Chapter 707: Seven-Tenths Initiative

The grease spread on Shu Wanjuan's legs, and only then did Shu Wanjuan realize that Face-Not-Big had made full preparations.

Shu Wanjuan's body instantly collapsed into ink, scattered in the grease.

Zhong Er was startled. He had read many files, and the scene before him reminded him of some tactics of Literary Cultivation.

"Was that just his clone?"

"Using a clone to catch me? Can he catch me?" Face-Not-Big laughed, "Child, he isn't that arrogant. What you saw just now was the Ancestor of Literary Cultivation. He is the most cautious person in this world. Either he doesn't make a move, or if he makes a move, he must succeed.

He came in person, but he can switch between his true self and his clone. Today I won't let him switch. You go outside and wait first! Don't call anyone, don't make a sound, don't implicate your Senior Brother, and don't implicate anyone else. Just watch from outside. Without my order, you are not allowed to move!"

Face-Not-Big waved his hand, and Zhong Er slid straight out of the front door.

Before he could stand still, Zhong Er immediately called Li Li Banfeng.

Old Luo picked up the phone. Zhong Er didn't dare to make a sound, only hoping Old Luo could understand his meaning.

Inside the room, a mass of ink wandered around, wrapped in thick grease.

Face-Not-Big laughed: "Old thief, can't come out? In a while, I'll let you turn completely into oil."

The ink twisted and turned back into the appearance of Shu Wanjuan. He wiped the oil stains on his gown, his expression still calm.

"What do you want to do by trapping me? Relive old feelings, or settle old scores? Are you feeling aggrieved in your heart, and are there some things you can't figure out from back then?" Shu Wanjuan pulled a chair and sat opposite Face-Not-Big, seemingly wanting to have a long talk with Face-Not-Big.

Face-Not-Big frowned, gritted his teeth, and a patch of grease emerged on the chair, making Shu Wanjuan slide off the chair.

Shu Wanjuan fell and gave a bitter smile: "Does this count as venting? If it doesn't, hit me twice more!"

Face-Not-Big waved his hand, and Shu Wanjuan slipped under his feet, falling to the ground. His whole body fell into scattered ink.

The ink reassembled, Shu Wanjuan stood up, fell again, and fell more than a dozen times repeatedly. Shu Wanjuan's gown was torn, his folding fan was broken, and his whole body was covered in bloodstains.

Zhong Er was anxious watching from outside the window. Face-Not-Big was acting too childishly.

How much psychological trauma had he suffered to be looking for a scene in this little matter?

Shu Wanjuan enduring the beating wasn't out of guilt either; he was clearly stalling for time.

Zhong Er didn't know Shu Wanjuan's level, nor did he have much concept of the Ancestor of Literary Cultivation, but he knew that for a cultivator at this level, suffering this degree of injury didn't even count as scratching an itch.

Shu Wanjuan sighed: "Now that you've vented your anger, can you let me say a word?"

Face-Not-Big nodded: "Say it! Say it quickly. After you finish, I'll send you on your way."

Shu Wanjuan said: "The one who wanted to catch you back then was Chaoge; this was not my wish."

Face-Not-Big hummed: "Don't talk about whose wish it was; just say whether you made a move or not?"

Shu Wanjuan didn't deny it: "Eating the monarch's salary, being loyal to the monarch's affairs, I naturally couldn't stand by and watch when I received the Holy One's order, but the matter was reported by Dan Chengjun, the manpower was summoned by Dan Chengjun, and the credit was finally counted on Dan Chengjun's head. If the blame is attributed to me, I'm afraid it's unreasonable, right?"

Face-Not-Big sat on the bed and laughed: "So it turns out the credit wasn't received, and you felt uncomfortable in your heart. Coming to find me this time is to make up for the credit?"

Shu Wanjuan shook his head: "I have already attained a high position and no longer care about any credit. Coming to find you this time is to take you to Chaoge and get you an identity."

Face-Not-Big was stunned: "Storyteller, have you gone crazy? What identity can I have in the Inner Prefecture?"

Shu Wanjuan said: "As long as you are willing to go with me, you will be enfeoffed as a Marquis immediately upon arriving in Chaoge. I have already selected the fief for you; it is a land of fish and rice, even more prosperous than my territory.

I have already settled your old subordinates from back then. When you arrive in Chaoge, they will be advisors in your mansion."

Face-Not-Big wrapped the quilt around himself: "What do I need advisors for?"

Shu Wanjuan shook his fan bones and said seriously: "Managing the Dao Sect of a water vein,

the imperial court will help you in terms of manpower and material resources. Where the imperial court cannot help, I will also help you.

All grievances will eventually turn into dust. Spring and autumn are short, but one should do some proper business."

Face-Not-Big lowered his head: "Following the imperial court, does that count as proper business?"

