Chapter 198: The Goods Are Loaded

The goods were loaded, filling ten large carts.

They were pulled by donkey-headed maggots, unique to the New Land.

Each donkey-headed maggot was three meters long, crawling on the ground with a height of about 1.5 or 1.6 meters. When the carter shouted, the donkey-headed maggots hissed in succession, pulling the cargo and wriggling forward rapidly.

Ma Wu rode a swallow at the very front of the procession, with A-Qin following by his side.

Li Banfeng sat in a cart bringing up the rear, with Xianxian and Qiaocui following behind the cart.

As the procession set off, Zuo Wugang watched from the plot of land, feeling a bitter taste in his heart.

Escorting goods is called "pulling the hanging" in underworld slang, which is considered one of the duties of a "branch-hanger."

Something had gone wrong in the New Land; logically, such a situation would require the head branch-hanger to take action personally, but for some reason, Ma Wu did not use Zuo Wugang this time.

Returning to the wooden house, Zuo Wugang fell straight to sleep. Cao Zhida and Zhen Jincheng had nothing to do either, so they had the cook stir-fry two dishes and drank sullen wine together.

"Old Cao, we are outsiders after all. Even if we risk our lives following Fifth Master, he still doesn't trust us."

"If you want to talk about who treats us well, it has to be Seventh Master. It was Seventh Master who recruited us in the first place, and I will always remember this kindness."

"But Seventh Master and Fifth Master are true brothers. We are outsiders, after all. If Fifth Master ever really turns against us, Seventh Master won't be able to side with us."

The two brothers sighed and lamented, drank for over two hours until they were dead drunk, and then both fell asleep.

After sleeping for the better part of the day, a subordinate rushed into the room and shouted, "Brother Cao, Brother Zhen, several people have entered the land and burned our warehouse."

Zhen Jincheng and Cao Zhida woke up and hurried to the warehouse to check, but before they could reach the place, a man walked over with a smile on his face.

"The two of you are going to save the warehouse, right? Don't go. That's Ma Wu's cargo, not your family's. It's not worth risking your lives for."

Zhen Jincheng narrowed his eyes and said, "Who the hell are you?"

Cao Zhida gritted his teeth and said, "Do you even need to ask? It's this bird-man who set the fire!"

The two drew their weapons and were about to strike, but the man pressed his palms down and said, "The two of you, I'm doing this for your own good. Ma Wu treats you as outsiders; he's not worth you risking your lives for. Don't you think that makes sense?"

"What kind of bullshit logic is that..." Cao Zhida was halfway through his sentence when he suddenly felt that what the other party said really made a lot of sense.

Zhen Jincheng's cultivation was slightly higher than Cao Zhida's. He rubbed his forehead and looked at the man: "Are you..."

"Good medicine tastes bitter but is good for the illness; honest advice is unpleasant to the ear but good for conduct. What I say isn't pleasant to hear, but I am truly doing this for your own good."

"The two of you, no matter what we do, we must put ourselves in others' shoes."

"If Ma Wu really treated you like his own brothers, we brothers wouldn't hesitate to go through fire and water, but don't you know how Ma Wu treats you yourself?"

Zhen Jincheng shook his head, still resisting: "This is our duty..."

"What duty? Isn't it just earning money to get by? Living to have food to eat, living to have wine to drink, living to have girls to play with—that is the proper duty."

"If you lose your life, what else can you do? Reincarnating across the bridge, this life is over. What duty is there to speak of?"

Cao Zhida and Zhen Jincheng had been branch-hangers their whole lives.

They had indeed had complaints, but they had never done anything to violate their duty.

But today the situation was special. The two of them returned to their room, packed their bags, observed the situation, and then decided on their next move.

If nothing major happened on the land, they would go out and shout a few times to show that they had also contributed.

If something major happened on the land, they would flee immediately to ensure they wouldn't be implicated.

How could two fairly famous branch-hangers act this way?

Because they had encountered a fifth-layer Virtue Cultivator who had lowered their moral bottom line!

Virtue Cultivators of the first to third layers are adept at standing on the moral high ground to crush others. This technique is called "Seeing Virtue and Thinking of Equality," setting a moral standard for the opponent and making them fall into self-restraint.

A fourth-layer Virtue Cultivator has another method: he can lower the opponent's moral bottom line. This technique is called "Alienation of Heart and Virtue."

Those struck by this technique will forget all moral constraints and perform the most self-serving actions.

This Virtue Cultivator shouted all the way, and seeing Ma Wu's subordinates come out to resist, he persuaded them all back. If he encountered hunters, he had another set of rhetoric:

"Rob them! Hurry and rob them! Ma Wu isn't here, and people from the outside have broken in. This territory of his is finished. If you set a fire in a moment, everything will be burned to the ground."

