Chapter 145: Choosing the Plot

Among the four great families, the Ma family most loved acquiring land and clearing new territory, and Ma Wu had witnessed land reclamation firsthand and had some experience.

But seeing was not the same as experiencing; Ma Wu had never personally cleared land, for his family's wealth made it unnecessary for him to take such risks—these tasks were always outsourced to professional land reclamation workers.

Even now, Ma Wu did not want to take risks; he preferred to have Zuo Wugang lead two hired hands to clear the land.

But Li Banfeng disagreed.

This new land, besides being favorable for cultivation, was also Li Banfeng and Ma Wu's refuge; before Zuo Wugang earned complete trust, Li Banfeng did not want him to know the location of the new land.

Zhen Jincheng and Cao Zhida were the same—they could not come along either.

Seeing Li Banfeng's firm stance, Ma Wu reluctantly agreed.

In truth, land reclamation largely depended on luck; Ma Wu felt the risk was high, based on his family's past experience, though there had been rare cases where a first-layer cultivator succeeded in clearing land alone.

And if danger arose, one could simply abandon the reclaimed land and still have a chance to escape—though within a hundred li, no further land reclamation would ever be possible.

"In Puluozhou, as far as I know, the most experienced land reclaimer is the private detective Dabo Yens. He once procured offerings for our family; I still remember some of the types and quantities—these items are easy to obtain, but first we must choose the location."

Li Banfeng had two options: the wasteland between Hulugou and Tiexian River, or the wasteland between Xiao Huangquan and the Orange Grove.

The two ultimately chose the wasteland between Xiao Huangquan and the Orange Grove.

This place allowed easy access to food—the oranges in the grove were edible, and Ma Wu knew this well.

From Li Banfeng's perspective, the owner of the Orange Grove was on good terms with him and could offer support in a crisis.

With the location chosen, what remained was Ma Wu's cultivation issue.

The girl could not be brought along; Ma Wu had said the previous Jin Yuandan would suffice for some time.

Li Banfeng also gave Ma Wu seven Xuan Chi Dan; should an emergency arise, they would let Ma Wu endure longer.

With all supplies prepared, Ma Wu selected a pair of sentient shoes—thick soles, deep treads—that nearly doubled his usual speed, and set off with Li Banfeng.

Before departure, Ma Wu entrusted Lan Yang Village to Xiao Chuanzi and Zuo Wugang.

Daily affairs were to be handled by Xiao Chuanzi; emergencies were to be dealt with by Zuo Wugang.

Xiao Chuanzi worried: "Fifth Master, I can't even read a few characters—how can you expect me to manage the business? That's a joke."

"This isn't a joke," Ma Wu had full confidence in Xiao Chuanzi. "It's year-end; hunters are all home celebrating, business is already light."

"Besides, you've accompanied me buying and selling goods for years—you've learned plenty. It's time to practice."

Ma Wu truly trusted Xiao Chuanzi, but he had little trust in Zuo Wugang.

Through recent interactions, Ma Wu found Zuo Wugang a capable hired hand—whenever trouble arose in the village, Ma Wu gave one order and Zuo Wugang instantly quelled it.

But if Ma Wu gave no order, things became troublesome; Zuo Wugang was not good at making decisions.

At the village entrance, Li Banfeng saw Xiao Genzi collecting golden excrement.

In the freezing cold, golden excrement was hard to find; Xiao Genzi carried two buckets, drenched in sweat, searching everywhere.

Li Banfeng asked quietly: "Has he ascended a layer?"

Ma Wu nodded: "Yesterday he told me he felt he'd ascended a layer. Cultivation base has intuition—this must be right."

"Even if he ascended, one bucket would suffice. Only second-layer cultivators carry two buckets—that's what the peddler said."

Ma Wu replied: "Xiao Genzi says carrying an extra bucket lets him accumulate more time."

Li Banfeng praised repeatedly: "This boy has promise."

Because they carried Ma Wu, they moved slowly, but preparations were thorough, and Hulugou presented almost no obstacles.

Hongni Gang was also manageable; Li Banfeng had passed through once and found a relatively safe route, guiding Ma Wu safely through the marsh using his travel-cultivator's sense of direction.

Tiexian River was troublesome—Ma Wu had no flying equipment.

Li Banfeng did—he had the Judge's Pen given to him by those two hoodlums.

He drew a circle on the ground with the Judge's Pen, and he and Ma Wu waited inside it for the Pen's response.

After more than half an hour, the Pen's tip trembled slightly.

To ordinary people, this was enough; Li Banfeng possessed the Skill of Perceiving Spiritual Sounds—he could not only see the tremor but also hear the Judge's Pen speak.

"Where?"

Just two words, spoken so faintly they were nearly inaudible.

Is this a lazy cultivator's magic treasure?

Li Banfeng pointed the Pen's tip toward the opposite bank—the Judge's Pen fell silent again.

After another half hour, the Pen's tip trembled once more: "Stand firm."

Again, just two words.

They waited longer still; beneath their feet, a patch of dust slowly rose, lifting Li Banfeng and Ma Wu into the air.

How high did they fly?

Less than two chi.

Almost skimming the ground.

The entire Tiexian River was filled with Tiexian worms.

One by one, coiled and writhing, they pulsed beneath their feet.

Ma Wu's hair stood on end: "Brother Li, is this magic treasure reliable? We can't fall—fall and we're done."

Li Banfeng dared not claim the Judge's Pen was reliable; they floated slowly across, and despite the bitter cold, both were drenched in sweat.