Shu Wanjuan said: "Staying in Puluo Prefecture, wasting time, does that count as proper business?"

Face-Not-Big didn't speak.

Shu Wanjuan beckoned to Face-Not-Big: "Come, let's go."

"Not going!" Face-Not-Big shook his head, "It's so warm in the quilt; I'm not going anywhere."

Shu Wanjuan sighed: "I'm afraid that's not up to you."

While speaking, Shu Wanjuan's fingertips trembled, and the folding fan in his hand suddenly turned into a piece of wood block.

The wood block shook in his palm, shaking out four thread-bound soft-cover old books.

Face-Not-Big huddled in the quilt and looked at the book titles one by one: "《River of Forgotten Souls》, 《Golden Orchid Fate》,

《Hundred Loyalties Spectrum》, 《Iron Railing》. These four books are good."

Zhong Er was panicked watching from outside. He didn't know what use these four books had.

These four books all had a certain degree of popularity in the early years and could be considered classic masterpieces of Puluo Prefecture.

"River of Forgotten Souls" tells the story of a ghost who forgot the memories of this life but didn't want to go to the underworld to be reincarnated, wandering through various experiences in the human world.

"Golden Orchid Fate" tells the heroic feat of two men who became sworn brothers, overcoming thorns and thistles, and sharing weal and woe.

"Hundred Loyalties Spectrum" tells the story of one hundred loyal ministers and good generals serving the imperial court.

"Iron Railing" tells various strange stories of hunting all kinds of rare and exotic beasts.

A burst of noise came from the room. People were chatting, pouring tea, and eating melon seeds, as if they had arrived at a teahouse by the street.

Slap! The wood block rang, and the room quieted down slightly.

Shu Wanjuan said in a clear and resonant voice: "Three-foot Dragon Spring and ten thousand books, what is the intention of heaven giving birth to me? If I cannot serve the country and pacify the world, I am unworthy of being a man!"

This was the opening poem; Shu Wanjuan had started telling the story.

Zhong Er knew that Shu Wanjuan was performing techniques, but Face-Not-Big had been huddled on the bed, and he didn't know if he couldn't move or was deliberately not moving.

He stared with wide eyes, looking at Shu Wanjuan, as if he were a serious listener.

The four novels unfolded one by one in front of Face-Not-Big. Shu Wanjuan used four voices, not interfering with each other, telling the story together.

Zhong Er hadn't read these four masterpieces, but when he saw the bizarre changes in the room,

To deal with a character like Face-Not-Big, ordinary methods are of no use; every step must be meticulously calculated.

Shu Wanjuan first used the technique of "Lotus Blossoming from the Mouth" to talk to Face-Not-Big about old times and old feelings, seizing upon Face-Not-Big's weakness of being sentimental and righteous to make him lower his guard first.

Afterward, the plot of *The River of Forgotten Souls* unfolded one by one in the room, with a wisp of soul wandering around the house.

At times lost and drifting for a long while, it would then reveal a ferocious appearance.

This ferocious look was indeed frightening, as if the departed soul had been enraged, but upon closer inspection, it seemed as if the departed soul was deliberately putting on a scary act to bolster its own courage.

Zhong Er thought to himself, could this be Face-Not-Big's current state of mind?

Was Face-Not-Big feigning depth and composure just to bolster his own courage?

Shu Wanjuan intended to present Face-Not-Big's true state of mind; *The River of Forgotten Souls* made Face-Not-Big treat himself as a wandering soul without a master, forgetting his current situation.

The first novel succeeded quickly. Next was *The Bond of Golden Orchids*, where sworn brothers fought side by side through mountains of blades and seas of fire. The tear-jerking plot pierced his mind word by word, making Face-Not-Big recall his old friendship with Shu Wanjuan and slowly let go of his fighting spirit.

The loyal ministers and good generals from *The Roster of Hundred Loyalties* appeared one after another. The civil officials were calm and offered good advice, while the military generals gnashed their teeth and scolded him, making Face-Not-Big feel so ashamed he had nowhere to hide.

*The Iron Railings* lurked on the side, with the rare beasts in the cage watching carefully. Once Face-Not-Big gave up resistance, the iron railings immediately appeared, directly trapping Face-Not-Big to ensure he could not escape even with wings.

The entire set of tactics was executed in one go, written with vigor and ink, without a single omission.

Shu Wanjuan's methods were simply beyond Zhong Er's range of understanding. When he saw a large area of railings rising around Face-Not-Big, Zhong Er realized that something was terribly wrong.

Face-Not-Big was trapped, but what could Zhong Er do?

Go in and fight for his life?

With his cultivation, any character jumping out of a book could take his life away.

But the railings around Face-Not-Big were becoming increasingly dense, and his whole person was wrapped in iron railings. If Zhong Er didn't act now, Face-Not-Big would be captured alive by Shu Wanjuan.