"What are you waiting for if you don't rob them now? Do you still think you'll be doing business with Ma Wu in the future?"

"Ma Wu is finished; Ma Wu won't live until then. Hurry and rob them! Whoever grabs it gets to keep it; whoever is slow will be the one who loses out."

The hunters' moral bottom lines were also pulled to the lowest point. They began to rob—robbing goods, robbing money, and even robbing their peers. The entire plot of land was in chaos.

As he walked, this fifth-layer Virtue Cultivator encountered Xiao Chuanzi.

Xiao Chuanzi had a steam engine on his back, the boiler flames were burning bright, the chimney was puffing smoke, and Chuanzi was holding a steam pipe in his hand, ready to come up and fight for his life!

The Virtue Cultivator persuaded him: "Little brother, don't be reckless, don't be hot-headed. Listen to my advice."

"You're just a worker. The proprietor gives you money, you do the work. You don't owe the proprietor kindness, nor do you owe the proprietor righteousness. There's no reason to risk your life for the proprietor."

Xiao Chuanzi shouted: "Fifth Master has shown me kindness!"

The Virtue Cultivator laughed loudly: "Young man, being able to say that shows you're still young. You work and exert effort, earning money to eat—what kindness do you owe him?"

"Fifth Master treats me differently!"

"What's different? It's all nonsense. Hahaha..."

*Plap! *

A clump of sticky substance entered the Virtue Cultivator's mouth.

This Virtue Cultivator's laughter was loud, and his mouth was open wide. He had originally intended to completely destroy Chuanzi's moral bottom line through mockery.

Unexpectedly, Xiao Genzi sent him a spoonful of food, directly destroying his dietary bottom line.

The Virtue Cultivator spat more than a dozen times, looked at Xiao Genzi who had suddenly appeared on the roof, and said angrily: "You little bastard, have you lived enough?"

Xiao Genzi held the spoon and said with a serious face: "How can you talk like that? I gave you a bite to eat, why are you still cursing?"

Zuo Wugang stood beside Xiao Genzi, looked down at the Virtue Cultivator, and laughed: "No wonder people say he lacks virtue."

The Virtue Cultivator looked up and said: "Oh, isn't this the great branch-hanger Zuo? The proprietor doesn't think much of you, he doesn't even use you for 'pulling the hanging,' yet you're still here licking your face and risking your life?"

Zuo Wugang looked at Xiao Genzi and said: "His name is Wang Qi. He used to be a 'flower-tongue' on Tieyang Mountain. Not only does he lack virtue, but his mouth also stinks."

"Genzi, feed him another spoonful in a moment to get rid of that taste in his mouth."

Genzi really did scoop him another spoonful, and a figure flew toward Genzi from behind.

Zuo Wugang lifted a foot and kicked that person. The person crossed his arms to protect his chest, did a somersault, and stood beside Wang Qi.

Zuo Wugang laughed: "This person's name is Yu Dacheng. He's from the same 'gang' (mountain stronghold) as Wang Qi. He's a Martial Cultivator. Look at his appearance, jumping up and down—he's just a toad."

A fifth-layer Martial Cultivator plus a fifth-layer Virtue Cultivator—the two stood before Zuo Wugang. Zuo Wugang showed not the slightest fear: "You aren't the Three Heroes, are you? Where is that mouth-cultivator Du Shuping? Let him come together; I'll handle you all at once to save the trouble!"

Fifth-layer Virtue Cultivator Wang Qi said: "Bullying the few with the many—we can't count that as winning honorably. I am a person who talks about martial virtue..."

Zuo Wugang laughed: "Genzi, feed him another bite of food in a moment. I say, Old Wang, if Du Shuping doesn't come out, I'm going to start moving!"

As the words fell, Zuo Wugang had already reached Wang Qi.

Wang Qi was a Virtue Cultivator and was one layer lower in cultivation; he was definitely no match for Zuo Wugang. The Martial Cultivator Yu Dacheng jumped up and rammed his head toward Zuo Wugang's chest.

"So many years have passed, and this toad technique is the only thing you've got that works!" Zuo Wugang kicked Yu Dacheng on the head, pushing him back.

He stepped forward to add another kick. A layer of warts grew on Yu Dacheng's back, just like a toad, and he rammed into Zuo Wugang again.

These warts were very hard, very sharp, and poisonous.

Zuo Wugang still didn't dodge and kept kicking with his feet.

In the hands of a Martial Cultivator, everything is a weapon.

The pair of shoes on his feet were weapons—incredibly sturdy weapons.

He was confident he could kick Yu Dacheng to death alive, and he wouldn't even give Yu Dacheng a chance to fight back. This was the ferocity of a Martial Cultivator.

After kicking Yu Dacheng several times, he suddenly heard someone shout: "Breaking through iron shoes, there is nowhere to find them!"

