The Overlord of Puluo

Ma Wu stood before the Song Family’s enormous warehouse, fuming. ”Boss Luo! You’re a man of great wealth and a heart to match! Surely you wouldn’t fuss over a few miserable coins, would you?”

The warehouse steward, Luo Sancai, replied with a smile, ”Master Wu, please. The price for peaches is one hundred yuan per 0.5 kilograms for everyone. Rules are rules.”

”At least take a look at mine! Look at the color, the shine! How can my peaches be the same as theirs? Asking twenty yuan more than the original price isn’t too much, is it?”

Ma Wu wanted to sell these peaches at one hundred and twenty yuan per 0.5 kilograms. Truth be told, he didn’t care a whit about the extra twenty. He only wanted to make a bit of noise and put on a show for the Song Family.

Luo Sancai really wanted to just give him the price of one hundred and twenty yuan per 0.5 kilograms. He didn’t wantto offend this young master who had been kicked out of his wealthy and prestigious family over a few measly coins. However, the head of the Song Family, Song Jiasen, was sitting in the courtyard, watching everything. His order had been clear and sharp: ”One hundred yuan per 0.5 kilograms. Not a single coin more.”

Luo Sancai tried to persuade him. ”Master, it’s only a few thousand yuan in total. We might as well give it to him.”

Song Jiasen’s face darkened. ”I thought he was capable! How dare he come here, flaunting his family’s name on my land? The fool! Who raised him to believe such stupidity would work?”

”But Master, the thing is, he really is a young master of the Ma Family,” the steward protested.

Song Jiasen gave a contemptuous snort. ”And what of it? This is Blue Poplar Village, and here my rules hold sway. Tell the weighers to be exact. Weigh every peach carefully. And if he refuses to sell through us, let him carry the lot home and watch them rot in his hands.”

Luo Sancai had no choice. In the end, he sold the peaches at the standard rate.

Unable to get the better deal, Ma Wu snatched the money and stormed off, muttering curses all the way down the road. ”You just wait! When I make my comeback, you’ll learn what regret means!”

That night, Li Banfeng and Ma Wu set out again for the new land, dragging along a sack of stinky fish. But this time, the steward had caught wind of it early and hurried to report the news to Song Jiasen.

When Song Jiasen heard the news, he gave a cold little sneer. ”So he’s learned it isn’t profitable and won’t even hire help now. Let him go. If he manages to catch any peaches, buy them at the same rate. Just make sure he can’t say we denied him his beggar’s share.”

Ma Wu and Li Banfeng moved quickly through the forest. Every so often, Ma Wu glanced around and checked their path with Li Banfeng to make sure they were on the right track

”Brother Li, if you weren’t here, I’d never have the guts to cross this forest alone. Come on, let’s move faster before the peach tree catches the scent and comes our way.”

”Brother Ma, I can go as fast as you please. I’m only worried you’ll be the one falling behind.”

”My body’s too weak. Why don’t you carry this sack instead?”

”Nonnegotiable. You’re carrying the stinky fish.”

At two in the morning, the two men came out of the forest and stopped at a wide lake. It stretched over three li, and the water was so murky that not even a scooped handful showed a hint of what lay beneath.

Li Banfeng took out a fishing net, hooked the tigerhead louse they had collected from the peaches onto it, and began to fish.

”In Blue Poplar Village’s new land, tigerhead lice are the best bait for snakehead eels. With these, we’ll catch them by the dozens,” Ma Wu said with confidence. An hour later, not one eel had taken the bait.

That was how business worked. There was always a bit of risk involved.

If they failed to catch any snakehead eels that night, all their efforts earlier would be for nothing.

”These eels are taking their sweet time tonight, Brother Li. Stay calm, let’s wait a bit longer.”

Li Banfeng caught a strange scent in the air. He lifted his head slightly and said, ”What’s that smell? It’s strong… almost too fishy.”

Ma Wu’s face brightened at once. ”Brother Li, you smell something fishy? That’s the sign! The snakehead eels are coming. They always carry that awful stench wherever they go!”

Li Banfeng sniffed the air for a long moment before shaking his head. ”No, it isn’t here. The smell is coming from across the lake.”

Ma Wu was astonished and deeply puzzled. He couldn’t smell a thing himself, so how could Li Banfeng possibly detect a scent coming from the other side of the lake?

Following Li Banfeng to the opposite shore, they cast the net once more. When they pulled it up, two black-scaled eels burst from the water, twisting and thrashing in the moonlight.

The snakehead eel lived up to its name in every way. It had the head of a snake, the fangs of a snake, and it kept flicking its tongue in and out, just like a snake.

Li Banfeng began to wonder if it was truly a fish at all, or a snake that had somehow grown to have the body of a fish.