Just as Zhong Er was about to rush into the room, he suddenly heard Face-Not-Big shout from inside the railings: "Didn't I tell you not to move? Are you not listening to your Master's words anymore?"

Face-Not-Big was still clear-headed!

Zhong Er was very surprised, and Shu Wanjuan was also somewhat surprised.

The dense iron railings surrounding Face-Not-Big gradually faded in color. Zhong Er thought it was an illusion of his vision, but upon closer inspection, he could already see Face-Not-Big's outline amidst the iron railings.

Face-Not-Big was still draped in his quilt, looking up at Shu Wanjuan, and said slowly, "Just how many books do you have on you?"

Shu Wanjuan did not answer.

Face-Not-Big sighed and said, "No one in this world knows how many books you have, and no one knows where your books are hidden.

If you have ten thousand scrolls of books, you can create ten thousand sets of tactics, so it is simply impossible to defend against your tactics.

Anyone who competes with you in tactics will suffer in the end; even the Peddler is no exception. That's the logic, isn't it?"

"You flatter me." Shu Wanjuan stared fixedly at the increasingly blurred railings, pondering the reason for this and his next tactical move.

Face-Not-Big tugged at his quilt. "It's not flattery; I'm telling the truth. I never thought about competing with you in tactics, not from the very beginning. I have been sitting on the bed the whole time without moving, not even daring to take off the quilt."

This was also what Shu Wanjuan was most curious about; all the responses Face-Not-Big had made so far were beyond his expectations.

Face-Not-Big wiped the grease off his face. His expression became clearer and clearer, the color of the railings became paler and paler, and the wandering souls, golden orchid brothers, and loyal ministers presented around them became more and more transparent and blurred.

"Is this still oil?" Shu Wanjuan deduced Face-Not-Big's method.

Face-Not-Big nodded. "Yes, I am an oil cultivator, so I have to use oil, don't I? When oil sticks to paper, the paper becomes transparent, and the handwriting becomes blurred.

Your books are quite special, and the paper used is also unusual. Ordinary oil can't stick to it at all, but the oil I use is also unusual. This was prepared specifically for you.

I'm just waiting for you to take out a book, and then I'll smear oil on it. You take one out, I smear one; I'm not in a hurry at all."

Shu Wanjuan frowned slightly. Compared to back then, Face-Not-Big had changed too much.

Over a hundred books flew out of Shu Wanjuan's gown. With the previous experience, Face-Not-Big was familiar with the process. Grease spread everywhere, and all the books Shu Wanjuan released were soaked in oil, turning into a patch of blurred ink.

These books contained the means by which Shu Wanjuan made his living, so naturally, he could not squander them recklessly. He immediately changed tactics, throwing an inkstone out of his sleeve, holding a brush, dipping it in ink, and waving it to write.

He wrote several times, but whether he wrote on the floor or the walls, the handwriting would not take shape. Even if he wrote in the air, it would turn into a blob of ink.

This time Zhong Er understood. In the grease and grime, the ink couldn't hold, and he couldn't write characters. He had encountered this type of situation before when taking notes.

Shu Wanjuan couldn't write characters, so he spoke directly: "Greasy and dirty, what kind of decorum is this? When—"

Zhong Er couldn't hear clearly what Shu Wanjuan had said; the grease in the room was rolling and vibrating, making it impossible for Shu Wanjuan's voice to propagate normally.

But Face-Not-Big's voice was very clear. He was talking to Zhong Er: "Remember, the first move is good,

but you can't be too greedy. Especially when encountering an opponent like Shu Wanjuan, take seven parts of the initiative and leave three parts; your chances of winning will be greater."

Face-Not-Big had made sufficient preparations beforehand, but he had remained sitting on the bed the whole time, leaving the three parts of the initiative to Shu Wanjuan.

While fighting Shu Wanjuan, Face-Not-Big didn't forget to teach Zhong Er. This move was clearly a provocation.

But Shu Wanjuan was not angry at all. Writing didn't work, speaking didn't work, and the ready-made books didn't work, but he still had a backup plan.

He took a scroll of bamboo slips from his bosom.

Bamboo slips would not become transparent because of the oil, and the handwriting on the bamboo slips would not become blurred because of the oil.

Characters fell off the bamboo slips one after another, walking toward Face-Not-Big.

He didn't act easily, but when he did, he was bound to succeed. Shu Wanjuan was confident that he could directly subdue Face-Not-Big with this scroll of bamboo slips.

Face-Not-Big shouted at Zhong Er: "Get further away!"

Zhong Er immediately retreated. Face-Not-Big made a move that Shu Wanjuan could not understand no matter what.

He knocked over the oil lamp by the bed.

There was oil everywhere in the room, and the grease caught fire, burning on the spot.

