Chapter 221: Chapter 167: The Last Resort (Thanks to Alliance Hierarch Young Xia)
On New Year’s Eve, Li Banfeng was sitting at the entrance of Guotie Village, stewing medicinal herbs.
The fragrance of the medicine filled the air, attracting swarms of mosquitoes. More than ninety percent died upon contact with the mist. Ninety percent. Yet, less than ten percent did not die immediately. This small fraction alone could ruin an entire village’s harvest.
Not just one village, but the whole of Hai Chi Ridge suffered this plight.
Like all other medications, Elder Yao’s remedy was highly effective initially, but similar problems would arise after some time.
The village chief of Guotie Village sat down beside Xiang Jichun and Li Banfeng, laughed, and said, "It’s New Year’s! Come to my place for a bowl of dumplings and a drink."
Li Banfeng shook his head. "You go ahead and drink. I’m not hungry."
"Seventh Master, you’ve poured your heart into our village. We won’t forget your kindness."
"Cut the crap. There’s no kindness to speak of. I’m just a freeloader. You should get going; another freeloader will be here soon."
"Another one...?" Xiang Jichun didn’t understand Li Banfeng’s meaning. Since Li Banfeng refused to elaborate, the old village chief could only sigh and depart.
Before long, Pan Dehai appeared.
"Virtue is the foundation of one’s standing, virtue is the basis of one’s cultivation! Do you know the greatness of virtue? To consider the long term, to contemplate deeply—that is the true greatness of virtue! To act hastily, without careful deliberation—is that the behavior of a virtuous person? To be impetuous, without foresight—is that the behavior of a virtuous person? To disrespect elders, to refuse good counsel—is that the behavior of a virtuous person? To speak arrogantly, to act improperly—is that the behavior of a virtuous person..."
"Nagging on and on, will you ever stop?" Li Banfeng, unable to bear it any longer, glared at Pan Dehai angrily.
Pan Dehai jabbed his walking stick, equally furious. "The prescription Old Yao had you deliver is completely ineffective! How much effort did I expend arranging the medicinal materials? How much money did it cost? How many Local Deities did I beseech? How should this account be settled? You two are grievously lacking in virtue!"
Being berated by Pan Dehai for lacking virtue made Li Banfeng very angry.
Pan Dehai demanded angrily, "Where’s the fan I gave you?"
"Threw it away."
"You dare! That is a treasure among men!"
"I’ve hidden it somewhere."
Pan Dehai sighed repeatedly. "I should have taken the Magical Treasure back. You were no help at all!"
Li Banfeng was speechless.
Even the Medicine King’s remedy proving ineffective was something he hadn’t anticipated.
After a long silence, Pan Dehai sighed deeply. "The Lu Family’s methods are also useless."
Lu Dongjun had also failed?
Watching the mosquitoes dance in the air, Li Banfeng felt a wave of despair wash over him.
Pan Dehai shook his head. "I shouldn’t have mistakenly trusted you all. In the end, I must resort to my own methods. Only if Puluo State stands united against a common enemy can we overcome this disaster."
Li Banfeng looked at Pan Dehai. "You’re going to send the pests to another territory again? If even the Medicine King’s remedy is ineffective, where could you possibly send them?"
"I will send the pests to Greenwater Bay. Greenwater Bay has the most capable people. If Lu Dongjun isn’t up to the task, others will be. There must be a way to deal with these pests."
"Send them to Greenwater Bay? Can you defeat Green Flower?"
Pan Dehai declared righteously, "Even if I perish, what harm is there in trying? This is the steadfastness of virtue, the courage of virtue, the very heart of virtue!"
Li Banfeng shook his head. "Green Flower won’t help you."
From the Orange Garden owner’s description, one could infer that Green Flower intended to spread a plague within his own domain.
If he didn’t even care about his own territory, why would he possibly help Pan Dehai?
Pan Dehai shook his head. "I refuse to believe I can’t persuade him!"
Li Banfeng scoffed, "You’re all talk."
"Insolence! How can one so young be so disrespectful to their elders?" Pan Dehai rebuked sharply, then softened his tone. "From what you said earlier, it seems you’re acquainted with the Greenwater Beggar. Since you possess the heart to save people from this disaster, why not go and..."
Li Banfeng retorted angrily, "You want me to go find Green Flower?"
No wonder Elder Yao had once said that any pleasant words from Pan Dehai should be treated as hot air.
"I didn’t ask you to fight Green Flower. I merely want you to meet him first."
Li Banfeng looked at Pan Dehai with disdain. "You’re afraid of him yourself, so you want me to walk into death’s trap."
"When have I ever feared him!" Pan Dehai proclaimed with conviction. "My righteousness is ever-present! Why should I fear a mere Greenwater Beggar? Even if he were standing before me right now, I would... What is that smell?"
Suddenly, Pan Dehai darted behind Li Banfeng.
Li Banfeng was startled. What was happening?
In the distance, a beggar approached, clad in tattered rags, his body covered with sores oozing green pus.
Green Flower!
Li Banfeng was also shocked, then heard Pan Dehai mutter, "How did Green Flower become blond? This isn’t the Greenwater Beggar, but he smells exactly the same."
The one approaching was indeed not Green Flower, but Disease Cultivator Cui Tiq.
Stumbling, Cui Tiq reached Li Banfeng, a smile forced onto his pus-covered face. "I’ve finally found you."
Li Banfeng took a step back. "What do you want with me?"
"I’ve come to help you. I’ve come to rid Hai Chi Ridge of these pests. I love Hai Chi Ridge."