Zuo Wugang laughed: "Du Shuping, you've come. This technique of yours doesn't work on me."

*Rip! *

Before Zuo Wugang could finish his sentence, his leather shoes suddenly shattered, scattering all over the ground.

Du Shuping's technique had worked. "Breaking through iron shoes, there is nowhere to find them"—Zuo Wugang's pair of shoes had indeed shattered.

The toad's warts pricked his feet, and Zuo Wugang was poisoned.

Zuo Wugang stood on tiptoe, took two steps back, looked at the Du Shuping who had just appeared, and said in astonishment: "You're at the sixth layer?"

Du Shuping laughed: "Old Zuo, didn't expect that, did you? Our brothers have suffered quite a few losses at your hands; it's time for us to collect this debt."

Zuo Wugang gritted his teeth and nodded: "Stop playing with your mouths. Come at me together."

"Since Master Zuo has spoken, let's fulfill his wish!" Du Shuping greeted his two brothers: "Come, send Master Zuo on his way."

Du Shuping was a sixth-layer Literary Cultivator, equal in strength to Zuo Wugang.

The remaining two—one a fifth-layer Virtue Cultivator, one a fifth-layer Martial Cultivator—would soon be able to take Zuo Wugang's life under their combined attack.

Never mind experience, never mind tactics; they were all old hands in the underworld, and none of their methods were inferior.

Zuo Wugang knew he was going to fall here this time, but he didn't flinch.

He was indeed poor at making decisions, but he never felt empty when risking his life!

Zuo Wugang had been a branch-hanger his whole life; he had missed his mark and lost face, but he had never lost his duty.

He tore off a piece of cloth, tied his lower leg tight, straightened his waist, and shouted at the three: "Come, all of you come!"

Just as the three were about to step forward, they suddenly heard someone shout from the roof: "Old Zuo, well done! I didn't misjudge you!"

Upon hearing the voice, Zuo Wugang looked up and said: "Seventh Master?"

How did Li Qi return?

Wasn't he following Fifth Master to escort the goods?

Li Banfeng had indeed returned; to be precise, he had never left.

In everyone's eyes, Li Banfeng was a man wearing a top hat and sporting a thick beard, with the brim of his hat pulled extremely low, making it almost impossible to see his face.

It was easy to handle not being able to see his face, because Li Banfeng wasn't very good at drawing faces.

He had drawn a dummy to go escort the goods in his place.

Except for Ma Wu, no one knew about this, and it wasn't even explicitly stated to Ma Wu.

On the chessboard, Li Banfeng moved the knight, signaling Ma Wu to move first.

He didn't move the chariot, signaling that he wanted to stay behind to guard the house.

Moving the knight and leaving the chariot—this was the tactic!

The reason it couldn't be stated explicitly was that Li Banfeng didn't know where the mole was, and he was afraid of leaking the news.

He didn't even dare to stay in the room, afraid of being discovered by the mole. He spent most of his time in the "Personal Residence," coming out every half hour to check the situation.

Right now, he had just come out and happened to encounter these three bandits from Tieyang Mountain.

Li Banfeng looked at the three people and said: "I am a person who talks about martial virtue. I didn't ambush you."

"But I've watched you fight for so long, and you've consumed quite a bit of physical strength."

"It would be winning dishonorably for me to take action now. For the sake of fairness, I'll cut myself once first!"

Du Shuping was stunned.

Is this guy sick?

He looked at the Virtue Cultivator Wang Qi and asked: "Did you use a technique on him?"

Wang Qi shook his head: "I didn't use any technique; I didn't even notice him just now..."

Li Banfeng took out a knife, cut his palm, and let the blood flow onto the ground.

"Everyone, look carefully. I'm injured too!"

Sixth-layer Literary Cultivator Du Shuping was the first to react: "He's the Landlord! Run!"

The three ran for their lives, running in one breath to the edge of the plot of land.

A water curtain hung down; the plot of land had already been sealed off.

When the Landlord spills blood, the invaders must suffer the punishment of the Land God.

Martial Cultivator Yu Dacheng gritted his teeth and rushed out. As soon as he hit the water curtain, he immediately turned into a clump of flesh and blood.

The water curtain was stained slightly red. Du Shuping and Wang Qi were both scared silly.

Shui Yongquan said in Li Banfeng's ear: "Do you want them dead or alive?"

"Alive. I need to ask clearly who sent them."

"Good. If they were sent by that group of land-reclaimers, tell me too. I need to have a word with Qiu Daxiang about this matter."

As the words fell, ten thousand water droplets burst from the water screen and struck Du Shuping and Wang Qi.

Each water droplet passed through their bodies, beating the two into sieves.

PS: Our Banfeng talks about martial virtue; he can also be a Virtue Cultivator.

(End of chapter)