Still shaken, Ma Wu asked: "Which Dao sect's magic treasure is this?"

Li Banfeng was about to explain: "Brother Ma, do you know the Lazy Cultivators?"

Ma Wu nodded: "Yes. Their sect is peculiar—their cultivation essence lies in the word 'lazy.' They have three maxims they constantly chant."

"What are they?"

"First: lie down if you can, don't sit. Second: sit if you can, don't stand. Third: stand if you can, don't walk!"

Li Banfeng stared blankly, then retracted the Judge's Pen and pondered long before asking: "Can this sect fight?"

"Can't say they can fight, can't say they can't…" Ma Wu struggled to describe. "Lazy Cultivators are rare. When I was fifteen, I saw one."

It was at Haichiling—a Lazy Cultivator had challenged a Food Cultivator to mortal combat. They agreed on a meeting spot; the Lazy Cultivator arrived an hour late, making the Food Cultivator curse.

When they prepared to fight, the Lazy Cultivator just stared at the Food Cultivator, yawning nonstop.

"Then what?"

"The Lazy Cultivator said he didn't want to fight. The Food Cultivator started yawning too, couldn't even keep his eyes open, cursed a few more times, then said he wouldn't fight either. Both found places to sleep. The matter ended there."

Li Banfeng stopped walking and turned to look at Ma Wu: "You rich folks call this 'mortal combat'?"

"I didn't say that—it was them who declared they'd fight to the death."

There really existed such a Dao sect!

Li Banfeng knew the way; Ma Wu barely kept up. After six full days, they reached Xiao Huangquan.

Ma Wu's shoes did boost his speed, but his Huan body was too weak—he needed ample rest each day.

Li Banfeng wasn't in a hurry; he set up two tents, and they rested separately. He consumed one Jin Yuandan daily, which required time to recover, and each night he returned to his Body Residence.

Crossing Xiao Huangquan, Li Banfeng was extremely cautious, explaining every rule to Ma Wu in detail.

When they actually walked the path, Ma Wu was terrified, his bones chilled and hair bristling; Li Banfeng, holding a feather duster, walked calmly—the wind always blew south, proving safety.

One hundred li took over five hours; fear and exhaustion overwhelmed Ma Wu, who collapsed on the wasteland and could not rise for a long time.

After resting for two hours, they pressed on, selecting their land reclamation site beside a pine forest thirty li from the Orange Grove.

Proximity to the pine forest aided in gathering building materials—future wooden cabins would lack no timber.

Proximity to the Orange Grove ensured easy food supply, but not too close—Li Banfeng did not wish to offend the owner or draw the attention of hunters going to the grove.

Ma Wu took a small table from his pack and began calculating the offering table's position.

This was a critical step—only Ma Wu could perform it himself.

A Land God governed a hundred-li territory; domains connected, but boundaries were invisible.

If the offering table was placed incorrectly—at the border of two Land Gods' domains—it would attract both gods' attention, causing trouble. What kind of trouble, Ma Wu could not imagine.

Ma Wu had helped his father choose land plots several times—he knew the essentials.

He grabbed a clump of soil, tested its texture, moved ten steps left, grabbed another, and kneaded it carefully in his palm.

After testing dozens of soil samples, Ma Wu had a general sense.

"Brother Li, these soils are soft and sticky—they belong to the same Land God. Let's place the plot here."

Li Banfeng nodded, and together they arranged the offering table and offerings, lighting incense and candles.

The quantity of offerings came from Ma Wu's past observations: the Ma family had cleared one li of new land using only one flask of premium aged wine; Ma Wu prepared the same offerings, not adding or subtracting a single item.

Ma Wu took out the covenant scroll, read it aloud—this scroll had only one fixed version, requesting divine permission to establish a dwelling here.

The scroll burned to ash; soon, a whirlwind swept it away.

Li Banfeng used his Golden Eye Autumn Hair to scan the surroundings, curious about the Land God Ma Wu described.

After a moment, he saw a pale green flame circling the offering table; the wine flask trembled twice, its contents quickly drained.

Ma Wu smiled: "Brother Li, it's done."

Li Banfeng did not smile.

Was the Land God a spirit?

Soon after, a faint glow appeared on the distant ground; Ma Wu said to Li Banfeng: "Brother Li, watch closely—that's the plot's boundary. The deity has responded to our covenant. Now, it's your turn to sprinkle blood."

The one who sprinkled blood on the land became its master.

Before leaving, they had agreed: the first newly cleared plot belonged to Li Banfeng.

Li Banfeng drew his short knife, sliced his palm, and sprinkled blood onto the soil beneath his feet.

"Brother Li, the covenant is sealed. Tomorrow at this time, land reclamation officially begins. We can guard the land ourselves or hire help—but once reclamation starts, no one may step beyond the boundary. Hold firm for three days, and this land is ours!"

Li Banfeng paused, then asked: "You just said no one may step beyond the boundary?"

Yes, not a single one is acceptable—reclamation must be done with people you can trust. The number doesn't matter, but they must be reliable. If you send a hundred people to reclaim land and even one steps beyond the boundary, the reclamation fails. That's what I meant before: sometimes having too many people is a problem.

As long as you don't step beyond the boundary, you're fine… Li Banfeng found a loophole in the rules.

If I stay inside my Portable Dwelling and never come out, does that count as not stepping beyond the boundary?

If I sleep inside my Portable Dwelling for three days, isn't that already a successful reclamation?

As he thought about it, Li Banfeng suddenly smiled.

PS: Could there really be something this easy in this world?

(End of Chapter)