Should I wait a bit longer? Forget it, no need to wait any longer. Sooner or later I have to return. The matter of Ling Miaoying also needs to be resolved. He plotted against me, and I can’t let him off the hook. Don’t think his cultivation level is high; there are always ways to deal with him. He turned his head for a final glance at Iron Gate Fort, feeling as though he couldn’t quite let go. In his moment of indecision, he suddenly heard someone calling from beside his ear, "Senior Brother, where are you off to?" Senior Brother? Is he calling me? Li Banfeng turned around and saw a man with a swollen and bruised face standing behind him. Anyone who could approach Li Banfeng undetected was certainly no ordinary person. Li Banfeng took two steps back and demanded, "Who are you?" The man laughed and said, "Senior Brother, have you forgotten me so quickly?" Li Banfeng listened closely and recognized the voice despite its muffled sound. "Peddler? How did you end up ?" The Peddler’s laughter grew even heartier. "Senior Brother, that’s a question for you, isn’t it?" "You, stop calling me Senior Brother," Li Banfeng said, somewhat embarrassed. "There’s a misunderstanding here." The Peddler nodded and replied, "The misunderstanding here is huge, beyond explanation. Let’s put other matters aside and first discuss this ’Senior Brother’ issue. Tell me, where did you get the title of Senior Brother from?" In the midst of speaking, the Peddler was rolling up his sleeves. Li Banfeng realized that the situation was turning sour and quickly reached into his trouser pocket. "Don’t, please don’t pull out the keys," the Peddler said with a vicious smile. "Others may not know your tricks, but do you think I don’t?" "Well, you see, I was just trying to do a good thing..." "You talk, take your time. You’ve tarnished my reputation and even posed as my Senior Brother! I want to see what you have to say for yourself!" The Peddler had pulled a feather duster from his goods cart. Half an hour later, both men, with bruised and swollen faces, sat by the lake together. Li Banfeng sighed and said, "With your cultivation level, how could you have been beaten by a bunch of home cultivators?" The Peddler gave a bitter laugh. "We are all just beings from the mortal world. How could I bring myself to strike them hard?" Li Banfeng rubbed his face and said, "You hit quite hard!" The Peddler, looking at Peach Blossom Lake, asked, "So, are you going back to Greenwater Bay?" Li Banfeng hesitated and then said, "I want to go back, but I feel like I can’t. The affairs at Iron Gate Fort seem unresolved. They are honest folks, but why should honest folks be bullied? You took care of the problems at Hai Chi Ridge, so why won’t you take care of the Iron Gate Fort’s troubles?" The Peddler laughed and said, "The famine at Hai Chi Ridge was caused by the Insect Leader. What is his cultivation level? If he harms mortals, I cannot ignore it. "The trouble at Iron Gate Fort was caused by a group of swindlers, a bunch of scammers with barely any cultivation level, who deceived them. How can I intervene? "Zhou Anju, relying on a large iron gate and colluding with the Grass Bandits of Flying Eagle Mountain, easily fooled these home cultivators for decades. "Ask those home cultivators, have they ever seen the bandits of Flying Eagle Mountain? Would those fur thieves of Flying Eagle Mountain dare to go to Iron Gate Fort? "Home cultivators are best at guarding their own households. Not to mention those fur thieves, even if you brought the most powerful Lu Family from Puluo State there, ask them if they could take down Iron Gate Fort? "Home cultivators turning a deaf ear to the outside world is in their nature, but they’re being too ridiculous. Any Tom, Dick, or Harry barks a few times, and they treat them like a tiger. Today Zhou Anju comes and deceives them. Tomorrow, if a Pei Anju shows up, will they still be deceived? Can I manage all of that?" "If you can’t manage it, wouldn’t the Local Deity take care of it?" "Why should the Local Deity care? As long as there are people on his land, that’s what matters. Are swindlers not human beings?" Li Banfeng pondered for a moment and asked, "Is there really such a thing as a ’Deceive cultivator’ in the Taoist Sect?" The Peddler stared at Li Banfeng and asked, "Are you talking about ’Foolish Cultivation’ or ’Deceive cultivator’? You haven’t come across a foolish cultivator, have you?" Li Banfeng shook his head repeatedly. "No, I’ve heard that Foolish Cultivation died out long ago." "Good that you haven’t encountered one. The sect of Foolish Cultivation is something you should definitely avoid at all costs." You’re telling me now... Li Banfeng quickly