Lan Yang Village, racing across the wilderness, running aimlessly.

Only relentless running could suppress his legs’ near-total loss of control.

As he ran, Li Banfeng thought:

The final words the Singing Machine spoke were crucial—the Zhai Xiu cultivation method depends on the balance between cultivator, dwelling, and Dwelling Spirit.

If a Zhai Xiu stays away too long or spends insufficient time at home, they grow distant from the dwelling—and the dwelling may turn against them.

If Suishenju wanted to devour me, would it act alone, or team up with my wife?

This question was redundant.

If my wife wanted to harm me, she wouldn’t need Suishenju’s help—the key is…

The key is when I can stop!

Li Banfeng had been running for a long time.

From Lan Yang Village to the wilderness, from wilderness to town, from one town to another—he ran over a hundred li, all the way back to the small wooden house, with no desire to stop.

The moment he stopped, his legs began trembling again involuntarily.

He’d underestimated this so-called backlash—if he encountered an enemy now, he’d have almost no ability to fight back.

Running on won’t solve the problem either—unless he advanced to level two by running, fifty li a day for ten years, which would take him to who-knew-when.

How could he solve this?

Li Banfeng controlled his trembling hands and pulled out the newly forged Jin Yuandan pills from his pocket.

Thirty-eight pills total—each representing one hundred days of cultivation.

Three thousand eight hundred days—over ten years’ worth. If he swallowed them all, he could advance to level two and reduce his gap with Zhai Xiu to just one level.

Could he really swallow this many pills at once?

He’d only paused for a moment, but the urge to run surged again.

He couldn’t stop—his legs felt like they’d fly off his hips.

This wasn’t an illusion—he truly heard the sound of his joints grinding.

Blood seeped from his thighs; parts of his skin had been torn apart by his own legs.

It wasn’t just his legs—all his joints wanted to run.

His left arm wanted to race east, his right arm west, his neck yearned to fly upward!

His legs had to run—nonstop. If he stopped, his whole body would shatter.

He couldn’t go on like this.

If he took fewer pills, he still wouldn’t reach level two—the backlash wouldn’t improve.

Running aimlessly until he dropped dead wouldn’t stop it either.

If he met an enemy, he might run himself to death.

Should he return to Suishenju to take them?

No.

The Singing Machine must never learn he also cultivated as a Lv Xiu.

The Singing Machine despised Lv Xiu—he didn’t know why.

If she found out he took pills to boost his Lv Xiu, she might stop him from advancing—or even go mad and kill him.

Better to do it all at once!

He’d swallow them now—if things went wrong, he’d return to Suishenju for detox.

Li Banfeng sprinted back to the wooden house, where Ma Wu stepped out of the bedroom holding a newspaper: “Brother Li, have you figured out what happened? The Lu family…”

“Don’t tell me now—I can’t go to the new land tonight. Guard the door. Let no one in.”

“Brother Li, what’s going on? Why are you shaking so badly?”

“Shaking? So what? Isn’t it fine?” Li Banfeng’s speech trembled—he couldn’t explain clearly, so he stopped trying.

He rushed upstairs, entered the bedroom, poured out thirty-eight pills, shoved them all into his mouth, and swallowed them with a gulp of water.

Since arriving in Pu Luo Zhou, this was Li Banfeng’s first time taking pills.

The Jin Yuandan pills slid smoothly down his throat—no resistance at all.

After swallowing thirty-eight pills, Li Banfeng felt no special sensation.

He only felt the urge to run had lessened.

Had he advanced to Lv Xiu level two?

Had the cultivation backlash vanished?

Was the effect this fast?

Was the advancement this smooth?

Li Banfeng felt joy—but then looked at his body and realized something was wrong.

He was still trembling—and still badly.

The reason the urge felt weaker was because he no longer sensed his own body.

He tried to move his arm—but it refused to obey.

Was the poison this severe?

He had to return to Suishenju for detox!

How would he explain this to his wife?

Say I went mad and swallowed the pills!

Would that sound believable?

I think it would!

Since I already swallowed them, we won’t mention Lv Xiu—now I just have to deceive her.

Which man hasn’t lied to his wife at home?

Li Banfeng tried to pull out his key—but his hands were completely out of control.

I must go home. I must go home. I must go home.

Li Banfeng’s veins bulged, bloodshot eyes, fingertips trembling slowly as they reached into his pant pocket.

Return Heart Like an Arrow—his desire to return home was desperate, and this rapidly elevated his physical condition, briefly overcoming the poison’s effects.