Ma Wu rushed forward.

”Brother Li, don’t touch it,” he said sharply. ”This fish is venomous. If it bites you, you’ll be dead within an hour.”

With his gloves on, he packed the fish into a sack. At the same time, Li Banfeng reset the bait and cast the net again.

Two hours later, the two had caught a total of thirty-one snakehead eels.

Once they had caught enough fish, Li Banfeng slung the sack of snakehead eels over his shoulder, while Ma Wu took up the sack of stinky fish. Together, they set off for Blue Poplar Village.

The Song Family’s chief steward, Tang Tianjin, noticed Ma Wu and deliberately came forward to greet him. ”Young Master Wu, back so soon? And still carrying that sack of stinky fish? Didn’t catch any peaches last night?”

Ma Wu gave a cold snort and said nothing.

Tang Tianjin spoke with a warmth so exaggerated it almost sounded rehearsed. ”Young Master Wu, don’t be sad. Please don’t be sad. Try again tonight. If you manage to pick any peaches, we’ll be waiting to buy them from you.”

During the day, Ma Wu slept downstairs, while Li Banfeng went back to his Pocket Dwelling. ”Wifey,” he said to the gramophone, ”I smell like fish. Boil some water for me, will you? I need a wash.”

Pop… crackle… pop…

The gramophone snapped, ”Hot water? Hot water? Why don’t you buy a boiler for once? Do you even know how many days it’s been since I last had a meal?”

And to be fair, ever since they had come to Blue Poplar Village, Li Banfeng hadn’t fed his wifey anything at all, except for the few bandits who had tried to rob him.

”Now, now, don’t be upset, wifey. In two days’ time, I’ll get you a proper treat.”

The gramophone let out a furious shriek, ””Bring home food in two days, or I’ll eat you up myself!”

Li Banfeng snapped, ”Do you seriously mean that? Are you planning to murder your own husband?”

Pop… crackle… pop…

”So what if I do? Once you’re out of the way, I’ll marry someone who’s actually useful! Then I won’t be starving one day and stuffing myself the next, trapped in this dreadful life of yours!”

Though the gramophone said all that, she still boiled a basin of hot water for him. Li Banfeng washed himself clean and was just about to lie down when the Tang Saber appeared before him.

”To kill within ten steps, leaving none alive across a thousand li[1]!” it declared in a clear, ringing voice. ”The hour of decisive battle is upon us!”

”What battle?” Li Banfeng froze, blinking at the Tang Saber.

”If you lack the courage to fight, I’ll never yield to you or listen to your commands,” the saber proclaimed, just as it had the very first time.

Li Banfeng groaned inwardly. Not this again. How did this thing reset?

Pop… crackle… pop…

The gramophone sneered beside him. ”Husband dear~ didn’t I warn you? That enchanted artifact of yours isn’t worth keeping. It only works three times, one swing each, and after that, poof! It forgets its master, and you’ll have to tame it all over again.”

Li Banfeng looked at the Tang Saber and sighed. ”So after three swings, I have to fight you? That doesn’t sound very fair.”

The Tang Saber’s voice was firm and proud. ”Such is the way of the sword!”

Li Banfeng was clearly dissatisfied. ”You’re a saber, not a sword. Why do you keep talking about swordsmanship?”

The Tang Saber rose upright, gleaming with pride. ”As long as the meaning is conveyed, all is well. Now tell me, where shall we duel?”

The Tang Saber moved with grand, sweeping gestures, almost theatrically. As Li Banfeng watched, he noticed a small detail: the sheath clung too tightly to the blade, as if some trick had been used to keep it in place.

Li Banfeng said, ”Today we fight in the outer room.”

”Very well!”

The Tang Saber followed Li Banfeng into the outer room. The gramophone gave two contemptuous snorts and said nothing.

In the outer room, the man and the saber stood facing each other. Li Banfeng said, ”I thought the hour of decisive battle is upon us. Why haven’t you unsheathed?”

”Hek hek hek!” sneered the Tang Saber. If I were to unsheathe, you would only threaten me again with that pill of yours. Our combat strength is worlds apart. Even in my sheath, I can still kill you.”

The Tang Saber wasn’t bragging. There really was a vast gap in strength between it and Li Banfeng. Even if the blade stayed sheathed and the Tang Saber fought as nothing more than a wooden staff, it could still kill him.

The Tang Saber still carried the bearing of a martial artist. It called out to Li Banfeng, ”Strike.”

Li Banfeng said to the bronze lotus, ”Swallow it whole.”

Shrrr… clink, shrrrk~

The bronze lotus had waited an awfully long time for this day. It hadn’t eaten in ages.

Its petals spread wide, gleaming like bronze fire, and the heart of the flower flickered with light. Then the air began to twist as a hungry wind started pulling the Tang Saber toward its shining core.