changed the subject. "I was just talking about Deceive cultivator." "’Deceive cultivator,’ this Taoist Sect... how should I put it?" the Peddler said with a profound tone. "If you say it exists, it really does. But if you say it doesn’t, it indeed doesn’t." "Can you explain it more straightforwardly?" "We have to start from the origin of Deceive cultivator. Years ago, Puluo State had a con artist who claimed to be of the Ninth Layer of Deceive cultivator. He concocted a background and a story for himself. Since cultivation level is invisible, this story deceived countless people. "Ordinary folk were one thing, but even many prestigious families were deceived by him. He built a fortune and even established a Great Clan Gate, dominating Puluo State for decades, with no one able to expose him." "No one exposed him in decades?" With a sigh, the Peddler said, "He had three principles of cultivation that were quite remarkable: "First, as long as he didn’t make a move, his cultivation level was real. "Second, as long as his move wasn’t seen, his cultivation level was also real. "Third, if he was seen, but others didn’t understand, his cultivation level was still real. "For decades, ninety-nine percent of people could not see through these three principles. A very few, after being deceived, saw through them, but they couldn’t speak out." "Why can’t they speak out?" Official source ıs novel•fire.net Looking at Li Banfeng, the Peddler asked, "If you were a high-level Cultivator and got conned by someone without any cultivation level, what would you say? "You’d definitely claim you were momentarily caught off guard by his Technique. Otherwise, where would you hide your face?" "Knowing you’ve lost face, you should kill the con artist!" With a bitter smile, the Peddler said, "Human affairs are not so simple. Knowing you’ve been duped, you’d rather someone else fall for the same trick. Seeing others get conned makes you feel a bit better about yourself. That’s just how people are." Li Banfeng was speechless for a moment upon hearing this. The Peddler continued, "With these three principles—paired with verbal skill, strategy, power tactics, and psychological manipulation, plus a group of helpers and all sorts of trickery gadgets—this unique method becomes a distinctive Taoist Sect. "If you say it’s not a Taoist Sect, well, the con artist’s cultivation principles really do work, and the longer he practices, the more refined his deception becomes. "If you say it *is* a Taoist Sect, he doesn’t have any actual cultivation level. So, Deceive cultivator is an ambiguous existence." Li Banfeng deeply resonated with these words. His reputation was legendary, yet no one ever seemed to have witnessed his abilities firsthand. Li Banfeng now understood that Zhou Anju’s cultivation level was indeed not low; no wonder he could dominate Iron Gate Fort for decades. Standing up, the Peddler said, "There are too many con artists in this world. Some of them, even I can’t identify. "There is no utopia in this world. You kill one Fortress Lord, and tomorrow another will take his place. The home cultivators of Iron Gate Fort need to rely on themselves to survive." Li Banfeng also stood up. "They should rely on themselves, but someone should still lend them a hand. This matter is not yet finished." The Peddler was right. Inside Iron Gate Fort, they were selecting a new Fortress Lord. As a loyal follower of Lord Zhou of the Fortress, Ma Dingfu naturally became the next Fortress Lord. Wu Yongchao felt somewhat unresigned. He wasn’t interested in the position of Fortress Lord, but he always felt that Old Hu Tou’s death was connected to Ma Dingfu. Not just Old Hu Tou, he even suspected the bandits of Flying Eagle Mountain had ties to Ma Dingfu. However, he had no solid evidence, and the other home cultivators didn’t care much about the Fortress Lord’s affairs. It seemed Ma Dingfu’s position as Fortress Lord was about to be secured. But to do things properly and legitimately, Ma Dingfu still had to host a banquet to solidify his status as Fortress Lord. Late at night, Wu Yongchao was torn on whether to attend this banquet or not. If he didn’t go, he feared future ostracization. If he went, the sight of Ma Dingfu’s face would make him feel sick. Amidst his dilemma, he heard someone knocking at the door. Opening the peephole, Wu Yongchao found it was the "Peddler." "Listen to my explanation first, about your Fortress Lord’s affairs..." "No need for explanations, come in," Wu Yongchao immediately opened the door. "I trust you!" With those words, things became much easier to handle. "Do you know where your Fortress Lord lives?" PS: It’s not the fault of the honest person who gets conned.