Inner Demons

Chapter 168: Good Will and Malice Share Comments

Hearing this, Old Daoist Liu spun around abruptly, and the Illusory Realm Spiritual Power he had cultivated over the past month filled all the meridians in his body—in an instant, his hair and beard stood on end, and his sleeves billowed without any wind. “Brother Xin, have they come to kill us?!”

But Li Yunxin smiled and waved his hand. “Don't be so savage. Guests have come from afar.”

He stood up and patted Old Daoist Liu on the shoulder, and all the Spiritual Power in Old Daoist Liu’s body was calmed by him. The old Taoist priest was slightly surprised. “Brother Xin, you—”

Raising and surging Spiritual Power could not be retracted at will; it always needed to be calmed down slowly. In Li Yunxin's previous world, martial artists had a specific way of slowly composing their breath after practicing their forms.

But now, Li Yunxin had gathered it for him with just a pat—after his initial shock, Old Daoist Liu was overjoyed. “Brother Xin, you’ve improved again!”

Li Yunxin couldn’t help but smile. “What do you mean, ‘improved’? You make it sound like I’m a beginner. This Chiwen body is a natural Manifestation Realm great demon. Even without Votive Power or spiritual energy, its power will slowly increase—just a bit slower. Not to mention, at this time of year…”

He completely ignored the cultivators he had detected hiding among the crowd, and instead slowly walked out of the canopy, squinting at the sky and into the distance.

Then he said leisurely, “It should be time to plant the beans.”

Old Daoist Liu let out a slightly bewildered “ah,” not knowing why he had suddenly brought up this topic.

But Li Yunxin stood outside the canopy for a moment, then snapped his folding fan shut. “Let’s go. Since there are eyesores here, let’s go out of the city and have a look.”With those words, his figure flickered, and in the blink of an eye, he appeared in a deserted ruin outside the canopy. With another step, he was several yards further away. Old Daoist Liu didn’t understand, but he knew Brother Xin wouldn’t be just sightseeing. He glanced back at the busy crowd, gritted his teeth, and used his divine powers to follow.

The two of them quickly left the city—and sure enough, one or two trackers were behind them.

It was now afternoon, when the sun was at its most intense, baking the road until it was hot to the touch. They were walking on a smooth official road—of course, “smooth” by the standards of this era—but it was still dusty. The road surface wasn't asphalt, but a mixture of gravel and sand, which would turn muddy on rainy days.

As Li Yunxin walked, he tapped the road with his fan, then pointed to the fields in the distance, and even further to the burned-bare Yeyuan Mountain. “It’s May now, time to plant beans—you know about planting beans, right?”

Old Daoist Liu’s face turned red. “Well… I didn’t engage in production before…”

“Hmm. Then it’s not surprising,” Li Yunxin said. “Three types of beans are grown near Weicheng—hemp beans, white beans, and soybeans. Hemp beans are very difficult to cook until soft and are mainly used for oil production. White beans are not for eating; they’re used to make dye. Soybeans are quite ordinary, but they are what the farmers plant the least.”

After just these few sentences, Old Daoist Liu was stunned. “Brother Xin, why have you started caring about these things?”

Li Yunxin smiled faintly. “It’s not because I’m idle. It’s of great use—take a look behind you and see if anyone is still following.”

Old Daoist Liu turned his head for a look. “Two people. Dressed normally… Heh, in my earlier years, I also sent people to tail others. But these two… they are brazenly staring straight at us, not being discreet at all.”

“‘Skill breeds boldness,’ it’s understandable,” Li Yunxin said, shaking his head. “These people look to be at the Intent Realm, or even the Illusory Realm. I think they are proper cultivators. That Yue Yunzi has quite some influence—to be able to privately mobilize so many people. Intent Realm, Illusory Realm cultivators are figures who have the final say in a city or a region in the secular world. Now they’re being asked to do manual labor and disguise themselves to tail someone—they can’t suppress that pride in their hearts. Lower-level cultivators are more human; this is just human nature.”

“But speaking of planting beans—Old Liu, do you know what this means?”

His topics often changed abruptly. In the early days, Old Daoist Liu had trouble adjusting, but by now he was used to it. He immediately put the two men out of his mind and naturally continued the conversation. “This… food is the first necessity of the people. I suppose these are just… side dishes?”

Li Yunxin walked and smiled. “You see, my previous assessment was right. Your standard of living in Weicheng was truly middle-class—you had a business, property, ate fine rice for two meals a day, and even had meat and wine from time to time. Your life… even wealthy landlords in more remote areas might not compare.”