The Tang Saber hissed, ”A fair duel means one against one! You summon help and dare call yourself a hero?”

Li Banfeng said, ”Our last duel was agreed upon by both of us. This time, you’re the only one who wants it.”

As the Tang Saber was pulled closer and closer to the glowing heart of the lotus, it writhed, thrashed, and hissed. ”If you win by dishonorable means, I will never yield to you!”

Li Banfeng shook his head. ”I don’t need you to yield. You’re too much of a nuisance. I think I’ll just melt you down and craft something new.”

The Tang Saber stared at the crimson lotus that was getting closer and closer. It did not know the origin of the thing, but it felt itself likely to be reduced to ash.

”If you throw me in there and take me out again,” it cried. ”I fear I will no longer be an enchanted artifact.”

Li Banfeng nodded slowly. ”That’s fine by me. If I can refine even two pills from you, they’ll serve me better than you ever have.”

The Tang Saber stopped struggling and let out a desperate cry. ”All my life I have wandered alone, and now at last I have found a master worth following! I will serve you like a dog, like a horse, anything you wish!”

Li Banfeng ordered the bronze lotus to stop, then turned to have a proper talk with the Tang Saber.

”I strongly dislike this rule of yours, that you must duel me after every three strikes. From today onward, it must change.”

The Tang Saber protested, ”I am an enchanted artifact! My rules are the heart of my being. If they change, my spirit essence will have nothing to cling to, nothing to live on, so this rule simply cannot—”

Li Banfeng glanced over his shoulder. ”Lotus, feeling hungry?”

At once, the Tang Saber’s tone changed completely. ”The rule can’t be changed, of course, but perhaps it can bend a little. Next time we duel, I’ll just admit defeat right away!”

Li Banfeng nodded. ”That’s a better attitude. But still, only three strikes every fight? Isn’t that a bit too few?”

The Tang Saber trembled all over. ”My lord, this rule cannot be changed. Three strikes are the limit of my strength.”

”Who says it cannot be changed? Next time I send you into battle, strike three times, fight me, surrender, and you will have three more strikes.”

The Tang Saber replied, ”My lord, your wisdom shines like the sun, but that plan won’t work. After three strikes, I must rest for several days before I can fight again.”

In other words, the Tang Saber had the strength for only three strikes. Unless it rested long enough, it couldn’t fight for Li Banfeng again.

Li Banfeng tried every way he could to make the saber agree, but the Tang Saber had no solution to offer. Still, seeing how sincerely it behaved, Li Banfeng decided not to make things difficult for it.

That night, Li Banfeng and Ma Wu once again carried sacks of stinky fish and set out for the new land. They didn’t go toward the lake this time. Instead, they slipped through the forest from the west and came out upon a barren stretch of desert.

The night wind swept across the sand, whispering as it went. The dunes shimmered pale and yellow under the moonlight, and it was hard to imagine a place like this could exist right beside a thick, green forest.

Ma Wu tossed the sack of stinky fish aside. Li Banfeng took out the snakehead eels and laid them beneath a patch of cacti.

In the vast desert, there was nothing but sand and cacti. Not a blade of grass, not a single tree. Ma Wu started counting the cacti under his breath. ”One, two, three…”

There were twelve in all. When he finished counting, the two of them lay down on the yellow sand, backs against the cacti, and began to chat under the still night sky.

Li Banfeng said to Ma Wu, ”We didn’t really have to go back to the village last night. We could have stayed in the new land and kept watch.”

Ma Wu shook his head. ”That would not be possible. Song Jiasen would start to suspect something. In Blue Poplar Village, finding treasure in the new land isn’t the hard part. The hard part is doing it while avoiding the Song Family’s detection.”

”Take the Spined Swallowing Pearl, for example. If we sell it through the Song Family, they will pay us at most twenty thousand. But if we take it to Greenwater City, we will be able to sell it for two or three hundred thousand instead.”

”If you want to make money in Blue Poplar Village, the trick isn’t in your methods. It’s in illusion, in fooling and trickery, in knowing how to make others believe—”

Ma Wu stopped mid-sentence. He glanced back over his shoulder and began to count again. ”One, two, three…”

Ma Wu counted again under his breath. ”Twelve… thirteen.” Then he broke into a grin. ”It’s here.”

The cactus they’ve been waiting for has arrived.

Author’s Note:

P.S. The cactus in this chapter is called the spiky swallower, and they really made a huge profit this time!

It’s the first day of the month! Readers, please vote for me! Thank you all so much for your continued support!

1. Just in case anyone question this. This has to be in li because the Tang saber is from the Tang dynasty and speaks like it is from the Tang dynasty ☜