Li Banfeng glanced at Pan Dehai. "He says he loves Hai Chi Ridge."
Pan Dehai’s cheeks twitched. He remained silent, the sight of the green pus making him profoundly uncomfortable.
Cui Tiq lacked the Golden Gaze Autumn Hair Technique. Despite his Sixth Layer cultivation level, he couldn’t see Pan Dehai.
"Who were you just talking to?" Cui Tiq asked in surprise.
Li Banfeng looked towards Pan Dehai again, expecting him to reveal himself, only to find that Pan Dehai had already fled far into the distance.
"You tell that Greenwater Beggar, if he dares bring his plague to Hai Chi Ridge, I, Pan Dehai, will never let the matter rest with him!" came Pan Dehai’s distant shout.
Pan Dehai had run off, terrified of contracting the disease.
Who would have thought that old man could run so fast with a cane!
Li Banfeng turned to Cui Tiq. "Do we know each other?"
"We do. You saw me at Medicine King Valley. I’m a Foreign Devil—the real kind, not a fake."
Li Banfeng remembered him now.
The foreigner covered in blisters.
He evolved?
The blisters turned into pustules?
Recollection dawning, Li Banfeng quickly backed away, clutching a key, ready to flee.
Cui Tiq waved his hand. "Don’t go. I’m truly here to help you with pest control."
He glanced at the pot of soup on the ground and shook his head. "This medicine isn’t truly effective, though it’s not completely useless either. It can kill pests—ninety-five out of a hundred mosquitoes, for instance. But the remaining five won’t die. They will survive, reproduce, and their offspring will also survive. This is the evolution of life. Individual adaptations drive the evolution of an entire species. In the Outside Provinces, this is called mutation, or resistance. You’re from the Outside Provinces, so you should understand what I mean."
Li Banfeng indeed understood Cui Tiq’s point; he had considered this aspect himself.
"Do you have a better way?"
"Yes. Poison won’t eradicate a species, but disease can. I can spread my diseases to the mosquitoes, letting them infect one another. One infects ten, ten infect a hundred—that is the proper way to exterminate mosquitoes."
It sounded highly effective, yet Li Banfeng sensed a potential problem.
"Won’t mosquitoes develop resistance to the disease?"
"Yes!" Cui Tiq nodded. "Just using one kind of disease makes it difficult to exterminate this type of mosquito. Among a hundred infected ones, perhaps one will survive. The offspring of this survivor will be immune to that particular disease. I had a fellow practitioner who used a similar method and failed, so I improved upon his approach, ensuring the mosquitoes are infected with multiple diseases simultaneously. Among those hundred mosquitoes, the sole survivor will be rendered unable to reproduce by the combination of diseases."
Li Banfeng asked, "Could there be no individuals among them capable of reproducing?"
"There will be!" Cui Tiq had evidently considered this. "Those exceptional individuals that can still reproduce will have their habits altered by another disease. Their lifespans will lengthen, and their diet will shift from grain to blood. They will transform into another successfully surviving species—the common mosquito we encounter most frequently. This is the outcome of selection through cross-disease extermination."
"You can infect mosquitoes with so many diseases at once?"
Cui Tiq nodded. "Originally, I couldn’t. But now I can. I have obtained a special power, a power from the Grandmaster. This power is immense, but it almost cost me my life."
This time, Li Banfeng had no further questions.
Based on his knowledge of biology, Cui Tiq’s method was indeed sound.
It might even be the only effective method.
But why was he doing this?
"Why do you want to help Hai Chi Ridge with its pest problem? Don’t tell me it’s out of love for Puluo State." Li Banfeng worried Cui Tiq had ulterior motives; if he intended to use this opportunity to spread a plague, things would become very troublesome.
Cui Tiq looked at Li Banfeng. "It’s to save myself. This is an agreement I have with the Peddler. As long as I save Hai Chi Ridge, he will save my life. This is proof."
He produced a feather duster. "The Peddler gave this to me. He said you would recognize it and would definitely help me."
Using a feather duster as proof?
Only the Peddler would devise such a method.
With the Peddler’s assurance, Cui Tiq was trustworthy, at least in this particular matter.
"Why didn’t the Peddler come himself?"
"He said he has many other things to attend to, that Hai Chi Ridge isn’t the only place in trouble."
Li Banfeng didn’t speak.
Cui Tiq asked Li Banfeng, "And what about you? What’s so special about Hai Chi Ridge to you? Or do you also have some special agreement with the Peddler?"
Li Banfeng did not answer.
He had no agreement with the Peddler.
Delivering the prescription had fulfilled his promise to Elder Yao; disaster relief was not truly his responsibility.
"First, tell me what you plan to do," Li Banfeng said.
Looking at the soup pot, Cui Tiq said, "I need to gather mosquitoes, a great many of them. To spread the diseases rapidly, there must be a sufficiently large population. What we have now isn’t enough, far from it."
「...」
Late at night, Li Banfeng stood beside the farmland, braving the snowstorm, waiting for Pan Dehai’s response.
After more than an hour, he finally heard Pan Dehai’s voice.
"Tell that foreigner to leave quickly! Hai Chi Ridge is already in such a dire state; we can’t let him bring a plague here too!"
Li Banfeng shouted, "Give me more medicinal herbs! At least let us try once!"
Cui Tiq sat in the distance. He didn’t know who Li Banfeng was actually talking to; Li Banfeng often seemed to talk to himself.
Is he crazy?
But this madman was currently the only person he could rely on.
PS: Thank you to Alliance Hierarch Young Xia, who enjoys being a knight-errant, my Brother, through all tribulations, the glory of endless lychees remains!