“But Weicheng is a prosperous place after all… Hey. When you were on South Mountain those days, you should know what your lady ate, right?”

Old Daoist Liu’s face reddened slightly, but he didn’t deny it. “Now that you mention it, Brother Xin, it’s true… She mostly ate sweet potatoes.”

“It’s a good thing you have sweet potatoes here; they have an extremely high yield,” Li Yunxin sighed. “Even so, many people still can't get enough to eat. Look at these continuous stretches of good farmland outside the city—not an acre belongs to those farmers. What truly belongs to them are just some barren pieces of land in the corners. They scrape a living from that land.”

“And then they also grow grain and beans on these lands for the few major families in the city. Look to the west, that stretch of land—in a few days, it will be planted with bean seedlings. The hemp beans are pressed for oil, and the oil dregs and bean cakes are the payment for those tenant farmers. The white beans are sent to the estates near Jinghua for dyeing—the Great Qing Dynasty favors white, you know.”

“These things… are what you would call their staple food. The staple food we normally eat is a fine side dish for those tenant farmers.”

Old Daoist Liu was dumbfounded. “This… are these people really in such a state?”

“You think they have it hard? This is considered good, being in Weicheng, near Weicheng—the number one city of the Qing Kingdom. You can’t imagine what it’s like in more remote places, but I can.” Unconsciously, Li Yunxin had walked a long way with him, and Weicheng behind them had almost turned into a green shadow. “But I don't blame you. [ㄨ] Even in my time… um, in some other places, if you told someone that an official had an income of two thousand large coins a month—equivalent to one tael of silver—a lot of out-of-touch people would jump out and mock you for being ‘out of touch’—how could anyone's income be so low—not knowing that the city or region they live in does not represent the whole world.”

Li Yunxin was in a talkative mood, speaking incessantly. But Old Daoist Liu listened, dumbfounded. Firstly, because he didn't know why Brother Xin cared about these things—he didn't seem like a person who worried about the country and its people. Secondly, he marveled… that Brother Xin would actually take the effort to understand these things, and in such detail. A celestial-like figure like him was not afraid of demeaning his own status.

When Li Yunxin paused and glanced behind them, Old Daoist Liu finally had a chance to ask, “All that you’ve said, Brother Xin… I never knew any of it before. It’s admirable that a person like you knows more than I do. But… what do you plan to do? You went to the Yu Manor before, were you planning… to seek some benefits for those common people?”

“You’re overthinking it. I can’t manage them—reform has never ended well since ancient times, and I’m not getting into that mess. Besides, I’m saying all this not because of some suffering among the people—but just to make you understand the importance of planting beans.”

Li Yunxin stopped. They had previously turned onto a side road and could now barely see the tall city walls of Weicheng. To the west, there were faint outlines of some villages, but the houses were low and far from beautiful.

That was because behind the villages was Yeyuan Mountain.

Lingkongzi and Bai Yunxin had fought, and the entire Yeyuan Mountain had been burned to the ground. Although green sprouts had reappeared on the mountain, it would take a decade or several decades for the trees to grow back.

And without the trees—the birds and beasts in the mountain were almost all killed or scared away. For the next ten years or so, this mountain would likely be a barren one.

Below the mountain, next to the villages, there were still large fields. Some unknown crops grew in them, but they were far from as vast and fertile as the fields near Weicheng.

Li Yunxin and Old Daoist Liu stopped on this ridge between fields. At their feet was a very shallow irrigation ditch. It was mostly filled with mud, with only a pitiable puddle of murky water. The green grass by the side of the ditch also looked listless, its leaves drooping limply.

Li Yunxin swept his folding fan toward the distance, encompassing all the fields. “These fields are now growing yellow artemisia. You see, it’s already withered. In a few days, they’ll set a fire to burn all this artemisia, and then they’ll start plowing. After three or four days of plowing… guess what they’ll do?”

Old Daoist Liu picked up the cue, “Sow the bean seeds.”

“Yes. Sow the bean seeds,” Li Yunxin sighed. “But they still have to wait for the right time. If there’s a heavy rain that soaks the land thoroughly, it means there’s a ninety percent chance of a bountiful year. Especially this year—”

“The forest was burned. They can’t gather wild vegetables or hunt wild game. They also can’t cut firewood to sell in Weicheng—if they don’t want people to starve to death, they can only rely on this one bean planting.”

“You saw the irrigation canals. They are all like this one—it’s the best the villages can do. The government also builds water conservancy projects, but where do they build them? In the fields of the powerful families outside Weicheng.”