He twisted the key, opened the door, and tossed it under the bed.

Back at Suishenju, after taking two steps, Li Banfeng collapsed onto the floor.

The moment he returned to Suishenju, his longing to return was satisfied—the urgency vanished, and the boosted combat power disappeared.

Chiiii~

Seeing Li Banfeng collapsed, the Singing Machine gasped: “Honey, what happened to you?”

Li Banfeng could barely speak: “I took pills—Jin Yuandan.”

“Husband, why did you take those?”

“Thought they were very nourishing, so I took them.”

“How many did you take?”

“Thirty-eight—all of them!”

“Oh my! You madman, are you trying to kill yourself?”

A wisp of steam lifted Li Banfeng onto the bed. He lay still for a while, and under the swirling vapor, gradually calmed down.

The poison was terrifying—he’d need a long time to regain full sensation of his body.

But it was far better than the cultivation backlash—just before swallowing the pills, he’d feared his body might shatter.

Li Banfeng’s legs still trembled, as if they wanted to leave his body.

But he could see that the trembling had clearly lessened.

Dewdrops streamed down the copper lotus, one after another.

…

Ma Wu was flipping through newspapers downstairs; today’s news was truly extraordinary.

The Lu family’s affairs had been exposed: Lu Dongjun accused He Yuxiu of secretly harming Lu Dongliang, while He Yuxiu claimed Lu Dongjun intended to murder his brother and seize power.

Both sides stuck to their own versions; the matter remained unresolved.

Lu Dongliang’s whereabouts were also still unknown.

Ma Wu didn’t bother reading the commentary from the big-name pundits; he cared more about less urgent news.

The Ma family was raising funds from multiple sources to open new territory.

Although the Ma family had declined in recent years, opening new territory shouldn’t require raising funds from so many sources.

Based on what Ma Wu knew of his father, the Ma family’s real goal was to withdraw the money stored in the Lu family bank—he wanted to distance himself as far as possible from this turmoil.

Another headline: Chu’s second daughter, Chu Huaiyuan, denied the false rumor that she had murdered her husband and went to the Bailingmen to support the singing queen Jiang Mengting.

Chu Er had gone to the Bailingmen again.

She had always wanted a stake in the Bailingmen, but it was Lu family property, and she couldn’t get her hands in—now the opportunity had arrived.

This also signaled the Chu family’s stance: they wanted to join the conflict and reap greater benefits.

Ma Wu felt a burning itch in his heart.

The Lu family was in chaos; the balance of power in Puluozhou was about to be rewritten—he smelled opportunity in it.

Puluozhou was in turmoil; with so much chaos in the Lu family, they likely had no spare attention left for Li Banfeng.

Thinking of this, Ma Wu grew concerned for Li Banfeng’s condition.

He had been about to go upstairs to his bedroom and ask, when suddenly someone knocked on the door.

He opened it and saw a middle-aged man outside, around fifty, dressed in a dark blue long gown, clean-shaven, wearing round dark glasses and a wide-brimmed hat.

“Who are you looking for?” Ma Wu asked politely.

The middle-aged man smiled: “I’m here for you, Fifth Young Master.”

Ma Wu’s heart tightened, but he feigned calm: “May I ask your name?”

“I’m Yang Yanzheng, an official of the Chu family.”

Upon hearing the name, Ma Wu remembered the words Wei Fangdong had spoken before dying.

It was this Yang Yanzheng—Chu Er’s man—who had been directing others to persecute Ma Wu all along.

“What do you want?” Ma Wu stood at the doorway, his expression unchanged.

Yang Yanzheng smiled: “My lady’s birthday is this month; she’d like you to join her for dinner. I’ve brought the invitation.”

Ma Wu took the invitation, glanced at it, and smiled faintly: “Your lady still wants to invite me? I’ve been cast out of my own family—would it be appropriate for me to attend your lady’s birthday?”

Yang Yanzheng said: “My lady believes you’ve done nothing truly wrong and shouldn’t have suffered so much. She doesn’t care what others say—so long as you’re willing to grace us with your presence, the Chu family door will always remain open for you.”

Ma Wu paused, then suddenly asked: “What if I refuse?”

Yang Yanzheng fell silent for a long moment, then sighed: “Fifth Young Master, you’ve suffered greatly these past days. You don’t want to endure that again, do you?”

PS: Thank you to reader 20220724175249537.

Chu Er first appeared in the Yaowanggou newspaper; she was at the Second Layer of Spiritual Cultivation.

(End of Chapter)