Chapter 146: Fate and Destiny

All preparations before land reclamation were complete; Li Banfeng and Ma Wu set up their tents separately. Ma Wu slept beside the plot for one night, while Li Banfeng kept the key inside his tent and returned to his Personal Dwelling to sleep—this had been his routine for days.

The next afternoon, exactly twenty-two hours had passed since Li Banfeng had spilled his blood; two more hours remained before the land reclamation trial would begin.

According to protocol, both of them had to enter the plot in advance.

Ma Wu pointed to the plot's greenish boundary line and said, "Brother Li, once we enter the plot, we can't leave for three days. If you have any business to attend to outside, do it now."

There was little to do—both had sufficient food, barely enough water, and Li Banfeng still had plenty of supplies in his Personal Dwelling.

The only thing left to arrange was finding a suitable place for Ma Wu.

"Brother, head straight south to the orange grove, set up camp there, and rest."

"The oranges there are edible—eat as many as you want, but don't touch anything else. Don't damage anything in the grove."

"Three days from now, return here to find me. If we succeed in reclaiming this land, we'll tidy it up together. If we fail, we'll look for another chance."

Ma Wu froze. "Brother Li, what do you mean? You plan to reclaim this land alone?"

Li Banfeng did indeed plan to reclaim it alone.

If entering his Personal Dwelling didn't count as leaving the plot's boundary, then reclaiming this land would become extremely simple for him—and keeping Ma Wu around would only be a burden.

"Brother, I have ways to handle those aberrations. Don't forget—I once escaped the Cloak Moth Lady."

"If I stay here to reclaim this land, success is best; if I fail, I'll never be able to reclaim land within a hundred li again."

"But you didn't participate—you didn't spill blood, you didn't reclaim land—you still have chances in the future."

Li Banfeng spoke the truth. He truly liked this plot near the orange grove. If he failed, Ma Wu's survival here would still leave a glimmer of hope.

With Li Banfeng saying this, Ma Wu had no choice but to agree. He repeatedly warned: "Brother Li, once you enter the plot, hide yourself first. Avoid engaging any aberrations if you can."

"Da Boyins originally advised my family this way: within a square li, there are many places to hide. Avoid fights whenever possible."

"You mentioned the Cloak Moth Lady—I must warn you again: if she appears, don't fight under any circumstances."

"They're not sent by the Land God to test you—they're wandering aberrations, roaming monsters. Encountering them is just bad luck."

Li Banfeng asked: "If I leave the boundary when I encounter a wandering aberration, will it still count as failure?"

"Leaving the boundary counts as failure." Ma Wu knew it was unfair, but the rules of the New Land were clear.

Ma Wu handed all his gear to Li Banfeng: "I'm giving you all the water and food. Take my weapons and spiritual items too—I'll just eat oranges in the grove."

Li Banfeng knew Ma Wu meant well, but he didn't need these things: "Take your weapons. Take your spiritual items. The orange grove might have bandits."

"And remember my words: eat all the oranges you want, but don't damage anything."

Ma Wu memorized Li Banfeng's instructions and headed south.

Li Banfeng entered the plot and waited quietly for the trial to begin.

At four o'clock—the exact time he had spilled his blood the day before—

A green flame slowly emerged in the pitch-black sky, as if observing Li Banfeng.

It was the Land God.

Is he going to strike me himself?

A plot of only one square li shouldn't warrant such force—but Li Banfeng still gripped his key tightly, ready for defense.

Two minutes later, the green flame vanished.

The Land God had no intention of fighting Li Banfeng. In status and identity, he shouldn't intervene.

He merely came to take a look—to confirm someone had truly come to reclaim the land.

Until ten o'clock at night, the first aberration to appear for the reclamation finally arrived.

Crack!

The aberration stepped forward through dry leaves and branches, walking on all fours, over three meters tall, with a massive head, a round body, a stiff tuft of mane at the back of its skull, and two gleaming white fangs.

It was a wild boar—except for its size, it seemed unremarkable.

The boar slowly stepped into the plot, cautiously wary of ambushes, walking from the edge all the way to the altar—yet saw no sign of the reclaimer.

"Damn it, another trickster!"

"I'm asking you—did you come to reclaim this land? If you did, show yourselves. I'm just following orders. If you want to fight, we fight. If not, we drink. I won't trouble you."

This boar could speak human language. His tone was polite—could he really be offering friendship? Would meeting him, sharing a drink, turn hostility into harmony? Could he even make a friend in the New Land?

He was wrong. This boar wasn't here to make friends—he was here to kill.

He had received a bounty from the Land God: kill one reclaimer, and he'd be rewarded three months of cultivation. Force the reclaimer to flee or eliminate all reclaimers, and he'd earn an extra year.

Reclamation was a trial—not just for the reclaimer, but for the New Land's bold creatures.

"I'm telling you—if you don't show yourselves, I'll turn hostile. If I find you, don't blame me for being ruthless!"

The boar walked from the altar to another boundary—still no sign of anyone.

He grew angry.

His strength lay in combat—but strategy and deception were not his forte.

"None of you dare show yourselves? Fine. I'll wait here. If you make the slightest sound, I'll hear it—and then you'll be too late to cry!"

The boar lay flat on the ground, waiting for the reclaimer to reveal himself.

The cold was biting—who would break first?

The boar had the endurance for this reclamation trial!

…

Li Banfeng sat on the edge of his bed, wrapped in a quilt.

His wife poured a cup of tea and handed it to him.

As he drank, Li Banfeng complained to her: "Do you know how cold it is out there? If it weren't for buying groceries for you, I wouldn't even step outside. Look how frozen I've gotten these past days."