“Let me tell you something, see if you find it funny—” Li Yunxin squinted at the small village in the distance. “Weicheng is right next to the Wei River, and there’s also a Dongting Lake by the Wei River. This field, these fields, are only about a dozen miles from the Wei River, but… they lack water.”

“Because upstream of the irrigation canals are the fields of the powerful families. Only after they open the floodgates for irrigation can this side receive a little water flowing down from upstream. Is the Wei River actually short of water? No. Why not let in more water? The families say they’re afraid too much water will damage the seedlings. In reality, it’s because—if these people are full from their own fields, who would have the mind to take care of their fields, coveting those oil dregs and bean cakes?”

When Old Daoist Liu had listened to him before, he had a general feeling of wonder, "How does Brother Xin know all this?" By now, although that feeling was even stronger, another emotion was also welling up—

These people truly had a hard life.

Seeing him staring straight at him, Li Yunxin spread his hands and shook his head slightly. “You’re surprised I know so much—you should be. There aren’t many scholars in Weicheng who would know this much, or even want to know. But as for me, I’ve read many books and seen many things in the past.”

“So, for these farmers, they can’t really count on the irrigation canals.”

“They couldn’t count on them in past years either, and the harvests weren't good, but they still had the mountain. They relied on the mountain for their livelihood. Wild vegetables and game could always fill their stomachs.”

“And this Qing Kingdom… is inland. Logically, such a large continent, alas, so large… by the time you get to the Qing Kingdom, it should be quite arid. But relying on the crisscrossing inland water systems, and also—” Li Yunxin pointed to himself, “spirits and demons like me, who call themselves Dragon Kings of various places, it has managed to hold on, and even produce a few lands of fish and rice!”

“So, Old Liu. In a place like this, with a not-so-great climate and infrequent rainfall… what do you think is the only thing those farmers, the fate of tens of thousands of people, can count on now?”

Old Daoist Liu finally understood what Li Yunxin was getting at.

A feeling of solemn admiration arose in him, and he took a deep breath. “The Dragon King… making it rain!”

Li Yunxin was silent for a moment, then smiled. He looked in the direction of the Wei River. “Right. They are counting on me… the Wei River Dragon King.”

“Especially these few days, especially during this period.”

“So that’s why there are over a dozen Dragon King Temples near Weicheng alone. Because this is the inland, it’s always relatively arid. People rely on the heavens for their food, rely on the rain for their food—who would they worship if not the Dragon King?”

“And for the past month… I haven’t dared to show my face. That Lord of Dongting can’t leave Dongting. So, have you realized? It’s now late spring and early summer, but what? Not a single drop of rain has fallen. This is the normal inland climate without spirits and demons bringing rain.”

“So after this yellow artemisia is burned… when the farmers are waiting to plant their beans… Ah!” Old Daoist Liu clapped his hands, his eyes wide. “Everyone will be thinking of the Dragon King! That’s different from ordinary thoughts!”

Li Yunxin smiled. “It’s not just at this time. Beans need rain, but don’t they need it at other times too? So, being a Dragon King… is actually a very promising profession. I just don't know how far my rainmaking abilities can reach.”

Old Daoist Liu happily rubbed his hands and exclaimed, “Ah, ah, this is a good thing after all! I was just wondering about your realm, Brother Xin… how has it advanced by leaps and bounds these past few days!”

“Realm is one thing, but actual combat is another,” Li Yunxin said, turning around. He took a brief look and saw the cultivators standing in a small wood in the distance. He pointed at them unceremoniously with his folding fan. “Like those two idiots over there. Since they're here to do something like tailing someone, they should do it thoroughly. Now they’re standing behind trees—feeling that truly crouching down to hide somewhere would be undignified. But standing openly on the road would be discovered by us—they are currently wavering between being a whore and wanting a monument to their chastity. Seeing them, I feel very sorry for them too.”

“And my Divine Dragon Cult is founded on the principle of helping others for fun—so if we can help, we should.”

Hearing his words, just as Old Daoist Liu was about to volunteer himself, Li Yunxin suddenly vanished from his side!

The next moment, he was seen suddenly appearing in the woods, right next to the two cultivators!

To an ordinary person, the hundred-pace distance between where they had been standing and the small woods was already quite far. But cultivators had sharp eyes and ears, and they could see clearly from such a distance. Old Daoist Liu had intended to follow closely, but the next time he saw the scene in the woods…

He was instantly stunned!

He saw Li Yunxin, the moment he appeared, manifest his divine-demonic form, his sideburns as white as snow and his deer-like antlers as red as blood. He seized one of the cultivators, who was only half his height, in his hand. With just one bite…

He bit his head off!

He opened his mouth and tore off another bite… and half of the body was gone too!

=============