The fire burned along the path of the grease toward Shu Wanjuan's bamboo slips. Shu Wanjuan couldn't dodge in time, and the bamboo slips were burned to ashes on the spot.

"What kind of tactic is this?" Shu Wanjuan shook his head. "You hurt the enemy by eight hundred and damage yourself by ten thousand. If the oil burns out, what will you use to fight?"

This was true. Face-Not-Big had been able to stalemate with Shu Wanjuan until now by relying on oil. To sacrifice all the oil for a scroll of bamboo slips was clearly not worth it.

Shu Wanjuan just waited for Face-Not-Big to burn the oil dry, and then victory would be in his grasp!

Face-Not-Big was not worried. Draped in his quilt, he was still sitting on the bed: "I have plenty of oil. Let's watch as we burn."

Shu Wanjuan didn't quite understand. Who was he doing this for to watch?

The Peddler stood on the clouds, looking at the firelight beneath the clouds.

"He's been fished out!" The Peddler wore a faint smile. Pushing his cart, he leaped and jumped off the clouds.

This fire of Face-Not-Big's was lit for the Peddler to see. If the Peddler could see it, he would come down directly to collect Shu Wanjuan. If the Peddler couldn't see it, then he would fight Shu Wanjuan to the end.

The Peddler landed in a deep alley, one street away from Face-Not-Big's residence. The jar of cold cream on his cart suddenly tipped over, and the white, creamy cold cream spilled onto the counter.

He didn't rush to steady it, because this situation was very abnormal.

Using the "Candlelight in the Dark" technique to observe the subtle details, he saw that a foxtail grass had actually grown under the cold cream jar.

How could grass grow on the cart?

This meant an old friend had arrived.

The corner of the Peddler's eye twitched slightly. He wanted to know why these old friends had arrived so coincidentally!

"Hong Lian Hong Lian Baizi, when did you arrive? You didn't even say a word beforehand?" The Peddler didn't touch the grass and looked toward the depths of the alley.

The foxtail grass on the cart grew rapidly. In the blink of an eye, it went from a tender sprout to heading, growing until the grass seeds were full and plump.

The grass seeds detached from the grass ears and flew toward the Peddler.

The Peddler used his footwork to dodge, avoiding the grass seeds.

The weeds on both sides of the road extended a patch of fibrous roots to trip and entangle the Peddler's ankles.

The grass seeds flew fast. If they didn't hit the Peddler, they could circle around and continue the pursuit.

The fibrous roots on the ground were very accurate, sticking to the Peddler's ankles. If the Peddler were even a little slow, he might be tripped to the ground.

These weeds were pursuing so tightly; it seemed this wasn't just Hong Lian Hong Lian Baizi's method alone. Who else could it be?

Whoosh!

A gust of night wind blew, and the old poplar tree in the alley rustled, with a large patch of leaves flying over.

The leaves surrounded the Peddler, weaving back and forth. Several leaves passed through the Peddler's body, but were avoided by the Peddler using the "Carefree and Unfettered" technique.

A tree branch flew toward the Peddler's face. The Peddler wanted to catch it with his hand to see the quality of the branch, but someone was one step ahead and intercepted the branch first.

"Brother, you must be careful. This branch is extremely vicious; if it hits your body, it will be fatal." The person who caught the branch was a woman, looking to be in her early thirties, with a round face, big eyes, and thick lips—the appearance of a virtuous wife and good mother.

This branch was indeed vicious, piercing through the woman's palm. The woman coquettishly said, "Brother, I blocked this for you; you must appreciate it."

The Peddler looked at the woman and said, "Song Xianyao, I really don't want to appreciate your favor."

Song Song Xianyao looked aggrieved. "Brother, I've been injured for your sake, and you don't feel sorry for me?"

Even if he didn't feel sorry, he had to. This woman had invested heavily; the "Devotion" technique had already been perfected by her.

The Peddler nodded and said, "I also find it strange. How could a single branch injure you? So, Dan Chengjun has also come."

Dan Chengjun squatted on the poplar tree and smiled at the Peddler: "I didn't come for you originally. His Majesty asked me to do other things, but I feel that as long as you are alive, nothing I do goes smoothly, so I came to see you while I was at it."

The Peddler was not very happy: "Came to see me while you were at it? Your etiquette is not right."

"How could I be lacking in etiquette with you!" Dan Chengjun plucked a handful of leaves and scattered them gently. "Many people came today, all specifically to see you."

PS: I had a wisdom tooth pulled out that was growing sideways. My gums were cut, a piece of jawbone was shaved off, and I had several stitches. Right now, I'm shivering all over from the pain. I wanted to ask for leave today, but I felt sorry for all you readers. I revised this chapter over a dozen times, and the quality is definitely not sloppy in the slightest. The length is a bit short, so I hope you all will forgive me.