Clatter-clatter-clatter~

"My lord, you've worked hard. I'll boil you a hot soup soon."

"And after that, heat me a tub of bathwater—I need a good wash. Then warm me some wine, and fry a few small dishes. Soup alone won't do."

"My lord, everything else is fine, but bathing must wait—we don't have much water."

Li Banfeng hadn't replenished his water supply in days. The two remaining buckets barely sufficed for drinking. His wife, a steam-powered singing machine, consumed water too.

Wait a little longer. If reclamation succeeds, the New Land will yield a well—and water will be restored.

If it fails, he'd have to beg for water from the elders in the orange grove.

He wondered whether Ma Wu had reached the orange grove yet.

…

Thirty li wasn't far for a first-layer cultivator. Ma Wu had walked over twenty li and could now faintly see the towering orange trees.

He mentally recited Li Banfeng's instructions: never break the rules in the orange grove—take only what you need.

As he pondered, a cry for help suddenly reached his ears: "Passing gentleman, please help me!"

Ma Wu's ears twitched, but he didn't stop walking.

He was a Joy Cultivator. Many believed men who cultivated Joy should cherish women deeply.

That was wrong. Joy Cultivation wasn't about tender affection—it was the opposite. Joy Cultivators rarely valued women.

This was the New Land. No one knew what might appear. Better to avoid unnecessary entanglements.

"Gentleman, please save me—I beg you!"

The cry came again. Ma Wu was about to quicken his pace when a pang of guilt stirred within him.

A woman trapped in the wilderness—if he ignored her, would he regret it for life?

"Just pull me free—I'll walk the rest myself. I won't slow you down."

Listening to her voice, she sounded harmless.

Ma Wu turned his head and saw the woman trapped in a thicket of thorns.

She wore a red robe, with a yellow silk sash wrapped around her waist.

Her legs were entangled in thorns, from ankles to knees, slowly creeping upward along her body.

She strained to tear at the thorns, blood dripping from the spikes onto the greenish vines.

Emerald Serpent Vine—a mysterious aberration, neither fully snake nor vine.

Normally, it clung motionless to trees. Even if pulled down and cut with a blade, it wouldn't move.

But sometimes, it suddenly stirred. Any living creature with blood and flesh—beast or human—it would coil around, crush the flesh, and drain it dry.

The Emerald Serpent Vine was hard to fight. Its spikes were poisonous, its vines incredibly tough. If Ma Wu tried to tear it off, he might become entangled with the woman.

This vine was especially thick, filling Ma Wu with dread—but the woman's tearful face made him unable to abandon her.

I must save her. I met her—this must be fate.

Ma Wu used his Charm Technique on the Emerald Serpent Vine.

As a first-layer cultivator, his Charm Technique wasn't powerful—but it was enough for the vine.

In raw strength, the vine equaled a third-layer Wu Xiu.

But in spiritual awareness, it was simple-minded.

One glance from Ma Wu, and the vine developed affection—released the woman, and turned toward him.

Ma Wu shouted to the woman: "Run!"

The woman struggled to rise, limping away.

Ma Wu watched her retreating figure, his heart reluctant to let go.

She was beautiful.

Though he hadn't clearly seen her face, he knew she was beautiful.

But when Ma Wu turned back, the Emerald Serpent Vine was gone.

This thing burrows underground.

More accurately, its root system was already beneath the ground, and now it was slowly encircling Ma Wu with its vast roots.

Ma Wu dared not run wildly; one misstep could trap him in the emerald serpent vine's coils.

This thing isn't smart. Not smart at all!

Ma Wu kept reminding himself.

Before it emerges, there are signs—if only I can see them…

He saw no signs.

He wasn't a Traveling Cultivator; he lacked the keen sense for danger.

The emerald serpent vine was about to burst from behind him, and he felt nothing.

The red-clad woman suddenly ran back, grabbed Ma Wu, limped, and pulled him forward with all her strength.

Ma Wu exclaimed, "Why are you back?"

The woman, with her back to Ma Wu, spoke in a soft yet resolute voice: "I came back to save you!"

"I don't need you to save me!"

"You saved me, so I must save you—that's fate and destiny."

Fate and destiny.

Ma Wu felt his heart pounding wildly.

It was absurd to make a Joy Cultivator truly love someone.

But Ma Wu felt he had fallen in love with the woman before him.

The emerald serpent vine moved slowly and couldn't stray beyond its root range; Ma Wu and the woman had long since escaped it.

Yet Ma Wu still followed her running, willing to run like this for the rest of his life.

…

The giant boar kept pacing back and forth across the plot.

It was agitated; it had heard noises, searched all night, yet found no trace of the land-clearer.

It even suspected there never had been a land-clearer here.

The Land God tricked me.

No, I can't say he tricked me.

He was testing me.

If I could see there was no land-clearer here, he would surely admire me and reward me handsomely!

As the boar tried to leave the plot, stepping toward the boundary, it caught a scent.

The scent of a human—fresh, unmistakable.

The scent was close, less than a hundred meters away.

The boar followed the scent and finally found the traces left by Li Banfeng.

Not long ago, Li Banfeng had urinated here, then returned to his portable dwelling—the scent was still fresh.

There truly was a land-clearer!

I was careless!

Where is he?

The boar examined the surrounding traces; Li Banfeng's footprints suddenly vanished. There were no trees within the plot—since he couldn't have climbed one, he must have Dundi.

This land-clearer has a technique to burrow underground!

The boar began digging furiously at the spot where the footprints disappeared.

PS: Who exactly did Ma Wu encounter? How could he fall in love so easily?

(End of Chapter)